Day 16
We had a bit of a slow start that morning. We woke up around 9 and quickly got up and ready. We headed up to the Windjammer and had a quick bite to eat. Graham had poached eggs on toast and some porridge and I had poached eggs and toasted English muffin with peanut butter. After breakfast, we got some coffee each and headed down to the Schooner Bar for morning trivia, where we scored our traditional 11 out of 15.
I had seen that there was a birthstone seminar in the Star Lounge at 11:00. That sounded interesting. So I headed up there after morning trivia. Unfortunately there were a couple of people outside the Star Lounge telling people that this had been postponed until the next day due to a clash in scheduling. I never worked out what the issue was as there was nothing else going on at the Star Lounge. Anyway, I found Graham on the helipad, told him of the change of plan and then I went to retrieve my iPad. I then headed up to the solarium.
All the loungers by the window had gone, but I got a lounger in the middle and settled down with my book. At some stage Graham joined me for a while. I decided that I fancied a non-alcoholic cocktail. The Solarium Bar was closed, but the bar by the main pool was open and I ended up with a Virgin Mango Daiquiri, which was delicious. After a while, Graham decided to get some sunshine. I stayed where I was. I quite enjoyed that spot and I did not move again until it was time for the Equator Crossing Ceremony.
The pool deck was absolutely packed when I got there, but I got a decent enough spot in the second row. I did wonder if I should pass, but then I figured that I would live to regret this as likely this was the only chance that I would ever get to experience this. It was very silly and very messy involving cooked spaghetti, flour, raw eggs and marinara sauce. For all the silliness, it was quite moving. After the ceremony, King Neptune and his companion stayed around for photos and there was a ship photographer present. So I stayed behind to get a photo.
I wanted to get some lunch. I headed for the Windjammer, but that was a complete zoo. It looked like the whole ship headed there after the ceremony. So I went off to find Graham. As I crossed the Royal Promenade, the food station caught my eye. They had tandoori chicken and grilled vegetables that day. This was served with mini sub rolls, which was a little strange. I also had my first experience of Lamington, which is sponge cake covered in chocolate and coconut. I found Graham as soon as I had my food. He was sitting outside the pub. I joined him while I had my food and then I headed off to the Star Lounge for progressive trivia.
I did enjoy progressive trivia again. I stayed for Battle of the Sexes. That was a different proposition entirely. For some reason a clique had developed within the female team and they did not really let anybody else get a look in. It was not too much of an issue during the first round I suppose because the spokesperson was part of that clique anyway. During the quick fire round, Joe had the control on who to pick to answer the question so it was not really a problem during this either. However, the final round really got my back up. The topic was the plays of Shakespeare and as a literature graduate, I know a thing or two about this. So I went up to the front to help out. They would not let me anywhere near the person writing down the answers. After this, I was done with Battle of the Sexes. Life is too short for nonsense like this.
I went back to find Graham. I had told him earlier about the afternoon snacks at the Windjammer. He suggested we should go up to check this out. So we headed up there and Graham put together a plate of nachos for himself and I got the chilli cheese fries. They definitely hit the spot. Then we headed down to the Schooner Bar. They were scoring the scavenger hunt when we got there and I was kind of sad we had missed this. This was actually a proper Scavenger hunt unlikely the silly photo event we did on the Transatlantic cruise. Next up were charades and I had quite a lot of fun watching this, but was too shy to join in. I did however realize that there was a group sitting behind us that were also from Manchester. There were hardly any people from the UK on this cruise so this was kind of strange.
One of the bartenders came round to offer drinks. Graham had a glass of wine and I asked for a virgin cocktail and ended up with a Virgin Mudslide, which was very lovely, but so rich that I could not have drunk a second one. So when we were offered a second drink, I asked for something fruity and ended up with another Virgin Mango Daiquiri. While I was still enjoying this, the event that we had come for had started. It was caller Where In The World Am I? The host specified if it was a city or a country he was looking for and then gave three clues. We actually got 14 out of 15, but so did quite a few others. We fell afoul of the tie-breaker, which I should have known. This was the year Explorer of the Seas went into service and I was out by one year.
After the trivia, we went back to the cabin to get changed into our swimming gear. Graham fancied a swim and the hot tub was calling me. We headed up to the solarium, but Graham decided that he fancied the main pool. This turned out to be a very good choice indeed. When we got there, the film that they were showing that night was just starting. It was called A Monster Calls and had not really appealed to either of us. Indeed, the opening scenes did not seem to be very promising either. I found that the large hot tub closest to the screen was empty so that is where I headed. I found that I was really getting into the film. Occasionally I saw Graham swim past, but suddenly I could no longer see him. He was standing at the front of the swimming pool watching the film as well. I convinced him that he would have a better view and be more comfortable in the hot tub. So he came to join me. We stayed there until the film was finished. This was a very civilized way of watching a film.
Once the film was over, we dried off as much as we could and then headed back to the cabin. We took turns getting showered and got changed and then we headed up to the Windjammer for something to eat. That evening the theme of the menu was the Australian Gold Coast, which was very heavily seafood based. I still found some food that I enjoyed. We both had some beef strip loin and potato wedges. Graham also had some fish and vegetables. I had fried shrimp, chicken and cheesy potato skins. We both had a glass of Chardonnay with dinner. I had a chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Graham did not fancy dessert.
I took a quick photo of the angel statue that is suspended from the ceiling in the aft elevator lobby and then we headed downstairs to make the rounds of the photo opportunities. Once we had taken care of those, we went to the R Bar where Graham had a glass of Merlot and I had a glass of Chardonnay. We then headed back to the cabin to read for a while before heading to bed.
On the Christmas tie! He definitely displayed it very proudly in the pictures!
