Trainman-2

There is a lot of motion with the ship this morning!

Mostly side to side gentle rolling.

It is nowhere near "barf bag" levels but so much water was slopping out of the pool in the Solarium that they drained it! The main pool is still full and open.

Partly cloudy sky and rain showers all around us but none on us yet.

It is about 6:20 am ships time and 5:20 Eastern Standard Time.

It is still dark outside and the ship is rolling a bit. There is the constant sound of "surf" on the pool deck from the water in the pool sloshing from side to side.

The Captain predicted a cloudy day with a chance of rain.

We set out watched back one hour tonight.

Day 10 - Sunday, December 11, 2016 - At Sea - Headed Home

Here is Today's COMPASS

We booked another cruise on the Navigator which will replace the one on the Serenade in 2018.

9 nights on the Navigator sailing on 16 Feb 2018

Dinner in the Windjammer

Judith (Ate cookies in the afternoon)

Me (I tried their Indonesian Food which was pretty good)

Sun Set

A Beautiful Sea Day Today!

The Head Waiter's primary function is to train the wait staff!

If you are served promptly and efficiently then the Head Waiter has done a good job.

Today, with the cut backs in wait staff, the Head Waiter is often out of sight in the kitchen making sure the meals come out correctly.

A few days ago we were in the RCI shops and I noticed a little kid, maybe 2 years old, grab a stuffed animal from a bottom shelf and hold it up to his dad and give him the "buy me this" look.

The Dad shook his head "no" and pointed to the shelf while giving the "put it back" look to the kid.

The cute little kid started to pout, but the stuffed animal back, and immediately ran ahead of his dad a few feet and then dropped to the floor. He assumed the "bad puppy" position with his knees on the floor, his fore arms on the floor, and lowered his forehead to the floor.

The dad walked by, bent over and reached under the kid and swooped him up and carried him out of the store.

The entire episode didn't last more than 20 seconds and I never had a chance to grab my camera. Neither the Dad nor the kid made a sound.

I had never seen this happen before although several women told me it is a common pouting position for many little kids.

I thought is was both funny and cute and wish I had had my camera ready to go for a photo.

Today is a Windjammer Day!

My Breakfast while Judith slept

We both had lunch

Judith

Me

This is the first time I had burgers, hot dogs, or pizza on this cruise and I was impressed!

The burgers are bigger, maybe 1/3 pound, and taste better. The hot dogs are all beef and taste great! They were toasting both the hamburger and,hot dog buns!

The Pizza did not taste like cardboard as so many people like to say. It was way better than school cafeteria and US Army Mess Hall pizza but not as good as a high end pizza restaurant.

We have a nice collection of what I call "historic art prints"

More of them than we have room to hang them all.

The Cheval paintings are exquisite but not within our interests.

We booked two (2) new cruises a few days ago.

Serenade of the Seas, 5 Feb 2018, 11 night Deluxe Southern Caribbean, sailing from Fort Lauderdale.

Rhapsody of the Seas, 29 April 2018, 7 night Western Caribbean, sailing from Tampa.

- We booked the second one on the Rhapsody to get the on board credit and low down payment but when the same cruise becomes available in the fall of2018 we will switch it.

- Both cruises have ports that we have not been to yet.

If RCI and Park West were not making money, I am sure there would be no art auctions on board.

I do enjoy looking at the art on display even though there is nothing that I like.

However, on many of the paintings the skill level of the artist is truly spectacular!

COMPASS - Day 9

Maybe it is still early, but there don't seem to be many Christmas Decorations around the ship. This view of the Centrum shows artificial greenery with white lights on the railings and a few live poinsettias here and there.

View of the Pool Deck from the Smoking Area at 5:00 am.

Complaining is always more fun than complementing!

Yesterday Jack & Kathie went ashore to Kay's Fine Jewelry to get ear rings to match Kathie's gold necklace with the C&A Emblem.

Jack got a nifty free hat!

Dinner in the Windjammer with Jack & Kathie last night

Judith was not hungry because she snacked on cookies late yesterday afternoon.

I am always hungry and the sliced pork loin and creme of garlic soup were excellent!

Last night was "Monkey Night!"

Day 9 - Saturday - December 10, 2016 - At Sea - Homeward Bound

We are so lucky that we found Pet Paradise where we can leave Booty while we cruise knowing that she enjoys it there and has fun playing with the other dogs.

Booty needs a playmate badly but we have hesitated getting a 4th dog.

The cats and wieners are afraid of Booty because she is so much bigger then they are.

One thing is certain, you are guaranteed to get a Junior Suite that nobody else wanted or picked!

I mentioned earlier that they were doing this only in the open air part of the Windjammer where the moisture was affecting the salt & pepper in the shakers.

Is it a side of couscous I'm seeing?:)

YES! And it was pretty good too!

While we were napping, the Captain sailed, so we are on our way home!

Two Sea Days to go and on Monday we debark and drive home to see our dogs, cats, and chickens.