rafinmd

Thank you Rich, Sandi, Debbie, Dixie, Ann, and all other fellow dailyites. I slept fairly well last night. I enjoy fried rice and Oreos but they are probably not good for me. Dentists are critical. I eat a lot of frozen food. Auckland is a great city that I have visited both on land in 2003 and with Crystal, disembarking in 2011 and again in 2018 and 2020. In 2020 I disembarked Crystal Serenity in Auckland to ride some of New Zealand's trains, rejoining in Wellington. Roy

Nice toots. Thanks Leann, Lou & Dave, and fellow addicts. Roy

Yes on lost sound. Roy

Seems like nobody wants to leave today. Roy

tootlets. Roy

Just one toot? Roy

Should hear Wednesday. Roy

Can you give us an idea of where you will be waving from? Did you request a wave? Roy

Thank You Rich, Sandi, Vanessa, Ann, Debbie, Dixie, Graham and other contributors for today's edition and inspiration. Very late posting although I was up at 5. When I had more energy I would start things off in the kitchen (mostly yesterday's dishes) popping into the kitchen as needed while working on my laptop but now once I enter the kitchen I just stay there, also doing laundry and a couple of other things before signing on. Today was an exceptionally late day. I am named after a cousin who I did not meet until late in his life. Do I have an online personality and an in person personality. Sometimes I think so. I have great memories of reel films, very often used while I was in school. Sadly, I have not been to either the Philippines or Taiwan. Sept well last night until 3AM. I don't think I slept after that but it did not feel like 2 hours before I was up so may have slept some. Roy

An almost continuous parade, and it's almost time for Odyssey but it's also dinner time. Thanks Leann, Lou & Dave, and Fellow Addicts. Roy

Sky RIGHT behind. Roy

LONGGG toots from Eurodam. Roy

Sky showing 0.3 kt on AIS. Roy

First toot from Eurodam I think. Roy

My favorite surviving BHB. Love Zaandam. Roy

Never heard toots from Apex but nice ones from Nieuw Statendam. Roy

Apex moving. Roy

Checking in. Roy

I'll believe it when I see it. I think the Zaandam beam is essentially the same as the Vista/Signature ships bit I'd love to be proven wrong. Roy

I have visited San Juan several times, mostly on Royal Caribbean out of Baltimore. The most memorable one was in February 2013 as we had quite a snow storm the 16 or so hours before we boarded and there was even a snowman built on the pool deck: The first 24 hours out of Baltimore was quite cold and blustery but I did some hanging out inside the ship and enjoyed the solarium and things eventually got more cruise like. We had 2 or 3 sea days to our first port of San Juan, where we docked across the pier from the Eurodam. I took a photo of the 2 ships together from the Citadel: While the Eurodam was somewhat taller than Enchantment the difference seemed pretty small and I am convinced that at least the Vistas could get into Baltimore and I wish they would. That evening I had dinner in the steak house, Chops Grill. I'll close this story with my blog parting shot that day: " I had planned on using the very successful Walk for Wishes as my parting shot until my experience in Chops. I was not trying to eavesdrop but the elderly couple at the next table was speaking quite loudly. The gentleman was complaining about most everything, the cold weather in Baltimore, the rough seas, how long it took to get to San Juan, being rushed in the dining room, the Eurodam had more balconies, and so on. They were behind me but I had to suppress my laughter (he might have been able to see my reflection in the window) when he said “Our third port of call is in the dirt poor country of Costa Rica”. He did keep telling his wife it was his fault for not checking the itinerary more closely before booking. That was the one thing I could agree with. This was a bit of a moment of truth for me. I haven’t made it a secret that I prefer other cruise lines to Royal and in general I’d have preferred to be on the Eurodam. One of my mantras is “every cruise is different” and I’d decided that for this time and circumstance the Enchantment is where I wanted to be, and it’s been my best cruise of all on her. I would have preferred the Eurodam’s more dignified atmosphere, the better food, and even would have preferred a Walk for the Cure on a real wraparound Promenade Deck, but this was not the time. If I had not been on the Enchantment right now I’d probably never have another sailing with Captain Gus might never have experienced John Blair. I’d have preferred a warmer sailaway, but the snow on the deck was part of the adventure. If I had booked the Eurodam I’d have been a real white knuckle flyer, worried about problems getting to Ft. Lauderdale or missing the ship. That would have been an adventure as well but one that I’ve had before and don’t care to repeat. I come back to something Colonel Potter said on MASH, but I could easily have attributed it to Casey Stengel if I didn’t know better: “If you’re not where you are now, you’re nowhere”. Roy

Very late today with no good reason, although I did not sleep terribly well last night.Thank you Rich, Sandi, Vanessa, Dixie, Debbie, Ann, and fellow posters for this great community. An interesting collection of seemingly connected days. Been to San Juan a number of times but I don't think ever on a BHB although I will try to have a San Juan Story a bit later. I'll pass on the Chili. Roy

Welcome Home, @Lady Hudson. Roy

Well, I won't complain but I've been home almost 2 hours and still no rain. Don't know if it will come but I'm inside for the rest of the day. Roy

Happy Friday! Thank you Rich, Sandi, Vanessa, Ann, Debbie, Dixie, and numerous contributors. It's Wegmans Day for me but cold with rain coming so I hope to be back before the rain starts. Slept pretty well last night but the 3AM curse remains. I am hoping for relief when Daylight Savings Time kicks in, I'm clueless about the third of today's dates but will salute the first two. Charlottetown is a lovely city. I'll pass on the meal. Roy

Today was a bit of a special flashback for me. In 2018 I sailed Crystal's 2-ship world cruise and one of the highlights was Symphony's visit to Easter Island. The shoreside event was a visit to a music school set up by concert pianist Mahani Teave Williams. It was built as a sustainable facility enriching the lives of local children and showing the way to preserving the island. This week Good Morning America had a series on Easter Island and the final segment was a visit to the school. It was lovely to see the school still going strong and a great flashback to a wonderful experience. Roy