The Bistro- Off topic and fun posts!

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from something that's a bit unusual for me.  My late brother was in the Navy on a Submarine stationed in Charleston and in 2014 he asked me to join me at a reunion of the Haddo crew.  I noticed that my very first cruise ship, Carnival Fantasy, was then sailing out of Charleston and booked a short cruise just before the reunion.  September 15, 2014 was a sea day from Charleston to Freeport.

 

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

17 hours ago, BWIVince said:

Some Crystal Harmony memories, from her first couple years in service…

 

 

The aft elevator lobby on Tiffany Deck 6.  This area changed a lot on the subsequent ships.

 

 

The Vista Lounge at Sunset.

 

 

The Trident Bar when it still dipped down into the Neptune Pool.  The sunken bar-top on the right-hand side of the photo (beyond the white tiled pool surround) served the swim-up barstools inside the pool in its early years.

 

 

The Crystal Plaza’s original furnishings, and with the fountain in action.

 

Time flies…

 

Vince

I find these especially interesting since I never sailed Harmony until 2004.

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

Sail Away from Bordeaux - August , 2023.  Very special.

 

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from my 2012 Crystal Symphony transatlantic.  September 16 was a sea day from Reykjavik to New York (skipping Halifax) and the first day after emerging from storms.

 

Roy

 

[Keith1010]

A view from outside the Hollywood Theatre.

 

Keith

 

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from my 2014 Carnival Fantasy cruise.  On September 17 we visited Nassau:

 

 

Roy

[Stickman1990]

Just off Greenland on Explora 1 and the Northern lights are out to play for us tonight - amazing 

 

 

 

[Keith1010]

The typical way pilots arrive although on our last cruise one of the pilots arrived by helicopter and he was not a "helicopter pilot".

 

Keith

 

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from my 2014 Crystal Symphony Transatlantic.  After some very interesting sea days we arrived in New York on September 18.

 

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

This was one of the most amazing seafood entrees I have ever had. Covina.

I learned the next day that the recipe was first featured on Crystal Harmony.

 

I wish I had taken a photo of the menu from that night so I would know exactly how they described the entree. Next time if it is available again.

 

Keith 

 

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise was taken 2 years ago at my 60-year High School reunion.  It was taken on the grounds of Cicero-North Syracuse Central High School (that school opened 5 years after I graduated).

 

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

Given one of the other threads I thought I would post a photo of some of the decorations for the white party.

 

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from a 2003 Australia land trip.  On September 20 we were near Ayres Rock.

 

 

Roy

[KenzSailing]

 

The Chez takes a Night Off, Part 2:

 

Or: Adventures in dining here in the DMV(District, Maryland, Virginia)

 

The Salt Line Bethesda:  First, some background.  An outfit called Profish is one of the largest, if not the largest, distributor of seafood to restaurants in the DMV.  More than a few years ago at this point, they went into the restaurant business with a place called The Salt Line.  And yes, the restaurant specializes in seafood.  It is located in the District, across the street from Nationals Park.  So one year on Opening Day we made a rezzie for lunch, followed by taking in the game.  We were immediately impressed.  Great food, solid service, attractive decor.  Eventually they expanded to NoVa, with I assume the same level of quality.  Well, several years ago they announced they were coming to Bethesda in a location literally 5-10 minutes from our house.  We watched and watched and watched for an actual restaurant to open.  Then, about 8 months ago, lo and behold there was activity.  Finally, happily, about 8 weeks ago they opened.

 

Hoo boy, was this worth waiting for.  Absolutely gorgeous space, same great food, attentive service, all at a price point that won't break the bank.  And it's not a 30-45 minute Uber ride away.  We've already been twice, and it's just been great.  Last time we were there OLoPP had the scallops and had me try a bite.  Utterly perfect(I know from sea scallops.)  Absolutely top shelf U10 scallop, perfectly grilled, with a body of meat that was almost silky in texture.  Think aquatic foie gras.  These folks can cook.  I started with the oysters: fresh, clean, briney, expertly shucked. (Vince, c'mon, Bethesda's not that far. Get down here and the first 6 are on me.  You too Roy, although I don't think you're exactly a bivalve slurper.)😁  For anyone who knows of Kincaids from back in the day here, Salt Line is an ever-so-slightly down market version of it.  It's that good. They have a massive bar area and they're doing late night hours with specials.  Getting pretty big city here in sleepy BCC. (We realized that when we discovered we could see the Marriott HQ corporate signage from our front yard.)

 

Table 22: OK, not a restaurant, but still dining related.  There's this Table 22 outfit that is basically offering a one-stop-shopping service to restaurants for take-out/delivery orders.  Essentially, what restaurants were doing to survive during the pandemic, but with a "you cook it, we'll take care of the rest" model.  They handle the on-line ordering front end, delivery(inside the beltway), probably provide ancillary services like packaging recommendations, etc.  They appear to be continental US wide, but they are really big in DC.  You sign up for a restaurant and it's one meal a month, cancel anytime(I really like that no subscription is required.)  It's a way to get high end meals delivered to our home, with just a bit of reheating involved.  We're signed up for L'Ardente and The Dabney w/Petite Cerise.  To give you an idea what I'm talking about, here's our last  menu from The Dabney/Petite Cerise:

 

Chilled summer corn soup, shrimp, poblano and vadouvan

Heirloom tomato panzanella salad, ricotta salata, red onion and basil

Duck leg confit, ragout of white beans, herbs and peppers served with peach gastrique

Nectarine rice pudding, orange lavender honey, tangerine lace, white chocolate

 

Some assembly required(this meal came in 16(!) containers of various size.)

 

Now that's eatin' good in the neighborhood.

     

[dimundsR]

Will you be my friend?

[Keith1010]

A view of Serenity while in Malaga, Spain.

 

Keith

 

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is the first from a 2017 series of Holland America cruises.  This was taken from Amtrak's Cardinal north of Indianapolis on the way to Seattle to meet MS Oosterdam.

 

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

I have to say I prefer turning the clock back and not forward.

 

Keith

 

 

 

 

[skybluewaters]

8 hours ago, Keith1010 said:

I have to say I prefer turning the clock back and not forward.

 

Keith

 

 

 

 

 

Hahaha....similar to this, we will be on a cruise (non-Crystal) in another month that crosses the International Dateline twice in three days. Actually, that won't be an issue at all because who cares what day it is in the South Pacific when you're cruising?  But moving one hour forward or backward does affect sleep and your daily schedule.  

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from a Lake Champlain cruise on Blount's smallest ship, the former Niagara Prince.  On September 22, 2006 we visited New York City:

 

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

Roy where did that cruise start and end?

 

Keith. 

[rafinmd]

36 minutes ago, Keith1010 said:

Roy where did that cruise start and end?

 

Keith. 

Started in Warren Rhode Island (just up the bay from Newport) and ended in Burlington Vermont.

 

Roy

[Roland4]

9 hours ago, skybluewaters said:

 

Hahaha....similar to this, we will be on a cruise (non-Crystal) in another month that crosses the International Dateline twice in three days. Actually, that won't be an issue at all because who cares what day it is in the South Pacific when you're cruising?  But moving one hour forward or backward does affect sleep and your daily schedule.  

On the 2020 World Cruise we crossed the Dateline Sunday night and the schedule for the Monday said "The day does not exist"! Talk about the perfect way to deal with the "Monday Blues"!!! 😄 😄 😄 

[Keith1010]

WIth the discussion of White Party we wore this on one of the two voyages we were on in August of this year.

 

Keith

 

[rafinmd]

I don't have a travel sunrise for September 23, and as Ophelia starts to affect our weather I won't take one today.  This is from one year ago at the school administration building (in a former school) across the street from my development.

 

 

Roy