Captain's Welcome

We enjoyed a great nights sleep on board the ship. The seas have been relatively calm. We awoke early today and decided to first go to the Fitness Center for our daily workout and have breakfast afterwards. We did this because we know that during the first few days of the cruise that the Fitness Center can be especially busy. Keith went up to the Center at 6:00 AM and Anne Marie arrived about 15 minutes later. It was like old times. Keith was on the elliptical machine next to Mary, the wife of the computer instructor, just like almost each day of last years World Cruise. We caught up with her about all that each of us have been up to since we last saw her last May. By 7:00 AM there were quite a few passengers in the room, several who we have already seen since the gala along with a few people that we had not gotten a chance to talk with.

All of the treadmills are new. They are outstanding as their screens have many capabilities. The television screen is built right into the treadmills allowing for easy viewing of programs. Anne Marie worked out for one hour on the treadmill while Keith worked out on the elliptical machine for about ninety minutes. We had a wonderful workout.

Afterwards, we went to the Lido Café for our breakfast. There we were greeted by so many of the wonderful crew that we have come to adore. We spoke with Bruno who had been our headwaiter in the dining room for a couple of segments last year. For a portion of the time he is on board he works in one of the specialty restaurants, Prego, as the headwaiter and as part of that job he also works in the Lido Café during the daytime overseeing the staff. He is wonderful and he truly has a passion for his work. He along with the other familiar faces all remembered us. We saw Walter who works in the Silk Road restaurant in the evening as a waiter and during the daytime worked behind the counter in the Lido Café. There was Sigi who has been promoted and oversees the servers in Silk Road in the evening and works the Lido Café in the daytime. There is Nat (pronounced Nate) who is one of the Lido Stewards who also helped us. We love the smile he has on his face each and every day. We also spoke with various fellow passengers and with Mary’s husband, Stan, who teaches the computer class. For those on the entire world cruise they have the opportunity to take a computer class where they can earn college credits. Last year, this was the first time that such a class was offered on any cruise line and some of the world cruisers took this class.

On our way back to our room we ran into Captain Glenn and spoke with him for a couple of minutes. As we mentioned, this is the first time we have sailed with the Captain and he is quite impressive. In September 1998 Captain Glenn became captain of the Crystal Harmony, which was the first of the Crystal ships. In 2000, he also had the opportunity to be the Captain on Crystal’s second ship, the Crystal Symphony. And, in August of 2003 he became the Captain of the Crystal Serenity. We look forward to sailing with him for the entire voyage.

Today is a sea day and we decided that we should get everything in our room organized so we spent a part of the day doing just that. We love our room and its location. It is mid-ship and the staff that takes care of the room is just wonderful.

During the Captain’s morning talk we learned that despite our late departure from the Los Angeles Cruise Ship Terminal last evening that we are expected to arrive in Oahu on time this coming Thursday morning. This is great news ☺

At 10:00 AM we had the lifeboat drill. We are glad that Crystal chose to have the drill today rather than the day we boarded as it was far less disruptive that way. We do take all of this very seriously and we pay close attention to what is covered at the drill. We appreciate all that Crystal does for our well-being.

Keith attended the destination lecture on Hawaii given by destination lecturer Dr. Jay Wolff. Dr Wolff is a retried dentist. He has been retired for twenty years and he has appeared on the History Channel as a commentator. His talk was wonderful. He makes great use of PowerPoint for his presentations and gives a very thoughtful presentation with absolutely no notes.

Afterwards, we saw the grand opening of a new store on board the ship. One of the shops which sells Crystal Logo related items was moved to another area of the ship which had previously been used for art sales and in its place this new store was opened. The new store will be a trunk show, which will feature different jewelry designers who are brought onto the ship. On the current voyage, designer Hubert Gesser is featured. He was on board the ship for one of the segments of last years World Cruise.

We enjoyed a wonderful lunch in the main dining room. We were served by a waiter who we came to know quite well during last years voyage whose name is Dragon. Several times last year we would sit at a table that he had responsibility for.

During the afternoon, we walked all around the ship and spoke with various passengers and staff. Throughout the course of the day we caught up with many from the crew who we had the opportunity to get to know quite well on last years cruise. This included Leo who is the Maitre D’ of the main dining room, along with the Cruise Director, the Hotel Director, the Food and the Food and Beverage Manager. We also spoke with some of the personnel who work at the Front Desk such as Franz and Nina.

We did not participate in team trivia today as we did throughout last years World Cruise. We decided to take a break from it at least for the first segment of the cruise.

Crystal televised today’s NFL Playoff Games in the Stardust Club, which can seat quite a few passengers. They utilized a big screen, and served hot dogs, popcorn, and soft drinks. The game was also available for viewing on the television sets in each stateroom and suite.

This evening we attended the Captain’s Welcome Formal Reception. On each voyage, on the first formal night before dinner this reception is held. We always enjoy these receptions. They provide another nice opportunity to talk with our fellow passenger’s and to hear from the Captain and to talk with some of the other officers of the ship.

After the reception, we enjoyed a wonderful dinner in the main dining room. The atmosphere throughout the ship can be best described as elegant with the passengers all dressed in formal attire.

This evening we realize one additional benefit as we get to turn the clocks back one hour so we get an extra hour to sleep. ☺

Today has been a wonderful day as we enjoyed our first full day on the ship and our first full day at sea. We are now all settled in on the ship. It almost feels as if we never disembarked the ship in May.

Keith & Anne Marie