NOTE: We have posted three pictures. We gave three of our five medals to our Senior Waiter since he was part of the crew team who won the Tug-Of-War Competition and we also gave one of our medals to our Waiter who participated in the Tug-Of-War competition between the crew. We also gave one medal to a young girl who sat with her parents and grandparents at a table in the dining room near our table. She was very well behaved during the entire segment of the cruise and we thought she would appreciate the medal. When we gave it to her this evening we along with the nearby tables gave her a round of applause. We realize that the picture with her is sideways but we could not straighten it out.
Today, we received rather sad news about a friend’s illness. Our thoughts and prayers go out to him and to his lovely wife. This is another reminder to us to appreciate each and every day as no one can predict ones future with any certainty. Some will ask us why we focus so much on the good and this is the reason why. There are times that some focus too much on what is wrong with something and we have come to learn that in the scheme of things most of those items are quite trite in the scheme of things. We are thankful that we have the means and the good health to not only see the world but to be travel on a cruise line as outstanding as Crystal. It is for these reasons that we focus our mind and energy on all that is great about our adventure because we realize how fortunate we are to be able to be a part of such a great adventure. We will continue to hope and pray for our two friends.
We enjoyed another wonderful day at sea as we sail to our next port of call in Hong Kong. We are on scheduled to arrive in Hong Kong at 10:00 AM tomorrow, local date/time. We will be sure to be out on deck as we have been told that Hong Kong is one if not the most beautiful harbour in the world.
We woke up early this morning. Keith was the first to arrive at the Fitness Center and later on others such as John and Mary arrived. By the time Keith finished his workout there were many passengers working out. Keith worked out on the Elliptical Machine and spoke with Mary for a good portion of his workout. Anne Marie was also up and early and did the laundry. We have found that this time of the morning when most of our fellow passenger’s are still sleeping is the best time of day for us to get this done.
We enjoyed a very nice breakfast in our room. We spoke with the butler about our plans for tomorrow. Since we will be out for most of the day in Hong Kong we thought it would be nice to have dinner in our room tomorrow evening. We plan to have sushi and salad for dinner from the Silk Road Japanese Specialty Restaurant.
Today has been a truly beautiful day. During Captain Glenn’s morning announcement he noted that today would be sunny and he was right. We will continue to travel at 19.5 knots per hour in order to stay on schedule for our arrival to Hong Kong. We will be met by the Local Pilot at 8:00 AM tomorrow morning and we should start to see the beauty of the surrounding area shortly thereafter at about 8:15 AM. Captain Glenn’s thought of the day is “You can’t get to the top by sitting on your bottom.”
We began our day by attending Rap with the Rabbi. Once, again we enjoyed the discussion. There was lots of good participation by those who attended and the Rabbi does a wonderful job preparing and leading these discussions. During this segment of the cruise we have lots of passengers attend from various religious faiths and we hope this continues. The Rabbi had invited lecturer Dr. Mark Elovitz to today’s session. Dr Elovitz did a wonderful job answering a variety of questions and offering his opinion on several items discussed today.
Later in the morning we spoke with Olympian Cathy Rigby. She is a wonderful person and has been so very kind to us. We exchanged e-mail addresses with her and look forward to keeping up with her in the future.
In the morning, there were a couple of lectures including Michael Glick who discussed “The Technology Evolution & The Future of Film. Last up in the morning, was lecture Clint Van Zandt. Today he presented “Nostradamus and the Psychic Detectives.” He discussed how the FBI and Police use psychic detectives to help solve mysteries.
At Noon it was time for Team Trivia. Today was the last day of Trivia for this segment of the cruise. We will take a break from Team Trivia during the next segment of the World Cruise. For the entire segment, we ended up finishing in fifth place out of fifteen teams.
Following Team Trivia we met with a few other couples who along with us will be hosting a crew party towards the end of the World Cruise.
Afterwards, we enjoyed a wonderful lunch in the Main Dining Room. We enjoyed sitting at senior waiter Dragan’s table. Dragan will be leaving the ship in Hong Kong to go on Holiday and we hope that we will see him on a future Crystal Cruise. He is truly outstanding.
Although the World Cruise games have ended, at 2:00 PM the infamous Crew Tug-a-War & Slippery Pole competition took place. The Tug-a-War competition featured members of the crew from a variety of departments throughout the ship. Our friend Stan participated in the Tug-a-War with others from the computer university and we believe one other department. They gave it their all, but couldn’t pull it out. Better luck next time. ☺ Other teams included the restaurant waiters, the engine room, the stewardesses, the casino, the front desk personnel, along with other departments. This competition was rescheduled from the other day due to rain. We were glad that today turned out to be a sunny day so that this event could be held. . In the end, one of the teams of Waiters/Senior Waiters from the Main Dining Room won, including our Senior Waiter, Pablo. Way to go Pablo!
Afterwards there was the Slippery Pole competition where members of the crew competed with each other, two at a time. Whoever fell in the pool first lost the round. Only winners advanced to the next round.
These games were lots of fun for passengers and crew alike.
This evening is the final formal night for this segment of the World Cruise. Before dinner we attended the Captain’s Farewell Reception. As usual, it was great to see everyone dressed up in their formal attire and to converse with fellow passengers and several members of the Crystal Crew.
After the reception we enjoyed a wonderful dinner in the Main Dining Room. We gave three of our medals away at dinner. We gave a medal to Pablo our Senior Waiter, and a medal to Layla our Waiter as each one competed in the crew tug a war. We gave one medal to a little girl who sat at a table near us in the dining room as she was so very nice and well behaved.
We anxiously look forward to our next stop in Hong Kong.
Keith & Anne Marie
