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Wednesday 3 February 2010

Cruise Sea Day #2 ....

After a great night's sleep we awoke at 6 a.m. and sat on the balcony with a cup of tea watching the sunrise.  We read the ship's daily newspaper 'Out and About', to discover what was going on throughout our first day at sea, then went for breakfast in the Plantation Restaurant.

There were four restaurants onboard - the Plantation (self service and open 24 hours per day), the Waterfront (open for breakfast and dinner also self service), La Luna on deck (open lunch and dinner with an extra charge) and The Bistro for which James Martin the TV Chef creates the menu (open for dinner only with an extra charge, silver service).    We booked a table in The Bistro for 7 p.m. to celebrate the first day of our holiday.

There were numerous bars on the ship too - Blue Bar (5 p.m. - 1 a.m), Connexions (4 p.m. - 1p.m.), The Oval (10 a.m. - 1 a.m.), Splash (on deck 9 a.m. - close), Sunweaver Ice Cream Parlour (10 a.m. - midnight), Plantations Bar (11.30 a.m. - midnight) and Bayside Club ( 10 p.m. - until late).

There was also a theatre - The Marquee - which put on shows twice nightly, as well as entertainment in Connexions Bar and The Oval.

So you can see from the above we were never short of entertainment or somewhere to eat and drink - which is why we both gained in excess of 7lbs each!

We spent some time exploring the ship for which we needed a map.   Even by the end of the cruise I still managed to walk round in circles!



One of the swimming pools on Deck 12 taken from Deck 14.

We found a lounger on deck and did a little sunbathing until lunchtime, not too much as we didn't want to get burned the first day, then went for some lunch.  There was a great selection of food and we ate far too much.   We then made our way up to deck 12 and found a table where we had a drink and watched the Strong Man competition and Champagne Hoopla which was great fun.  I tried to persuade MWM to take part but he wasn't feeling very energetic!




By this time we were tired so we went back to our suite and sat on the loungers on the balcony watching the sea and had a little nap.   By the time we awoke it was time to shower and change for our meal at The Bistro.  



Our friends had been on this cruise and recommended The Bistro and their description of it and the food was spot on.

From an extensive menu we chose the following:

Me: Sliced Parma Ham, pecorino cheese and Savoy cabbage salad with truffle oil/ Line caught cod with braised puy lentils, pancetta, Parmentier potatoes and noilly prat shallots with a selection of vegetables/ Pineapple and rosemary tart tatin with vanilla bean ice cream.

MWM: Deep fried smoked haddock fishcakes with hollandaise sauce/Roast breast of corn-fed chicken with creamed leeks and pancetta and a selection of vegetables/Iced caramel parfait with peppermint crisp.


Does that sound delicious?   It was, and guess what - it only cost us £12.50 each!


You're not allowed to take your own alcohol on board, so we had ordered a pack of wine - six bottles of a mixture of White, Red and a sparkling Rose to keep in our cabin fridge, which you are allowed to take to the restaurants to enjoy with your meal.  You can also take them into the bars.  The wine wasn't being delivered to our cabin until the following day so we ordered one off the menu at The Bistro - very nice it was too!



After dinner we went to the Marquee where we saw a magician/comedian called Manuel Martinez who was extremely funny. Click on his name to watch him on Youtube.  He was Cuban but spoke very good English but somehow his accent made everything he said funny.   He flew back to England a few days later to appear on 'Britain's Got Talent' and apparently got through to the next round, so we should see him again when the show airs.

The Connexions Bar was our next stop as there was another comedian on - Martin Beaumont, he was so good we stayed after his performance and took part in the quiz until he did his second show at 11 p.m., which was totally different to the first one.

By the time the show had finished we were ready for bed - well it was 12.30 a.m. and we'd been up since 6 a.m., so that's where we went next.

Join me again for our first stop - Tortola.


38 comments:

quilly said...

The food does sound yummy! No wonder you gained a bit of weight.

Anonymous said...

Sounds wonderful, great pics. queenie

Elaine Denning said...

*waves at queenie*
It sounds wonderfully relaxing. I'm not surprised you put on a little bit of weight - I'm getting fat just thinking about it!
Lovely photos...the colour of that dress really suits you. x

mrsnesbitt said...

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm! Yes I enjoyed the first day with you, feeling a tad tired now after all the excitement so will have a nap! See you tomorrow, give me a knock on your way to breakfast! lol!

Mike Minzes said...

Ok, so you went on a cruse and did't invive me???

Dulçe ♥ said...

Great cruise and well enjoyed!

Beautifil pics
Thanks for sharing!

Dulce

Empress Bee (of the high sea) said...

this is a GREAT review! yay for you! more please!

smiles, bee
xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Akelamalu said...

Oh I know Quilly, but it was so good!

It was Queenie. More photos to come. x

Aw thanks Laney. I'm on starvation rations now. ;)

The first day was tiring Mrs. N. Hope you make it for Tortola. :)

I thought you'd be busy Realliveman LOL

Glad you enjoyed it Dulce

snowelf said...

Oh I wish I could kidnap some boy to come play about on a cruise ship with me. What a fabulous first day--and so many ammenities!

--snow

Akelamalu said...

So glad you're enjoying it Bee x

There were lots of people on their own you Snowelf and children were more than welcome with so much to do for them. You could always take the chillis. :)

cheshire wife said...

Very interesting! I am curious - what TV/channel did you get on the TV in the suite?

CG said...

It does sound wonderful - i would never dare go on cruise, though, as i would eat far too much!!!!

Daryl said...

I always wanted to take a cruise, this is perfect, I get to tag along and not gain an ounce!

Ron said...

First, I have to say...

...you look GOREGOUS, m'dear!

And judging from that big smile on your face, you were having the time of your life!

I've never been on a cruise, but I hear the food is PLETHORA. Both your dinners sounded AMAZING!

So does the WINE!

*wink*

Thanks for sharing, Akelamalu. Can't wait to read more!

Enjoy your day! X

Akelamalu said...

According to the ship's newspaper this is what was available on the TV Cheshire Wife:
1 Navigational & Safety Announcements/Mast Camera
2 Movie Channel
3 Action Ashore
4 Movie Channel
5 Cartoon Network
6 turner Classic Movies (Reception permitting)
7 BBC/CNN (Reception permitting)

We never watched it though.

Oh CG if I ever go on another cruise I will have to lose 2 stone before I go!

Ah but you don't get to feel the sun this way Daryl, you need to do it for real. x

Why thankyou Ron, I scrub up well but look a mess without the hair done and the makeup during the day! LOL Glad you're enjoying it honey. x

secret agent woman said...

It would just be wrong not to eat and drink well on vacation.

Cloudia said...

My turtle tattoos are excited about seeing Tortola through your eyes. You both look marvelous - the food sounds delightful!





Aloha, Ake Sis


Comfort Spiral

Linda said...

My goodness but that sounds like a wonderful way to spend your first day - lounging and eating and lounging and eating and laughing and lounging and eating and ... !! Sounds like my idea of the perfect cruise!

buffalodick said...

Sounded like another wonderful day!

Nessa said...

Such a full day and you look so happy and relaxed.

Baby's First Christmas

Anonymous said...

I've never been on a cruise but I read #1 and this one and it was just wonderful :) The pictures are wonderful and so is your posts. Thanks for sharing this. Boy I'd be eating non-stop :) Welcome home my friend :)

G-Man said...

A Cuban Commedian?
I bet he was Mui Loco!

Travis Cody said...

It's amazing how full a day at sea can be!

Dumdad said...

Just catching up with Parts 1 and 2 of your holiday. Looks and sounds tremendous. Very envious!

Akelamalu said...

Well that's exactly what I thought SAW! LOL

I'm so pleased you enjoyed Tortola Cloudia x

YOU summed it up perfectly Linda :)

It was Buff :)

We were definitely happy and relaxed Nessa :)

Thom you need to do a cruise - you would L.O.V.E. it! :)

He was so funny G-man - you can see him on Youtube here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASK9NeY8MPs.

Isn't it just Trav!

I can highly recommend it Dumdad!

Flowerpot said...

Well - am I green or green?!

Unknown said...

Sounds and looks fantastic. I am waiting with baited breath for all the other installments.

I am going on a cruise for my 50th birthday......................A cruise along the Monmouth and Brecon canal!! LOL

the mother of this lot said...

Looking good in the cruisewear!

Grumpy Old Ken said...

Welcome back! Advice needed re publishing. Can I email you please.

ken
grumpyoldken.com
kenneth.stevens1@ntlworld.com

Spiky Zora Jones said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Spiky Zora Jones said...

akelamalu: Yay...I love cruises. They're awesome...oh and you had a wonderful time. One can tell by the smile on a person's face when they show pics of their cruise.

I can't wait to hear about your firts stop...Tortola. :)

*pulls chair up*

I'm waiting right here...

CrAzY Working Mom said...

Oh my! It all sounds so awesome! I'm so envious.

Julia Phillips Smith said...

Just catching on up 'our' trip - thanks for taking us along with you! ((hug))

Akelamalu said...

Are you green Flowerpot? LOL

Well it's a cruise no matter where it is Carol - enjoy it and your birthday m'dear.

Thanks MOTL x

Cheers Ken, I've emailed you.

Glad you're enjoyed the cruise Spiky and there's definitely more to come. :)

It was all so awesome Tisha truly.

You're welcome Julia :)

Marinela said...

Beautiful pics, you looking really great :)

Akelamalu said...

Thankyou Marinela and welcome. :)

Nishant said...

It sounds wonderfully relaxing. I'm not surprised you put on a little bit of weight - I'm getting fat just thinking about it!

Work From Home

Akelamalu said...

One couldn't help but put weight on Nishant the food was so good!