We came joint first in the Abba quiz this afternoon but failed to win the tie breaker which was the first to shout out the name of a further Abba song we heard.
We then tied with one other group in the general trivia quiz which followed, but it turned out there was no prize for that one! It was however the first general knowledge quiz we've won on this cruise.
Thursday, 31 March 2016
Wednesday, 30 March 2016
Wildlife!
Not much wildlife to see from the ship on this cruise - no whales or dolphins, but we finally saw some flying fish yesterday.
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| Two flying fish - one top right, the other bottom left, thin shiny slivers. Even on a very fast camera shutter speed they can still be a bit of a blur |
Galley Tour
On Wednesday afternoon we had a galley tour. There was a detailed introduction from the
head of food and beverage on the ship and he also introduced us to various top members of
the team.
Then we went off into the galley. That part lasted barely 10 minutes and what
we saw was a pale imitation of the much superior Queen Mary 2 galley tour that we saw in 2014. To see that, go
to http://atkinsnewyorkqm2.blogspot.com/2014/08/voyage-day-7-sunday-3-august.html
and scroll down a little.
The ship has a capacity of 2850 passengers and 1500 crew and
they did give us a sheet to say what was consumed on a 7-night cruise. Just to give you a taster of that –
- 14542lbs of beef – yes, that’s 6⅟2 tons!
- 32652lbs of fresh fruit – and that’s over 14⅟2 tons!
- 12000 fresh eggs
- 35000 litres of beer
- 12652lbs of fish – more than 5⅟2 tons
- 48659lbs of fresh vegetables – nearly 22 tons
- 76540 litres of milk
- 19000 tea bags
- and 12450 bottles of wine
We're on a 12-night cruise, so your homework tonight is to work out what stocks of the above were needed for our cruise! Answers in the comments box, please!
Well done, everyone!
We're now up to 700 page views on this current blog, so thanks for your interest!
Tuesday, 29 March 2016
Floating Pleasure Palace - Deck 14
Still moving down the ship, this is Deck 14, the deck above where our cabin is. On this deck are the Sky Observation Lounge, a large bar and dance area at the front of the ship, the Mast Grill and Mast Bar and the Oceanview Café and Oceanview Bar.
Sky Observation Lounge
These photos were taken just as the two daily afternoon quizzes in here ended, so it was quite busy. We won our second quiz just before these pics were taken, sharing the highest marks with a few other teams of two. Believe it or not, the subject once again was 'musicals' and also believe it or not, this time we both contributed to the answers. Our prizes? A pack of Celebrity Cruises playing cards each, much sought after on the open market, we understand!
Mast Grill and Mast Bar
Mast Bar on the left and Mast Grill (hot dogs, burgers etc plus chips during the main part of the day) on the right
Oceanview Cafe
The main cafeteria of the ship but, as always not as we know cafeterias! It's open 24/7, but only for drinks during the night and breakfast starts at 6.30am with some basics and then builds up the offer till 11.30am when that ends and lunch starts. The main dining room is open for breakfast and lunch as usual, though we haven't ventured in there for either.
The breakfast offer is probably the best yet with endless fruit and healthy options on offer, as well as cereals - including bite-size shredded wheat, English cooked breakfast, American cooked breakfast, Asian breakfast, an egg station for whatever eggs you'd like, pancakes, cold meats and cheeses, smoked salmon - you name it they offer it!
Lunch brings an offer of many different hot meals plus salad bars, pizza bar. There's also a sushi bar, two carveries (today it's beef and pork) a stir fry station and today there's also a chocolate fountain in full swing.
Of course the ship has endless numbers of 'slaves', mainly from the Philippines, Mauritius, Goa and eastern Europe. In fact they probably have more on here for this size of ship than we've seen elsewhere. The hierarchy remains the same however, with the lowest class of jobs being done by those from the third world, the middle managers coming from the slightly better off countries and the officers being very white European/US etc. That said, the staff all seem particularly happy and we've noticed that the managers in such as the Oceanview and the main restaurant aren't afraid to get stuck in and help out at busy times.
Oceanview Bar
The Oceanview Bar is our favourite haunt for an al fresco breakfast and a buffet lunch. The overhang is useful for when we get the odd rain shower. At lunchtime the two main stalwarts who run the bar are tireless women from the Philippines - Ruth and Rosemarie who endlessly move round the tables collecting empties and satisfying the apparently insatiable Aussie appetite for ever more beers and cocktails
Sky Observation Lounge
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| We do the quizzes perched on our seats right up at the bar. It's a good place to get our free drinks too! |
These photos were taken just as the two daily afternoon quizzes in here ended, so it was quite busy. We won our second quiz just before these pics were taken, sharing the highest marks with a few other teams of two. Believe it or not, the subject once again was 'musicals' and also believe it or not, this time we both contributed to the answers. Our prizes? A pack of Celebrity Cruises playing cards each, much sought after on the open market, we understand!
Mast Grill and Mast Bar
Mast Bar on the left and Mast Grill (hot dogs, burgers etc plus chips during the main part of the day) on the right
Oceanview Cafe
The main cafeteria of the ship but, as always not as we know cafeterias! It's open 24/7, but only for drinks during the night and breakfast starts at 6.30am with some basics and then builds up the offer till 11.30am when that ends and lunch starts. The main dining room is open for breakfast and lunch as usual, though we haven't ventured in there for either.
The breakfast offer is probably the best yet with endless fruit and healthy options on offer, as well as cereals - including bite-size shredded wheat, English cooked breakfast, American cooked breakfast, Asian breakfast, an egg station for whatever eggs you'd like, pancakes, cold meats and cheeses, smoked salmon - you name it they offer it!
Lunch brings an offer of many different hot meals plus salad bars, pizza bar. There's also a sushi bar, two carveries (today it's beef and pork) a stir fry station and today there's also a chocolate fountain in full swing.
Of course the ship has endless numbers of 'slaves', mainly from the Philippines, Mauritius, Goa and eastern Europe. In fact they probably have more on here for this size of ship than we've seen elsewhere. The hierarchy remains the same however, with the lowest class of jobs being done by those from the third world, the middle managers coming from the slightly better off countries and the officers being very white European/US etc. That said, the staff all seem particularly happy and we've noticed that the managers in such as the Oceanview and the main restaurant aren't afraid to get stuck in and help out at busy times.
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| Bar for alcoholic drinks and better quality coffees including spirit and liqueur coffees |
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| Just an example - cakes as lunch desserts |
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| Drinks station - tea, coffee, fruit juices, water etc |
The Oceanview Bar is our favourite haunt for an al fresco breakfast and a buffet lunch. The overhang is useful for when we get the odd rain shower. At lunchtime the two main stalwarts who run the bar are tireless women from the Philippines - Ruth and Rosemarie who endlessly move round the tables collecting empties and satisfying the apparently insatiable Aussie appetite for ever more beers and cocktails
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| People can make a place look untidy! |
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| A rather serious looking Ruth takes yet another set of orders from those with free drinks packages (and that seems to be most of the passengers!) |
Floating Pleasure Palace - Deck 15
Moving down the ship, Deck 15 consists of the The Sunset Bar at the back of the ship, the Lawn Club, the Hot Glass Show and the Children's X Club -
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| Sunset Bar |
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| Lawn Club |
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| Under the canopy is the Hot Glass Show area where they do glass blowing demonstrations (which we've heard aren't particularly good!) |
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| Part of the X Club -- I'm not allowed in properly as I'm too old! |
Floating Pleasure Palace - Deck 16
We thought it was about time we let you have some photos of this floating pleasure palace. We're starting at the top of the shop on Deck 16. It's not a big space, but it's nicely sheltered and few people seem to know it's here -
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| Some people seem determined to get in on the act at all costs! |
Isle of Pines
The Isle of Pines isn't quite an archetypal desert island as it's bigger than we expected, but I can imagine that Captain Cook's sailors must have rubbed their hands with glee at the prospect of a short break on land here.
What's so nice here is that there's so much space for passengers, those crew who are being allowed out today plus some local French from the ruling party!
There's also a lot of shade. The sand is the finest grade I think I've ever seen and when I say it gets in everywhere, I mean everywhere! The sea is warm and, yes, the water is the colour you see.
What's so nice here is that there's so much space for passengers, those crew who are being allowed out today plus some local French from the ruling party!
There's also a lot of shade. The sand is the finest grade I think I've ever seen and when I say it gets in everywhere, I mean everywhere! The sea is warm and, yes, the water is the colour you see.
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| A few private clubs / accommodations here too |
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| Captain Webb is about to enter the water in his bid to swim the Pacific |
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| Little hat is still visible! |
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A few impromptu stalls appeared to tap in to the cruise trade! |
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| "Weather's hotty today" |
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| Tender station - cold flannels and cups of water were waiting for us as made our way back to the ship |
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| The French used this island as a penal colony until just over 100 years ago |
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