We Are On Our Way To Cabo San Lucas (Daily Diary)
We have a day and a half of sailing ahead of us to get to Cabo San Lucas. We cruise along the edge of Baja California all night and all day and all night again! It is 936 nautical miles and we will average 17 knots so it will take 44 hours.
We changed direction at the tip of Baja!
The weather was perfect and the sea was flat!!
Can you believe it? Balloons at breakfast! The kids brought us treasures from last night's festivities, which we slept through. The bright colors danced in the light, bringing a cheerful vibe to our cozy room.
We brewed a fresh pot of coffee, its rich aroma wrapping around us like a warm hug. After all, we had a delicious sushi feast to look forward to during our class at 10:00 am! The anticipation of those tasty rolls made our hearts race even faster. What a way to kick off the day!
Everyone went their own direction for breakfast! We met up again for the sushi class!
Did You Know? - Sushi is a Japanese dish that features medium-grained rice cooked in vinegar, served with raw or cooked seafood and a variety of toppings or fillings. Contrary to popular belief, rice is the main component of sushi, not raw fish. You are probably familiar with the sight of rolled sushi sliced into perfect bite-sized pieces, but not all sushi is rolled.
"Ladies, sharpen your knives!"
When we got there, everything was ready, including the table covered in Saran wrap so we could use it as a workspace. They should have also covered the floor!
The ingredients were ready for us!
The bar was closed, awaiting 6:00 pm arrivals!
We are ready to chop, slice, and dice!
The Travel Purse is ready for an adventure!
Listening for instructions!
"What do we do with these?"
"Perhaps if I look at them with disdain!"
Our first creation was a uramaki, and we used all the tools—bamboo and our fingers! A uramaki is a Japanese sushi roll with rice on the outside and nori on the inside. The name translates to "inside-out roll."
"Look, I did it!"
Did You Know? - Uramaki sushi is rolled sushi with rice on the outside and nori on the inside. This "inside-out" roll was created in Los Angeles by a sushi chef who wanted to appeal to American customers. Machita Ichiro noticed that Americans weren't fond of the seaweed wrapping on traditional maki sushi, so he hid the seaweed on the inside.
Traditional maki is still preferred in Japan, and uramaki is the most popular type of sushi in the US. Many of the sushi rolls referred to as "Special Rolls" on a sushi menu are types of uramaki. It's common for uramaki to be sprinkled with sesame seeds that cling to the sticky rice.
It was perfect!
Perfect!!
We watched the master at work; Sarah made them perfectly. The rest of us laughed our way through the process and had items that looked like a herd of wild animals attacked them.
Chef Sarah in action!
Did You Know? - To be considered sushi, the rice must be prepared with a certain type of vinegar. Sushi vinegar is made of rice vinegar, salt, and sugar. This gives the rice its signature flavor and a sticky texture that holds its shape when molded.
We done good!
We made four different kinds os sushi!
Did You Know? - Sashimi salmon sashimi on ice Technically, sashimi isn't a type of sushi because it contains no rice. We're including it in our sushi guide because it plays an important role in Japanese cuisine. Sashimi is thinly sliced fish or meat, often served raw. It can be any type of meat, but fish and seafood are the most common types of sashimi. Sashimi can also be cooked, like in the case of unagi (grilled eel). It's common to serve slices of sashimi on a bed of daikon radish with a side of Asian sauces like ponzu, soy sauce, or a soy sauce substitute. No other toppings or fillings are added because sashimi is meant to highlight the fresh flavors of the fish. For any seafood that is served raw, it's important to source your fish from trusted suppliers. Learn more in our sushi-grade fish guide.
"Bring it on, I am ready for another one!"
Did You Know? - Nigiri Sushi (Nigirizushi) traditional japanese nigiri sushi with salmon placed between chopsticks Nigiri is a type of sushi that combines a pillow of vinegared rice with a topping of raw or cooked seafood. These two ingredients are all that's needed to create a perfect match of flavors and textures. Nigiri sushi is considered a simplistic delicacy in Japan, a contrast to the complicated sushi rolls that are enjoyed here in the West.
Nigiri vs Sushi The difference between nigiri and sushi (maki) is that the rice in nigiri is pressed into a bite-sized mound, while maki sushi is rolled into a tube and sliced into rolls. Nigiri contains one piece of fish delicately placed on top, and maki rolls contain fillings on the inside.
A work of art!
Oh my, she is ready to be a sushi chef!
Did You Know? - Temaki (Temakizushi) sushi is a little different from the other types of sushi on our list. A temaki hand roll consists of a large seaweed cone stuffed with rice, fish, and other sushi fillings. Unlike maki rolls, temaki isn't rolled with the precise method that produces uniform pieces of sushi. A temaki hand roll is a little more deconstructed and is meant to be eaten by hand as an individual serving.
What Is a Sushi Burrito? The sushi burrito, also called a sushirrito, is a fusion of temaki sushi with the overstuffed burritos that have become so popular in the last decade. While a temaki roll can be held in one hand, a sushi burrito is much larger. Instead of a flour tortilla, sushirittos are wrapped in a large nori sheet and feature typical sushi fillings like rice, fish, and vegetables.
Ah So!
We turned in our dishes to the head chef, and with the magic of a touch here and push there, he made them look pretty darn good,
Jon is also ready for lunch! We eat what we make!
The chef takes our work and makes it presentable
(He did NOT want to give us sharp knives)
It's like real food!
Even Paul's turned out OK!
Wait until we get home!
We downed our creations and decided not to go to lunch. We spotted Jon and Sarah at an empty bar; the rest is history, which we remember. One of these and one of those made for a super afternoon! The bartender remembered us!
The Bolero Bar was our hangout.
We had a drink (or two) before continuing on!
We checked.... no keys!
The girls saw the "mall," and we were off and running. The windows along the top are rooms with windows facing indoors, which is not a bad idea! Last night, the crew hung a thousand balloons from the ceiling, and at midnight, let them drop! Jon and Sarah stayed up for the balloon drop while Mary and I sawed logs!
We went up ten flights from the mall to the private Suite Lounge, where it was quiet, and we had our saki afternoon drink(s). Yummy!!! We watched the world go by and drank saki! Life does not get better than this!
A magnificent view from twelve stories up!
We had Kikusui Saki. This Junmai Ginjo is the most popular sake loved by many people in America. No other sake can offer the same experience as the Kikusui Junmai Ginjo. It is a fun sake to drink on any occasion. Extremely Clean and Crisp.
We had wabbits!
Now, it was time for a quick nap before dinner. We returned to Chops Grill and devoured a boggle of wine and several steaks! We were good and skipped dessert.
Did You Know? - Lobster has long been considered a culinary delicacy, but in colonial America it was seen as the cockroach of the sea.
When European settlers arrived in North America in the 17th century, New England's shoreline was littered with the clawed crustaceans. In fact, lobsters were so prevalent, they were used by Indigenous inhabitants as fishing bait or fertilizer.
To the colonists, they served as a simple and abundant source of protein. Though eating lobster was useful in times of food scarcity — such as in 1623, when Plymouth Colony Governor William Bradford lamented that the settlers' best meal was a lobster or a piece of fish — it wasn't exactly desirable.
The seafood was mostly fed to those with little say in their diets, such as prisoners housed near the coast and indentured servants working off their contracts.
Some stories about lobster's pauper past — such as that prisoners were punished by being fed lobster every day — have most likely been exaggerated over time.
Rules were reportedly put in place to prevent inmates from receiving regular servings, while servants were said to write lobster limits into their contracts. But it's certainly true that for nearly two centuries, lobster was anything but a luxury.
Its reputation didn't really begin to change until the 19th century, when improved transportation allowed fresh lobster to reach inland diners — many of whom, by the late 1800s, enjoyed vacationing in New England and saw the seafood as a rare treat.
As demand grew, so did prices, and with better cooking techniques in the 20th century, lobster transformed from a lowly sea pest to a food fit for a king.
Mary, as usual, looked magnificent this evening and again got several compliments from various ladies as we waltzed through the hallways. I even heard one man say to his wife, "Than old man's daughter is beautiful!"
We had a table by the window and watched the sea go by from our eleventh-floor perch. By the time we were finished, it was dark outside, and we scanned the sea for any signs of life. Jon had his maritime app running, telling us where to look, but the closest ship was still too far away!
They made a very handsome couple!
...and fun to be around!!!
Back to the past courtesy of a little black and white!
Wow!!
Since we were Suite guests, we had reserved seating and sat in the second row, which gave us a great view of the stage! The dancing was great, and they attempted to play ballroom music, but the only piece we recognized was "Boogey Woogey Bugle Boy." The Andrews sisters would have rolled over in their graves if they had.
The show was lively and the singing/dancing was excellent!
The theater was at the front of the ship!
Lots of music and applause!
"See you tomorrow!!"
We got a lot of applause!
There was only one or two others out dancing.
Mary said the females in the audience were jealous!
Mary makes my "dancing" look very good!!"
Earlier in the day, Mary lost one of her hearing aids. We looked all over the ship and wrote it off as lost. After the show, we stopped at a bar (duh!) and told the bartender that we had lost a hearing aid. I showed him mine, and he said, "One of my customers found it and took it to the front desk."
Below is Mary's hero—we call him Eagle Eye! We bought him drinks for the rest of the evening.
Mary and I danced a waltz and cha cha, and Mary danced with a gentleman to whom we had sat next. He was disabled, so they danced in the bar! We drank Brandy Alexander's the rest of the evening.
Our hero!
We kept him in drinks the rest of the night!
We met Ken who was traveling alone; great guy and quite funny!
He was a good dancer!
We loved his outfits!
Check in the arm!
Out on the floor again!
Mary got them to play a waltz!
We glided around the floor like we owned it!
We were getting a little tired.
Jon yelled, "Show us your better side!" Of course, we did!
Great minds think alike!
We headed to the room around 11:00 pm and crashed. I was sloshing after wine and several Brandy Alexanders. A Brandy Alexander is a brandy-based dessert cocktail consisting of cognac, crème de cacao, and cream that became popular during the early 20th century. It is a variation of an earlier, gin-based cocktail called simply an Alexander. The cocktail known as Alexander today may contain gin or brandy. Ice cream can be added for a "frozen Brandy Alexander."
