Day 1 – We Are Off!

The roosters crowed, and we got up immediately, heading straight to the last-minute baggage activities.  I packed everything I needed for the trip, including three electronic gadgets.  We now have enough electrical cables that, if tied end-to-end, we could fish off the 7th floor of the ship!

We headed to the shower and put the finishing touches on everything!  There’s nothing scarier than that split second when you lose your balance in the shower and you think, “They are going to find me naked.”

The Grey Ghost was carrying Mary’s luggage.  The rear tailgate was dragging, so I filled the tires to 35 psi, which helped.

We drove over to Dianne’s, and to our surprise and good fortune, David went with us to the ship.

Dianne’s chauffeur.

Unloading was easy once the steamer trunks were picked up.

See you in three weeks.

We are off, leaving a trail of dust!

We saw the ship as we came over the bridge.  Being in a suite was worth it because we were among the first twenty people to board, and our baggage was already near the room!  We were unpacked and headed for lunch at 11:35 am.

We had a super view of the port from our suite.

As we pulled out, we waved to the Sapphire Princess from the 18th-floor lounge, where a glass of wine awaited us!

Sapphire Princess is a Princess Cruises cruise ship that entered service in 2004 as the sister ship of Diamond Princess.  At the time, she was one of the world’s largest cruise ships, with a capacity of 2,670 passengers, and is the second Gem-class ship built by Princess Cruises.

See you later, old girl!

Seeing how “small” the Iowa appeared as we floated by was amazing.

She displaced 48,000 tons (The Emerald Princess displaces 114,000 tons)

We smiled and waved at her, NOT wanting to make her mad!

She could turn her guns and drop shells in Orange, CA!

We go down the channel; the harbor is hardly recognizable, as the old restaurants are gone.  Ports O’ Call is history, and a new village is slowly replacing it.

It’s vacant lots right now.

We are on the way.

We also waived to the Angels Gate Light House.  (more…)

Mary got a great shot of the lighthouse!

Once outside the breakwater, the ship’s engines began churning up quite a wake!

Bye-bye, Los Angeles!

We read the daily program and decided to dance late in the afternoon.  Several others joined us.  I danced with an older lady, and her daughter got a kick out of her, saying, “I don’t dance… she did!”

We went dancing.

We had a fantastic dinner at the Steak House and treated our new friends to some 15-year-old McCallum scotch, which they loved!

Scallops for dinner.

My steak was done perfectly; these folks know medium rare!  It was tender and tasted.d

STEAK!!!  It was perfect!

Mary went for the Filet Mignon, which is the perfect size for her!

That poor steak does not have a chance!

We headed to the cabin at 9:00 pm, tired from all the preparations and excitement of getting on board.  The McCallum may have had something to do with it!