Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
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!
We are ready to make our masterpieces.
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!
Ingredients? Check!
Mary always brings her travel purse on cruises; thank you, Miss Robin!
Mary loves her “Cruising Purse.”
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.”
Our first creation.
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.
The “almost” finished product!
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,
Done with finishing touches added by the staff.
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!
We found an empty bar!
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!
Time to shop!
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!
Fourteen flights up, we found solitude from the hustle and bustle of ship-board life!
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.
Hic! Need we say more?
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.
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!”
Time To Dine!!
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!
We laughed and giggled for almost two hours!
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 called “Ballroom”; while the dancing was great, it was T ballroom!
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.
Mary’s hero!
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.”
