Thursday, August 29, 2024
After coffee, we went for a stroll around the ship’s promenade. We had not yet reached the part of the River where you could see land so it looked just like a calm sea to us.
Chuck decided he wanted some hot tub time before we got ready to go to today’s sea day brunch. It was too windy for the Sea View hot tubs, so he stayed in the hot tubs in the covered Lido area. I just took my book and read at one of the tables.
We went to the main dining room for Brunch. We were seated at a table for eight. They immediately sat six of us at the table. Then, they brought another woman to the table but as soon as she was seated, she got up, set her purse in the chair, and said she was going to go get her sister. Okay. In the meantime, another woman walked up to the table who knew one of the couples and asked if she could join the table.
They said yes but the rest of us said that the other woman was coming back with her sister. So, the couple said they would leave and go to another table with her. Just as they were getting up, the first woman came back, got her purse, said she didn’t know where her sister was and was leaving. Geez – what a cluster – I am not going to get any food.
Once the dust settled, the three couples and the friend of the one couple were at the table. I was seated between Chuck and the man who was part of the couple who were going to leave. I think the two women were the friends because they talked non-stop.
Chuck talked to the couple to his right who were new to HAL and wanted to know about the casino play. The man to my left said he was a physicist, liked to wear overalls on cruises because he doesn’t wear them at home (he was wearing it now), and he and his wife had been married for 3 years after he was divorced for 14 years and was tired of dating women much younger than he was. Okay – I just asked him if he was enjoying this cruise. I downed my first mimosa, ordered another one, and prayed my food would get there soon.
I ordered the fruit and goat cheese for the appetizer and crab and hot smoked salmon cakes for the main. Chuck ordered the biscuits with gravy, New England boiled beef, and fried egg. We got our appetizers (except Chuck who didn’t order one) and everyone finished – except the one lone woman who wouldn’t eat because she was talking so much. I saw that the main courses had been delivered from the kitchen but were sitting at the serving station.
Typically, at a shared table, you won’t get served the next course until everyone has finished the current course. At the rate the woman was eating, the main dishes were going to be cold. Nope – I signaled the waiter that we wanted our main course served. Rude? Sorry – enough is enough. The waiter seemed relieved that he could start clearing dishes and move the meal along. The woman was still talking, and he did not take her plate. He just put her main course next to it.
So, we all got our food except Chuck. The waiter came up and said he’d go see what the problem was. He came back a few minutes later with the plate and said the delay was that Chuck had ordered his eggs to be fried hard and the first plate didn’t look like hard eggs, so his meal was redone. Sounds better than they just forgot his order.
I was glad that at least the food was good. Neither Chuck nor I ordered dessert, so we said our good-byes when the desserts arrived. The woman was still talking.
Did I get any photos of the meal? No, I did not. I was so flustered that I completely forgot, and I just kept my head down and scarfed up the food like a ravenous wildebeest.
We went up to the Sea View area so I could regroup. Watching the scenery along the river helped.
Wasn’t too long before it was time to go to the Gallery Bar for the 5-star Mariner reception and medallion ceremony. One couple received their silver medallions (300 days at sea). One couple received their gold medallions (500 days at sea). They introduced one woman who had over 2000 days at sea. Sometimes a luncheon follows these ceremonies but today we were served drinks and appetizers. We enjoyed the reception and chatting with the other guests.
Our evening was low key. We didn’t want to go to the HAL singer and dancer show since we were not that impressed with the first one. We decided to eat dinner in the Lido.
Afterwards, we played a couple of hours in the Casino and called it a night. Chuck received a gift from the Casino hosts.
Tomorrow – Quebec City, Quebec
