Wednesday, February 21 - At Sea

 Our second of three sea days as we head to Ishigaki, Okinawa, Japan.  Only a week away from Tokyo, where I'll be kicked off the ship at 8 a.m. to head to Narita for my flight home to Dallas then Orlando.

Another glorious day on the Pacific.  I woke up at 5:30, still pitch black but not able to see the stars as I could last night.  I've said it repeatedly and here's one more time:  you can keep all the activities and entertainment on the ship.  Just keep me fed and let me sit on the balcony to watch the sea and sky.  

After breakfast alone in the MDR room (of course there were lots of other people but Jolanda opted to sleep in so I was alone except for the five guys who typically serve me breakfast and chat), I went for a walk around deck 2 then up to deck 3 to walk some more outside.  I stopped on the starboard forward side, where I normally go to take sunset photos.  I saw a flying fish and was so excited I clapped and squealed.  Another walker stopped, assuming I must have seen a pod of whales breaching.  She was very disappointed that I was so excited about a fish.  

We have another safety drill today, which is much easier than the olden days.  We show up on deck 3, stand in line for 15 minutes or so (sans life jackets) and watch the safety video in our cabins.  Tonight is dressy night so I'll be sparkly in the MDR.

Photos!

Oatmeal for breakfast, as usual.  They always bring raisins, brown sugar and nuts.  These look like macadamia but didn't taste like it.  In any case, they were tasty

Ugh.  I can't check in until 3:30 p.m.  I have to be off the ship at 8 a.m.  My flight leaves at 6:00 p.m. from Tokyo and I land in Orlando at 10:00 p.m.  The same day because I'll be going back over the International Date Line.  Or magic

Lunch from the Lido - salad and sushi with a plum

My cabin stewards Mario and Rony were busy while I was at dinner.  This is what I saw when I walked into my cabin

I say it's a rabbit.  Rony said it was a hamster

My parting gift is a collapsible duffle bag with wheels.  Too big for a carry on when full but should work great with just what I need for the flight.  And I can drag it since it has wheels

The collapsed duffle

Mystery nuts for the my breakfast oatmeal.  Tasty, looked like macadamias but different taste

View from the back of the ship

You bet I had escargot for the 4th time this cruise

And lamb, perfectly cooked

And chocolate cheesecake with a white chocolate sauce

The duffle after I unzipped it.  I need to ask the tech guy why photos in my phone are out of order when they're backed up to Google Photos.  If you know, please leave a comment or shoot me an email