Midway Through the Pacific

January 26 2018

We are in Day Three of our Pacific crossing to Hawaii with two more days to go. So far, we have been fortunate that the winds have been fairly light with reasonable waves. However, an active weather system to the north of us has resulted in a heavy swell. There is lots of rockin' and rollin' going on. 

A poor picture of the live chart on the ship which tracks our progress. In this photo, we are less than halfway to Hawaii. The Captain has made good progress and we are now more than halfway there. Aloha soon.

Steve and I were chatting this morning about how the crossings in days of yore must have been. Here we are, sailing in the lap of luxury with state of the art stabilizers, gourmet meals, soft comfy beds, and all of the comforts of a five star hotel. Contrast that to what the early explorers must have experienced. There is a lecture in the days ahead about the early Polynesian sailors and how they sailed with no instruments other than the stars. They probably would not recognize our sailing experience today. Likewise with friends of ours who have sailed in the Pacifc on small sailboats. I'm sure their experiences are every bit as different, and I can't help but admire those folks even more.

The view from our window. Not too tough to take. Have only seen one sign of wildlife for the past two days...one lonely seagull that followed the ship for a short way.

So, how do our days at sea compare? So far today, I walked five miles around the deck, went for a quick bite at the 5^th floor deli, went to two lectures (one entitled “Planet Ocean” and the other “Tales from Tinseltown” with Bruce McGill (a character actor whom nobody can name but everyone recognizes.) Then lunch, followed by quiet time and perhaps some book time. This afternoon we can go to see a movie in the Hollywood Theatre (complete with popcorn), followed by another lecture if we wish. And then, of course, Happy Hour followed by dinner followed by an evening performance by Broadway Star Emilie Skinner. In other words, there is no lack of things to do on Sea Days on Crystal Cruises.

We have sailed with other cruise lines but keep coming back to Crystal. Perhaps its because it's all-inclusive meaning we don't have to sign for every drink and every amenity...it's all included. Maybe its because the service is truly outstanding. I don't think “we can't” is in their corporate vocabulary. And maybe its because we have come to know many of the guests and crew members from previous cruises. At any rate, the Serenity is now home for 109 more days.

The ship is smaller than many large vessels, holding not quite 1000 passengers. I think there are about 800 crew members as well. On board there are three or four lounges and nightclubs, four dining rooms, shops, casino, gym, spa, medical centre, movie theatre, library, computer lab, pool and hot tub, and lots of quiet areas to curl up with a good book or play cards. There are lots of activities for those who wish to take part....music lessons, bridge, embroidery and knitting classes, fitness and yoga sessions, golf classes, table tennis and shuffleboard, to mention just some.

A challenge for both of us is to keep off pounds and keep our livers intact. Our strategies include no bread products and no dessert (well, hardly any!!) We haven't quite formulated our strategy for keeping the alcohol content reasonable, but that will come....perhaps!

We are looking forward to docking in Hawaii on Monday. It will be good to be on terra firma once again