DAY 53 AT SEA & DAY 45 CRYSTAL SERENITY

These are a couple of additional photos from the first segment of the World Cruise.

Each World Cruise Guest had a photo taken that will go into a Photo Book that each guest will receive and this is the photo taken of us for the book.

We wanted to begin by thanking several of you who have reached out to us to wish Anne Marie a speedy recovery.  We hope that in a few days she will have all this behind her.  

We also wanted to complement the Crystal Crew who have taken excellent care of us.  Unlike on most cruises and for that matter all previous World Cruises other than one on board doctor there are three doctors on board for the full World Cruise.  The other doctors are a husband and wife who are from Cape Town, South African and one of them had treated Keith when he had Bronchitis.  There are quite a few people who have had a range of viruses including Colds and Bronchitis and having the additional doctors on board was a very wise decision as on top of this there are always other medical issues that occur both on and off the ship.

We also wanted to say that while it is never fun to be ill, that the Crystal Crew has been absolutely fantastic.  Rao our Butler has served served us dinner in our room on Sunday evening and also breakfast, lunch and dinner on Monday.  When Rao is off for a couple of hours there is a backup Butler and he also has been very helpful getting Anne Marie hot water, honey and lemon which she found helpful to sooth the cough.

Anne Marie has difficulty speaking because of the bad cough and between that and not wanting to be in contact with other people we thought it best for her to spend a good deal of time in the room.  The Stewardess and her assistant been terrific as well.

As we had mentioned, since Anne Marie was not feeling well we had dinner in our room last evening and ordered from the Crystal Dining Room Menu.  On a related note, we can also order in from Silk Road or Prego as well.

Rao organized a wonderful dinner for us which he served course by course.

Keith started with an appetizer which was White Sturgeon Caviar on an Onion Brûlée

We each ordered Salads.

Anne Marie had the Bouquet of Garden Lettuce with Cherry Tomatoes, Mushrooms & Root Vegetable Chips.

Keith had his standing order Salad.

For our entree, Anne Marie had the Broiled Maine Lobster and Keith had the Peruvian King Clip with Porcini Ravioli, Asparagus & Celery Truffle Veloute.  He also had some Lobster.

This was Keith's entree.  Thank goodness for all of Keith's exercise.

This was Anne Marie's entree.

For dessert, we each had blueberries.

The seas picked up a bit last evening as we sailed towards Easter Island.

We began the morning as we normally do.  Keith was up first and worked out at the Fitness Center and then went to the Lido Cafe for Coffee and to read and write.  He also did laundry.

We had breakfast in our room while we watched the daily morning show with Cruise Director Gary and World Cruise Hostess Stacey.

Anne Marie is on a roll with her knitting.  She has now made three squares for the blanket that will be donated to the orphanage in South Africa.

There were three lectures on the schedule today.

Ken Rees gave his first lecture of the World Cruise as he had just arrived in Lima.  Keith chatted with Ken shortly before he was introduced by Cruise Director Gary Hunter.  He spoke about those amazing rock stars at Easter Island and as usual did a wonderful job of presenting information with lots of photos and humor.  Ken will be the destination lecturer throughout the remainder of the World Cruise.  Ken covered both Easter Island and also Pitcairn Island in great detail.  

At 11:00 AM, special interest lecturer Leo Thorsness spoke about getting through the tough times. Leo Thorsness served in the air force for 23 years and was shot down over Vietnam in 1967 and became a POW who was not released until 1973.  We watched the talk on the Television later in the day.  

In the afternoon, Dr. Melvyn Bowen spoke about science and seamanship.  He spoke about the evolution of hi tech equipment at sea.

Keith also found time to sit in the Crystal Cove for awhile this morning and spoke with some fellow guests and friends including Elaine and members of the crew.  Anne Marie walked for awhile inside the ship and then went back to the room.  Her challenge is being able to talk without coughing so it was best for her to be out of the public areas.

We had lunch in our room again so that Anne Marie could rest easier.

In the afternoon, Keith played Paddle Tennis for a couple of hours.  As usual, he enjoyed himself as in addition to playing he had a lot of good laughs with both guests and senior officers.  The weather was perfect.  Anne Marie also walked inside the ship and continued to work on her knitting projects.

Later, Keith met up with dear friend Bob and a few other guests to solve the problems of the world.  LOL, but true.

This evening we will dine in the Crystal Dining Room.

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY.....

"If I knew I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself." - Mickey Mantle

Keith & Anne Marie