Last night was a Black Tie Optional evening on board Crystal Serenity. The evening also included the Crystal Society Reception which recognizes all guests who previously have sailed Crystal Cruises.
We began our evening by having a pre-dinner drink at the Avenue Saloon with dear friends John and Linda.
Afterwards, we dined at the Silk Road Japanese Specialty Restaurant with Daniel Steyn, Manager of Crystal Cruises Shore Excursions.
Daniel and his team have done an extraordinary job with all of the shore excursions and overland programs. This is even more challenging on a World Cruise which includes new maiden ports of call along with visits to some areas that Crystal Cruises visits very infrequently. On top of this there is a significant number of overland programs which require a lot more planning and also involve holding on board meetings with each participant to provide an orientation of each of the programs. It takes a unique individual to coordinate all of this and Daniel certainly fits the bill. He works tirelessly to make each program/excursion a success.
This was our first time to Silk Road of this segment of the World Cruise so our appetite was ready to enjoy the very tasty cuisine that makes the cuisine of Nobu so very special.
Our waiter was Albert who had pre-ordered us a few items and then Keith ordered sushi and sashimi for our table. Afterwards, we each had an entree.
Dining at a table about five tables from us was Gary Hunter who was dining with two other couples including one couple that was friends of us. Gary's close of the Marilyn Monroe show in high heals and a dress was quite the talk of the ship during the day. This is actually not the first time that Gary has appeared in a dress and high heals and we remember back to 2007 when Gary made an entrance on stage while Captain Oto was also on stage and the two of them danced. However, at first no one knew it was Gary and some were trying to figure out who that woman was. Keith asked Head Waiter Sigi if he could go over to Gary and whisper in his ear that Anne Marie wanted to know if she could borrow his dress if he was not going to be using it on the final formal night of the World Cruise. Gary did get a nice chuckle from that.
We had a wonderful time dining with Daniel.
Afterwards, we attended the Crystal Society Party which honors those guests who have taken one or more sailings. Two guests were recognized; Herb who has sailed 50 times and another guest who just sailed for her 100th time.
While we were at the reception, we spoke with friend May who boarded Serenity for this final segment of the World Cruise.
Later in the evening Pianist and Vocalist Judy Carmichael performed two shows and was accompanied by Grant Tharp on Reeds and Dean Mostrom on Drums.
When we arrived back to our room there was a letter from World Cruise Hostess and cards from President of Crystal Cruises Edie Rodriquez with two gifts. One was a gift to the two of us which is Crystal Globe which is for the 25th Anniversary of Crystal Cruises and included a map of this year's itinerary. The second gift was for Anne Marie which was a sterling silver pendant.
Once again, we had no trouble falling asleep and before we knew, it was time to begin another new day on board Crystal Serenity.
Keith woke first and started his day at the Fitness Center, and followed this with his daily stop to the Lido Cafe for Coffee and to read and write. He also multi-tasked and did our laundry. When Captain Giske announced yesterday that it washing machines had been turned on there was a rush of people to the laundry rooms which lasted into last evening. When Keith does the laundry early in the morning, there is usually very few if any other people doing their wash at that time and that was the case today. When Keith returned to the room for the final time to take our items out of the dryer, he saw that all washing machines were then in use.
Just as Keith's morning's are like clockwork the same is true of many people. For example, mid-way through Keith's workout one of the male guests will arrive to the Center and one day will do weights and the next day will use the stationary bike and about five minutes after that one female guest will stretch, do weights and then workout for a few hours on a stationary bike. The same is true at the Lido Cafe when a little while after Keith arrives one gentleman comes in around the same time each day and then an hour later dear friend Linda arrives around the same time that four other people do. And, everyone seems to have their own tables that they sit at. As they say most of us are creatures of habit.
Well, you know the rest. After Keith brought back coffee to the room for Anne Marie, then she walked for an hour and a short while later we enjoyed breakfast in our room as we watched the Daily Morning show featuring hosts Gary and Stacey.
Since our scheduled arrival time to Devil's Island was not until 1:00 PM the morning was a day at sea and the enrichment program reflected this. For example, there were two lectures;
David Davenport spoke about Presidential Captains from modern to post-modern.
Thomas Lippman spoke about creating Israel and how the CIA got it wrong.
We watched both of these lectures on Television.
Anne Marie took Yoga in the morning and also went to the Knitting Class.
Keith played Paddle Tennis for a few hours as made our way over to Devil's Island. There were many more people than usual playing so four would play while four would watch on each of the two courts and they would play until one team had four rather than six and then four would go in while the other four rotated out.
During Captain Giske's morning talk from the bridge he noted that the sea swells near the Island might make tendering unsafe and that he would update everyone once we were anchored off of Devil's Island.
The good news is that by the time we arrived, the swells were much better and tender service could be safely run.
We had our usual lunch of a Salad Entree.
We arrived to Devil's Island at around 1:00 PM. Like several other guests we know who have been to Devil's Island before (we've visited the Island two times) we decided to stay on board Serenity. It's one of those places where a visit of one or two times is more than sufficient time to see all that there is to see.
While we refer to this as Devil's Island, the actual Island that the tender service drops guest at is called Ile Royale of the French Guiana. This island was home to one of the three infamous penal colonies of the Iles du Salut archipelago which means Islands of Salvation. The penitentiary was first opened in 1852 by Napoleon III's government. This prison remained open until 1946 when its doors closed. Each island served a different purpose and Ile Royale was the site of the administrative center, and the warden's accommodations's for prisoners deemed less dangerous. Isle St. Josep was used for the more troublesome convicts and Devil's Island was used to ouse political prisoners. Over the 90+ year period a total of 80,000 prisoners were sent to Devil's Island and were never seen again. It was a disease infested island.
This shows the three Islands and was taken from a distance. As we got closer and based on where we anchored it was not possible to get a clear view of all three of the islands.
On today's tour, guests walked around on their own and there are guided arranged from the mainland stationed at the various locations to assist guests with any questions they might have. The major attractions include:
A Chapel which was used by prisoners.
Prisons Hospital & Lighthouse.
The remains of the old Cell Blocks.
A Footpath which circles the entire island.
Since we have been to Devil's Island two times in the past and there are no changes to what we had seen each of the two times we stayed on board Serenity. Others like us who had been to Devil's Island in the past, did the same.
We enjoyed the afternoon on board Serenity. Keith played more Paddle Tennis for a couple of hours, and also caught up with the remaining lectures and Anne Marie worked on her knitting projects.
This evening we will be back to the Crystal Dining Room for dinner.
We wanted to close by saying that our thoughts and our prayers go out to all of the people who have been directly impacted by the tragedy in Nepal. This shows the force of mother nature and is a reminder how in a blink of an eye life can change so very quickly.
We had heard that our former Stewardess who is on board right now lives near Nepal so Anne Marie found her in the morning to check up on her. She said that her family felt the tremor but was far enough away that there was no damage or loss of life where they live.
TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY......
"The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at anytime." - Mark Twain
Keith & Anne Marie
What a trip you all have had. Kudos on the pendant. I have seen one on a fellow passenger on a past cruise. Thanks for all the postings.
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