DAY 164 PORTOFINO, ITALY & DAY 156 ON SERENITY

Last evening we attended a cocktail reception at Captain Birger's Quarters.  There were around 30 guests in attendance along with several senior officers and senior crew members.

From L-R Crystal Society Hostess Isabell, Keith, Anne Marie and Captain Birger who graciously welcomed each guest to the Captain's Quarters.

We ended up speaking with several of the officers who were on-hand including:
Anne Marie with Chief Financial Accountant Brigitte Klar.

Anne Marie with Photo Manager Gennadly and Chief Financial Accountant Birgitte.

In addition to speaking with Brigitte and Gennadly, we also spoke with Head Housekeeper Maria and with Vice Captain Maro.

Keith had seen Maria in passing the other day but this was our first opportunity to speak with Maria since she returned back at the start of this voyage in Lisbon.  Maria had been on a well deserved Holiday for two months.

Vice Captain Maro was one of the escorts for the Grand Prix and he escorted Group 1 (we were in group 2) so we not only spoke with at the Starlight Lounge and on the Tender but also on our walk over to the Grand Prix as our group was right behind his group.  At the reception, we exchanged thoughts on the experience of attending the Grand Prix.

Captain Birger gave a nice talk welcome talk.  From his quarters we could see the Seabourn Sprit and the Sea Dream II.  Captain Birger mentioned that he had been Captain of each vessel (one of them had another name as they were part of another fleet at the time) and he also mentioned that he met his wife on Sea Dream.

The Captain also noted how good the weather had been over these past three days and said that there have been times when it was not possible to offer tender service which obviously is a big concern anytime but also should it have happened the day of the Grand Prix.

Afterwards, we were back at the Crystal Dining Room for dinner.

Our Sommelier Javiar took good care of us as he always does.

We started the meal with salads.

Anne Marie enjoyed the Salad Bouquet with Heirloom Tomatoes, Cucumbers Fresh Mushroom and Red Beet Chips.

For Keith, it was his standing order salad.

For our next course we each had an entree of Grilled Ahi Tuna from the Modern Cuisine Menu which was served with Tuna Poke, Japanese Rice, Apple Citer Beurre Blanc and Baby Bok Choy.  We really enjoy enjoyed how the Tuna was prepared on the Modern Menu as the items that accompany it add to the overall taste/flavor of the entree.

For dessert, it was mixed berries for Keith and Blueberries for Anne Marie.

This was probably the quietest the Crystal Dining Room has been on this particular voyage.  The ship is full with around 1,050 guests/enrichment staff on board.  The late seating is more full than the main seating although main which we sit at is still relatively full. The major difference is that some of the large tables are made even larger for the second seating.  Likely some guests were dining off the ship or had eaten a late lunch out or were at other venues, with some making use of room service.  
Last night featured Latin Ballroom Dancing in the Crystal Cove with music performed by the Galaxy Orchestra from 7:45 PM to 8:30 PM and then at 10:15 PM there was the performance of Across The Pond which featured the music of many of the groups that were part of the 1960's British Invasion including our favorite, The Beatles.

We slept very well last evening.  Serenity departed Monte Carlo at Midnight for our next port of call in Portofino, Italy.  The other two ships that had been anchored with us the first two days had departed one night earlier following the Grand Prix.  A ship that is part of the Holland America line had arrived yesterday morning and was anchored with us.

Keith woke up early as he normally does and enjoyed a nice workout at the Fitness Center.  Afterwards, he had coffee at the Lido cafe while he read and wrote.

Keith brought back coffee to the room for Anne Marie who is celebrating a very special day as today is a major birthday milestone as she turned 60 years young. 

Keith had put up a banner in our room to commemorate this major milestone.

Keith also placed a banner on our door while Anne Marie went on her morning walk.

When someone celebrates their birthday on board either of the two Crystal Ships there is a Birthday Breakfast available for the person celebrating their birthday and one other person.  We could either have the breakfast in the Crystal Dining Room or in our room and with Augusto's recommendation we had breakfast in our room.  We opted for 8:00 AM and Head Waiter Augusto made the arrangements with Butler Almir.  

Almir served the breakfast in two courses; the cold items first and then the hot foods second.

Cold Items

Hot Items

This was the menu:

Mini Bagels with Smoked Salmon and Wasabi Cream Cheese

Raspberry and Chocolate Cornflake Crunch

Waffle Cone with Lemon Cottage Cheese and Marinated Strawberries

Truffle Omelet with Caviar and Chive Creme Fraiche

Little Biroche and Prosciutto Monte Cristo

Grilled Beef Tournedo with Creamed Spinach

Small Dougnuts Filled with Cointreau-Flavored Vanilla Custard

We anchored off of Portofino, Italy this morning.  Our first and only visit to this beautiful port was on board Crystal Serenity in 2005 when we took a back-to-back cruise.  This was also our first time on board Serenity who was two years young at the time.  It was on these two voyages that we made the decision to take our first World Cruise in 2007.  Portofino.

Portofino is located on the Italian Riviera and is relatively small with a population of well under 1,000 residents.  It has very narrow streets and has shops and restaurants.  It is a short distance from Santa Margherita which you can reach by Ferry.  In 2005, we took a small boat over there with two other couples who were our table-mates on the first of those two back-to-back voyages.

It was appropriate that we would be in Italy today as Anne Marie is half Italian as her Father's side of the family is Italian.  While Anne Marie's Nana who along with her Grand Father lived with Anne Marie's family for several years was born in the United States some of her sisters were born in Italy.  

We went ashore early as the forecast call for probable rain showers starting at 11:00 AM.  While it was overcast it did not dampen our spirits.  This is such a charming town.  First we walked in the direction of restaurants, cafes, stores and hotels and then on our return we walked over to the San Giorgio Church and toward the Castello Brown (Castle) which involved walking up hills and up staircases.  The views were breathtaking.

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Sea Dream II was also anchored as we were and Keith took a photo of her from our Verandah.  

Shortly after we returned from Portofino, we made our way to the Lido Cafe for lunch.  Yes, we made salad entrees.

Keith was going to play Paddle Tennis but the court was damp due to some light rain and when the court is wet it can become to slick top play so Keith and the others did not play today.  Instead, Keith went to the Fitness Center and Anne Marie walked for an hour.  Later in the afternoon, we read and wrote and Anne Marie worked on her knitting.

This evening we will be celebrating Anne Marie's birthday.

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

"Like a fine wine, my love for my Anne Marie has become stronger with each passing day, month, and year that we have been together.  Happy Birthday Anne Marie."  - Keith Steiner

Keith & Anne Marie