Cruisin'

Some people like to just hang out on a ship when they go on a cruise.  I would say George and I prefer the land excursions in order to see new places and have new adventures.  But, I do have to say, we had some mighty fun times on the days we were at sea, just cruisin!

 On one of the top decks, there was real grass growing.  We loved to go up there and play a game called "Bocce."  George and I had never played it before, so Joyce had to show us how to play it.

The object is to get your ball the closest to the white ball which is thrown out first.  So, of course, George is showing you here who was definitely the closest.  I am the red and he is the black. 

Sometimes we would just go up by the green grass, watch the beautiful scenery we were passing, and enjoy our Coke Zero.  A little kid about seven or eight took this picture for us.  He really got us smiling because he was so proud of himself!

The meals were "divine" on this cruise, and we had a really fun table of people who were all best friends from my home state of Idaho!  Although we had never met them before, we soon all became like family.  The lady standing at the end was our tour director, Peggy, who did such an absolutely fantastic job!

One morning, Joyce and I went on a tour of the kitchen area.  Wow!  The place was mammoth. 

  To make the number of meals they make a day, it was so impressive to see how clean and organized the kitchen was.

We, also, got to see how they made their fancy bread creations . . .

 as well as their extremely creative food sculptures.

One of my favorite days was when they had a huge brunch with every type of food for breakfast or lunch all displayed in the highest fashion. 

 

 

And, of course, fantastic ice creations.  This was of the Leaning Tower of Pisa since we would be going there soon.

 

One of the best shows was done by a Cirque So-lei troop on ropes and trapezes.  These were the two stars from Russia.

They actually had a furnace for glass blowing and demonstrations right out on the deck.  That was really interesting--especially because we had been to the Murano glass factory where artisans of many generations worked, and here we saw new items being made by young artisans.

The formal nights were fun to get dressed up.   

We were actually on ship for Halloween, so of course, they had really decorated for it.  Not too many people came in costume.

Suddenly, this strange and eery lady came walking towards us.  She had a scarf which covered her hair, and half of her face was covered by a cardboard mask.  She sat at our table and we all just looked at her, until we discovered, she actually was one of the ladies in our group!  We couldn't believe it!

Of course, Doug had to try it, too, and went around from table to table.  We all got a big laugh.  It really was a strange mask!

The other activity that George, Joyce, and I loved was playing Rook.  This is a game that has been around, I think, since the pioneer days.  Joyce and I grew up playing it--our grandparents played it in a group with friends every single month, our parents played it in family gatherings, my siblings and I played it with our parents, and George and I taught many people through the years how to play it.  

Here Joyce and George, who were playing against Doug and me, are showing that they got a perfect 300 game, which is extremely difficult to do.  Doug, by his expression as you can tell, is not a fan of the game.  We had to beg him to play, and usually he opted out!  (Where are Bracken, Parker, and John when we need them?!  The Wilde Bunch are as big of fans as their ancestors!  The only thing is--they play some BAD rules!  Hah!)

 And, of course, it was always fun to go to our room and night and see the newest towel creation made by our room steward. 

My sister has posted lots more pictures of our activities.  To see them, go to:

http://sixgirlsoneboy.blogspot.com/2012/03/day-8-at-sea-ship-activitiesfood.html