This was supposed to be our Costa Rica day, but instead was another sea day on our way to Isla Roatan, Honduras. The seasick pills make you tired, and I could barely drag myself out of bed when Tom got back from the gym around 9:30. I showered while he was up eating breakfast, and then it was off to meet at the Bacchus dining room, where we were both participating in the On Deck for the Cure one mile walk around the ship.
We had both “donated” $10 to participate, and received a t-shirt and bracelet. I was really surprised at the turnout—there were probably 200 people! The cool part was seeing part of the ship (Gatsby’s Gardens) which we never even knew was there! At the end of our three laps around Deck 3, we got pink lemonade, and then it was immediately off to the Phantom lounge to meet for the Galley Tour! We ran into our friends there, so went through the tour with them. I was tempted to buy the cookbook because it had the recipe for the coconut cake in there, but it looked fairly simple—white cake mix with coconut flavoring, and buttercream frosting with coconut flavoring and real coconut in it. I am sure google will turn up a similar recipe for free, as opposed to the $15 cookbook! They also had the towel-animal instruction booklet for sale, which I was tempted to get—but seriously, when am I EVER going to make towel animals?
Then it was up to Horatio’s (the lido buffet) for a quick lunch, and then back to the room for a nap (for Tom) and journaling (for me). On the way we ran into more of our Cruise Critic group, so chatted in a hallway for a bit with them. And then once we started moving again, we ran into yet another couple so stopped to chat with them. Finally back in the room, a nap sounded very good, but if I don’t keep up with the journal, I will never remember everything. Besides, what better excuse to sit on the balcony and watch the ocean go by? The balcony is shaded but you get a good breeze. Who knows…I may even take a nap out here if the mood strikes!
And a nap I did take, albeit a somewhat short one, or at least it felt that way. Unfortunately, the chaise isn’t terribly comfortable to nap on, but I refuse to be inside the cabin when there is a balcony just sitting there! Tom was totally crashed, and finally dragged his butt out of bed to get ready for dinner.
For starters, I couldn’t decide between the Vine Ripe Beefsteak Tomatoes and Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella (Marinated with Basil Leaves and Virgin Olive Oil) and the South Western Style Egg Roll (with Marinated Baby Lettuce and Sweet & Sour Salsa). Tom wanted the Cream of Fresh Garden Broccoli (Enhanced with Aged Wisconsin Cheddar) and I convinced him he also wanted to try the Penne, Tossed in a Tomato Cream with Vodka (and Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese) which was a dinner option but also available as a side. It was worth convincing him, LOL.
You know, some nights there is one obvious choice for your main course. And then there are nights like tonight when I seriously wanted everything—or to at least taste everything. We had the penne as a starter so that was one less dish I had to order. Then I finally decided on the Pan Fried Fillet of Red Snapper (with Crispy Fried Vegetables, Black Olives, Cauliflower, and Grilled Tomato, with a Lemon and Caper Sauce and then the Oven Roasted Tom Turkey (with Sage and Onion Stuffing, Orange Glazed yams, Sautéed Scallions, Roasted Cauliflower, and Cranberry Relish) that someone else at the table also wanted to sample. (I also wanted to try the Veal Parmigiana and the Vegetarian Lasagna but refrained.) Tom went with the Grilled Filet Mignon of the Finest Aged American Beef (with Sautéed Young Root Vegetables, Potato Gratin, and a Red Burgundy Wine Sauce). Unfortunately, it was nowhere near as good as the steaks (and filet) we had had at the fine dining restaurant earlier in the week, so that was a bit of a disappointment. (I had predicted that would happen, so I avoided that selection.)
This was also the first meal I forgot to take pictures of everything BEFORE we started eating…and I just realized I forgot to take a picture of the dessert menu. So, I had apple pie a la mode and Tom had the aforementioned Chocolate Melting Cake. I had more hot chocolate because it’s SOOO good and Tom had an espresso. (If you order it in the dining room it’s free—elsewhere on the ship you have to pay like $5 for it.)
We wandered through the casino and I managed to zip through my first $1 in record time (damn nickel slots) so a 1c slot opened up and I was there in a flash. I managed to turn my $1 into $5, and then proceeded to lose it all. I have been trying to keep track overall, and I think I’m still up by at least $1 overall.
Back at our room, we had a stingray towel (very cute). Then it was off to wander the ship a bit, and we ended up back in the casino. I think I blew through another $5, so now I am back to $4 in the hole. Still not too bad, though. Around 9:30 we headed off to Karaoke, at which one of our friends was trying out for the Legends show at the end of the cruise (she was trying out for Britney Spears). Audience voting (i.e. screaming and applause) determines the winner, so we all had to be there for her. Unfortunately, the auditions weren’t until 10:30 so we went to the piano bar to meet some other friends and ended up just sitting outside the bar so we could hear the music but still hear each other—and stay out of the smoke. At 10:30 we all went back to karaoke and got there just in time to see our friend perform. And we voted, and she won. The other Britney Spears wasn’t too thrilled. Oh well.
Then everyone wanted to go to Dr. Frankenstein’s Lab again for Disco Night. So off we went. Unfortunately, it was going to be pretty boring for me since I was not planning on dancing. The 80s night really wreaked havoc on my ankles and I didn’t want to go through that again—so I left Tom down there with our group (and a DW—designated walker) and headed back up to the room, leaving him instructions to not come home too late since we have to be up at oh dark thirty to go ziplining (and as I type, it’s 1am and he’s not back yet, LOL).
It’s hard to believe we still have three full days left before we get back to Fort Lauderdale…and real life. We are NOT looking forward to it at all, other than we miss our animals and our own laundry facilities!