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Ah, another day at Sea while we cruise to Aruba. “What to do with all this free time?” Freestyle it, of course.
I’ve spoken of the “Daily” or “Freestyle Daily” (as NCL calls it). It is like a daily newspaper delivered to your room every evening. “So, what’s in it”, you ask?
It is at least four pages of info, plus adverts and supplements. The only thing missing is the daily Soduku and/or crossword (which you can get in the Library during operating hours).
The first page has the weather forecast, highlights of the destination or “Sea Day” activities and fun facts. Highlights continue on the second page.
Page three (not counting any inserts) lists a time schedule of everything scheduled on the ship.
On the last page (the back) lists all the dining options and hours of operation for all the services on the ship.
I forgot mine this trip, but I did bring sharpies. Normally I will highlight throughout the daily of things I want to do. I sometimes have a second color to things I’d LIKE to do if the first calls through. Then I either take a photo of the sheet or make a note on my phone so I do not miss anything.
Bring magnetic clips and hooks? Sure, they are cheap and every wall and your door is metal. I use the hooks to hang hats, battery powered lights, and even beachwear in the shower to dry The line provided is nice, but I worry about germs and this tricks helps.
I use the clips to secure things like “Happening Today” page on the back of the door.
Who was that artist playing in the theater? What was that mountain’s name on the island? What game show did I watch (or even participate in)?
Well, I am not a genius nor do I have a photographic (or eidetic) memory, but those are usually ALL in the Daily. Save them, pack them, and take them home. You can scrap book with them, or, like me, use them to help remember things for your blog or whatever.
So, what did I do today? Well, I used the day to rest some from my injury. I stayed out of salt water and even the sun. I spent the afternoon in the Atrium and listened to highlights to see in Aruba and Curacao. I was curious to see what “Deal or No Deal” was about, thought I knew I was not going to play. I played some in the “Movie Trivia” and found I knew more and should have played officially.
I partook in a “Wine and Chocolate” pairing and am discovering that wines change flavor profiles depending on what they are “paired” with. I am not a “dry” wine drinker, but a few of those reds were pretty good with chocolate.
I spent time in the lounge, reading and enjoying the show band.
While I did not plan it, Mike and Steph and friends has a reservation for the same time at Tappanyaki as I did. There are four stations in here and each serve either people, so space is limited. This is a show restaurant, like “Kobe Steakhouse” in the US. The cooks prepare everything in front of you in a very animated fashion, flipping food, spinning eggs, and more. They sing songs, parodies of songs like “It’s fried Rice” (It’s my life” from Bon Jovi).
The acoustics in this room leave MUCH to be desired. The cooks tried to stay in sync (no put intended, but I like it) so they could sing together, but one station cooked faster than the other in a few cases and so the others were not ready. They had to try to sing over the other stations and with no “soft areas” or sound breaks, it was hard to hear who was singing what with all the “background” noise. If I could improve one thing to make this experience over the top, it would be to bring in a sound engineer who could bring some separation to the stations.
As for the food, it was delicious. I choose the steak/chicken combo when the waiter asked. I also said “I would not be upset if a scallop or two ‘accidentally’ made its way onto my plate” and he just smiled. When the chef got to the seafood (the steak and chicken were already cooked and served), the chef flipped a scallop onto my plate, smiled at me and said “Oops”. I got two more and they were cooked very well.
Not all entertainment has to be in the big theater. I decided the house band in the atrium lounge was just fine. More and more people were discovering my “quieter” spot and seats were fuller, but I found a nice place and listened to music while I read more of my book.