August 12, 2023
8:55 am GMT
After a wonderful night’s sleep, I went to a 7:30 am stretch class. The movement of the ship made it a tad challenging when doing the standing poses.
I was surprised to learn that we are in rough seas. Wind force is 7 on the Beaufort scale. The motion feels like a typical morning on a cruise ship—got to love an ocean liner.
Our location at 8:25 this morning was 49°53.7N, 008°61W, putting us just south of Ireland. We are traveling at 19.1 knots.
Stretch class was fun. I talked with a woman from London, traveling with her husband, who will spend a few days in New York with their son, a student who will be in town to do some research at the New York Public Library.
The best part of a crossing is the people.
We have great table companions at dinner. One of them is a gentleman about my age who grew up in the same county I did and went to the same high school as my sister!
Dinner was marvelous. I started with beef consommé with barley and vegetables, and followed with a wonderfully prepared and presented broiled cod and cherry tomato orzo pasta with celeriac purée and lemon butter sauce. I had cheese and biscuits for dessert, plus tea, and petit fours brought around by our waiter.
After dinner we wandered about and met more people. A father and adult son from Ottawa who were traveling with their family. A husband and wife both retired from the New York Police Department. A group of three from Spain. A young couple from Croatia who are moving to Canada. Their dog is onboard, too, in the kennel, and all of their belongings are stored below.
And then we ended up in the Golden Lion Pub, where we did badly at trivia.
Twelve hours later we are in the Britannia Restaurant for breakfast. My usual first-morning-on-ship Eggs Benedict has just arrived.
3:19 pm
The time I’ve been anticipating ever since we booked this crossing 14 months ago is just about here. I’m in the Queens Room, where afternoon tea will commence in ten minutes.
Today included various activities: morning stretch, FIFA World Cup (Australia defeated France in multiple penalty rounds), a presentation about AIR FORCE ONE by journalist Ken Walsh, a presentation on street art (Bansky, Brainwash) by the onboard art director, and a quick bite at the Kings Court buffet. Somewhere in there I had a one-hour nap while Neil and Marty went to lunch in the dining room.
Tea has been poured.
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