While we weren't originally excited about days at sea and not being able to get off the boat, we are coming to appreciate them. We were able to get up a little later, have a nice, leisurely breakfast in the Terrace Cafe, and just generally take a slower approach to the day.
Since it was a sea day and we were around, we decided it was a good day to check out the Afternoon Tea. They have tea every afternoon in the Horizon Lounge on the 14th deck at the front of the boat. It's a nice room with low upholstered chairs and small tables throughout the space. A skilled string quartet provides music. In the middle are two tables set with all kinds of little treats, both sandwich-like and cookie-like. It was a fun and pleasant way to spend some time with a nice view, even though it was all water everywhere!
After some more blogging and resting, we dressed for dinner and went to the Grand Dining Room. We do enjoy the many choices from the 5-course menu. It takes a little while to get through all of the stages, but the portion sizes are reasonable, and we get a chance to sample many things that we would otherwise not be eating.
The evening entertainment was a vocalist/saxophonist named Hayden Smith. His style was reminiscent of Kenny G, and he was pretty skilled. We got a taste of him last night, and he's leaving the ship in Melbourne, so this was our chance to hear him. He was relaxing and entertaining.
After breakfast, we had our first Australian lecture from Daniel Ostler, the resident 'expert' on Australia and New Zealand. The title for the talk was "Australia: Marvelous for More Than Marsupials." He didn't start off strong for Alan with some of his statements that were in contradiction to what we had heard from some of our previous guides, including statements we had been told irritate the Aussies, such as calling the koalas 'bears'. He did have lots of interesting information and slides, so I guess we'll believe what he says until we hear someone else say differently, but his statements might not be considered the most authoritative. His website can be found here.
Right after the lecture was our first Chef's demonstration. We know that the Marina is supposed to be known for its food, and we've had some pretty good stuff so far. Chef Alban Gjoka clearly enjoys his role as the top dog in the food arena here, and with help from his sidekick, Daniel Violante Bica, the head of the specialty restaurant Jacques, they spent an hour preparing Sauteed Duck Foie Gras Escallop with Lemon Confit and Roasted Pineapple, Jumbo Bay Scallops and Watercress Carpaccio with Green Apple Tartar and Caramelized Hazelnut Shavings, Zucchini Wrapped Jumbo Shrimp with Parmesan Cheese and Angel Hair Pasta al Limone, and Panna Cotta Con Frutti di Bosco Al Balsamico Invecchiato (Can you see that we don't eat like this at home?). We have been trying to remember to take some pictures of our food, and we'll probably add a post of pictures of our different courses at some point.
Right after the lecture was our first Chef's demonstration. We know that the Marina is supposed to be known for its food, and we've had some pretty good stuff so far. Chef Alban Gjoka clearly enjoys his role as the top dog in the food arena here, and with help from his sidekick, Daniel Violante Bica, the head of the specialty restaurant Jacques, they spent an hour preparing Sauteed Duck Foie Gras Escallop with Lemon Confit and Roasted Pineapple, Jumbo Bay Scallops and Watercress Carpaccio with Green Apple Tartar and Caramelized Hazelnut Shavings, Zucchini Wrapped Jumbo Shrimp with Parmesan Cheese and Angel Hair Pasta al Limone, and Panna Cotta Con Frutti di Bosco Al Balsamico Invecchiato (Can you see that we don't eat like this at home?). We have been trying to remember to take some pictures of our food, and we'll probably add a post of pictures of our different courses at some point.
Since we have the satellite internet access package on the boat, we can (supposedly) get to the internet at any time, though that hasn't always shown to be the case, and when we do, it's very slow, which we expected. One good thing is that through the ESPN app, we can keep track of how the Boilermakers are doing. Today is the Purdue at Rutgers game for the men. Alan was able to keep an eye on the game through the food demonstration and then up until time to go find lunch. They won, as was expected, but never counted on.
We had lunch in the Terrace Cafe, and then took one of the iPads to the Internet Cafe to try and figure out why everything isn't working as expected. We knew that only one device can use the account at a time, which we can work out. However, getting off of one device after having logged in, doesn't work as expected. When we got upstairs to the 14th deck, there was already a line, and the program manager wasn't due for several minutes. We got in line and waited a very long time for our turn. Joyce ran down to do another errand and asked at the Reception Desk on Deck 5...also to let them know that there was a major bottleneck upstairs. Alan kept listening to the other 'liners' as well as what he could with the manager. When Joyce came back with some additional information, it all sort of clicked and we got it sorted out without waiting even longer. It still is not very smooth, but at least we can force one device off when we need to do it.
Since it was a sea day and we were around, we decided it was a good day to check out the Afternoon Tea. They have tea every afternoon in the Horizon Lounge on the 14th deck at the front of the boat. It's a nice room with low upholstered chairs and small tables throughout the space. A skilled string quartet provides music. In the middle are two tables set with all kinds of little treats, both sandwich-like and cookie-like. It was a fun and pleasant way to spend some time with a nice view, even though it was all water everywhere! After some more blogging and resting, we dressed for dinner and went to the Grand Dining Room. We do enjoy the many choices from the 5-course menu. It takes a little while to get through all of the stages, but the portion sizes are reasonable, and we get a chance to sample many things that we would otherwise not be eating.
The evening entertainment was a vocalist/saxophonist named Hayden Smith. His style was reminiscent of Kenny G, and he was pretty skilled. We got a taste of him last night, and he's leaving the ship in Melbourne, so this was our chance to hear him. He was relaxing and entertaining.
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