When we first woke up we could feel the boat moving around a bit. A definite rock and roll. As it was a sea day, we’d delayed our morning tea/coffee delivery till 8am and even after that we lay on, a bit too lazy to get up. Still sleeping like the absolute dead and feeling poleaxed. I don’t know if it’s the sea air, the days of dieting, the busy summer or a combination of all three, but we keep falling asleep. For hours!
Spent the morning reading in the sun on the back deck, watching the odd boat pass by. When we actually came out of the cabin, we were quite surprised to see the sea so calm, given the roll. It felt like it was going to be rougher. However, it rather confirms what we’ve always suspected about these very large modern cruise ships. They are fantastic in the calm waters of the Caribbean or the Med but their shape does not weather ocean passages like the ships built for those waters. Not that its at all bad. Modern ship stabilisation is quite amazing – all computerised – moving water around the hull to keep the ship as upright as possible. And it works. But there is a limit. The ships of this design are like great blocks of flats on a hull, very square and top heavy. Ships like P&Os Aurora and Oriana, even Arcadia, Cunard’s Queens were built for ocean passage making and they sit lower and sleeker in the water.
So, anyway, it was a lovely day weather-wise and given that we were crossing the notorious Bay of Biscay, incredibly calm. Not a white horse in sight.
After lunch we went to an art auction. Not that we intended to buy anything but just out of noseyness. They have about 500 pieces of art aboard from sculpture, metal art, limited prints right up to unique paintings worth thousands, and they are all for sale. Princess Art Gallery is apparently one of the largest galleries in the world, if not the largest. It was quite interesting to watch. Most of the pictures I did not like at all, but there were some sales. We bought one once on a cruise auction because other passengers kept remarking on the fact that there was a painting of Daisy on exhibition in the gallery. In the end we went to look and, indeed, there was one that was the image of her, as if she’d sat for the artist. So we had to buy that and it now hangs in our dining room!!!!
More lying in the sun this afternoon. They’ve now filled the pools and some brave souls were swimming. Not quite warm enough for me yet, (20C) but plenty warm enough to need sunscreen. Did some walking round the decks and went back to the cabin at about 4. Fell fast asleep – what are we like??? – and only woke up when the steward knocked at the door with a platter of free canapes for us. “Not more food” said Bob!!!! I had to laugh when I took the cover off the platter. There on the plate were 6 tiny canapes. I mean TINY!!!! Dwarfed by the plate. Each one was the size of maybe a 20p coin. Smoked salmon with golden caviar. As they were so tiny, I ate my share despite the bread base 😊
Tonight was the first formal night of the voyage, so best bib and tucker went on. There was a champagne fountain ceremony in the atrium and the Captain made a welcoming speech. Dinner was a rather upmarket affair and I had a really good steak. Very nice table again. One couple were celebrating their 46th anniversary and they got a special dessert and the waiters sang to them.
The show tonight was from the Princess company who are a strong singing group, several of whom are Broadway performers. Excellent mix of pop, light opera and the musical classics. Some fantastic voices. Great day at sea!