Seminar at Sea: Five

This post will cover two topics: (1) What we did on Saturday and (2) Odds and ends aboard ship.

I don't know how many elevators there are on Zuiderdam. I know that #18 and #20 were the ones closest to our cabin. I know that the even-numbered elevators are on the port (left) side of the ship and the odds on the starboard (right) side. I know that as confused as Bonnie and I were for a long time, there must have been people even more confused because each morning when we'd enter an elevator, the changeable carpet would tell us what day it was!

Saturday was a big day. Most people were saying that it was going to be the highlight of the trip. The quilters weren't all that sure about that, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Saturday was the day we would transit the Panama Canal! The plan was that the Atlantic-to-Pacific crossing would take place in the morning and upon arriving at Lake Gatun, most passengers would get off the ship to take part in one of many different excursions that were offered. Then the ship would turn around and cross the Canal again, this time Pacific-to-Atlantic. Bonnie and I eschewed the excursions, opting instead to stay aboard, observe the second transit, and enjoy some free sewing time. When the ship docked at Colon, we did get off briefly, but there really wasn't much to see or do there in the port, and time was limited.

The crossing was really interesting, especially because the Captain used the public address system to explain everything as it was happening.

Here are some photos of the Canal crossing along with a treat that is apparently traditionally served at the time of a crossing: a Panama roll. It tastes somewhat like a Boston Cream doughnut without the chocolate topping. I liked it.

Now for some photos from the ship that don't seem to fit anywhere else in my narrative:

Occasionally we would return to our cabin to find that a small animal had joined us.

The MainStage was the venue for the major evening entertainment. We went to two of these. Planet Earth Two was a film produced by the BBC that was about wild animals. The photography was beautiful, and the showing was accompanied by the ship's musicians.

The other evening we attended was truly the most amazing juggler/comedian we'd ever seen. I'm sorry I don't have a photo of him to share.

Our room steward was attentive and seemed never to sleep. We liked him a lot until on the penultimate day, he asked for an extra tip. No quid pro quo for us!

Bonnie's birthday occurred near the end of our trip and this appeared in our cabin during the afternoon. One for each of us, and #ohmywasittasty!

At dinner that night, Bonnie also received a special extra dessert and our waiter earned our gratitude for cancelling the planned singing tribute, at Bonnie's request.

One of my favorite spots on the ship was the Lincoln Center where almost every evening the chamber musicians performed. I attended whenever I could.