Asian Adventure - Part 4

Today we answer your questions and talk about ship life.

How do people get their bikes out of the parking lot? We asked the same thing. There is a valet.

Did we use tours/go on our own? Hong Kong, one stop in Thailand and Singapore we did on our own. The rest we did with excursions provided by the ship.

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Cruise life - The Man says if you ever want to feel like a million dollars, cruise. We are blessed that we are not affected by seasickness like many so it is easier to enjoy. In fact we were on the edge of a typhoon, it was pretty rocky and unless we were walking, it didn't bother us (I slept through the roughest night where things fell off tables).

Being on the ship is something you either love or hate. I love it. I never would have thought I would, but I feel in love. I was so terrified the first time we cruised, but I have gotten over it and now would move onto a ship. I would spend my retirement on one!

Lounging outside

Let's talk about a day at sea. [Port days are different as we grab a quick breakfast, head out for the day,  and come back for dinner and maybe the show.]

Sea days for us go like this:
Sleep in
Go for a slow breakfast in the dining room
Go sit and read outside for a few hours
Go for a slow lunch in the dining room
Go sit and read somewhere for a few hours
Go to the gym
Go to the spa and sit and read  (we purchased a pass to the special spa area which is restricted)
Go back to the room to get ready for the evening
Go for cocktails before dinner and listen to lovely music

Cocktail before noon!

Go for a nice dinner in the dining room or a speciality restaurant (14 dinners and only one would I say was just ok, the rest were great)
Go to the show
Maybe go for a night cap/dance (there is a themed dance party every night.

We did do some things to mix up some days. We went to some talks. We played Bingo (Man won $300). We spent some time in the Casio (I am up $140). We played some silly little cruise ship games. We did some shopping.

If you aren't into formal dining, there is a buffet and a pub. Given my serious food allergies, the dining room is my best option. I get to order my food the day before and it is specially prepared. They made me the most amazing gluten free, soy free Chicken Kiev. Seriously it was one of the best things I have ever eaten. Made even better by the fact that since our tour ran late and I missed dinner it was delivered to my room.

Best Kiev

 Your stateroom is cleaned 2 times per day. If you have a nap, your bed will be remade at night. The crew is there to give you the most pleasant experience possible.  In general the service is excellent.

One of the many animals that appeared on our bed!

I read 7 books on our trip. No I didn't pack them all, I only took 3, but the ship has a library.

There are always a lot of activities if you like or there is always a lot of sitting around if you like. You can truly make it the trip you want.

We celebrated 2 holidays on the ship. Christmas in Vietnam (which really didn't feel like it, even with the carolling, fancy dinner and Santa) and New Year's in Thailand. There were 5 different options for New Year's. We picked the deck as it was beautiful out. 13 hours before our family and friends we welcomed 2017!  If you want a relaxing holiday season, I suggest going away

That is what life on the ship was like for us. Next week we will get back to our travels as we visit Thailand.