It was a beautiful sunny morning when we woke up today. There was some wind coming from the bow of the ship, but the seas were fairly calm. It was nice to be able to see outside with the balcony cabin and to open the sliding door slightly and listen to the waves breaking near the bow of the ship. Of course, it was late, about 9:00 AM on yesterday’s time, and unfortunately, already 10:00 AM on the new adjusted ship’s time. We had slept well, having been really tired from the long day we had yesterday, especially the early wake up time.
USC Gamecock’s Decorations on our Door
I headed down to the International Cafe and got a Cappuccino coffee, and two heated breakfast sandwiches to go. While I was getting the sandwiches, Stephanie decorated our door with some South Carolina Gamecock’s items in celebration of the women’s basketball championship victory last night. (to be clear, we watched the men’s game on Saturday night, but did not watched the women’s game last night) We enjoyed the breakfast in the room, and then got dressed and headed out so that our cabin steward could clean the room.
We headed to the stern of the ship to the Outrigger Bar, so I could get a Bloody Caesar, my favorite morning drink. Stephanie opted not to have her usual morning Peach Bellini. I was a little disappointed to see that the Bloody Caesar was no longer covered by the drink package, at least as long as it was made with Elite Vodka, which was the standard in the menu recipe for that specialty drink. It was now an $11 drink, exceeding the $10 price point maximum for the beverage package. Of course, if it was made with any of the other fine vodka’s they served, it was covered, so I had mine made with Grey Goose, and who could tell any difference with the spicy mix and Clamato juice used in the drink, certainly not me.
It was the only specialty drink they serve at Outrigger’s that exceeded the price, and they make several specialty “bloody” morning drinks, as well as specialty margaritas. When we get home, we will have to see what makes the Elite vodka so expensive, it was even over $10 just for a single shot, so it must be pricey. I had one more Bloody Caesar before we headed back to the cabin to apply sunscreen and put on our bathing suits for some time out in the sunshine.
The high temperature for today was forecast to only be about 73 degrees, so we had to find a wind protected area to sit out in the sun deck lounge chairs. We ended up in the same area we had used last April on the transatlantic cruise, we already knew it was about as protected as you could find.
We read books, and then Stephanie napped. It was mostly sunny, and only cool when there was some extended cloudy periods. As the afternoon wore on, it actually got to be fairly cloud free, and was very enjoyable outside. At about 4:00 PM, it was starting to get cooler again as the sun went down, so we packed up and headed to the stern of the ship to play cards. We sat at the Outrigger Bar, and met the bartender there, Arturo, from Mexico. He had been our bartender this morning, but we had not had time to talk with him.
Visiting With Arturo At The Outrigger Bar
There was hardly anyone there in the afternoon, so we were able to really get to know him and we all had a great chat. His wife is from Russia, they had met on a cruise ship, and he now lives in Russia with her when he is not on working on Princess ships.
The Regal Princess Heading Eastward
We headed back to the cabin to shower and get ready for dinner. They were having a Mexican Buffet in the Horizon Court, so we opted for that instead of going to the Dining Room. It was really good. We stopped off at Vines for a glass of wine and some tapas before dinner, and ran into a lady we had seen a lot in Vines on the April 2016 Transatlantic Cruise. She is the most traveled cruise passenger on the ship for this cruise. The bar was virtually empty, which was surprising to us and to her. Apparently, there were no drink package specials being offered as incentives for this cruise, and it was really apparent. Most of the bars were ghost towns, which had not been the case on our two previous transatlantic cruises in April and October of 2016.
The Wheelhouse Bar
After dinner, we did a little shopping on Deck 6 and then headed to the Wheelhouse Bar for a couple of drinks with Zivka. Simon was playing his guitar there, and came over to visit with us for a few minutes after he finished his show. Once again, we were the only patrons sitting at the bar most of the time, there were others sitting at tables in the lounge, but there was hardly any drink orders being placed, so we had a lot of time to visit with Zivka, and the other bartender there, Renier, they were not busy at all.
Men’s Basketball Championship Game In The Princess Theater
At about 11:30 PM, we left the Wheelhouse Bar, it was closing time for them, which is good, it keeps us from being out too late. We went to the Princess Theater to try and catch the last of the Men’s National Championship Basketball Game, which was just past halftime. We watched the game for a little while, but decided we would not watch it until the end since we had no vested interest in the outcome.
Late Night Snack
We headed to the International Cafe and had a late night snack before heading back to the cabin for the night. Once again, we lose an hour as we adjust the time to match Europe, which is now five hours ahead, but will be four hours ahead after the change tonight.
I am living vicariously thru ya’ll enjoying your trip too! Ryan and chuckles say hello.