We gained another hour (we are now on Eastern Daylight
time), so we are now done with time changes.
Julie woke up at 4 something, got up at 5, started a load of laundry and
went out to exercise at 5:30. Bob got up
at 6 and started exercising at 6:20. We
were sailing into Grand Turk, supposedly to arrive just after the Carnival
Breeze arrived (it is a 4000+ passenger mega ship). We could see the Carnival ship in the
distance and it looked like we were going to arrive first. Bob ended up continuing to walk around the
promenade deck watching us arrive in port, docking at about 7:30.
The Breeze followed and began its docking procedure just
behind us. People were going ashore
from our ship a bit before 8 and the Breeze passengers disembarked a little
later.
After watching the docking, we went up to breakfast and ate
outside on the back of the Lido and gazed up at the massive Breeze ship. It has about 5 or 6 more decks that our
ship. After breakfast, we did some
pre-packing of clean clothes and then started working on the blog.
We had a light lunch in the Lido at about noon and then got
ready for our excursion. We then
assembled in the Starlight for our 1:15 shore excursion, a Kayaking and Eco walk
tour. We left precisely at 1:15,
disembarked, and walked out to sign a waiver and get on an open-air bus. There were 14 of us including the Crystal
crew escort. We drove in the bus about
30 minutes north of the port. We saw a
flock of pink flamingos on the drive.
After a dirt road, we arrived at the place where we would board our
kayaks. We were on a small salt-water
river with mangroves and several different kinds of birds. The two-person kayaks had glass bottoms. After a few short instructions, we got in and
started to paddle up the river, enjoying the sights and talking a bit about the
flora and fauna. At one point, we
stopped and the guide reached into the water and pulled out a jellyfish. It is one of the few species that do not
sting.
We then had to get really low in our kayaks and float under
a bridge back near where we started. We
then went down the river near the outlet and got out of our kayaks for a short
eco walk. We learned both about the
environment and the people of eight inhabited islands of the 60 in the Turks
and Caicos. Grand Turk is known for its
animals (including donkeys that just wander in and out of houses), while North
Caicos is known for its health. People
there eat only all natural foods and live to a very old age. The South Caicos is known for their skill
around the ocean, such as being able to swim for long periods of time under
water (averaging 8 minutes). After a
short swim (it was really hot by this time and the water was amazingly
refreshing), we got back in the kayaks and paddled back to the starting
point. The bus returned and got us back
to the ship right at 4:30 (the scheduled end of the tour and also when all passengers
needed to be on the ship).
We then got ready for the evening and went up to the pool
area for the sail away party. The party
ended at 5:30 and we went down to the Starlight club for cocktails.
Dinner was again at 6:15.
Bob began with an appetizer of Charred Beef Salad with Papaya-Mango
Slaw. It was absolutely excellent. Julie skipped the appetizer. For the second course, we both had Panache of
Mixed Greens with Radicchio, Fennel, and Orange Segments. We both thought that it was good but somewhat
ordinary. For entrée, Bob had the
Caribbean Lamb Curry with Coconut Rice, Fried Bananas, and Fresh
Pineapple-Cilantro Chutney. It was
fantastic!!! Julie wasn’t in the mood
for the various options and thus chose a Grilled Black Angus Filet Steak with
Sauce Béarnaise from the Traditional – always-available menu. Instead of a regular dessert, we decided to
try the cheeses. These were amazingly
great cheeses and we were a bit upset that we hadn’t tried them before.
The appetizer salad:
The salad:
The lamb curry:
The steak:
After dinner, we went to the atrium, where the Galaxy Orchestra
was doing a Dixie Land set. There was a
huge audience. We also noticed up in the
Bistro that they had set up the exact same set of cheeses that we found on the
cheese menu in the dining room, right next to the chocolate fountain. We might try this on our last night.
Notice the pillows in various locations:
We then went to the Galaxy lounge for the Dancing with the
Crystal Stars show. It began with Dale
Gonyea doing a warmup act. He was really
funny, again mixing in life on the ship with humor. After a few more elements, they started the
show where several staff members (including the Doctor, a day cleaner, a
concierge and a bartender) teamed up with the dance instructors to do a dance
in front of the audience. Like the show,
they just learned the routines this week.
It was quite entertaining and enjoyable.
There are two dance teams onboard and they had taught the amateurs the
dances just this cruise.
After the show, we retired for the evening.