Rome – Transatlantic 2009 Day 18 – Atlantic Crossing Day 5
December 12, 2009
Yesterday was the 5th sea day of the transatlantic crossing on the Celebrity Solstice. Weather again proved to be our friend as the weather reached into the 80’s with a slight breeze and sunny conditions. The sea state remained minimal with maybe 4 foot swells. I know I sound like a broken record, but we couldn’t have asked for much better conditions on this cruise.
Warning, more broken record posting coming up… I spent most of the day on the Lawn Club here on Celebrity Solstice. Sean and I caught two hot glass shows and they continue to be very entertaining and enjoyable. Except for Savannah’s piece from the Kids’ Club segment, we have yet to win any glass. Sean wants one bad, but the odds are against him.
While on the Lawn Club, I also got my pre-requisite couple of hours of ocean staring. I also played several rounds of Bocce Ball with Sean.
Last night was also the last Formal night of the cruise. We got to put on our duds one last time. For dinner, Suzanne, Sean and I all had the Filet for dinner that was cooked to perfection and delicious. Sean also got one of the lobster tails that are synonymous with the final formal night on Celebrity Cruises. Savannah had short rib lasagna that she really enjoyed. We all partook in the traditional Baked Alaska for dinner.
After dinner, it was time for the big production number show. The shows have been a mixed bag for me on this cruise. We actually have not made it to many of them as they didn’t interest us. One of the big problems to me is the seating in the Solstice Theater. I find the seats pretty uncomfortable. They have a rigid back, which I normally prefer, but are angled such that you constantly want to slide lower and lower, almost out of the seat. The bottom part of the seat is also harder than I would prefer. Basically, for me, the seats detract from any show.
Last night’s production number also gets mixed reviews from us. It was billed as a circus style show, but certainly more like Cirque de Soleil, maybe on steroids. There were lots of oddities performed. Some were intriguing, some were too familiar. All seemed to go on too long. I wouldn’t say I was bored or anything, but it was less than I was hoping for. I was wanting a big Broadway style production show and the ‘circus’ didn’t measure up for me. Sean kind of felt the same as I did, but the girls liked it, especially Savannah.
After the show, we headed off to the cabin and turned in around midnight. All are starting to get a bit sad as tomorrow will be our last real day of the cruise with one final sea day before we arrive into Fort Lauderdale. As such, today will be my last blog update from the Celebrity Solstice. Since we are staying overnight in Fort Lauderdale (courtesy of Hilton), I will update on the last cruise day from the hotel.
I can certainly say this has been an awesome cruise!
Rome – Transatlantic 2009 Day 17 – Atlantic Crossing Day 4
December 11, 2009
Yesterday was the 4th sea day of the Atlantic crossing on this Celebrity Solstice transatlantic cruise. I hate to sound like a broken record, but the weather continues to just absolutely rock. Temperatures were in the upper 70’s with clear skies and continued very calm seas.
After an early breakfast, I headed up to the lawn club to find a comfy chair for more ocean staring. What I thought would be a bit of a gimmick, has turned out to be one of my favorite places on the ship. It’s also quite popular with most of the guests. Who would have thought a huge lawn on a cruise ship would be so cool? Perhaps I should keep more of an open mind on that new mall on the behemoth Oasis of the Sea, which I still don’t really see myself cruising.
When the hot glass show time rolled around, Sean and decided to attend it once again. With every show being different and unique, they are all fun. The area for the hot glass show is also on The Lawn Club. The hot glass show has surpassed Celebrity’s expectations and they are trying make changes to accommodate more folks with better seating and other features from feedback of the glass blowers. With 2 Solstice class ships (Celebrity Solstice and Celebrity Equinox) already having hot glass demonstrations and a third (Celebrity Eclipse) already in the pipeline and launching in April, changes are hard to do and expensive. Still, the glass blowing demo is another winner in my mind. Sean has already told me he wants to go to all the remaining shows.
At this show, one of the gaffers decided to make a clown. Wow, what an intricate and detailed process that was. And the result was outstanding – or at least what we could see when it was put in the annealing oven. The unveiling, after the cooling process, will be this morning and expectations are high. I think part of the reason Sean wants to go to the remaining shows is to try to get the clown in the raffle. If you recall, since the Corning Museum of Glass, who does the show, is not for profit, they raffle off all the glass they make during the cruise. It would be quite a piece to have.
I even managed to stick in a short nap in the afternoon. This has been a very relaxing and restful vacation. I usually hate naps as I don’t sleep at night, but the three or four I have taken on the cruise have done nothing but good things. It is certainly working to recharge my batteries though I had my doubts after our Rome adventures and early port days.
In the evening, Sean and I went to another glass blowing demonstration. The night show, under the lights is slightly less attended due to the conflict with the early seating dinner crowd. This is also the first show where one of the artists actually failed in making their glass and broke it during the process. This was a 30 years experienced glass blowing gaffer. He wasn’t too upset and it explained that working on the glass show for Celebrity was a unique opportunity for them to try new things, to experiment and sort of practice for when they were making pieces for commission or for sale. He said if he had been paying for the studio, the glass, the assistants, etc, he would have been more upset. He said he knows what he did wrong and would improve it the next time. By the time Celebrity has the glass blowing demonstrations on 5 or 6 ships, they will have 60 or 70 glass blowers lined up to support the cruises and demonstrations. The concept is quite popular with the glass making artist community.
Dinner was again smart casual in the main dining room. Savannah had asked if she could go to the dinner party in the fun factory since she hadn’t attended one yet. It was make your own pizza night, so we let her attend. Sean and I enjoyed a wonderful breaded chicken dish with a nice sauce. Suzanne went with a Spaghetti Bolognese and enjoyed it too. So that is another one of the nice things we like about Celebrity, the food is really, really good and the menus are varied throughout the cruise.
After dinner, it was time for the Celebrity Starring You Awards. It’s sort of their Academy Awards for all the various events that cruise guests compete in throughout the cruise. Some awards including joke telling, singing, photography, etc. Suzanne was a finalist in the Singing Star (ie karaoke) competition. The top two singing star performers also got to do another live song in the theater to all the guests. Suzanne performed Cabaret to a rousing ovation. When the winner was announced, it was not her and she took home another 2nd place Singing Star finish.
Next up was the Grand Chocolate showing in the Sky lounge. There were more chocolate and ice carvings than you could shake a stick at. Sean skipped it to hang out in the teens club. Savannah was the only one who actually sampled some chocolate. Suzanne and I just looked.
It was about 12:15 when we headed back to the room to end the day – another fabulous cruise day at sea. Unfortunately, there are only 2 more left before we arrive at Fort Lauderdale and the fun will come to a close – until the next cruise!
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