Saturday afternoon and I’m back enjoying sunshine and beautiful clear skies. The Eurodam is about 600 nautical miles west of Lisbon and eight hours ahead of Tucson time (MST). We are beginning to see other ships, mostly freighters and tankers, as we get closer to Western Europe. The final daylight time change occurs this afternoon and then the next (and final) time change comes overnight on Tuesday-Wednesday as we sail from Portugal to Spain. Everyone on board seems to remain healthy and there have been no stark announcements about health issues since we left port, although there are hand-cleaning stations everywhere.
University of Arizona Poetry Center
Most of you know that for the past year I have been volunteering at the University of Arizona Poetry Center. Just before leaving Tucson I did a short electronic interview with Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Franz Wright for the April edition of the monthly Poetry Center Newsletter. If you’d like to read the interview I have provided a direct link above (http://poetrycenter.arizona.edu/enewsletter/april2010/enews0410wright.shtml). You can also navigate around the Poetry Center website to see some pictures of the really neat building.
Question of the Day
How do crew members who see you briefly for breakfast maybe once every two or three days always remember your name? Holland America must give a course in memory tricks. When I was teaching I could barely remember students’ names by the end of the semester.
Friday Afternoon: Passing the Azores
At three in the afternoon we pass close to the north shore of the northernmost of the Azores Islands, Korvo—a sparsely populated, mostly volcanic rock. Even though it is overcast it is quite pleasant to sit on the Promenade Deck as we pass the island (and get a brief presentation from Travel Director Ian on its history and culture).
Friday Formal Dinner:
Tonight is the “Black and White” Dinner and Officers’ Ball, so I don my best again for
• A glass of Domine Ste Michelle Brut Champagne
• Duck pâté brioche: pâté in croute with pistachios and a side of creamy slaw
• Caesar salad
• Filet mignon and a very large lobster tail: Michael, my dining steward, asks if I want a second lobster tail, but I refrain. The best part is that he removes the tail from the meat.
• Tiramisú for dessert
Saturday: More Engineering Highlights
The highlight of the day is the tour of the ship’s stores—the food storage and waste control areas. This is the first time I’ve been on a ship that offers a tour of the underbelly of its operation. We are guided through packaged food storage, refrigeration, frozen foods, liquor and water operations; we see (and smell) the bakery and meat cutting areas; and even tour the facilities for storing and printing all the materials distributed to passengers over the 16 days of the cruise. We see where glass is ground to bits and metal cans are crushed. At the end of the tour we are taken through the engine control room—certainly a place for clean freaks. I hope the pictures speak for themselves.
Saturday Dinner in the Pinnacle Grill
I’ll save the details for tomorrow’s blog.
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