Thursday May 30 – At Sea

What is the meaning of “Elite”?  Because we have done a number of days cruising with Princess, we are classified as Elite.  This entitles us to having our fridge stocked with alcohol, canapés on formal nights, a certain amount of free internet, first access to the tenders at ports that require this mode of transport and best of all, Princess does all our washing and ironing.  Usually, on a cruise of 2000 people there would be fewer than 100 passengers that are elite.  However, on this cruise, there are 800 elite passengers.  We were told that our washing would take 72 hours to return to us, but we have often found that it is back within 24 hours, despite the huge numbers eligible for the service. Tonight, we were invited to the Captain’s cocktail party.  Once, he used to have these parties in his cabin for the elite passengers.  On this cruise he had four parties with 200 at each and needless to say, these parties were not held in his cabin.

We sailed around Sri Lanka today and had another 25 hour day.  We are now 5 hours behind Melbourne time.

We watched a 1950’s movie, Pillow Talk, with Rock Hudson and Doris Day.  Amazingly, neither of us had ever seen it.  We thought it was very well written and the colour was vibrant.  Quite a risqué movie for its time.

Tonight, we had a comedy vocalist, Dianne Cousins, for our after dinner show.  She was an older woman with a powerful voice but I would have preferred just the vocals without the comedy.

First practice for the choir in the Vista Lounge with us all in our correct places. We also learnt the Viennese Waltz from Josh and Fiona.

 

Wednesday May 29 – At Sea

Today we sailed through the Bay of Bengal towards Sri Lanka. The big event of the day was pirate drill for all passengers and staff.  We will be entering pirate waters soon as we sail through certain parts of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Oman.  They use high pressure water hoses and echo sound to ward off anyone who tries to board the ship illegally.  The passengers had to wait in the corridor where there were no windows or doors.  We were told that the ship would do manoeuvres so there could be quite a bit of movement.  It was suggested that we sit or lie in the corridors if this was the case.  We heard of some passengers bringing beach towels and pillows with them into the corridor for a comfortable lie down.

I found some Chinese people who spoke no English doing Tai Chi on deck so I joined them.  They had a recording with instructions in Chinese and music.  One person who joined the group late and had some English said that they were chanting, “I am beautiful, I am healthy.”  I have never had such a vigorous warm up for Tai Chi.  We then did Beijing 24.  Lots of fun.

Today I had a bit of pampering up in the Lotus Spa.  Now I have feet ready for lots of walking at our next port.  They use the hot stones to massage the body. 

We had a Scottish dancing class today.  The teacher was dressed in red Scottish tartan and taught us the type of dance that they did in the movie, Four weddings and a Funeral. We also did the Virginia Reel, which I remember from school days.

Sue McGarry and Bill and I had dinner in a special restaurant on the ship last night after pre dinner drinks in the nook.  The Sterling Steakhouse food was superb.  Sue and I went to school together. The choir is making steady progress on its preparation for a performance to be held in 3 days time. Thank goodness for the downloaded backing tracks that make us sound so much better than we really are! We are expecting a big crowd who will enjoy it and have a good laugh at the same time. The programme:

1.   Cabaret

2.   The Longest Time

3.   Don’t Stop Me Now

4.   Crazy Little Thing Called Love

5.   Beatles Medley: Do You Love Me, I Wanna Hold Your Hand, From Me To You, Twist and Shout

6.   Thank You For The Music

7.   Que Sera Sera

8.   Do You Hear The People Sing?

9.   Bohemian Rhapsody

10.                This Is Me.

Tuesday May 28 – At Sea

Today we sailed through the Malacca Straits with Indonesia on the port side and Malaya on the starboard side.  Dolphins played around the ship this morning.  Clock went back another hour today so we are now three hours behind Melbourne time.  I love these 25 hour days. We had another formal night tonight with a good production show of Sweet Soul Music.  This was the last show by this group as they have been on the ship for nine months and are getting off in Dubai.  The next group of singers and dancers boarded the ship in Singapore with 22 different shows for us.  As yet we have not met them.  We are keeping up our exercise regime, which is necessary because of all the tempting desserts. Technology has moved on since our last long sea cruise. User friendly interfaces have been developed and the Internet connection is more reliable and faster. They offer timed connections by the minute but also time blocks by the day so you don’t have to keep logging off and logging on. This makes it much easier to run a business while on the ship and reduces the reliance on wifi at ports of call.

Monday May 27 – Kuala Lumpur

Today we took a ship’s tour to the 400 million year old limestone Batu caves, which are about 20 kilomtres out of Kuala Lumpur.  This is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside of India.  To reach the cave, which is not underground like most caves, you have to climb 273 steps.  The cave is actually situated in a mountain.  The cave is very airy and about 20 metres high, so not at all claustrophobic.  As you climb the steps leading to the cave, you are greeted by cheeky long tailed macaque monkeys who are looking to steal food.  We had no food so were of no interest to them but the knowing monkeys realise that the Hindus who come to pray bring food for the gods. They are not concerned about the wrath of the gods if they pilfer a banana here or there.

The cave is filled with colourful shrines and a 50 metre gilded statue of the deity, Lord Murugan, outside the entrance to the steps.  Brightly coloured replicas of peacocks adorn the cave.

Next we had a tour of the Royal Selangor pewter factory.  It is incredibly well set up and the workers seem to be appreciated by their employers.  We watched one lady making a small pewter teapot and plaiting the handle with fine pewter fibres.  Later, when we had a cappuccino, the barista decorated the top of it with a picture of this same teapot.  By he way, this was the best coffee we have had since leaving Melbourne.

After this, we went to the National Museum.  This celebrates Malay culture and historical heritage with an impressive collection from the times of the Portuguese, Dutch and British.  Modern Malaysia from the time of its independence in 1957 was also on display.

We had a great lunch in The Times Square hotel in KL before the hour long bus ride back to the ship.