We would spend all day today and tomorrow at sea en route to Belfast, and we wondered how the captain was going to turn what is usually an overnight crossing into a two-day voyage. Nonetheless, we always enjoy sea days very much, there is always so much to see and do on board.
When we woke up at 8.00am, I felt very tired and sluggish and it was difficult to get out of bed. Not surprising really, considering the amount we’d had to drink and our late night last night. It was quite an effort to get washed and dressed and make our way to the Oceanview for breakfast.
The weather was dull and grey and, due to the ship’s movement, a brisk sea breeze was blowing which made it just that little bit cold to sit outside. This was evident from the empty sunloungers; the pool only seemed to contain children, as pools are always irresistible to kids no matter what the weather. 🙂
After breakfast I didn’t feel like doing the morning trivia so Trevor went up to the Sky Lounge on his own to join James, while I returned to cabin 7227, took a couple of paracetamols for my banging head, and went back to bed for an hour.
By lunchtime I was bright-eyed and bushy tailed once again, and we went to the Oceanview for lunch, where I enjoyed a plate of crisp salad vegetables and some cheese.
Then we went outside by the pool and found a spot which was sheltered from the wind; it was quite pleasant. A game was in progress for the kids, called “Mission Improbable” where the host would name an item and the kids had to find it, usually with the help of whoever was around. For example, when the host called “Find me a piece of fruit”, someone who was in the hot tub with a cocktail held up their slice of orange for one of the kids to grab, and take back.
One of the items required was a green flip-flop and, as I just happened to be wearing green patterned flip-flops (the thong part was green and the sole was patterned) I gave one to a little lad to held it up, and thus win the game. 🙂
We then spent some time walking around the spacious and almost-empty decks, and looking out to sea to see if we could spot any more whales or other ships. The Silhouette was only doing about five knots and moving in large circles as she tried to lengthen the journey from Liverpool to Belfast.
At 2.20pm we made our way to the Theatre where the Barricade Boys were performing their tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. It seemed everyone had decided to attend this matinée show, as the theatre was the fullest we’d seen it since boarding, The show was excellent; they sang all of the Four Seasons’ biggest hits, such as Big Girls Don’t Cry, Walk Like a Man, Sherry Baby and Begging.
We had to leave a few minutes early in order to get up to the Sky Lounge in time for the Music Trivia at three o’clock, because today’s theme was Musicals, and James had already said that was his specialist subject. He wasn’t kidding – we scored 39/40 (when I say “we” I mean “he” scored 39/40 as we didn’t contribute much at all). Some of the musicals I had never even heard of, such as Waitress. What an amazing knowledge; James kicked himself for the one that he got incorrect, but nevertheless he was way out in front and the winner. We each received another pack of Celebrity Cruises playing cards, but as we already had a pack we gave ours to James, so he had three packs. He could always give them away as souvenirs to his friends back home. 🙂
James then left and Trevor and I stayed to do the afternoon trivia while enjoying a cocktail; did I say they do a fantastic piña colada on board? It’s not a drink I would normally choose as they are so calorific, but these ones were scrumptious; thick and creamy and they float some Myers Rum on top which makes them extra delicious.
We then had to go back to cabin 7227 and get washed and changed into something a bit smarter, as the Captain’s Club cocktail party was taking place at 5.30pm in the Sky Lounge. This is Celebrity Cruises loyalty club, as we are Select members, having done (including this one) four Celebrity cruises and two Azamara cruises (Azamara was, until last year, the sister company until they were bought out by independent owners).
As we made our way into the Sky Lounge, we were greeted by Captain George and his officers, as waiting staff flitted about with their trays of wine, sherry and martinis and the resident band played upbeat Latin music. The officers circulated around and spoke to the passengers, and it was a pleasant event which we enjoyed a lot.
On our last cruise on the Borealis they didn’t hold the usual Oceans Club party (Fred Olsen’s loyalty programme) and I don’t know why. It’s strange how both cruise lines have strict Covid-19 protocols in place, yet the rules are different on each.
The end of the cocktail party brought us nicely to dinner, and this time we decided to go to the Oceanview instead of the restaurant. There is such a large selection of dishes there, from different nationalities. You can eat Chinese, Indian, Mexican, Italian, American and British. I opted for a green salad to start with, then I had a selection of Mexican nachos and tortillas with lots of jalapeños, which I love. It was washed down with a chilled dry rosé wine, and finished off with coffee.
We were all done by eight o’clock, and the show didn’t start until nine, so we just pottered about the ship and went along to the Craft Social bar on Deck 4, where we were able to perch on a bar stool and enjoy a post-prandial drink while listening to the live music and people-watching.
The main performance in the theatre tonight came from the MacDonald Brothers, a talented Scottish duo who had apparently appeared on the X-factor in 2006. They had only joined the ship in Liverpool at short notice, to fill in for the production shows on board which could now not take place for reasons given previously. They were excellent; they sang, played different instruments and engaged with the audience. Predictably, they finished their shown with the Proclaimers’ I’m Gonna Be and encouraged everyone to join in lustily. It was a great show.
Afterwards it was back to the Sky Lounge which was already packed for the Abbamania ‘Singalong’ show, where Abba music is played while the lyrics appear on a large screen so everyone can join in. The only seats available were stools at the bar, so we each took a seat, ordered a drink and enjoyed the music. After our overindulgence and late night last night, we determined there wouldn’t be a repeat, so we left at the early-for-us time of 11.30pm, and were back in 7227 in good time, where we settled down to sleep before midnight.