It worked!

The coins we dropped in the pirate's chest did the job. Our 6 days crossing the Atlantic were fairly uneventful though we did have one day when the sea was a bit rough. Thankfully it didn't cause us any problems but that obviously wasn't the case with everyone on the M/S Maasdam. The staff discreetly placed bags by the elevators for those guests that felt a bit queasy moving about the ship.

example of our cabin steward's handy work

Before we left home we had only one concern about this trip......fear of boredom. What the heck would we do during the long sailings across the pond? That question was answered our first night aboard.

Our cabin steward placed a tri-fold pamphlet on our bed next to our towel animal and chocolates. The brochure listed all the next days' activities. Beginning at 7 AM we were offered everything from stretching to trivia to live entertainment. One of our favorite programs on sea days was the Explorer Series. Guest lecturers shared their knowledge of   everything from improv theater to international terrorism. The best by far was Frank Buzzard, the retired chief engineer of the International Space Station. He was fascinating!


I also took advantage of their classes on Windows 10. Apparently I wasn't the only one who had not embraced Microsoft's newest offering. Said computer company sponsored the Digital Workshop. It helped that we had a 30-something instructor with a great personality. Molly gave up her career as a kindergarten teacher to work on Holland America. What a perfect career to prepare her to teach a bunch of gray hairs (ok,so I only have a couple of gray hairs). It also helped that she was a graduate of my husband's alma mater. Go Cougs!

Ready, Set, Go....

     The night before we left St. Maarten, our final port of call in the western Atlantic, our cabin steward left an invitation to the Scallywag Sail Away Ceremony and 2 faux gold doubloons on our bed. Apparently this party was a tradition on the night we set sail across the pond.   
      Our cruise director planned quite an extravaganza. The navigation deck was festooned with flags and the staff were dressed as pirates. It was a very festive atmosphere. Of course the rum punch didn't hurt.
     As we threw our doubloons in the requisite pirates chest I had my fingers crossed. I wasn't taking any chances. I wanted to make doubly sure our next 6 days at sea crossing the Atlantic were smooth.
     This was where the real adventure began....
     
 

Hakuna Matata

I know Disney's Lion King isn't the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a Mediterranean cruise but it's where this story begins.
     We had chosen the open seating option for dinner rather than being obligated to dining  at the same time with the same people every night. The idea being that we'd meet a lot of different people. It sounded good in theory.
     The first night aboard was gala night so everyone was decked out in their finest. It also happened to be Halloween. 

Rafiki

     We headed down to the dining room and waited with another couple for a table. One gentleman looked very dapper in his tux, the other looked like Rafiki, the baboon in the Lion King. He had on a huge, elaborate mask, a black full body leotard and carried a wooden staff.
     Bruce sent me a look that pretty much said what did you get me into! He leaned towards me and whispered, "Who is that?" I shrugged. I had a feeling we'd find out soon enough. Oh boy.

     That was our introduction to Henry. Once his mask came off we learned he and David were on board to celebrate David's 80th birthday. David asked Henry why he didn't wear his tux. I thought his answer made a lot of sense, "I didn't carry this mask all the way from Seattle to leave it packed away."
      I wondered if I needed to rethink the open seating decision then I remembered what hakuna matata stands for....no worries. Besides we only have 49 more dinners to go. How bad could it be?