DAY 2 ON EXPLORER--AT SEA

 Last Night:

     Actually, we started off with a martini and glass of chardonnay in our suite.  Then we went down to the Meridian Lounge for a pre-dinner cocktail.  Seating at the bar (our usual spot) is not allowed now.                                                          
                                          This is Marie Joy, our cocktail waitress.

                                       This is Catalin, the expert mixologist/bartender. 

For dinner we had reservations in Prime 7 and was greeted by Erkan, the maitre'd.  We have known and cruised with Erkan several times.

Gusti, was our waiter.  He is from Bali, Indonesia, and we have also known him for a long time.

Our wine sommelier was Kas and Georgiana, the head sommelier, stopped by to say hi.  We have known both of them for several years too.

Prime 7 was only about half full last night.  I believe they are restricting occupancy as part of their covid protocols.

I had Surf & Turf, a lobster tail and filet.  The tail was a little over cooked.  Rebecca had a filet.  We started with a wedge salad.

I had to have my favorite dessert.  It is called a popcorn sundae but it is carmel corn on top.

Today:     
     

     I had asked Shogun for breakfast in our suite between 8 and 8:30am.  So I had set our alarm clock for 7:30.  We were both sound asleep when it went off.  Best night's sleep in a LONG time for both of us.  Breakfast arrived at 8:15 and consisted of coffee, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, and toast.  OINK!!
     While waiting for breakfast I had to fire up my laptop to check Sunday's sports scores.  Happy to see that the Astros won and also our Dallas Cowboys won.  While checking my emails I got a FaceBook message from Captain Rosario, the ship's captain, welcoming us on board.  He calls me "Captain".  We have been "friends" on FaceBook for several years and our last cruise before covid was with him here on Explorer.  This evening is the Captain's Welcome Reception.  Cocktails with him and the senior officers in the theater at 6pm. 
     We both went to the gym this morning for our badly needed treadmill time.  Nothing changes as two of the six treadmill were out of order.  This is a Regent recurring problem.  Explorer has been back in service for less than a month!

This is the normal way to the fitness center but those rooms are now designated "isolation" rooms if covid is detected in anyone.

                       So now we enter the spa on deck 5 for the fitness center on deck above it.

                                    Spa does about every thing from hair & nails to massages.

                                        Stairs leading up to the fitness center on deck 6.

                                                             

                                                             

                                                             

                                       

                                                 Glass floor looking down on pool.

     For lunch we went up to Prime 7.

Here were greeted by Abraham, one of the head waiters on Explorer.  Of course we knew him also from previous cruises.

Also there serving drinks was one of the sweetest young ladies whom we have known for a long time.  This is Grace.  She is also a Facebook friend and I have told her about my single son, Jeff.  She asked how he was doing today.

     Rebecca brought her usual lunch with her, an Atkins bar.  She has it for lunch EVERY day.  I usually have lunch on Regent in Prime 7 and stay away from the very tempting La Veranda buffet.  I can eat light in Prime 7.  Today I had an empanada then just plain grilled salmon.  I always forget to take the food photos until after digging in.  Lunch was great.

     Captain Saro made the usual position and weather report at 12:30.  We are cruising at 17 kts and are 300 miles from our first port, Cadiz, Spain.  We will be going through the Strait of Gibraltar tonight which will take an hour to transit.  The outside air temperature is 72F.  Winds over 30 kts causing sea to be disturbed.

     Shogun said there are 488 passengers on board for this cruise.  The ship's capacity is 750.  Rebecca went to the library yesterday and came back with 3 books to read.  Someone there told her there are 95 bridge players on the ship.  There is bridge on the schedule every afternoon for 3 hours.  Of course there are activities scheduled all day long but we normally do not take part.  We just like to relax and do our own thing.  This afternoon we are going down to check out the shops.  I did not pack my cologne so got some today--Armani Diamonds for men.  While down shopping we stopped by the reception desk and asked if our Dallas Morning News paper had been printed for us.  It had so Rebecca is reading the sports page now.  This is how the ocean is looking today.  Ship's stabilizers are deployed so getting a pretty nice ride.  I always try to book a lower deck, mid ship suite as the ride is much better there.

     

       This afternoon I was checking our account as it is one feature we can get on our tv.  It was confusing as showing me with a $360.01 credit.  (the cologne cost $39.99)  I thought we only had a $200 ship board credit so went down to the reception desk to investigate the discrepancy.  She explained that our travel agency, Pavlus Travel, had also given us another $200 credit.  Guess I missed that somehow.  Now Rebecca wants to go shopping again!!

     As I walked past the Meridian Lounge they were setting up for "tea time".  It is a daily 4pm event.

This is Srawan, the head pastry chef.  He is primarily responsible to make sure each passenger gains at least 10 pounds!  Below you can see his work.

     Across from the Meridian Lounge is a nice place for all kinds of coffees and some snacks called The Coffee Connection.  Below are some photos of it.  It is open from 6:30am to 5:30pm.  I sat down and had a cappuccino.  

This was my waiter, Victor from Nicaragua, but the main reason for this photo is to show the hand sanitizer.  These are at the entrance to all lounges and dining rooms.  You must use them.

Shogun brought us this shrimp cocktail at 5pm for our evening canape.  We will enjoy a cocktail with them before leaving here at 6pm for the Captain's Welcome Reception in the theater.  Dinner tonight will be in Compass Rose the main dining room.  There is a show in the theater at 9:30 featuring a comedian/magician from the UK.  That's it for today.  Tomorrow we will be in Cadiz, Spain.