The Pages of The Gray Wizard

On Board

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On Board the Fascination

Our Stateroom

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Our stateroom (E193) was on the Empress Deck and had an ocean side view.  We put the two beds together to make one big bed.

First Night Out

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Marlis and I on deck as we go out to sea.  
The lights in the background are the lights of San Juan.


Bon Voyage Deck Party

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A limbo line.
Hot! Hot! Hot!

Hanging out at the Calypso Party

"Rhythm Krazy",
The Calypso Band
Follow the leader, leader, leader.

The first night out we had a Bon Voyage Party on the Lido Deck.  
Although we had been up since 4:00am, 
we stayed through the party and made it to the midnight buffet.

The Captain's Reception

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On the second night out, the Captain hosted a gala reception and we all got to put on our finest wear.  The picture above was taken at dinner.  Don't we make an attractive couple?

Our Captain and His Crew

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Captain Angelo Salvemini and just a few of his crew, including on the far right, Peter Gibbs, the Cruise Director who worked tirelessly to keep us entertained.

The Grand Atrium

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The centerpiece of the ship was the Grand Atrium which spanned six decks and featured glass observation elevators.

Dining in the Sensation Dining Room

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Taken with Marlis's camera

David, Marlis, Bruce, Suzi, 
Gill, John, Dave, Mary

Taken by the ship's photographer

David & Marlis, Bruce & Suzi, 
John & Gill, Dave & Mary

Taken with John and Gill's camera

Mary, Dave, David, Marlis, 
Suzi, Bruce, John, Gill

Three Views of our Dinner Companions

Our dinner companions in the Sensation Dining Room, one of two dining rooms onboard.  Before setting sail I mentioned to Marlis that there were just two things beyond our control that might mar our adventure.  The weather and boring dinner companions.  The weather was marvelous and our dinner companions were an absolute delight.  Bruce and Suzi from Delaware.  John and Gill from England.  Dave and Mary from Ontario. 

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John and Gill

Bruce and Suzi

Dave and Mary

From somewhere near Norwich, England, John and Gill were absolutely delightful dinner companions.  John is retired while Gill works for the boss we all wish we had.  Gill's boss paid for John and Gill's cruise including airfare from England.  And as if that weren't enough, they won a $600 bingo jackpot on the last night of the cruise.font> Bruce and Suzi from Wilmington, Delaware were our table's own private "cruise directors", pointing out the 88 Piano Bar which became our evening hangout and enticing all but Marlis and me into taking the Jolly Roger Tour in Barbados.

 

Dave and Mary from Mississauga, Ontario were latecomers joining our little dinner group, but they caught up quickly. Dave and Mary joined the rest of the crew for the Jolly Roger Tour.

 

 

The Dirty Half Dozen

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These four (Gill, John, Suzi and Bruce) and Marlis and I made up the "Dirty Half Dozen" that could be seen every evening at table 169 in the Sensation Dining Room and often crooning the oldies with Dan the Pianoman in the 88 Piano Bar.

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Here's another shot of Suzi and Bruce taken with their camera.

Entertaining Waiters

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Our waiter, Nuri (between me and Marlis) and assistant waiter.  Nuri was from Indonesia and hadn't been home in months.  Marlis nicknamed him "Our Little Munchkin" and they teased each other every night.  

 

On the last night out, Marlis and Nuri danced the Macarena. (We didn't have the camera with us, but thanks to Suzi and Bruce for capturing this). Each night the waiters entertained us at dinner.  One night they sang in Italian despite the fact that none of them spoke the language.  Another night they danced and on the last night of the cruise
The table of passengers seen in the picture on the right was just next to ours.  This was the table of S.W.M.B.O. (She Who Must Be Obeyed!).  The men were apparently not permitted to talk, but dined quietly, seldom looking up from their plates, while the women conversed.  One night they apparently were not permitted out of their cabins as the women dined alone.  Stepford Husbands perhaps?

Marlis and the Showgirl

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This was on onboard contest to see who was prettier, Marlis or the Showgirl.  It's quite obvious that Marlis won.  No competition.

Formal Night II

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The second formal night on the ship.  The photographer carefully posed us for three shots.  Believe it or not, this was the least wooden of the lot.

Towel Sculptures

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Each evening we would return to our stateroom to find one of these delightful towel sculptures created by our Room Steward.  Cute aren't they?

A Day at Sea

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Relaxing on the Verandah deck.

Passing St. Kitts-Nevis

Friday was our only complete day at sea and Marlis and I took
advantage of it for some rest and recuperation after an eventful voyage.