I left cold Colorado in the late morning and three hours later was in cool (as in 68 degree F) Southern California. Wonderful!
The late afternoon was spent walking along the very large Cabrillo Yacht Basin, checking out potential places to dine and admiring the sail and powerboats moored there. I took lots of pictures. We later walked back to the 21st Street Landing seafood restaurant and feasted on Pacific clams, a shrimp and scallop appetizer and calamari. The dockside setting had a wonderful view. The food and wine were excellent. The evening would have been perfect had I not developed, a few hours later, an allergy reaction to something I ate. I guess I'm going to give up seafood or a while.
We took a long walk along the beaches and seawall Saturday morning. We saw young people in wet suits attempting to surf by the seawall. People of all ages were walking and fishing. Everyone we passed said "Good morning." This was definitely Southern California. I found myself taking too many pictures. Then I realized that with 20 gigabytes of memory cards, I can take as many pictures as I want for the whole seven weeks of the trip.
Michael and I were shuttled to the cruise port around eleven AM and were able to board the ship without a wait. We presented ID to so many persons in uniform between the curb and the gangway that I'm convinced that it would be easier to enter a military base or Ft. Knox than to get on a cruise ship in the United States. It's all TSA theater. Does it make any of us safer?
The official boarding time for the Silver Whisper was two PM. We were welcomed aboard but our "suite" or cabin was not yet ready. Michael and I spent the time meeting other early arriving passengers and some that had been on board since the Whisper visited Ft. Lauderdale two weeks earlier. We renewed our acquaintance with crew members we have sailed with before and introduced ourselves to new ones.
By the time we finished a spectacular lunch in the dining room we were able to move into our home for the next seven weeks. That would have been perfect except that our luggage, placed at the luggage drop off at 11 AM, did not arrive at our suite until after three PM. The luggage appeared then only because Michael went to the Guest Relations Manager and insisted that someone be sent to look for it. The Guest Relations Manager herself delivered our errant bags a few minutes later.
We attended the lifeboat drill, now mandatory for everyone, no matter how often or recently they have been on the ship. New regulations require that we all be taken to the actual lifeboats to which we are assigned and given an extensive safety lecture including a demonstration of how to put on a life jacket. It was similar to the aircraft safety briefing we all have learned to endure.
Once we were back in our suite, the TV suddenly went off and the lights in the bathroom went out. We requested our butler to notify the engineering department. Several hours later after we stopped at the reception desk to repeat the request, the ship's electrician showed up. Eventually he found a circuit breaker that tripped when someone in a nearby cabin shorted an electrical cord. Some rummaging behind a hall wall panel and the power returned. Meanwhile we went to the top deck to watch the Silver Whisper's departure.
The ship's departure was delayed. We watched three forklifts move pallets of flour, rice and potatoes slowly from the pier to the ship's hold. Not only were three fork lift operators required, four other persons in uniforms with yellow vests stood about watching. Supervisors? Security? Who knows? U.S. dockworkers aren't exactly efficient.
The sun set and the Silver Whisper finally backed away from the pier an hour late.
The afternoon's series of mishaps and delays can be seen as boding either ill or well for the rest of the cruise depending on one's superstitions or beliefs. At least dinner was spectacularly good.
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