At Sea

You know what's great about "at sea" days? There's both NOTHING to do, and EVERYTHING to do! Our cruise director, Angela, is adorbs, and has like 1,000 things to do every day. Which is great, but you also don't have to do anything! And you literally can't leave the boat, so they are nice days to just relax.

I've really leaned in to drinking coffee out of a martini glass. I mean, what's not to like? This is a cafe shakerato with coconut. We like to post up at Cafe al Bacio for a couple hours, caffeinating, reading etc. It has an art deco vibe - yellow and black, with tall wing back chairs. The other feature of this cafe is that on the opposite side of the coffee bar is the Gelateria. Mom has had cinnamon and coffee (so far!). 

Also, these little baby bear beds are somehow amazing. I am the pickiest person about sleeping, pillows, covers, temperature - everything. Maybe they are lowering the oxygen level in our cabins so I just pass out. I barely move at night, and I'm giving napping a real chance. ;) Mom has broken in the veranda with sketching, photography and the like. 

Cruise ships are like casinos, only it's a little easier to figure out if it's day or night. They are HUGE, and you can get lost easily, but they also try and make spaces seem small and intimate. Our room number is 1231, but you cannot find that on the 12th floor. I know, because we've tried! We haven't made that mistake in a couple of days! Ha! Actually, our room is right outside of the library, so we've done a pretty good job of finding our room (given that we are on the correct floor!). 

On the second day that we came back to our room, there was a cloche and two forks!

My immediate reaction was: Danger! Obviously I'm reading too many mysteries where a poisoned cucumber sandwich has been placed in the room, or a scorpion lashes out when the cloche is lifted. Mom spun around in a circle thinking we must have got ourselves in the wrong room! But, as it turns out, we were upgraded to a "concierge" class, and little afternoon apertifs are brought to our room everyday. They are so cute!

I mean, there were more, but...sometimes you're so hungry that it disappears fast! We mostly go to the Oceanview Cafe which is a glorified way of saying "buffet". The Caesar salad is amazing, I'm quite fond of the pina colada, and they have those little mini desserts like they had at Todai back in the day. Last night, in an ode to my aunt, we played cards until bedtime. 😊

🤍🤍

Arts & Crafts

 Guess what we did last night? We blew glass! Like, we made things out of glass in a studio. One of my colleagues went on a Celebrity cruise to Alaska and was telling me she made something out of glass. I couldn't have been more excited that our boat had this feature. I LOVE glass! Maybe growing up in the Chihuly era in Washington had something to do with it, or maybe I just like it! I've always been fascinated with all things glass. One of my favorite college classes was stained glass. Of course, since it's been a beat, I can't even remember what process we used (it wasn't rods and soldering), but I still have all my pieces. One of them is even good. Ha!

On the top deck here on Celebrity Equinox is a full functioning glass studio by Hollywood Glass. Does anyone watch Blown Away on Netflix? If you don't, you should!  It's a reality show about blowing glass, and from what I can tell, it's legit artists that are featured. The prize is a residency at Corning Museum of Glass, which is a big deal. Hollywood Glass is founded by season three contestant Brenna Baker. All of that means probably nothing if you haven't watched the show, but there's some fangirl background in case you have! Also, I haven't finished season 4, so SHHHHH!

There are lots of colors and projects to choose from. Mom chose a jellyfish, and I went with a penguin. Mom was up first!

Does anyone remember baby-sitting for that glass blower in Clyde Hill? His son's name was Reagan, and they lived near Chinook at the top of the hill. I wasn't "their" baby-sitter, but I subbed a lot for a friend. Anyway, the dad had blown glass everywhere (what a nightmare with a toddler) and the garage was full of color rods. Color rods have to be melted first to use, but the "frits" like you see below, can be applied directly to glass that has been heated up. 

First, glass is pulled from the Glass Melting Furnace, which is about 2100 degrees F. I mean, we signed a waiver, but still, the glass blower did this part! Mom worked with Sam and I worked with Kayla. After there is melted glass on the end of the rod, it is rolled around a little to create the initial shape, and then it's dipped in color. 

Then it goes into the furnace which at 2050 degrees is slightly cooler. Ours was running slightly cooler at 1900, and it actually made a huge difference in how malleable the glass was. During this stage the color is melting into the glass. You have to turn it evenly left and right, or else your penguin might end up with gout! (Penguin #1 ended up with that anyway, but that comes later!) 

Next, Kayla and Sam shaped the glass a little. I'm sure this is part of the experience that you can't learn in 20 minutes. :)   After the initial shaping, both my mom and I used many of these torture tools to make our pieces. 

Mom got to use some of the tools to sort of pull out the glass that would become the tentacles of the jellyfish. I used them to shape the wings and beak of the penguin. The jellyfish had layers, so they flashed it in cold water in between adding a new layer.

Of course you blow into the end to add the initial shape, hence the term, "glass blowing". The jellyfish required just a little air. The penguin, on the other hand, needed a little more! I was blowing, and the glass was sort of hardening, not to mentioned it was too hot, and she said, "full strength" or something of the sort, and I gave it my all, and the penguin sprouted a second stomach! We had a good laugh and started over. Penguin #2 is also a little pudgy, but he worked out!

Certainly this wasn't the most difficult part, but it was very satisfying to tap the pole at the end and have the creation pop cleanly off! 

And then they went into the annealer overnight, which cools the glass in a controlled environment. The penguin was pretty easy to visualize what it would look like (black and white), but the jellyfish was going to be a surprise! I mean, mom picked out the colors she liked, but you can't see them in this process. This definitely is part of the art!

This was SO FUN! I probably won't become a glass blower because it's just too dang hot, but I'd do this again in a heartbeat! Here are our finished products:

The penguin is hilarious and somehow has the expression of my cat Lanny. And the jellyfish is amazing! We can hardly believe that we made these beautiful things!

A Tuna Christmas

Did anyone go to this show when it came to Seattle and Portland? I've seen it live a few times, and we used to watch the VHS tape (!!)  every Christmas Eve. Two actors play 20 some parts surrounding a Christmas yard display contest in the tiny town of Tuna. One of our favorite lines is from Petey Fisk, animal lover, who says, after adopting a coyote "You just give nature some space and it won't try to kill you!" He's all bandaged up from said coyote, so it's particularly funny. And appropriate for today, as our adventuring took us to Stingray City in Grand Cayman. 

Originally we had planned to go snorkeling, but I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to get myself back on a catamaran (I LOVE catamarans), and so we sort of begrudgingly booked this excursion. Honestly, it seemed so...obnoxious - the pictures showed so many people in the water... Cruising at its worst?  But we went! I will happily be wrong often when the results are such a great day!

Stingray City is in the North Sound off Grand Cayman Island. It's in a natural channel between two barrier reefs. Because of the reef, the water is relatively shallow. At Stingray City it is 3-5 feet deep; elsewhere in the area it's only as deep as 25 feet. Stingray City is only accessible by licensed charters, but there are plenty of them! There were around 20 boats of varying size in our circle. So many people!

But look at the water! Doesn't it look like a pool? It was beautiful and clear, and pretty warm. Not to mention that the sun was shining!!

Yes, there were stingrays. And you could hold them, feed them, take a picture with them... They come to the area because they are fed, and apparently don't mind being celebrities for awhile. One of them wrapped its loooooong tail around my ankle in the first several minutes, and I was pretty much done after that! I kept one eye peeled for their shadows, and then we just bobbed around the ocean for the rest of the time. I didn't want to hold one, or touch the squid mixture that was available, but it was pretty cool that they were just swimming around; some of the females were truly huge! We love the ocean, in almost any form. But we don't bob around in our ocean, we just appreciate it. Being in this water was pretty magical! Oh! You know what else was magical? I got out of the water largely without incident. ;) 

Then we went to a shopping center before heading back to the boat. We stopped at the first restaurant we came to and had an amazing lunch. Truly, this was  the best food I have eaten in a very long while. We both had a shrimp dumpling appetizer and the shrimp ravioli. I can't imagine the situation where one of you is at the Camana Bay Shopping Center, but stop at Abacus if you are there!

And now we are Aruba bound! :) 

Have Crutch, Will Travel

When's the good time to say I'm on crutches? Now-ish? It was a ROUGH week physically, and Monday night I ended up using crutches to get around the house. Lanny is not a fan, and Winnie knocked them over and broke part of their food bowl within the first 5 minutes of usage. Perfect.  I mentally prepared to take them to school with me on Tuesday, and then of course got pig headed and refused to do it. But once you whip the crutches out, if your mom is the travel manager, you can't go back. It's like putting toothpaste back in the tube. She had a good point -- it's 8 miles at PDX from checking your baggage to the Alaska terminal (lol), and a cruise ship is no better. So here we are. 

And I'm so glad she made be bring them, because....dang! I'm falling apart! If you're playing catch-up, I don't have a new and interesting injury, I'm still limping along on my left knee. Recently my right knee, hip, and calf have thrown in the towel. There was a brief point on Tuesday when I was wearing two knee braces.  Thank goodness for long dresses! In summary, let's not all point and gawk at pictures with crutches. I'm hoping after a few days of chilling out and not walking incessantly around my classroom that everything will just relax. :)

We are on another marathon day here in March to get to a cruise! Thelma has been up for roughly 36 hours. Louise slept for a hot minute on the plane, but basically we're exhausted! Our flight was delayed out of PDX and we didn't ending up leaving until almost 11:30pm. In the rain, obvi. 

We got dinner at Hank's or Henry's or whatever the pub-like restaurant is at the airport. Mom was in the bathroom when I got an alert saying our flight was over an hour delayed. The woman next to me looked at her phone at the same time and audibly said, "damn." I looked over, and said, "Fort Lauderdale?" She nodded, I ordered a real drink (an exotic mojito, don't you know), and from there we found out that we were both educators on spring break headed for the Caribbean. Small world! We swapped war stories,  laughed a lot, and were genuinely glad for said delay. 💓

We lucked out again on the plane and had an empty seat in our row so we could spread out. And then there were just many MANY hours of hanging out. I actually think the delay made our flight a little smoother as a storm had rolled through the Gulf. I didn't sleep much, but watched a movie and checked my watch obsessively. Sunrise over the Gulf of Mexico was alright. 

Where are we headed, you ask? Aruba, Jamaica, oooooooh I want to take you. Bermuda, Bahama...  You know those aren't all together, right? We are going to Grand Cayman, Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire. It's going to be fabulous! Tomorrow is an at sea day. On tap? A whole lot of whatever we want to do! 😃

Country Road, Take Me Home

Sundial Bridge, Redding

Our final run up the freeway was truly a sprint (though it felt like more of a slog); we were heading for Portland for the start of the Broadway in Portland season opener. The first day we saw 19 accidents/stalled vehicles, the second day 12, and crossing into Oregon, only six. I get it -- the law of averages. Things cleared out around Lake Shasta, and we both took a deep breath. And then stopped for ice cream at Udders in Grants Pass. Love that place!

We did make it in time for Six at Keller, but it was close! We are magnets for traffic, we are! I know the show has already come and gone in Seattle and Portland, but if you get a chance to see it somewhere else, do it! It's the story of Henry VIII's wives, told by the wives themselves. It's hilarious, and sometimes poignant, with a really great soundtrack. Loved it! If you hear me say (or sing!) something saucy in a British accent in the coming weeks, it's probably from Six. Probably. ;)

This was a GREAT trip. Although we are glad to be home in Oregon, and still have a little PTSD from the traffic/speed of California freeways, we love a road trip and had so much fun. Here are our favorites, or at least some of our favorite memories:

Favorite Hotel:

A: Probably the Residence Inn at Dana Point.

E: Um, the one with THE TRAINS????

A: Well, yes... But we had two rooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen. We were there for several days and got to unpack. Plus we watched all that soccer. And...I had gobs of personal time while you were at your class. lol.

E: Mine was the Sundial Sheraton in Redding. Those fluffy pillows!! Honorable mention to the truck stop with the Ritz Carlton interior. That was a happy surprise! 

Favorite Restaurant:

A: Mosaic; I had that flight of margaritas!

E: How about a place where you ate food too! (I crack myself up!)

A: Delmenico's on the Wharf in Monterey. The ambiance on the pier was great, and I felt like we were part of their family. 

E: This is too hard! We had so much great food. I loved Delmenico's too. I don't know what made me order the Alfredo (I'm not really pasta people), but it was like nothing else I've ever eaten. I did really like Carmelita's in Laguna Beach too, and La Casita Azul in Yucca Valley. We had such delicious food, made and served by incredibly lovely people. That was a trip highlight for sure. 

Mosaic Restaurant in Redding

Favorite Drink:

A: The lavender and jalapeño margarita from my flight at Mosaic. 

E: I only put this question in so I could talk about the drink I had at Mosaic. It was the best drink I've ever had! I know that doesn't mean much since I drink so little, but I swear it was delicious! It was made with "coconut fat washed gin". I can only say that that process has something to do with the density of liquids - there was also pineapple juice, something about taro root and caramelized banana syrup too. Whatever -- loved it!

Favorite Freeway:

E: I asked this just to see the look on my mom's face. It was good! Have you ever seen the movie Galaxy Quest? If not, you have to see it. I think it's funny on its own, but it's bonus funny if you're a Star Trek fan. In the movie, Sigourney Weaver's character repeats the things the ship computer says, right after it is said. Obviously that wears on the rest of the crew after awhile, and she says one of my favorite lines:

 This is how we road trip. Mom drives, British Siri tells us where to go, and I repeat it. Ha!

Also, Siri basically uses Zones of Regulation for traffic warnings. Lots of "red zones"!! 

Place You'd Go Back To:

A: The Stout Grove in the Redwoods.

E: Me too -- actually anywhere in the Redwoods. It is peaceful and calming in a way that is hard to describe. The Stout Grove loop was pretty awesome. 

Favorite Thing You Saw:

A: Sensorio for sure! 

E: Wouldn't it be so fun to see another installation by the artist somewhere else? It was so creative and beautiful. I think the thing that I keep thinking about is the Cholla Garden at Joshua Tree. I don't know why I liked the chollas so much, but I did! 

Weirdest Thing You Saw:

A: I was going to say the freeway shut down (police cars lined up perpendicularly on the freeway), but now I have to go with the wolf. 

E: Oh, the wolf. Y'all we saw someone walking a gray wolf in Redding. And yes, we Googled it, and yes we're sure. It was GIGANTIC, had a bit of mange about it, and was on some sort of homemade rope/leash. On the topic of the animal kingdom, we also saw parakeets in a carrier out at Sensorio, and a cat on a leash at the Starbucks in Coalinga. 😳 As my dad would say: You can't make this stuff up!

Favorite Redwood Experience:

A: I really liked Bolling Grove where we had the picnic that last day. 

E: Me too. I also really liked driving through the Jedidiah Smith State Park. Whatever that road to Crescent City is, I'd drive that again! 

Favorite Siri U-Turn:

A: Going back for Ivy, the Support Otter.

E: I promised not to talk about the time we went the wrong way out of Starbucks... More coffee was needed that morning! I blame the trains.

Favorite Soccer Game:

Disclaimer: So much soccer has happened since we wrote this...

A & E: Of course we loved Horan's header against Netherlands, but we were team Morocco all the way. Seeing them win against South Korea was everything! And since then, seeing them win over Columbia, and then qualify for the Round of 16 minutes later was pretty special!

Favorite Food Network Show:

Food Network is our late night traveling tv go to.

A: I really like Beat Bobby Flay. 

E: I had never seen Supermarket Stakeout before. That's a clever concept! I mean, I liked the show, but I also wouldn't hate it if someone tried to buy my groceries off me like that.  Probably doesn't happen in Seaside. ;)

Your Favorite Sunglasses that I Brought:

A: Really? I guess the mirror ones?

E: I may or may not have brought three different pairs of sunglasses. More if you count the ones I didn't know were already in my car. Accessories are life! Ha!

Most Surprising Thing of the Trip:

A: That the parking and trolley in Monterey worked out as advertised! 

E: Okay, the trolley thing was slick.  And that day was pretty perfect with the aquarium and dinner on the pier. Mine would be when the instant cold pack for my knee exploded. The little white beads inside went EVERYWHERE, and then melted or dried out or whatever. My car is trashed!! 

That's a wrap y'all! Summer is not over, but this awesome summer adventure is. We can't wait for our next trip! 💕