20241231 Seabourn Sojourn Grand Africa Cruise Day 36/96 - Sea Day New Year

Grand Africa Cruise Trip Day 36/96 - Sea Day - Indian Ocean New Year

Teckel, getting in the New Year spirit

It's the last day of 2024. Seabourn has a big night planned for us with another Liar's Club, lobster and steak in most dining venues, music and dancing on the pool deck, and formal attire.

Before all that began, the day started with Baggo.

I missed the semifinals by only ten points due to one errant toss. Oh well, it was still fun and people were all cheering each other on.

Arlona did a couple of watercolor projects today, a lion and a tortoise. She continues to develop her skills and learn difficult techniques.

Trivia was a mixed bag today. Overall, we did OK but should have done better. The misses:

• What four capital cities are located on the Danube?
• We should have gotten this as we sailed that river this past summer but we missed Belgrade in favor of Bucharest and did get Bratislava, Vienna, and Budapest
• Which planet has the most moons?
• Again, we should have gotten this - we guessed Neptune but it was Saturn
• Which of Shakespeare's plays is the shortest by word count?
•  Comedy of Errors
• Which country is the first to welcome in the New Year?
• Another we should have gotten - we guessed Samoa as it sits almost on the Dateline and is UTC+13  but Kiribati is also west of the Dateline but it sits east of Samoa and is UTC+14 so the New Year arrives one hour earlier there

I participated in a putting challenge this afternoon. At the end of three holes, two of us were tied for the lead with a total of six putts. In a playoff hole, I was too timid and carded a four. My opponent netted a three for the win. Oh well, finishing second out of a field of about 15 isn't too shabby.

We attended another Liar's Club tonight before dinner. Here are the words.

The panel of liars

The practice of kissing with your eyes closed

An intense and persistent fear of one's mother-in-law

The paradoxical state of being really ugly but you are sexually attractive

Attraction to hairy men

We only got the last one correct. The panel did a great job keeping the lies funny and entertaining. There was a lot of laughter scattered throughout the audience.

Tonight was a formal night so we got dolled up since we missed the last formal night.

Tonight featured a special menu in The Restaraunt. The only choice was your main dish. All the other courses were fixed. The bottom line? Everything was excellent.

Smoked salmon roulade

Roasted cream of cepes

Twice-baked goat cheese souffle

Orange and Campari sorbet with a champaign splash

Beef tenderloin & grilled lobster

Dark chocolate cube with milk chocolate ganache, Frangelico, spices, and orange gelato

We were at a table hosted by Ernst, the Chief Engineer. It was a terrific meal with good conversation.

We headed to the Observation Bar for a drink before going down to Deck #8. CH2, the guitar duo, played a show from 10:00 to 10:45. Then, Amber and the band took over. All the production cast singers sang songs as did Nick, the Cruise Director. That took us right up to midnight and 2025, here in the Indian Ocean.

Ringing in 2025 in the Indian Ocean, eight hours before the U.S. East Coast but well after Kiribati

With the new Year in the books, we retired to the suite so I could wrap up this missive.

Happy New Year one and all, whether you've celebrated it before reading this, or still have to celebrate in a few hours.We'll be back later today with another sea day.