It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, Part II

Day 57, Grand Asia 2017

Monday, Nov. 27, 2017 – At Sea

The boxes started coming up from the bowels of the ship in the morning. By early afternoon, the crew was hard at work. And by dinner, the sounds were filling the air. Christmas season has arrived on the Amsterdam.

I first noticed the garlands going up on the stairways in the three-story atrium. In the Crow’s Nest a tree has appeared, along with scattered nutcrackers. I expect that we will see more decorations over the next few days.

Tonight’s gala dinner carried an all-white theme. White lanterns hung from the ceiling, and the dining staff was attired in white jackets, some with tails. Although I knew before the cruise that there would be a white gala dinner, I decided not to buy something specific for the occasion. Instead I wore a white top and a white skirt that didn’t really go together and wasn’t particularly dressy. I saw some beautiful white gala dresses, others who did the same as me, and many who wore black or other colors. No one was turned away, of course.

The real harbinger of the season was the Christmas music playing in the background during dinner.

I’ll arrive home late on Dec. 20 and will have missed all the Christmas parties, decorating and most of the shopping. So it is nice to prepare for the season on board.

Some passengers, mainly ones who live on the east coast, will stay on board the Amsterdam when we arrive in San Diego. The ship’s next cruise is a 15-day holiday journey through the Panama Canal to Fort Lauderdale. The extension particularly makes sense for people who live in Florida and want to sail over Christmas and New Years while avoiding a flight home. From there, the Amsterdam departs on Jan. 4 on the 113-day World Cruise. I’ve heard that a few people on this cruise will stay on through that.

I should mention Dolly here. She is a 90-something passenger who has pretty much lived on the Amsterdam for years. I see her around the ship and setting off on her own in some ports. Maybe before the cruise ends I will run into her and have an opportunity to learn more of her story.

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We are on the second of three sea days crossing the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, also called “the ditch.” Think of the North Atlantic as “the pond” and you get the idea.

I recall that it once took my cruise ship three sea days to cross the Mediterranean from Barcelona to Alexandria, Egypt. That puts this distance in perspective. The temperatures have cooled into the 60s, and we occasionally run into little misty patches.