Last Night:
We met our Durango neighbors, Jim & Barbara, for a cocktail prior to dinner in the Mariner Lounge. They are also traveling with Barbara's sister and her daughter. We then enjoyed dinner in Prime 7.
Once again we were on the front row for the headliner entertainer, Lovena B. Fox. This was her second show of the cruise. WOW! She blew everyone away with her fantastic voice and selection of songs. She is definitely in the top five performers we have ever heard on a cruise ship. She received a well deserved standing ovation.
Today:
Ships sailing into the island of Bermuda can only arrive and depart during hours of daylight due to there only being a narrow channel through coral beds and shallow rocks. We picked up the harbor pilot at 6:30 and was not docked until 8:45. Rebecca had room service again but I went up to La Veranda for my breakfast.
We are not going on any tours today or tomorrow as we have been here several times over the years. I did my exercise by walking 3 miles up on the ship's walking/jogging track on deck 12. This morning the crew had a emergency drill that lasted nearly an hour. This involved deploying the life boats on our side of the ship into the water. I was watching this from our balcony as it was quite interesting.
I had a burger up at the pool grill for my lunch. After that I walked into Hamilton which is right across the street from pier. It is a nice warm, sunny day so good for a walk. I finally found a big grocery store so bought some tooth paste as not sure we had enough to last until we got back home next week. Prices here are very high. Cost $7 for a tube of Crest tooth paste.
After returning to the ship I sat out on our balcony and started reading a book that our next door neighbor had given me before leaving on the cruise. It is titled, "Surviving Hell" by Leo Thorsness. Leo was shot down in April of 1967 while flying a combat mission over North Vietnam in a F-105 "Wild Weasel" and spent 6 years as a prisoner of war in Hanoi. Leo is also a Medal of Honor recipient. The book tells his story of being tortured while captive and how he and the other POW's managed to survive. Leo is related to Melissa our next door neighbor and they recently flew to Washington DC for his funeral with full military honors and a fly-over of Air Force fighters during interment in the National Cemetery. As a veteran of the Vietnam War and also an Air Force pilot, I have the highest respect for my fellow Air Force, Navy, and Marine aviators who ended up being POW's in Hanoi. These men suffered severe torture during their captivity. I am also proud to have played a part in securing their release. I was a B-52 pilot who flew during the 12 nights of the bombing of Hanoi during December 1972. This bombing campaign drove the North Vietnamese back to peace talks seriously, thus ending the war. Our POW's were released a few months later. I talked to one POW who later was also an American Airlines pilot. He told me all the POW's were out in the prison yard cheering the nights of the B-52 raids as they knew their release freedom was soon coming.
Plan for this evening includes cocktail hour in Mariner Lounge followed by dinner up in Sette Mari, Italian restaurant. Tonight's Compass Rose menu not that interesting to us. Not much of a show in theater tonight as the ship's orchestra pianist is doing a concert. I think several folks will be off the ship tonight dining in Hamilton's restaurants. They are so convenient as just across the street from our pier. Crew members may be out there after they finish work having a drink and bite to eat also.
Here is the link to today's photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Tn5Vo4tn2stFQm7t2
