Sea Day

What do you do on a sea day? Well, this morning the first thing I did was to open my eyes, look outside and see a forest of windmills stretching to the horizon. I glanced at the GPS on my cellphone to see where we were. Our ship was located just off the coast between Dover and Calais. I know wind power is supposed to be environmentally superior to other forms of energy, but I wonder whether the eyesore they cause has been considered as an environmental factor.

We threw our laundry into the washing machine so that our clothes could wash while we ate breakfast. I feasted on what Viking calls “Egg Royale,” an English muffin topped with smoked salmon, a poached egg and hollandaise sauce. We hustled back down to the laundry room and threw our clothes into the dryer. When I returned to the stateroom, I saw a huge petroleum tanker pulling up alongside to refuel the Viking Mars. I thought, “I sure hope they know which side of the ship has the gas cap.”

I showered, changed clothes and came up here to the Explorer’s Lounge. It is my favorite place just to hang out. There are some nice “library tables” up here where one can type, or read a book on the iPad. At 9:30 am I will go down to the Star Theater to hear the resident historian bring a talk on the history of Britain. At 11:00 am another speaker will give us information on “Edinburgh: Venice of the North.” They keep us busy, even on sea days. But it’s all lots of fun, and I’m delighted to have you join us on the journey.Read more