Jan. 31 at Sea

Today, we gathered in the Wintergarden to view our art work at the Art Exhibition with our instructor, Deborah Ayres. This included all of the different art pieces completed by the amateur cruisers, like Julie & me. We were toasted with champaign and photographed. There were approximately 100 of us!

Julie spent time with Gail, one the Lecturers, who also has a knack for genealogy. Jul wanted to research her Grandfather Fore's side of the family and received some great suggestions on how to verify the information she finds online.

We celebrated our Room Steward, Nay's birthday today (age 37). Eve, Nay's co-worker, colluded with Catherine & Tom to surprise Nay this afternoon. When he came to the room, we surprised him by singing Happy Birthday. He was visibly touched. Nay said he had never experienced this before on cruises. His wife and sons live in Myanmar. Nay won't see them until the end of March when he returns home for 2 months (after being on the ship since September). I can only imagine the sacrifices & hardships he and his fellow workers make in order to give their children and families a better life. I admire them immensely.

After the LGBT+ mixer tonight, we had dinner with Joseph & Marlowe. They've been together for 37 years and now live in Maui, HI. Lovely men. 🥰 Tomorrow, we land in the Bay of Islands (Waitangi), New Zealand!

Lectures attended:
▪︎Antipodes to Asia - A Wildlife Preview by Stephen Marsh
▪︎Pacific War Heroes - Ordinary People Who Did the Extraordinary by Russell Lee (excellent!)
▪︎The Bushy Tree of Human Evolution by Dr. Claudia HackbarthLæs mere