Philippine Sea

Cruising towards Hong Kong.
Last night we set our clock back one hour and, because of that and the free day at sea, we slept in a bit and enjoyed a relaxing breakfast on the deck at the back of the ship. It was delightfully warm with sunny skies and calm seas. We had a fun FaceTime phone call with Karen who just happened to be in their storage locker on their exercise bike watching a cycling trip through Vietnam.
At 10:00am, Lee attended another lecture, this time on China and its relationship with the western world throughout the ages. I preferred to spend time on the pool deck.
At 11:00am, there was is a backstage tour of the production theatre, including changing rooms, costumes, set storage area, as well as an explanation of the markings for the performers positions on the stage. When we arrived in the theater, all the performers sat on the front edge of the stage while we sat in the theater. They each introduced themselves, explaining their past theatrical venues and how many contracts they had had with Regent Seven Seas Cruises. After that, they moved to the seats in the theater and we were invited to come up on the stage. Our cruise director asked us to look out at the theater where the performers were now sitting, which, during performances, is completely dark. We said we can't see any of them. She then said, well that is what the performers see. They can't see if people are smiling and enjoying the show and that is why cheers and applause from the audience is so important. Also, while we were on stage, they closed the curtains and went black, i.e. turned the stage lights off as they do for the performers at the beginning of shows to position themselves before the curtain is raised, and it was a bit freaky. The seas were quite rough, and it was a bit difficult to maintain our balance even when the lights were on. Our tour director then taught those who wanted to participate, how to do a series of 4 popular dance steps, which was also intended to let them experience the challenge the performers have in rough seas. Following that, we were divided into small groups, each led by one of the performers, to see the backstage rooms. In addition to experiencing a bit about stage presence, we certainly got an appreciation for how difficult it is for them to put on such impressive shows given the small confines of the various rooms.
After lunch, we skipped the second lecture of the day about the history of cruise ships, preferring to spend time on the sundeck.
Before going down to our room, we played shuffleboard for the first time. (They also had a pickle ball court closed in with mesh, a 9 hole mini golf course and a golf driving cage.) Lee was killing me at shuffleboard until we eventually were tied so we decided to call it quits.
Before dinner at Chartreuse, we had time to enjoy a glass of wine and watch a replay of both the China lecture and the History of Cruise ships on the television in our cabin. After dinner, we attended the show, Paradis, described as "an energetic Bohemian Cabaret that showcased the distinctive French style". By this time the ship was really rocking and we thought they might even call off the show. The women were wearing high heel shoes, and despite the ship rocking and rolling significantly, they stole the show. How they did it we can’t imagine, especially after our earlier on-stage experience. The red dress that Lee was looking at in the behind stage picture is the one worn by the lead lady in the last picture.
Following the show, our cruise Director, Lorraine, reminded us that once the ship docked tomorrow in Hong Kong, the duty-free shops on board would be closed for good and that if we had any unused on-board credits that we should use them up before the ship docked the next day or lose them. So off we went . Don bought three shirts. Lee bought a necklace and earrings, none of which we would have purchased on our own but because of the “use it or lose it” condition….. we did.
Following that, we stumbled through a few dances, still in heavy seas, in one of the lounges and packed it in.Baca lagi