Glass Chandelier

12.30.12

Departure

A walking zombie – that’s what I was going to become but Andrea and I agreed to stay up from Saturday night into Sunday morning and beyond. We arrived at Pittsburgh International Airportaround 2:00or3:00 a.m.Sunday, December 30, 2012.

I kind of snoozed on a couch on the upper level or watched people arriving to do the same thing I was doing. I’m naively surprised at the number of people flying at that time of night (or is it day)? Eventually, we went down to get zapped for weapons of mass destruction otherwise known as a security check and then headed to the waiting area for United Airlines.

I tried to snooze in the flight to Houston,Texas but it was uncomfortable. It couldn’t be because I slept sideways in my seat.

Once we arrived at George Bush Airport, I had to go hunting for Royal Caribbean employees who were to guide us to the motor coach which would take us to Galveston.

After much searching and telephoning, he found us. We chatted with a couple from Edmonton, Alberta until we boarded the bus.

The drive to Galveston is about an hour and a half long so I figured I would see the realTexas. The real Texas is flat. Living in Pittsburgh, I always notice flat terrain. Other areas of Texas may not be but this stretch of road was flat. Grassy areas were brown but there was a lot of greenery otherwise. There was an endless series of strip malls, auto repair shops, hotels, palm trees, restaurants and a Big Fat Greek Orthodox Church. The round gold dome and the mosaic icon over the doorway told me this was definitely not a restaurant. Next to it was a couple of white buildings with freestanding white columns. Well, some were standing and the rest lay on the ground. I guess the columns gave the property an “ancient ruin” look.

We zipped through the city of Houston for about 10 minutes. My third snooze was interrupted by our arrival at Galveston harbor. Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of the Seas was docked next to a ship from the Carnival line. Waterslides stood on top of Carnival’s top deck ready for those passengers who didn’t suffer from vertigo.

The customs house in Galveston was painted white with blue trim. It was a far cry from the dingy customs house in New York harbor that I remember from my childhood. There must have been thousands of people checking in and boarding their respective ships but the lines kept moving.

Once on board, we went straight to our stateroom. It was small but nice with a TV and a safe. We looked around the ship. It was beautiful and even elegant. Each deck is decorated differently and there are lots of sculptures, paintings, watercolors, bas relief, vases, prints, ceramics….There are marble floors, hardwood floors, carpeting, tile….

There are two sets of elevators: one is enclosed while the other is all glass. From the glass elevator you can see the core of the ship which consists of decks 3 through 8. (Below deck 3 is uninteresting although the ship’s doctor is located there.) Above 8 is one more floor of staterooms and above that is the pool area. The pool area has two decks (9 and 10) and the gym, spa and game room are on that upper deck, too. The very top (which we never got to see) contained the miniature golf course, basketball court, etc.

 When we first boarded the ship we entered via the Top Hat and Tails Restaurant which looks exactly what its name implies. It’s no burger joint. The waiters held wine lists which they were eager for us to look at.

(“I’m putting on my top coat; I’m tying up my bow tie, dancing my tails…” Fred Astaire sang in Top Hat. Check out all his dance routines on YouTube.)

Our next stop was deck 5, called the Promenade. The area was decorated with a giant Christmas tree and other holiday decorations. From deck 8 where our room was located you can see several floors below with a huge colorful cascading glass chandelier that I came to photograph a lot as its centerpiece. The chandelier has several components as it hangs from deck 8 down to deck 3.

We ate lunch at the Windjammer, the super duper buffet of the Mariner.  Purell hand sanitizers grace the front entrance and the hosts practically insist you use the sanitizer before you enter the restaurant.

The shops weren’t scheduled to open until the ship sailed so we went to check out the pool area. It became our favorite spot, or one of them, during the trip.  There’s a giant TV, two bars on each level, hot tubs, deck chairs galore and a pool, too.

A band was playing and an activities leader (whatever they call them) was teaching the crowd line dances. I didn’t participate but Andrea did only she didn’t need the lesson. It was fun to watch, though a lack of sleep was starting to up with me.

Then it was announced that everyone had to attend a mandatory fire drill. All it involved, though, was having the passengers walk down the steps to their designated area (ours was the Sound of Music Restaurant) where we learned how to use a life jacket.

Our designated restaurant for dinner was the Sound of Music Restaurant which displayed costumes from the play/movie (reproductions, I’m sure). There was one discreet Purell hand sanitizer stand at the entrance. We have a preplanned reservati on for6:30 pmevery evening. I thought that it was beautifully decorated much like Top Hat and Tails. The waiters/waitresses wore black pants, white long sleeved shirts and black vests. Andrea giggled when the waiter placed a napkin on her lap and held out her chair for her to sit. 

I chose a bottle of white wine, a Pinot Grigio to be served every evening until it runs out. I sniffed the bouquet and tasted the wine before the waiter poured me a glass. Since I only drink one glass per evening if at all, it should last a while. On our first evening, I had the catch of the day which happened to be bass and it also happened to be a low calorie selection.

 Andrea selected a vegetarian Indian dish. I had the watermelon gazpacho soup and she chose the Tortilla soup. No dessert for either of us although I had to have a cup of coffee. I hadn’t had coffee since the morning of December 29, 2012!

Our ship finally sailed at5:00 pmto no fanfare. I expected to hear bells, whistles, fog horns, and/or fireworks…something. We pulled away from Galveston which gave us a landscape view of the city. It is nondescript (no hills) but I snapped a photo as we sailed away. It’s a town that exists because of the harbor, IMO.

The shops opened and we did a little bit of shopping. All the stores are located on the Promenade deck. We were looking for conditioner. the first shop we went into didn’t have any. What?! No hair conditioner? Panic set in! But we found some in another shop.Whew!  Other people were shopping for hair conditioner, too.

We also visited several lounges (two more days before Andrea can legally drink) just to see what was going on for a while and then we crashed.

Tomorrow: New Year’s Eve