June 26, 2024 (Day 7): Sea, Sky, and Cake
It was a sea day today, for which we were immensely grateful. Much as we’ve enjoyed all the tours thus far, we are more than ready to rest. It also happens to be Daniel’s birthday! And having seen the main dining room sing Happy Birthday to other people, I knew that such a thing could be scheduled and was determined to do so today.
So, this being our anniversary trip, Daniel and I splurged by purchasing Celebrity’s concierge class when we booked the cruise. We’d been assured that with this upgrade, we would have a personal concierge who could help with anything we wanted so we didn’t have to go to the usually long customer service line. Well, we learned by the end of the first day on the ship that the concierge wasn’t nearly as exclusive as the website made it sound, and that it was actually an office that usually had only one person in it (but occasionally two) and that those one or two people served everyone in concierge class, as well as in the Captain’s club.
There has not been a single time so far that we’ve gone to ask about something and there wasn’t a long line (longer than customer service – which often has no line – which makes sense since everyone on the ship appears to be going to concierge) – OR that there hasn’t been a sign up saying they were on a break and would be back shortly. So I’d already attempted to sneak away from Daniel a couple times before his birthday to arrange something, but they were always gone or there was a line. But this was my last chance. We went up on deck to enjoy the sun, I told him I was going to go change into shorts, and marched to the concierge office. There were four people in line (not counting the two couple already being helped). I went and got coffee and came back. There were five people in line. But it was now or never, so I settled in to wait, already contemplating how to explain this to Daniel without lying or giving it away. I believe they finally got to me around 40 minutes later and I was able to make the arrangements, rushed back to the room, changed, and hurried up to the deck just in time to stop Daniel from coming in search of me, concocting some mostly true story that I think only left him a tiny bit suspicious.
The rest of the day was mostly uneventful, interspersed with eating less than stellar food, hot tubbing, and talking to random strangers since apparently retirees go on cruises to talk to other strangers. And that evening, after finding out it was Daniel’s birthday, our sommelier treated us to an amazing bottle of wine. After finishing dinner, just as I was worrying that the dining room hadn’t gotten the message after all, Daniel suddenly looks at me and says, “You did this.” And a second later our wait staff appeared with a giant piece of cake and a candle, singing happy birthday. Daniel’s face was totally worth that 40 minute wait.
I should mention that, this being the third night on the cruise ship, we have finally softened our wait staff by being friendly and they actually seem to like us now. The food has improved, though it always needs salt, and we have discovered that all their desserts, while beautiful, generally lack any sweetness – we aren’t sure whether to attribute that to the fact it is a ship of mostly retirees or if it is a Europe thing. But on the bright side, that means we definitely aren’t eating as much as we usually do on a ship!
After dinner, we decided, instead of going to bed early as we have most night so far, to go to the Sky Lounge in the front of the ship on the 15th floor, where we actually stayed for hours and had a wonderful time dancing, watching old people attempt to dance to modern music, and enjoying some cocktails. Daniel also attempted to bribe some young guys into asking some young girls to dance, but they steadfastly refused – in their defense, they apparently had girlfriends, so I have to give them props (assuming they weren’t lying to get out of it). But Daniel had fun trying it and it was a good end to a good day of rest.
Step count: 4,972
Forest Idylls 