March 6, 2020 - Friday

Azamara Quest Cape Town to Athens 

Cruise Day 16 - Sea Day

Pictures to follow with better internet

A 4 mile walk with a moderate breeze was an excellent start to the day. The sea was gentle with just a 5 foot swelling, so there was no rolling of the ship to contend with as I walked. A decrease in humidity is the only thing that could have made it better. That is not a complaint. Temperatures in the low 80’s with a 7 knot breeze is far better than anything we could imagine back home.

This morning I attended the lecture on the life of the stars. It is amazing how much one can learn from a 45 minute lecture. We learned about how stars are born, how they live consuming their own energy and how they die. When they die they might explode distributing matter that contains al of the elements of the periodic table. This can lead to the formation of a planet or planets. It is believed that this is how the earth was formed. All of the elements we find here, such as gold and copper did not come after earth’s formation. They were a part of it as these elements combined after the death of a star.

We saw a remarkable animation of the birth of a black hole. Some stars collapse under the effects of gravity until they disappear into the void that is the black hole. I suspect  that my explanation could be better or more accurate. I plan to research this when we get home. Perhaps I am too easily fascinated, but this intrigues me.

Alice worked on her journal while I attended the star lecture. She joined me for the 11:00 question and answer session with the cast. This consists of 4 dancers, 2 guys and 2 girls, and 2 vocalists, 1 guy 1 girl. All have university training in musical performance and some have trained in dance since preschool. the exception is the dance captain, who discovered dance in college. They were all very frank in answering questions about their backgrounds and how they got to this contract. Working ships is helping them pay off college debt, and helps build their resumés. Ship pay is better than staying on land when you consider not having to move around auditioning for jobs, paying for rent and food, and seeing the world. They all seem very  happy with what they are doing.

In the afternoon we worked on blogs and journals. I spent some time on the balcony watching for the flying fish that rushed to escape our bow wave. I also spent all of my free hour of internet time uploading the pictures and text for my post for Port Elizabeth. This is the worst internet performance of any cruise we have had. I have decided that if we cannot get decent free internet in Cochin, I will upload only the text and add the pictures as an edit when circumstances are right. I certainly hope that will be before we get home.

We are following the news about coronavirus. The captain is also keeping us updated. As of now there are no changes to our future itineraries. With the cutbacks in airline fights our only concern is getting home from Athens on April 14th. We are hoping that in 39 days things will be under better control.

At 5:00 we crossed the equator. There was an induction ceremony for some crew who were crossing fo the first time. This included the obligatory kissing of the dead fish as well as some “cutting up” by the butcher and a “shave and a haircut” by the barber who used multicolored “shaving cream.” Then it was time to walk the plank. Some jumped and some dove into the pool. It was a good time.

The Fancy Triplets performed for the evening’s entertainment. They did a fine job and earned some respect from passengers who have not seen them perform in the Living Room.

We set our clocks ahead 30 minutes for the next time zone, and went to bed.