Another beautiful morning at sea and, finally, another sign of life. A fairly good-sized fishing boat passed off our starboard side. According to the GPS, we're about 520 miles from Samoa, so maybe we'll start seeing more boats as the day goes on.
We tried a new place for breakfast this morning. The International Café is known mostly for its pastries, but they also make a pretty good breakfast sandwich. Barb has declared it our new go-to breakfast spot.
We signed up for our shore excursions about a month before the cruise. The one we really wanted in Bora Bora was already full, so we were placed on the waiting list. Well, our tickets finally came through. The tour starts at 12:30, and we'll be transported in an open-air wagon. Wonderful. Nothing says tropical adventure like riding around in the afternoon heat and humidity. Under normal circumstances I might regret booking it, but this excursion includes Bloody Marys, so I'm willing to overlook the weather.
Barb has decided that two meals a day are more than enough, and she's currently debating whether today's second meal should be lunch or dinner. Lunch is listed as "casual," while dinner is "smart casual." Apparently, the difference is whether you're wearing shorts or slacks.
We were just buzzed by a helicopter. After making a quick circle around the ship, it headed off to the west. According to the GPS, there's no land out there for hundreds of miles. Good thing it had pontoons.
Shortly afterward, the captain came over the PA system to explain why we'd slowed down. It seems the engines were having cooling problems. Part of the cooling system uses seawater, and today's seawater temperature is an amazing 89 degrees. The air temperature isn't far behind at 86 degrees. That's a lot of warm water trying to cool a very large ship.
The afternoon was delightfully lazy, spent reading and relaxing—the kind of thing we do best. Barb watched the ship's presentation on Apia and decided we'll skip the organized tour tomorrow and simply walk into town on our own.
Loretta, Barb wants you to know she's having about as much luck spotting dolphins as you had spotting whales.
Now it's time to watch a movie before getting ready for what promises to
be another hot and humid day in Samoa.
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Aboard the Crown Princess
008° 21' South
169° 49' West
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