A T S E A, June 26, 2019
The departure from Aarhus was on time. Our next day on the itinerary was listed as “at sea.” A sea day is spent on board while the ship is sailing to the next destination without a port stop for one or more days. On this cruise, our first sea day lasted for around 30 hours before the next port of call. Our ship had to cover a long distance between Aarhus, Denmark, to Tallinn, Estonia, the next destination. As we were settling down to our regular daily activities, the cruise director’s intercom announcement informed us that we would be passing the Great Belt Bridge and asked us to be on the lookout. Since we had the verandah deck, we went there with our cameras. We could see the beautiful track of waves the ship was leaving behind as it sliced through the water. And the way in the distance was this beautiful Great Belt Bridge. Great Belt Bridge is a connection between Danish Islands, Zealand, and Funen.
The number of sea days on a cruise depends on the type of cruise. Our cruise had two long stretches on the Baltic sea, which meant two sea days. Although events like cooking demonstrations, Digital workshops, poolside fun, and much much more is offered as part of the everyday schedule on a cruise, on sea days, they ramp up the schedule by offering Shore Excursion Talks about the upcoming destinations, added workshops, movies, extra food venues, afternoon High Tea, and Happy Hour and the list goes on to keep the passengers entertained. The stores on a ship are in one area more like an onboard “mall” open all day to give everyone a chance to shop to their heart’s content for anything from T-shirts to high-end jewelry and anything in between. The time on sea days offered an advantage to all those who wanted to just curl up on a deck chair to read, nap by the pool, spend the day in a spa or fitness center, or do anything they really desired.
As we all know, every advantage comes with a disadvantage. In this case, everyone aboard meant the demand for everything was high, such as deckchairs, prime spots on the observation deck, a popular venue with the best view from the ship. Appointments at hair salons and spas were scarce and came without a discount even for those who booked early. They were in even bigger demand on the day because all the ladies wanted to be prim and proper and look their best for the Gala night, which has always been a sea day affair on Dam ships. Crowded food venues could also be a problem. None of the above was a problem for us. We are good at adapting to unusual situations except when it comes to no wifi, which was the case as long as you were at sea with no land in sight. In any case, we had to grin and bear for the lack of choices.
Gala nights are organized on sea days to give people a chance to dress up. I enjoyed Gala nights, for they were an elegant highlight of the voyage. Everyone was dressed in finest attires and were offered the most sumptuous dishes ship’s gourmet chefs can devise. Special menus included Prime rib, Duck a l’orange, Lobsters, and other delicacies. Sumptuous fares were offered every night in the dining room, but they went a step beyond the normal nights by offering tantalizing appetizers and exotic desserts on formal nights. An added bonus to our great sea days was the Baltic sea’s tender, loving waves lulling us all to a good night’s sleep for arrival in Tallinn, Estonia, for yet another day of exploration and excitement.
