Embarkation

It was really nice sleeping in today after the long, long day that we had yesterday. We took our time getting to the Port Everglades cruise terminal. I dropped Karen off at our ship the Nieuw Amsterdam while I headed over to the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood Airport to drop off the car. It took longer than I expected to get back to the ship because there were quite a few people waiting for taxis ($20 USD).

I found Karen and we very quickly got through the embarkation process. We dropped our bags in our stateroom 8068 ($680.15 CAD / person) and then proceeded to the Lido Restaurant to have the first of many fine meals. After lunch, we decided to explore the ship. While checking out the various areas, we enjoyed a complimentary neck and shoulder massage and the heated loungers in the Greenhouse Spa. The rest of the afternoon was spent unpacking, attending the mandatory life boat drill and enjoying our sail away from Fort Lauderdale on our larger than average balcony.

We got changed and headed down to the Manhattan Dining Room for dinner tonight. Tonight’s menu as follows:

Appetizer … Celebration of Fruit Cocktail and Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart
Soups and Salad … Chilled Carrot and Orange Bisque with Cumin
Entree … The Chef’s Salad Bowl and Barramundi with Coconut-Lemongrass Reduction
Dessert … Banana-Chocolate Tart and Balsamic Strawberries

We went back to the room to grab some cash for the casino. I had a great run on Haywire Jackpots where I turned my $20 into $40. The rest of the night was spent checking out more of the ship and connecting to the outside world.