Sketches from the sea - part 2

Bonus! An extra day at sea! It was too windy for our first port of call on Monday morning at Half Moon Cayin the Bahamas. The ship is supposed to anchor off shore and send its tender with passengers back and forth between the island and the ship all day.  Not much at this first port - horseback riding, parasailing, and the beach. Tim and I had planned a brief visit to the straw market ashore, and that was going to be all for us.

We arrived and anchored on time at 7:00 a.m., but the high winds were not going to allow safe transport on the tenders. By 8:30 we were steaming away.

I was still sleeping, oblivious to all.

When I woke at 9, I immediately realized that we were, unexpectedly, underway. About an hour later a letter of explanation was delivered to all staterooms - for people like me who slept through the announcements. The Captain had decided to set a slow course for our next port of call - Wednesday in Grand Cayman, thus we would be at sea for two days instead of one.

Yippee!

For Tim and me, this cruise is more about the cruise and not so much about the ports of call. We were eager to experience the relaxation of life on board. It's one of the reasons we splurged on a balcony stateroom!

So ... Greetings from out stateroom's private verandah, where Tim is slumbering in a chair and I'm about to join him. Ah, life at sea ...

- Catherine

Sketches from the sea - Part 1

"Nothing beats this view!" I said as I settled onto a deck chair.

It was dark by now and we'd finished strolling and exploring the cruise ship on our first evening at sea. Settling on the Lido Deck's fantail in the dark, my husband had remarked that the ship's "party lights" were not on, which he thought unusual since we could see the lights of other ships blazing away on the inky horizon.

But a second later I made my announcement as I gazed out over the railing at the dramatic mix of clouds and clear night sky. We would never have seen this if the party lights had been on: Out before us lay the brilliant Evening Star (Venus). Directly below the Evening Star, about halfway to the horizon in a straight vertical alignment, was a sliver of the waning moon, peeking out from behind clouds that glowed with dreamy, lunar light.

You just have to thank the Creator for the transcendent beauty of the universe and for these moments to enjoy it.

- Catherine

The Update

The update is this: I'm going to take a break from blogging for a little bit. Actually, since I have already been taking a break, this is just an update. That I'm taking a break. Now. For a little bit.

There are seasons of life that are so complicated that your brain needs space to process. That's where I am right now. No, I'm not in any kind of trouble. In fact, life is very sweet. But there is so much going on around me at the moment that it's hard to think it through. Harder still to find something to blog about.


Hence, the break.

I'll be back, I'm sure. Maybe sooner rather than later!

- Catherine