Tuesday, October 29, 2024

No, that’s not the same Serenity from the movie, and short-lived TV series: Firefly. There is no “Captain Tightpants” on board this ship. The few of you who ever saw the series will know what I’m talking about.

Today is another sea day for us. We entered the Atlantic Ocean sometime during the night, and are headed to Boston where we dock tomorrow.

The ship hosted an Open House of staterooms today, giving us the opportunity to view the different options, in case we want to upgrade next time we cruise with Crystal. We do like the cabin we have, with its aft location. From here, we can step outside and climb up or down to the other decks, quite convenient when it isn’t raining or snowing. The temperature is much nicer today – sunny and in the mid-60’s.

So, Crystal opened up nine staterooms, starting with the Double Guest Room with or without veranda (215 square feet), not too cramped for a shorter cruise. Next up, at 323 square feet, are two versions of the Aquamarine Veranda Suite, Classic and 2018 redesign. We had stayed in a Classic when we cruised around South America (at that time, I believe it was considered a junior penthouse). On this trip, we are staying in the redesigned Aquamarine, which we find to be quite comfortable.

Next up is the Sapphire Veranda Suite, classic, 2018 redesign and 2023 design, 430 square feet. Many of the rooms were redesigned after Abercrombie and Kent acquired Crystal’s ships.

Next is the Junior Crystal Penthouse, 645 square feet, which we could definitely endure for a long cruise.

But the one that made us want to ask for an upgrade right away is the Crystal Penthouse, at 1,265 square feet.

Even the Double Guest Room with Ocean View would be better than what the Pilgrims had when they sailed to Plymouth Rock. Initially, there were to be two ships, one for passengers called the Speedwell, and one for Cargo – the Mayflower. Unfortunately, the Speedwell proved to not be seaworthy. Two attempts to sail ended when the Speedwell began leaking badly. The 102 passengers then boarded the cargo ship, which was definitely not designed for passengers. They were assigned the middle deck, with a living area 25 x 80 feet, only 5.5 feet in height. There were no beds, chairs, tables, and no room to stand if you were a tall person, rather wretched conditions for two months of travel. They were not allowed to go onto the top deck as that was the domain of the captain and crew.

We learned about that trip, as well as the first meeting with the Native Americans, and the First Thanksgiving from speaker Bill Cashwell. After the Pilgrims had been there a few days, they were approached by a group from the Pokanoket tribe, who then brought Tisquantum (also called Squanto) who was living with the Wampanoags and spoke fluent English. He had been captured some years before by an English slaver, taken to Spain and sold. He was ransomed by Franciscan monks who educated him. Tisquantum was a Patuxet, but his tribe had been wiped out by epidemic while he was gone. He went to live with the Wampanoags.

Only half of those original Pilgrims survived their first year in the New World, and those only because of the assistance they received from the Pokanokets.

Tonight’s entertainment was a Broadway performance by Crystal’s singers and dancers, with music from “Something Rotten,” “West Side Story,” and “Rent.” Might have to make an effort to see “Something Rotten,” about two brothers in 1590s London, who set out to write the world’s first musical.