Day 2 - Boston, Mass

We had a late arrival into Boston at about 11 a.m. Several of us had met for breakfast at the Horizon Court earlier in that morning, but it was a lazy start to the day.

Boston was cool, cloudy and threatening rain the entire time we there.  A half-dozen of us took the ship's shuttle from the port to the downtown area.

We were dropped off near Quincy Market and I split off from the group as I wanted to wander at my own pace.  Across from the market is Faneuil Hall.  The hall was opened in 1742 as a market place.  The space was soon not sufficient to meet the needs of residents and longshoremen, and Quincy Hall was opened in 1826.

I was most impressed with Faneuil Hall.  The first floor holds numerous vendors, the second floor is the Grand Hall, and the 4th floor holds a museum to military history.  I wasn't able to visit the Grand Hall as a Boston council meeting was underway, no idea what was on third floor - I assume offices, and the 4th floor was very interesting.  I took no photos but my favorite by far was the picture of George Washington crossing the Delaware.

From Faneuil Hall, I walked part of the Freedom Trail.

Old State House was built in 1713 and is the oldest surviving building in Boston (courtesy Wikipedia).  I didn't realize it was a museum or I might have entered in. 

What did strike me was the age of the building in comparison to the others surrounding it.  It is truly a testament to the original builders.

I had to backtrack once as I got off the trail, and came to this memorial to the Irish Famine Survivors.  My great-grandparents came to Canada in the 1860's shortly after the famine ended. However there are many families with the same last name in the U.S.  

The bravery of our ancestors is beyond words, to leave all they know behind to go to a place they no nothing about.  Today we can search on-line, get information from travel agencies and so forth.  In those days it was on blind faith alone.

Old City Hall is simply a gorgeous building (or maybe it is just me)  

I found, however, the critter below a little too much like a certain POTUS who will remain unnamed. 

(I sure hope the donkey doesn't mind being compared to the Orange Guy)ioooooooooooooooooooooggfv  That's what Sheldon thinks of my comment. :)

My final stop on the trail was King's Chapel (at least that's when I lost sight of the red bricks).

  It was starting to rain a bit more (hence the moisture on the lens), so I ducked inside for a look around.

Originally an Anglican church, the building was under construction from 1749 to 1754, and is currently an Unitarian church (Wikipedia).

The interior was lovely with box seating and a huge organ.

 The pews were originally rented by member families who could decorate them as they chose.  Since the 1920's the decorations have been uniform.

I'm thinking, having attended church as a child, that these box pews would have been warmer and act as a containment for small children.  Not a bad idea! 


The pipe organ was massive, though I later read it is smaller than most in European churches.The church is not large, so I can only imagine how it would sound echoing off the stone walls.

Next door to the church was a burial ground.  I had assumed it was part of the church but apparently not.  It was founded in 1630 as the first burial ground in Boston (Wikipedia).

I wandered around the stones, the oldest I was able to read was from 1704, the newest was from 2003.  Most of the stones were in poor repair and leaning, or broken the writing most often illegible.

At this point, I decided to make back to Quincy Market to grab a bite to eat and browse some of the shops.  I must have been hungry as I didn't get a photo of the exterior of the building.  This is the ceiling in the center rotunda where I ate my slice of pizza.

I made my way back to the shuttle to the ship and was on-board by 3 p.m. I spent a little time in the hot tub before heading down to the International Cafe for a cup of Chai Tea.  I ran into the five women from the morning - they had decided to do the amphibian tour.  It sounded like fun but I'm glad I did my own walk-about.  

Later I went up to deck 16/17 for a few more photos before we left Boston.

You can see how foggy and cloudy it was...  Those downtown buildings are almost obscured.

Despite the cooler temperatures and a bit of rain, it was a nice day in Boston.

The following day we were meant to be in Bar Harbor, Maine but alas that was not to be.  There was an announcement at 7 a.m. that due to 9-10 foot swells and 40 knot winds the Captain was abandoning any attempt to anchor outside Bar Harbor.  As the port is either two small, or isn't deep enough, we would have been placed on lifeboats (they hold about 100-150 people so they aren't small) to tender in.  

As a result we had a sea day, which I didn't mind but some of my fellow travellers found boring.  I always say if you're bored on a cruise ship, you're trying to hard!  I slept in a bit, had a relaxing breakfast, sat and read my book, checked the Internet, grabbed a Chai tea and read some more.  I planned on taking in a movie at about 2 in the theatre but decided to lay down for a few minutes at 1:30 and woke up just before 4 p.m.  I did another wander before showering and changing for dinner at 6 p.m.  After dinner, Conna, Valerie, and I went to the Club Fusion for music trivia.  We made a reasonable attempt but without Conna we would have been lost.  Most of the music was from the 50's and 60's.  I was only 10 years in 1969...and never a music buff.

We finally sailed out of the clouds on our way to Saint John, New Brunswick.  More on that tomorrow (or the next day as I'm suffering from a wicked cold and having trouble focusing my attention on anything for very long.  Started this post about 8:30 this morning, it's now 12:50!)

Day 1 - Newport RI

This was my first visit to the New England states and I certainly wasn't disappointed.  I don't recall when we arrived in port, but Conna, Valerie, Lori and met for breakfast at 8 a.m on the aft deck of the ship.  

It was a bit of a gloomy day, but the temperatures were lovely.  I can only imagine what it would look like with the fall colors.

Conna had found a two hour sailing on the Aquidneck on-line.  For approximately $30 p/p we boarded the schooner at about 10:30 in the morning along with the other Canadian in our group, Maureen.  Our crew were three young men in their 20-30's.  They were definitely characters, and whenever we asked a question, they had a story ready for us.  

Conna is on the left, Lori on the right as they help raise the sails after we motored out of the bay.

This was one of the ships (or is it a boat?) at anchor.  We were told it was 281 feet long and had arrived from Europe sometime earlier this summer.

Our schooner was only about 80 feet in length, had two masts and four sails.  I was quite happy with the size!

This is the aptly named Clingstone House.  It was built in 1905 by Wharton (of the Wharton School of Business).  After a hurricane blew through it (almost literally) it was sold for less the $4000 in the 60's.  The current owner passed away last year, but it continues to be used as a rental property.  For a mere $10,000 a week, you can rent this self-sustaining house on a rock.  With 10 bedrooms, it's a steal if you take 9 of your closest friends with you. :)  Of course the only way to get there is by boat, so there would be some added costs as well.

We were told this house was the former summer home of the family of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis.  Can you imagine?  If this was their summer home, I can only guess how large their 'rest of the year' home would have been.  

It puts into perspective this building, which was apparently Jackie's playhouse!  What a lucky girl, though I suspect she wasn't the one who cleaned it.

I have no idea who currently owns the property but it has definitely been well kept up.  Below and to the right of the playhouse was their boathouse.  It appeared to quite large (like everything else).

After being deposited back on shore Maureen left us as we wandered over to the Crab Shack, which had been highly recommended by the crew.  I'm sure it would have been good but both Lori and I were ready for a sit-down meal, and the Crab Shack was exactly that...a small building on a pier with picnic tables full of customers.  We made our way back up to shopping district and found the Brick Alley.  We had a bit of wait, but it was worth it.  Several of our party had lobster while I had fish and chips with a local beer.  

I had thought I'd take the trolley up to the Cliff Walk but by the time we finished lunch it was mid-afternoon.  I'm sure I would have had time, but I have a fear of missing the ship.  The rest were ready to go back too, so we all took the tender back to the ship.  I changed into my bathing suit and made my way to one of the hot tubs to relax before showering and changing for dinner. 

There were 14 of us that evening, which we split into two tables, one of eight, one of six.  We waited a very long time for tables as we arrived at 6:30 but weren't until nearly 8.  I left around 9 with Maureen as we wanted to see the Marriage game.  It was hilarious - particularly because the oldest couple (who had been married for 70 years) were at odds as Ada wasn't aware John had entered them.  She kept shooting him dirty looks and her responses were curt (but always correct). The two of them easily won, missing only one question.  He was asked what the last words were said in the bedroom at night, he answered "Give me a kiss" which she answered "Move over".  

Another great day at sea.  We sailed that evening for Bar Harbor, Maine but the captain's announcement that evening wasn't promising.  The ship was in motion all night, though not horrible and I certain didn't feel ill.  

On my way

This post is nearly a week behind but I hope you won't mind if I recount the trip over a series of posts.  I have photos but writing keeps the memories alive as well.

I flew out of Regina last Saturday morning; it started early with a 3:15 a.m. wake-up.  I washed up, got dressed and called a cab.  He was earlier than I anticipated but this turned out to be a good thing, as I got held up in a line up at check-in.  For some reason, the machine could not read my passport, and even the agent couldn't get it to work.  It was never a problem at any other airport on the trip, so have to assume it was this particular machine.  The two people in front of me seemed to be worse off, not sure what paperwork they required but it certainly was a lot.

Flight to Toronto and to New York were smooth.  I was fortunate in having a seat between myself and another guest on both legs.  I arrived in New York (LaGuardia) just slightly ahead of schedule and that's when things took a turn.

Misdirections from the welcome staff had me miss the first shuttle to the hotel, but with a second call and ignoring the instructions from the welcome crew I made my way to the proper area.  I can't explain why the shuttle picked me up where people were being dropped for their flights, rather than the pick-up area except there was lots of construction going on.  It made no sense.

When I got to the hotel, things went from a little annoying to my worst nightmare.  I had booked my hotel using Airmiles, but the hotel had no record of my reservation.  After nearly an hour of attempting to contact Airmiles in Canada (it was after hours and everything was shut down), the head office of Marriott in the States, we simply gave up and I paid for a night's stay.  $299USD plus taxes resulted in a charge to my credit card of $434.93!!!  I have since gotten it straightened out but at the time it was a frustration I could have lived without.

At this point, I wanted nothing more than something to eat, a shower and bed.  The following morning, I took the hotel shuttle back to the airport where I picked up the shuttle to the cruise port terminal.  Our embarkation was delayed as the ship had arrived from Europe that morning, and had to be fully cleared by the US Coast Guard.  We heard later too, that the ship had lost power so it was a bit of wait.  However, as I have platinum status, I was in VIP group 8 and on board by 1:45 p.m.  

I dropped off my carry-one at my stateroom, then went up to the buffet for a bite to eat.  I hadn't bothered to eat at the hotel, as dinner the menu was small and the prices were high.

I headed back to the stateroom to grab my camera and found that my luggage had already arrived!
While I was unpacking, my steward Richard dropped by to introduce himself and check if I needed anything.  
I told him, no I was unpacking, then was heading to muster drill at 4:15, the sail-away at 5 or 5:30 and had dinner plans for 6:30. 

He laughed and said, you have this figured out.  

I had an interior state room for this trip, so there was no sea view or windows.  Yes, it was dark at night but with all the lights nd mirrors it never felt small or crowded.  I might have felt differently if I were travelling with someone but for one person it was perfect.

The bathroom and closet are just inside the door.  There is a small bar fridge in the cabinet below the television, a hair dryer is affixed to the wall next to the mirror and there is lots and lots storage - both bedside table, drawers in the desk, and cubbies in the closet that holds the safe.  

I did a walk-about while waiting for muster drill.  It's held before sailing at the start of every cruise to ensure passengers know how to put on a life jacket and safely leave the ship in case of an emergency.  All guests are expected to attend and those who don't get a special visit from an officer.  I've never missed but I expect they must a remedial class! 

At sail-away I met many of the solo cruisers and a few Cruise Critic members.  Our solo group comprised 13 women and 2 men, two of us were Canadian, the rest were from the United States, and those primarily from New York or Baltimore. Conna was from California and Matt currently lives in Arizona.  The average age was probably 60'ish  (Facebook photos don't always tell the truth).  

It was a hot and hazy day in New York city, with clear skies.  My favorite photo of sail-away is that of Lady Liberty.

Later that evening, eleven of us met for dinner.  The host was shocked when we asked for a table that large, but they managed by squeezing in another chair at a table for ten.  We spent the dinner getting to know each other a little better, and while we sat down shortly after 6:30, we didn't finish dessert and coffee until nearly 9 p.m.  I can't recall what I had for dinner, but the chatter and laughter are with me still.

Tomorrow - Newport, Rhode Island

30'ish hours and counting

Packing is nearly complete, I just have to do some laundry tomorrow so I have some extra clean unmentionables.

Check out my little packing buddy.  Another cat who has to know what's happening at all times.

He really has been a blessing these last few days.  I miss my Sami so much, but he makes me laugh at his antics.  Sheldon also has a tendency to curl up next to my ear at night, with his motor running.  I wake up to the sounds of his purrs.  He's such a love bug.  At the moment he's laying beside me in my chair on his back, front paws in the air, fast asleep.  If I knew it wouldn't wake him, I'd try to get a photo.

Back to the trip....I am so looking forward to getting away for a short time.  Work has been so hectic for the past six weeks with the change in workload, as well as new employees and then my coworker had some back issues and has been off work for over two weeks.  I've been covering for her as well because she has my old group.  And just for fun, there was a last minute call to two half days of meetings this week that took me away from the rest of my work.

What doesn't get down by tomorrow at noon will just have to wait until I get back.  I'm scheduled to fly back from New York next Sunday Sept.24 but apparently Hurricane Jose is currently tracking to head up the east coast of the United States.  Some of my fellow passengers have expressed some concern but I'm not worried.  I suspect if it makes it that far north it will be a rain event only, but if by chance it chases us out to sea....it means I'll have a few extra days off work.  That wouldn't break my heart at all.

What would be disappointing is if the weather results in the cancellation of two of my excursions - sailing in Newport, and whale watching in Bar Harbor.  So if Jose decides to ruin the party he better wait until we're returning from Halifax to New York.

Time for bed as I'm working tomorrow for 6 hours, then home to do laundry, some housework and finish packing.  Then it's dinner with friends before an early night.  Cab will be at the front door about 3:45 a.m. so I can be at the airport in time for my flight.  I'm hoping I'll be able to post from the ship, but if not I'll be back in 10 days(or maybe a few more) with lots of pictures to share.

Have a great weekend!

A very quick update

First off, look who reached the 6 month milestone on Saturday!

He's really starting to be a little person. He adores his mom and dad, enjoys butternut squash and applesauce, and still won't smile (often) for G'ma's camera.  

I had breakfast with D and Eli on Saturday morning.  She's currently living in a friend's basement (bedroom and living area) and had her first shift back at a local retail outlet on Friday evening.  Dad J took Eli overnight and will do so when she works there, at least for now.

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I've been busy getting ready for my cruise.....12 more sleeps until I fly to New York.  For some reason, taking a trip gets me motivated to clean. I've and vacuumed and washed the floors in the entire upstairs of the house, cleaned the bathrooms, and did a bit more packing of my daughter's stuff.  I'll get some more boxes this week and take care of the baby's room next weekend.

My clothes and shoes as packed in my check bag, and I pulled out the carry-on this morning.  In the carry-on will be an extra outfit, undergarments, and pj's as well as a small bag of toiletries, my camera bag, a book, my itinerary* and a pair of ear plugs. The latter are for the airplane as I often sleep - I've been known to doze off as the plane is on take-off.

My old trusty purse I carried on many trips fell apart on the last one, so I'll use the travel bag I bought for Europe.  It has a shoulder strap with braided wire in it to ensure it can't be cut easily and has pockets I can lock to carry cash or other valuables.  It's meant to keep pickpockets at bay though I suspect on the Canada/New England that is less of an issue.  In my purse are my cash, passport, a pen, and a few other small items.  It tucks into my carry-on and that bag fits under the bag in front of my seat.  

*On my last cruise (Oct 2016) I got scolded by an American customs agent for not carrying my itinerary with me.  I didn't think I'd need it as we were arriving in New York overnight before leaving for the cruise.  He informed me I should carry it with me at all times.  Lesson learned!

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Work will be extremely busy for the next couple of weeks.  We're still in the midst of a transition.  I'm learning a new workload, getting to know my staff, and still finish up work from my old workload.  As well I'm responsible for orientation and this week's training of six new staff.  To be honest, I love being busy so though it may sound as though I'm whining, I'm truly not.  I've either asked for or volunteered for more work. 

It will make the time go more quickly....one more marble comes out of the jar on Tuesday, only 15 more months until retirement. 

I said this would be a quick update, but of course, I got wordy again.  I'll close off now with one more photo of my sweet grandson.

That's Sheldon beside him.  Eli loves him and so far Sheldon doesn't seem bothered by the baby either.

Have a great week everyone!

Weekend Wrap-up

Another busy and productive weekend is rapidly coming to a close.  Well, perhaps not as productive as I'd like but I did get a few tasks off the to-get-done list, not to be confused with the to-do list.  

First off was getting the duct work cleared out.  When I had booked my appointment a month or so ago, the crew was unable to complete the task because there was no access to the furnace.  He advised to have someone cut into the drywall, as they could not/would not do so themselves.  A couple of weeks ago, I asked J to cut open the drywall for me, which he did, so I re-booked the appointment for last Friday.  

I tucked all the cats into the sunroom at about 7:45 and two man crew showed up shortly after.  They brought in these huge long vacuum hoses, and some smaller equipment.  While one set up in the basement, cutting open the duct to the furnace, the other went around the house and opened up all the air vents.  OMG, the cat hair!  I have vacuumed my vents but apparently not very recently.  

It took about an hour with the vacuum sucking out the junk through the big hoses, while the one of the crew used some sort of air hose to clean up the cold and warm air vents, and the other followed him, putting the vent covers back in place.  I sat in the living room while this was going on and could hear chunks of something or other coming through the hose.  Since that can't have been cat hair I can only guess what might have made it's way into the vents.  Cat toys, children's toys, perhaps?  I know for certain there was lots of drywall dust as well from the basement and bathroom renos.

As they finished, the one crew member closed up the hole in the duct work, while the other dealt with the truck and did up the paperwork.  Everything was done very efficiently and as tidy as could be.  I was quite impressed with the workmanship.  


A couple of things I learned; first the living room should have three air vents, it currently only has two.  We think the previous owners may have covered it up when they put the base in front of the bay window.  It likely is located under the cat scratcher.

Why yes, my front room is full of cat furniture.  All the better to view cat television!  
The second thing I learned is the duct work has likely not been cleaned since it was installed.  Yikes, that's 30 years!  Bad enough that I left it for 7 years.  The difference in the sound of the furnace fan is simply amazing.  It costs a bit to get it done but I replaced the furnace 6 years ago and it sounds like it is brand new again.

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The other task that got taken care of was the removal of the boxes and bags of items that were left over from the garage sale.  The driver showed up alone so I gave him a hand loading about 30 boxes/bags onto the truck.  It's so good to see that stuff gone. (Kim, I know you know that feeling).  Time to start working on the next purge.

Speaking of which, I've got at least 75-80% of my daughter's stuff packed and ready to move.  Some of it has been packed since she moved back in last winter, but I've had to repack things because there were open boxes and tubs.  I'd say she packed in a hurry as everything was simply tossed into them.  I still have some books and craft items to pack along with the baby's room.  

You may be asking why I'm doing this.  Simply because if I wait for her, it will never happen.  Plus I want all of her stuff out of my house.  Since we moved into the house in 2010, she's brought things back or left them here.  This time, it is all going.  I'll give her to the end of September to find a place, and if she hasn't I'll have it all moved to a storage unit.  I'm willing to pay for the rental on the unit for six months and after that she'd best be in the position to move it or they can sell it.  

That might sound harsh, but D has been communicating with me only through Facebook.  The other day in a text to her brother, she told to inform me, that if I want to see Eli, I must ask for access.  Based on the photos she's pasted, I think she's living at a friend's house but I don't expect that will last for much longer.  I only hope she's making some effort to find a place of her own..

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Our temps have been staying quite high for this time of year (26-28C) but cooling off overnight.  Taking advantage of the cooler weather this morning, I did some meal preparation for the rest of the week.  One of things I did was cook up a meatloaf.  I don't know about you, but while I enjoy eating meatloaf I hate cleaning up the pan.  

I found this hack a few months ago and thought I'd share it with you. I filled the pan with hot water, a little dish-washing soap, and a dryer sheet.  

Wait about 20-30 minutes and the crusted on stuff pretty much wipes away.  I usually wash it again, just with soap and water because I'm not sure what residue the dryer sheet might leave behind, and then rinse.

Pretty amazing and so much easier that the scraping and scrubbing I used to do.  I don't know how or why it works, but it does!

Have you found a hack that you like to use?  I'm always amazed at the creativity and ingenuity of people.  I'm not nearly that capable.

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Though I am getting closer to finishing my shawl for the cruise.  Good thing too, as the cruise is only 3 weeks away!

I've got my packing list written up though I haven't actually pulled out the suitcase.  It's going to be somewhat challenging because the weather is a bit uncertain.  So far, we seem to be leaving one port for another just before the rain comes in.  

I'm thinking layers, tees and capris for warmer days, a couple of pair of jeans, a sweater or two for cooler ones, and a fleece jacket with a windbreaker in case of rain.  Then there is outfits for the evening - a dress, a couple of skirts and nicer tops to go with, along with a sweater or my shawl.  Oh, and a bathing suit for the hot tub or pool.  Add in several pairs of shoes, underclothes, and my personal toiletries and I'll have a full bag.  Well, actually two as I always ensure I have a change of clothing, some toiletries and an extra pair of shoes in my carry-on.  I've only had my luggage delayed once in all of my travels, and it was an experience I'd prefer not to have happen again.

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Finally, one more photo of my newest little "helper".  He's pretty darn cute, even if he is a pest!  It will be very hard to give him up, if D decides to pick him up someday.  

Moving backward, looking forward

Well, that's over and done.  Another offer accepted and then terminated as a result of information not made available to me before I made the offer.  I'm disappointed, D is disappointed, and as a result life has taken another turn.

She and I had a discussion that got heated.  From my perspective she's done nothing, since getting pregnant with Eli, to do anything to secure his or her own future.  There was no plan B, hell I don't think there was even a plan A.  According to her she was relying on J and when that didn't work out, she figured I'd take care of things.  Well, I tried and that didn't work.

As a result of our disagreement she has moved back into J's house.  I suspect it won't last long as he is no more responsible than she is.  At this point, I can nothing more and at her age (35+), it is time for her to step up and take care of herself.  I worry about little Eli, but as I keep telling myself, kids are pretty resilient.  By nature he is a happy little guy, very easy-going, and I hope those tendencies will stand him in good stead.

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It appears she's decided to leave Sheldon behind (as she did with Saku 8 years ago).  We'd been slowly introducing Sheldon to Saku - unlike Sami and Sasha he's never seen a kitten before and was quite upset.  On Thursday evening, my son and I decided it was now or never so we fed the cats in the same room.  Sheldon was probably 4 feet from Saku and while the two of them kept an eye on each other while they ate, there was no hissing or howling.  

After the meal, things were a little more tense but they managed.  Yesterday, I kept Sheldon out all day, there were a few moments of whappy paw, hissing and growling from Saku, especially when Sheldon runs up to him or surprises him.  Most often, Sheldon knows enough to back off but I think he gets confused because sometimes Saku will play with him.

At one point, they were in the midst of the chase game, Saku chased Sheldon, then they turned and Sheldon chased Saku.  But then Saku had had enough and turned on the kitten, hissing and growling.  

So the tolerance level is increasing, not without a scratch or two (on Sheldon's ear and nose). 

Night time is a different story, I tried allowing Sheldon to stay last night but I had to put him in a separate bedroom as he doesn't settle down and ends up annoying the other cats (and me).  So for the weekend, he'll be out during the day and tucked away at night so we can all get some sleep.  I left them alone for an hour yesterday while I went grocery shopping and they were fine, so may try leaving them on their own on Monday when I return to work. I don't think Saku would ever seriously hurt him, and now that Sheldon is bigger he can run away or climb out of Saku's way.

I really didn't/don't want another cat, but I suspect he'll be staying here.  My son C says he'll take him and Sasha when he leaves, likely in the next year.  I'll keep the other two with me.

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On a much happier note, I'm counting down the days to my cruise....29!  I starting making a packing list yesterday.  Since it's Canada/New England and it's fall, it's quite a different list than i would take for my winter Caribbean cruise.  I'm assuming reasonably warm temps during the day with cooler temps at night so that means layers, a rain jacket just in case, and even a few pairs of socks.   

As a side note I hate socks (and pantyhose)...as soon as the weather warms enough in spring, I never wear them until it gets too cold in the fall to do without.  Growing up on the farm, I went barefoot all summer but now I wear sandals or flipflops.  

Anyway, back to the cruise.  I got an up-sell offer e-mail the other day.  For an additional $150C I could upgrade to an obstructed exterior cabin on deck 8.  I have sailed in one of these before, one of my first cruises, and they're okay.  There is a window, but the view is obstructed by the lifeboats that are stored on outside the rooms.  Our view was partially obstructed, as our window looked out between two lifeboats.  This time there was no guarantee, and I quite like the location of my current interior room.  I'm booked on deck 10 at the aft of the ship, a short distance from the adult only pool, and midway between the dining room on Deck 5 and the Horizon Court buffet on Deck 15.  One of my "rules" to cruising is no using the elevator except when I'm carrying luggage.  I know myself well, I'm more likely to stick to that rule if I don't have to climb more than 5 or 6 sets of stairs.  So I passed on the offer....now if they were to offer me a balcony room at the same rate..... :)

Enough babble from me today. I've got vacuuming, floors to wash, and outside chores to keep me busy.  

Have a good weekend everyone!