My Perfect Day at Sea

In February 2024, Jill and I toured Southeast Asia by land and by sea. We sailed from Thailand to Hong Kong on board the Crystal Symphony and spent two days in Bangkok and two days in Hong Kong before and after our cruise. We had an epic adventure!

Click HERE to read a short introduction to our journey.

This story, part of a series, is about my first sea day - a day between ports to rest, relax, and have fun!

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Off the Coast of Vietnam (February 19, 2024) Good morning, Vietnam! I posted on Facebook this morning. Well...sort of, as we sail around its southern coast on our way to Ho Chi Minh City.

The blue dot (on this map) was our position at sea—off the coast of Ca Mau, the southernmost province in Vietnam, with the Gulf of Thailand behind us and the South China Sea ahead, about halfway between our last port and the next. The sea was calm and there was nary a wave in sight save for the wake created by the hull of the Symphony as it moved through the waters.

This was a sea day, the first of three on our 12-night cruise. We were betwixt and between two ports: Sihanoukville, which we sailed from last evening, and Ho Chi Minh City (AKA Saigon), which we will reach early tomorrow morning. 

I LOVED sea days because they were synonymous with rest and relaxation—an opportunity to recharge my battery between busy days in port—something I dearly needed after four straight days of sightseeing in Thailand and Cambodia. And when I looked back at day’s end, I knew I had accomplished my goal—I had rested and relaxed and had great fun doing so.

So, what did I do? Well, allow me to summarize my day through this series of verbs. I…

Stretched. Lifted. Chatted. Showered. Dressed. Ate. Read.
​Listened. Ate. Read. Created. Sipped. Read. Dined. Watched.

Yep…these fifteen action words defined my day.

In this story, I’ve skipped my pursuits associated with verbs I’ve spoken of in past accounts, like the oh-so-delicious breakfast I ate at Marketplace this morning. So, without further introduction, let me tell you about my day, starting with the seventh verb, ‘Read.’

​Weatherwise—partly sunny, mid-80s, and an ocean breeze—the morning was the perfect time to while away an hour or so on our balcony, and that’s what I did with my Kindle in hand. I finished A Man Called Justice and started Bucking the Sun. I wasn’t impressed with the first book—it was the first in a series that I do NOT need to revisit—but I had high hopes for the second. Why? Because I’ve read a handful of books by the author, Ivan Doig--Work Song, Sweet Thunder, and Last Bus to Wisdom, to name a few—and enjoyed his stories and storytelling. Well…not so much with Bucking the Sun, a story—the “saga of the Duff family”—set in Montana in the 1930s. It had all the makings of a rousing tale, but in the end—I finished this book later in the cruise—there wasn’t a character I liked, and I thought the ending was weak. Of course, I didn’t know that this day, and so I read. 

‘Nuff said…which brings me to ‘Listened.’

In my last story, Simply Sihanoukville, I wrote about the Crystal Visions Enrichment Lecture Series offered on every cruise. This morning, I listened to two guest lecturers, Andy Friedenberg at 10 (Jill joined me) and Bruce McGill at 11 (she passed).

Andy—I can call him ‘Andy’ because I got to know him in the days ahead—was a former regional marketing director for United Artists, MGM, and Columbia Pictures and is the founder and director of the CINEMA SOCIETY (“your ticket to discovering carefully selected motion pictures”) headquartered in San Diego. His presentation was titled “Celebrity War Stories/Kramer vs. Kramer.” 

Andy began with a brief intro of his ‘formative years’—the path he followed to pursue his passion—and then discussed his work with Columbia Pictures in general and on Kramer vs. Kramer specifically. He was understated, genuine, well-spoken, cheerful, and entertaining, and I left his presentation liking him personally. I saw Andy often—onboard the ship, on several excursions, and over dinner one night. I was glad I met Andy, and hoped we would cross paths again.   

​Do you recognize the name ‘Bruce McGill?’ If not, here’s a hint: he’s an American actor whose film and TV career spanned more than 30 years. Still not sure? How about if I tell you he portrayed ‘D-Day’ Simpson in National Lampoon’s Animal House. 

McGill’s movie credits included My Cousin Vinny (one of my all-time favorite flicks), Runaway Jury, The Legend of Bagger Vance, and Lincoln, while his TV credits included Blue Bloods, The Good Wife, and Suits. 

In his presentation, “Undercover Actor…and Card-Carrying Liar,” McGill talked about many of his roles, including the character Mayor Teale in Season One of Reacher. “It’s always fun playing a really bad guy!” he said.

I’m not a TV and movie aficionado by any stretch of the imagination—heck, Debra (my wife) and I own one TV, which we store in a closet and haul out maybe once a month to watch a movie on Amazon Prime—but I’ve seen McGill the actor many times, so it was fun to take this trip down memory lane with him.  

And then I moved on to ‘Ate.’

“Let’s have a sit-down lunch today,” Jill said to me earlier this morning. And that’s what we did.

I met her at our favorite table for two in Waterside Restaurant, the main dining room on the Symphony. We had window seats on the port side, and while there wasn’t much more than the ocean to see this day, it was soooo relaxing— ‘mesmerizing’ might be a better word—to watch the waves from the ship’s wake fan out in a V-shape across the deep blue water of the South China Sea. This was something I never grew tired of.

Well, enough about the water.

As best as I recall, when our waiter stood table side, Jill ordered and I said, “Ditto.” And here was what we feasted on: assorted dim sum, Thai chicken soup, Thai beef salad, and an Asian inspired dessert (said tongue-in-cheek!)—a chocolate sundae.

The chocolate sundae was a chocolate sundae, but our first three courses were savory and flavorful...in other words, they were yummy!

The Crystal Reflection—the ship’s daily program—included many afternoon activities: bridge, movie, dance class, pickleball, computer class, and more. Interesting…but not me. Yet, what I did midafternoon—I’m up to ‘Created’ on my list of verbs— was not quite me, either.

As we finished lunch, Jill said, “There’s an art class at three, and I’d REALLY LOVE for you to join me.”
“Art class? I don’t know…but I’ll bite. What is it?”​

“We’ll sculpt elephants from clay, and then paint them…and you know how much I LOVE elephants. C’mon…it will be a great activity for us to do together.”

Well, who was I to deny my little girl…and so I joined her.

We created our elephants from small packets of quick-dry clay. It’s obvious from this photo that Jill was pleased with her masterpiece. And truth be known, she proved to be more talented than me. Still, my elephant did look like an elephant…so I did not embarrass myself. 

And I must admit, I had fun!

From our art class we rolled right into ‘Sipped’—high tea, that is, a delightful tradition first experienced by first-class passengers on the great ocean liners of the past. 

High tea, or as Crystal calls it, ‘Afternoon Tea Time,’ was from 3:30 to 4:30 in Palm Court, the observation lounge—it has floor-to-ceiling windows that offered 270-degree view—located forward on Deck 10.

Jill and I arrived a bit tardy, as our sculpting class ended at 3:45. But no matter, as there was time enough to enjoy a cup (or two) of tea served in patterned china teacups and bite sized treats—luscious sandwiches, buttery scones with cream and jelly, and mouth-watering desserts—arranged on a multi-tiered metal rack. Service was white-gloved, which lent a certain elegance to this well-attended affair…as did Martina Yarova, a talented violinist who performed classical pieces throughout the hour. 

“Did you enjoy high tea?” Jill asked.

“I did,” I replied. “And I found a new favorite tea—Herbal Symphony.”

I enjoyed this tea so much, in fact, that I sourced it to Amazon and purchased a box when I got home.   

For my next verb, I choose ‘Dined,’ which was, this evening, a couple of steps up from ‘Ate.’

This was the first of two formal nights—which didn’t, in and of itself, change the verb from ‘Ate’ to ‘Dined’…but it did step up my evening wear to a sport coat and a tie. Tres chic, don’t you think?!

Jill and I briefly joined other guests at the Captain’s Welcome Reception in the Starlite Club at 6PM—briefly because we had a 6:30 reservation at Umi Uma, an award-winning specialty restaurant created by Master Chef and restaurateur Nobuyuki (Nobu) Matsuhisa that offered a unique fusion of Japanese and Peruvian cuisine. 

“Nobu is a Michelin-star chef, and Umi Uma is his only seagoing restaurant,” Jill said when she made our reservation several weeks ago. “I’ve had dinner at two of his restaurants and can’t wait to experience Umi Uma!”

Spoiler Alert: Our meal was to die for, and the service was impeccable.  

I snapped this photo of Umi Uma when we toured the ship the day we boarded. This evening, Jill and I sat at a table for two at the far side. Later in the cruise, we sat at the Sushi bar, located behind and to the left of the column, where we had another wonderful meal. 

“Jill, you’re the food connoisseur,” I said. “Why don’t you order for both of us.”

She did—and I sat back for the ride. 

Here’s the lineup of our gastronomical tour: tuna, salmon and yellowtail sashimi; rock fish tempura; lobster tacos; miso soup for Jill and mushroom soup for me; black cod, which is Nobu’s signature dish; and, for dessert, a fruit plate with lychee sorbet for Jill and a whiskey cappuccino for me. 

I LOVED the attention to details—the presentation of each dish—and the flavors, which were amazing.

“Well, Jill, bravo—great choices all!” I said as we finished dinner. “This was one of the five best meals I’ve ever had.”

It was a great dining experience—a wonderful meal from start to finish.
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And now, the last verb for this day—‘Listened.’

At 9:15, Jill and I sat front and center in the Galaxy Lounge to listen to Grammy-nominated vocalist, and “one of London West End’s leading ladies, Christine Allado. Christine had a beautiful operatic voice and a wide-ranging repertoire, and we were dazzled by her hour-long performance—a bit of opera, a bit of show tunes, a bit of pop, and a bit of jazz— which was electric and entertaining! 

And that was my perfect day at sea—a day of rest, relaxation, and fun from start to finish.

The Symphony will dock at Ho Chi Minh City early tomorrow morning, and soon after Jill and I will disembark to begin an all-day excursion that includes a boat ride on the Mekong River—a river that played a significant role during the Vietnam War. I look forward to sharing our experiences with you in my next story.