Grand Cayman Islands – Stop #4 – NOT!

The stop that wasn’t, but Clare from Eat Stuff wins the cookbook this time for correctly guessing where we SHOULD have been today.

Last night, from dinner time on, the seas were really quite rocky and some of the crew were a little concerned because we weren’t docking right at the pier. We would be docking a little bit out (they call it tendering) and then we have to get a little ferry boat to bring us to shore. Because of the seas being so rocky, they were worried about the ferry boat usage. Well, bad turned to worse. We should have been waking up to us arriving in the Cayman Islands; instead we awoke to an announcement from the Captain saying that they had closed the port about 20 minutes prior to our arrival because the swells were so high, and due to safety reasons, we couldn’t stop there.

I feel really bad for the crew, because they were definitely scrambling today, besides trying to figure out where to route the ship to, they also had to figure out what to do with a ship full of unexpected people, since we would have been off the ship touring the Cayman Islands. The Captain said that he was trying to get us back to Key West. You know it’s never good when you see all the stateroom attendants standing in the hallway, holding their heads with that certain expression. It’s like if your plane is going down, you kinda want your flight attendant to keep a cool head, you know? ;) I don’t think they were overly concerned about safety, more so then that their schedules were a little out of whack with the uncertainty.

An hour later, the Captain comes on and says that after lots of phone calls, he managed to get us space back at Key West, so we’re heading back there today, and spent all day at sea. The other problem is that there are ships already there, so although we’ll actually arrive there around 11 am tomorrow, we can’t pull into the pier, dock and get off until 4 hours later. Geesh. One day at sea (which was actually scheduled for tomorrow) is one thing, but keeping the kids now cooped up on the ship for nearly 2 days is another.

OK, for the food report, since we didn’t get off the ship, nothing regional to report. One of the dessert selections at lunch time was a really delicious Peanut Butter Chocolate Ganache Tart. So yummy, I had two. Supplemented, of course, by fruit to balance it out. One of the great things about the ship is they have the most amazingly fresh fruit anywhere, available all the time. They go through 300 pounds of fresh pinepple a day – I believe it.

For dinner, The Husband had Citrus Cured Smoked Salmon Appetizer, which he liked, and I had Wild Mushrooms in Puff Pastry. It was very good, although the mushrooms tasted suspiciously unwild. We both chose the Aged Prime Rib for a main course, and Nicholas had his prerequisite Chicken Fingers. Two nights ago, one of the bread selections was a banana bread that both kids went wild for. Last night, unfortunately, they didn’t have it, but once our Head Waiter saw their disappointment, she promised them some tonight, and she delivered. Good thing, since as soon as we reached the dining room, Nicholas was anxiously scanning the dining room for “the lady in the red jacket” for the banana bread. They got a whole plate full and it’s all gone already. I had a bite … and we’re going to have to work on his palate again. The one I make from Nigella is SO much better. But, he’s happy, I’m happy.

Tonight is the Grand Buffet, and those that read our last cruise review back in November will remember what a big deal it is. It takes the crew 200 hours to prepare for it, and they open it at 11:45 pm first for a viewing, then reopen a half hour later for actual eating. I wasn’t sure I could stay awake that long, so I sent The Neighbor Husband with the camera to do some intrepid reporting for you guys. I ended up heading down there, and am glad I did. They had a divine Chocolate Truffle Cake that was worth staying awake for.

All for now … tune in tomorrow for pictures.

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