Our chosen activities for the day included more team trivia (Peter and Dick did not show up, but our team took second place), more Name That Tune (where we took 2nd place to a professional musician of 40 years and where I answered my first question of the cruise to earn the team one additional point), and a very enjoyable lunch with our trivia buddy Alex, his brother Adam, and their aunt. After lunch, we wandered out to the 3rd deck and napped/typed on the trip journal and enjoyed the sun.
I enjoyed a final trip to the spa and did a little packing before dinner. The dinner, while not formal, was a special affair called the Master Chef’s Dinner. The Master Chef set the menu, and the waiters performed very minimally rehearsed dance/serving entertainment as they served each course.
After dinner, we wandered through the photo studio to look at all the pictures we had taken throughout the cruise. None of the shots could compare to the black and white photos Miki produced, but we did find one casual shot that we decided to get. We asked them to print a copy for us in a different size and promised to return after Game Show Mania.
Finally, we had a mission. We needed another bag or small suitcase to pack all the T-shirts, sweatshirts, and other HAL merchandise that Dallas won throughout the cruise. Our suitcases were fairly snugly packed as we started the cruise and were butting up against the airline’s weight limits. We had been very good about avoiding the siren call of the on-board shopping opportunities, but on Friday night we found ourselves on the shopping deck along with every other passenger that didn’t get enough of shopping at all the ports of call. After a successful shopping trip, we headed back to the room to finish packing (Dallas was just starting) before the exciting finale of the cruise, Game Show Mania.
Our evening entertainment was the game show style trivia contest. We arrived plenty early and sat in the front row since Dallas very much wanted to be chosen as a contestant. Since our cruise director (leader of team trivia) and DJ Dave (leader of name that tune) both knew Dallas by name, sight, and talent and since these two men were hosting Game Show Mania, Dallas was the first chosen to play. It soon became clear that Game Show Mania was about having fun, not winning, which was a little difficult for Dallas to stomach at first. Soon after the game started, Dallas became so far ahead on points that he was not allowed to play for several questions and the other contestants were awarded double, and in one case triple, points for any right answer. It was determined that Dallas had no life and must spend all his waking moments watching TV and listening to the radio. There could be no other explanation for his knowing every answer. The game got so muddled with extra points and players not allowed to participate for several rounds that it ended without a clear winner. As planned, fun was had by all.
Since it was after 10:00 and we had yet to finish packing and put our suitcases in the hall for the porters to take away, we headed back to the room. We got packed, including the new duffle bag, and were just about to turn the lights out when I remembered the picture we were supposed to pick up. Dallas “volunteered” to get dressed and run back to the photo studio. Mission accomplished, lights out.
Epilogue: We got up and had a nice leisurely breakfast while we waited for our debarkation time. At the assigned time, we left the ship and found our 2 suitcases in the properly color coded section. We waited in another line to declare our purchases and headed out to board the bus for the airport. As we were sitting on the bus waiting to leave, Dallas got a phone call. Guess what we forgot? That’s right, the new duffle bag with half our clothing. It’s great that the HAL porters were paying attention and that Dallas actually answers his phone regularly. We had an uneventful trip home and made sure we had 3 suitcases before leaving the airport to head home.
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