Bob:

Since it was our last sea day, so we again walked, did exercises, and took a dance class in the morning to earn Shipshape dollars. After lunch we earned some more Ship Shape dollars at a mini golf tournament (we lost) and listened to the Captain giving a presentation on the construction and running of the ship. We learned a lot about the capacities of the Brilliance, and in the question-and-answer session that followed I learned that the jet engines burned some type of very light oil for fuel that was not Jet A but also not diesel fuel. It seemed to be an expensive fuel and the gas turbines powering the ship used a lot of it. In fact, we found out that the 4 days of running at full speed to get the injured passenger to Ponta Delgada as quickly as possible had cost Royal Caribbean an extra $350,000! Wow!

But the "Azipod" propulsion system on the Brilliance was really the cat's meow as far as I was concerned. The four main propellers are at either end of two pods that can swivel a complete 360 degrees, so the Captain can make the stern go any which way he wants. Not only do the Azipods work together with the bow side thrusters for gradually moving sideways up to a pier, but they can also be coupled to an automatic position-holding computer that keeps the ship stationary without having to anchor. That's incredible when you thing about how big and massive that ship really was.

Monika:

Bob:

I fell asleep for a nap from 3 to 6, but roused just in time to assemble myself in a suit and tie for a formal evening dinner. Dave brought a rose in a vase for Sueda, our waitress, because she was, as he put it, "The best I have seen on 25 cruises." It was a very thoughtful gesture and I had one of those "Duh, why didn't I think of that!" moments. Dave was sensitive to the staff in part, I think, because of his extensive background in management and personnel training.

Each person at our table had a different area of expertise. Rick and Brigitte had traveled extensively and really knew how to evaluate food, wines, and the quality of service in the hospitality industry. Rick had, as far as I could tell, an encyclopedic knowledge of wines, their origins, and their care and handling. Brigitte helped us out with some advice on web sites and tactics for getting good fares on different cruise lines, advice which was much appreciated. Monika and I had not traveled nearly as much as any of these folks, but we enjoyed listening to their stories. So it was that once again we chatted again for over two hours over dinner, after which we retired to our cabin and read a bit to relax. Before turning in for the night I backed up all the pictures from both our cameras onto the computer, a move that was to prove prescient the events of the following day.

Monika: