Greetings from Cagliari, Sardinia

 This morning we sailed into Cagliari and it was beautifully sunny.

What a change from yesterday.  We were supposed to be docked in Valletta, Malta but that didn't happen.  Sunday evening at about 8pm an announcement was made that the ship would not be allowed to dock in Valletta.  We suspect that it was due to the Covid cases on board.  Another ship, the Silver Spirit, which was docked next to us in Messina was allowed into Malta.  So, Linda and I and the other Covid victims have to take full responsibility for missing the port!  The Captain said that they were working to find an alternative port for Monday.  When we awoke Monday, it was clear that we were still at sea and weren't going to any port.  So, we had a day at sea.  Now, under normal circumstances, we would not mind a day at sea, but these are not normal circumstances.  First, they were washing the verandas which kept us inside.

Then, the weather was cold, windy, and without sun on our veranda which made it quite uncomfortable to be outside.  We tried to make the best of it.

It took all of my effort to keep Linda from jumping on the bed!  And I spent all day looking at the camera from the bridge and worrying that the Captain was going to sail us off the end of the earth.

What saved the day came in the evening.  One of the perks of being Diamond level is that we get a free wine tasting session each cruise.  By now, we've experienced all of the tastings they offer.  Before we were quarantined, Lubo, the executive cellar master and great guy, had suggested that we should come to a champagne tasting next time.  We, of course, agreed.  Then quarantine happened.  Oh, well.  But wait!  On Sunday evening we got a call from one of the concierges saying that, since we could not go to the tasting, they would bring the tasting to us!  At 6pm last night, our butler delivered the tasting complete with food pairings to our suite.  

It was amazing.  Lubo knows that we do not eat meat so he was sure to provide seafood and cheese to pair with the champagne.  It made the day.

And that led to an interesting discussion, as food often does.  Linda remembered that the first time we ate ceviche was at a restaurant in Southgate, Kentucky -  El Greco.  The significance of that is that the owners were Ben and Shirley Bernstein and their son Jimmy.  Jimmy and I were colleagues at GE for a couple of years before he left engineering to become a full time restaurateur.  We maintained a friendship with Jimmy and his wife, Barb, the rest of our time in Cincinnati.  We had great times house-boating on the Ohio river with them.  Jimmy apparently now owns the Howl At The Moon restaurants, including 4 locations on Norwegian Cruise Line ships!  We've lost contact but I will now definitely try to reconnect.

That's it for now.  Please pray to whatever deity you choose for us to test negative tomorrow!  In the meantime, here's today's Rule of Civility, appropriate for us non-meat eaters: Rule #107. If others talk at the table, be attentive but talk not with meat in your mouth. 

Peace and blessings,

Linda and Larry