May 1, 2023 – At Sea -Partly Cloudy - 60sF

Didn’t have to get to the Café quite so early because my Lecture today is at 10:00 AM – “The Search for Jack the Ripper” (in the Celebrity Theater).  I did get there early enough to catch the sunrise during my wonderful breakfast.

Maybe because there was no time change yesterday and the “late” start today, the turnout for this talk was very good.  It could be that the topic is of interest to more people. 

After the talk, I checked out the screen more closely to see how the 16 million LED pixels worked. This is what they look like (the computers controlling these LEDs must be something). They were moving as I took this picture.

We passed on Jesse Hamilton’s Matinee Show at 2 PM.

Instead, we went up to the Sunset Bar on Deck 16 Aft.  The weather had turned warmer and it was very comfortable on the couches at the bar.  

I had another frozen margarita, and it was just as good as the one I had earlier.  

We stayed up there quite a while and even chatted a bit with Jim Teslow about future cruises. 

While the Sunset Bar was nice, it had no shade.  We moved over to the Rooftop Garden, where "Wakanda Forever" was playing on the big screen.  We did find some seats on the couches (freshly sanitized and a little wet).

We also checked out the Solarium for a while.  I did get a picture of Ellen and the "Swan Lady" statue (at least I think that's what she was).

We had a nice experience at dinner up in the Oceanview Café.  The Head Waiter (I wish I had gotten his name but I do know he is from Mauritius), arranged (per Ellen’s request) for two salmon dinners to be brought up from the restaurants.  Since they were prepared to order, they were steaming hot and fresh.  A salad completed my meal.  The food was great.

The headliner this evening was Texas vocalist, Savannah Smith.  

The last time we saw her she was a redhead but tonight is a long-haired blonde.  She started off very loud – as she did last time – but then settled into a nice mix of mellower songs.  First up was one of my all time favorites, "I Can't Make You Love Me" (Bonnie Raitt).

I Can't Make You Love Me

She sat on the edge of the stage for “Fields of Gold”, her grandmother’s favorite song.  

Fields of Gold

She did a super screamy song by Celine Dion that I did not recognize.  

Celine Dion Screamer

Savannah used to be in a band, "The Moonshiners", and she sang one of her own songs from that period.

She also sang “Midnight Train to Georgia” (excellent) 

Midnight Train to Georgia

and, at one point, ran to the back of the theater and then into the audience (a la Jane Curry)

and a fabulous medley of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and “Defying Gravity” (and yes, she did hit the high note at the end.  

Defying Gravity

It was a nice show and when we were leaving, Savannah was trying to get to the lobby to greet people when she ran into Ellen and gave her a hug and hello.  I'm sure we will run into her again on a future cruise - she seems to be a fixture on Celebrity.

Time Change No. 6