Day 3: Sea Day Number 1 from Southampton, England towards Lisbon, Portugal
Day 3: Sea Day Number 1 from Southampton, England towards Lisbon, Portugal
Holland America Africa Explorer Cruise – 49 Days from Rotterdam to Cape Town
Date: Monday September 29, 2014
Weather Forecast: Dry with some clouds; 18 C/64 F
Sea Day 1
Dress Code: Formal
WJs Day:
This morning we decided to have breakfast in La Fontaine Dining Room and joined a table for 6 (4 jovial Brits were our dining companions). We quickly realized the process is a bit too slow for us (a lot of waiting to be served depending on what others order), and as we aren’t much into conversation over breakfast we’re probably better off going to the Lido.
It was our first sea day of the voyage, and we didn’t have anything on our agenda until 10 AM (although there were many activities scheduled starting from 7 AM). The African Highlights & Ports of Call talk in the Showroom at Sea gave an overview of shore excursions available in the first few upcoming ports of call – Lisbon, Gibraltar and Malaga. We decided that as we have previously visited each of those places we would be very content to wander into each city and explore on our own.
At 11:00 AM we attended the “Explorations Speaker Series: Great Explorers” with Michael Tyropolis from Greece. Michael did a very good job of explaining Vasco da Gama’s sea route to India and discussed how Ferdinand Magellan did not circumnavigate the globe.
As the ms Rotterdam left the English Channel and started cruising in the Bay of Biscay, we started to feel some motion from the ship for the first time. So we started popping ginger capsules, adorned our wrists with Sea Bands, and returned to our cabin to watch a DVD while getting used to the motion. There were plenty of activities around the ship during the day, but we were feeling much better in our cabin on the lowest passenger deck than when we ventured to higher decks.
Tonight was the first formal dinner of the cruise in La Fontaine Dining Room. We had made a reservation for a table for two at 6:30 PM and had an enjoyable meal. 
At 7:45 PM the Showroom at Sea was packed with passengers attending the Captain’s Welcome Toast. Holland America Line ms Rotterdam Dutch Captain, Hans Mateboer, introduced some of the officers and crew while we sipped on sparkling wine.
Following the Captain’s Welcome Toast we stayed for the entertainment in the Showroom at Sea. The comedy string quartet, Graffiti Classics, gave a terrific performance that we thoroughly enjoyed seeing.
Next – Sea Day 2 sailing towards Lisbon, Portugal
