...a cruise to 'no where' page 2
This called for a Bahama Mama. I ordered one from the waiter. He brought it. I took a tiny fan out and gave it to a kid that had been leaning against my lounger staring at me. I took a sip of the drink, then glanced down at it. A slightly yellow- tinted substance was spiraling up from the ice. So much for the Bahama Mama.
After a while we decided to take our chances in the casino. We played quarters. All I can say is that it was a good thing we didn't have to buy lunch.
On the way to dinner, I stopped to take pictures of an older couple on a dance floor doing the tango, or something close. The man was really doing his stuff. One-two-three, hip out. One-two-three, hip out.
In the dining room, I studied over the same watermelon alligator that I had seen at breakfast. The alligator seemed to have aged years during the past few hours, with his skin much darker red and slightly wrinkled.
Once we had picked up our food from the buffet, we were seated at the same table with the couple I had photographed dancing. (The two I thought I had photographed dancing. I finally noticed I didn't have film in my camera.)
They were funny. The woman ordered a "Stinger."
The French waiter couldn't understand her. He tried to repeat her order, but failed. The waiter was a man, I think.
"I said I want a stinger, not a stinker," she said loudly, then laughed, sounding as if she were from the cast of "Hee-Haw."
Needless to say, the chocolate mousse I had just dipped my spoon into didn't get eaten.
We headed back to the sundeck. Surely by now island music would be playing. We later decided the musicians had missed the boat. Or perhaps they knew about the broken airconditioner. Or the soot. Or maybe the children. Traveling free.
And then there was the floor show. When I say floor show, that is exactly what I mean. The room was full of people and I, among many, ended up sitting on the floor.
The lady singer fanned herself with the tail of the long, satin gown she wore. "I came to Florida so I'd be warm. Now I'm trying to work my way back to Broadway." I don't think her fanning cooled her much. She kept wiping her neck with the back of her hand then showing us how the water would drip off. And I don't think it generated enough gust to blow her north. But one thing for sure, she exited the stage much faster than she had entered.
At almost 4 p.m., Evelyn and I decided we would go to the front of the boat and beat the crowd off. That was not a wise decision.
We stood in a line in a tight hallway near the front where nothing moved except the hot breaths of moaning cruisers. Women and men and their kids.
I nudged Evelyn. "Hey, it's hotter in here than I thought". In fact, the heat rays on my burning arm were sending smoke signals to my shoulder. "I can't believe it is so hot.
"Ouch!"
Someone had put a burning cigarette in the metal container I was leaning against.
Another 20 minutes and we were off the ship. The cruise to No Where was over.
And no where is exactly where I wished I had gone.
We came to sun, swim, meet interesting guys, eat good food and relax.
But we found
kids traveled FREE!
had better luck
fishing.
