Vacation - part 2

We went on one of the larger ships in the Royal Caribbean fleet (not the largest, though) - the Voyager. They actually have a small ice rink on the ship! We didn't go ice skating, but we did see the ice show. It was actually pretty good. I think it could have been better if they had more space. It was about a half of a rink, so the skaters really had to be careful with their jumps.

Our waiters were great, as always. Antonio, our main waiter, is from Portugal. The assisant waiter, Umit, is from Turkey. They provided excellent service. Our head waiter went above and beyond by getting the chef to make us a special pie!

There were a large amount of Texans on the cruise since it left out of Galveston. Boy, do I wish I had a picture of this one lady's hat and shirt. You would not believe it! Several of the men seated near us in the dining room wore their cowboy hats and boots to dinner. Luckily, we had a table of 4 so we didn't have to make small talk. I don't mind southern accents, but my sister is not a big fan of them.

The best food we had was at Portofino's, the specialty restaurant on the ship. It is a small restaurant, so you get great service. You have to pay a $20 cover charge per person to go in, but it is SO worth it. I get the same thing every time. I don't know the real italian name for the dishes, but I will explain them. For the appetizer, I get eggplant manicotti, basically. Instead of a noodle, the eggplant is sliced incredibly thin. It is filled with a yummy ricotta cheese mixture and served with a bit of olive oil and tomato sauce. The salad is delicious - lettuce, gorgonzola, candied walnuts, and an amazing house dressing. For the main course I always get filet mignon served with truffle mashed potates. The filet is SO tender, even when cooked medium well, and the truffle mashed potates have such a unique flavor. The best part of the meal is the flourless chocolate cake, which is AMAZING!

Yep - eating healthy definitely did not happen on the ship! It's back to healthy eating tomorrow. Between the cruise and the stress of parent-teacher conference week before the cruise I have put back on a few pounds. :-(