After our disappointing port call to Dakar I was a little apprehensive about our port visit tomorrow in Praia, Cape Verde. This was one of the countries that was listed in the warning letter we received a week or so ago and I was not looking forward to a repeat of yesterday.
Coffee Chat
The guest for Coffee Chat this morning was Geoffrey, the HAL club manager, along with one of the children, a 10 year old boy named Shane. Geoffrey has been with Holland America for four years. Before that he was a substitute schoolteacher in California. Born in Jamaica, Geoffrey moved to New York City when he was five where he grew up. During the question and answer period one of the guests asked for Geoffrey to show us the contents of his ever-present backpack. Geoffrey began to pull out one item after another including games, sunglasses and other knickknacks. He finally pulled out, as if by mistake, and to the surprise of the gathered crowd, a roll of duct tape. Feigning embarrassment, he put the duct tape back in his bag and said it was for a project he was working on and then glanced at Shane hinting that it might be used to keep him in line if he misbehaved.
I spoke to Geoffrey afterwards and he confided that the duct tape, along with other items, was included in his bag for comic effect as he expected to be asked a question about the contents during the interview.
Chocolate Surprise
Today was Holland America’s 145th birthday. To celebrate they had another Chocolate Surprise like the one they had earlier in the cruise during one of the Galas in the Queen’s Lounge. The Chocolate Surprise took place on Deck Five and the Crow’s Nest starting at 9 PM. Since we are still eating at 9 PM we thought we might miss out, but about 9:30 waiters came through the dining room with trays of the various Chocolate Surprises which consisted of a variety of cakes, chocolate pops and other tempting treats.
Savannah Jack
Performing tonight in the Queen’s Lounge was the group Savannah Jack from Nashville, Tennessee. They played hits from a large library of popular tunes from the 50’s through the present day. They were able to create country sounds along with classic rock and put on a fantastic show. Normally the late show is a repeat of the early show, but Savannah Jack started the early show playing one song from each year between 1956 and 1972 and then during the late show they continue playing songs starting with 1972 onward including such hits as:
• Tonight’s The Night (Gonna Be Alright)
• The Gambler
• The Devil Went Down to Georgia
• Take Me Home, Country Roads
• Margaretville
• Silly Love Songs
• Celebration
Savannah Jack engages well with the audience and plays nothing but crowd pleasers. You can’t help but have a great time!
