Jim_Iain

I've not seen the MDR Menu although it is on the App. They are rolling out the new Menus in Luminae but Wednesday had items from other nights. I notice lots of Bass - by all it's names Also noticing that many of the old items are being prepared differently and have different presentation. Like you - I have never had less than 9 cruises booked and after this series will be down to 3.

Originally the 360 remark was that It started out good on first lunch then went worse on the first two nights. After shifting to Kumar - Waiter All was restored to perfect. Kumar was one of our Waiters on Apex in May so we know him The problem was that every meal they were giving us different waiters.

I'll see if I can find some. I'm sure they must have it on the ship somewhere. I'm going on a tour and the boys are going to a Chemist to pick up other things - I've asked Iain to pick up some Salt Tablets and Electrolyte packets.

Out of Sequence- Wednesday Dinner Day 13 Menu - they are being swapped around Amuse-bouche Roasted Apple & Hearty Green Salad Seafood Veloute "Char Siu" - Lamb Chop Mushroom Pot Pie Roasted Lamb Loin New Black Forest Cake Lemon Mascarpone Cream Sunday - Vanilla and Milk Chocolate Bailey Ice Cream in a chocolate shell

apple Salad Crab Cakes Veloute Lamb Loin Sea Bass Guinea Foul Meat hats Guinea Foul Cheese Cake Vachirine. Yummy Cheese platter

Next up was lunch at Mertha is a kid at heart and had an American Milk Shake with his meal. He delivered on his promise to authentic Indonesian Food. He said it is one of his favorite places. The total bill for 4 of us was Rp 726,514.23 ($46.74) - Must say Xe app was incredible in helping calculate prices.

Next up was an early lunch at 11:30 at Wagung Bejana Nusadu

Have to say this is my favorite picture of the day.

We could have take a cart up to the top of the mountain but decided to walk instead. Being out in the hot sun and humidity did take a toll on me. Luckily they had an air conditioned lobby underneath. We sat at a table and talked for the better part of an hour. I was starting to fill dizzy so knocked down two bottles of water.

There's a huge statue of Garuda Bird which is from mythologyy. The Garuda Bird has a body that is half bird and half man. Garuda is a symbol of freedom from every shackle and deprivation of human rights. Mertha shared with us that part of Bali Tradition he plans on attempting to have a son. It is part of passing on your name and to provide a son to take care of he and his wife when they grow old. His parent's are currently are in his care. I was surprised to learn that they needed lots of help with mobility, and when asked his parents are in the mid-50'S. He felt that the hard work and climate of Bali contribute to early aging.

The size is humbling.

PATUNG WISNU Lord Vishnu, Lord of Preserver, is a deity figure who is believed to be the source of wisdom. He is one of the manifestations of gods who is in charge to taking care the entire universe. Lord Vishnu possesses Tirta Amertha (eternal holy water) believed as the source of the fertility and prosperity. Plaza Wisnu is the highest point in GWK Cultural Park where the God of Vishnu Statue rises to a height of 23 meters. The entire sculpture material is made of copper and brass mixture . IMG_0951.mov

The Kura-Kura Plaza is the first plaza that you come to. In Indonesian Kura-Kura means turtle. Here you will find a pond which has a fountains that represent turtles rising from the water.

Promptly at 9am the park opened Ananta Shesha Also known as Sheshanaga or Adishesha, was one of the primal beings of creations. Anaato Shesha is often depicted as a dragon wich thousands of heads adored with diamond crowns, which forming the bed of Lord Vishnu. He is called as an eternal entity, which will remain when the entire universe is destroyed.

Still wasting some time I was clicking away. There are Turtle Icon's every where and found that Kura Kura—meaning 'turtle' in Bahasa Indonesia, was inspired by old Balinese folklore where it was believed the Island of Bali lay on top of a turtle's back. Got a chuckle out of the expression on the Female turtle - can you get on with it and the Male with his rolled back eyes of bliss.

I got a chuckle out of this sign.

We arrived too Early so had to wait 30 minutes for GWK to open, which gave us a good opportunity to catch up. It was fun to learn that Mertha had never been himself. He admitted like many things we never take the time to explore the treasure's in our own backyard.

We were up early and had room service for Breakfast. I wanted my regular so asked Anu to get me my Berry Greek Yogurt Parfait, Fresh Berries and Almond Croissants. Off menu from the Retreat. He was happy they we finally asked him to do something for us. We met Mertha at 8:00 AM -- You can only imaging how pleased Iain was to be drug out of bed at 6:30 AM. We really appreciated Mertha volunteering to take us around beautiful Benoa but didn't want to impose on him too much. We told him we would like to be back to the ship by 1:00 PM (so Iain could get a nap - oops I didn't say that!) We told him we wanted to do something close to the port and then take he and his driver for lunch in a place that he would go --- not a tourist trap. We agreed on GWK - which we found later was the #1 attraction of Bali and to the port. GWK Cultural Park is home to some of the most iconic cultural landmarks in Bali, including the magnificent Garuda Wisnu Kencana statue, which stands tall at 121 meters (400 Feet) and is a representation of the Hindu god Vishnu and his mount, the Garuda bird.

Whewwww.. Finally got caught up reading all the posts. Now on with the Show. I am so behind. Just finished post-production processing of my photos. Moving back to our our Second Day in Benoa, Indonesia Our favorite Bar Tender on Ponant took us out for a day of exploration.

I expect but don't know for sure whether she will be at the Zenith Lunch or Lunches. I understand on previous cruise. There were so many Zeniths they had to break it up to 3-4 individual lunches. I expect there will be fewer on the final leg. So many I know are abandoning us in Sydney. LOL

I haven't tried it. Maybe I will order an extra one in addition to my desert and give it a try.

Thanks Trish. I will definitely pick some up.