TUESDAY - 2 days at sea - the first was windy with rough seas. The open decks were blocked off so it was off to the gym. Finally, I ducked under the ropes and walked on the Promenade deck. There was another gathering of world cruisers in the afternoon. Not as well attended as the first but both the Captain and cruise director attended. It was another formal night so the singers and dancers performed. The violinist I mentioned before (Chris Watkins) also had 2 shows in the Explorer's Lounge. This fellow is so popular that even though it was his third performance it was standing room only. We've never been on a ship where the performers are on for an extended time but a group of about 6 or 7 have been onboard since the Canadian entertainers left - probably 15 or 16 days, so they do new shows at least twice.
WEDNESDAY - Calm seas so much more enjoyable. Valentines day and it is a Princess tradition for couples to renew their marriage vows. A large group participated including the Captain and his wife. The violinist and Broadway singer entertained prior to the ceremony. A lot of entertainment on the ship today. The singers and dancers did another show in the afternoon, a comedian had 2 shows at night, and then the violinist again performed in the Atrium. This was his 5th performance onboard and he did 2 shows per night for 3 of them. He leaves us in Montevideo and we'll be sorry to see him go.
MONTEVIDEO - Population 1.3 million, country of Uruguay 3.5 million, 35 million cows. Second smallest country in S. America. Spanish. We did a city tour. There are a lot of old buildings and a lot of them are of locally made brick. Some of the roads are still cobblestone. The city hosted the first ever World Cup in 1930 and the stadium still exists. I believe that Uruguay won the game. Education is compulsory from kindergarten to 10th grade. Public schools and universities are free but private ones have fees. Everyone contributes to health care based on their income. They have both public and private health care and the people get to choose which system they want to use but if private is the choice there are added costs. Uruguay supposedly has some fabulous wines so that was our major purchase. Still no problems getting wine or beer onboard.
Pictures - 1 - the soccer stadium
2 - Chris Watkins, the violinist
3 - the singers and dancers
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