It is your own fault if you get bored on a cruise ship. Activities start early and go late. You might not be interested in what's available, but you definitely cannot say there is nothing to do.
On the Sapphire Princess there were many ways to check out each day's activities. Our cabin steward placed a newsletter with the next day's activities in our cabin each night. The Princess Cruise line app had a calendar that listed each activity with a brief description, start and end time, location and directions. Some activities were announced over the ship's speaker system.
TRIVIA
There were two trivia games each evening. We participated in two; Alaska Trivia on day one (May 12) and Motown Trivia on day four (May 20).
BB and I studied for the Alaska Trivia challenge. We learned all the Alaska State XXX, such as Sitka Spruce as state tree, jade as state gem. We found and played online Alaska trivia games. We were prepared! And it paid off! With the additional help and support of John, Fran and Bev we won the game! Our prize? A bottle of Duc De Valmer Sparkling Wine.
We didn't fair as well in the Motown Trivia challenge. Bits of a Motown song were played and we were to list the title and the artist. It was fun listening to the music. But we didn't win prizes.
WINE TASTING
I attended a Fine Wine Tasting event on day 2 (May 18) with the hope of obtaining some polish and culture. I was not successful. I enjoyed the social time with my companions. However, my palate was not able to detect many of the subtle nuances said to be present in the wines we were tasting. Also, the majority of the hor d'oeuvres served contained things I didn't want to eat and were wasted on me.
LECTURES and EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNIITIES
Several activities were educational as well as entertaining.
Libby Riddles come on board ship day 4 (May 20) to talk about her adventures as a dog musher. In 1985 she became the first woman to win the Iditarod. She doesn't race anymore but continues to raise dogs. She is also a writer and speaker. Her story is interesting. She moved to Alaska, on her own, when she was 16 years old!
I consider this activity educational only because the Activity Director explained that we were helping to socialize the puppies. An activity called Puppies in the Piazza (come meet real sled dog puppies and their handlers) took place on cruise day 5 (May 21). Several of us, being animal lovers, anticipated 10 to 15 Alaskan Huskies being brought on board. We were excited! We were extremely disappointed to learn that only 2 puppies were at the event. We still waited in line to pet a puppy and get our picture taken.
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Sapphire Princess had naturalist Sandra Schempp on board. She gave three lectures during the cruise: one on Discovering the Inhabitants of Alaska's Coastal Waters, one on Exploring the Wonders of Alaskan Wildlife and one on Understanding Alaska's Mighty Glaciers. Her talks were interesting. She also made herself available on deck 7 forward when the ship was in areas with potential for wildlife viewing. She would search for and point out wildlife (otters, whales, puffins, etc.) and know the names of the glaciers and mountains we were cruising by.
On day 7 (May 23) we attended Ship Navigation - The View from the Bridge. One of the Bridge Officers spoke on the different instruments the ship uses to navigate, marine traffic laws, and other general information concerning how the ship works. He told us the ship makes water. The ship uses two processes, steam evaporation and reverse osmosis, to desalinate salt water. Then minerals and chlorine are added to make the water taste better. The ship also has a sewage treatment system that leaves the end process clean enough to drink! (Yuk!) The ship discharges the treated sewage in specific, allowed areas of the ocean. The ship had an emergency drill on day 5 (May 21). Several questions were asked about the drill and how emergency situations were handled. The Coast Guard is called when a medical emergency occurs and the patient isn't in a condition to wait for the ship to reach port. A Coast Guard helicopter will come for the patient. There isn't a place for the helicopter to land on the Sapphire Princess, so the patient is placed in a litter and hoisted to the helicopter. Fires on board ships came up. The officer stated that they happen frequently. (What!!??) Apparently ship fires often occur in engine and laundry rooms. Passengers only learn about them when they need to know. Since coming back from our cruise I've read about two instances where a passenger was med-evaced from a Princess Cruise Line ship and another where a fire on a smaller cruise ship was bad enough that the passengers were transferred to the Sapphire Princess.
The Culinary Demonstration on day 7 (May 23) was a combo talent show, cooking demo, staff appreciation day and tour of the galley. The presentation started with several Chefs performing a cooking demo as a situation comedy....food ended up all over the stage. This was followed by an actual cooking demo when the Head Chef cooked a pasta and salmon dish. (BB made this dish when we got home and it was good!). Wait staff from each of the dining rooms then took turns performing for the audience; some sang while others danced. The Chefs turned it into a contest between dining rooms by having the audience clap for the dining room staff they believed provided the best service. Of course, it was a tie. Wait and kitchen staff filed in the auditorium and the audience kept applauding. It was moving to see how much the staff was moved by the show of appreciation. Things ended with a quick tour of the galley.
ENTERTAINMENT
There were shows every night.
Like music and dance? The evening of day 2 (May 18) we attended and enjoyed BRAVO! described as 'when classic light opera meets popular music...join a brilliant soprano, backed by singers, dancers and orchestra, for an evening of music that's truly timeless.' The evening of day 5 (May 21) the ships musicians and dancers presented Do You Wanna Dance? This production was billed as 'A visual and musical extravaganza highlighting the diversity of dance throughout the world'.
At the Princess Theater, waiting for the show to start
At various times during the day, and always in the evenings, music was available in the Piazza and in several of the bars and lounges.
Prefer comedy? Comedian Greg Schwem performed several times during the cruise. He certainly made us laugh when we caught his act on day 3 (May 19).
This and That
At the Captain's Champagne Waterfall
Walks on Promenade Deck....Exercise, plus great views!
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