Sunday

I actually went to a Catholic Mass this morning. There were two other services, Christian Fellowship and Interdenominational, but I felt drawn to the Catholic Mass. And I did feel spiritually fed and that I was somehow keeping the Sabbath, thanking God for all the many blessings we have had on this trip.

Before that, I did start the day with the Yoga Stretch class. I have to find a good set of morning stretch exercises when I get home. I have felt so much better, my hip/sciatic nerve pain is almost completely gone.

At 10:00 R and I went to a lecture on the original New York skyscrapers that was very good. Learned about how there had to be so many other events/innovations, invention of steel, of elevators, step pattern in buildings to allow light to hit the ground. Although in traditional post and lintel construction—like our childhood building blocks—the walls and lintels are key for holding the structure together, in skyscrapers it is the internal girding that is key. Who knew architecture could be so interesting? The speaker, a retired Rutgers professor, loves his subject, his slides were spot on. 

After that we read for awhile and then had some lunch. It was a relaxing day until 2:00 and Zumba! And then more relaxing until dinner time. We ate in the fancy dining room and met our table companions, a couple from Kentucky who have been cruising for 20 years. 

In fact on one of their first cruises, the husband had a heart attack and the ship had to put into Puerto Rico. Luckily they had taken out cruise insurance—we always do too—and so everything was paid for including the Lear jet that was sent to bring him to a hospital in Cincinnati (closest city to their home in Lexington Ky) and the subsequent bypass operation. They said that the heart attack was actually a blessing because as the doctors did scans, they discovered a far more serious issue that is called the “widow maker.” If that had happened first he would have been dead. It didn’t put them off cruising though :)

After dinner we went back to the stateroom and spent the rest of the evening reading. I finished the library book by Kate Ellis, Mechanical Devil which I think is actually one of her newest. Found it much better than the last I read a few weeks ago, Flesh Tailor, although there are several other books in the series between the two that I will now need to catch up on. 

The wind is blowing at Force 7 so only the hardiest souls are walking outside. I have done the Yoga Stretch class and am going to amble around and read until Zumba at 10. Then there is a “conversation” with author Joanne Harris who wrote Chocolat. Lunch, a lecture this afternoon on the Middle East by the ambassador I listened to the other day. Tonight the wonderful flautist is giving another concert. 

Another good day ahead!