Day 4: At Sea

We entered calmer waters sometime overnight and the morning was bright and clear. Temperatures this afternoon were in the 80's. I found a channel on the television that tracks our journey and provides realtime statistics such as sea temperature, latitude and longitude, ship's speed, wave height, wind speed, and even the water temperatures of the two swimming pools.

Rita Moreno, star of movies and theater, gave a moving lecture today in the Galaxy Lounge. She spoke about her life story, shared some clips from her movies, and shared her passion for theater. Later in the day, she and her husband came to our Virtuoso Voyager Club cocktail party. More about that later.

I visited the spa today and thoroughly enjoyed a hot stones massage. Albert, my masseure, is a Cape Town native and has promised to tell me more about his hometown prior to our arrival there next month. In addition to massage, he is an aromatherapist, and I can tell he is dedicated to the well-being, and most of all, happiness, of his clients. This was my first time to experience a hot stone massage, and it was so relaxing I fell asleep.

This afternoon I was pleased to have the opportunity to extend an official Virtuoso welcome to our Voyager Club passengers during our cocktail party. Our first destination, St. Lucia, was the inspiration for my short welcome message. It was the home of my first foray into the travel industry, and it is the first stop on our voyage. Brian and Judy Robertson invited several of the onboard lecturers, all on the caliber of Rita Moreno and her husband, to join us and give us a taste of what they have in store for us during our days at sea.

In his remarks to the group, Brian Robertson gave the most concise insight into the origin and depth of meaning of our company name that I have ever heard. He told the audience when the company became Virtuoso, we gave every member a copyof the book, The Virtuoso, as inspiration and recognition of our mutual passion for excellence and our unique abilities to specialize in the "art" of travel.

Just as our name Virtuoso implies, our member travel agencies and travel suppliers are experts in their fields, giving Virtuoso performances daily as they endeavor to enrich the lives of their clients by providing unique travel experiences. Each one is truly a Specialist in the Art of Travel.

Tomorrow: A visit to St. Lucia.