The Stateroom Life of Derek and Riley...

Embarkation Day: What did everyone want to do first? Eat, of course. I mean really, the promise of All-You-Can-Eat Vacation needed to be tested at once. Then came the mandatory “what to do in the unlikely event of an Abandon Ship Order” briefing. THEN we set sail…slowly turning in an enormous circle and gliding out of the Baltimore Harbor. We explored the ship extensively that first night, quickly determining certain inarguable facts such as:

1. It is 135 stair-steps from our Cabin on Deck 1 (the Riviera Deck) to Deck 9 (the Lido Deck—and yes, I DO have the Love Boat theme stuck in my head) where many of the restaurants and pools are located. 
2. We decided immediately that we would always take the stairs, thus burning off the approximately 5,000 calories a day we would consume in soft-serve ice cream. Also helpful, the “Sun Deck” is marked with the information that 3.5 laps around=1 mile. I see lots of circles ahead for me…in between meals…
3. Soft-serve ice cream is available 24-hours a day. Derek can confirm this…when he couldn’t sleep the first night, he and Royce went for a walk/ice-cream excursion at 1:30 a.m.
4. Bunk beds in a ship’s cabin are endlessly fascinating. Particularly leaping from the top bunk to the ground. Or throwing things off the side onto your brother’s head. 
5. Also, staring out the window (I paid extra for that window, so we’d better get our money’s worth!) at the ocean as it flows by is a source of constant amusement and commentary. Some of the scintillating updates to which we were treated include: “Wow, look at those waves!”  “I can’t see land anymore!” “We seem to be moving so fast!” Riveting, I tell ya.

“First Fun Day at Sea”:  (yep, you’re required to call it that, it says so on the Fun Times Brochure the Room Steward leaves in your cabin every day.) It didn’t start out so fun, actually. Derek and Riley sat at breakfast looking absolutely green. They still managed to have a pastry and some Lucky Charms (although that was probably the result of not being permitted to eat marshmallow-filled cereal while at home). Royce chowed down on a full breakfast. I delicately sipped some juice…then went out on deck for some fresh air. Evidently, “motion sickness” for me takes the form of a nasty, killer headache and lack of appetite. It could have been worse—I never felt queasy—but that whole first day I was happiest when lying down with my eyes closed, which I did every few hours (hey, it’s a vacation, we call them NAPS!) I attempted to rally for the “Elegant Evening”, since goshdarnit, I’d bought a dress (and a sweater, and heels) just for the one formal dinner onboard. The boys wore their specially-purchased khakis and polo shirts, which Derek declared “well worth it” when he was allowed to select lobster-tail and shrimp from the adult menu. (Don’t get used to it, pal!) We returned to our room to find the beds turned down, chocolate mints on our pillows, and a lobster made out of folded towels (little things really amuse us, can you tell?) . So ended a successful first day on the ocean…