Thursday, August 27, 2026
North Atlantic Ocean/Sapphire Princess
63F and rainy--and fog
The Internet is sketchy and sea days aren’t very exciting.
Tonight the ship is reacting to the swells of the ocean, but we are fine. At noon the captain said the depth of the ocean was 3,000 ft. at that time, and that we have 1,150 miles to go to Sydney.
A couple of different things in the past two days:
A trip to the Medical Center
The changes in temperature, the lack of sleep, the rigorous
schedule, all took their toll. We both had colds, but TK’s was worse. So yesterday: Hundreds
of dollars later, and a couple of medications, TK is doing much better
thankfully. We could not believe the medical center—it looks like a “real” hospital!
The area was much larger than I would have thought, with several examination rooms,
a front desk area, and the doctor’s office—that is what we could see. I clicked a photo but did not want to be too
obvious. The obligatory Covid test—negative, no temperature, and vitals normal,
a consultation with the woman doctor from the Netherlands, some meds, and we
were on our way.
The Styling Salon
Today the big excitement was a trip to the salon---I don’t
usually do that on cruises, but TK had onboard credit for his military service,
and his Carnival stock ownership, so he invited me to indulge. That was a treat,
as the salon was on Deck 14, overlooking the sea. Hairstylist Jessie was from South
Africa/New Zealand, now living in London. We had a mutual interest in history
and talked about World War I and such.
The Laundry Room
Even though we have free laundry service, I elected to wash a few things--each deck has a "laundromat," $3 for wash and $3 for dry. The one on our deck is quite close to our stateroom.
An ordinary day. We will arrive in Sydney, Canada on Monday, so 3 more restful days at sea. Tonight we set the clock back another hour. I think that puts us 3 hours away from EST. This is another reason we like TransAtlantic cruises!
Update: 7:30 p.m. As I was writing, I heard the haunting sound of a foghorn blowing. I sped to the balcony door, opened the drape, and indeed, we cannot see past the balcony. I remembered my crew days on the U.S. Brig Niagara and found that the Sapphire Princess is blowing the foghorn every 2 minutes, just as we did on the Niagara while sailing on the Atlantic. (Although we had to do it by hand on the Niagara) Not my favorite situation at sea.
From https://lawshun.com/article/are-fog-horns-still-maritime-law
Fog horns, once a critical component of maritime safety, have long been mandated by international maritime law to prevent collisions in low-visibility conditions. While modern navigation technologies like radar, GPS, and AIS have significantly reduced reliance on auditory signals, fog horns remain legally required on many vessels as a backup safety measure. The International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs) still outline specific rules for their use, including sound patterns and durations based on vessel type and size. However, ongoing debates question whether these traditional systems are still necessary in an era of advanced technology, prompting discussions about potential updates to maritime regulations.
TK's Takes: Not so fun when the weather is cold/rainy. Everyone is inside.
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