Our morning in Huahine

Spontaneity is not the norm for us... we are planners and like to research our vacations thoroughly so we don't get home and say "Oh!  I wish I'd known about that...".   So this spontaneous trip was out of character and with our only prior cruise experience being a mass market voyage, we were concerned that all of the ship's excursions would already be full.  Imagine our surprise as we arrived at the Travel Desk and not only was there no line, but there was still availability on many of the excursions!  With our jet lag still weighing heavy on our heads we found the afternoon Safari Excursion to perfectly fit the bill and we were in luck that there just happened to be two seats available.

The lack of queues anywhere on this ship was wonderful!   I think the most we ever waited in any line at either the Travel or Reception desk was 3 to 4 minutes.  The restaurants were never over crowded and deck chairs were always easy to find (the only exception being our one sea day).  

As we had secured our afternoon activity, we made our first of 9 visits to Le Grill for breakfast and found that table 33 was in just the perfect position for a gorgeous view, light breeze and easy access to the buffet.  Just about anything you could wish for was available - cooked to order omelets, pancakes, eggs, sausages, fresh fruit (loved the papaya and little bananas), oatmeal, cereals, pastries, bagels, toast, cheese, meats, shrimp, juices, other beverages, etc. all in a buffet style.  Joey took care of us each morning, having our coffee and ice water on the table before we had filled our plates.  We grew to look forward to his welcoming smile each day and he quickly learned our preferences.

Most days after breakfast we would take our coffee to the back of the ship and enjoy the tropical views and peaceful atmosphere of the Paul Gauguin.  On most mornings we enjoyed the aft deck alone or at most with just another couple or two.   Lounging in the morning sun with our coffee quickly came to be one of our favorite times of the day!

Coffee - Aft deck 8

Outside La Palette - Aft deck 8

Brian enjoying his morning coffee!

Before our afternoon Safari, we caught lunch back in Le Grill and again were pleased with the selections.  Each day the Grill had different selections and themes, including salads, hot dishes, soups, pasta, breads, cheeses, and of course desserts.  One day was German theme, another Asian, another American, etc.  Although we did not have a chance to try them all, we did enjoy what we had (I'm not much of a sushi fan, but heard great sushi reviews!).  Vegetarian and light choices were always available as well.

Midday Mai Tai!