Crossing the International Dateline Brunch, "South Pacific" and Miscellania

We crossed the International Dateline in the middle of last night, so it is now mid-afternoon, Monday, January 22nd (notwithstanding the different date appearing just under the title of the post over which I have no control), meaning we lost a day.  And, of course, this crossing, like the Crossing the Equator crossing, provided yet another excuse to have some kind of bash.  Thus, this morning's elaborate brunch on the pool deck.  Here are a few photos to illustrate.  Note that some folks are watching the football game on the big outdoor screen as they drink and eat.  (As I mentioned in an earlier post, if you click on an individual photo, an enlargement of that single photo will emerge.)

      

Yesterday afternoon, which was Saturday, January 20th, we were treated to a rendition of the musical "South Pacific".  The two soloists were the cruise director, Heather Clancy, and one of the jack-of-all-trades staff, Gary Jerry, both of whom have wonderful voices, especially Heather.  Gary also played the piano.  The "highlight" of the program was the performance of the newly formed Viking Sun Inaugural World Cruise Choir, made up entirely of guests.  Heather has been working with them for the last few weeks, and they did a fantastic job.  Note a number of non-choir guests watching the show from the Grand Staircase and other positions in the Atrium, an imposing three-story open area in the middle of the ship.

    

By the way, at the top of the Grand Staircase is a huge ultra high definition LED projection screen that is constantly changing images.  I don't know who picks the projected images, but they are gorgeous.  Here's a sample.  (Nancy Cohen, if you're viewing this, note, at the bottom, the closeup and longshot of the hibiscus, a favorite flower of mine that I never fail to recognize.)