We arrived much later than planned because there was a luncheon at shul, then a mincha service so one of the members could say kaddish again for his mother, and then a class we liked called "As the Torah Turns." We didn't get out of shul until 2 p.m. It was fun, but it was 3 by the time we got home because we also had to drive by Babies R Us to drop off another Toys for Tots contribution.
There was a luncheon because there were five IDF soldiers from Israel visiting. I knew the soldiers were coming and were being honored, but I DID NOT know they were part of an a cappella singing group. At the end of services they sang four songs! Amazing. It was so much fun to see and hear these young soldiers, two men and three women. It reminded me of listening to the JDS a cappella choir or Evey's group at Northeastern, Distilled Harmony. I spoke to them during the luncheon and learned that they had performances in Orlando, Miami, and Washington, DC. If anyone who reads this from the DC area is going to their concert, let me know!
Then we had to finish packing! Geez. It was 4:30 when we finally drove away.
We went to the nearby Denny's for dinner at 8:45 and finally made it into the hotel, tired but happy, around 10ish. That's when the fun began.
Mark had ordered a small, battery operated hanukkiah. It is sort of funky, but we sang all the traditional blessings and opened some presents. We only brought the two presents from our friends Rudy and Georganne because they were originally going on this cruise with us. We wanted to think about them while we were here. They really know what to get! Wow! Congratulations to them for their thoughtfulness. They gave us a Wild West Pop Up Book, which looks like a lot of fun, and a Star Trek USS Enterprise Pizza Cutter! We had actually seen one of them before because our friend Jon N. had one that he brought to show us back when I was having chemo in Baltimore. So awesome.
The presents from our kids we left at home to enjoy when we return. We will return on the eighth day of Hanukkah, so we will still be opening presents during the holiday! There should also be a box from Cindy waiting for us when we get home.
This morning we are slowly getting ready to head to the ship. For some reason they do not want us to arrive before 1 p.m. Breakfast in the hotel runs until 10, so there's no hurry to get there. We also plan to find a CVS to pick up sunscreen, which we forgot, and an extra nine volt battery for the hanukkiah just in case. If we can find a BBT to get some cash out of the ATM without paying fees, that would be a bonus.
I am so excited to board the Carnival Valor today. It's by far the BIGGEST ship we will have ever been on, so that makes it very special. I only realized a few days ago how big it was. That will make this a unique cruise for us. It's also the first time we are staying on the lowest deck and forward of the mid-ship elevators. We are not too far forward, but this is also different for us. I'll let you know how we like that.
I am not sure if there will be any more blogs before we return. It will depend on how expensive it is to buy their wi-fi packages on board and whether or not I have time to write anything. Ships are so much fun and so full of activities that I can't guarantee I will sit around writing blogs. LOL!
Have a wonderful week, no matter what you are doing. Enjoy the Hanukkah holiday each of the final seven nights, if that is your tradition. Check back now and then to see if I'm writing on board, or check back when I'm home after December 16.
Bye Bye!
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