It’s the Captain’s farewell dinner tonight so I wore my new silk Chinese jacket and had many compliments on it.
I enjoyed a drink of the day (red pagoda) with some of my tourmates in the bar and then we went to dinner at 6:30 pm. In the foyer we were handed a glass of champagne for the toast.
Once all were seated, the captain spoke briefly and Allan, cruise director and English speaking river guide, interpreted his remarks and we had a toast.
Tonight was not buffet and we were back to the lazy susan.
One copy of the menu was at each table.
Our server, Tracy, was dressed in beautiful modern Chinese dress.
The chefs and wait staff turned off the lights and walked in to music with sparklers on a cake.
Then we got down to dinner.
The lazy susan already had cold appetizers. The duck was good but FULL of bones. I also enjoyed the chicken, cold roasted vegetables and a roll. The first course was a hot pumpkin soup. It wasn’t as good as what I’ve enjoyed on Carnival Cruises but it was tasty.
Next up was pork meatballs. They were pretty good except when you hit a patch of salt. It felt like maybe they weren’t mixed as well as they should be.
Then we had fried fish with tata sauce. It was pretty good.
This was followed by braised beef with radish and carrots.
Next was roasted chicken.
At this point I was starting to feel full but we had a few more to go!
We all enjoyed the french fries.
At least they had catsup. It was followed by pork spareribs…
and then sesame buns filled with vegetables.
I ate all of the above and enjoyed it all but was very full so didn’t take any boiled cabbage which was last before dessert.
For dessert we had green tea mousse cake and a plate of fruit.
It was a fight for the watermelon (not literally but there was one man who always took more than his share). He got it first and took 4 pieces. The next two people took two pieces each. That left four pieces for the remaining four people. Not kosher but not upsetting since there had been plenty of food!
Our tour guide took pictures of our table and after saying good bye to him and giving him a tip, I left to pack, settle my account and pick up pictures. I had already tipped Tracy and my cabin attendant.
I tried to check in online for my second flight but it was too early so I sent the details to my husband hoping he can figure it out and get me an aisle seat. Then I turned in the router at the front desk and paid off my balance with credit card.
By waiting until after dinner, I only waited two minutes to pay. Then I went to pick up my pictures. It should have been quick but there were two separate french groups having disagreements with the photo staff to the point they had to call the cruise manager who had to call the french river guide to interpret.
Finally, I was able to pick up my photos which were done and I was asked to make sure they were the right ones before leaving. All was well and I went to my cabin for the final task – packing.
Our checked bag (the one Sinorama handles) had to be out the door by 10:15 pm. I rearranged things, figured out what I was wearing the next day and had it out an hour early. I’ll check in my carry on once we get to the airport.
Without wifi, i watched a bit of a HBO move that didn’t hold my interest and went to sleep. It will be a long, long day tomorrow.
Don’t miss the previous China posts linked below.
Going to China (tour and visa)
China: Trip Preparations
November 12-13, 2016: Travel to Beijing
November 14, 2016: Beijing and Great Wall
November 14, 2016: Ming Tombs and Peking Duck Dinner
West International Trade Hotel Beijing
November 15, 2016: Hutong and Temple of Heaven
November 15, 2016: Tiananmen Square, Fobidden City and Beijing Opera
November 16, 2016: Pearl Factory and Summer Palace
November 16, 2016: Traveling to Xi’an
November 17, 2016: Jade Factory and Terra Cotta Warriors
November 17, 2016: Dumpling Dinner and Tang Dynasty Opera
Grand Barony Xian Hotel
November 18, 2016: Traveling to Wuhan
Howard Johnson Pearl Plaza Wuhan
November 19, 2016: Wuhan to Jingzhou
November 19, 2016: Boarding the Century Diamond
November 20, 2016: Yangtze River and Three Gorges Dam
November 21, 2016: Yangtze River and Goddess Stream
November 22, 2016: Yangtze River and Shibaozhai Pagoda
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