Feb 8th , 2020 Day 36 of 128

Another glorious day at sea. All the announcements we heard today from the captain, the cruise director and the shore excursions coordinator ALL commented on how glorious sour weather is and how completely NOT normal this is.  Smooth sailing and gorgeous weather.  Beyond what we could have asked for or expected.  It is currently in the low 60’s at 8:00pm at night and the sun is still fully in the sky.  We are sailing through the Chilean Fjords and the views are beautiful.  Today was another great day of activities.  We did schoolwork, arts and crafts class, tutoring and a lecture on Santiago, Chile.  Then tonight was a wonderful gala night.  The theme was Paparazzi, we all got to walk the red carpet as we entered the dining room and have our pictures taken.  They have 2020 Academy Award Ballots available at guest services to complete and we can enter for the forecast competition.  Many people have been asking us and today the captain addressed the issue of the Coronavirus to the entire ship.  We have been informed that Holland America is in close communication with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Extra precautious are being taken such as anyone who step on our ship; new passengers, immigration employees, pilots,…, all have to go through a health screening before they come on board. Extra sterilization is being used on the ship and outside the ship at embarkation and disembarkation for excursions. We have been told that we may be subjected to additional health screening as we get off at future ports for our excursions, but nothing has been confirmed to date.  We may also miss future ports based on our health and safety, but nothing has been confirmed at this time regarding that either.  Lastly, any crewmembers from Mainland China are not being permitted to join any ship till further notice.  We were also told that getting a seasonal flu shot reduced our risk of infection and we all had our flu shots prior to sailing so we are already protected as best as we could be.  Other then that we are using every other precaution; hand washing, hand sanitizer, cover your mouth when you cough, etc, to keep healthy and from spreading germs. That’s all I have for today.  Hope you are all staying healthy wherever you are. Take care of yourself and one another. Get enough rest and drink plenty of water.  That’s my daily mantra to the kids and I share that mommy wisdom with you all.  Hugs…Debra