Monday – May 21, 2018
The Celebrity Reflection rolled a little from side to side all night as she crossed the southern Mediterranean Sea between Malta and Greece. There was a bit of wind and also some impressive waves this morning. We were directed to move our clocks ahead one hour last night but I was still surprised that I slept until 9:30. (Greek time)
We had breakfast in the crowded Oceanside Grill because it was too late at all the other restaurants. We sat outdoors on the 14th deck and enjoyed a pleasant view of the Mediterranean. The Lavazza coffee was very good!
Fortunately, we were able to make it to the Galley Tour at 10:30. We had enjoyed seeing the galleys on other ships so I thought this one would also be fun to see.
Tour participants filled the large Opus Dining Room where we were introduced to Victor Mancilla, the executive chef of several Celebrity ships in Europe and South America. He presented a dozen chefs from all the dining rooms onboard the Reflection.
There was a Q&A session, then we had a well organized quick tour of the main galleys on the third and fourth decks. We learned there are 1200 crew members on this ship and 645 of them are food service workers. 250 people are cooks, chefs, and galley cleaning personnel.
We were given a paper which lists ‘consumption figures’ for a typical cruise. We all eat 40,000 pounds of meat, 13,000 pounds of poultry, 58,659 pounds of fresh veggies, and 52,652 pounds of fruit. Also, 35,000 liters of beer and 17,450 bottles of wine are consumed. Incredible!!
At the end of the tour, we were given a demonstration of the animation on the tables of one of the specialty restaurants named Q-sine. Scenes of a tiny chef preparing food are projected on the tables then a real waiter serves the specific meal. The animated chef is preparing lobster the photo below:
We relaxed on our balcony and later enjoyed a Greek lunch:pasticcio, an assortment of fishes, and baklava for dessert. The food on this cruise is the best of all the cruise companies we have sailed with in the past.
The dining rooms offer variety and different food choices everyday from local Mediterranean countries, as well as American, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, and Indian food.
Afterwards we went to The Hideaway to relax as the sounds of classical music drifted up from somewhere so it was very pleasant.
My only complaint about this ship is there are no lectures. The best aspect about Holland America was their many lectures given by professionals which enhanced the journey. I brought podcasts and several ‘books on tape’ but it would be nice to have some intellectual stimulation provided by Celebrity.
Nonetheless, the ship is lovely, clean, modern, comfortable, and very well maintained. The Celebrity Cruise Line has moved to the top of our cruise list.