Today we’re having a day at sea while we cross the Timor Sea from Komodo to Darwin, Australia. It’s very relaxing and gave us some time to wander around the ship. It’s all decorated for Christmas. I appreciate the cruise company’s thought, but it’s just weird to be under a blazing sun with temperatures near 90 degrees while looking at Christmas trees and decorations, and garlands decorated with twinkle lights.

The library bookshelves are trimmed with garland and twinkle lights.

Reindeer at rest near a snack bar.

I think this tree is made of large, flat pieces of driftwood.

Even the pool is decorated with garlands and lights. It’s really weird to see people in swimsuits surrounded by Christmas garlands.

The coup d’état is the grand stairway into the lobby. (The dark thing at the bottom of the stairs is a grand piano, in case it’s hard to identify on a small screen.) Behind it is an arrangement of gingerbread houses.

Here’s a picture of the gingerbread houses in the lobby (left) and at the entrance to one of the restaurants (right).

Underneath the stairway to the lobby is a mosaic that reminds me of a salad bar.

On our way around the top deck, I was trying to determine where to stand to take a picture without facing the sun. Ted and I quickly realized it didn’t matter much–the sun is almost directly overhead. We checked our shadows, and they’re pretty short. This was at about 1:30 p.m. Playing “step on your shadow” requires a short step.

Our ship leaves a “path” beyond the infinity pool on the deck below.

There’s not much on the horizon. It looks like North Dakota, only blue.

Back in our room, we discovered that the refreshing beverages in our mini-fridge look different in Asia.

We thought it was best that we eat the Toblerone bars in the mini-fridge before they spoil. The good times just keep on coming!