Wednesday evening, salsa and pyjama - part 2: pyjama

After the concert, it's dinner. Ronald has not done his job, and our lovely little table for two in the fathers-and-kids corner is taken! Ronald apologizes and brings in the manager for this area of the restaurant. He says there is no reserved seating, and helps us find another table for two in an adjacent section. The table is next to the railing of the huge spiral staircase that leads down to the other level of the restaurant. On this table, there is a "reserved" sign... The manager swiftly takes that away, proving that there is indeed no reserved seating. There will be two more upset people later tonight. The view is great, but service in this section is not as impeccable as in the other. The wine steward is inept, and we wait between courses. I mean it's not hell, but it's a clear departure from the unbelievable service the ship provides everywhere else. We have been very spoiled.

At 11 pm, it's Pajama (or Pyjama) party on the Lido deck, poolside. We are in PJ's too, like the rest of the crowd. Dad had to buy a pair for the occasion, as he feared that following the instructions ("come dressed for bed") wouldn't get him very far... I'm in an oversized man's shirt with heels. Leaning on the railing of the 10th floor deck, we watch the zoo below. There is a competition for the best outfit. As it's the Playboy jazz cruise, there are a lot of Hugh Heffner wannabes in velvety smoking jackets and fewer bunnies. I guess the demographics of the passengers make it easier to dress as an over-the-hill priapic pervert than to trod in skimpy outfits with ears and fluffy tail. But one of the winners of the competition is precisely one of these - a petite woman well into her seventies, the body and the bodice of a (cancan) dancer. We had noticed her before; her rather excentric way of dressing made quite visible, especially when in St Barth or San Juan. Tonight, she is in a firehouse red bustier with matching stockings and stilettos.

J'ai une faiblesse pour les vieilles dames indignes.

After the competition, we go to bed. Tomorrow, we have to get off the ship at 7:50 am for our kayaking adventure on Nevis. Good thing we napped.