Another Quantum of the Sea: Day 2

The wifi is so choppy, much more choppier than the last cruise. It takes so long to upload a picture onto the blog post. Whatsapp is laggy, let alone sending over videos/ pictures. It is training my patience. Haiz. 

I wanted to do a morning exercise and Lil Shauna was willing to entertain her mother. Hello Tuesday!

Hello Elephant in the lift..

Hello Mr Sun!

Hello to the obliging teenager!

We proceeded with our morning exercises - I did my favorite kickboxing HIIT while Lil Shauna worked on her netball drill, aka 脚步.

After an antagonizing 45 mins, we were done!

It was time to go back to the room to get ready for bfast. What was Zaky doing? He was very busy and diligently guarding the room and the bed. Hoho.

Bfast time!

Zaky was all ready to hit the boogie boarding right after bfast. We got the wet gear ready and headed directly. Now, it was Lil Shauna's turn to go guard the room. We were busy people and the room must have felt very safe. 

 

When the Q got too long, we pulled the boys out for some indoor activities. The mummies were baking out under the sun for way too long. 

We did the napkin artistry and the origami. It didnt really matter what but we were just joining activities and enjoying the cruise. 

We squeezed in lunch at the all time favorite pizza cafe before the one and only show - Gold Art Dual. We caught the other dancing show the last cruise and didn't find it any good. 

The Gold Art Dual is so good! It was just a pair, doing a mixture of acrobatics and magic with a lot of humor and we were all very entertained, going oooooo and ahhhhh constantly. They were previously on America Got Talents and Ukraine Got Talents! 

Thereafter, the boys bugged to go back for more boogie boarding. The jiejies were totally not interested. Auntie S and I then split ways - one of us would bake under sun to supervise the boys while the other would go with the girls for the other indoor activities. 

I got the honor to do the 1st one on cartoon characters. Before the game, picture time 1st. 

It was an interesting game. Despite us being overaged, we are still quite good. Hoho. 

Then, I ran off to look after the boys while Auntie S had some indoor fun with the girls. 

This is me, trying my best to hide from the sun. I have to cover off my half closed eyes. Hoho. 

More boogie boarding pictures. I have like so many of these in my phone. LoL. 

While watching the boys, I saw the iFly. 

The kids didn't try it the last time and Zaky wanted to do it this time. I was trying to convince Lil Shauna to do it with him but she wasn't keen. When I finally decided to book for Zaky, it was all sold out. Obviously, many people are willing to spend USD40 to fly for 1 min. 

The boys were willing to go when the Q got too long and too super long a wait just for one turn. Auntie S and I finally "knocked off" from our shift. 

We saw people doing Xbox and table tennis the last time and found out that we can book directly at the Seaplex. I managed to book table tennis followed by Xbox for the kids. Each family is allowed to book once. While the kids were at them, Auntie S and I sneaked a breather.

We had to drag the kids back to the room for a rest before dinner. The girls were tired from the early morning while the boys spent so much energy boogie boarding. Zaky had a 30 mins nap, which was a life saver or I would have an over-exhausted kid by the end of the night.

Dinner was again a super long affair. The girls sat together this time and with companion, dinner though long, was a lot more interesting. We went for a final game show before calling it a night. 

Daddy Lim must be super bored and lonely at home that he had to find Cookie for companion. 

We also had an animal in our room. I think it is a monkey carrying tiger. 

Good night!

Mummy Lim

Another Quantum of the Seas: Day 1

From our last experience, we know that it is possible to find out the sailing itinerary before the cruise via the Royal app by choosing a current sailing cruise. I also know by experience that the most important schedules are the bumper car sessions and shows bcos these required reservation onboard. The rest can 随性.

We opted for the earliest check-in time at 1pm this time bcos we wanted to booked ALL the bumper car sessions. That is like the most fun and all of us can participate activity.

Going for our Gojek.

姐姐长大了. Right before the cruise, she asked me to bring her shopping so that she can wear what all teenagers are wearing now. This is the OOTd for every other teenager now. Hoho. 

See, even C is dressed like that. Hoho. 全部一样的.

We agreed to meet at 12.45pm and when we arrived, the cruise center was crowded. We saw passengers who had booked for the 2pm check-in queuing up. They had at least an hour to Q! 

Once we alighted, we were ushered for the ART test. What?!! Another swab? Sob. I wasn't prepared for another test.

There was some waiting to be done - register, test and more waiting for the results. Thank goodness that the test was very bearable. The tester joked that he had helped me cleaned my nostrils and I can now smell all the good food onboard. Yummy! It was then a good 30 mins wait for the test results before we can finally proceed for checking in. Yay, we were all cleared! Last hurdle cleared.

Finally made it onto the gangway. 

The 1st thing that we did was to book the bumper car sessions. Then we realized that we can only make ONE booking. After enquiring, we were told that bcos there were too many kids on this cruise, each family is allowed only to book one session of bumper car. Such bummer. 

We just had to eat to make ourselves feel better. Hoho.

After lunch, the boys were eager to head for the boogie boarding. The girls just wanted to nuah in the room. They all got what they wanted. Before that, we had to complete the safety briefing at 3pm and were late bcos we needed to fill the tummy 1st. When we arrived at the venue, we got our card scanned upon entering the room and then ushered directly to the exit and had our cards scanned again. Ooooo... I feel very safe now. Hoho. 

To boogie boarding!

What did the mummies do? Unfortunately the underage boys required adult supervision. So there we were, sitting on the spectator deck. We were 1st baking in the sun then the sky was overcast and it started drizzling. Luckily the dark clouds moved quickly. 

We literally sat through and under both the sun and the drizzle. The drizzle also drove the crowd away. With the shorter q, the boys got to go a few more rounds. 

The boys were willing to leave when it was time for bumper cars. On the way back, we saw God's rays. So pretty!

Our precious one and only bumper car session. 

Nobody take picture for me, I take myself. 

We had some time before dinner and the kids decided to make a big mess in Auntie S' room. Pillow fight!

Dinner was ok but a long wait...

So much so that we all got tired from dinner. There were 2 activities that were taking place later in the night but we were too tired to partake. The kids asked to go to bed and we were all in lala land before 10pm.

Goodnight world, goodnight Monday. Hello to our comfy little cabin.

Mummy Lim

Another Quantum of the Seas - Pre Cruise

I be frank. Right after the cruise in March 2021, the travel sucker in me was desperate for another cruise. Not long after, I jioed Auntie S to book a sailing in June 2021. Unfortunately, the heightened restrictions kicked in, where only groups of 2s were allowed and we were made to cancel ours. #sobstories

Perseverance goes a long way and there are 4 school holidays in a year. Hoho. Naturally, the travel bug in me started calling out with the approaching September school holidays. Of course we have to try booking for another cruise. Hoho. 

As the departure draws nearer, so did we watch the new daily covid cases closer. Fortunately, with the high vaccination rate, the Government has decided not to clamp down the restrictions despite the many new cases each day. I really need my holidays. 

We booked for our swab test on Saturday. I have forgotten how *uncomfortable* the swab test is supposed to be. Regardless, this little pain is absolutely worth it for the upcoming holidays. 

Lil Shauna continued to be independent (teenagers are deemed as mini adults nowadays) and I get to enter the same booth as Zaky. He got to go 1st and the test didn't look so bad; the long stick didn't seem to go very deep. He went into a same sneezing frenzy but didn't get any "Well Done" sticker this time. Haha. Forgetting how bad the test was plus seeing how easy it looked on Zaky, I thought that it wouldnt be too bad. 

I was so wrong. When it was my turn, the stick went so deep. Sob. My eyes started tearing. I asked the tester how come it looked so easy on Zaky and he said that bcos he is a child, thus not needing to go so deep. I feel so totally cheated and can't wish more to be a child once more. 

We went on to have a full day of activities. The kids had a bounce date and the boys went on to spend the late afternoon at the Somerset skatepark.

Me? Auntie S gifted me a new straw hat for the cruise! Getting all excited!

The packing progress went a little slow bcos the last thing that we want is to have another lockdown or failed swab test that leads to forced cancellation and a fully packed luggage. 

I received an email on Sunday to inform that the test results are out. However, I forgot the password and after much efforts to reset, I can only see the March 2021 sailing and test results. Why like that? Attempts to call the hotlines were met with a recorded voice mail that their offices are closed on Sunday. Why like that again??

While we are confident that nobody is positive or we would have MOE on our tail, we didn't want any possible risks. All were put to rest this morning when the offices finally opened and we got confirmation that all are cleared. Yay! We are really going on a holiday. Hoho.

Mummy Lim

Aggro Skating Lesson

Checking back my blog, Zaky started his 1st ever aggro skate lesson with EXIS Extreme Inline Skating school on 1 May this year. It was his 1st ever lesson on aggro skate and it was after a super long break (like years) from even rollerblading. It was at the ECP extreme skatepark and he was falling left, right  and center. He wasn't even able to make it to the main park where the big slopes are. After class, the instructor advised us to start him with the normal rollerblading classes to 1st build up his basics. Nevertheless, all these didn't stop him from buying his 1st pair of aggro skates the same evening. Zzzz. 

Zaky went on to take the basic rollerblading class. Right after 1 lesson, we went into a lockdown and the classes were halt. We went on to do on our own countless rollerblading  sessions and the endless trips to the Kallang skatepark. 

Practice obviously makes perfection. In the initial visits to Kallang, with some tips from Daddy Lim, he eventually figured his way out on how to climb up those ramps and half pipes. Then we met Auntie M and M at the skatepark, who went on to give him so many tips and advices on the different tricks, the soul grind, the front and backstall stops and duno what other fanciful name tricks. He super like those what looks like heart stopping sessions (to me) at the skatepark. 

We still have 2 credits to utilize with EXIS as the credits were bought in a pack. The credits were supposed to be utilised within 2 months from date of purchase but I guessed there was some extension bcos of the lockdown. Obviously Zaky is no longer interested in the normal lessons and we saw that the aggro skate lessons have been moved to Tuesday evening and conducted at the Somerset skatepark. ECP skatepark has been closed for a long time. Let's go! Just that it would be a crazy rush. 

Zaky was super excited and was looking forward to the lesson. He was in awe at the size of the park and was rattling on excitedly while donning his gears. He got to warm up a little before joined by the instructor and 2 other lesson mates. It was the same instructor but I doubted that the instructor remembered him. 

The lesson started with them going up and down the slopes, 180 jump turns, jumping off some big step, etc. Zaky was the most advanced out of the pack and did all those with some ease. Bcos of the varied standards within the group, they didn't do beyond the basics. Towards the end of the lesson, the instructor gave Zaky some private time on the frontstall stop. 

I had thought that the instructor would be on his skates too and coaching the kids but he ended up only giving instructions verbally. He told the kids that he just got his 2nd jab.

I got reminded of one of those super seasoned swimming coaches who only instruct and scold people at the pool side but never getting into the waters. Haha.

Zaky ended the lesson all sweaty and happy. We asked him if he was taught anything new, no leh. But he was still super pleased and said that he improved on his 180 jump turn. 

At the skatepark, there was this group of super pro aggro adult skaters. They are so good! They made it looked like an effortless glide up the ramp when the kids were struggling and at times trying to pounce for the platform. Then, there were like flying in the air, grinding at some impossible angles. I was in awe. Will Zaky one day become like that? I wonder how many falls, blue blacks and barukus must he get before achieving that level of attainment. Hoho. 

Nevertheless, Zaky has indeed improved so rapidly in the span of a few months. I absolutely didn't expect that when he fell everywhere on his 1st lesson. Super proud. 

Mummy Lim