Monday
As much as we’ve loved the sights and sounds of Dubai we are ready to explore our ship, Celebrity’s Edge, and set sail. Our little foursome met for a leisurely breakfast in the hotel this morning and then headed to the dock at 11:00.

The large in-processing center was the nicest I’ve seen. We shopped for chocolate covered, almond-stuffed dates and then got in line for a quick stop at immigration. From there we moved to a v…e…r…y slow moving check-in line. Visas are required for two of our stops, India and Sri Lanka, so those had to be confirmed for each passenger before boarding. Since we had an early start, even with the long wait we were on board in time for a nice late lunch.

We are booked into a beautifully appointed junior suite which entitles us to the use of of a gorgeous private dining room, private lounge, and private outdoor sundeck with a bar, lots of cushy seating, a hot tub, and small pool. Living your dream Matt. (big grin emoji)

The ship headed into the Arabian Gulf around 6:00 this evening. We opted for a light dinner at the buffet and then went to the early show which was fabulous. Stephen Barry, a young Irish tenor slash comedian and former contestant on Ireland’s got talent, had us wishing for more.

Cleone, Walter, and I headed to our rooms after the show and Dan tried his luck in the casino. Before turning out the lights we set our watches ahead one hour.

Tuesday – Wednesday
The cruise kicked off with two days at sea. We sailed into the Gulf of Oman with Iran and then Pakistan on our port/left side. We slowly made our way into the Arabian Sea on our way to India.

We enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere of these down days and spent our time reading, attending destination-centered lectures, eating nonstop, napping, taking advantage of our premium beverage package, enjoying each evening’s entertainment, and chatting up strangers. A fun Australian couple at the Diwali presentation taught us the meaning of LLD (little lie down) and FTA (finely tuned athlete). As in: the FTA deserved an LLD after her vigorous workout. There are a lot of Aussies on board and I’m guessing most are friendly and have a good sense of humor like this guy.

It’s always my wish that the pastries will suck so that I am not tempted, but if the dulce de leche croissants served at breakfast and the empanadas and scones served at tea are any indication I’m in Big Trouble.

We set our clocks ahead 30 minutes last night.

Temperatures were in the high 80s/low 90s while we were in Dubai. We are told to expect much the same as we head south and east.

… Ship Shape …

The Edge launched in 2018 and holds 2,900 passengers.

There are 65 nationalities on board.

The bio of our very enthusiastic cruise director, Giuseppe, says
there is nothing better than life at sea unless it’s his mama’s lasagna.

Because of a tiff the governments of Canada and India are having,
Canadians are not allowed off the ship in India.