Today we were back in Portland, Maine with an arrival around lunchtime. This was a first stop back in the US after visiting Canada and so here is where we had to go through customs. We had received information in our cabin the day before with an assigned group number as everyone would have to get off the ship and have their travel documents inspected in the terminal.
I was up really early and so enjoyed some quiet time in the morning before spending time with my family. Then when the bow opened up around 11:30 a.m. for sail in, we joined the line to take in the view from the farthest point forward on the ship. This was by far the busiest day on the bow, maybe because it was mid-day and the weather was beautiful. We passed by the lighthouses in the Portland Harbor once more - see my earlier post for photos and docked on the ship's starboard side which would be perfect for the evening's fireworks.
I then headed to the buffet with my parents only to find it was a complete zoo. We grabbed some food and went back to their cabin to eat a quieter lunch on their large aft balcony.
Then I gathered with my family in the Ocean Bar to have a few drinks and wait for our number to be called. My parents were in group 1 as they had a suite. The rest of us were in group 14 out of 28 groups. It was a slow process which started about 1:00 p.m. Our number was called around 3:10 p.m. and they were making the announcement for the final call as we returned sometime after 4:00 p.m.
Once through customs, my niece and I walked to The Holy Donut for a Maine potato donut. Upon a friend's recommendation, I had taken my nephew there the week before and wanted my niece to have the opportunity to try one as well. It's about a half mile from the port. When we arrived, the line was well out the door but it moved fairly quickly. My niece got a vanilla frosted with sprinkles donut and I tried their raised cinnamon sugar which was amazing. And then we walked back to the port and re-boarded.
By this time it was a little after 4:00 p.m. and our dinner was at 5:00 p.m. each night. I wanted one more drink and some time to myself so I dressed for dinner and found space in the Ocean Bar where the Celtic Drummer was playing for some quiet time to write and reflect as I sipped a glass of chardonnay.
After our last dinner together, we all went back to our cabins to pack with plans to reunite on my parent's large after balcony for sunset and fireworks. I planned to walk off with my luggage which granted me some extra time to finish packing which was good as I wanted to use my tripod for fireworks, something that packs best in the bottom of my suitcase with clothes surrounding it. I also knew I would struggle with packing a bit as I had bought a number of souvenirs including a couple of heavier items like coffee cups.
The sun set over the town with the church, observatory, and sailboats making beautiful silhouettes. And then the fireworks show started and we had prime seats. With a long travel day the next morning, we disbanded pretty quickly after the show was over.
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