The Lido and I have a complicated relationship.
Depending on your function onboard, as a crew member, you have different permissions for where you may eat. The Lido (buffet) was my main place for dining for all but one company for whom I worked.
For that one company, BTW, we were assigned the crew mess and had to request to eat in the passenger area. As the crew mess menu was not geared towards crew accustomed to a western/continental diet (admittedly not as many of us as others), it was a lot of food that did not appeal to me. I ended up eating mostly pizza, burgers, bagels and cereal and drinking a lot of soda (which oddly was free to us).
Because my work for that company was truly some of the most aerobic in my life, 10-hours a day, 7-days a week, I did not put on weight.
But mostly, my dining has been in the Lido, with access to officer’s mess, crew mess, passenger dining room, restaurants and room service depending on my function and cruise line. As wife onboard, I have pretty much access to all of the above.
In the early years, I received some rude comments from guests questioning what was on my plate (see this blog post), which isn’t a real incentive for dining in the Lido. But you develop a thick skin.
Over all the years, one of the challenges has been boredom with menus - especially on a 7-day itinerary. You learn to get creative.
Probably the biggest Lido deterrent for me is the behavior of the diners themselves. I totally get that not everyone enjoys a sit down meal in the Dining Room or other restaurant. I totally get that you might be looking to get in your meal quickly before going ashore. I totally get that English may not be your first language and you may wish/need to point to a food item. And I totally get that it takes some time to figure out what is where, where the lines start, etc.
As I approach the Lido, I can feel my body tense, preparing for the masses who appear to have only themselves and their food on their mind - kindness and politeness be darned. I don’t enjoy guests being rude to other guests or myself, and I REALLY don’t like guests being rude to the hard-working crew members cooking and serving. I don’t get touching the food and utensils behind food guards that are meant to be handled by the servers and cooks. The atmosphere stresses me out, and stress doesn’t strike me as being healthy for digestion. Bah humbug!
But this week, I decided to give it a go.
I am an early riser, so if I go early, the Lido is pretty quiet. Folks are enjoying a cup of coffee and the continental bakery items available until hot breakfast is served. I have managed to not indulge in these - just the aroma is enough. I’ll enjoy my coffee and some writing. When the hot food stations are open, the numbers are still small and people are still kind, so this has been ok. My oatmeal was inspired by a lady at a table next to me; she and I had a nice chat.
I am happy to say the Lido selections have some cool variety. There are still the staples, but there has been a real effort to introduce items relevant to the itinerary or special (almost like pop-up) seafood or Mediterranean sections. This has been a pleasant surprise. The food quality is just as good as the Dining Room.
So I am glad I have been going. I think I end up with less food on my plate, and as I have been pressed for time, this has given me a few more minutes here and there.
If none of this bothers you - great! Enjoy. If you are like me, these suggestions may help.
Less-Stress Lido Tips
Head to the Lido at non-peak times. This might take a little figuring out depending on sea days vs port days, hours forward and back. If you read your daily program and use intuition, you can generally work it out. On port days, those half day tours will probably all be getting back between 12-1…
Eat out on the back deck if the weather is nice. Usually this area is less crowded and the view is quite nice. Who needs a window table when you are outside?
Eat out by the midship pool - as this is domed, it is a good option if the weather is not as nice. It also tends to not be so busy, at least for breakfast & dinner.
Usually there are multiple entrances to the Lido - choose the entrance closest to the station you are looking for (or not close to the pastries and desserts).
Take a deep breath and smile. I figure if someone cuts in line ahead of me or reaches across me to get something, they must need that steak/mustard/cup of coffee/cream puff faster and more than I.
Travel
The rough weather out of Buenos Aires followed us and so our second port of call, Punta del Este, was aborted. The schedule was adjusted for an overnight stay in Puerto Madryn, where it was a sunny 77 degrees. I only was off the ship for a short walk - most of which was the length of the pier itself (a complimentary shuttle can take you to the end). My sense of town was that it is a little beach resort area. We had some extra guests sunning themselves on the ship’s bulb.
Wellness Round Up
Hydration: Ok, here’s another Lido-ism that I struggle with. When the sign says “please don’t fill your water bottle” from the dispenser, there’s a reason: health and sanitation. It’s a very small spout for the water and most drinking vessels with small openings will touch that dispenser. Did you clean the mouth of your water bottle? Do you think the person(s) before you did? I am guessing that there are far more No’s than Yes’s to those questions. Ick. If I see this wrong, I am more than happy to hear an opposing argument.
So I am all for hydration. The water from the tap in my bathroom sink is just fine. My hydration has been ok - about 60z/day.
Stress: Minimal. It is lovely to enjoy the holiday festivities onboard without being responsible for them.
Sleep: I have been averaging 7 hours/night, but I wouldn’t call it quality sleep as the rough seas have disrupted my sleep. Looks like our cabin stewards thought Rudolph might cheer us up!
Movement: This has also been impacted by the rough seas. Tuesday was a complete write off - I just laid in bed. On the plus side:
I made it to another Total Body Conditioning class and a stretch class in the gym.
I got in an aqua aerobics workout in the pool.
And I have added a little squats challenge into my daily routine.
Even with rough seas, just walking to where I need to go I get in about 5,000 steps/day.
~ ~ ~
The holidays seem like a time for reflection and putting things in perspective. I’ve been a little down on myself that I haven’t been losing the weight as I would like. And I have felt like a bit of a fraud writing this blog. Kind of like - who wants to go to hair dresser with bad hair? As I have thought about it, the blog is about Travel and Wellness, not Travel and Weight Loss while cruising. Overall, I’m ok with that. I hope that my sharing sparks an idea or two or provides the comfort of shared struggles and successes.
Life and death always put things into perspective as well. On Friday, we both welcomed and lost a life in the family. Dirk’s niece gave birth to her baby girl, making Dirk and I Great Uncle and Great Aunt for the first time. On the same day, my aunt passed away. Today is my mom’s birthday (Happy Birthday, Mom!) Tomorrow is the celebration of Christmas and another important birth.
Today we sail the not-too-bad Drake’s Passage for tomorrow’s arrival in Antarctica. Looking forward to the ship’s holiday traditions and Santa’s arrival so far from his home.
That's it for now. Best wishes for Happy Holidays - Bon Voyage & Bon Appétit!
Post updated August 17, 2024
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