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Our Culinary Adventure at Sea - March 2002

We sailed from New Orleans just after sunset on Saturday, March 2nd, with a gentle rain on the horizon but a lovely night time view of the city. The lights down Canal Street were beautiful as we looked from our perch on the upper deck of the Rhapsody of the Seas. About five miles from New Orleans, a dense fog covered the banks of the river giving the ships tied up on the shore a certain exotic mystery. We moved slowly out into the Gulf of Mexico that night oblivious to the weather for the time being, as we settled into the pampered luxury of our cruise. We only had a peek at blue skies those first couple of days but the sun finally came out and we enjoyed clear, sunny days for the remainder of the cruise. The 60 culinary enthusiasts in our group looked forward to a fun filled week of wining & dining, as well as enjoying the sights & shopping in the ports of Cozumel, Costa Maya and Grand Cayman.

The Viking Crown Lounge served as the location for our culinary group cocktail party on Tuesday night. This is a lovely lounge at the highest point on the ship, approximately 13 stories above sea level. We enjoyed a beautiful presentation of hors d'oeuvres and a variety of cocktails. On Thursday, we had our wine tasting seminar presented by the ship's sommelier, where we sampled a selection of whites, reds and champagne, poured in our individual tastevins.

The highlight of our culinary adventure came on Friday with a cooking demonstration by the executive chef of the Rhapsody of the Seas, Christine Ross, from Australia. Christine is a dynamic, funny and talented lady who is in charge of a kitchen that prepares meals for over 2700 passengers and crew several times a day. We were quite fortunate to have the cooking demonstration in the galley and even more fortunate to have a personal tour of the galley afterwards. Christine started with a spicy and delicious Pumpkin and Green Curry Soup and then prepared for us an authentic taste of the islands with Jamaican Jerk Chicken with Papaya Salsa. Following her entertaining demonstration, she led us through the massive stainless steel galley with its huge oversize ovens, pots and utensils. The precision and orchestration with which they prepare and serve the food on a ship is remarkable. The quality of the food on the cruise was excellent with a wonderful variety of seasonings and flavors. Chef Christine excels at food styling and the presentation, especially the entrees, was beautiful.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and Mary Rayborn at Carlson Wagonlit Travel did a terrific job for us making our culinary adventure at sea a wonderful and memorable experience.
Below are few more pictures from our cruise: