Day 03 - Grand Turk
November 30, 2018 - This morning, an announcement from the bridge informed us that, due to high winds, Silver Spirit would not be able to dock in Grand Turk. Instead, tenders would be used to shuttle guests back and forth to shore.
Since our excursion is not until 2:00pm, we have an opportunity to enjoy a nice lunch at Spaccanapoli, Silver Spirit's outdoor pizza restaurant. Rickee ordered the Margherita pizza and I had the Funghi e Salsiccia (mushroom and sausage). The pizza was as good as we remembered from our trip on Muse last year. This is one of the best pizzas you will find on any cruise ship.
Tender operations were carried out on Deck 3 starboard today and two tenders were used to take guests ashore and return them to Silver Spirit. The seas were a little choppy making embarking the tenders a challenge, but Silversea crew members were on hand to make sure everyone boarded safely.
As the tender heads for shore, I have an opportunity to catch a photo of Silver Spirit resting off the coast of Grand Turk.
We have been to Grand Turk several times, but we have never arrived at the tender pier, which is not far from the pier used to dock large cruise ships. There is a beautiful white sand beach just steps from the tender.
Whether arriving at the main pier, or the tender pier, cruise ship guests are not far from a variety of souvenir shops, clothing stores, duty free and, of course, jewelry stores. The cruise terminal area is modern, clean and most likely the only part of Grand Turk most cruisers will ever see. We, however, will be seeing more of Grand Turk today since we have booked a Segway Tour through Silversea.
We were met at the tender pier by our driver who guided us through the cruise terminal shopping mall to a desk where we completed a waiver form, then boarded an open-air bus for a drive to the Segway tour office. When we arrived, we were each given helmets and an orange safety vest to wear. Several of the guests had never ridden a Segway before, so before heading out as a group, our tour guides gave a brief lesson on how to ride a Segway.
The training session takes about 30 minutes and, soon, we are on our way riding down a narrow road along the shoreline.
Our tour guides had us stop a couple of times to take a break and photos. The guides offered to take our photos using our cameras, which was a nice gesture.
At one point in the tour, one of our guides, Alvin, stopped the group to show us the salt pools where the Dutch used to harvest salt from the sea water to export all over the world.
We have done Segway tours all over the world and have always found them to be a great way to see a city, an island, or even a rain forest. The Segway Tour in Grand Turk does not have a lot to offer in the way of sightseeing. Hurricanes have left many of the buildings and infrastructure damaged. That said, we had a good time and felt like the tour was well worth the $79/pp cost. If you have never ridden a Segway before, Grand Turk is a good place to start because it is not a very challenging place to ride.
At the end of our tour, we said goodbye to our guides and boarded the open-air bus for the drive back to the tender pier. We had a little time to do some souvenir shopping before boarding the tender back to the ship.
Once back on board Silver Spirit, we have a chance to relax before our dinner this evening at Indochine.
When a 50-foot section was added to Silver Spirit's hull earlier this year, several new restaurants were added to the ship. Indochine was one of them. We enjoyed Indochine last year on Silver Muse and were excited to try this new restaurant on Spirit. The Asian-inspired menu offers specialties from Japan, Vietnam, Thailand, China, and India, just to name a few. From the Raw Menu, I ordered the Saku Tuna, which was very nice.
After a bowl of spicy, flavorful Tom Yum Goong, my main course arrived, a Lemongrass Beef dish with enough red Thai chili pepper to bring tears to my eyes and have me dabbing my forehead. I told the waitress I wanted extra spicy, and the chef delivered! Of course, they will adjust the spice level to each guest's preference, but for my tastes, the hotter, the better.
The side order of Saffron Basmati Rice was a wonderful accompaniment to the dish and afterwards, the Coconut Rice Pudding helped to cool things off a bit. Indochine changes their menu about half way through the cruise, so I look forward to a return visit later in the trip.
Tomorrow afternoon, Silver Spirit will arrive in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
