Our Indian lunch today was absolutely one of the most memorable meals we’ve had on a Regent ship. It was served family style but quite elegantly (that apparently discordant description should make everyone even more certain of my precarious mental state). The six dishes presented demonstrated wonderfully the full range of Indian flavors, from mild to quite piquant. Our Brit friends declared that the meal was entirely comparable to a meal at Veeraswamy, the most famous Indian joint in London (at which I’ve eaten many times; and I share their assessment of today's experience). The food today was terrific, as was the service. The whole staff (both in the galley and on the floor) clearly reveled in presenting a special treat for us. This was Regent at its best!!

After lunch, in a torrential downpour (we’re talking monsoon here, folks!!), the ship did the silly Crossing the Equator ceremony – even though we in fact crossed the equator yesterday. It was the usual gross combination of people having nasty goop dumped on their heads and exhibitionists (including one quite mature fellow wearing a very, very small Speedo) showing way, way too much skin. Geez, with all of these great white whales, where is Captain Ahab when you need him?? It appears to be one of the sad rules of cruising that the people who should wear those wonderfully brief sorts of swimwear are not usually the ones who do. For my own part, I spare the world and my fellow passengers the spectacle of my all-too-ample pale flesh and do not position myself as a Moby Dick.

Ah, enough dopey Herman Melville references for today; so I will close. Looking forward to braised lamp shanks in Compass Rose tonight, if I can summon up the appetite after our magnificent Indian feast. (I will do my best to manage at least one lamb shank, even if I cannot handle my usual two…)

Cheers, Fred