Mississippi Cruise–Part 3

The American Countess was tied to two saplings at Natchez. I was a little surprised that two little trees could stop that big boat from moving but they did. Gordon and I had breakfast in the main dining room. Our pancakes and omelets took forever, of course, but the food was quite good. I appreciated the fact that the portions were kept small. We ate three times a day so I was never hungry but I didn’t gain weight either. I was also pleased that I actually got refills on my coffee without pitching a fit. Things were looking up.

We checked out bikes after breakfast. Gordon asked if he should adjust my seat but I didn’t want to waste the time. I should have wasted the time. The seat was so high I couldn’t put a foot down when I stopped, I went into a controlled fall. But I muddled along. We walked the bikes through Under Natchez which, in earlier days, was the home of brothels and bars. We climbed a steep hill to Upper Natchez where the rich folks lived. We had to be careful at the top because we had to share the narrow sidewalk with pedestrians. I didn’t hit anybody or impale myself on the picturesque wrought-iron fences but I was glad when we hit the street. Natchez is a charming town but the pandemic took a toll. Lots of For Rent signs. We rode for an hour then went back to the boat. The trip downhill was much faster and a lot more fun.

We went back to the boat and enjoyed the sunset from the top deck. We took a few laps around the third deck to work up an appetite. I was told seven laps made a mile. I’ll take their word for it. There were quite a few of us doing laps. We had lots of time because the gangplank on the ship broke. The American Countess is new construction and they’re still working out all the bugs. We watched two HUGE cranes trying to lift the thing so they could fix the rigging but couldn’t watch the resolution. It was time to eat.

Dinner was a little less aggravating. I’d learned that our server’s name was Francesca so when she sailed by with buns or wine I called out, “Francesca, can I have (whatever she had)?” She apologized for ignoring us but we got our wine and buns (with butter!) in a timely manner. So the only problem left was Horrible Henry. He was pontificating and and I disagreed with him at one point. He pointed at me and said, “Well, I’m going to tell you…” And I snapped back, “You have nothing to say that I’m interested in hearing.” And I continued my conversation with the Falls Church lady. That stopped the idiot dead. We all continued out conversations without him interrupting and monopolizing. Even his wife ignored him. Thus ended the reign of Horrible Henry. He modified his tone with us although he bullied poor Francesca. He insisted in ordering off the menu. He didn’t want duck or shrimp creole, he wanted a cheeseburger “because I have diabetes”. So they brought him a cheeseburger and french fries–which he bitched about. Poor Francesca. She started ignoring him too. Too bad he got his bun and wine with the rest of us. Wish I could have excluded him.

We went to the show with the trio and back-up band. They did a medley of 70s tunes. They had a good handle on their geriatric crowd. But dammit, we had music then. Kids today…

We skipped the bar again. I much preferred spending time on the top deck or our private veranda. The lights on the barge traffic were soothing. And it was quiet…

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