With eight sea days between Hawaii and Guam, the crew of Holland America worked hard to keep us as busy and entertained as we wanted to be. The evening we left Honolulu we were entertained with a Polynesian show. After the show the group departed the ship and we pulled out of Honolulu at 11:00 P.M. 
Some passengers left the ship in Honolulu and new passengers joined, so the next day we had a second “Block Party”. At 4:00 P.M. everyone went outside their cabin to meet their neighbors. The crew brings around complimentary wine and appetizers and the ship officers wander the halls to say hello. Our neighbors didn’t change but it was nice to socialize with them again.
Super Bowl Sunday we had the option of watching the game in our cabin or the big screen in the Mainstage Theater. The CBS game was broadcast internationally by ESPN. We had the pregame show, the halftime show as well as the game, but unfortunately no Super Bowl commercials. For those watching in the theater they had beef brisket, hot dogs, nachos, cotton candy as well as cakes with the logo of each team. And of course plenty of beer and drinks to purchase.
On February 10th the ship celebrated the Lunar New Year, year of the Dragon, with decorations and Chinese Food, including fortune cookies, of course. 
In the early morning of February 12th we crossed the International Dateline. February 12th was skipped and the day became February 13th. We skipped from Sunday to Tuesday. Too bad for those that had birthdays or anniversaries on February 12th. We received certificates of passage to add to our Amazon crossing and equator crossing certificates. On one of his daily noon updates the captain joked that we were in the middle of nowhere. It sure felt like it because in 8 days at sea, we never saw land or another ship, passenger or cargo.
February 13th we celebrated Mardi Gras. The ship made a big deal out of the day, handing out masks, beads and had many Mardi Gras cakes. 
February 14th, Valentine’s Day was celebrated with a formal dinner of steak and lobster, Valentine cakes in the buffet and fun activities. They work hard to keep us fat and happy. 
One activity was “The Game of Love” based on the “Newlywed Game”. Held in the Mainstage Theater, the contestants were our fearless Captain and his wife (second couple from the right) , the head chef and his wife who is also an officer on the ship, the ship Hotel Manager and his wife, and the Beverage Manager and his wife Josephine (far right) who is also hostess in the main dining room. Josephine is one of our favorites, and from the reaction of the crowd, a favorite of everyone.
It was a lively, fun game but the Captain and his wife Alexandra won in the end. In all our cruises we have never encountered such a personable, friendly ship Captain. 
When we arrived back to our cabin at the end of the evening, our room stewards had left us two entwined towel swans. 
Valentine evening will also be remembered as the evening that the very rough seas arrived. We were sitting on the back of the ship at the Sea View Pool at sunset. Quickly, dark ominous clouds enveloped the ship, the wind picked up and the seas became very rough. Not a surprise since the Captain had been warning us for several days during his noon talk of the approaching weather. For the next three days the seas were very rough with no relief. With seasick pills I was fine, but it was very difficult to walk around the ship. There was almost a constant howling of the wind noticeable from our balcony and in the hallways we occasionally heard the ship creaking. The one thing I enjoyed was being rocked to sleep each night. It was like sleeping in a cradle. I think I will miss that when we leave the ship. 
On the last sea day the chefs had another cake extravaganza. This time we got there early to get pictures before they started serving. 
The seas finally became less rough as we approached Guam on my birthday, February 18th. I think it goes without saying that everyone was glad to get off the ship after eight days at sea, many of them rocky.
Another thing that made those eight days unusual was we turned the clocks back an hour, four different times. We are getting further and further away from east coast time.
Next up: Guam