We are in Naha, Okinawa today but no Japan for me. I need a ship day!

Our charming cruise director Giuseppe has enlisted me for the talent show and I need to get my act together.

Piano shenanigans have continued most nights after the bar closes (albeit more controlled than that night, and it’s been a hit and miss affair directly related to the level of martini in blood stream. But I have agreed to do it and want to do it well as I have conscripted a young waiter José to sing with me and I don’t wish to embarrass him. 

I opted to do a Bacharach number but as I only started learning Burt the week before the trip it’s not yet committed to memory. A hurried text to my piano teacher in Melbourne and darling Nic sent me a whole BB anthology. Extracting the song was technically challenging and took several visits to reception before I had the music, taped together and ready to practice. There are very few passengers on the ship today so I had the run of two pianos, but my arthritic thumb was angry and another hurried call, this time to brother Scott, to send me the first Philip Glass Etude. For me, it’s the modern-day Hanon, and way more fun. So I set about to play Glass and Burt until it improved. There was an elderly Belgian passenger in the lounge, I sought her permission to disrupt her peace and quiet - she spoke not a word of English so some new vocab was needed. When I started to play, she came and stood next to me and she had tears in her eyes! Turns out she also plays, so we alternated playing for each other until it was time for her to go. See below the message she typed into my translate app. She hugged, kissed, and when I saw her in the lift en route to lunch she hugged me for a full minute. Her husband and daughter already knew of our encounter. Music really does make the world go round. Colette, je t’adore!

A 10pm rehearsal with José was lined up, but Guiseppe decided I would not be playing Burt, he wants Killing Me Softly by the Fugees. FFS. Just do it Madame!! But I don’t have that music. Never mind Madame Naomi, we will source for you. I can probably play it from memory but am pretty sure I will be hit by stage fright when the theatre fills up. A back-up is needed.

An unscheduled massage and hamman was followed by a delightful few hours on the pool deck. It’s hot and muggy and the pool was a refreshing panacea, with new friends Gary and Adrienne from Hawthorn, lol. A quick blow-wave from Simon then housekeeping summonsed to repair my outfit for performance. God we are so entitled on this ship. 

A cocktail reception with the Captain (15 invited, just three of us showed up, how rude), followed by a caviar tasting and more live music and dance. The entertainment is some of the best I’ve seen on Ponant. 

Fine dining again tonight, then beautiful music from Anna the pianist in the observatory lounge, but best of all: FINALLY, we have some real wave action! The Captain thoughtfully kept us protected during dinner but by 9pm we were head into three-metre seas. Jennie and I are ecstatic… about the sea. Unfortunately we were both scammed applying for our Taiwan arrival card, so emails urgently dispatched to Amex and DFAT (I have four border crossings in the next week, DFAT, 10 days isn’t going to cut it!). I think I am headed to my third passport in less than a month. Sacre bleu!

Rehearsal cancelled, phew. At least now I can get on the GG (I had been staying tidy for José) then “early” to bed. Tomorrow is going to a big one, and of the five mammoth tasks on today’s to-do list I have only achieved one!!

PS I am now completely freaking out that tomorrow night I have to perform publicly. Why the heck did I agree to this? It is for this reason that I dumped hopes of a musical career when I was 16.