In any case, we danced like Cretans in our oblong circle and sometimes ran around the room in a chain of fools. I may not have danced the best, but I think I danced longer than anyone. Many of our group joined in the frivolity, and my nephew Jered, as usual, took center stage at one point in the dancing with some high kicks worthy of Zaporoque’s Cossacks. Opa!!!
The songs were all fun, but of course the familiar strains of “Zorba the Greek” received the best reaction, and my son Jay bought a CD of that classic the next day on shore.
When the dancing stopped, I dragged myself into the 42nd Street Theater and plopped down next to Rollie to watch a performance by Mysteriaque. I thought this was the same team that did the puppet show that put me to sleep the first night, but instead they turned out to be fantastic dancers, acrobats and magicians who put on a unique show. They won international dance competitions a half dozen ago with their elegant style and athleticism, but for an entire show, that wouldn’t be enough, apparently, so they added some remarkable illusions.
The very tall woman must be quite a contortionist, as the assorted tricks where her husband sawed her in half undoubtedly required her to squeeze into some tiny compartments. Either that or she’s a quick healer. The tricks that most amazed me, however, involved tying up the woman and later someone selected from the audience in what must be magic rope from which they inexplicably escaped. As if all this wasn’t enough, the tall woman also was a quick change artist, frequently switching costumes in the middle of a magic trick within a second of concealment. Rollie and I couldn’t help but wonder why so many people miss these wonderful shows worthy of the big ticket prices in resort areas like Las Vegas.
Then again, there’s always so much happening on a cruise, you can’t do everything. We proceeded up to the poolside deck where Gina said she would be watching the ice carving demonstration, and we arrived as the band at the Dancing Under the Stars Party began playing “Hot, Hot, Hot.”
That happened to be the music for a line dance many of us learned the day before at a class, so of course I joined on the dance floor. I wasn't surprised to see Julie, my daughters and other family members who took the class joining in, but I was surprised that Jay got up there to "roll it down, and roll it up" with the rest of us. He had been mostly reading and occasionally snickering at us as we took the class, but apparently Jay saw enough to learn the dance as well as any of us.
The band followed that with Gloria Estefan’s “The Rhythm Is Gonna Get You,” and we began dancing in a joyful conga line around the sun decks.
The band took a break, and the ice carving demonstration began with the artist chipping at the base of the ice to make it more stable. He then proceeded to chip away everything about that block that wasn’t a beautiful swan, as we tried to guess what he was making. The masterpiece joined other ice carvings, faces and other pictures carved out of melons, and bouquets made from fresh vegetables and fruit in a lovely buffet under the stars. It’s a shame these works of art last only one evening, but they’re reminders to appreciate the present moment. We were still too full from dinner to partake in the sumptuous buffet under the stars, but we would have liked to stick around for Rock-a-Rokie, where passengers would sing with the live band on stage instead of the usual karaoke tracks. We knew, however, we had a big day in Kusadasi starting early the next morning, and we didn’t want to blow our chance to see Ephesus by partying too late, no matter how fun that would be.
