The chauffeur arrived right on time and when Richard saw him he said, "Oh, my gosh." The chauffeur was a little unsure as to exactly where we were going and tried to call Maria but she was gone. His boss had told him but not enough detail. We told him we could not be of any help at all. I did tell him we had a confirmation # and then he felt comfortable that where he thought we were supposed to go really was the place. He then became concerned about the time though. He said limousines always travel slower and people usually do not figure extra time when telling them what time to come so he drove faster. I can certainly see why movie stars, and etc. like to travel by limousine. It is very relaxing and everything looks a little different from inside.
We arrived at the harbor and it was the right place, "The Invader Cruise". This is a ship that was built in 1905 as a racing sloop for the Borden Milk family. It has gone through a number of changes but is much larger on the inside than it appears. Amazingly enough the air was not cool at all. The ship travels very smoothly and the view is just beautiful. We were taken all around the bay under the Coronado bridge and back. We saw the Exxon Valdez and Joan Kroc's yacht and a lot of Navy carriers. The beauty is all the lights from the city and Coronado. The trip was 2 1/2 hrs long and we were on ship about 1/2 hr before we took off.
There was a band and singers and they were excellent. There was a little dance floor that kept full and was fun to watch. A Japanese boy of 4 and his sister of 6 kept us all amused--they were seriously imitating the dancers of the 50s. Sitting across from us was a young couple from New Jersey, they had been in Anaheim for a karate convention. Next to them was New Zealanders who shipped eel for a living, and the man put on quite a show in his dancing. Next to us was a couple who were marrying next month and the band kept teasing them. There were quite a few people celebrating birthdays and anniversaries from San Diego. Excellent voyage! It was a very relaxed evening, even Richard was relaxed but not napping.
Of course, Richard had to ask the chauffeur to stop at the office while he picked up the Monday morning mailing. I told Maria if he charged extra for that put it on the Office tab!
It was all a surprise gift from our children and the only disappointing thing was to see how chubby we are in the pictures!!! But in spite of that it was a very romantic evening! For my anniversary present I have a beautiful new gold bracelet and watch and we are going shopping for new clothes for Richard, that is what he wants.
Hard to believe it has been 30 years!!! Jimmy said it must get easier as the years go by...yes, with only two to take care of, it is definitely easier. We also received a picture of our "super seven" grandchildren that is really darling and hanging over the couch.
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