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In the previous blog I talked about our journey from Louisiana to California via plane.  I am continuing my blog with our arrival to our stateroom aboard the Princess Cruises.

Walking into our room took away all of the stress of the flight and delays we experienced.

There were wonderful welcome Swag bags and a beautiful flower arrangement waiting for us as we arrived.  I love fresh flowers and this arrangement was beautiful.

The Swag bag was filled with lots of goodies.  A cookbook from Bill Esparza, Princess Cruises mints, a pen, a notepad, eye mask and so much more.

The room was my fave, because I love balcony rooms and this one was amazing.

A balcony view is amazing with the best water views.

At 5:45 pm we headed to the Cocktail Welcome party for the Media.  We arrived at the Salty Dog and there was a private area setup for us.  My friend and I had the opportunity to meet some of the Media/Writers from all around the world.

It was amazing meeting new people and hearing about what they do and who they write for.

The waitress came to take our orders.  I loved that there were Mocktail options for us.  I ordered a Sunrise Mocktail.  A really good frozen drink.

The appetizers began to arrive.  Visually appealing appetizers and quite tasty too.

Some of my faves of the evening was the Coconut Shrimp (pictured above) , the Empanadas and the Stuffed Jalapeños (pictured below).  Oh so good!!

There were also some pretty amazing desserts.

The desserts were visually gorgeous and absolutely delicious.

My fave was the Lemon and toasted marshmallow dessert.  My word, delicious.

After about an hour of socializing and meeting everyone we headed to the Dining room for the evening.

We sat with a few other journalist from the California area.  The waiter came to our table and shared some of the evening specials.

For my appetizer, I tried Creamed Artichoke Bisque.  The Bisque was prepared wth artichokes, lemon, garlic and parsley gremolata.

A creamy bisque.  I’ve never eaten artichoke bisque and it was pretty good.

I ordered the Basa with Pineapple-Papaya Salsa.  A Basa is a fish similar to Catfish.  The fish was a pan-seared filet with pea pods, bamboo shoots, daikon roots and a potato cake.  The dish was nicely presented.

My friend Patrica ordered the Country Chicken.  A pan-seared breast with fragrant thyme jus and harvest vegetables.  She really enjoyed her dish.

For dessert I ordered the Traditional New York Cheesecake with Macerated Strawberries.  Absolutely delicious.  A creamy cheesecake that paired nicely with the strawberries.  Yum.

My friend Patricia ordered the French Vanilla Creme Brulee.  The Creme Brulee had a Sugar cane crust and was served with a Lemon Madeleines.

A sweet finish to a long day but a wonderful evening.

Come back for more from my Princess Cruises journey.  Next blog post I will be sharing all about Day 2 in Santa Barbara and our Culinary Shore Excursion.