A peculiar ritual in the ship's dining room, generally held at the last formal dinner of the cruise. The lights are dimmed, and dozens of waiters race into the dining room balancing flaming baked Alaska above their heads, while the ship's orchestra strikes up and diners sing Auld Lang Syne . The umpteenth and final meal of the day, which does not start at midnight. Bonding Bonding happens on a cruise ship. Emphasis here is on meals.
Dinners are one of the main social events and can go on for hours.
It is here that much of the bonding takes place, whether or not you solicit it. If you happen to like the dinner companions assigned to your table which we did you can find yourself with a new set of friends, and will be happily exchanging e-mail addresses when the cruise is over. Perhaps it's the forced confinement, but cruisers love to think about, talk about and, of course, indulge in food, and you might find yourself doing the same. I overheard passengers, in midmeal, discussing what they'd eat tomorrow. I saw diners at the afternoon snack stacking pizza slices on their plates next to cheesecake.