This week Hill House was transformed into our very own Cruise Ship, The Royal Sunflower. Residents spent each day at a new destination, immersed in culture and exploring new tastes.
Monday morning, we started our world cruise with a trip to Greece, we took on a Greek themed quiz in our day lounge, this led to great conversation about holidays to Greece or wishing we had been.
Others put their minds to the test with our Greek Mythology brain training word searches. Brain exercises provide a simple way to improve your memory and problem-solving skills.
Our dining room was transformed into a taste of Greece with a themed lunch and drinks where we had the option of trying Moussaka. Greek Moussaka is made with layers of aubergine and/or potatoes, a tomato meat sauce and then finished with a layer of cheesy béchamel sauce.
That afternoon, we played Mini-Olympic games, including Discus which is one of the 8 original games at the first ever Olympics held in Greece.
Tuesday morning, we arrived in España, we started our morning watching a Spanish documentary, followed by listening to Spanish music. This allowed us time to enjoy themed games like landmark picture pairs and word finder games. We also made our very own personalised passports, adding fun details about ourselves and taking fabulous holiday snaps to use as our passport photo.
In our garden view lounge, we made Spanish inspired fans and practiced our finniest Spanish dance moves.
We were invited to a very special themed lunch with the ship’s Captain. Viva España, as we were welcomed into a Mediterranean Spanish Lunch by our very own Flamenco dancer and her back up girls.
The lively music and incredible dancing got us on our feet dancing and singing as we made our way into the dining room. It was a fabulous time and the food was incredible!
Our very own Librarian has been busy cataloguing and indexing our library, he has loved every minute of it.
An indexing service analyses the content of documents and provides a guide to the information contained in them. It will contain subject terms and headings while also describing the content and main themes.
That afternoon inspired by our musical lunch we played guitar and took on a Spanish quiz 1 to 1.
Others opted for a game of dominoes, playing dominoes does not require a high level of thinking and concentration; it can also help players practice the skills of visual scanning, matching, and planning.
Our Merienda (Spanish Tea) was hosted on our garden view table, onboard the Royal Sunflower. We came together joining for great tea and cakes. We spent the afternoon reflecting of trips to Spain, holidays and cruises and places we still want to visit.
Wednesday morning, we welcomed Rev Tara for our monthly religious service of thanks.
We love coming together for this special service, that caters for a variety of beliefs. We were delighted that our talented residents helped out with the service by playing hymns on the piano throughout.
We also spent time that morning reading our daily newspapers, playing Bananagram or engaging in sensory stimulating activities.
That afternoon, we explored Vegas in the USA as part of our world cruise week. We spent time playing roulette on the big Vegas style wheel, placing bets and taking chances, it was a fabulous afternoon for everyone.
Later after tea we took on a game of giant snakes and ladders, with our wonderful care team.
Thursday took us on an exotic trip to India. As our world cruise week continues, we spent the morning making stunning Rangoli sand art and were very intrigued to learn its origins and how it plays such an important part of many cultures now.
Rangoli is an art form originating on the Indian subcontinent, in which patterns are created on the floor or a tabletop using materials such as powdered lime stone, red ochre, dry rice flour, coloured sand, quartz powder, flower petals, and coloured rocks.
We welcomed in Roscoe for a morning of Pet therapy and his loving nature and big ears brought us lots of joy.
As we continued to explore Indian, we designed our own hand, Henna. The Henna paste symbolizes good health and prosperity in marriage, the darker the henna stain, the deeper the love between two individuals.
As we listened to sound of the Indian ocean, we explored our sensory sand boxes with our sand trays. The feel of the sand between our fingers, the rough texture of some shells provided a calming and relaxing experience.
That afternoon, our taste of India cart filled the home with music and the iconic flavours of Indian food, as it went around. We loved trying the foods we haven’t tried before from; vegetable samosas, saag-aloo, chicken tikka masala or onion Bhajis.
Our incredible activities girls pulled out all the stops as they dressed in stunning traditional sarees. It was wonderful to see residents trying new foods and exploring a new culture.
Friday, we celebrated with live singer Silver Steve, everyone up dancing and having a fabulous afternoon.
