January 6, 2019

At Sea

Bed time was late last night because I had to learn how to write my blog on my iPad all over again (my last one done on the iPad was in May 2016).  It was a few minutes after 2 before I turned out the light so I slept until 9:20.  It would have been later but I had to get ready for the Cruise Critic Cabin Crawl.  Quite a few people had volunteered to show their cabins but Roy, who was in charge, had to narrow it down so each one we saw was a little different.  Those of us who showed our cabins (there were 11) met at 10 and looked at each.  Then at 11 the rest of those who wanted a look came through.

As soon as the group left I went to the morning cocktail party (I had orange juice) sponsored by my travel agency.  On the longer cruises they have hosts.  They had asked for invitations to be printed on the ship and delivered.  Unfortunately, the deliveries were a little late - mine arrived just as I was leaving for the cabin crawl.  Still, there were only a few who did not make it.  They handed out the fleece jackets and bags which they supply for the Grand Voyages.  

Returned to my cabin to decide what, if any, excursion I would do tomorrow our first port day which is Santa Marta,Colombia.  Ended up deciding on a short, easy one called “Santa Marta Highlights”.

At 1 pm there was team trivia in the Ocean Bar with Linda the CD.  We were able to get 15 out of 19 but two teams tied for first with 16 correct.

1. Two Muppets have individual stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  Which two?
2. Which day of the week is the only one that does not end in “tag”.  For a bonus point what is its name in German?
3. Which plant’s name means “lion’s tooth”?
4. If you are proficient in theremin would you be a surgeon, musician, sculptor, flight instructor, or computer technician?
5. What is Thomas A Swift’s electric rifle commonly known as?

After trivia I had lunch in the Lido before arts and crafts.  The items we are making are really different from what we made on the World Voyage !

It was such a pretty afternoon (after some rain in the morning) I decided to go for a swim.  By the time I returned from changing there were lots of clouds so I read then snoozed for a bit but did not get into the pool.

Evening trivia was in the Showroom at Sea (as the showroom is now called).  Most of the questions were so easy we kept second guessing ourselves.  We ended up with 16 out of 18 but two teams had perfect scores.

1) What one city must a movie be shown in to be eligible for the Oscars?

2) What country has the most golf courses per capita?

3) What is the most expensive spice?

4) If you are using tempera paints what is used to bind pigments together?

5) Which South American country borders both the Atlantic and the Pacific?

Only five of us for dinner.  I had the crab cake, prime rib and a sundae.

I skipped the ventriloquist tonight so I could catch up on my sleep before the tour tomorrow.

The fleece jacket and bag from my travel agency

The items from arts and crafts

Afternoon trivia

1. Kermit and Big Bird
2. Wednesday - Mittwoch
3. Dandelion
4. Musician
5. Taser (it is an acronym)

Evening trivia

1. Los Angeles
2. Bahamas (1 and 2 are the ones we missed)
3. Saffron
4. Eggs
5. Colombia

Smooth sailing until next time! 

January 5, 2019

At Sea

This blog post is coming to you from my iPad.  I spoke with the Microsoft host and he was as flummoxed as I am.  He is going to e-mail a friend in Washington to check on any possible fixes.  When I use my iPad I have to upload pictures to a hosting site (I use flickr) then download to my blog.  On my Surface Pro I can upload from the computer directly to the blog.  This saves a lot of time considering how slow ship internet is.  At least I came prepared with a backup!  I am going to wait a few days to see if the problem can be corrected and, if not, I will retype yesterday’s post on my iPad.  On to nicer things....

This was a busy but enjoyable day at sea.  At 10 we had our Cruise Critic Meet and Greet.  It was well attended and the Cruise Director and Hotel Manager came and welcomed us.  At 11 I attended the Music Trivia which was on songs of The Beach Boys.  I am terrible at Name That Tune but enjoy playing it.  We did not win but had a good time.

Then time for lunch in the Lido.  Unlike the larger HAL ships, the salad bar is still make it yourself rather than instructing the server what you want.  There also is no made to order sandwich bar although a small selection of meats, cheeses, and bread are available to make your own.  

Afternoon trivia was at 1 and I played with three other members of the roll call and two other ladies.  We had 10 out of 18 correct and two teams tied with 14 points.  Just as on the world cruise, everyone who plays gets an Amazon certificate.  Since it has been awhile for trivia I will post a few extra questions.

1. Which came first - Rudolph or Frosty?
2. A “googol” is 1 plus how many zeroes?
3. Roy Scherer is the real name of which star of romantic comedy movies and a TV show mainly in the 60s?
4. Which country is second in soybean production?
5. Introduced in 1925, pinotage red wine is the signature wine of which country?
6. Which came first - the Eiffel Tower or the Washington Monument
7. Bonus - Which three countries border both the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea?

Arts and Crafts is a whole different thing from the World Cruise.  It was a small crowd and you did not have to arrive at least an hour in advance.  The lady who is the instructor is named Sirage (although I am not sure how it is actually spelled - she said it rhymes with “mirage”).  She shipped a box of supplies but they have not found where they are on board.  She had thrown some things in her suitcase so we made a simple stretchy beaded bracelet.

It was such a beautiful day that I decided a swim was in order.  I decided to try the larger pool on my deck (9).  Was I ever surprised to find that it is a saltwater pool.  I have not seen one of those on a ship in decades.  I only swam about a quarter of a mile (half my usual) and then sat in the sun before heading off to talk with John the Microsoft host.

Tonight was our first Gala Night.  After showering and dressing I headed for evening trivia.  None of my teammates were there so I played with others whose teams also had not shown up.  We had 11 out of 17 correct with the winners having 15.

1. In the original “Alfie” movie, who played Alfie?
2. In 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in which city?
3. The Charge of the Light Brigade took place in which war?
4. What direction was usually at the top of a map when many believed the Earth was Flat?
5. Who was the pupil of Socrates and the teacher of Aristotle?
6. What is the most abundant element?

Once trivia was over I went to the Showroom to Captain Schuchmann’s Welcome Toast (which included free champagne).  The heads of departments were also introduced.

All seven of us were present for a delicious Gala dinner.  I was pleased to see that most still dressed like the Formal Nights of old.  I had a jumbo shrimp cocktail, a salad, tenderloin with grilled shrimp, and Strawberries Romanoff for dessert.

Paul Pappas, a pianist, was the entertainer.  He played a variety of music including TV themes, movie songs, ragtime, classical, and pop.  I enjoyed the show.

When I returned to my cabin I had been visited by the pillow gift fairy and the laundry fairy.  I had sent out a bag of laundry this morning and it was already back (in a fancy wrapper).  We received not one but three pillow gifts - a Moleskin journal, a messenger bag, and a neck wallet.

Another sea day tomorrow.

I have never had my laundry returned like this

Three pillow gifts

Captain making introductions

Afternoon trivia 

1. Rudolph
2. 100
3. Rock Hudson
4. Brazil
5. South Africa
6. Washington Monument (by a year)
7. Bonus - Spain, France, and Morocco

Evening Trivia

1. Michael Caine
2. Sarajevo
3. Crimean
4. East
5. Plato
6. Hydrogen

Smooth sailing until next time! 

January 4, 2019

Embarkation Day

I was able to sleep about eight hours which is great for the night before a cruise.  I packed the rest of my stuff and headed downstairs at about 10:35.  The one negative to the hotel is the amazingly slow elevators but I made it down in less than five minutes.  I was headed to the desk to ask if they had the number for a taxi or would call me one when I noticed a sign for a shuttle.  I signed up and the lady told me they had an opening at 10:45 or 12:15.  Looking at my watch, I asked her isn’t it already 10:45 and she said no, only 10:42 and I had time to make the shuttle.  So I paid the $6, went outside, and saw Roy who was also taking the shuttle.  It arrived about a minute later, we loaded up and was at the terminal by 11:00. 

Very few people were there and I only had to wait a couple of minutes before I was checked in and sent upstairs to wait.  The members of the “President’s Club” (the highest level of the loyalty program) were taken first to meet the head of the Mariner’s Society (whose name I have forgotten) and Orlando Ashford the Holland America President.  Next, the four and five star Mariner’s (this is my first cruise as a four star) got to have our picture taken with the bigwigs and then get on the ship.  Everything was continuing to go very smoothly as it had since I left home.

Too good to last!  I go to my cabin, insert my key card and I can only get a red light (door will not unlock).  OK, time to find Guest Services.  With the new key card in hand I return to my cabin to see the red light again.  Arggg!  Back to Guest Services and the young man helping me decides to come with me and try again.  Same results!  So he tells me to wait and off he goes back to Guest Services.  A couple of minutes later he runs down the hall and success was finally had!

I knew my solo cabin was going to be small but considering the odd layout of my world cruise cabin, it seems to be more functional even though likely it has a smaller square footage. But, the absolute best part is the closet – the walk-in closet!  Lots of hanging space, shelves galore and four drawers.  I smile every time I go in it.

None of my suitcases had yet arrived so it was time to have lunch in the Lido and do some exploring.  I found the pool which is at the end of my corridor, just past the gym.  Then upstairs to the Lido.  I had a good lunch of chicken and rice and fresh fruit.   A little more exploring after lunch and then back to my cabin where my two suitcases sent through FedEx had arrived.  I emptied them out before heading to the Mariner’s Reception. I sat and talked with Sherita and Patty from our Cruise Critic roll call and had two Mimosas.

I emptied half of my third suitcase before the Muster Drill.  Being on a small ship sure made a difference because it was less than 15 minutes. 

By that time I needed to shower and change for the evening.  Because of that I was late for the Sail-away Cocktail Party which started right after the Muster Drill.  The drinks were all rather watery at that point so I didn’t finish even one drink.  I talked with some friends from the 2018 WV and then went to meet Roy for sail-away on the top deck.

We were supposed to depart at 6 pm but a couple were delayed arriving because of flight issues.  We actually left after 7 pm.  To show how addicted I am to sail-aways, I had to miss Trivia!!!

I went to the showroom because it was still about 25 minutes until dinner.  Linda, the Cruise Director, was introducing some of the entertainers and enrichment staff.  I had to leave before it was over to get to dinner.

greeting us as we boarded

my cabin

the bathroom

lots of space

look at those shelves and drawers

lots of hanging space

the sail-away party.

I am at Table 157 with a man from North Carolina, a lady from Vancouver (but originally Austria), a California couple, and a couple from Alberta.  I had a Caesar salad (minus the anchovies), beef Stroganoff (which was delicious), and very disappointing Key Lime pie.  I have had the pie onboard HAL before but it did not taste like that.

Returned to my cabin to unpack the last suitcase.  I hope my stewards are able to take my suitcases to store somewhere because my bed is too low to put them underneath.  No way I can trip over three large suitcases for 80 days.

As I finish this up it is just about 11:30 and I am ready for bed!

A busy sea day tomorrow with our Meet and Greet, three (!) trivias, arts and crafts, and a show tomorrow night.

Smooth sailing until next time!

January 3, 2019

Fort Lauderdale, Florida

I had a fairly lazy day.  I slept until almost 11 am to catch up after having only 9 hours of sleep over the previous 48 hours.  I had my Panera bagel for breakfast and then went down to the pool.  I got into a discussion with a lady who lives about an hour away from me who also cruises solo.  She is headed out on Celebrity Reflection tomorrow for three back-to-back cruises.

I was able to get in my half mile swim and had the pool to myself the entire time.  Once again it was a beautiful day.  The low last night was 76F and it was in the mid-80s today but with a nice breeze.  The pool temperature was perfect.

Around 4 pm I walked across the street to get a few things at Walgreens and then came back to get ready for tonight’s dinner.  Our Cruise Critic roll call had set up a dinner at The Boatyard.  We were supposed to have 17 but only 13 showed.  We had a nice room to ourselves.  I had a seafood mac and cheese which was very good.  We broke up just after 8.  Now I have to figure out how to get all my junk into my suitcase but at least I don’t have to worry about the weight!

Busy day tomorrow!

I was not the only one enjoying the sun today!

Seafood mac and cheese

Our Cruise Critic roll call dinner at The Boatyard

Smooth sailing until next time!

January 2, 2019 

Home to Fort Lauderdale

The day started very early – actually it was a continuation of Tuesday.  As some of you already know, I am a night owl.  Since I had to leave home at 3:30 am, I decided not to even try to go to sleep Tuesday night.  I left home and drove to my friend, Carolyn’s house.  Once again, she was nice enough to offer to drive me to the airport (even at 4 am!).  I left my car at her house where my daughter and son-in-law will pick it up later.

We arrived at the airport about 4:20 and since I had already checked-in and printed my boarding pass at home, all I had to do was print my luggage tag.  I had taken a number of items out of my suitcase and was able to get it to 48.8 pounds at home but it weighed 52 pounds at the airport.  Luckily, they did not charge me extra. 

Getting through security was a breeze since I have TSA pre-check with my Global Entry.  Boarding was supposed to start at 5:25 but it was about 10 minutes late.  Even so, boarding went quickly and we pulled away from the gate right on time at 6 am.  We were number 1 in the queue for take-off and we were off by about 6:10. It was a very smooth flight and the seatbelt sign stayed off once we reached 10,000 feet until we started our descent.

I really like flying JetBlue because they have lots of leg room (even the very tall guy sitting next to me was not bumping his knees on the seat in front of him), free wi-fi in flight (although I did not use it this time), and, best of all, non-stop flights between RIC and FLL. 

I nodded off after my orange juice and pretzel breakfast for a few minutes and suddenly we were getting ready to land.  The flight was close to 20 minutes early landing.  My suitcase was one of the first ones on the carousel, there was no line for a taxi and I was at the hotel just before 9 am ($16 for taxi).  I was very pleased that my room was ready (I had checked in on-line Tuesday night) and I was upstairs by 9:02.  I totally destroyed the room with unpacking various items in hopes that things will be better distributed on the way to the ship on Friday.

I was yawning so much I decided that a nap was in order.  I slept for about three hours.  It was then time for a swim.  The hotel has a very nice pool. I read for awhile and then did some laps.  There were a few kids playing in the pool but they stayed near the edge so I could swim with no problems.  I only did about 2/3 of my normal laps before getting out and reading some more.  Although the high was in the low 80s, there was a nice breeze and it never felt warm. 

One of the reasons I chose the Renaissance Cruise Port Hotel was because it is on SE 17^th Street which I knew had a number of stores and restaurants nearby.  About 3:15 I started off for the shopping area where the Panera is located (same Panera where I spent some quality internet time on my 2014 WV) which is about a 7-minute walk (remember, I walk slowly).

I first went to the Ross store where I found a new bathing suit.  I swim at the YMCA about four days a week and the pool does a number on my bathing suits.  The Y pool is where my old bathing suits go to die so I am always on the lookout for inexpensive suits (the one I found was only $19.99 so no big deal when it dies).

Next stop was the $ store.  One of the things I had to leave behind was hairspray so I stocked up for the cruise plus I found a few other items.  They did not have a few things I needed so I will walk across the street to Walgreens tomorrow (another plus for the location).

By then I was very hungry since the juice and pretzels were hours before so Panera was my next stop.  I had a dollar off a pasta dish and a free bagel on their loyalty  program so I had my favorite, tortellini alfredo, and brought the bagel home for breakfast tomorrow.

As it was getting on towards sunset, I walked back to the hotel.  I tried to organize some of the stuff I had pulled out of the suitcase while I watched the evening news.  As I finish this up it is not even 9 pm but I feel myself fading so I don’t think it will be a late night.  Of course, every time I say that I have a hard time getting to sleep!

my room

I am not high enough to see much of the cruise port but I could see part of this Princess ship

Two views of the pool - don't you wish you were here?

Smooth sailing until next time!

Getting ready...

Today was an exciting day because FedEx picked up two of my bags.  On my last cruise I was able to ship two bags for free.  Because I booked a solo cabin I did not qualify this year.  Since I found that not having to schlep all that luggage through airports and hotels was so nice, I decided to pay for two cases to be picked up and delivered directly to my cabin.  

Labels in place and ready to go!

ms Prinsendam

This cruise will be my first (and only) one aboard the Prinsendam.  She is the most unique ship in the Holland America fleet for a variety of reasons.

• Prinsendam is the smallest HAL ship with a gross tonnage of only 38,848.
• She is the oldest ship in the fleet - built in 1988.
• She holds only 835 passengers.
• Prinsendam is known as the "Elegant Explorer" and because of her size is able to do many unique itineraries.
• She is the only ship in the fleet that was not built for HAL.  Prinsendam was originally built for the Royal Viking Line (which is now defunct) and called the Royal Viking Sun, a name she kept even when she became part of the Cunard fleet in the 90s.  She became the Seabourne Sun when transferred to the Seabourne Line (another one of the Carnival Corporation cruise lines).  In 2002 she was transferred to Holland America and renamed Prinsendam.
• Unfortunately, she will be the next ship to leave the HAL fleet.  Having been bought by the German Phoenix Reisen cruise line she will be renamed Amera after July 1.