dewhit6959
December 14th, 2004, 03:15 AM
Dear Cruise Critic Friends,
This is my latest entry in our vacation review. We sailed an Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Maasdam November 20 to the 30th. There are earlier entries about this vacation somewhere on this board. This may not even qualify as a review, since I will not mention soda cards. I will share fact, opinion, commentary and whatever else crosses my mind. The spelling will be the best I can muster. So it goes.
On the first sea day, the wife headed for the spa for some type of treatment that was fabulous.(per her) It should be at the prices charged. I don't know exactly what they did as her hands, feet, face, back, body and nails received treatments of some type or another. She did mention that a fulltime masseuse would be a nice thing to have in life. I would be pleased if my gardener didn't mow over the green stuff around the bird bath in the upper back yard.(( I don't know what it is called, you can't eat it, but it looks pretty good)) ((Also gardener is a stretch, as he is a neighbor kid who works when it ain't too hot or too overcast or going to rain or when nothing else is on the television or his computer is on the fritz. I consider his wages charity and mark them as such for the taxman))
Anyhow, while she is being slathered, I have began roaming. You cannot view the engine or engineering rooms. No.nix, nein.
I really wanted to take this in, but was politely told that those days are over. It is not so much a terrorist stance as it is a matter of liability. ((We saw two women fall down the curved aft pool stairs. My wife played nightinggale to one who wanted her to write a statement. She said no as we can barely tolerate the attorneys we must deal with)) So, I went thru every floor, opened every door and hatch that didn't have a beheading warning posted and saw a good bit of the ship. The crew quarters are fit and neat from what I saw before being cordially shooed out. One thing I did notice was the difference in the young American crew members and the Phillipino and other Asian crew members. The Americans spent a lot of time huddled up here and there. If it weren't for their uniforms, you would have mistaken quite a few for passengers. On the final two warm days, the American and European crewmembers were in great abundance around the aft pool. Holland America could make a lot of cash charging old coots cash to hang over the rails and walk around the pool drooling over dancers and entertainers in bikini's. I'm sure the girls were excited at the sight of all those flour white legs with dress socks and hush puppies. ((Just a thought about female passengers-if you wonder if you are too old for a tatoo, you are. I used to think those little roses on ankles and wrists were cute on women, but these strange tasmanian symbols above the butt and around the arms are strange. What is your message? ))
Upon my return to the cabin, I stretched out on that glorious veranda with a drink and started a nap. The veranda was a glorious spot, day or night. I spent as much time there as anywhere. We ate most of our breakfast meals there, almost all of our private cocktails and just sat and gazed for hours. I would have been content with half the port calls. I was always being told to come in from the veranda and get ready for something or another. When you can't see the ocean, you can hear the ocean, if you leave the veranda doors open. I did. If you need to organize some thought and attempt to see and try to organize your future, plus get in some quality day dreaming, sitting quietly alone with a few drinks on that veranda is the answer. I sat on it with a lot of drinks. If it was my ship, I'd pitch every one of the televisions over board. They get in the way of the view from the interior.(( Standing on the promenade deck one sea afternoon, I heard a gentleman query his friend on what he was looking for," there's nothing but ocean out there." )) If you can't find answers to questions, you're asking the wrong questions. The Maasdam rolls and rocks over the water. I love it. This ship is the perfect size, I believe. I do not understand this constant concern about ship movement. I equate it with farmers being allergic to soil. The world is seventy percent water. Thank goodness, the early explorers didn't worry over this. Somewhere during the nap, Andrew made his entrance. He would be our Butler on Half Moon Cay the next day. He was a young handsome British lad. I could have sworn I heard the wife ask him if he was also a masseuse, but maybe I didn't. He was going over menu choices, wine, bar set ups and snorkle equipment sizes with the wife. I stayed on the balcony. I fell asleep twice during their discussions, only to be woken by their laughter. ((My wife now wants a proper English butler also.- maybe the gardener neighbor kid has a brother?)) He left her with menu's and a large carry bag that he would be returning for in the morning to carry to the cabana. He also had the cabin numbers of our guests, who would be escorted to the launch to meet us. After all this proper english,menu's and butler speak, I felt the need for a gin and tonic.
next.....................................
This is my latest entry in our vacation review. We sailed an Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Maasdam November 20 to the 30th. There are earlier entries about this vacation somewhere on this board. This may not even qualify as a review, since I will not mention soda cards. I will share fact, opinion, commentary and whatever else crosses my mind. The spelling will be the best I can muster. So it goes.
On the first sea day, the wife headed for the spa for some type of treatment that was fabulous.(per her) It should be at the prices charged. I don't know exactly what they did as her hands, feet, face, back, body and nails received treatments of some type or another. She did mention that a fulltime masseuse would be a nice thing to have in life. I would be pleased if my gardener didn't mow over the green stuff around the bird bath in the upper back yard.(( I don't know what it is called, you can't eat it, but it looks pretty good)) ((Also gardener is a stretch, as he is a neighbor kid who works when it ain't too hot or too overcast or going to rain or when nothing else is on the television or his computer is on the fritz. I consider his wages charity and mark them as such for the taxman))
Anyhow, while she is being slathered, I have began roaming. You cannot view the engine or engineering rooms. No.nix, nein.
I really wanted to take this in, but was politely told that those days are over. It is not so much a terrorist stance as it is a matter of liability. ((We saw two women fall down the curved aft pool stairs. My wife played nightinggale to one who wanted her to write a statement. She said no as we can barely tolerate the attorneys we must deal with)) So, I went thru every floor, opened every door and hatch that didn't have a beheading warning posted and saw a good bit of the ship. The crew quarters are fit and neat from what I saw before being cordially shooed out. One thing I did notice was the difference in the young American crew members and the Phillipino and other Asian crew members. The Americans spent a lot of time huddled up here and there. If it weren't for their uniforms, you would have mistaken quite a few for passengers. On the final two warm days, the American and European crewmembers were in great abundance around the aft pool. Holland America could make a lot of cash charging old coots cash to hang over the rails and walk around the pool drooling over dancers and entertainers in bikini's. I'm sure the girls were excited at the sight of all those flour white legs with dress socks and hush puppies. ((Just a thought about female passengers-if you wonder if you are too old for a tatoo, you are. I used to think those little roses on ankles and wrists were cute on women, but these strange tasmanian symbols above the butt and around the arms are strange. What is your message? ))
Upon my return to the cabin, I stretched out on that glorious veranda with a drink and started a nap. The veranda was a glorious spot, day or night. I spent as much time there as anywhere. We ate most of our breakfast meals there, almost all of our private cocktails and just sat and gazed for hours. I would have been content with half the port calls. I was always being told to come in from the veranda and get ready for something or another. When you can't see the ocean, you can hear the ocean, if you leave the veranda doors open. I did. If you need to organize some thought and attempt to see and try to organize your future, plus get in some quality day dreaming, sitting quietly alone with a few drinks on that veranda is the answer. I sat on it with a lot of drinks. If it was my ship, I'd pitch every one of the televisions over board. They get in the way of the view from the interior.(( Standing on the promenade deck one sea afternoon, I heard a gentleman query his friend on what he was looking for," there's nothing but ocean out there." )) If you can't find answers to questions, you're asking the wrong questions. The Maasdam rolls and rocks over the water. I love it. This ship is the perfect size, I believe. I do not understand this constant concern about ship movement. I equate it with farmers being allergic to soil. The world is seventy percent water. Thank goodness, the early explorers didn't worry over this. Somewhere during the nap, Andrew made his entrance. He would be our Butler on Half Moon Cay the next day. He was a young handsome British lad. I could have sworn I heard the wife ask him if he was also a masseuse, but maybe I didn't. He was going over menu choices, wine, bar set ups and snorkle equipment sizes with the wife. I stayed on the balcony. I fell asleep twice during their discussions, only to be woken by their laughter. ((My wife now wants a proper English butler also.- maybe the gardener neighbor kid has a brother?)) He left her with menu's and a large carry bag that he would be returning for in the morning to carry to the cabana. He also had the cabin numbers of our guests, who would be escorted to the launch to meet us. After all this proper english,menu's and butler speak, I felt the need for a gin and tonic.
next.....................................