Oosterdam to Alaska 9/5- MY Myth Busters

[pdxcostumelady]

Hi all CCer's

I just got back from my first cruise on The Oosterdam. All summer long, this board was great entertainment for me as we got ready for the cruise.

Having now been on the ship, I discovered that the information presented here is really falls into the What the what? catagory. As in what cruise line were you on?

I'm giving my sort of review....

Oosterdam is a wonderful ship. Easy to get around and find things. I love walking deck 3. Food in the MDR is wonderful as is the service. Lido, so so. Room Service pretty good, and quick. It did seem like the room service guys sort of hung out a bit looking for a tip, which we made sure they got. Just balancing the tray into the room on a rocky ship, merits a tip.

Dress...do what you want. The staff isn't going to give you the hairy eye ball. Some of the old folks will, but I discovered a lot of them like to to pretend that they are in a country club and own the ship. I saw more rude and drunk (and scared) old people on this ship, chewing out the hard working staff. Really folks? If anything it was a reminder to me that I don't want to be that way as I get older. It's not the ship's staffs fault that you drank and ate too much, forgot to take your sea sick medicine. They can't do any thing about the ship rolling and rocking or the rain and wind. It's not your job or anyone else's job to be schooling the world. Just 'cause you got old, doesn't give you the right to do that. It's unpleasant to watch and listen to. Off my soap box.

Bringing on booze, go ahead. I had the opportunity to see the scanner of many a carried on bag. One can't not mistake the shape of several booze bottles. There they were! And beer as well. No one was stopped.
My DH carried on a 12 pack of Alaska Amber in Juneau. No one said a thing. I carried on rum in rum runners. Not a problem.

Chef's cooking class...get a voucher BEFORE you board the ship. Call ship's services and order it. They will take your credit card number and you will be on the list for the class. When you get to your stateroom, there will be a card. You take that to the front desk...or to the cruise party planner (Beth was at the Lido pool first day). They offered two class times. If this is something you want to do, purchase the voucher before boarding ship. Why? Because the class is limited to 12 and they fill up. Was it the best class I ever took, no. It was fun. The food was good. The chef isn't a teacher, and he has to run off and oversee other things on ship, but I picked up a few tips, and met some nice folks.

Formal nights. That's all up to you. I saw folks dressed up on those nights, but 2nd one, I saw less. 1st formal night, those of us enjoying a coffee in the the Lido got to see the man and woman walking around in HAL bathrobes that were soaking wet. The man was wearing nothing under and he should have asked for asked for a larger bath robe. It really takes all kinds.

Bottom line for me. Cruising is a great way to enjoy life. Get away from it all, see things. Relax and enjoy. Will I go on HAL again? I think I'd like to try another cruise line. I loved the staff and crew. I felt very well taken care of. What I didn't like is all the cranky cranky scared negative old folks. There seem to be more and more of them as the week went on. I'm in my late 50's. And I really hope I don't ever get that scared, that cranky and that negative. It was sad. And something I don't need to see or be around on a vacation.

Peace out to all:)

[Homala]

Hi and thanks for your quick review. My DH and I are going on the Oosterdam in November to the Mexican Riviera. I'm happy to hear that you liked the ship and crew. What did you mean by the "scared" old people? What were they so scared of? I can picture cranky, but I don't know what to make of a bunch of frightened people and by the number of times that you mentioned scared old people, it sounds like you encountered this several times at least.

By the way, did you eat at either the Pinnacle Grill or the Italian restaurant? Did you like your cabin? Did you get and how was room service? Did you do any of the excursions?

Thanks!

Holly (Homala)

[PumpkinPatches]

Thanks for your review!
I'm sailing the O in 2 weeks from today, can't wait!!

[SwissMyst]

How is your kvetching about old people here any different than old people kvetching on HAL? Point, set, match. Game's over. "L'oeuf - l'oeuf.

[Katie333]

I'm curious about the 'scared' folks comment as well ... :rolleyes:

Just off Princess and let me tell you there were quite a few cranky folks on board of all ages. One in particular was an older lady who regalled all who were in the cigar bar with her (whether we wanted to hear the story or not) about how she was upset her Platinum status was Carnival was not recognized on Princess. She also told everyone she expressed her dissatisfication to the Captains Circle rep and further explained she felt smoking was so limited, that the rep 'dared' to empathize with her by offering her own story about her spouse's challenges in finding a smoking space. It takes all kinds!

[portofrome]

Thanks for the review.

[annie2]

How is your kvetching about old people here any different than old people kvetching on HAL? Point, set, match. Game's over. "L'oeuf - l'oeuf.

That is too funny SwissMyst!

[SwissMyst]

I'm curious about the 'scared' folks comment as well ... :rolleyes:

Just off Princess and let me tell you there were quite a few cranky folks on board of all ages. .......

Don't even get me started about all the cranky old people on Crystal .....:p

Reminds me when I (living in Switzerland then) was on a tour in Russia in the mid-1970's, at the height of the US-Russia Cold War. Our Swiss guide noted the groups of American tourists did nothing but complain high and low about their time in Russia and wondered why they had spent all this money to have such a rotten time. I suggested this is perhaps exactly why they had come to see Russia - (Cold War and all that) - just so they could go home and tell everyone how terrible this communist country actually was.

[middle-aged mom]

pdxcostumelady:

Your review tells me more about you than about HAL. Based on all your pre-cruise threads, your review about your cruise was pretty much what I expected, focused on what's relevant to you. That's really what most reviews are about, after all.

I guess you enjoyed Alaska?

[pdxcostumelady]

I had a great time on the ship and I loved Alaska. I epecially enjoyed the day we were in Glacier Bay. The weather was great. However, I didn't book tours, we went on the ones that were cheaper at the dock, which were awesome! Juneau Tours is fun, get on Cindy's bus. I went on this cruise to kick back and not pack a ton of stuff into.

Re: Scared old people. Several times, standing in the door ways of the lovely glass elevators. Women refusing to get on the elevator- sometimes crying and screaming at the men they were with, while holding up the elevator. They didn't want to get that elevator. People around them telling them to take the enclosed elevators.
Also, with tenders, we had old folks at the top of their voices telling the tender driver to not go so fast (he wasn't) and to let them off now! (In the middle of the ocean). Also, one man got up in this young woman's face for being so fat. He didn't know her. He told her, she was taking up too much room. There was a woman in a bar telling anyone who would listen, that she had a dream about the ship sinking and it was going to happen. Maybe it was her way of clearing the bar, cause it did just that.
No, I didn't focus on this, but when it's delivered loud in ball park size voices, one can't help but see it.
I just figured I didn't need to see any of the shows on ship, cause I'd seen enough during the day.


And I had a good time.

[Gunther1]

Boy, those are the thoughts of my partner and I when we take a cruise, although it can fit people of all ages.

We also like to visualize some people as cartoon characters, complete with smoke shooting out of their ears, when they they are particularily "colorful".

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome home and thanks for your review.

You didn't mention anything about eating the food that you prepared in your cooking class. I know others have mentioned how they had a wonderful at the end of the cooking class eating what they prepared and drinking free wine.

[silverado44]

OK, read all of the posts. Where is the myth busting?

[cruisinjudy]

Thanks for the review. I, too, wondered about the scared old people. The passengers on each cruise will be different. I guess your cruise takes the cake.

[SwissMyst]

Sigh, looks what happens when you lower the dress standards. :p
Tenders and elevators can trigger unknown claustrophobia attacks one may not have known they had in normal land settings. Hand holding and hand massages are very welcome when that is happening to someone.

And as to what you (OP) will be like when you are "old" since you are only 50 now, you just never know. Neither did we. Nor will it be entirely in your control. Cheers.

[mexico5]

Thanks for the review! Sounds like you have a great sense of humour and that can make any vacation wonderful! We met alot of cranky old people on NCL and we just looked at each other and smiled and hoped we would never turn out like that! Although things my mother has told me and I said it would "never happen" have....so who knows!