RYNDAM- Northbound to Alaska 5/4

[geshaw30]

DAY 1 -

5/3- Arrived in San Diego and discovered that it really is a nice city or so it appears if one doesn’t venture away from the harbor area. There are all kinds of fun stuff to do within a short walk of each other. We checked in to the Holiday Inn on the Bay and found the room interior about a “7” on a 10 scale. The balcony overlooking the harbor and cruise ships is very nice. From our 11th floor room the Ryndam would eventually dock directly across the street from the hotel. About 70 yards away in all. We met some CC folks for drinks in the hotel bar, swapped life stories, and headed off to bed to board in the morning.

DAY 2..Boarding Day-

5/4- The first major decision one must make while staying at the HI is how to get your stuff 70 yards cross the street to the ship terminal. Your options are to (1) walk, (2) take the hotel shuttle, or (3) a cab. We figured the last option would tick off a cab driver for a 70 yard fare---skip that one. The hotel shuttle didn’t leave until almost an hour after people were allowed to start boarding and I am one of those guys who likes to start his vacation once the starting gun sounds, so we walked with 5 cases across the street. We were on board 35 minutes after leaving the HI. Only 500+ people were getting on in San Diego so the whole process was a fast as anything we’d experienced in the past.
Again because the ship was already more than half filled once we arrived we didn’t have to wait the usual 2 to 3 hours before you can access your cabin. We headed up to the Neptune to check in (we’re in Deluxe Veranda 43 for those of you that have you maps out). It always amazes me how the person in charge of the Neptune greets you by name the minute you walk in the door- regardless if he/she has never laid eyes on you before. They look at their computer screen, see your smiling mug from a picture that was taken minutes before, and utilize the name attached to the photo I guess. Always a nice touch. We grabbed a few edible goodies from under the “glass dome”, washed them down with a little cranberry juice and headed off to the cabin 30 minutes later.

We’ve been in a Deluxe Veranda before (Noordam 10/08) so this interior is very similar in design. The 20’x12’ deck is bigger however. Someone asked in another post somewhere if HAL offered the largest balconies of the major lines. I don’t see how any other veranda could be any bigger. We have a large table for 4 and two loungers out there and still all kinds of room to ramble around. The Ryndam is starting to show her age just a little bit but all things considered the suite has been well cared for over the years. The king bed is wonderful as always with, as I look at them, 8 pillows of various degrees of firmness. The ‘fridge is stocked with “airplane size” bottles of booze, cokes, and beer. We met our cabin stewards Dedi & Husin then took a walk to explore a little bit. There are some real advantages to this size vessel in that everything is very close no matter where you are. I stopped and made dinner reservations for later (open seating—huge fan BTW).

After the muster drill we set sail at 4:30 and headed out past the harbor seals sunning on the buoys. A little turn to starboard and we’ve northbound towards Victoria. We missed the CC M&G party due to some family issues that had to be resolved so I’ll have to leave the review of that gathering to someone else. Cary & I began to unpack (luggage arrived about an hour after we left port) and powered up electronic gear. It will serve you well to bring an electrical power strip from home. I know you’ve heard it before but here is another certified reason- we only have one outlet outside of the bathroom, in the entire suite. I got the internet hooked up and the wi-fi works great in the room. it's $100 for 250 mins for there are lesser packages as well
After a quick change of clothes we headed down to the Rotterdam dining room for dinner. Here is the “Tip of the Day” for those who choose Anytime Dining. Yes you can make a reservation and I suggest you do so. When we arrived for dinner there were about a dozen people in one line marked “no reservation” and nobody in the “reservations” line. With reservation card in hand (it gets sent to your room) we walked to the front of the second empty line thus bypassing a bunch of hostile folks. We were told our table was not ready yet (we were 10 mins early) but were offered another table in its stead. This set uproars through the waiting crowd. Comments of “why do they get to go” and “we didn’t know you can make reservations” rumbled around the hallowed halls. So here is the deal- Anytime Dining works but if you expect to walk down at the height of the dinner hour and get immediate seating without reservations your evening is probably not going to start off as well as you planned. You are going to wait …plan on it. Dinner itself went well and food was quickly brought to the table. Portions were much smaller than the previous Noordam trip 6 months ago (cost cutting?) but very well presented. We finished, less dessert, in little over an hour and headed out for the evening entertainment.

The show for the evening was a comedy act (Michael Ziegfeld) who did the puppet bit, some stand up, and the usual “pick on the audience”. There were a few funny lines but, for the most part, the act was uninspiring. We left and stopped by the casino so Cary could have a few quick pulls on the slots. For the most part the gaming tables were sparsely populated and the slots about the same. A couple of the machines were broken in some form of fashion. We lost $40 before taking ours wounds to bed. A quick word about the slots. These are “cash only” machines and NOT the ones you’ve been reading about where you have to use your on board card to set up an account to play. Bills go in- tokens come out. Finally if you despise cigarette smoke as much as I do you’ll learn to lose your money quickly like me and get out of there (Editors Note: that will be my only rant about that nasty habit as to keep the CC popcorn consumption down). We headed back up to “43” and found the usual bed turn down and 2 chocolates on the pillows along with the towel animal of the day. The wife found the whirlpool tubs was quite functional while I crashed and read over the next day’s events. Nite----

DAY 2- Sea Day (mid 50’s temp-and falling)

Fog. Lots of it.
The fog bank rolled in around 11am and lasted throughout the day. Now if you’ve never been on a ship in the fog I will warn you that the bridge sounds the horn every 5 minutes. I timed it during a period of extended inactivity. That’s 12 toots an hour if you don’t have your calculator handy and continued well into the late night hours. I kinda liked it as it reminded me of my childhood days on Nantucket. The seas were calm but the swells were large enough that they pitched the Ryndam around quite a bit. The 71 degree temp pool water sloshed around like a storm tide. Thus ends the weather report.

We headed off to the Pinnacle for breakfast. For those who don’t already know this is another perk added to the Deluxe Veranda. Food was again very good but painfully slow in arriving. It was kind of surprising as there were only 3 other table occupied when we arrived at 9. A thought about the Pinnacle- I forgot to mention that we tried to make reservations there as soon as we got on board but were advised that the restaurant was completely books sans a few slots while in Victoria. A word to the wise here- if you happen to board any ship where a majority of people will already be on board you better have made your Pinnacle reservations prior to boarding. That holds true especially on a ship the size of this one where that restaurant is substantially smaller then on the newer larger vessels. We were told that once the majority of people on board get off in Vancouver (only 120 of us are staying for the Alaska run) there were plenty of openings. So if you’re planning on joining us in a few days might I suggest hopping on line and booking your Pinnacle times now because rest assured the 120+ of us already here will be taking up the best time slots before you arrive. Just being neighborly here—a friend helping a friend kinda deal. Book now.

Surprisingly enough Dedi & Hasin had not gotten our room tidied up until almost 1:30. Cary made a subtle suggestion to me that I might want to place the “room service” tag in the exterior lock tomorrow. Fresh fruit was waiting on us and the room was spotless when we returned later. These guys are great. A pair of pin on roses (I can’t spell “boo-ton-ear”) were left for us for formal night tonight. A pleasant surprise even if we are not attending. We decided very early in the planning stages not to pack all that formal stuff thus skipping dress up nights. Packing costs and stress of Cary deciding what to wear factored into the decision. Besides everything served in the Lido is exactly the same as in the dining room. On a humorous note there we heard a lady in the elevator say that “the food in the Lido is simply the leftovers from the dining room”….silly silly foolish lady). BTW- if you folks have an interest in reading the daily menu as I go along let me know. I wasn’t going to type it all out if no one wants to read it. Just makes this thing longer than I’ve already made it.

As the day progresses we discovered more and more elevators are beginning to break down. One (aft) on the first day and two more (forward) on day two. That leaves 5 left that are functional. I suspect this issue will be taken care of in Victoria or Vancouver. The majority of the afternoon was spent reading on my Kindle (a traveling “must” for any avid reader) on the veranda while Cary took a nap.

Prior to the aforementioned dinner we went to the early show (times-7pm & 9pm respectively) and watched “Paperback Writer”. Four guys dressed up like the Beatles and doing an analogy of the Fab Four’s greatest hits. If you’re into the whole Elvis impersonator kinda thing you will enjoy this. It was actually sort of good in a simplistic way even if “Paul” kept screwing up the words. Passed through the Casino on the way home and quickly dropped a couple bucks in a machine. She hit $140. That’s a nice way to end the day. We’ve decided we’re going to investigate the world of the professional cut throat bingo player for the first tomorrow so a good sleep will be required if for no other reason that defensive alertness. Nite--

[dandro]

I enjoyed your recap very much! Very informative, and learned a lot.

My ears perked and eyes got wide at the Beatles tribute band on board...I am a HUGE Beatles fan, I have so much Beatles stuff, our home is beginning to look like a shrine to THEM. :-) Wish that the band playing on your ship would move over to the Westerdam in a few weeks! :D

Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[larsenbiz]

Your report so far makes me have happy thoughts. My first HAL cruise was last year with my husband and parents from San Diego to Vancouver on the Ryndam. I fell in love with the line. We had pretty rough seas, though. 12-15 foot swells. We were rockin 'n rolling enough that the Beatles tribute band wouldn't have had to play. The comedian even had to leave the stage to barf! Unfortunately, we got to Victoria really late and missed our garden visit. I hope the seas are calmer for your adventure. Keep us posted.

[cccole]

I am really enjoying your daily report. How was formal night in the Lido? You said the food would be the same as the dining room, but how were passengers dressed? I am assuming that the weather was somewhat cool so there were no swimsuits and shorts, but how casual?

Looking forward to your next post!!!!!! Cherie

[geshaw30]

I am really enjoying your daily report. How was formal night in the Lido? You said the food would be the same as the dining room, but how were passengers dressed? I am assuming that the weather was somewhat cool so there were no swimsuits and shorts, but how casual?

Looking forward to your next post!!!!!! Cherie

In the Lido you wear what you had on during the day. Jeans & there were even a few shorts as well. No real dress code in there. And yes the temps are falling quickly.

[geshaw30]

DAY 3- Partly Cloudy & low 50’s
Overslept the Pinnacle breakfast hours so we grabbed some danish and fruit from the Neptune. I promise we’ll slide by the Lido for a report on breakfast opportunities there. After making dinner reservations for tonight we walked around the decks for a while to burn off the cookies we ate the night before. I forgot to mention we went to the Wajang to watch “Valkyrie” before turning in the last night . Grabbed a bag of popcorn and watched the late flick so I’m sure some of the calories we burned off during our walk this morning included the p-corn.

We trudged off to do battle with the cut throat bingo players in the Vermeer. Three cards for $20 with the winner getting free week cruise. It was one of those “you gotta fill up the whole card” deals so in all it took about 30 minutes and maybe 70 people showed up. Cary had two holes to be punched before a truly evil woman beat us to our free cruise. No matter- we were able to leave the room with only minor battle bruises. After the gaming experience it was time to feast on lunch. The wife had salads and chubby George had them make me a sandwich (or hero, po’boy, grinder, sub, or whatever you call it in your neck of the woods). A quick loss of $20 in the surprisingly smoke free casino and we headed off for Cary’s afternoon nap and my Kindle time.

Dinner was set for 5:45 so we stopped by the Ocean Bar (nonsmoking BTW) to partake in the “two for one” drink special. One 7&7 ($5.45) and one Bloody Mary ($6.50) equaled two glasses of each. Four drinks came to: $11.95 plus the added on 15% service charge for a total of $13.74. Off to dinner in the Rotterdam. We were taken to a table for six where folks were already eating. We advised that we had made reservations for a table for two and were quickly seated at such. Dinner was:

Cary—Appetizer: Sweet Tomato & Fresh Mozzarella…Soup: Ketchikan Fisherman Chowder…Entrée: Yukon Style Lasagna (a fish deal) and Key Lime pie for desert.
George—Appetizer: Cesar Salad again…Soup: Grandma’s Chicken Noodle Soup..Entree: Chicken Breast Parmegiano and the same pie as Momma.
Again there were very small portions especially the sliver of pie. The entire meal was finished in by 6:40 so we headed off to the early show. Tonight’s entertainment was a juggler, comic, magician who’s name I’ve forgotten even after only leaving the theater a short while ago. Weak at best and I’m one of those people who doesn’t really expect much from the ship’s entertainers going in. On our way back to 43 I bought the wife a new watch in the jewelry store for a more than a fair price I think

Before I call it a night I know there have been folks asking about the age of the people on board and how many children there might be as well. Answer: really older crowd than I’m used to and we’ve seen about a dozen kids. We have no problem with age (high or low) but at 51 & 49 respectively we fall into the “younger” set on board. If age demographics are of a concern to those in the 20-50 age groups you might want to think seriously about this itinerary before booking. Again a date of birth makes no difference to us but it well might to others seeking similar ages. Another quick observation is the Crows Nest and Exploration Lounge are always packed. Plan accordingly if this is your kinda place to hang out.

Got my cookies & lights off are soon to follow. Victoria tomm afternoon. Nite-----

[velvetred]

geshaw30 - I'm loving reading your wonderful and detailed review. You mentioned you could post the menus if anyone was interested in reading them. I'm interested and I bet others are, too. Keep the posts coming and have a fantastic cruise.

[geshaw30]

I forgot to mention yesterday’s menu so I’ll add it to tonight’s:
Day 3 Appetizers:
Sailors Fruit Cocktail-
Sweet Tomato & Fresh Mozzarella-
Tuna Tartare with Prawn
Halibut Quesadillas

Soups/Salads:
Ketchikan Fisherman Chowder
Grandma’s Chicken Noodle Soup
Chilled Apple Vichyssoise
Northwest Sunset Salad

Entrees:
Yukon Style Lasagna- (filled with halibut, salmon & crab meat)
Chicken Breast Parmegiano- (chicken scallopini dipped in egg, bread crumbs and parmesan, panfrien in butter served with a classical tomato sauce on spaghetti
Yankee Beef Short Ribs- (in rich red wine sauce braised beef short ribs served on garlic mash potato and root veggies)
Austrian Style Stuffed Pork Tenderloin- (glazed pork tenderloin stuffed with sun dried tomato and bread dumpling served with stewed apple slices and Calvados sauce)
Pacific Fish & Seafood Platter-(grilled cobia & saithe fillet accompanied with a crab cake, hot chili mayonnaise & butternut squash rice)
Santa Fe Salad- (lime marinated turkey, fresh corn, black beans, cheese, tortilla strips, tomato & mixed lettuces with a spicy peanut cilantro vinaigrette)
Baked Tofu & Ginger Stir Fry- (Stirfried cumin and coriander seasoned Tofu, served with crisp onion, bean sprouts, pea pods, carrots, green beans, peppers, and corn kernel, Topped with yoghurt sauce)

Day 4 Appetizers-
Summer Fruit salad with Sambuca
Bay Shrimp Cocktail
Mille-Feuille of Red Beets
Golden Baked Brie in Phyllo Dough

Soups/Salads:
Dutch Pea Soup
Barley & Mushroom Soup
Chilled Cucumber Soup with Dill & Sour Cream
Chopped Farmers Salad

Entrees:
Tri-Color with Sauteed Andouille Sausage- (olice oil, garlic, roasted bell peppers, & red onions sautéed together with Andouille sausage then tossed together with ziti, marinara, & hint of cayenne)
Turkey Tenderloin with Prosciutto & Sage- (harvest apple pecan stuffing, vichy carrots, broccoli & candied sweet potato along with a cranberry-peppercorn sauce
New York Sirloin Steak
Nasi Goreng- (Indonesian fried rice with pork satay, spicy chicken drumstick, beef Sumatra, scallions, and julienne of omelet, served with pickled cucumber, crisp prawn crackers, & crisp creamy fried banana)
Almond-Crusted Salmon- (baked with a crunchy crown of sliced almonds, served with leek-cream sauce, sautéed baby carrots, zucchini ribbons and red bell pepper
Barbecue Chicken Salad- (Avocado, tomato, grilled corn, black beans, cucumber & romaine all tossed with BBQ ranch dressing, topped with sliced BBQ chicken breast & lots of crispy onion strings)
Couscous Florentine- (couscous & spinach, served with a grilled vegetable kebab accompanied by a dill-flavored non-fat sour cream sauce)

[velvetred]

Thanks for posting the menus - the food sounds delicious.

[MightyQuinn]

Prior to the aforementioned dinner we went to the early show (times-7pm & 9pm respectively) and watched “Paperback Writer”. Four guys dressed up like the Beatles and doing an analogy of the Fab Four’s greatest hits. If you’re into the whole Elvis impersonator kinda thing you will enjoy this. It was actually sort of good in a simplistic way even if “Paul” kept screwing up the words.
These guys, known as Fun Fun Fun, were recently on the Amsterdam sailing back from South America. I think they boarded in San Diego. They performed twice: 1) Paperback Writer, a tribute to the Beatles and 2) Beach Toys, a tribute to the Beach Boys. They were super hi energy & the late show crowd (10:00 pm on the Amsterdam) were dancing in the aisles of the Queens Lounge. Lotsa fun fun fun! :D:D

[RevNeal]

Thanks for the sneak peak of how things are going aboard the Ryndam.
We'll be joining you tomorrow here in Vancouver!

[aliaschief]

George and Cary - we're only a couple of hours away from boarding the Maasdam. Much smaller M&G last night at the Renaissance but Bravo still came through with some fine food.
Noted that you're getting your cookies every night. No wonder Cary needs a nap each afternoon.;)
We've been told that we'll have snow in Gaspe along with some fierce winds. The whole town will be waving us in at Sept-Iles - they've even closed the schools for our arrival (I hope its because of the ship and not H1N1!) The Maasdam is the first cruise ship to visit there.
We're enjoying your blog on the Ryndam - I waved at her last week when I was in San Diego - Bruce even got a picture from the web cam..

Bruce and Susan

[dlopiccolo]

Hi George, I am enjoying your posts very much. Technical question? What are you using to connect to cruise critic to post? We will be travelling vancouver to Seward in August and I would love to be able to connect. I have a new Dell mini that is a great travel laptop. Do you have an AirCard? My husband may also need to get a little work done from the ship as well. Does the Raydam offer wireless access? At what cost? Thanks!

[geshaw30]

Hi George, I am enjoying your posts very much. Technical question? What are you using to connect to cruise critic to post? We will be travelling vancouver to Seward in August and I would love to be able to connect. I have a new Dell mini that is a great travel laptop. Do you have an AirCard? My husband may also need to get a little work done from the ship as well. Does the Raydam offer wireless access? At what cost? Thanks!

Internet service has been touch & go here for the last few days. The ship's log in site has been down (as it is now in Vancouver). I'm, right now, using my AT&T air card but at $15 a MB. My room has WiFi so you can, for the most part I think, be able to type in your cabin. It believe it all hinges on where the transponders are located in your respective hallway. The max deal here is $100 for 240 minutes though there are lesser packages (you can even pay "by the minute' I think. What I do is type my stuff out on the Word program then cut & paste it here to save my minutes.

[geshaw30]

DAY 4- Victoria (really nice outside..low 50’s)
We arrived into Victoria late morning hours and rousted out of bed to go grab a bite of breakfast. Pinnacle eats again so I won’t dwell on old news. We found a survey waiting in our mailbox (formal name for the plastic sleeve outside your door-you know what I’m talking about) to ask our thoughts and opinions on the cruise. This of course is based for the folks getting off tomorrow but we were asked to do one anyway. So I recapped the 3 days, made the appropriate choices, and dropped the card off later in the evening. We were also advised that we’re going to have to get off in Vancouver and pass through U.S. Customs sometime before 3pm. Anyway, let’s press on about Victoria.

I’ll start by saying it is a really pretty city. It’s well cared for and people actually seem to enjoy living there (a strange mode of behavior if you hail from Houston). After feeding our morning faces we bundled up and headed out to the city with little plan of action. We you get off the ship you are about a mile out of the city proper. You’ll be faced with 4 choices of transportation in which to get there: (1) walking, (2) taxi, (3) big dudes willing to peddle you there in the back of one of those rickshaw bicycle dealies, or (4) ‘da Big Bus. We chose the last option. The fare for the bus is $7 per for an all day pass. Ride as often as you like. The bus drops you off right in the middle of town and makes a circuit every 20 minutes.

Once we got off ‘da Big Bus we walked town a little bit. The Parliament Building is really impressive and more so at night when the thing is lit up with tons of white Christmas lights. Additionally a walk into the 100 year Empress Hotel is well worth it. I don’t think the $40 per head for “high tea” is though (for those of you who may have been already or planning on booking the experience- sorry, I just don’t see it). Instead we found something a little more my speed and stopped in the Slippery Wicket Pub for an afternoon brew and a burger. Inside of the place has great ambiance but the food was a little funky tasting. No matter, we finished our fare and poked into a few other shops. Before leaving town we went into a 7/11 store and grabbed an 8 pack (yup- 8 pack) of Coke to bring back on board. We just cut our soda consumption bill in half by bringing our own. While I’m on the thought of spending I forgot to mention something earlier- double check your essentials while packing. We forgot to bring Tylenol and I had a touch of a headache on Day 2 so I headed down to “the General Store” on board. I got spanked with a $10 charge for a 24 pill bottle of the stuff. The moral of the story here is unless you are dying wait until your first port of call to replace the goodies you left sitting on the counter back home .

We returned to the Ryndam around 2ish and just sort of hung out around the ship for a while and snapped a few interior pictures. Ports are always the best time for inside photo opportunities-nobody home. I then meandered around and discovered how to get up to the bow area now that it’s open. One has to go one deck below it, find the interior stairs up to it (hint- it’s inside a glassed area) and up you go. Mind your head as you pass through the bulkhead- it almost cost me dearly. Took in the view and headed down to the Ocean Bar to meet up with “June the Good Guy” waiter during the “two fer” Happy Hour (4:30-5:30).

We decided that the dinner plan would be to walk across the parking lot to a little restaurant above a dive shop. In all about 400 yards from the Customs building and it’s the only eatery outside of the city that I saw. The food was ok..view was nice..and I pocketed some bread for seagull feeding later. After dinner we took a walk over to the breakwater (about 50 yards away) and tossed the bread to the waiting fowl of the area. Then Cary & I took a nice simple walk throughout the adjoining neighborhoods around the pier area to look at houses. I highly recommend this if you enjoy taking walks with your spouse as much as I do. A pastime forgotten by a lot of folks I think. Hold hands too--you'll feel better about life in general I promise

We met some friends in the bar in the closed casino. Thanks Peter for the round of drinks. We then decided to check out the only show of the evening. The same guys (the earlier post is correct. They are called Fun Fun Fun) who did the Beatles impersonation deal the other night now changed their attire and transformed into “The Beach Boys” (or Beach Toys as they called themselves). Now I know what you’re thinking and I wasn’t expecting much either but they actually pulled it off. The room was packed (even with its 10pm startup time) and folks seemed to forget for a while that they were going to get off the ship in the morning. Despite the troubles “Brian Wilson” had in hitting the high notes they received a standing “O” once they completed the hour set.

Walked back to 43 and watched the ship pull away from port at midnight over a full moon. Nice added touch there to mark a day well spent. No cookies (forgot ‘em) so called we just turned off the lights. Nite------

[papadave]

It sounds like HAL has been tweaking (improving) its menus to feature more regional cuisine. We'll be on a 14 day back to back on the Ryndam, starting July 31st in Vancouver, and are really looking forward to the trip. We were on the Volendam last year, and the mainstage shows were disappointing, but the piano bar wasn't bad. Is there a piano bar on the Ryndam? If so, how is it?

Thanks for posting.

[geshaw30]

It sounds like HAL has been tweaking (improving) its menus to feature more regional cuisine. We'll be on a 14 day back to back on the Ryndam, starting July 31st in Vancouver, and are really looking forward to the trip. We were on the Volendam last year, and the mainstage shows were disappointing, but the piano bar wasn't bad. Is there a piano bar on the Ryndam? If so, how is it?

Thanks for posting.

Yes there is. Always seems to be a good crowd in there

[geshaw30]

DAY 5- Vancouver (Low 50’s & partly cloudy/sunny-depends on your outlook on things)

A nightmare. I’m not talking about the kind where you wake up from a good sleep but the kind where you get out of bed an go looking for the Grim Reaper because you’re sure he’s hiding in the closet somewhere. More on that later.

We arrived in Vancouver and it is a beautiful city. I’m beginning to believe Canada has the market cornered on this. We got ready for breakfast by 9 and made an important discovery and one that I’m willing to pass along. The Lido closes early on departure days. I forgot to look at the daily program this morning to notice the time changes of the restaurants. We trudged to the Neptune for fruit and various “finger stuff”. Basically a hold over until lunch.
Strange sensation when you’re staying on board and everyone else is getting off. We were told that 127 souls were all that were remaining onboard until the masses arrived in a few hours. So we grabbed the camera and blasted some more pictures around the ship. We then took a position on level six and got ready to “people watch” as the newcomers entered the gangway. We gave up after 11:30 when no one was entering. Strange. So we grabbed out passports, little green “in-transit” cards provided the day before, and our ship card to head off the Ryndam. Here’s the deal- when you arrived in the Vancouver port on your way to Alaska you have to clear US Customs again. We were told this procedure had to be completed by 3pm. So at the minimum one has to get off the ship, clear customs, and get back on with the little green aforementioned paper and ship card. Here is where the horror show began. In addition to us there were two other ships at the terminal, a RCCL & NCL vessel. It seems that these two lines screwed up and, for whatever reason, did not get their people off at the allotted time. So now at around noon there were two ships unloading (Ryndam passengers had already left without a hitch) at the same time that 3 ships were trying to load their new passengers. A Perfect Storm. Imagine the complement of essentially 5 ships all merging into one area. Buses stilling waiting to take away old passengers while new filled buses are arriving as well. Thousands of people, going in opposite directions, meeting head on. We entered the maelstrom and decided immediately on giving up trying to go anywhere into town. Instead it was decided to attack the problem of Customs and get back on. We met a terminal employee, who was very helpful, and told us she had worked here for 9 years and never has there been a massive sea of humanity on this scale. She was not pleased with RCCL or NCL. Enough on this, we cleared Customs again and climbed back on board.

We decided to let the new people settle in as they walked about with carryon luggage, heads down, looking for their rooms. We stayed out of their way and hid in 43 waiting for our repeat performance of the lifeboat drill at 4:15. After standing on deck again dressed in fashionable orange floatation material we stored the vests and noted it was the usual Happy Hour time. We went up to meet up with “June” in the Ocean Bar. He was not on duty and to add insult to injury had I looked at the program for today I would have seen that “2 fer 1” time had been bumped to 7pm. Finished the “Drink of the Day” (a savings of about a buck a drink) and headed back to the room. BTW- the repairs to the 3 broken elevators were unsuccessful so we still only have 5 of 8 working.

We had dinner reservations for 5:30 but canceled them as Cary wanted to watch us pass under the bridge as we left port. We’ll attack food in the Lido later. I bundled momma up in blankets on the veranda as we headed out with binoculars in hand.

We ate dinner in the Lido where, as mentioned before, the fare is exactly the same as in the dining room. While on the subject of the Lido I’ll fill you in on how it works now. First, yes you still have trays. Second, you serve yourself on everything but the main entrée. How it works at dinner time is you grab what you want until you get to the entrée section. Here you place your order and they give you a number. You go fight for a window seat and the main course gets delivered to you shortly. It works and it stops people from taking mounds of food that they may not eat. If you want to load up on stuff it will only be salad, appetizers, breads, and deserts. Speaking of loading up, we watched a new arrival grab a dozen cookies and place them on a plate then cover it with a napkin. We assume the cloth covering was an attempt at avoiding embarrassment. Too late lady, we all saw you.

There was only one show tonight at 9:30 so we walked around marveling at how all the Mexican Riviera decorations and items for sale had been removed in a 24 hr span. All the Alaska stuff was now displayed in all its glory. We returned to 43 and got one of “Cokes from the 8 Pack” and headed off to tonight’s entertainment. We made it to the Vermeer by 9:00 and the place had already started to fill up. Strange in that the last group of people usually didn’t arrive for the shows much before starting time. These new people are tricky. The act was the comedy of Jim Labriola and he was Vegas quality, I mean he was great. You may remember him as Benny on the show Home Improvement (the donut eater in Harry’s Hardware Store). Check him out on the internet or catch his show “Night of 1000 Guidos”.

Surprisingly the new group of folks is noticeably younger that those that just left the ship. We have a huge contingent from Australia along with many Canadians. A diverse group to say the least and it should be fun.

The only thing on my agenda for tomorrow, a sea day, is to figure out why I haven’t received our shore excursion tickets yet. I’ll be front desk bound in the morning. Until then I was able to find a cookie that the “Lido Cookie Collector” had not yet discovered (I don’t think she can get into the Neptune so I’m good) so it’s lights out time. Nite------

[scopewest]

Thanks for taking the time to post.

[Love Cruises]

Thank you for your posting and I'm looking forward to your upcoming messages. Your writing is very informative and I really appreciate the time you take to do this so we can follow a cruise on another of those "dam" ships that we just love.

Keep them coming!!!!

[canadarocks]

Thanks so much for all the daily posts! We'll be onboard the Ryndam in August, so I'm reading everything!!:)

[sail7seas]

What wonderful posts, George. It's such fun sailing along with you and Cary. Thanks for all the great writing.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I very much enjoy your writing style :)
This is a very fun Live report. Thanks for reporting in. I for one do totally understand the time and money i takes to do this;)

[RuthC]

We were on the Volendam last year, and the mainstage shows were disappointing, but the piano bar wasn't bad. Is there a piano bar on the Ryndam?
The Volendam has a Piano Lounge; the Ryndam is a Piano Bar. The atmospheres are very different between the two.

At least for now the Ryndam's Piano Bar is a small, intimate room in a three-leaf clover shape. Two of the leaves are tables and chairs, and the third leaf is the piano. There are several barstools around the piano, making for a convivial group.

[geshaw30]

DAY 6- It’s Cold Outside (45 degrees) & No Rain. Sea Day
OK. It’s cold out there. Battle plan for hanging out on 43’s veranda must now include increased layers of clothing. Between the air temp and the wind caused by the ship’s movement it can get a little intense out there. We had a change of pace this morning and ordered room service. All was wonderful except the steward making the delivery informed me that there was “no white toast”. No white toast? Anyway my first order of business this morning was trying to figure out why we had yet to receive excursion tickets for any of our planned trips. The first one (Whale Watching & Wilderness Adventure) is in Juneau tomorrow. The answer is to the problem somewhat complex and too long to type out with all facets included. The simplistic answer is this cruise actually contains parts of 4 separate cruises, the previous 1 ½ week Mexican Riviera, the 4 day San Diego trip to Vancouver, the 11 day repositioning cruise to Vancouver, and the 7 day Alaska run. There are combinations of people on board who have been in one of all of these four trips. HAL got confused with the 127 of us that got on in San Diego and programmed us into the Riviera group. As I mentioned this could get real confusing, and bore you, but the fact is that some of us folks who boarded in San Diego “disappeared” from HAL’s on board roster. The excursions followed suit to some extent. Additionally the folks in Skagway had canceled our 3pm helicopter flight and no one knew. To sum it up, Marcus in the Neptune and the folks at the excursion desk got all of those affected (there were more than us) back on track and we have tickets in hand.

At noon Cary & I were invited to a lunch with the Captain, along with all the other suite guests, in the Pinnacle. Other than greeting him at the door we had no other contact with the Captain. He left before the meal was finished and never did speak to the gathering. Kinda strange. Lunch was Indonesian fare and a first for this “meat & potatoes” boy. Later that afternoon an expert on local wildlife gave a seminar in the Vermeer on what we might see in the next few days. It was really interesting and during the talk the first pod of whales was sighted.

I noticed that the interior of the ship has been extremely crowded and it just occurred to me this afternoon why that is. As the exterior temps began to fall the entire complement of passengers relegates themselves back inside (although there were some brave souls inside the covered pool). This does make for a tight squeeze in most of the public places on board on a ship of this size.

We stopped by 43 for a few minutes and I pointed out another pod of whales seen from our veranda. With Zen Rays in hand Cary watched one surface then disappear and followed it up with the unique “Whale Happy Dance”.
I was not entirely correct about meals in the Lido. I had early posted that the fares are the same as what was being served in the dining room. Wrong George. On one night the crusted scallops offered down a few flights of stairs was not on the Lido buffet line. Additionally tonight, formal night #2, the King Crab legs and the steak dish were nowhere to be found on the Lido. Price to pay I guess for not dressing up. It was a choice.

If I can make a recommendation for a minute I offer you this to consider. If you can find the book “The Alaska Cruise Handbook- a Mile by Mile Guide” by Joe Upton on Amazon or B&N then do yourselves a favor and buy it. Trust me on this one—I haven’t lied to you yet. It costs $19.95 on board so if you can’t find it at home cheaper then wait until you get onboard your respective vessel and buy it tax free there. Here’s the deal. The book is just what the title claims it is. A mile by mile description of where you are including a huge detachable map. The Captain utilizes this book during his daily addresses to the passengers. He advises of the current “mile marker” and it’s admittedly sorta fun to scramble for your map and chart out where you are. Then you end up reading the little cliff notes along the chart (and in the book) with your current position.

We went to the 7pm show (they run 7 & 9 when there are 2 of them) to watch the usual fare of ship dancers and the accompanying show tunes that drive them circling around the stage. Nothing really new or exciting to report on this one. You’ve seen one you’ve….you know. Prior to the show however the Captain came in to address and toast the crowd after introducing his senior staff. Champagne glasses were filled for everyone and the toast was made.

We walked back towards 43 and ducked around dozens of flashbulbs going off aimed at the formal attire floating about then stopped to grab a cookie. Tradition must be preserved or worlds crumble. When we got back we discovered that we had been given a new blue HAL plastic bag all wrapped up and a new issue of the book “Compass”. You remember the latter, it’s the hardback book inside your stateroom (usually dated) containing a few destination stories and a lot of ads. Additionally there were the nightly 2 gold wrapped chocolates waiting on the pillows on the turned down bed. We will turn the clocks back an hour tonight and in doing so I got tired and required a cookie break. Nite------

[larsenbiz]

Thanks again for the blow-by-blowhole. I can't wait to read more. It sounds wonderful I can't wait to be up in Alaska next May.

[musicgirl5995]

I am thoroughly enjoying all your posts, we are sailing on the Ryndam when you get back to Vancouver on Friday the 15th and I can't wait.

Can you tell me if you know which 2 nights are the formal nights for the 7 night cruise? I don't want to miss them but was thinking of booking the Pinnacle for our Anniversary on the 20th which is the day we leave Ketchikan at 6 ... am thinking that might be a formal night as the following night is the last night on board the ship?

We have a verandah room on the deck below yours and I am so looking forward to the chance to spend time out there, you really reminded me that I need to remember warmer clothing for out on deck ... do we need to bring our own blankets for use out on the deck?

Thanks for taking the time to read this and I hope you have a fabulous time on this cruise.:)

[geshaw30]

I am thoroughly enjoying all your posts, we are sailing on the Ryndam when you get back to Vancouver on Friday the 15th and I can't wait.

Can you tell me if you know which 2 nights are the formal nights for the 7 night cruise? I don't want to miss them but was thinking of booking the Pinnacle for our Anniversary on the 20th which is the day we leave Ketchikan at 6 ... am thinking that might be a formal night as the following night is the last night on board the ship?

We have a verandah room on the deck below yours and I am so looking forward to the chance to spend time out there, you really reminded me that I need to remember warmer clothing for out on deck ... do we need to bring our own blankets for use out on the deck?

Thanks for taking the time to read this and I hope you have a fabulous time on this cruise.:)

Not a problem at all. Glad to help. Formal nights are usually Sea Days and in this case they were both day 2 -the day after we left San Diego & Vancouver. Our other formal night is the running of the glacier day. And about the blankets- you'll have more than enough in your suite. Don't forget a nice cap though. It's 42 degrees (11:45am right now )out on our veranda and with the wind from the ship it's got to be hovering right around freezing.

[musicgirl5995]

Thanks so much! I am sure they will give us the exact information when we get onboard but I am trying to plan ahead for everything!

[Debbie&Chaz]

George - Thank you so much for the interesting reviews! We are on the Ryndam for 14 days starting June 5th, (after finishing my 32nd year with the little 8th grade darlings), and were discussing whether or not to bring clothes for the dining room. After your experience, what would you recommend? Again - thanks so much for the information you are providing!
Chaz

[cccole]

I am thoroughly enjoying every post, and picturing you bundled up on the veranda enjoying the view, too bad they don't have outdoor heaters on the verandas;) When you are unable to get dining room entrees in the Lido can you order them to be delivered to your cabin? It could be fun to have lobster or king crab legs on the veranda, especially if it is staying light until late!! Thanks for all of your daily reports. Cherie

[Overtime4me2]

Am enjoying your posts. We will be on the Ryndam 8-14-09 for the 14-Day Glacier Discovery cruise and can't wait!!

Thanks for all the great information! :D

[Copper10-8]

Great writing style, very entertaining! Keep it up, bud!:)

[papadave]

I too recommend Upton's book. If for nothing else, it tells you that you can wake up a 6 a.m. on certain days and have a good chance of early whale watching.

Did you check the main restaurant to see what formal means these days? Last year, on the Volendam, it meant jackets for men. I saw a guy wearing sneakers, a plaid jacket, striped shirt, patterned tie. The overall look on this one guy was circus, not formal. This year I plan to wear a jacket and chinos, a pair of loafers and an ironed shirt. Last year I wore a business suit and really did not need it.

[geshaw30]

Chaz- You’re welcome. Congrats with the 32 years with the wee ones. Cary too was a teacher for advanced pre-school before medically retiring. To answer your question- formal night is obvious but only to a certain extent. We found everything from gowns & a tux on down to men with shirt and tie and women in dresses- although very few of the former. Now I know many CC people here will get out a wooden stake , sliver bullet, cross, and some garlic if they hear of anyone in the dining room without flowing formal attire but quite frankly you don’t need it. We never went formal as it, in our opinion anyway, was too much of a hassle packing all that stuff for the one or two nights you might partake. On the other nights I dressed in slacks, polo or button down, and topsiders (yes with socks) while the wife wore slacks and sweater. There were people at “anytime dining” in jeans and nice shirts and I did not find them hanging from the yardarm hours later. Alaska is a little more relaxed as you may have heard before. To sum this up-for men on formal night I’d go jacket & tie and non-formal consider slacks & decent shirt. Ladies- if you have the desire to dress up then by all mean do so, but rest assured simplicity will work on all nights. Papadave I hope this answers your question too.

Cherie- you offer up a good question in which I don’t have an immediate answer. I’ll start by saying that the veranda, during this trip anyway, would be a little unpleasant for outdoor eating if the ship is moving. Too cold. As to ordering off the main menu and having it delivered I can tell you of past but not present (yet). On the Noordam last October we ordered the whole shebang and had all the courses delivered to the balcony. Now again we were in a Deluxe Veranda. I’m not a snob in any form of the word (and not a big fan of those who excel in the practice) but I’m not sure you can pull this deal off in anything less than a DV. I’ll find out though and get back to you.

[smiley11766]

I wondered what you could tell me about the condition of the ship. I had read some of the Ryndam's reviews and a few of them complained about the ship needing some updating. I am trying to decide whether to book a cruise on this ship in January to the Caribbean right before it goes in to dry dock. I have only sailed Princess and I am a little hesitant to try out HAL especially with the reviews about the older condition of the ship.

Thanks - Shari

[Debbie&Chaz]

George - Thanks for the response. Please keep up the great reports - they are greatly enjoyed by all.
Chaz

[geshaw30]

DAY 7- Juneau (unbelievable weather)
I’ll begin by saying that we were advised by a local later in the day that the weather today defied description for this time of year. Sunny sky and low 60’s. The snow melting from the mountaintops made for dozens of huge waterfalls as we made our approach. Without trying to be overly dramatic here the views defy description. Words or whatever photos people post here do not do justice to what you’re actually seeing. Everyone should gander at this once in their lives. Unbelievable and makes you feel real small.

We finished breakfast in the Pinnacle (they messed up Cary’s order of Artichoke Brie with Crabmeat Omelet) then headed back to the cabin to pack up for today’s excursion “Whale Watching and Wildlife Quest”. Before I get started here I offer up this suggestion- consider packing a backpack. They are real handy for cameras, binoculars and offer a place to stuff clothes as you peel layers off (or put them on as the case may be). Now the trip had a pre-booked cost of $135 per for 4 hours of “questing”. We were a little late in docking so we weaved our way through the sea of humanity waiting to disembark on deck 5. Once off the ship we were placed on a waiting coach. Then the 53 of us were shuttled off for a 30 minute narrated ride (past a glacier) to the waiting catamaran style powerboat. The lower level of the vessel is all glassed in, seats a bunch of questing folks in nice rows seats and offers about a half dozen tables. The upper lever is a much smaller enclosed area but a large outdoor observation area aft. The crew offers free hot drinks, donut holes, and water. You can buy other goodies. The actual cruising time was 3 hours. In all we spotted 7 Humpback Whales, a whole bunch of various Seals & Otters, and Bald Eagles. The one of the whale sightings was mom & baby where the baby breeched (Texas translation: ‘dat big ‘ol fish done nearly jumped clean outta the pond”). We were advised that this happens less than 10% of the time this early in the season. I know one of your questions is “how close can they get to the whales” and the answer is no closer than 100 yards. Additionally the charter boat cannot follow any individual animal for more than 30 mins….it’s the law here. That being said we were lucky enough to have one swim up to about 10 yards of the boat before the captain could turn the engine back on and get away. In all I highly recommend this excursion to those who enjoy wildlife viewing .It was spectacular.

We took the tour bus back into Juneau, passed the Mendenhall glacier in the distance while enroute, and decided to grab a local bite to eat. The center of town is a little seedy for my tastes. Soup kitchen, shelter, and a lot of bars in the heart of town left a little to be desired. Rest assured that for those of you that enjoy the “cruise ship jewelry store alley” it is there in its entire splendor. We really couldn’t find a suitable place to eat as the main attraction the Red Dog Saloon was way too smoky for us to venture inside. So we simplified things and stopped by Tracey’s Crab Shack (it’s just as the name implies-an outdoor shack) so Cary could get some crab meat. The cost of one king crab leg hovered somewhere near $16 so she decided on a king crab sandwich. Here’s how that bad boy was served up. They took a nearly a whole steamed leg (about a 2’ long and 14ozs) then cracked it open. The meat was then put in a strainer and back in the steamer to reheat for a few minutes. A po-boy (grinder, sub, hero, etc) bun was brushed with butter. The meat was inserted and topped with cole slaw. Momma was in heaven.

We returned to the ship and decided to go to the Vermeer where they were dropping the big screen and showing the movie “Grand Torino” in lieu of live entertainment. Bags of popcorn were provided but here is a little friendly advice if you go to any of the movies on board- bring your own fluids. The crew members who walk all over the ship asking if you “want something to drink” are curiously inconspicuous for these events. After the flick we returned to 43 without any supply of chocolate chip cookies. The ship was out of ‘em. Warning: no cookie offering to the sailing gods before leaving port is bad mojo….baaaad mojo. Nite-----

[geshaw30]

I wondered what you could tell me about the condition of the ship. I had read some of the Ryndam's reviews and a few of them complained about the ship needing some updating. I am trying to decide whether to book a cruise on this ship in January to the Caribbean right before it goes in to dry dock. I have only sailed Princess and I am a little hesitant to try out HAL especially with the reviews about the older condition of the ship.

Thanks - Shari

No problem Shari- I can recommed sailing on her but she does need a touch up here and there. As mentioned she is starting to show her age a little bit and a refit is due. The ship is still is in great shape. If the cruise takes in all the places you want to visit then jump on board. There are very few onboard flaws that allow you to tell her age.

[geshaw30]

DAY -8 Skagway (temps in low 50’s & no rain again)

I told you it was bad mojo. I told you but I didn’t tell them. If they had asked me how to prevent this from happening I could have advised them “chocolate chip cookies”. The problem?--we arrived in port late this morning because a computer board on the bridge had shut down thus disabling the ship’s thrusters. The captain had to dock the old fashion way utilizing twin screws and a little help from tug boats. The problem was fixed later in the afternoon so all is good in that respect. Additionally I had very little hot water for this morning’s shower. All this was a direct correlation between last nights missing cookies and angry sailing gods. No matter…onward.

But before I get started there’s a couple things I’ve been meaning to pass along. If I haven’t mentioned it already (I don’t review my old stuff & memory starts to fade after 50) you should make sure to pack a power strip. During past cruises I have had to toss about a dozen batteries that my camera has chewed up. This trip I have yet to use anything but the rechargeable ones. Another tip is centered on hot water situation here. It seems that there is a falloff of that precious commodity during “peak” hour usage. At first I thought it was just me but it’s happened twice now. I might have to readjust my cleaning times and I suggest you do the same if the problem happens to you.

After we made port Cary & I finished breakfast in the room then headed out for a day containing two excursions. The first, Glacier Discovery by Helicopter & Landing, began at 9:45. A very short drive to the other side of town brought us to the “terminal” where 3 whirly birds were waiting. I’ll begin by telling you that the owners are kind of sticklers about the 250 lb weight limit. I’m 6’00 and 220 and they gave me the evil eye and said there was a chance I would have to get on the scale. It never happened but it’s unpleasant if one is over that maximum (an additional 50% on top of the already $299 ticket). Once one arrives at the terminal you are fitted for spiked boots that fit over your shoes. You also receive a mandatory orange vest that you must wear at all times. After fitted you are given a position inside the ‘copter where you will be required to sit. This is to equally spread out interior weight. Each ‘copter holds 5 adults (max) plus the pilot. We had two other folks in ours. Airborne time.

This is an experience like none other. I urge you to consider doing whatever it takes to make sure you include this excursion in your plans. Cancel the others before passing on this one. Sell the children or your second car but find a way to do this. If the cost of this one puts a financial strain towards the others you want do then let the others go. And I personally wouldn’t bother with the floatplane trips because they don’t land on glaciers I believe. The view from 4000 ft as you twist through the mountains cannot be described. Peaks all around you and valleys and glaciers below. I’m not a big fan of flying (actually I don’t mind flying-it’s crashing I hate) so I had concerns. Once we got up into the air there was an initial shock when the wind from the mountains pushed the ‘copter sideways and downward. We were told this is common and these specific helicopters were built to handle wind currents. Three ‘copters in a row took a 20 minute flight through scenes you cannot ever imagine and brought us to a landing atop Meade Glacier. We spent another 45 minutes with a guide on top who gave an outstanding account of the history and makeup of the ice pack below our feet. After our little walkabout the ‘copter returned and brought us back a different route to the base. I had read while originally planning our trip about how people had said not to miss the helicopter tour. I was skeptical but Cary really wanted to go. You know what? Those folks were right.

We got back into town and had an hour to kill before we had to load up for tour #2 of the day. At 1pm we had to meet the bus for the “Musher’s Camp & Sled Dog Experience”. Now Cary is one of those girls who love anything on with 4 legs and fur so I knew very early in the game we were going to do this excursion. Here’s how this one began. The bus drove us though the sprawling area that defines metropolitan Skagway (we made 2 turns in town) and the driver pointed out local points of interest like the one school (4 kids graduating this year), the rec center, two churches, and a house that used to contain a bakery on the ground floor with a brothel upstairs (you’ll then hear the “hot crossed buns” joke). As you work your way out of town you’re faced with a 30 minute ride to the musher camp over paved & unpaved roads and end up deep, deep, deep, into the woods. Once there you exit one bus then climb onto a large van that takes you up the hill to the actual spot where you’ll begin your sled experience. Here is where the trouble began. I think Cary believed that she was going to see large fluffy clean Huskey and Malamute dogs in spacious kennels with fences and cement floors. What she got instead were hundreds of hybrid style racing dogs in small dog houses tethered to a pole with a 10’ chain. Most were up on top of their wooden abodes sleeping. These dogs are in training for the Iditarod Race and this is their existence. It bothered the wife immensely. We climbed onboard what could best be described as a six seater moon buggy attached to 16 dogs. We then took off for approximately 10 minutes- two 5 minute runs separated by a water break. You then get out, go to a wooden amphitheatre where a musher explains the “ins & out” of the Iditarod and the accompanying musher equipment. The entire deal lasted about 3 hours and I would not do it again. Ever.

We asked the driver of the return “bus from the dog woods” to drop us off in town on the way back. She obliged. The two of us went out to explore Skagway and ended up in the Red Onion Saloon. Kinda fun actually in that it too had a “ladies of the evening” location upstairs with a bar (& restaurant) downstairs. An order of chips and salsa accompanied 2 Alaska Pale Ale beers. We listened to the piano player who like everyone else inside the place was in costume We listened as he banged out a few tunes before we left. I think the bill was $24.

We continued to meander through town along its wooden sidewalks and fake façade buildings. It is exactly what the pictures you have seen describe it to be. Nothing more or nothing less. Touristy. We did learn however that Skagway is the 36th busiest port in the world. It’s major import? Tourists..about a million of ‘em a year. Anyway we walked the approx mile back to the ship (although shuttles run all over the place) and decided to bypass dinner on board and partake in local fares. We ate in the Skagway Fish Company restaurant. You can’t miss this place as it will be the closest restaurant once you get off your respective ship. The ambiance was nice but Cary got a hold of a bad oyster and you know the rest of the story. Twelve fried oysters, cup of chowder, fish & chips, two cokes= $48.

So now you know what’s going on in 43 as I type this out and we pull away from the docks at 9pm. Cary is fighting to keep dinner down and I’m eyeballing a cookie. The cookie is not going to win. Nite--------

[brucory]

Hope the oyster problem is short lived...

Your report is fantastic. Looking forward to the rest of the cruise reports and all the Alaska highlights...

:D:D:D

[dlopiccolo]

Great advice. I'm off to find the book you recommend and book my seat on a helicopter !!!! Thank you so much for taking the time and sharing.

[RuthC]

At 1pm we had to meet the bus for the “Musher’s Camp & Sled Dog Experience”. ... I would not do it again. Ever.


That's what makes horse races, I guess. I liked this tour---and so did my grandgirl (who is allergic to dogs!). I had a bagful of dog biscuits with me, and they all (except for the real babies; it was July) wanted to make friends with me. :D
Oh, well. Now you know what not to do when you return.

[geshaw30]

DAY 9- Glacier Bay (weather sill perfect—not a drop of rain)
The morning started off kinda interesting-I got a phone call. To preface this story I need to back up 24 hrs when Cary & I were in the Neptune spending time with Marcos. Nothing earth shattering, just visiting during a quiet time. During the conversation somehow I mentioned in passing that hot chocolate is just not hot chocolate with a shot of Redi-Whip or Cool Whip on top (I know I know---leave me alone. I can’t help it). So I answer the phone and Marcos asks if he can stop by 43. Minutes later he’s at our door with a huge bowl of whipped crème from the kitchen. Surprise. Ecstatic I ran down to his place and made a hot cup of goodness then loaded it up with the white stuff. I stored the remains in our ‘fridge while Cary grabbed a light fare from the Neptune (she’s still a little shaky from the evil oyster). It was time to walk aft and view the quickly approaching glaciers & stuff.

Small. That’s the singular word I can use to describe how you’ll feel as you look out onto Glacier Bay for the first time. You feel very small. The mountains and shoreline are only yards away. There are thousands of ice chunks floating around and you can hear the popping sounds of the glacier ice shifting as it calves and falls into the drink. If you have a veranda then this is the reason you paid the extra to get one.

We started our viewing by heading to the aft pool area. Only because the tv camera shot showed the bow filled with folks and I didn’t want to trudge that far with a hot chocolate supporting a mound of floating whip crème. Helpful tip time- if you don’t have a veranda consider the aft area (deck 10) for glacier viewing. Nowhere near as many people and the photo opportunities are the same. We observed from this area for a while, offered to take some pictures for couples who were in need of such, then headed back to 43 to watch the remainder of the show from our veranda. It was really comfortable out there as we stripped down to long sleeve shirts and jeans. It’s amazing how quiet it was out there as the Ryndam had all but shut down her engines while we crawled along. If you’re concerned about “missing something cool” along the other opposite side of the ship don’t be. The Captain will pivot the boat in a 180 degree so everyone gets a viewing. After enjoying the dead silence I turned on the tv to listen to the commentary provided by the Park Ranger. Viewing highlights: tons of calving ice from the glaciers and a baby brown (grizzly) bear walking along the shoreline.

As we headed out from Glacier Bay in early afternoon we stopped by the Lido for lunch. Cary rebounded a little and got something to eat with no after effects. A quick stop at “The General Store” provided momma with a set of toe nail clippers (forgot those & Tylenol..don’t you do the same). Little set =$1.99….the last of the red hot bargains. We returned to the room to find a steward delivering a plate of eatable goodies with a note attached. It was a “we’re sorry” from Marcos regarding HAL’s screw up with excursion tickets for those who boarded in San Diego. We also would get another such note from HAL itself asking for forgiveness. Nice classy touch all the way around. The rest of the afternoon was uneventful. Cary rested and I went back on the veranda to relax and take in the passing view (including pods of whales).
It was another formal night so I decided to put on a clean shirt with my jeans. In tribute if nothing else. We headed down to the Ocean Bar (love the place-no smoking) and got in the tail end of “two fer one”. Cary wanted to walk to the photo area and look for a picture we had taken of us when we got off in Skagway. It was us standing beside some poor individual dressed in a moose outfit. HAL got the last laugh however as we dropped another $20 on the room card for a 5x7 with a couple generic shots attached to the main photo (note to HAL- you ought to be ashamed).

A detailed observation, while we walked around, of clothing options worn by those indulging in formal night. I could count the number of tuxes and formal gowns I saw probably on two hands. Mostly were men in suits with ladies in cocktail dresses or pant suits. There were even a handful of men without ties sporting sweaters under their sport coats. Moral of the story here for the ladies- don’t kill yourselves looking for the perfect evening gown or drop dead gorgeous ensemble unless you just really want to. It isn’t necessary. If formal attire if you thing however then I say “go for it”….you won’t be alone.

Now we casual dressed slugs who are feasting in the Lido this evening discovered that this eatery was surprising empty at 6pm. The menu was a little different than the main dining room with the notable exceptions being the quality stuff (i.e. King Crab legs). I had a very little “petite” steak. We left the Lido for another after dinner walk (around the surrounding walkway on deck 6) before heading off to take in the evenings entertainment.

The 7 & 9 show of the evening was a classical piano playing magician with his dancing wife. I’ll leave that conglomeration to your imagination. We returned to 43 at 8:30 to watch the sun set an hour and a half later. Gobbled the required cookie, watched the helicopter DVD we bought from our tour, and then called it a night. Nite------------------

[cccole]

I loved today's report because cruising in Glacier Bay is one of my all-time favorite memories. Thank you for describing everything so that we felt we were on the veranda also!!!!

It was also good news that the not-so-good oyster is almost history.

Looking forward to your future posts of adventure. Cherie

[geshaw30]

DAY 10- Ketchikan (Low 50’s & 1 hour of rain)

After rousting outta bed we decided to sample the morning fares in the Lido. Not an overly enjoyable experience. The food is great but at 9am the place was sandwiched with wall to wall people. The overflow went out into the covered mid ship pool area. Not a bad place to dine actually but still there were more folks in one tight spot than we’ve used to. After finishing breakfast we headed back to 43 to pack up the backpack for the day in town and later on the “Wilderness Exploration and Crab Feast”. Got off the ship on the usual deck 5 gangway and Cary & I went off to explore Ketchikan.

We’ve decided that this port is probably the nicest of the 3 stops you’ll have on this itinerary. As I mentioned before we found Juneau sort of seedy and Skagway is simply a pure tourist town. But Ketchikan gives you the feeling that you’re actually in a place where people exist in a pleasant functional city. I tell you that to tell you this. If you are on the fence about finding an excursion for this port or nothing offered appeals to you then my advice is not to pre-book anything. There is enough to do in town without having to book a tour. We lamented booking the aforementioned excursion about 20 minutes after we got off the ship. As a matter of fact if it hadn’t starting raining during this decision making period we probably would have blown off the $159 each we spent on the “Crab Feast” deal and stayed in town. If prepackaged shows are your thing then there are plenty offered right in town. For example you can walk to the “Lumberjack” show, as it’s just a few blocks from the pier, and still be right in the center of things once you finish up. Tons of nice eating places. Shops galore. Museum. And for $2 you can buy an all day pass to a tram that takes you up a hill to a restaurant/shop area where we’re told the viewing is spectacular. Providing that you have the time try and head off towards the bridge you’ll see in the distance once you get off the ship (you can also aim for that hillside tram-it’s in the same location). This is the place where you’ve seen the pictures of buildings built on pilings that stand over a river. Very nice area. If we are fortunate enough to return To Ketchikan we’ll be spending what time we’re offered within a mile of the pier.

As I mentioned on the heading we got rain for the first time on this trip. The wet stuff came down for about an hour right around 12:30. It’s not surprising as we were told Ketchikan gets 300 days of rain a year. It’s the trade off the locals get for a more moderate Alaskan climate. You’re going to get wet here----plan on it. Anyway we climbed on board our little van for our 4th and final excursion of the trip. I’ll start by saying that there were only 6 people total booked for this deal so I had concerns that someone knew something we didn’t. Once we headed off for the “Wilderness Explorations & Crab Feast” we drove about 30 minutes with driver narration included. The problem was that, for the most part, the local young driver pointed out us about where she went swimming as a child, where she walked to town as a child, where she lived as a child, what her parents do, and pointed out he father’s truck (you can see where I’m going with this). She meant well, she really did, but it made for a long ride out there.

The tour itself was not really a disappointment but it wasn’t stellar either. Upon arrival you decent to a waiting small covered pontoon boat that sits 27 max. You’re then whisked out onto the channel for a 1½ hr ride that, half way through, brings you to a crab pot marker. The pot is pulled up and you gander at the Dungeness crab trapped within (tip: when offered don’t volunteer to pull the trap up unless you know if the tide is in or out. If it’s high you’ll be pulling up about 60’ of cold rope---let them do it). Once the photo op is finished with the little critters you release them and head back to the lodge. Part of the problem with this tour was of our own doing. It’s the “wilderness” part. We had seen just about all the wildlife one can see during the whale watching trip in Juneau. So observing a seal 200 yards away this time held little interest. The moral of the story on this one is do not book 2 wildlife excursions during the same trip. You’ll pass an old packing cannery (remember the old commercial: “When you see Libbys- Libbys- Libbys on the label- label- label you will like it- like it- like it on your table- table- table”? This is the old Libbys plant) So eventually we arrived back to the non-working George Inlet Lodge (it houses only seasonal employees) where you’re fed a nonstop flow of crab legs. I’m not a huge fan but Cary loves them. As bucket after bucket of multiple legs arrives to your table you are told to enter into a contest with your neighbors as to who could end up with the tallest pile of cracked crab shells. Sorta of a Jenga game deal if you’ve ever played it. Winner gets a stated “fantastic “prize. Don’t fall for this as you’ll eat yourself sick thinking you’re going to get a goodie. When it’s all over the hostess comes out and advises that your “gift” is the honor of helping them clean up the carcasses. You get nothing. Once bloated (although not I—I just had one) you climb back on the short bus for a return ride to town. We had the same driver who told us totem pole bedtime stories her mother told her “when she was a child”. Excruciating.

We got back to the Ryndam about 90 minutes before our 6:30 dinner engagement in the Pinnacle. Jumped in the shower to get the crabby stinky off, got dressed and headed off to meet up with friends in the restaurant.

Dinner is the Pinnacle is a must. Cough up the $20 per, you won’t regret it if you’ve never been. We ate there twice on the Noordam and loved it. You will need to put aside a little more than 2 hours from start to finish getting through the meal. I had a 22 oz Porterhouse (ease up people-weight included the bone in it) and momma had something called Lobster Macaroni & Cheese. The latter is actually better than it sounds. After the main course I finished the meal with a Baked Alaska. It was the end of a log day so we passed on the show tonight. It was some form of Broadway Revue performed by the ship’s dancers. Instead we headed off to 43.

Before I wrap this up for the day I’ll give you something to ponder. During our stay in Ketchikan today there were an abundance of other ships in port. I mean a bunch. 2 HAL, 1 large Princess, & 1 good sized RCCL. Additionally something called the “Columbia” arrived after the latter two left. It made for a bunch of people in town. Now Ketchikan can handle the nearly 8,000 folks dropped off onto their streets but I’m not so sure the same could be said for Skagway or other smaller ports of call. When planning your vacation find that web site that tells you how many ships will be in a given port in a given day if the masses are a concern to you. The driver of our bus today told us that summer crowds can get horrendous. She also advised us that the locals are a lot friendlier to those arriving early in the season as to those showing up at the end. I suspect they’ve probably had enough by September. Just a “for what-it’s-worth”.

Too full for a cookie. Could be another case of bad mojo. I’ll offer up this bedside chocolate and see what happens. Nite---------

(((( Sidebar- this will be my final entry as tomorrow is a sea day and other than going to the Mariners Lunch to get our tile, we are going to simply relax then pack. I’ll check back for the next few days in case you folks have questions. This blog was originally intended to family and friends back home but it seems I’ve picked up some new friends here along the way. Thanks for the kind comments as the days rolled by. I hope I may have offered up some tip(s) that might make your trip a little more enjoyable. Perhaps Cary & I might meet up with you somewhere out on the seas in the future. Look for us and until that day….sail on. )))))

[Himself]

Did you run into Rev. Greg Neal, a regular poster on this sight?

[gachan]

thank you for your thoughts on your trip and the excellent information you provided.

[geshaw30]

Did you run into Rev. Greg Neal, a regular poster on this sight?

Yup- sure did. We met briefly prior to the Mariners Lunch.

[tomtwice]

Hi George,
Just read your posts....very interesting and informative....and accurate too.....I was your neighbor on Navigation deck...Cabin 006 ( it's a ship, and ships have cabins... I still cant get used to staterooms....when did this nomenclature start?).
I do wish I'd read your post while I was onboard George, as I'd have introduced myself. ( but at 75cents a minute, I was only using my laptop to send emails, not browse the net) Maybe we bumped into each other in the Neptune Lounge, I used to go there quite often to get my Espresso Coffee.
I have to concur with you re the Alaska cruise Book.... it's the best value $19.90 I've ever spent.... did you get your copy signed by the Captain and Navigator? ( by the way, the Navigator looked about 19 years old... must be similar to the policeman effect...you know, the older you get the younger they look!)
Talking of the Captain, you and I were both at the Captains Lunch in the Pinnacle Grill on the 2nd day out. However, for some reason my wife and I were chosen to sit at his table.... or should that be that the Captain chose to sit at our table. Our other dining companions were Theresa and Woody, the couple from the Penthouse Suite, along with Rebecca the cruise Hostess. Now I can understand why Theresa and Woody were chosen....they paid a lot of money for that suite... but I still don't get why L and I were picked.... I reckon they must have mistaken me for someone important.... my wife reckons it was because of her youthful charm and good looks!!!
Anyway, whatever the reason, I ended up sitting right next to Captain Mark Bowden. ( see the pics) Another very young looking guy, ( Policeman affect again!) but Mark was an interesting lunch companion nevertheless. By the way, the Indonesian food was very very tasty.... and the service was exceptional....ah ah...
Anyway George, thanks again for such a good review...when I get back home to Australia next month, I hope to write a trip report myself.... but I doubt it could be as informative ( or amusing) as yours,
Cheers,
tomtwice

http://public.fotki.com/tomtwice/ss-ryndam/canada036.html
http://public.fotki.com/tomtwice/ss-ryndam/canada038.html

[tomtwice]

http://i671.photobucket.com/albums/vv76/tomtwice/47e1cc08.jpg

The Captain, of SS Ryndam, Mark Bowden and myself ( I'm the one in the striped shirt!!)

http://i671.photobucket.com/albums/vv76/tomtwice/0467c57b.jpg

Lyn & Tom at lunch with Captain Mark Bowden
Lynley is probably the reason why we were chosen to have the Captain as our lunch guest. Or else it was a mistake by HAL.

[geshaw30]

Yup- we got it signed. The Navigator took the map from Cary and returned it later with notes attached. I had already marked out our course as we went.

I remember seeing you folks at the table during the lunch.

Look forward to your review. We had a great time. An experience never to be forgotten.

And I am painfully aware of the "Policeman Effect". I'm a 51 yr old nightshift beat cop in Houston and after 26 yrs they allll look (and are) younger than me.

[poolwife]

George: I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of your posts.Thank you so much for writing them.

My husband, John and I, are scheduled for northbound on the Ryndam on 8/28/09. I was on her doing southbound in 2001.

Sorry to hear she looks a bit worn in places. Hope it doesn't show too much by the time we go.

We picked her again for the reason that the Ryndam goes to Sitka on our itinerary and my husband loved Sitka and wanted to return there. Not very many ships go there.

Sounds like overall you had a really trip. Great to be able to do all those different legs to the trip.

[geshaw30]

George: I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of your posts.Thank you so much for writing them.

My husband, John and I, are scheduled for northbound on the Ryndam on 8/28/09. I was on her doing southbound in 2001.

Sorry to hear she looks a bit worn in places. Hope it doesn't show too much by the time we go.

We picked her again for the reason that the Ryndam goes to Sitka on our itinerary and my husband loved Sitka and wanted to return there. Not very many ships go there.

Sounds like overall you had a really trip. Great to be able to do all those different legs to the trip.

Considering her age we really couldn't complain. No doubt she needs time in dry dock for a refit. The furniture in public places is a bit worn and there are signs of age on carpeting but other than that the public areas are nicely maintained. I had to give the crew credit though as they seem to take a great deal of pride in keeping the ship looking good as possible.

We flew over Sitka on the helicopter jaunt but that is as close as we got. From what I've read I think we would trade Skagway for Sitka in a minute. Enjoy your sail----it will be hard not to.

[Kate 1]

George, you and Cary sound like a fun interesting couple..thanks for writing so interestingly... conjured up the old imagination.Kate:)

[woody73]

Your detailed report brought back fond memories of our cruise last year on the Ryndam.

Woody

[geshaw30]

Kate & Woody- glad to do it.

When I first started the blog I promised Cary that I would only dedicate one hour for each daily entry (thus the numerous typos...never proof read the stuff). So while she was still crashed out in the morning I grabbed a robe and hammered away on the laptop while out on the veranda. My initial intention was to provide those folks at home a running account of what was happening but I seemed to have "picked up" some friends along the way. So much the better.

In retrospect it was truly a trip of a lifetime. I've never seen anything quite like what I witnessed over the 12 days. With the exception of the Ryndam being a little "old" for our tastes we had a great time.

Perhaps we'll see you folks on a sail to parts unknown sometime in the future.