StLouisCruisers

Here's photos from Pinnacle yesterday. We forgot to photograph our starters, beefsteak tomatoes with basil pesto and a grilled prawn bruschetta. I had a filet mignon, medium with no blue cheese, please. Salmon with no sauce, just melted garlic butter on the side. Everything seems to come with a sauce! For dessert, the warm brownie with vanilla ice cream and popcorn crunch. DH had coffee gelato And a cute flower arrangement in the Guest Services area while we waited for stewards to complete morning room cleaning. Here's a rubber ducky I spotted sitting on a statue at the entrance to the Lido. I'm going up to the Art Studio again today to work a bit on the Christmas stocking.

Hamburg was a nice place to visit in 2017, too. We did some scenic cruising along the Elbe River as we approached Hamburg. Somehow they even found the wherewithal to make a beach on the river. Nearing the city center This SUV atop two shipping containers caught my eye. How did it get up there? Crane? The Louisiana Star would appear to be a long way from home. I'm guessing it's not really from the Bayou. A unique building with a whole lot of people enjoying the balcony. On Sundays like this everyone must spend their day together with family and friends. We were docked there overnight so on Monday we went for a walk around town and stopped at a botanical garden in Hamburg. I noticed a fancy doorway on a church (for my door people). We continued on and saw an actor taping a scene The impressive Town Hall. Next we came upon Alster Lakes in the middle of the city The botanical garden was quite large but the flowering plants were fairly ordinary. I've seen some great botanical parks in my travels so this one wouldn't compare. However, it was nice to find a calming spot to stroll. There were a couple of greenhouses as well. This greenhouse had a more desert landscape. Going back to the ship we passed by the bridge of love. We came right by the Philharmonic building which is where all the people were standing on the balcony the day before. Our little home A few hours later we were visited by an oompah band! Where else would you rather be? Nowhere!

On May 23, 2017 we were headed towards the Kiel Canal after visiting Hamburg the day before on the Elegant Explorer, Prinsendam. Hamburg was a beautiful city and we had a great time there just looking around. We approached the lock we had to go through to get into the Kiel Canal. People sat on the benches and waved to us. This would continue on along the canal. Leaving the locks. Some of our "fans". These people had a Welcome flag, a Prinsendam flag and a U.S. flag. Some people would stop at a pullover, wave to the Prinsendam, then hop in their cars and drive along further to stop and wave some more. It was really fun keeping an eye out for them that afternoon. I made a comfy spot in the window sill of our room so I wouldn't miss anything. The window wasn't clean enough for good photos though, so I'd run outside once in a while to take some pictures. More new friends! I'll never forget our journey down the Kiel Canal. Not that many cruise ships are able to navigate that busy waterway. Photos of Hamburg will be next!

Good morning friends! I'm not sure of the temp this am. Around 69F I believe with partly cloudy skies. It looks like we're near Bermuda according to Rich's @richwmn maps today. Thanks Rich for the Daily and Fleet Report this morning. Yesterday we had the best Pinnacle Grill lunch! Photos are on my phone so I may do them separate from this post. Then we went to early dining last night and ate a small portion of the lasagna, which was not great. Nothing else appealed on the menu. Good thing I wasn't hungry! We turned our clocks ahead one hour last night. Just before bedtime I saw the host from our Pinellas Park home rental for graduation weekend, had posted his "rebuttal" to my review. He was a real jerk about it and mentioned "2 live roaches" in quotes, like that was ridiculous and said that guests sometimes leave the doors open for extended periods of time, as though we had done that and it was all our fault those poor roaches ended up in the house. He claimed we tried to blackmail him into a reduced price! What a liar! Needless to say I didn't need to read that before bedtime, but the Zuiderdam rocked me to sleep anyway. Happy anniversary Dixie @summer slope and George! 58 years is a good amount of time, don't you think? I'm sure many people thought some of our marriages wouldn't last, but we showed them Cheers to all celebrating special events, and to the cruisers!🚢 Prayers for all in need of them, especially Chuck and Annie @marshhawk, Pennie @Nickelpenny and Richard. Also for DB and Alex's little babies, those in Israel and Ukraine, the hostages, and the military members in the region. 🙏 Thanks also to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for your excellent reporting. And a big thanks to Vanessa @JazzyV for keeping the lists updated each day! Port of the day is Kiel (Hamburg), Germany. This was the port twice before on March 28, 2022, and Oct. 11, 2023. Links are below and photos to follow. Hope you all have a great day! Stay safe and keep well!

Good morning friends! It's 70 with scattered clouds here at sea. Welcome back Rich @richwmn. Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for all your work keeping the Fleet Report and Daily going while Rich was cruising. I want to thank all of you who posted photos yesterday of your Moms. It was fun to look back to those days long ago. Also, I send prayers for all here in need of them, those undergoing surgeries and procedures this week, everyone in pain, and feeling loss of some kind. Also to my DB, Alex and Jordan's baby boys who I heard yesterday are growing and healthy, and all in Israel and Ukraine. Still praying we get those hostages back, and for the safety of our troops over there. Congrats to those celebrating something and having a good time on their cruises. Yesterday afternoon I meant to go to the Meet & Greet, but we got distracted with the movie "Boys in the Boat" showing on the World Stage and completely forgot! We did however enjoy the movie and popcorn. A very tall couple walked in just before the movie started and sat down two seats in front of us and I had to watch the movie missing seeing the lower part of the screen. Why does this always happen? 🤷‍♀️ We didn't find a good fit for waiter/jr. waiter last night so will try something different tonight. They found us a table in early seating and we hope to eat earlier (much earlier) with some decent waiters. Sitting for more than 20 minutes waiting to place food and beverage orders is a big waste of time. I'm hoping my tummy likes having more time between meals and bedtime, too. Looking online we think the U17 FC Dallas team tied yesterday but won points in penalty kicks. No matter what occurred they are doing well. I hope they're all having fun, too, at the same time. The port today of Gaspe, Quebec, Canada was the port once before on Aug. 1, 2022. I'm pretty sure I haven't been there before. Here is the link for you to retrieve your photos of it. Have a wonderful day, everyone!

we were just in there and it was like a meat locker. So cold! But good to keep in mind.

The knitting/stitching group in the Art Studio was a good group but whoa, uncomfortable chairs and a table in front of me. I need a sofa with a window behind me. We will have to see if I can continue there or move to a better spot. I would miss the company of others though. We also had nice conversations at the 3, 4, and 5 star Mariner reception. I’m resting and reading until lunch. Last night I slept well. We will probably eat lunch at the Lido. That’s all for now. 👋

That is so interesting, Graham. I’m glad everything worked out safely all these years later.

Good morning friends! At sea off Florida somewhere it is 75F and a few clouds. Last night two hours after leaving Port Everglades we must have gotten into a big storm. We tried to avoid it but it caught up with us anyway. The lightning was so intense the entire sky lit up white. It affected "technology" according to the young lady presenting us with our wine orders, finally. Things were a bit hectic in the MDR as usual the first night. We need to get a system and find the right spot in the dining room then things will go smoother. First of all, we heard Ren's team won their first game 3-0, Ren played the entire first half and no idea what he played after that. Just glad they won! Go FC Dallas! Today's port is Himeji, Japan, and it's the third time for it. Aug. 5, 2021 and March 17, 2022. I haven't been to that port in Japan before. Here are the links. Prayers for our Care list individuals and wishes for improved health soon. Also for DB, Alex's twins, people of Israel and Ukraine, the poor hostages, and for the safety of our military in the region. Cheers to all who celebrate something today, cruisers and Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. Thanks to Jacqui, Roy, Rich, Vanessa, Debbie, Dixie and Ann for your contributions to the Daily. Today I am going to take my cross stitch to the Art Studio which is supposedly in Crow's Nest, at 9 a.m. That is where the knitters and stitchers gather. Then a Mariner reception from 10:30 to 11:00 at Billboard Onboard, which we haven't seen yet. This ship is very difficult to get around. I miss the Zaandam and Volendam! At 2:30 p.m. there is a roll call M&G. Dressy night this evening for Mother's Day. So a busy day! Hope you all have a great day today!

Guys ready to throw the aft lines now. Need to save power for photos.

Surprisingly they found a few more things to load. I’m at the Sea view Bar area along the rail. Pretty much first one forward on that railing. Pink T shirt and my hair is blowing every which way in this stiff wind. Low on battery power though.

Still tied up but looks like they’ve run out of things to load! Lol!

Should be around 5:15 to 5:30 for Zuiderdam. Hope that means plenty of wine and spirits loaded on. I’m trying to find a good place to stand for sail away! But I’m thirsty so just stopped to order a strawberry daiquiri to cool me off. Matches my pink T shirt! 👚

Im so sorry about Houdini. 😔

Good morning friends! We have 75F on the thermometer here in Plantation and expect a high of 96! Way too hot for most of us. It will be sunny but there's always a chance of a shower, especially at sail away time. We may leave port at 3 pm but don't be surprised if it's later. I'll let you all know later if I find a good spot to watch the Zuiderdam leave and wave at the PTZ camera. We have a lot to unpack and need time to get settled this afternoon. Today's port is Phuket, Thailand which is a brand new one so no links to post! We have not been to the port of Phuket before. Thanks to all who post photos. Yes, we have a ride to the port with a shuttle service that we had from a different Ft. Lauderdale hotel. She gave us her card and it came in handy this time. We are going downstairs to get some breakfast and might see a few cruisers down there. I wonder if any of them will require a ride to their ship? Well, better get moving and get that breakfast. Talk to you all later!