Blackduck59

I'm trying to understand the object of the exercise. You could simply fly from Vancouver to Seattle or the bus or the train. You could also take the much more scenic but convoluted route by BC ferries to Victoria and the Victoria Clipper to Seattle. This option will not be cheap, but it would be an adventure.

@Mary229 from what I understand NCL is only picking up the expenses from Gambia to Senegal? Because the ship missed the port in Gambia where the "late eight" were apparently waiting to reboard.

That's pretty generic Mic. So we must start random guess tactics. Were you in Ireland?

Never a problem in the Cabin or balcony. The cabin is on the opposite side from the outdoor smoking pit. There was a slight smoke smell by the stairway and elevator lobby at midships.

It's about half way down the first page. You will see it's locked, but you can still read it.

This subject went on for 30 pages on the NCL boards. The thread was still there a while ago but locked for further comment. There were a few comments from members who are on that ship. They don't have a lot of information either. The general tone of that thread was that there is very little sympathy for the "Late eight" Apparently to further muddy the waters, there was a separate "medical evacuation" that happened at the same time and that person's situation has been lumped in to the wider story. All I can say is the group seemed woefully unprepared to leave the ship, and when things went south there was one couple who took it upon themselves speak for the "Group" and paint themselves as saints while they were at it. Hopefully someone will be able to find some semblance of the truth, because right now everything I've seen paints the folks without a watch or a clue as the victims and NCL as the cruel corporate villain who left them behind.

We were in 6184 in Aug/Sep 2023 and quite enjoyed it. The location is great for the food venues and several bars. We are non smokers and notice the cigarette smoke very quickly. The smoke will drift out of the casino and is noticeable when the casino is open. That being said it wasn't too bad for me but my wife is highly allergic. We were able to avoid the smoke most of the time. Enjoy your cabin it's a great location.

Thank you for sharing the Plaque for Joska, clearly what a service dog should be. I don't want to muddle up the "Dome of Awesome" with a debate about service dogs, but the name showed up on other threads about "Service Dogs" I am happy to have a face to put with the name. Real service dogs are so impressive to watch when they are working.

I just have to say that slab of beef is quite a benchmark. Did others get a similar portion? I wish I had some witty remark but words escape me.

I'm not sure why you chose to quote me and then edit my post to make it seem that I was making excuses for these people missing the boat. You could have made your point without dragging me into it. We do not know the whole story and never will. We do know they were late for the final tender. We do know the ship left. We also know that it was the group's responsibility to be on time. We also know that the de facto leaders of the "Group" are having a hard time taking responsibility for the poor decisions they made.

This is an unfortunate situation for those left behind, but a VERY valuable lesson for all. We don't and never will know the whole story. What appears on the surface may or may not be correct. On the surface it seems this group took it upon themselves to book a private tour. Unfortunately none of them seemed to have a proper understanding of needing to be back for the last tender run. Somewhere along the line someone should have looked at their watch and said "WE have to head back NOW". They are on some tiny island off the coast of Africa, it's very important to not miss the boat. There should be a certain expectation that adults will be responsible for there own actions.

As illustrated in an earlier post, the glass makes a big difference. The key to success with guests like that is to flag their key card and ALWAYS bring an empty glass and the wine in a measured carafe. Any wine served in every restaurant, bar, tavern etc. Will be cheaper by the bottle in your local jar store.

That is well and truly the Melanoma Deck. I wouldn't last 30 seconds there. The Aussies call it sun baking, now we know why.

Much of the "wild" salmon caught in Canadian and US waters is frozen at sea. Fresh (never frozen) fish is rather uncommon. The land based "salmon bake" may have a local fisher that goes out every day to get their fish, but that is a rather hit and miss proposition. When we did our Alaska salmon lunch it was very good, they were grilling Coho that day.

Key word "Imitation", not an amazing alternative, but passable in budget sushi or on a salad.😉

We haven't done the Rocky Mountaineer. We have looked several times and just can't get past the price. Depending on your time frame (and aversion to flying) you could rent a car in Vancouver and do the circle route from Vancouver travelling north east to Jasper then south along the Icefield Parkway to Banff and then head west from there back to Vancouver. It's a beautiful drive and you should be able to do it comfortably in about 9 days.

You have the most cool bear, and what a wardrobe. I think my wife is in love with your bear, I'm almost jealous. Your threads are always so full of fun and good vibrations. We will continue to follow along, it brightens our day.

@graceinga I'm not sure if we ever gave you the answer you were looking for. So as you may have surmised, if you are enquiring about the little key fob "medallion" as found on Princess, HAL doesn't have those. I think the confusion is with the "Medallion" keepsakes that HAL presents for their loyalty program.

Is it the Raptors center in Duncan BC?

So bt the last clue you weren't in Australia, so let's narrow it down. Perhaps North America?

Go with the Dungeness crab, We had King Crab in Alaska, we have also had it here at home. Strangely the crab we had here was better than Alaska, We prefer the Dungeness.

Were you in Australia for the picture?

Sounds like an interesting twist, adding more rum to the mix.

@POA1 I fully support the vital work of the Institute and look forward to your reports on this vital research. I am mildly concerned with the Painkiller recipe though, @Navybikermom is suggesting there is a problem with the recipe. I found them delightful on our Zaandam cruise last year; I did alter it to personal preference by omitting the nutmeg sprinkle on top. If it's not too much trouble perhaps someone from the research team could perhaps sample said libation to report if the mixture has been corrupted in recent times.

I really wondered if I should respond. In YOUR opinion the 2 players were better, you are entitled to your opinion. Your assertion that "people enjoyed the 2 players better" is subjective and I'm afraid you don't speak for anyone other than yourself. I'm still trying to process the logic of your last sentence, how does 2 pianos make a difference with the drunk guy singing along? I think you have made your feelings known on several threads, we all understand you are in the 2 piano camp. Others may be as well but understand that HAL has just made the change and is not likely to change back without seeing if the new format is popular with the majority of cruisers. We have been seeing reports from ships with new acts and new entertainment. I'm sorry you are disappointed with the change, I'm afraid that there will be more changes over the next little while, hopefully people will enjoy the new offerings. Time will tell. Like I said I am hopeful that we will see some of the new era in HAL entertainment when we board Westerdam next March for our 6 week cruise.