Blackduck59

@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.

I think "Plan accordingly" is a good strategy. They don't take much room to pack and are easy to buy. If the ship supplies them that's a bonus.

How hard is it to sit through the SAFETY video? Seriously people it's not like it is a 2 hour epic. It's just another hoop we have to jump through. Of course the cruise lines could go back to the old way of going to muster stations and sit until everybody decides to check in. That was always so much fun.

Port Stanley, Falkland Islands

@paiagirl, I wish I could be more helpful, my wife is from Vancouver and she says Queen Elisabeth park. The Cherry blossom trees in Victoria were a gift to our city from the Japanese community and they are a well loved feature of our city for a few weeks every spring.

Great photo Mic.

I think the one piano two piano thing has really gone on long enough; don't imply that "people enjoyed the 2 player concept much more" when clearly many members prefer one piano or don't care one way or the other. Clearly what people want is a performer who can play piano AND sing well. It feels like HAL could put Billy Joel in the piano bar and some people would complain that it was only one piano.

Good to hear your surgery went well Mic. Now you really have to resist the urge to be "Adventure Mic" until it heals properly this time 😇. I know it will be extremely hard for an active person like yourself; just keep saying to yourself "less strain no pain" until your physical therapist starts you on the rehab program. Take care Mate, Lyle & Lynn

If by chance there is a "spirit bear" sighting count that as a very large bonus. They are extremely rare. Take as many pictures as you can, you may never get another chance.

@JeLy_Beanz that is a better passage for those on this cruise. Like I said there is little on this itinerary that would cause us to book. For everyone who books fair winds and a trailing sea.

That is interesting the above map shows the inside passage bot outbound and return. This is unusual for cruises departing Seattle. If this is indeed the route then there will be nice scenery and relatively sheltered waters in both directions.

That must be very disappointing @MicCanberra. An Achilles injury is always troublesome but this lasting months must be so frustrating. Best wishes from both of us for a good result and speedy recovery.

So I am watching the race now. Being part of the "anyone but Max" group I was pleased to see the disappointing result for him. Lynn was simply ecstatic, her dislike for Max knows no boundaries. Of course being a Lewis fan I was disappointed for his result. It's looking more and more that the move to Ferrari will give him a car he can compete in. That being said it will put pressure on Lewis to perform, he won't be able to blame the car.

Ships leaving Seattle normally transit the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the west coast of Vancouver Island. This is the open Pacific Ocean. I suspect this will be the route for this cruise. The return will be the inside passage between Vancouver Island and the Mainland. Hopefully there is some daylight hours for this transit because it is quite nice scenery.

I had a lovely butter chicken pie from Glenwood for lunch yesterday. Very tasty, nice curry flavour not too spicy.

Steady now I haven't watched the race yet.

Ask for the sauce on the side then throw a shot of rum or bourbon in it, or throw the shot on the pudding before the sauce. Perhaps @POA1 could take on this vital research and submit a report on his findings. I would take it on myself but alas I won't be on Westerdam until March next year and this requires a quicker answer. Of course I wouldn't be able to do a good job on the bourbon variant because I have never enjoyed that spirit; Rum on the other hand is more to my liking. That being said I like vanilla sauce on bread pudding so my report would be skewed towards a vanilla sauce.

We have purchased future cruises on board. On Celebrity before the shut down, the future cruise consultant was very helpful pointing out how to get the most rewards for our booking. We didn't feel the consultant was as helpful as she could have been. Of course she knew the booking was going to our local TA so that may be part of it. In the end we booked onboard but perhaps didn't get the best value. After a few months we decided to extend the cruise in a big way and our local TA took care of the details. We did lose some OBC because of a cabin change and had to put forward a substantial deposit (refundable before final payment) to secure the new booking. Go prepared with the cruises you are interested in, where you want your cabin, what type of cabin and can you use Club Orange to your advantage (knowing you will have to pay the Club Orange fee at time of booking)

You need a cruise.😇

Good thing you aren't in Victoria (or more accurately Brentwood Bay for Butchart Gardens). It's pouring here today. We were only out in it for a few minutes and my Tilley hat was soaked and my Gore-Tex jacket was working to the max to keep me dry. Isn't weather a wonderful thing? 😉

Thanks for your eye witness report. I'm not sure it is fair to compare to what was, that is a recipe for disappointment. I think everyone needs to turn the page on "What was" and enter with an open mind. Was it a good show as a stand alone performance? Not compared to (insert previous show here). If you didn't like it, fair enough. I think you would find that a Paul McCartney show now isn't like it was 25 years ago. Give the new offerings a chance without comparing it to what was. One thing is for sure, what was isn't coming back, we can only hope that what is will continue to improve. I have to adopt this spirit of hope because we will be on Westerdam for 6 weeks around this time next year.

I'm hopeful that the new "entertainment" program works out. Many people lament what was lost, but at the same time complained that they had seen the same shows many many times. I remember back before the shut down where people who had been on the same ship for a few different voyages were wondering, When they were finally going to change out the productions how. Those same shows people now complain aren't being done. We don't cruise often so aren't concerned about repetition, we just want some enjoyable presentations. I don't think they should pass of a 3 year old movie for an evening presentation at the world stage counts as a proper presentation.

No problem, like I said I really don't know the rules. Before 911 Canadians could freely cross the border into the US and vice versa with no passport. Then the United States made new rules and that was stopped. Now almost 23 years later passports seem to be the norm. Enjoy your cruise, just make sure you have the right paperwork. It would suck to show up at the port and get turned away. A 10 minute stop in Victoria to satisfy the PVSA is a little different than a cruise with 3 Canadian port stops.

@ChinaShrek like I said the very name of the place suggests it rains there. I live in a rainy place and am aware that "rainforests" have rain. It sounds to me like a cruise to the Rainforest, be it here in British Columbia or the Amazon maybe isn't a good choice for you.