USN59-79

We have TMobile and not only did it work in the Alaska ports on our recent Westerdam cruise from Yokohama to Seattle, it also able to use it for email in all the Japanese ports also. Ray

Here is our experience with a motor home. In 1991 we bought a small Winnebago MH on a one ton Toyota chassis. Seemed like a perfect size as you could drive it to a store without a problem. Our DD lives in Iowa, so we used it to visit her and to drive down the Oregon coast camping on the beach. We finally sold it for a couple of reasons. We found if we wanted to drive to Iowa, we could do 70 mph in the car versus 60 mph in the Winnebago. It was much easier to stop at a motel for about $70. versus finding a motor home park and hook up the sewer and electrical system, etc. However, we finally sold it because we found that we didn't use it enough. At the time WA based license fees on the value of the vehicle, so that was another reason. Ray

Concerning insects on the Panama Canal. There are huge moths that at night are attracted to the ship's lights. Some are very pretty. If you walk on the promenade deck in the morning some will still be attached to the ship and you can take pictures of them. Not a bug, but a feature of a Panama Canal cruise. Ray

We once sailed 71 days on the Ocean Princess around Africa and it had a library exactly like that one; even the furniture and the ceiling painting was similar. Unfortunately, a few months later the ship was sold to Oceana and is now called Sirena. Today is a cool day, in the mid 60s, so I will start working on my deck. Am replacing the wood with a material called Timber Tek, similar to Trex. Will be pulling up and de-nailing the wood today. Ray

We did. I blame it on my second glass of red wine. Ray

And I have never not found a seat in the Lido at breakfast. We always eat breakfast in the Lido. Ray

There is no doubt that AI will change our life over the next few years; in ways that we have not yet imagined. I have a large collection of old National Geographic magazines and was reading one yesterday from 1982. The entire edition was dedicated to the computer chip, what was happening now and in the future. Some of the predictions were correct, some not. They had no idea of what the internet would do for us, like mobile banking, credit cards, buying from Amazon, cell phones as computers and cameras, and social media. There were ads for Nikon and Olympus cameras and a two-page one for Sears. The personal computer of the time was the Apple II; Steve Jobs was adamant that it was a personal, not home computer. I think AI will revolutionize the cruise line's online presence for the better and make it easier to decide upon and book excursions. However, until robots can do human tasks, people will still have to take care of staterooms, cook and serve meals, manage the laundry, and drive the ship. We will still need doctors and nurses, but AI will make their jobs more easy and diagnoses more precise. I look forward to it. Ray

On the 2017 WC on the Amsterdam we were given a nice 16 inch travel umbrella to keep. It sits behind the seat in my car now. Ray

I was happy to be able to use the binoculars provided. If I saw a ship or a whale while sitting on the balcony, it was easy to step inside, pick up the binoculars and use them. No, they weren't high end $500 Nikon binoculars, but they were easy to focus and I appreciated that the ship provided them. Ray

They were provided in our Signature Suite on the Westerdam. Ray

My fault, too. I assumed "wine package" meant buying 6 or 8 bottles of wine at the beginning of the cruise as we did the last time we sailed. Didn't realize when the waiters were delivering the tiny carafes of wine to the next table that it was also a wine package. Ray

The wine bottle will be on your table in the MDR. If my glass is empty and the steward is not near, I just pour my own second or third glass. Not a big deal. Ray

Or you can go to the MDR soon after you board and the MDR manager should be at a table to help guests change their tables or dining times. We have always been able to change ours at this time. Ray

Hate to be negative, but today is not Chinese Dragon Boats Festival. It is on the fifth day of the fifth month on the Chinese Lunar Calendar. Thus it varies every year from sometime in May to sometime in June. Last year it was on 3 June. This year it will be on 22 June and next year (2024) on 10 June. I looked it up because when I asked my DW if she knew today was Dragon Boats Festival day she said "No, it is not." When I was stationed on Taiwan we enjoyed this time of the year because there were so many Chinese and American holidays and we got to celebrate all of them. Ray

If extra pillows will do it, no problem. We had eight pillows on our double bed and two more on the love seat. I was thinking: If HAL wants to save money, why so many pillows? We were in a signature suite; not sure if all cabins had that many. Ray

Thought I should check in as I have been reading this daily, but didn't have anything significant to add. Good weather here, so have been doing yard work for the last few days. Today I repainted the railings on my deck as my son and I will replace the wood decking in a week or two with Trex like boards and I didn't want to drip any paint on the new boards. I was impressed how many members of the Daily pitched in with useful info on some obscure (to me) Scandinavian ports a few minutes after a member asked for it. I don't do Twitter or You Tube or the other popular social media sites, but I do enjoy checking into CC every day. Ray

We all know that we are not allowed to mention the names of individual travel agents or their companies on this website. Apparently that is because CC is a TA or tries to steer us to a particular TA that advertises on this website. My question is: Has anyone ever used a TA associated with Cruise Critic? How was the experience? Ray

We have been almost always on the waitlist for early fixed dining. When we board we go immediately to the MDR to speak to the head person there. Usually they will have a table set up at the entrance to sort out dining and table issues. We have always been able to get a table assigned for the cruise at that time. Ray

If you are a 4 or 5 star mariner there is a disadvantage in buying it in advance. I bought the 8-bottle #1 package expecting a 50% discount from the $258. price. Checked my credit card statement onboard and found that they had charged me $258. Brought it up with the front desk 3 times and finally gave them a photo of my credit card statement. They said they would take care of it, but they did not. I think that if I had bought it onboard that would not have happened. Incidentally, they still owe me $129. Ray

Terri, I have a suggestion about your new dryer. Go to the store and take a look at the damage to it. It is possible it is a scratch or small dent on the side that wouldn't be noticeable in the house. Of course that devalues it a couple of hundred dollars which they would deduct from the price. Worth it to take a look. Ray

I agree that the meets are useful and I regret that I couldn't fit them into my schedule on our recent cruise. I once met a retired Marine Corps officer there who showed me how to request a copy of my military service records from the National Personnel Records Center in St Louis, MO. A few years later, when I was diagnosed with leukemia, they were helpful showing when and where I was on the ground in Vietnam so I could prove my exposure to Agent Orange. Although it has never happened, I hope to someday meet an old shipmate on one of these get togethers. Ray

I was overcharged twice on the Westerdam, both for items ordered before we boarded. I noticed the first one when I got my first statement; I was charged half price for dinner in the Pinnacle. Since that was my first Pinnacle Grill dinner and the first two are free for 5-star mariners, I discussed it with the front desk. Took awhile for them to figure out how to fix it, but finally Riyo there figured it out. The other thing was my charge for an 8 bottle wine package. It is listed at $219, but in the fine print they add 18% to it for $258. However, as a 5-star it should have been half price. A few weeks into the cruise I downloaded my visa statement and found that I had been charged $258.42 on 13 March and there was never a credit for the difference. I discussed it a few times with the front desk and even gave them a picture of my credit card statement. Eventually I got a call from them that they had fixed the overcharge. I believed them at the time but when I got home I found that they didn't tell the truth. So at this point HAL still owes me about $126 for my wine package. When I filled in my online critique of the cruise one of the questions was "How could we have made your cruise better?" I answered "just pay me the $126. you owe me for my wine package" Personally, I don't expect to get it, but it will be in the back of my mind if I think of cruising with HAL again. Ray

You are right about the tipping policy in 2003, Ruth. I just pulled a folder on our 2003 7-day Alaska cruise on the Noordam. The cost was about three times what a similar 7-day Alaska cruise now costs on the Westerdam, but there was no mandatory or even requested tipping. Not sure what your union statement means. Are you saying that the crew are members of a union? If so, what union? Ray

The Westerdam had a veteran's gathering a few times at 4:30. I would enjoy meeting people who may have similar experiences to mine. However, we had fixed dining at 5:15 and 4:30 is the time we take a shower and get ready for dinner. I had hoped it might be scheduled at a different time, but it was always 4:30. I did meet some veterans on board and they were very pleasant to talk with. Ray

When returning, look at flights from Sydney to Honolulu then Honolulu to Home. Good way to break up a very long flight. Ray