Ba' Datz

St. Maarten you need a water taxi or taxi .

You can walk from the port to the bus on Back Street in about 15-20 minutes. The bus is $2 per person and it takes about 35-40 minutes. The bus is actually a minivan that says BUS on the license plate. There will be a sign in the window to where it is going.There is heavy traffic in and around town.

The taxis are much more expensive

Maho Beach is really worth the visit, enjoy

There are a few books in the library that can be borrowed, but I would not call it an extensive collection.

Sorry to disagree but there were plenty of books, both pocketbooks and hard cover, in various languages, available at least on departure day.

One should get there early for the best choice.

at least the plumber has the right tools.;)

:) very funny

We too were on the TA and it was a fantastic cruise. The ship was super clean, the staff attentive, the entertainment and CDStaff generally very good. We could not understand what all the bad reviews were about.

We would book another cruise on her in a minute I will try to post a full review later this week

What is the situation on Maho Beach?

I tried using IE version 8 which is not supported and it would not allow me to add the 4 digit credit card info. I switched to Chrome and it worked fine including the CA level and the signature area.

Thanks for this. Please can anyone recommend a taxi firm that I could book before our cruise to do this journey to Yad Vashem and back?

 

 

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I got two quotes for you for pickup at the ship, trip to Yad VeShem, 2-3 hour wait and return to the ship.

Sea Mall Taxi 972-8-8540540 (speak to Dorit) about 640 NIS

HaNamal Taxi 972-50-5544432 about 900 NIS or 200 Euro

I can't personally recommend either but they are reliable taxi companies in Ashdod.

I would not take te bus from the port as the stop is very far and in my opinion not walkable. If you choose public transportation take a taxi to the Central Bus Station in Ashdod and proceed as posted above.

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So this rabbi agrees with me that it is hypocritical to pretend that the OP's son is keeping kosher all the time even though he is eating non-kosher vegetarian meals at non-kosher homes.quote]

:):)

Actually if a waitstaff (or head waiter) is on the ball' date=' there shouldn't be any delays in bringing out specially prepared food. Especially if you stick with traditional dining. When I had indicated in our cruise personalizer for my hubby to be on a low fat diet on one cruise, the head waiter would come over at the end of every dinner and have him select the next nights entree. The kitchen knew when we were eating and would have his plate ready when everyone else's (at our table) was prepared. Nobody was inconvenienced.[/quote']

 

 

I eat the prepared Kosher meals on all my cruises and it never inconvieniences anyone including myself.

 

Firstly it is only available in the MDR and the wait staff is well aware of my needs. The hostess informs the Head waiter that I arrived, I am seated and within a few minutes my appetizer or soup is served. When I am finished my entree comes out and then dessert just like any other diner.

 

No problem at all

I guess I'm not surprised to see who posted this. I find the posting of this story, and your need to recant it, offensive- on any forum, but especially on this thread.

The whole story sounds phony and I do not even recognize the poster.

Who was the poster? The Captain? The ship's owner? Very doubtful

As to the cruiser, didn't he know that the ship would end the cruise on Shabbat?

Could he rely on finding a good samaritan to do his bidding?

And if he was dragged off the ship and forced into a police car and driven away, wouldn't that be more a violation of Shabbat than just going through immigration?

Seems like the poster just wanted to have a good laugh at the expense of observant people. Shame

I wonder how he intends to find out how many fellow passengers will be Jewish. Is he going to call the cruiseline and ask "How many Jews are going to be on my cruise?" I don't think that would go over very well. But then, since he is choosing which rules to follow, I guess he won't care how many Jews will be on the ship.

I think that it is pretty much a given that most of the passengers are not Jewish even if you use the standard of what their percentage is in the general population.

There might be a problem on a cruise sponsered by groups such as Kosherica which can bring at times over a thousand people onboard. However they also bring along Rabbis to make sure that all is done according to Jewish law

Check out the Cruising Jewish board. All level of observance over there.

Unfortunately that board has very little to do about cruising and Judaisim as well. You will not find much information there

Two points -

 

 

2. I know that strictly orthodox Jews can not ride in a vehicle on Shabbat. Suppose that the ship is not in port but at sea on Shabbat. Is he not in a vehicle and why is traveling on a ship on Shabbat any different that traveling on a car, bus, train or airplane?

 

DON

The difference between a ship and car is that the ship starts the journey before the Sabbath and it is a continuous trip over the Sabbath. A car or cruise that starts on the Sabbath would be prohibited.

Again thank you for your response, to which I reply with these comments.

 

2. I just don't get why modern logic can be applied to some situations but not others, and understand why others might also be confused.quote]

 

 

To be honest with you, I too get confused sometimes, saying, Why this yes and this no, but then in the end I rely on wiser Rabbis who understand the laws and where they are coming from, and what are their implications, to guide me and make the decisions.

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my questions, I appreciate your response. Which in turn raises a further question.

If as you state Rabbinic Opinions allow for tradition to be changed because of changed or improved conditions, why would that not be applicable to other aspects such as the use of Electricity, touching a Lift button, or carrying ID in the form of a Sea Pass Card ?

 

Again please accept my previous statement of apology if my question is intrusive.

I agree with your premise but there is a difference.

For example, not feeling well on the Sabbath is not violating a Torah or Halachic (Jewish Law) prohibition. People who are sick on Shabbat are not "sinners". But you want to be as "well" as possible in order to enjoy all the things that the Sabbath gives you and your family.

On the other hand the things that you mentioned all concern direct violations of various rules of Sabbath law such as creation of new things, fire, and many more. (again way to wide for this discussion)

There the Orthodox Rabbis are much more hesitant to change and modernize and instead try to find ways to observe and be part of the 21st century but still observe the laws.

It is not easy but can be done. In fact, I do enjoy my cruises and hope to continue to do so

I read this post with great interest, not because I have any personal religious involvement with it, but simply to educate myself about such issues. I hope my questions do not offend as they are not intended to, and if they do please feel free to ask for this post to be removed.

 

The first part of the article linked states:

 

"One may not embark on a sea journey on the three days preceding Shabbat. This means that you may not initially board a cruise after sunset on Tuesday evening."

So my question is, How does this apply to to the day at sea, or evening repositioning of a ship back to a home port on say a Friday for Sunday arrival, as I accept it is part of another journey but is also a separate sailing if leaving one port to another ?

 

My second question is with regard to my understanding that no work or business can be conducted on the Shabbat.

So how does that apply as surely the purchase of a cruise vacation is a business transaction between the cruise line and the passenger. As part of that transaction it is agreed that the ship will provided facilities and service for the period of say 7 days, so surely a room attendant servicing a room, or an entertainer providing entertainment, or a waiter serving food is part of that transaction. Which would in turn take place on The Shabbat.?

 

Again please know that I am not trying to be smart or challenge anyone but simply trying to understand my fellow man or woman.

 

I hope that by doing so I can become a better fellow cruiser

 

Thank you for your understanding, and please feel free to ask for this comment to be removed if it is in any way offensive.

 

Thank you.

Hi there. I will try to answer your questions and appreciate your desire to obtain information as to others religious practices.

The issue of starting a journey by Wednesday has to do with the passenger's comfort and well being by Friday evening at the start of the Sabbath. In the olden days when ships did not have stabilizers and any sea voyage was a "rock and roll adventure", passengers frequently suffered from seasickness and worse. Since the Sabbath is the day of rest and enjoyment, the Rabbis wanted to make sure that the passenger would adjust to the sea voyage before the Sabbath and not spend it being sick, hence the three day lead time.

Today there are Rabbinic opinions stating that since the ships conditions have improved it is permissible to board a ship even on Friday.

Once you are onboard there is no problem with it sailing on the Sabbath as long as the passenger follows the Sabbath laws individually.

As to the work issue, it is presumed that the majority of the passengers and crew on the ship are not Jewish and thus the work onboard is not done especially for the Jewish passenger. In this case he can benefit from work that is being done anyway.

If all the passengers and crew, and the owners were Jewish it would be a whole different story

This is a very very general explanation as even within this "opening" there are many things that the Jewish passenger can have done for him and lots that he can't. But this goes way beyond the scope of your question.

When I cruise I am constantly asked by crew and passengers alike to explain my religious practices and am very happy to do so.

I am Orthodox and have cruised both on RCL and NCL and both lines are very accommodating towards the Shabbath observer.

I was able to tape over the door lock so it would not slam shut and when that was not possible the room steward would open it for me when he saw me without me telling him to do so.

As to public areas the doors are always opening and you can always go through with little or no wait especially if you are in high traffic areas.

Regarding food warming, this is a whole different matter and one should consult his LOR (Local Orthodox Rabbi) as to what is permissible based on his level of observance. There are endless possibilities.

I never went of the ship on Shabbat because of the card issue and carrying once on shore, but primarily because of the problem of reboarding. There it is not only an issue of scaning but also of the metal detectors. Yes they do have them at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, but they are specially calibrated with a different operating system for Shabbat, and I doubt if the shipboard detectors are the same.

All in all cruising is easy for the Orthodox traveller and with a little preplanning you can have a great time,

I am off on my second Transatlantic in two months time.

Do they also come in black for formal night? ;-)

 

Honestly, why would an adult, not hospitalized, would want to wear a RCI wristband for the duration of a cruise? Might help if you get lost on Barbados for locals to figure out where you belong to, but other than that, I would not be thrilled about wearing a big blue wristband for days or even weeks.

Not thrilled here!

Who says you have to put in on the wrist. Maybe you carry it on your lanyard.

I can just imagine the threads about that idea

We have always wanted to do a TA... Those are awesome prices. How do you spot those? Whenever I look on the Royal Caribbean site they always show TAs at $1000+.

The Nov 2 14 night TA on the Adventure has rooms starting at $524

Availability changes constantly during the day from K to Q and back

thanks to all for the info

My travel agents info says that there is a free GREEN CITY LINK BUS from the station to the port/docks (RCL) .

I cannot find any information about it on the port website. It does mention a BLUE CITY LINK BUS for 1GBP but it is not clear if it goes to the RCL docks

Can I get there with this or is taxi the only option?

Also can it be walked with only carry on luggage?

Thanks

9-5 daily. We have used them before and it was great! Just leave a tip :)

The restaurant opens at 9 but it says on the website that baggage service is from 8:30

Yes, you will both get points for the cruise. She can sign up for C&A with the Loyalty Ambassador on board. There will be forms to fill out at the LA's desk, and a place to drop the form.

 

No perks for her, but she is only missing the "coupons" on her SeaPass card. You may ask, but they are unlikely to care if she accompanies you to the C&A party/parties. That's about it for perks. ;)

There are other Platinum perks like Priority check in, Robes in room, Departure lounge, Trivia, Meet the stars, Parties etc. How would that play out?

I am Platinum and my wife is a first time cruiser. Will we both get points for the cruise?

What about the perks? Are they applicable to both of us?

800-205-9812

thanks