sailingdutchy

Congratulations Graham and Pauline , @grapau27 and by sheer coincidence I had prepared this post for today on the Daily News ....................... ! Today I would like to share with you a few pictures of a very special celebration while on board the Koningsdam 4 years ago yesterday , on August 19 2019 . Martha and I renewed our vows in front of Captain Darin Bowland just a few months after we had celebrated our 50th while we were at sea in the Mediterranean going from Santorini , Greece to Napels, Italy . We were blessed to be able to do this in front of our daughter Natascha , her husband and our two grandsons Jackson and Spencer. To show how wonderful and memorable Holland America and Captain Bowland made this special day for us I will include some very personal pictures. ************************* In consultation with my daughter I had booked this ceremony for Martha and I , so she was not aware I had booked this , I had only asked my daughter what she thought of my plan and what she thought of how mam would react . The day we came on board ship ……..this was waiting for us roses and a letter from the Captain , so I had to explain everything on the first day of what I had done ……. and she did not throw me overboard ! We also received a very nice official Certificate but it has too much personal info to post here . If you feel inclined to do something like this I can fully recommend it , we will also always remember this day on board the Koningsdam ! Tony 😍😍

Bonaire is part of the Lesser ( Leeward ) Antilles and has now a special status as a municipality within the Kingdom of the Netherlands . Population of about 21.000 and the capital city is Kralendijk. We have had the pleasure to go there a couple of times on one of the BHB’s and the last time was on Jan 19th 2018 while on the Koningsdam than with our good friends Ann and Pat and cruise friends from the Netherlands . Don’t know about that one ……….. but I will give it to you ……... There are lots of wild donkeys on the island A toast to a very nice day at the Librije Dinner that evening . We sure missed you Ann @VictOriann ! Appetizer from the menu “Oysters on the Beach ! “ And a very, very different "Dutch " Apple tart ….. The ABC Islands are a great escape from winter destination with almost steady temperatures of 28 degrees C with a nice breeze but no huge storms . Also Bonaire is one of the nicest destinations in the world to go diving in heavily protected waters ! Dear SIL and Grandson diving near the Salt pier How do they do that , I can't even float ......... I was only able to do that in the Dead Sea ! Tony 😄

We have been a few times on Curacao while cruising and also have been there on a twee week stay vacation when our Dutch cruise friends invited us to stay at their lovely condo . So I have lots of pictures but will try to post some different ones that have been posted over the last couple of years . First a night into the town of Willemstad starting with a dinner at the Gouverneur . Walking the floating Queen Emma Bridge that connects the Punda and Otrobanda neighbourhoods Going for a authentic. Rijsttafel dinner at a Dutch Indonesian restaurant " Batik Asli” Going for a large harbour tour which is behind the newer Juliana Bridge Visiting a local art exhibition including a place where a Dutch artist was building his Cathedral with the thorny branches that he harvest around the island . Symbols of a number of all the old and also modern “ religions “ are housed in the cathedral …….. Relaxing around the pool , it is almost 29 degrees C year-round with very little chance of large storms on Curacao . Walking around colourful Willemstad to the floating market where the Venezuelan’s on their boats sell their fresh produce Exploring the Island a little further . The Ostrich Farm And just relaxing with a book Next time some more pictures from other very nice parts of Curacao . Tony 😁😁

Good morning to all members of the Daily family and thank you again to Rich @richwmn and all other contributors who are keeping the Daily Fleet Report and Daily News going . I thought I had posted pictures earlier of Noumea but must have been busy in the garden the last couple of years in August. We were in Noumea , New Caledonia while on the Oosterdam on a lovely cruise in 2013 from Auckland , New Zealand all the way to Vancouver , Canada . I had set up a small group tour for 8 of us with a local guide who took us into the hills around the port to show us the beautiful nature and also the small village where he lived . Noumea is the Capital of the South Pacific archipelago and overseas French territory of New Caledonia situated on the main island Grand Terre . It is known for the beaches and the native Kanak influences a unique mix of French and old Melanesian culture . During WW II the US built a Naval base there which served as the headquarters of the US military in the South Pacific It was a very warm day despite the grey clouds so our guide took us also to his place for a welcome coconut water drink . A lovely day was had by all , so nice to see and experience local communities and cultures . Tony 😄😄

When we went to the Cayman Islands on one of our very first cruises I remember that day very well because we went to Hell !!!! Tried to find the nice pictures that I had taken but can't find them anymore , they disappeared the Devil must have grabbed them ...........! Tony 🙄

For a change something different from Tony When sailingdutchy does not sail , he also has a few hobbies to keep him occupied and this is one of them Just this morning I harvested my garlic that I planted last November Also started picking the pole beans , bush beans were a disappointment after the deer jumped my fence Tomatoes are getting close to finally , these are heritage “Brandywine “ a delicious beefsteak-shaped fruit . They are named after Brandywine Creek in Chester County , PA Cucumbers are done so is my kale after the rabbits finished them up , but made a lot of kale soup for in the winter. Still picking leaf lettuce that has been wonderful since May . This is how it started in May after we came home from the " Rotterdam “ Lettuce , radishes , green onions , shallots some herbs and beans Second garden , tomatoes , cucumber , peas, kale, kohlrabi, beans, squash and celery That's my throne in the back ..... And a small rhubarb plot that I just started late last year . Great hobby to have with good healthy benefits , nothing is sprayed . Tony 😄😄

Wow this is now 3 days in a row that I can show you my pictures ! We had the great pleasure on October 31st , 2016 while we were on the Prinsendam , the " Elegant Explorer “ to go the the Island of Gozo on a tour with a small group together with our good friends Ann and Pat and DD Cathy @VictOriann With our minibus we drove to the Northern part of the Main Island where we got on board the Gozo Ferry that would take us to the smaller island of Gozo I kind of like this picture taken from on the ferry at our arrival on Gozo Gozo is quite different from the main island , qua culture , scenery and also history so there are lots of pictures to chose from today , hope to show a nice selection here without too much description. After visiting the two historic sites we drove to the North West coast of Gozo to see this natural wonder the “ Azure Window " a natural bridge developed from nature which started from the beginning of the 1800’s Another look at this amazing natural phenomenon , look at the scale of this with people standing on top .......... I am really happy to show you this nice picture , but also very sad because the Azure Window is no more , …… After a storm on March of 2017 , this huge 92 foot high pillar ……. Completely disappeared into the sea after a very large storm in the Mediterranean ……..just 6 months after we were there ! Sharing this delicious platter " A Taste of Malta " with everything on it with for 4 of us ! Waiting in the departure hall for the ferry back to the main island A wonderful day was had by all of beautiful Gozo ……….glad we had an overnight in Valetta to be able to do this . Have a wonderful Sunday everybody ! Tony 😄

Are you ready for another very long post ....... Another very nice Port today ! We had the pleasure to get to Hakodate while on the Transition Cruise on the Volendam on Oct 11th , 2017 , the weather was a little bit windy and the day started of with some rain but we had a wonderful tour with 8 of us in a “ Smile Jumbo Taxi “ with our driver /guide Hideo . Like I said the day started quite rainy and windy but our driver had umbrellas for each of us on board , notice the white gloves that Hideo wore all day and he had nice clean and ironed white head covers on our seats in the taxi . We first went up the mountain near Hakodate to the National park to have a great view over the city and walked over to the Gokoku Shrine where some special ceremonies were going on . From there we drove to the very top on the mountain to the Ropeway Sorry not as nice a view as on the picture I noticed earlier today .......... We watched a very nice film at the theatre there about the history of the city , had a snack and most of the ladies because of all the rain had to go and deal with the special WC for which you really needed a drivers licence and Japanese sign language ……….. but they were impeccably clean We than left to have a walk though the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse with all kind of small specialty stores Even upside down you can see the beautiful swords ........lol After a nice little lunch , with some nice Ramen Soup in a small port we than drove to the Hakodate Magistrate’ s Office the “ Bugyosho “ in the Goryokaku Park , we toured that building and learned about the special construction of it . After the Bugyosho we went to visit the gardens of the Catholic Trappistine Monasteries a Convent founded by 8 French nuns , most of the buildings were reconstructed in 1927 . After visiting a couple more small parks and the Old British Consulate it was time to get back to the Volendam Despite it raining for most of the day and very few people able to speak English we all had a fantastic day , and hardly noticed the rain anymore after a while Greetings from Japan ! Tony 😉

As Ann @VictOriann has mentioned on Oct 13 , 2016 we were in the Port of Bari and I had set up a small group tour to the little village of Alberobello and view the curious Trulli houses . These trulli houses originated from an edict in the middle of the 15th century Kingdom of Naples when one of the counts imposed on the residents that they built their dwellings dry , without the use of any mortars so that they would be seen as precarious buildings and easily demolished . So the solution was to built small homes in the round form with self supporting domed roofs. Here you are Ann with my DW Martha With modern conveniences Huge chimneys to be a bit taller than the peaks They were not in my tour but from the looks of it they also had a good time . Inside one of the little stores The roof Even the San Antonio church That’s Tony with San Antonio di Padova Next we went to Ostuni with all the white houses Our wonderful group Time for a rest and a drink from Tony’s Tiring Tour ............ oops don't do that ...... ??????? ........don't want to get banned Saint Nicolas Basilica in Bari A wonderful tour day was had by all , if I say so myself , after we rested a bit later that evening we had a delicious dinner in the Captains corner of the Pinnacle Restaurant Not a bad day being the 13th of October Tony 😁😁

Good morning to all and thank you for the Daily Fleet Report . I just have a few pictures of our day in Manilla where we arrived with the Volendam in November of 2017 . We had a very nice welcome in the Port where of coarse there also were a lot of Philippine families looking to meet crew members who are such a large and important portion of the crew on all of the Holland America ships. We had a very nice and adventurous tour in a crowded and noisy Manilla but I lost a good number of nice pictures because of technical camera problems but here a few of them without too much commentary . I had a lot of fun in the Jeepney but for DW it was the first and last time ………..guess she is use to more luxurious forms of transportation . Sorry there is not much more to share today . Guess we have to go back there again we got very close to Manilla in Febryary of 2020 when we were on the infamous Westerdam cruise when Covid struck , we made it almost to the 200 mile nautical border of the Philippines when we were told by that Government we do not want you turn around ………..so we than floated in circles for another 12 days to find a place that would accept us , and you know the end of the story there were absolutely no cases of Covid on the Westerdam ! Did we look concerned ............. Tony 😁😁

As promised some more pictures of Singapore , this is from our 31 day cruise on the Volendam from Sidney , Australia to Singapore . Approaching Singapore on November 2015 Spending our evening in the Gardens by the Bay , which was all lit up and in the Christmas atmosphere , with Christmas music and beautiful light shows , Next morning after an overnight on board ship ready for a nice walking tour through Chinatown and old Singapore . Going through a number of Temples and churches of different religions all within a mile on the same street This was called the Hawaiian Shirt Tour and I was the only one dressed for the occasion …….. Singapore a very nice and very well organized city but with lots of regulations …. for instance no chewing of gum , no smoking streets , etc , etc A wonderful “ Food Court “ area with dozens and dozens of stalls , just point at the picture , pay and eat . Delicious ! They need lots of air-conditioning ! It is an extremely clean city . One more temple She’s like my Dear Wife , she can do everything ! That’s not me ….. Wonderful walking tour was had by all ! Ready to shove off and we are on our way to Thailand . See you in the next Port ! Have a great day everybody ! Tony 😁😁

Good morning to all Dailyites . I have a few minutes before meeting up with the many mosquitos in my garden to harvest some more delicious veggies for tonight . These pictures are from our second time in Singapore while we we waiting to get on board the now well known cruise on the Westerdam just before the big outbreak of the Covid when after the second nice week of cruising the BBC started calling us the “pariah “ ship trying to find a place in SE Asia that would accept us to go ashore after 13 days circling at sea ……… Beautiful new Hotel near Chinatown and a nice welcome with a bottle of wine ! DW was almost going to buy me one of these T shirts ………. that would not have been a good beginning of our cruise ........ It was getting close to Chinese New Year I will try to find my pictures of when we we for the first time in Singapore on the Volendam . Tony 😄😄

As promised here is part 2 of our day in Naha Here a few more pictures of Shurijo Castle The original castle was built in the 1400’s destroyed in 1945 rebuilt in 2000 and during a huge fire destroyed again in 2019 as of last February rebuilding efforts are under way after crowd funding campaign . At the end of our visit we walked back along this 500 year old stone path , Kinjo-cho Stone path good thing we did it from the top down instead of climbing it it is quite steep and could be slippery . So sad that beautiful castle with all it's history is gone Tony 😁

Good thing I got up early this morning to watch the Final day of the Tour de France and also the F1 Race in Hungary .............But first some nice pictures and wonderful memories of Naha , Japan ! Naha , Japan is located on the island of Okinawa and is the largest city and capital city of that Japanese Prefecture . Okinawa was part of the Ryukyu Kingdom from 1429 and officially annexed by the Empire of Japan in 1879 . Naha suffered extensive damage during the battle of Okinawa during WWII and the entire city centre had to be rebuild . Civil administration was returned to Japan in 1972 but a large portion of the US forces ( 26.000 ) are assigned to this prefecture. On Okinawa the Ryukyuan people make up the majority of the population and the traditional culture and language are still alive and well. We were in Naha on the Volendam and due to a storm they switched the date and we were very lucky that we arrived there on Nov 3rd , 2017 . Lucky because when the four of us walked to the monorail station to go to the Shurijo Castle we found out that a once a year special cultural event was to take place , the “ King of Ryukyu " was visiting the Shuri castle and going to pray at the different temples an amazing festival that only takes place once every year . There is a little more to come ........ Tony 😁😁

Knowing from how nice our day in Ceuta was from 2019 we went with our friend Andrea in 2022 for another taste of this nice city ! Here you see exactly where Ceuta is almost right across and in site from Gibraltar The Central Mercado Very nice that at the entrance of the Port they show honour of the fact that Holland America is in today ! Hercules again and in the distance Gibraltar ……… this is the right place for this smaller monument and the right moment to take this picture ! We celebrated that night with our friend and her mom in the Sell de Mer and yes with Caviar ! A little bit of Food Porn should not hurt anybody on this Daily Report . It also was her birthday ………our day could not been any better than this ! Have a great weekend everybody ! Tony 😄😍

Thank you for the pictures Jacqui @kazu from when we were also with you on the Prinsendam in 2019 , BTW I loved seeing the picture of Jose being interviewed ! Ceuta is a much nicer and more convenient Port than we had ever expected , you just walked from the ship into the town which feels very European and is also in the EU . We did not want to take the chance to cross into Morocco which is not too hard but getting back into the EU could be a problem on your own. Thank you also Linda @Quartzsite Cruiser for the very nice pictures from when you went across the border , being on a tour with HAL gave you enough security to get back into EU territory ! I will try not to duplicate with my pictures also from when we were there on the Nieuw Statendam for the second time in 2022 It is a huge Fort just to protect the town and Spanish territory near the Strait of Gibraltar ! Giving Hercules a hand ……… Kids working on their " floats “ for the Semana Santa procession And of coarse we had to get some Tapas Oops must be an iPad picture but you can see the lovely fresh fish The Elegant Explorer ! .........tsk , tsk ! Leaving the Port of Ceuta there is the smaller statue of Hercules What a lovely day we had in this Port that we had not expected at all Will try to find some more but than from the Nieuw Statendam cruise Tony 😄

Good afternoon all and many thanks to all of the contributors of the Daily . It is a very nice day here in SW Ontario today the humidity finally left us after a big vicious storm last evening so there is a nice little breeze to keep the mosquitos away and than I can go out and do some gardening . We have been a couple of times in Skagway and the first time in 2007 made the nice train ride up to the Canadian border into the mountains which was very exciting for me as a person growing up in the low lands . So today just a couple of pictures from our cruise in Sept of 2007 on the Zaandam . We first visited a very nice garden and were surprised everything was growing so well there in that climate . This looked very spooky near the top close to the border …… The Zaandam was only 7 years old at the time ( built in 2000) and it was only our second cruise we were quite impressed with the whole experience so we were hooked for life ! Back to the Tour de France and than my garden to do some harvesting , have a great day everybody ! Tony 😄

Good morning / afternoon to all Daily-ites , Rich and all contributors , I was happy to see that today it was the turn for another nice port we had been to on one of the HAL ships , Puerto Chacabuco . We were there on Feb 2nd , 2015 with the Zaandam on our cruise from Valparaiso to Buenos Aires. In a way we were a little bit lucky to do our small group tour from the port that day because on the last cruise before ours some upset local fisherman had been on strike and occupied and blocked the bridge which was near the port and none of the groups or large tours were able to get past the strikers . Beautiful scenery when we approached the port which is very small and where we had to tender. After a short walk out of port we found our mini bus and met up with our guide Here we are crossing the bridge which was guarded by a number of local police so there would be no disruption or occupation by strikers . After a nice scenic ride we entered the National Parc where we admired the beautiful flora and fauna and scenery . After another short ride we stopped in the middle of nowhere had to walk through some fields and grazing lands to end up at a large hall converted from an old barn where we were welcomed by the locals with a drink In the fire place a lamb was being roasted for those who chose lamb for lunch while I had a couple of delicious empanadas , with two different kind of fillings . After lunch it was time for a lovely show of a Folk dance teacher doing a number of dances with some of his pupils . At the end of this lovely show a couple from our tour were chosen to participate , here is DW , Martha , glad I did not have to perform . It was than time to start to go back on a different scenic route to port . A wonderful day was had by all , leaving than to go through all of the many channels and fjords towards Ponta Arenas where we would arrive 3 days later Hope I did not take up too much space today but it was very hard to choose from the many pictures I had , while describing a little bit of the wonderful day and our story of Port Chacabuco. Tony 😄

77 Numbers have always played a big roll in my life , I consider myself being a numbers man , I was educated as such and always bring everything back to numbers , so I just noticed that the number 77 is mentioned quite a few times today …………yes you can call me nuts or I am looking like I have nothing better to do but you could also say I paid attention to the Roll Call today ……….! Smitty…..77 , Ger_77 , Jimmy and Rosalynn 77 , and Linda saying it was 77 in Texas and it feels like 77 ……… So I thought today this was worth a special post on the Fleet Report and let you know how my brain works ……… other than that I watched the stage of the Tour de France today Max Pedersen won in Limoge , it was very exciting , and my favourite F1 driver Max Verstappen won another Pole position for the race tomorrow in Great Britain ……. Taking a break now and go into my garden see if the deer did not eat any more of my beans that I was almost ready to pick but I lost out to them ....... Have a great day everybody ! Tony

A few more pictures from another tour out of Civitavecchia , this one from last year while on the Oosterdam . There are so many lovely places to visit around Civi , and you will see we are again with one of my favourite guides Susanna and will end up in the “ Secret Garden “ where the Opera performances take place where Susanna performs , last year it received an upgrade ! Don't think I have to explain this one ........... Medieval town of Vetralla , ………and again we were treated to a lovely Italian “Tasting lunch “ in “ Il Giardino Secreto “ ( Secret Garden ) The stage and seating are for the Opera performances have been transformed A wonderful tour was had by all ! Civitavecchia just before our departure Buongiorno a Tutti ! Tony ( Antonio ) 😆

Your wish is my command @StLouisCruisers I got up early today to watch the bicycle race “ The Tour de France “ which I have followed since I was a kid and for me this is one of the most interesting sports event of the year and it is so nice to see all the beautiful areas in France . We have had the pleasure to be in Civitavecchia about 8 or 9 times to climb on board a BHB sometimes as initial embarkation to start a cruise and other times on a B2B cruise and exploring the beautiful area with a wonderful guide who lives nearby . Just love to show you a few pictures from a couple of tours without too much commentary . I won't go into Rome today just the area around Civitavecchia . The sinking and disappearing village of Civita di Bagnoregio Going to our guides home in a beautiful medieval town , visit her "Secret Garden " and have a wonderful lunch . Lovely lunch at our guides place in Vitrala . Their back yard all set up for a concert or an opera performance , this is the "Secret Garden " A very happy group , here with our wonderful friends Ann and Pat @ after a wonderful day on a tour from Civitavecchia , we will have to do this again hopefully soon ........ A wonderful day was had with our good friends Ann and Pat @Vict0riann I have just finished booking another tour for October when we are on the Oosterdam with the husband of our lovely guide Susanna when we reach Civitavecchia again . Tony 😄😄

We have been a few times in Valencia and surroundings because my youngest brother lives nearby . The inner court of his home . Enjoying a nice lunch with my Dutch brother who has a summer home near Valencia and my Spanish Brother who has lived there for 40 some years . It was a long time ago the three have met all together Enjoying a fantastic original Paella with the familia , cooked outdoors on a wood fire . Fred makes the best ones with either chicken , rabbit or seafood . Brothers home on the left and to the right is where the ladies meet in the morning doing their laundry at the well . A lot of talking is always going on ............ The village from the tower in the centre where he plays his guitar because of the great acoustics Lunch : a Set Menu of the day and bring your own bottle of wine . My brother works with a few Bodegas so nothing but the best ! Youngest brother Fred ( Alfredo ) is a great classical Spanish guitar player and composer . Valencia . The nice old entrance hall of the Valencia train station The Arena in Valencia Entrance to the Ceramics Museum . Palacio del Marques de Dos Aguas . The ceramics museum The Catedral . After sundown when the Spanish heat subsides in Valencia ( 38 C ) an nice outdoors dinner I am also still looking for the cruise pictures when we had another very nice day in Valencia and met up again with the family near the “ City of Arts and Sciences complex “ . Spain has always been one of our favourite destinations . Hope you enjoyed seeing a few personal pictures from in and near Valencia . Tony😀😀

Thank you for the beautiful pictures Sandi @StLouisCruisers and others that saved me a lot of work because we also did the beautiful Lysefjord tour so I will just add " my 2 cents “ worth as proof we were there , lol ! Rain , rain and more rain and thundershowers for us today in SW Ontario , more time to spend behind the computer and dream about cruising again .......... Will skip my pictures today of lots of rocks and more goats ..... Have a great day everybody . Take Care and Stay Safe ! And for the Americans in this Community have a wonderful July 4th ! Tony 😄

Good morning all and thank you Rich for another interesting Daily report with a wonderful destination . Will have to look for some worthy pictures to share before I start my daily tasks . These are from 2015 while on the Zaandam to Antarctica from Santiago to Argentina . We are almost there …. Some Expedition ships are waiting in port The flora in this most Southern Town was a big surprise Getting my postcards stamped at the “ End of the World “ postoffice . Another War monument in Argentina for the war in the Malvinas ……... Falkland Islands That is NOT me escaping from prison ...... Back on board ship …….tonight it is the Indonesian crew show ……. Tony 😁

We have been more than a dozen times on a Trans Atlantic crossing out of about 80 days at sea we maybe had 2 or 3 days that it was a little rough . It can be rough anywhere at sea the Mediterranean can be rougher and so could be the North Sea . There really is nothing to worry about @WVU_Neal ! Tony 😄