Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Just back from 9/5 Veendam - Great Trip!

KatWag

By KatWag,
in Holland America Line

Recommended Posts

KatWag

KatWag

Posted
Posted

Will write a full review later after I get settled in. But it was a super trip.

 

Quick highlights:

 

Food - main problem here was that three days into the trip my clothes were already tight. :(

 

Suites - we were in S012. No A/C problems in our suite although several others did have some issues. (I'll go into more detail on this when I write the review). Neptune lounge was a great amenity. Abby and Jennifer were super. And it was great being able to get snacks and that terrific coffee whenever we wanted. Laundry was a big help as well, especially given how hot it was when we were on the island. Our room stewards did an excellent job.

 

Crew - I can't imagine a more friendly crew than on this ship. Everyone from the Captain on down. Feels like a happy ship.

 

Shows were very good. Two of the singer (Josh and Laura) had amazing voices.

 

Port lecturer, Damien, was a highlight for me. Too many lines these days only gloss over port info and go right to a hard sell. Kudos to HAL for having this position. Damien and Todd (Shore Ex) made a terrific team and really did a nice job of balancing between info and sales.

 

St. Georges - as reported before, the tendering can be a challenge. It was not an issue getting off and on. The biggest problem is that the length of time between tenders kind of restricts the amount of time you can spend on the island. Folks with the earlier dinner sitting probably ended up taking the 2:30 back if they wanted to have time for a shower and quick drink before dinner. Nothing they can do about the ship being too wide for the cut, but if they could have more frequent trips back to the ship it would enhance the experience.

 

Hamilton - loved being docked here and being able to get off an on. Can't beat the convenience of this location. Very hot and humid when we were there. Some rain but not a lot and did not last.

 

Have to go get some unpacking done and start separating laundry. Will write full review over the next few days. I think I have all the daily schedules, so if anyone has any questions I'll try to answer them.

 

But we will definitely sail HAL again (this was our first trip) and were very sad to leave the ship today. There were really very few negatives and they were far exceeded by all the positives.

 

I had read a lot of negative reviews about this ship and was concerned before we boarded about some of what I had read. But I honestly did not see a lot of what folks complained about in some earlier posts. Will go into details of both pros and cons later.

 

Kathy

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KatWag

KatWag

Posted
  • Author
Posted

OK - here's the start. I learned so much from folks here before this trip. We've cruised a lot but this was our first HAL cruise. So I'll try to be detailed wherever I think it might be of any use.

 

Joanie - we took some pics of the room. If they turn out well I'll send them to you for your site.

 

Day One:

 

Is there anything better than driving to a cruise port? What a difference in packing. Since HAL had two formal nights scheduled for our cruise we had the requisite half suitcase just for DH's dressy stuff. I am always astounded by how much space it can take for men's dress shoes. Note that I am completely ignoring the comparison between the number of pairs of shoes I took and the number DH took. :)

 

Of course, I ended up overpacking. Took two bottles of wine for the room. Also took a fan. I had read so much before we left about A/C issues that I was really concerned. The night before we left I bought that new dyson bladeless fan, didn't even open the box, just put it into a carryon and took it aboard with me. The woman at security had never seen one like it before so when it went through the Xray she had me open the carryon and show it to her. But right before we left I had read the review from the person in suite S016 who had major A/C issues. Since that was only two doors down from our cabin, I decided better safe than sorry.

 

Only took about two hours to hit the city line. That's where we made a mistake. We followed Mapquest and they took us in 12th Ave to 55th. It was already stacked up and took about 25 minutes to get to the pier. Biggest problem was the short light to turn left and the long line ahead of us. Seemed like only a few cars made it through each light. We were leaving from Pier 90. NCL Dawn was in Pier 88. Dropped off our bags on the lower level. Then found out we had to go all the way back to 12th Ave and go around again to park. This time we got smarter, went up to 11th Ave and came down to 55th. It was a straight shot across at that point and worked much better. Anyone driving in from PA or NJ I highly recommend ignoring Mapquest instructions and coming in 11th Ave.

 

Got to the parking for Pier 90 and were told they were full. They told us to go down to Pier 88. Headed down there, were inspected by the K9 team and found a space with no problems. We both expected more parking spaces, to be honest. Did not seem like a lot, although we might just not have seen everything. I wonder if folks arriving later ever end up with nowhere to park?

 

We took the escalator down to ground level and walked over to Pier 90. There appeared to be a suites line but the way to it was blocked. So we asked the attendant at the entrance. He gave us a tag with an S on it. We cleared security and then found a suites entrance for check in. Our timing was perfect. I think this was right around 11:30. As the check in person was taking our security photo they announced the boarding for suites. Definitely the fastest check in we've ever had. There were already a good number of folks in the terminal at this point and I saw them handing out number 7 tags. Seemed to be plenty of seats available.

 

Once onboard we found the Neptune. The doors to the suites were open and we peeked through the door as we went down to the Neptune - looked really nice. Abby was at her desk in the Neptune. We met her and dropped off our bags then headed off to explore.

 

First stop was the Lido since we knew that would get packed afterwards. This is where reading posts here on CC really pays off. Since I knew before getting onboard about the way the serving is done the first few days we figured it would back up and knew to head for the Lido right away. We ate fairly lightly (probably for about the last time on this trip) and then went off to explore the rest of the ship.

 

Met Emerson at the Ocean bar and tried our first two HAL drinks. The espresso martini was amazing. And DH had a mojito with coconut rum which he raved about :)

 

Ended up back at the Neptune after exploring and tried out the coffee machine everyone raves about. Wow! Would love to have one at home..............

Asked Abby to make reservations for us for Canaletto. The welcome aboard cocktail party in Neptune was scheduled for 7:15 so she made a reservation for 8PM.

 

About 2:30 I guess, the rooms were were ready and we collected our carryons and headed for the cabin. Room seems very slightly warm but we've had that before on other cruises until we got under way so we weren't concerned.

 

The layout was a little different from what we are used to since the bedroom and living areas are really one room with no walls or curtains between. Lots of storage space. Three closet sections in the dressing area. Champagne and a bottle of water waiting with gift cards. Our stewards stopped by to introduce themselves and brought us some fresh ice. We asked them to fill up the ice bucket so we could have the champagne for sailaway. (Ended up saving it after all and having it the last sea day). The balcony was great. Loved the space and this was definitely the best balcony furniture we've had on any of our cruises. Wicker furniture with very comfortable cushions.

 

Luggage arrived probably within a half hour after the cabins were ready. So we were able to unpack and put everything away before the boat drill.

 

I definitely like the new way the lines are doing the drills - no more dragging your life jacket around with you. We were in section 4. Went smoothly and then I headed up to Crow's Nest to get some nice seats to watch the sailaway while DH went to grab the cameras. (Got myself a little turned around - I'm terrible with directions. Ended up picking two seats that were almost right above our cabin and thought I was at the front of the ship. :) DH came up - commented that if I wanted to sit in that direction I might was well do it from our own balcony and we moved to front facing seats.)

 

This turned out to be a great spot for sailaway. We met some really nice folks. One of the ladies we met recommended trying the signature Spanish Coffee. I love the fancy coffees and this was treat. They flame it right in front of you. Definitely enjoyed sipping my Spanish Coffee as we sailed by the Statue of Liberty and then under the bridge. DH ran in and out to take pictures. We stayed up there until we couldn't see anything more, then headed down to change for dinner. Sailing out of NY is really a treat. This was only the second time we've done it.

 

We enjoyed the cocktail party. They had a very nice selection - much more than what you normally see at these events. I had a lemon drop. And they had a very nice spread of appetizers being served as well. Seemed well attended, although not packed so I am guessing not all the suite passengers attended. After the party we headed for Canaletto's. I thought the food was good. The service the first night was kind of slow. But we figured that was because they were short staffed due to needing extra servers in the Lido. They make fresh garlic bread for your bread basket so it takes a bit to get your bread - it is worth it - the garlic bread is excellent. I had the lasagne and DH had the Veal. The only bad choice we made (for our taste) was the dessert. We ordered the chocolate dessert and later wished we had gone for the Tiramisu instead.

 

Never made it to the show the first night - by the time we finished dinner it was too late so we checked out some of the lounges instead. Then off to bed to rest up for the first sea day.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
kazu "Live from...." Rare

kazu

Posted
Posted

Kathy thanks for your great review. out of curiosity when you have time, share with us how you feel about HAL compared to your other cruise lines you have been on? Looks like you were off to a great start.

 

Thanks again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KatWag

KatWag

Posted
  • Author
Posted

First Sea Day - part one

 

Slept great, as usual on a ship. The beds are very comfortable on Veendam. Very little creaking in the room even when the ship is moving at a decent clip. About the only noise I really heard was the clock on the wall - it would make a click when the minute hand moved. At first I thought it was ice clinking in the ice bucket - took me a bit to figure it out.

 

Woke up when they started moving the chairs around on the Lido. That soon became my wake-up call. (Got burned counting on it though........ on Wed they were late and I missed the first half hour of scenic cruising.) :)

 

Actually this was the biggest negative about the suites on this ship. It really was not bad in the morning - only a small amount and I tend to get up early anyway. But it went on all day as folks moved the chairs around upstairs and it could get pretty distracting. Some days it seemed almost constant - I guess folks moving the tables and chairs around to go back and forth to the pool or the buffet or bar.

 

I noticed when I looked at the brocheres that the newest two ships have the suite floors sandwiched between two floors of staterooms so I'm guessing HAL is addressing the issue going forward.

 

Headed over the Neptune to get coffee to enjoy on the balcony while DH got ready. We spent a lot of time out there this trip. It was a very comfortable spot and I love looking at the ocean. On my way back into the room a woman stopped me and asked how our cabin had been overnight. She was in S08 (one section down from us). She said their cabin had been unbearably hot overnight. And then she mentioned that their neighbors in S06 had the same problem and that the husband in that cabin had resorted to sleeping outside on his veranda overnight. She had called to complain. They sent someone up. If you've read past posts on this you know what's coming - it was within acceptable levels. When she insisted on speaking to a supervisor she was told by the supervisor that nobody had complained about the A/C before. I filled her in about the posts and reviews here on CC and passed along the advice folks had shared. Later in the day we passed the cabins in the S14 / S16 section. The door to one was almost always open. The folks were in the room but the door was wide open. This was one of the cabins that a previous poster mentioned as a problem so I'm guessing it was because of the heat.

 

We felt very fortunate. Our room was comfortable throughout the trip. The only day it got a bit warm was the last night. As other posters have mentioned, the thermostats seem decorative only - they don't seem to actually work. But it seemed like the rooms in the two sections on either side of us had some A/C issues.

 

Pinnacle Grill was open for suite breakfast the entire trip. We headed over there and had a great breakfast. I was very impressed with the food. More of the lines are moving to pre-packaged items these days. But the french toast and belgian waffles were clearly made to order. And the presentation in Pinnacle was terrific. Service was excellent. Not too many folks in there for breakfast - at least not at the times we went.

 

One thing I thought they should do differently. I think a small discreet sign for suite breakfast might be helpful. There were several occasions where folks came in wanting to have breakfast only to find out they were not eligible. I thought that made them feel unnecessarily uncomfortable and could have been avoided.

 

Checked out the shops onboard a bit - window shopped on the way to breakfast and then did some damage to the shipboard account on the way back after they opened. Not too much damage though. Most of the clothes were at 50% off.

 

Lots of activities on the daily schedule. First up for us was the port talk on Bermuda. Todd and Damien did this together and I thought they did a really nice job. More and more these days the port talk is nothing more than a sales pitch for shore excursions. They had a very nice mix of information about Bermuda and information about the shore excursions. It was very nicely done. Damien did several talks through the trip and was available at his desk for questions and also on the pier. The room was like a meat locker though. Lots of folks ran back for jackets. DH actually ran up to the shop and bought one of the HAL sweatshirts to wear. There was some joking about taking some of this excess air and piping it up to the cabin floors.

 

11AM was the shopping talk - we've been to Bermuda several times and were not really interested in shopping so we skipped this in favor of relaxing on our veranda. Just grabbed some snacks from Neptune and enjoyed them on the veranda while reading.

 

We thought about the wine tasting at 2PM but opted for the 3PM "mixology" class instead. Met Gerry and Jhun - got to know them pretty well over the next few days. And Rashida (the Party Planner). They make a great team. Sampled three drinks that day. Yellow Tulip was one. They gave us a nice card with the recipes printed on it. And Rashida had some fun toasts before each drink. This mixology class was the best attended of all the ones we saw during the cruise. We actually had so many folks we were moving chairs around to fit more people in.

 

One thing I might do differently if I were them. We often do these on NCL and instead of the bar, they move chairs around into a circle and folks sit together there. It makes it easier to socialize with your fellow attendees. With everyone sitting at the bar you really only speak to the folks closest to you - you don't get to speak with the folks clear on the other side of the bar. So your interaction tends to be mostly between the bartenders and the attendees rather than with your fellow attendees. It is a different feeling.

 

Then a few of us decided to head over and do the beer tasting at 4PM. They had to improvise since their taps went on the fritz just as they started so they had to serve everything from bottles or cans. But we all had a good time.

 

Of course after all these drinks some veranda relaxing time before dinner was perfect. Got some snacks from Neptune and just watched the ocean for a bit and chatted.

 

This was the first formal night and also the only night we ate in the MDR. We had asked Abby to make us a reservation for 7PM. We were in the lower level dining area. The food was very good. I had the surf and turf option. Service was fine for the most part. After dessert they forgot our coffee but we didn't get stressed about it - just decided to head for Pinnacle Grill and have coffee there.

 

We went to the 10PM show. It was Broadway tunes and was one of the best shows I think I've ever enjoyed on a cruise. Two singers in particular really have voices that could best be described as "gifts from God".

 

After the show we just relaxed in the room a bit before turning in. Wanted to be well rested for our first full day on Bermuda and wanted to be up early to watch us sail in and anchor off St George.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KatWag

KatWag

Posted
  • Author
Posted
when you have time, share with us how you feel about HAL compared to your other cruise lines you have been on?

 

I might be the worst person for comparisons, Kazu, but I will try. Let me preface this by saying that we just love cruising and being on the ocean. And we've sailed everything from Carnival to Regent and can honestly say we've never had anything we would consider to be a bad cruise. That said, each line seems to have its own flavor to us. Our next cruise, in Feb, is on Windstar and we were sitting on our veranda on this cruise figuring out that our room will probably be the size of our veranda on Veendam. But we'll love it and have an amazing time.

 

As you can tell from the beginning parts of my review, DH and I were very impressed with our first HAL cruise. We would definitely sail HAL again. Probably on one of the newer ships because we did kind of get tired of all the noise from Lido deck constantly when we were trying to enjoy the Veranda. And we tend to choose our ships based upon itinerary in a lot of cases.

 

I would say that the service level reminds me most of Regent. Same with the friendliness of the staff. If there was someone on the ship who had a bad day or a bad mood we never encountered them. Everyone on Veendam had a friendly smile and wished us a good day. The Captain was funny and personable. More like the captains we've met on Regent and on Windstar rather than on other larger lines.

 

Suites - this is kind of tough. NCL suite amenities and the luxuriousness of the suites themselves are hard to beat. I would have to give NCL the edge here. That said, from what I have gathered from other passengers, the NCL experience in the non suites can sometimes be quite different. Neptune was a very nice plus and we enjoyed it very much. It was great being able to just pop down the hall and enjoy snacks or some of that amazing coffee.

 

Fellow passengers - honestly this is pretty much always consistent. DH calls it the 80/20 rule. 80% of the people you meet are delightful. 20% you will probably have to work a little harder to like. And much as I hate to admit it to him, this does seem to hold true. Obviously, the bigger the ship the higher number of people in the 80% category. And also in the 20% category. We met some terrific folks on Veendam. And we met a few who seem to pride themselves on being poster children for some of the unfortunate stereotypes which plague those of us who live on the East Coast.

 

Shows - I usually don't even bother with the shows since they normally don't appeal to me too much. But I loved the Veendam shows I attended and would rate HAL very highly in this area.

 

Other Entertainment Venues - In this area I think HAL can improve some. I understand that in production shows they need to cater to their prime demographic which is a bit older than DH and I. But I do feel that with very little effort, they could tailor their lounge entertainment to the demographics which come with some of the itineraries like Bermuda where you are appealing to family groups. I think some of the other lines we have been on had lounge acts which appealed to us more.

 

Activities - I would give some of the other lines an edge here. There was not really much to do on the last sea day, I thought. Also, although we enjoyed the mixology class, we tend to prefer the NCL approach. The seating arrangements are different and encourage more socialization between participants. By the later sessions, you pretty much know everyone in the group and folks keep coming back because they have a good time. They also do specific drinks (martini class / mojito class, etc.) The HAL version was different mixed drinks and I usually found that there was at least one of the three that I did not like. It was $12.50 for three. NCL is $15.00 for five and is always different flavors of the same type of drink. We like that way better.

 

Formal / No Formal - Mostly I think about this in terms of what do I need to pack. No question that it is easier to pack when you don't need to worry about formal nights. So I do tend to prefer more of the country club casual approach, especially if we need to fly. I was a little surprised at how many folks on Veendam did not observe the formal dress code in the public areas but that might have been more a function of the younger Bermuda demographic and might not be seen so much on other HAL cruises.

 

Port Info - Hands down HAL. Other than Regent, HAL did the best job of actually presenting useful information instead of making it into one huge sales pitch for overpriced shore excursions.

 

Ship size - we like the smaller to mid sized ships. This ship was a very nice size. It offered a lot of amenities but was not difficult to find your way around. We like the way that HAL seems committed to offering mid sized ships. That is unusual among the mass market lines where the trend seems to be "bigger is better".

 

If I think of anything else interesting, I'll add it later on.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KatWag

KatWag

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Quote:

This was the first formal night and also the only night we ate in the MDR. We had asked Abby to make us a reservation for 7PM. We were in the lower level dining area. The food was very good. I had the surf and turf option. Service was fine for the most part. After dessert they forgot our coffee but we didn't get stressed about it - just decided to head for Pinnacle Grill and have coffee there.

 

Too late to edit, unfortunately. Not Pinnacle for coffee, of course, meant Neptune Lounge. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
AlexandNessa

AlexandNessa

Posted
Posted

Hi Kathy!

Enjoying your review. My parents just got off the Veendam as well, and thankfully, they had a great time, and no AC issues either!

We were in suite 5 (or 005 as the crew would say), and we had very little or no noise above us. On the R and S class ships, we prefer to be forward and underneath the spa/salon for all the reasons you stated.

BTW, did you notice the sign as you were entering the retreat area? It said something to the effect that 'staterooms are below this area. be mindful when moving chairs." Obviously, I'm paraphrasing, and the sign is rather inconspicuous, but we always got a kick out of it every time we pass it. Of course, if anyone does see the sign, they surely ignore it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Max2003

Max2003

Posted
Posted
Will write a full review later after I get settled in. But it was a super trip.

 

Quick highlights:

 

 

Kathy

 

Kathy

 

You were a busy girl at 12:14PM. We were sitting at the airport and you were posting the first review. You must have had a laptop on the bus!!;)

 

I think you have said it all. Great cruise, excellent food, great entertainment and great crew. The seas were very calm

 

I promised to report on the AC situations we encountered. Our room was mid ship (E) on the A-deck and held a constant 68 degrees throughout the cruise regardless of the setting of the thermostat. No comments that we heard on AC problems on the lower decks. We did hear several comments re: the veranda suites being warm on the upper decks aft, but not many, and I asked. It would appear that they have addressed the too warm issues. In fact several of the public areas were fairly cool.

 

The major negative was the Retreat layout and missing tiles. There were hundreds and it must be an issue with the base under the tiles or the fact that the lounges are heavy, movable and able to dislodge the tiles. I took several pictures but can't seem to be able to attach them to this post.:confused:

 

Best regards.

 

Phil

Link to comment
Share on other sites
IRL_Joanie

IRL_Joanie

Posted
Posted

Thank You Kathy for the review and comments, not only from you, but also from others that were on the same cruise!!!

 

It is great to read all these recent positives about the Veendam lately!!

 

PERHAPS, and I repeat PERHAPS, the 80/20 rule was much higher on the previous Veendam cruises??

 

Looking forward to all of your photos, and this means everyone's:D

 

Joanie

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KatWag

KatWag

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Phil - great meeting you and Rhonda. Hope you had a good trip home. We were really lucky - two hours after leaving the pier we were pulling into our driveway. Could not have been a smoother trip home.

 

We only made it to the retreat area once on the last sea day - were thinking of trying slice for lunch but didn't think it looked all that appealing and opted for the regular Lido instead. We did notice the tiles though. Definitely not up to the standards of the rest of that terrific ship.

 

Nessa - I'll keep the "under the salon and spa" in mind going forward. That sounds like a good plan. I'm so glad your folks had a great trip. I was hoping to run into them but no luck.

 

Day 3 - St Georges

 

Woke up late, darn it. That will teach me to rely on the staff setting up the lido as my alarm clock. :) Missed the first half hour of scenic cruising into Bermuda. We were on the port side which turned out to be ideal for us in a lot of ways. We had a great view of the Island so we settled in on the Veranda with coffee and breakfast goodies from Neptune. Got some really terrific shots (I hope) - haven't gotten to the pictures yet.

 

We anchored in a spot a bit off Fort St Catherine. We could see the first tender (Bermudian) waiting for us. After we got settled it came alongside and then another tender (Serenity) pulled up next to it. Simon had asked that folks not come to the show lounge until 9:15 for the 9:30 tender. We got there right about 9:15 and the room was already about half full. Poor Simon kept making announcements asking folks not to congregate in the hall area - to take a seat for safety reasons. Most folks seemed to ignore him (guess they figured the tender would be full and didn't want to take chances.)

 

We took a seat and waited. It was a bit after 9:30 when they announced that the tender was ready. Seemed to be plenty of space. The downstairs area had plenty of seats and is also air conditioned. As others have reported in the past, it took a while to load. Ride to St Georges took maybe half hour? It went quickly because there was a running commentary on the sites during the ride. Getting off once we got to St Georges was probably the worst - there was little airflow and it was getting pretty hot. I was glad to be off.

 

Very hot and humid weather - more than I expected for September to be honest. Seemed more like what I remember from earlier trips there in July or August. Bought our three day bus pass at the desk in the museum right at the dock. And yet again missed out on seeing the museum which I hear is very good. Decided to leave it for the end of the day and then came back too late. Next trip, I guess. The upstairs was closed for some reason so they were allowing folks to view the downstairs exhibits at no cost.

 

We had decided to go over to St David's for the day. The bus only comes hourly so we window shopped a little while waiting. The bus stop is in a nice spot. There is a shady area there and a shop which sells cold drinks. Took the bus to the Black Horse Tavern in St David's which had been highly recommended in the guide book as a great spot for views and fresh local fish. Turned out to be a lucky decision. We'd been debating on going to the lighthouse first. We arrived at Black Horse a bit early but were able to sit down and enjoy a soft drink. View was as great as advertised. A few minutes later the skies opened up and it POURED!. About half an hour later four drenched passengers from the ship walked in. They had one umbrella for the four of them.

 

Of course, we had no umbrellas or rain gear - forecast had been given as 5% chance of rain. The waitress recommended the fish sandwich which was excellent. Lucky for us, the rain had mostly stopped by the time we were ready to leave so we dashed through raindrops back to the bus stop. (We had been told onboard that busses will not let you in when you are wet or sandy so we were wondering how we would get back if we got too wet.) Since we were worried about damage to DH's camera if it rained again we decided we'd head back into St Georges where we could buy rain gear if needed. Waited and waited for the bus. After the rain the humidity level was even higher and for some reason we were being bitten alive by mosquitos (only ones I encountered anywhere were all here). Saw a taxi drive by and waved him down.

 

Ended up asking him to take us a for a tour of St David's island which was great. I had no idea how much real estate had been devoted to the old base. He took us all around the island. He's lived there for 30 years and had lots of stories to share. Went to the lighthouse and climbed to the top - the view was definitely worth it.

 

After we toured all around St David's we had him drop us in Bailey's Bay at the Swizzle Inn. (Certain spots require a pilgrimage whenever we visit the island). Had a very enjoyable half pitcher of rum swizzle and then found some fun tee shirts to take home for gifts. We'd read rave reviews of the Bailey's ice cream spot across the way and headed over. Frankly, if I had it to do over again I would likely have had something at Swizzle Inn instead. Let me preface this by saying that to me any ice cream that is not chocolate is pretty much wasted calories. They didn't have anything much chocolate so it really wasn't my thing. Seemed very popular though. I think if you like some of the fun flavored ice creams it might be really good. The woman working the counter didn't seem to like her job much - or maybe was just tired of tourists.

 

When we are in Bermuda I always try very hard to do as they suggest and to be sure to greet the locals with "Good Morning", "Good Afternoon" etc. The guidebooks always talk about how offended people feel otherwise. It's funny how hard it can be to remember though. At home I say "Hello" or "Hi" - not as formal. One store I went into I slipped and said "Hello" and the clerk informed me that the proper greeting is "Good Morning". Of course then I felt uncomfortable so I left and didn't buy anything so I'm not sure she didn't shoot herself in the foot a bit. But I guess the principle was more important than the sale for her.

 

DH is terrible at remembering. He is not terribly outgoing to begin with so it is a bigger challenge for him.

 

Took the bus back to St Georges. No shade while waiting for the bus and it was very hot - we both ended up getting a little sunburned. I am half Slovak and half Irish. Why I could not have gotten the lovely olive Slovak skin is a mystery to me. I got the very pale Irish skin that burns immediately which frustrates the daylights out of me.

 

Toured St George's a bit. Hit the Perfumery. I love their "Pink" fragrance. When I was a little girl I used to always get the Easter Lily cologne. That was way before they moved to their current location. It is a very different type of shop and the fragrances are very different these days but still fun. DH did some early Christmas shopping while we were there. :)

 

In the last three times we've been to Bermuda we have never been able to make it to St Peter's. The last time it was too late at night and they were closed. Twice before that we managed to arrive during services and could not go in. This time we were very lucky. Not only were they open - the pastor was at the back of the church and was explaining the history of it. He showed us around, including the special chalice and other historic items they have. If we had been docked I would have loved to stay for the prayer service. But given the tender situation we decided not to chance it.

 

Did a little more shopping on our way back down to the tender. We were both shocked at how many of the businesses are no longer there. The ships being too large to make it through the cut has had a huge impact on this charming little town.

 

Took the 4:30 tender back to the ship. Had a cocktail party at 7:15 in the Crow's Nest - that's where we happened to meet Phil and Rhonda - how funny to actually end up standing right next to someone who also posted on our roll call here.

 

Dinner was at Pinnacle Grill. We had read complaints of service but did not experience anything of that sort. I had the Steak Diane / DH had porterhouse. Onion Soup for him to start; Lobster Bisque for me. Dessert was amazing. I am a chocololic and I had the Grand Marnier Volcano Cake (with a side of vanilla ice cream). We kind of waddled back to the room.

 

The show was the comic that night and I was disappointed to miss him - I have read really good reviews. But we were stuffed and a little sleepy - feeling the effects of too much sun and good wine I guess. Went to Mix and listened to the Piano Player for a bit - most of what he played was well before our time so we did not stay long.

 

Tomorrow - Hamilton!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KatWag

KatWag

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Lesinindy - you definitely want to consider Bermuda. I think it might be my favorite island, actually. Although I am way behind a lot of our fellow cruisers in number of trips. :)

 

One of the huge advantages is just having the ship as your hotel. Nothing beats it, especially when you are docked and can go on and off as you please. We honeymooned there (28 years ago) and love to revisit old haunts. (At least those that are still there. When I was little we stayed at the Sonesta Beach Resort. Used to walk up the steps to the main road and go across the street to the little shop at Henry VIII restaurant for their Cornish Pasties. That whole property has been demolished now - victim of the last big hurricane, I guess.)

 

Will work on Hamilton part of review tomorrow. Might be nice to be able to relive the trip a bit at lunch on my first day back to work. Today was a last vacation day to get errands run, have a new washer / dryer delivered. And as luck would have it they can't level the washer properly so I have to have a service person come on Saturday. So much for getting caught up on all my laundry. Only saving grace was that since we had laundry service I did have a few things that we had gotten laundered which I never got to wear the last day or two - once we were underway it was a good bit cooler and I was not looking to wear all my shorts outfits. So I do have some things that are clean.

 

Welcome back from vacation, huh?

 

More tomorrow.

 

K

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...