Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Hopefully, Live From the MS Amsterdam May 17 - June 1, 2014

Alberta Quilter
 Share

Recommended Posts

VermeulT

VermeulT

Posted
Posted
Outstanding job with the reports AQ! We're really enjoying them. Please tell your mother that she sounds like a great traveling companion.

 

Quick question - It's been a few years since we've done Alaska. We're thinking about it for next summer. In the past, Alaska was less dressy than other destinations because of all the weight/space that warm clothes take up. How is your cruise on formal nights?

 

Again, thank you so much. We really appreciate your taking time out of your vacation to file your reports. :)

 

POA1 - I would love to join you in Alaska. Let us know when you book. ;)

 

AQ - thank you so much. I dream every night of your tales. It's wonderful.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
vbmom87

vbmom87

Posted
Posted
Haven't heard from AQ in a while. Hope everything is okay and she is having too much fun to post

 

I, too, hope all is well with AQ. I know sometimes it can be difficult to get on the ship's internet and if that was happening, I am sure she gave up, but will try again when she has time. Plus, trying to post on a regular basis means you are taking time away from your pressure vacation time. Saturday was a sea day, so she may have felt there was not much to report and Sunday was a long day in port. The itinerary is a busy one on this ship. I am sure she will be catching up with us as soon as she has the time and internet is working.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Alberta Quilter

Alberta Quilter

Posted
  • Author
Posted

May 24/14 Sea Day

 

This morning, we had breakfast in the Lido, for a change. It was very good and hot. DM found that HAL offers almond milk (with a high caloric content, though) if one requests it. It's not listed on any menu that I've seen so thought I would mention it here.

 

At 10 am, a crew member served boullion on the outside decks. We found him by the aft pool. DM and the others who had it thought it was very good. That's the first time we saw it listed in the On Location.

 

I have now enjoyed burgers from the Dive In on two occasions. They are very good but the Cannonball is messy to eat. The sauce is oozing out, joined by the juices of the burger and the tomato. The cheese adds to the slipperiness, too. They serve it in a wax paper wrapping which I find challenging to eat out of, as I do even when a burger is served like that elsewhere. The first time, here on the ship, I removed the wrapper completely, but it was quite messy. Today, I kept the wrapper on and moved the burger about so I could eat it and contain the mess. Well, that didn't work so well, either. Again, it was messy and the burger started sliding about. Finally, it slid right out and the top separated from the bottom! I put the two halves back together to finish eating it, and then ate the toppings, that I missed picking up, with a fork. There must be a way to eat those things without it dripping all over oneself! Anyone care to show me how it's done?!

 

I read on CC a while ago about people getting grapes in their fruit basket, but that sounded like it only happened in the Neptune/PH suites which we do not book. I decided to try it out; I wrote grapes on the request card on the first day of the cruise. It didn't work at first but today we received grapes! So you can try it, you just might get what you request. (If HAL hasn't figured out who I am by all the other info I've given in these reports, that last item should ID me for sure!)

 

All of the staff that we have encountered has been very happy, kind and helpful. Some are truly outstanding. There is one, in particular, who has obtained missing items for us, handled one, so far, special request, assisted dining room stewards in clearing plates or pouring water. I have started a list of names and positions so that we can properly fill out our surveys when we return home - the first time we will be doing the electronic survey.

 

Dinner tonight was very good. Three of us had Parmesan crusted chicken breast. One had lamb loin which she found to be a heavy meal; it came with risotto and a fair bit of it! One had the vegetarian wild mushroom strudel. And the last person had five spice shrimp; it was just okay.

 

Entertainment tonight was Jim & Anne Curry doing more John Denver songs. It was good but contained some less well known songs.

 

The weather was quite pleasant today, mostly clear skies with lots of sun. Another great day aboard the Amsterdam.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Alberta Quilter

Alberta Quilter

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

May 24/14 Anchorage

 

Hello, my name is Alberta Quilter and I have an addiction, well, more than one, really, but I digress. The one I am currently talking about is to jigsaw puzzles. That is why you haven't seen my daily updates lately. I am currently avoiding the puzzle table to get this task done. I apologize for the delay!

 

Today, the skies were overcast and hazy. When I first looked out, I wondered if there were forest fires in the vicinity. When I stepped outside and smelled smoke in the air, I knew there were fires around. It was warm, in the sun, but in the shade a tad cooler, with some wind gusts cutting through.

 

The port provides a free shuttle from the industrial port area to downtown. We were dropped off and picked up at the De'naina Centre. I think normally the shuttle is to/from the Egan Centre but they were keeping the Amsterdam pax separated from the Statedam pax so no one accidentally goes to the other. Btw, for future cruisers to Anchorage, the public washrooms are in the Egan, in the basement. Tourism people met pax coming off the bus, providing maps and directions.

 

We went first to the quilt shop. It's small but it's the only one downtown. There are much larger ones, I was told, within six miles. The Quilted Raven had lots of Alaska themed kits, material, and a fair bit of yarn. They are the only yarn shop downtown as well, for those knitters that are reading this. FYI, there is a neat little gift shop next to the quilt shop.

 

After the quilt shop, we went to the Saturday Market - yes, it's on on Sundays, too. The entrance is kitty corner to the Hilton entrance. We saw the tents of the market, when we drove to downtown, and thought it looked huge. It was smaller than it looked but I'm sure it will get larger as the season picks up. There were mostly craft and food booths. We did not find anything that we had to have (or eat!).

 

We wanted to eat some halibut or crab for lunch (the halibut and chips at the market were a little expensive and too greasy for us), so went to a recommended restaurant that was close to our next stop. Unfortunately, they serve brunch until 3:00 hen they start serving lunch. As it was 12:30, and we didn't want bunch, we opted to leave. We then went to the Aurora Experience which was a series of Aurora Borealis videos set to music. DM hated the music; it definitely was not my cup of tea. I, frankly, found it difficult to stay awake! The pictures/videos were nice but I didn't think it was worth the entry fee. There is an additional charge of $3 on every ticket sold which is some sort of facility fee, or something like that.

 

So, after being annoyed by the restaurant serving brunch, and an expensive nap with annoying music, we took the shuttle back to the ship and had lunch there. It was fairly quiet there; no waits at Dive In, so I had a burger. All these cruises I've taken, and I had never eaten a burger and now I've had three in a week! Yes, it was another messy experience. The patty and toppings just slide out the other side when one takes a bite! DM had a Reuben and salad as the buffet was closed.

 

Most of our trivia team members were gone on tours. We joined another team but lost. DM had a real nap while I started a new jigsaw puzzle in the library. By the time DM picked me up for dinner, the pieces were sorted and we started putting the edge together.

 

Dinner was good again tonight. Four of us had the rib eye steak, one had pork loin, and the sixth had a chef's salad. Two at our table wanted me to mention to you, dear reader, that the chilled coconut and nutmeg soup served tonight was particularly good. These two people have enjoyed almost (almost because I'm not 100% sure they've had it every night, not because there was one they didn't like) every chilled soup each evening but this one sounds like it was the best, so far. Dessert tonight was interesting. I tried the chocolate soup, one of the desserts by Jacques Torres. It was served in a champagne flute. There were chopped bananas and rum in the bottom, a creamy chocolate mixture (sort of like chocolate mousse when one just makes it prior to it being chilled), and a thin meringue topping. It was different and good but I'm not sure I would have it again.

 

After dinner and losing again at pub trivia, I went back to the puzzle until the game show Majority Rules. We had never seen the show before. It's a participation show where the CD asks a question like what is the most served item in the dining room or who is/was the best male singer of all time. Each team writes down their response and runs it up to the CD and his assistant. Whatever the majority of the teams say, is the correct answer and those teams who had that answer get a point. The team that has the most points at the end wins.

 

I then worked on the puzzle until midnight. The sun had set but it still wasn't fully dark then.

 

Today, we will be arriving at Homer. I hope to get back to more timely reporting, but, I'll warn you, the difficult part of the puzzle will be reached today...

Edited by Alberta Quilter
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Alberta Quilter

Alberta Quilter

Posted
  • Author
Posted
Thank you for the update. Love your writing style!

 

Thanks for the compliment. I'm just trying to be fairly matter of fact and tell of our experiences as I would to a friend. Although, I have edited myself on occasion!

 

Funny, last night, one of our table mates, who is on her first cruise ever, asked about tipping above the HSC. I answered her as carefully as I would on CC!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Susie51

Susie51

Posted
Posted

Thank you for posting again. I also enjoy puzzles. Next cruise I'm going to do this. I'm not as active anymore, so sitting doing a puzzle sounds fun. I forget are there windows in the card/game room?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
utahtea

utahtea

Posted
Posted
AQ glad to see you back. Enjoy your updates. My DW also gets "distracted" by the puzzles. We can be walking and talking, the next thing I now I am walking and talking by myself! She stopped at the puzzles.

 

AQ, Love your reports

 

Bob, Tell Carol I'll be looking for her at the puzzle table on our cruise!

 

Utahtea

Link to comment
Share on other sites
AlohaPride

AlohaPride

Posted
Posted

Thank you, AQ, for the wonderful journal. We made final payment for our August cruise yesterday, so I'm enjoying your words even more today ;)

 

I asked my TA about the gluten free form, and she had no idea what it was. I'll try to call Ships Services if she doesn't call me back.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Watson's aunt

Watson's aunt

Posted
Posted

Hi

 

Thank you AQ for your reports. I am looking forward to sailing on June 22. I love the Amsterdam and going back a rd time. But I finally convience my friend to go with me. I lay awake at nigt thinking of it.. I hope your weather is good and only rains while people are sleeping.. I also like doing the puzzels. But I am an outisde girl. Does not look like much has changed on the Amsterdam. Can't fix a A+. How is the new captian? Does he make annouchments if there are wildlife or ssuch in water. Did anyone see any of the Deadiest Catch boats in port? I love Homer. I did take that bus around town but felt it was not worth it.

Have a great remianing cruise. Thank you for such great reports.

My favorite is Sikita.

 

Mary aalmost ready to go and praying for the upgrade fairy

Link to comment
Share on other sites
cruz chic

cruz chic

Posted
Posted
May 24/14 Sea Day

 

This morning, we had breakfast in the Lido, for a change. It was very good and hot. DM found that HAL offers almond milk (with a high caloric content, though) if one requests it. It's not listed on any menu that I've seen so thought I would mention it here.

 

At 10 am, a crew member served boullion on the outside decks. We found him by the aft pool. DM and the others who had it thought it was very good. That's the first time we saw it listed in the On Location.

 

I have now enjoyed burgers from the Dive In on two occasions. They are very good but the Cannonball is messy to eat. The sauce is oozing out, joined by the juices of the burger and the tomato. The cheese adds to the slipperiness, too. They serve it in a wax paper wrapping which I find challenging to eat out of, as I do even when a burger is served like that elsewhere. The first time, here on the ship, I removed the wrapper completely, but it was quite messy. Today, I kept the wrapper on and moved the burger about so I could eat it and contain the mess. Well, that didn't work so well, either. Again, it was messy and the burger started sliding about. Finally, it slid right out and the top separated from the bottom! I put the two halves back together to finish eating it, and then ate the toppings, that I missed picking up, with a fork. There must be a way to eat those things without it dripping all over oneself! Anyone care to show me how it's done?!

 

I read on CC a while ago about people getting grapes in their fruit basket, but that sounded like it only happened in the Neptune/PH suites which we do not book. I decided to try it out; I wrote grapes on the request card on the first day of the cruise. It didn't work at first but today we received grapes! So you can try it, you just might get what you request. (If HAL hasn't figured out who I am by all the other info I've given in these reports, that last item should ID me for sure!)

 

All of the staff that we have encountered has been very happy, kind and helpful. Some are truly outstanding. There is one, in particular, who has obtained missing items for us, handled one, so far, special request, assisted dining room stewards in clearing plates or pouring water. I have started a list of names and positions so that we can properly fill out our surveys when we return home - the first time we will be doing the electronic survey.

 

Dinner tonight was very good. Three of us had Parmesan crusted chicken breast. One had lamb loin which she found to be a heavy meal; it came with risotto and a fair bit of it! One had the vegetarian wild mushroom strudel. And the last person had five spice shrimp; it was just okay.

 

Entertainment tonight was Jim & Anne Curry doing more John Denver songs. It was good but contained some less well known songs.

 

The weather was quite pleasant today, mostly clear skies with lots of sun. Another great day aboard the Amsterdam.

Thx for taking one for the team and getting to the bottom of the grape situation:D:). I'm enjoying your thread.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Watson's aunt

Watson's aunt

Posted
Posted

Hi

 

Thank you AQ for your reports. I am looking forward to sailing on June 22. I love the Amsterdam and going back a rd time. But I finally convience my friend to go with me. I lay awake at nigt thinking of it.. I hope your weather is good and only rains while people are sleeping.. I also like doing the puzzels. But I am an outisde girl. Does not look like much has changed on the Amsterdam. Can't fix a A+. How is the new captian? Does he make annouchments if there are wildlife or ssuch in water. Did anyone see any of the Deadiest Catch boats in port? I love Homer. I did take that bus around town but felt it was not worth it.

Have a great remianing cruise. Thank you for such great reports.

My favorite is Sikita.

 

Mary

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Alberta Quilter

Alberta Quilter

Posted
  • Author
Posted
Thank you for posting again. I also enjoy puzzles. Next cruise I'm going to do this. I'm not as active anymore, so sitting doing a puzzle sounds fun. I forget are there windows in the card/game room?

 

There are windows were the puzzle tables are in the library/Explorations Cafe. The card and game room is the Hudson Room next door, and there are windows there too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Alberta Quilter

Alberta Quilter

Posted
  • Author
Posted

May 26/14 Homer

 

We didn't arrive in Homer until 9:30 ish, and the ship wasn't cleared until after 10 am.

 

Homer provides a free shuttle from the pier to the spit. There was also a HoHo for $15/person. (I heard that the HoHo wasn't worth it but that is third hand info so, if you're going to Homer, check it out for yourself.)

 

I thought there would be a riot in the lineup for the free shuttle! The line was long and the shuttles are school buses. We were asked to break the line into two lines, I think, because we were clogging up the pier access. Well, some of the people in the second line tried to butt in line in front of the people in the first line, to get on the newly arrived bus. There was only a young lady who was trying to keep the lines going and she didn't know who told us to split up - I think it may have been her mother, whom the young lady was helping out! Actually, the young woman handled it fairly well. She allowed some of the people in the first line to get on the bus (basically to the point where the line had been split) and then those of us in the second line were allowed to go. But there was one woman in front of us who raised a bit of a ruckus. Honestly, if I had been in that first line, waiting for as long as 20 minutes (so they said), I would have been pissed off, too. Anyway, we all got on the same shuttle, and all was okay, as far as I'm aware. But, I suspect that the ruckus raising woman will get the evil eye from some pax for the rest of the cruise, if you know what I mean!

 

We poked around the spit. There are some very nice galleries. I saw one sculpture that I really liked but it was too dear to purchase, and too fragile looking to pack. No quilt shop on the spit but there is one in town. Sorry, I forgot to inquire about yarn shops. I was told that the TrueValue was their go to store (the quilt shop is by or in the TrueValue store, not sure which it is), so maybe the yarn shop is around there too.

 

We went to Captain Patties for lunch. DM and I shared halibut and cole slaw. The waitress said the halibut was so fresh it was still flipping about in the kitchen! It was very good. A little pricey at $19.00 for four pieces of halibut and the salad but worth it. We chose not to get fries because I've been eating way too much of them at the Dive In! Btw, the king crab was $70 for 1.5 pounds at the restaurant. Kinda makes the PG king crab look cheap, doesn't it?

 

After lunch, we made our way back to the shuttle pick up point and went back to the ship. Mom had a nap, and I went back to the jigsaw puzzle, of course. We attempted trivia again but lost again. Oh, well.

 

The two of us had dinner in the PG tonight. This was the "free" dinner with the Explore4 promo. Our original reservation was for 8:00 pm which is far too late for us. We were able to change the time to 5:30. Because we got the PG for "free", and we have received a fair bit of OBC, we decided to splurge and have the king crab. Boy, was that good! I did take a picture of it because I haven't seen one posted on CC yet. I'll post it when I get home. I'm told that it is 1.5 pounds of crab. Mom thoroughly enjoyed hers, too and ate every bit of it! Hopefully she doesn't pay for it later tonight or tomorrow... We waddled out of the PG before 7 pm.

 

We met up with our table companions for pub trivia at 7:30. We lost again. Sigh. I went back to the puzzle until it was time to go to Billy Joel Name That Tune. We tied for first place but lost on the tie breaker. Today was just not our day!

 

Oh, the weather - I forgot to mention that. It was very clear and sunny today which was somewhat surprising given that the fires are between Anchorage & Homer. But it was windy, which may explain the clear skies. I was fine, walking about in a short sleeve shirt but some were really bundled up!

 

Tomorrow, we're in Kodiak.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share
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...