Live! The Grouch on the Prinsendam October 20, 2016 for 30 days.

[0bnxshs]

congrats on trivia :)

 

Happy to hear Vict0riann's meet and greets went well. This is her first time (now how would I know that ;) ) and she took on a slew. Very happy for her and you that you enjoyed it :)

 

Ditto for Ann! :) Will be my first time 15 days from now on the same ship! :eek:

 

Great reports Grouch! :D

Edited November 5, 2016 by 0bnxshs

[kazu]

Ditto for Ann! :) Will be my first time 15 days from now on the same ship! :eek:

 

Great reports Grouch! :D

 

Good for you Rich :) I know it will go wonderfully :)

[whogo]

Saturday, November 5, 2016, Barcelona

Light drizzle as I stepped outside this morning. Our 5:54 AM position was 41°16.55'N, 002°12.08E heading toward the left hand part of the screen. First and second breakfast in the Lido, suffered through a broken yoke in my fried egg. Worst day of my life.

 

The front desk was willing to sell me euro for $1.20/€, a markup of 7.7% over the interbank rate of $1.1145/€. I am doing better charging purchases with my credit card and withdrawing euros from an ATM.

 

Mrs. Whogo and I were off before 8:00. HAL promoted their €5 shuttle pass for unlimited travel from the ship to the town. A fellow cruiser asked how much the regular port shuttle cost. Was told it was more. It was less. We paid €4 each for round trip tickets for the regular port shuttle which worked beautifully, it runs more frequently.

 

Our plan was to take the Metro to Plaza de España to catch the train to Montserrat, take the cable car up to the monastery, take a hike or two, maybe view the Black Madonna and return to Barcelona to walk La Rambla. We had a few difficulties. We were warned that the station at Plaza de Espana was a confusing maze and found out for ourselves that it was. Took us twenty minutes to find our train, missed the one we wanted and had a 45 minute wait for the next.

 

We arrived at the base of the Montserrat cable car to find the monastery high up the cliff in the clouds. Neat views from the crags from cable car. The fog up top was thick, but soon got worse. We found our way to the monastery. With a service in progress we were unable to view the sanctuary. Had a pleasant lunch at a bar, good sandwiches on good bread with a beer for me and a soda for Mrs. Whogo. Don't know whether it was the same service or a different one, but the church was packed, no way to view inside and a massive line had formed for the Black Madonna. Out of luck, we headed back to Barcelona.

 

We walked La Rambla, always like the hubbub of the street, and the crowds in the market, although the market gets more sterile on every visit. Used to be a lot more carcasses. We stopped for a beer and a hot tea at Cafe Saule, bought some essentials at a grocery store and headed back to the ship. The regular port shuttle may be cheaper and run more often, but we had to share the ride back with folks from the Pullmantur Sovereign, which looks like an old Royal Caribbean ship, Sovereign of Seas, maybe? The Silver Spirit was also in port. Delightful day in Barcelona, even if Montserrat did not go according to plan.

 

Lost at afternoon trivia, dined on excellent prime rib, and won at pub trivia with two of our members AWOL. In Cartagena tomorrow from noon to six.

[kazu]

Oh Whogo, so sorry you did not get in the church at Montserrat. Or the Madonna. It is fabulous.

 

And you lost at Trivia too? Ughh. Is the grouch coming out? I couldn't blame you if it did.

 

We did a private transfer and got there before the crowds - we were warned to get in the line by x time. There were "pass the line tickets" available we discovered, but we had not bought them.

Edited November 5, 2016 by kazu

[whogo]

Sunday, November 6, 2016

Watched the navigation screen count down the longitude to the prime meridian. Surprised Holland America held no observance. Is there nothing like the King Neptune equator crossing ceremony to mark the occasion? I held my own observance and sacrificed a couple of unborn chickens and some pig to the god Geog. I also ate an accompanying English muffin.

 

At 6:45 AM our position was 38°06.86N, 000°05.37W sailing towards the bottom left corner of the navigation screen.

 

We sailed this morning with the mountainous coast of Spain visible off to the right.

 

The Italian workmen aboard appear to be remodeling a few cabins, I saw work being done on what might be staff cabins directly under the bridge.

 

We were well behind the winning score at 11:00 trivia. I do not have a regular team and Mrs. Whogo and I split up for the daytime contests. The view of Cartagena from the ship showed an arid landscape with a Moorish looking fortification off to the east and another farther away to the west with the city nestled in-between. Dined early in the Lido and went out to see the sights of Cartagena about noon. Location guide Brett dissuaded us from visiting the Moorish castles, the good castle was on top of a hill in the center of town, but said we could run up to the one to the west (as if!) I went with low expectations, thought we would climb up to the Castillo de la Concepcion for the view and then just walk around. We reached the castle by the shortest route which had an elevator up to boot. Nice garden surrounding the castle, I appreciated the shade under clear skies. Saw peahens and a peacock, and had a great view from the top. The castle is small, its cisterns are the most interesting part of the tour.

 

Headed down to the west, no elevator, and viewed the Roman amphitheater, did not see the way in. Mrs. Whogo wondered what the distant roar of a crowd was, I thought she was hearing voices in her head, but we ended up down in the middle of a street festival, Mercato Modernista Cartagena. As we entered we heard the soundtrack from Cabaret. Tomorrow Belongs to Me was a bit worrisome. The streets were lined with booths and crammed with people, lots of families with kids. I have seen enough shops already, but this was fun, it was locals instead of tourists. I saw places selling salt lamps, soaps, handmade jewelry, incense, lavender pillows, bibs, wooden toys, pastries, New Age stuff, and candy, it went on and on, up one street and down another. We hung out at Plaza San Francisco where there was a bit more breathing room. A big tent was doing good business serving paella, ribs, sausage and drinks, looked good. There was a little train giving rides around the square and a nifty four seat kiddie ferris wheel that was powered by a hand crank. The operator balanced out the load by adding sandbags where needed.

 

I had my first craft beer (cerveza artesian) of the trip, a Byzantina Ale, dark, cloudy, with a head of unusually tiny bubbles. Followed that up with Esrella Damm beer, have to find out what Damm means. The band started up, playing old, old songs. I made note of My Blue Heaven, Cheek to Cheek and Sunny.

 

Watched a woman make huge soap bubbles and watched little kids gleefully pop the same. Nearby a line had formed for the woman making potato chips and I was inspired to join the queue. She was great fun, chatting with the customers while she turned a crank to slice peeled potatoes into boiling oil. The operation was mesmerizing as she scooped the chips out to drain and then spread them out before piling them into a paper cone.

 

The crowd had a lot of fun with my lack of Spanish and her lack of English. I finally understood to hold up one thumb to place my order and did not understand the cost beyond the two euros. How much more? A fellow patron held up 50 cents and I paid to the cheers and applause of the crowd. The chips were delicious.

 

The rest of our walk back to the ship was uneventful. A big tent had some kind of unrelated festival that attracted a number of Harley Davidson motorcyclists, some of them leather clad with club logos on their backs. All non-threatening, stuck my head in the big tent and decided I did not need another beer.

 

Captain announced that we would depart about 30 minutes late. Divers had just left the water after completing their part of an annual inspection.

 

Lost at evening trivia. Great meal in the dining room, a table mate declared the coq au vin delicious and was absolutely ecstatic over the warm date pudding. Can tonight's comedian really be named Ritch Shydner or is it a typo?

[whogo]

Monday, November 7, 2016, Malaga, Spain

Comedian Ritch Shydner was OK last night before a small 10:00 audience. He said he might just as well do his show at each of our cabins.

 

Our 6:08 AM position was 36°40.29'N, 004°23.15W, feels good to be back home in the western hemisphere. Oosterdam and Eurodam are in port with us, too many dam ships and too many dam cruisers. I know we won't see them in Huelva.

 

Easy going visit to Malaga. Chilly today, high expected to be 63°. I was comfortable in short sleeves, everyone else wore a light jacket. The port was inconvenient, took a shuttle to the terminal and then another shuttle out of the port. Other cruisers walked the distance in about 45 minutes. Oosterdam and Eurodam were better positioned.

 

The cathedral is huge, a fellow cruiser said it is the largest Roman Catholic cathedral in the world. Larger St. Peter's is a basilica, not a cathedral, and St. Paul's in London is Anglican, not Roman Catholic. The Malaga Cathedral has massive columns supporting numerous domed ceilings, the scale is hard to fathom. A white marble pieta and the wood carving in the choir made the biggest impression on me. €5 admission, no crowds.

 

The Picasso Museum was also impressive. A film of Picasso doing quick drawings was amazing, would not have enjoyed the museum half as much without the excellent audio guide.

 

Dined on fried octopus, should have had grilled octopus, at nearby La Posada, Mrs. Whogo had seafood paella. Any number of less touristy restaurants would have been better and cheaper, but La Posada was good enough.

 

Enjoyed a repeat visit to the botanical Parque de Malaga. This long narrow park near the port has many species of flora from around the world, all nice and green, and many are tropical plants like palm trees. Great place for a walk.

 

Lost at evening trivia, had a fun table for six at dinner, Wienerschnitzel for me and fudge tartlet for dessert. We are heading toward Gibralter at 17 knots, pretty cool to see Europe off to the right and Africa off to the left. We will leave the Mediterranean Sea soon. Great cruise.

[easyboy]

That was a really nice weather to go around Malaga. Next trivia might be yours.

[whogo]

Tuesday, November 8, 2016, Huelva, Spain

 

Last night's singer, Petrina Johson, had a beautiful voice, sorry the late night crowd was thin. Best singer I have heard on a ship.

 

I foolishly thought that by saying we would dock in Huelva, we would dock in the city of Huelva. We docked about 18 km from Heulva, position 37°08.96'N, 006°52.66'W. I had a good feeling about this town, there was a free shuttle and a helpful woman from Huelva's tourism department who took over Brett's desk on deck 8 and gave me a much better map and plenty of helpful suggestions. Holland America's maps are nearly worthless.

 

Holland America pushed shore excursions to Seville, we felt we had seen Seville's sights well enough already and were willing to just walk around Huelva and see what we could see.

 

It was too cool for shirtsleeves this morning, expected high 64°, I wore a light jacket for a while. A shuttle bus escort provided commentary on the 20 minute ride, we were dropped off near the Museo Provincial de Huelva and made that our first stop. Not another archaeology museum! That was my first thought, but the museum was free and had some unusual neolithic artifacts, including some flat, rectangular rocks that were artistically etched and reminded us of Picasso. A group of school kids added their vibe to the museum visit.

 

The nearby Reina Victoria Quarter was worth a walk through with English style houses in the former English enclave.

 

Next stop was a shopping mall, El Corte Ingle. I was sorry to see the same brands from home, Levi, Playtex, Mattel, nothing unique or decidedly Spanish. We walked the pedestrian streets, checking out a few shops and searching for a good lunch spot. Stopped in a big supermarket, selected a few items including a couple of bottles of unusual beers. While bagging our purchases I tried to put a bottle in my backpack and missed. Crash! One less beer bottle. I was so embarrassed I did not go for a replacement bottle.

 

After more walking we chose a busy cafe, P'al Rocio, took one of the last outside tables. Waited a long time to order and then a long time for our food. Saw staff carrying dinners in from across the square and thought they must be tired of eating their own cafe's food. Nope. They were carrying over our dinners, don't know where they were cooked. Mrs. Whogo got only one of the tapas she ordered, I got pork instead of the chicken I ordered and it was the driest, toughest pork ever, and I have overcooked some pork on the grill in my day. Absolute disaster, worst dining experience ever.

 

An ex-pat at the next table told us a good place to go and there we found the tapas experience we had envisioned. La Teja was a bustling little place with an energetic waiter. I had tortillas de patatas, Mrs. Whogo had red pepper tapas. All good, a most enjoyable experience.

 

Back on the ship before 4:00. The Huelva tourism people tried real hard to please us and lure more ships to their port, what with the tourism person on board, the decent maps, the shuttle with commentary, their tent near the coach, and a wine tasting as we alit from the bus at the ship. We did not partake of the wine, but we appreciated the effort.

 

We won at trivia. The only prize they give out is the HAL Mediterranean pin, we have a bunch of them. Good company at dinner, I had the orangiest orange duck ever. Coconut ice cream and hot fudge sundae were our choices of dessert.

 

"Critically Acclaimed Clarinet Virtuoso" Woytek put on a good show, finishing with the wild "Sing, Sing, Sing".

[Krazy Kruizers]

Catchin up.

 

I am enjoying your reports.

[whogo]

Wednesday, November 9, 2016, Lisbon, Portugal

Set our clocks back an hour last night, arose extra early this morning and chatted in the Lido until full breakfast started at 7:00. We sailed up the Tagus River behind the P&O Oceana and were followed by the Fred Olsen Blamoral, both nice looking ships. We were off the boat as they opened the gangway and were the first ones on the hop on/hop off bus, got the front seats up top, we were undercover when the rain came. Love the streetcars and the aquaduct. The two hour tour stretched to three, got us past the sights with a little bit of recorded commentary in our choice of twelve languages. I chose English.

 

Chicken, eggplant, cauliflower, and wild mushroom quesadilla for lunch back in the Lido and then off to explore on foot. Found the Museu da Cerveja, the Beer Museum, and drank a Bohemian beer in the square and passed on the museum, although we watched a woman make cod cakes which were selling like hotcakes.

 

Mrs. Whogo marched me up to St. George Castle, which would not have been bad if we knew the way. Took numerous wrong turns and probably climbed the equivalent of twice up the hill. Our wanderings took us past the Lisbon Cathedral and the Lisbon Museum. St. George is the way you envision a castle with crenelated towers and ramparts and killer stairs and railings that are too low to keep you from falling splat from death defying heights. You would think Mrs. Whogo was trying to kill me. A modern camera obscura demonstration gave us live views of Lisbon. Survived the walk back to the ship.

 

Can't believe we ate at the Lido pool Parrillada con Paella BBQ, the last barbecue was a disaster. Food was delicious, I ate about three pounds of assorted sausages, pork ribs, and steak. Well attended, the dining room must have been empty.

 

Tied for first at trivia. Shows were cancelled tonight, heard there was some problem with one of the dancer's paperwork, we had already seen Concerto anyway. Also heard that a couple of chefs left the ship, don't know if they were replaced. As planned, Captain Schuchmann left the ship in Lisbon to be replaced by some other captain I will not meet, recognize, or speak to.

[Krazy Kruizers]

As usual -- good reporting.

So 2 chefs left the ship.

[whogo]

Thursday, November 10, 2016, sailing towards Funchal, Madeira

Out on deck before six, I keep losing my position notes, maybe someone is taking them to keep them from falling into the wrong hands, it is probably critical information needed to protect the free world. I remember that we were sailing towards the bottom left corner of the screen at around sixteen knots and are probably somewhere between Lisbon and Madeira.

 

Leisurely day at sea, but I couldn't avoid climbing lots of stairs, Mrs. Whogo doesn't let me use the elevator. She is trying to kill me. I read on the shady side of the promenade deck until it grew too chilly for shirt sleeves. I returned in a light jacket only to be rained out.

 

Chicken again for lunch, I have to find something else. The new captain has a pleasant voice and gave us facts about the Atlantic Ocean in his long noon update. I think that those who did not already know that the Atlantic Ocean lies between the continents of Eurasia/Africa and North/South America probably did not learn it today, either.

 

The Hudson Room was packed with bridge players, wonder if there are players who can't get a seat. Won at afternoon trivia with a small team of one, Bruce asked the right questions.

 

Read a lot when Mrs. Whogo did not have me climbing stairs. Deck eight smelled of cigarette smoke all the way to the far end of the library, never smelled it so bad, hope all sea days won't be like that. Explorer's Lounge was packed for Adagio, they draw a crowd 'most every night. Gala night menu was good, I had the lamb. Filet with lobster ravioli looked good, as did the king crab. Great table.

 

I did not have enough to drink to find Ventriloquist Kiernan Powell funny, did not laugh once, others seemed to enjoy the show. I stayed through the whole 55 minute show just to see if it would get better. First time I have seen a act heckled. It is a shame, the ventriloquist was the best act on our last cruise, maybe my expectations were too high.

 

Still having a great cruise, tomorrow Madeira is our last stop before Ft. Lauderdale.

[Skipper's Mom]

Thursday, November 10, 2016, sailing towards Funchal, Madeira

Out on deck before six, I keep losing my position notes, maybe someone is taking them to keep them from falling into the wrong hands, it is probably critical information needed to protect the free world. I remember that we were sailing towards the bottom left corner of the screen at around sixteen knots and are probably somewhere between Lisbon and Madeira.

 

Leisurely day at sea, but I couldn't avoid climbing lots of stairs, Mrs. Whogo doesn't let me use the elevator. She is trying to kill me. I read on the shady side of the promenade deck until it grew too chilly for shirt sleeves. I returned in a light jacket only to be rained out.

 

Chicken again for lunch, I have to find something else. The new captain has a pleasant voice and gave us facts about the Atlantic Ocean in his long noon update. I think that those who did not already know that the Atlantic Ocean lies between the continents of Eurasia/Africa and North/South America probably did not learn it today, either.

 

The Hudson Room was packed with bridge players, wonder if there are players who can't get a seat. Won at afternoon trivia with a small team of one, Bruce asked the right questions.

 

Read a lot when Mrs. Whogo did not have me climbing stairs. Deck eight smelled of cigarette smoke all the way to the far end of the library, never smelled it so bad, hope all sea days won't be like that. Explorer's Lounge was packed for Adagio, they draw a crowd 'most every night. Gala night menu was good, I had the lamb. Filet with lobster ravioli looked good, as did the king crab. Great table.

 

I did not have enough to drink to find Ventriloquist Kiernan Powell funny, did not laugh once, others seemed to enjoy the show. I stayed through the whole 55 minute show just to see if it would get better. First time I have seen a act heckled. It is a shame, the ventriloquist was the best act on our last cruise, maybe my expectations were too high.

 

Still having a great cruise, tomorrow Madeira is our last stop before Ft. Lauderdale.

Is the CD Bruce Scudder?

 

Sent from my XT1064 using Forums mobile app

[kazu]

Great reports Whogo!

 

Especially encouraged on your Huelva port report (we know you have to take a transfer to get to Huelva) as we are there next year and looking forward to it.

 

Planning on the town and the Columbus route (the monastery where he stayed and where he set sail from) and the town.

 

Nice to hear that the tourism people do such a great job!!!

[whogo]

Friday, November 11, 2016, Funchal, Madeira

Let the new captain bring us into port without my supervision, docked at 32°38.52'N, 016°54.74'W, the gangway was positioned at 6:35. The Aegean Odyssey was nearby, figured we were the big ship in town until later spying Queen Elizabeth behind us.

 

Madeira has been on my wish list for years. Mrs. Whogo and I set out on our taxi tour at 10:00, our guide was excellent, knew everything, first stop, the market. It was absolutely amazing, filled with local flowers, fruits, and vegetables, some I had never seen before. Sampled a couple of different passion fruits and wished that the Prinsendam was stocking their pantry. Moved on to the fish market, wonderfully clean and fresh smelling, watched the workers expertly fill orders. Was impressed by the yellowfin and bluefin tuna. The market alone was worth the stop in Funchal.

 

We headed up the mountains to Monte, visited the Church of Our Lady of Monte and climbed one of the towers for a magnificent view including the harbor and our ship. Why does the captain always park the ship with the sun behind it? Doesn't he know the photos would be better with the light behind us?

 

The famous wicker sled ride is nearby, we watched, would have liked to take it, but did not want to wait 45 minutes to do so. Instead we followed a sled downhill, watching the two men guide it along at speeds up to about 25 kph. The men must wear out shoes in a hurry, even with their automobile tire soles. Would have been fun.

 

We visited a number of scenic overlooks. The landscape is truly beautiful with steep mountains, gorges, terraces, streams, and the ocean. Green island, every imaginable tropical fruit is grown here, plus vineyards, sugar cane, and lots of bananas. Cabo Girão had a view down the second highest sea cliffs in the world and another overlook had a vertigo inducing glass walkway over a similar high cliff. Took a cable car down cliffs to a bit of beach, great views.

 

One of our last stops was Câmara de Lobos, a fishing village painted by Winston Churchill. I guess they meant that Churchill painted a picture of the town, not that he painted the buildings of the town. Easel and palette type painting, not ladder, scaffold and roller painting.

 

Finished with a drive through Funchal past the cathedral and other building, no time to stop with all aboard looming. Absolutely wonderful tour of a fantastic island, can't praise it enough.

 

We lost at evening trivia before dining on beef Wellington. Great day, might be our favorite port stop in a cruise full of great ports. The navigation screen showed us sailing almost due west at 278°. Set our clocks back an hour tonight, looking forward to seven days at sea and more 25 hour days.

[mdeering]

Whogo,

 

Thank you so much for a great day by day description of your cruise. I am boarding the Prinsendam as you get off. Your blog has increased my anticipation.

 

Great job!

Marilyn

[kazu]

Sounds like you had a wonderful day in Madeira. It truly is a beautiful spot.

[whogo]

Saturday, November 12, 2016, sailing towards Ft. Lauderdale

At 8:00 we were at 33°14.96'N, 022°34.22'W, moving right along at 18.6 knots towards the left of the screen, 276°. Leisurely breakfast in the dining room, then sat on the promenade deck to read, distracted by walkers who were going both ways, seems the deck was blocked off on the other side. I generally take my glasses off to read, so if I did not acknowledge someone I should have, I did not see you.

 

Mrs. Whogo learned at Good Morning Prinsendam that the priest missed the boat in Funchal and there would be no Roman Catholic services on the crossing.

 

Attended most of the question and answer session with Captain Christopher Turner, Chief Engineer Roof De Groot and Hotel Director Cees Tesselaar, hosted by cruise director Bruce Scudder. Not much new. Outside sewer smell is worse while they make some adjustment to the system which may make it better. The captain mentioned that he personally passed all the water on the ship, a few of us got the joke. A fellow cruiser gushed over the singers and dancers for what seemed like a couple of minutes as the best she had ever seen on sea or land. One of the performers was thinking, 'Thanks, Mom'.

 

Waitstaff was dolled up appropriately for Indian buffet lunch in the dining room. Wide selection of South Asian food, the nan bread was gone before I got to it. In typical Holland America fashion, the dishes were mildly spiced with the exception of the chutney which threw a few cruisers for a loop. Big line of people at noon died out to a trickle. Made a mental note to attend such meals later. Mental notes don't last long in my brain, I expect to make the same mistake again.

 

Good team for afternoon trivia, teamwork paid off in figuring out a number of answers, we tied for first, winning little ship charms, a donation from Diamonds International.

 

Alarm bells rang at 5:50, adding a little excitement for a moment, hoped to see a panicked cruiser grab a life jacket and head for his muster station. Officer of the watch said immediately that it was a first stage alarm, appropriate crew were to respond. Captain announced a couple of minutes later that a fire suppression system had discharged in the purifier room (part of the engine room?) setting off the automatic alarm, no fire, would investigate the reason for the discharge. We could continue our evening activities as usual. Captain announced ten minutes later that people walking past the sensitive fire suppression system had caused it to discharge. Incident over. Mrs. Whogo reported from the promenade deck that she saw the responders put on emergency equipment including air tanks, closing that part of the deck. Bad day for walking the promenade deck with closures and odors.

 

Few diners at second seating time in the dining room. I was happy with the Sauerbraten mit Blaukohl und Spätzle. The late night crowd loved concert pianist Naomi Edemariam, who played songs from Italy, Spain, and Portugal and elsewhere, Puccini, Bizet, Ravel, Chopin and more. No extra hour today.

[ROCruiser]

Thanks for posting your cruise report. Following along. I agree that HAL maps are worthless.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Catching up.

Loving your reports.

I also agree -- the maps HAL provides are worthless.

[whogo]

Sunday, November 13, 2016

At 6:25 AM we were speeding toward the left of the navigation screen at 18.2 knots, 272°, at 33°42.30'N, 030°46.78'W.

 

First and second breakfast in the Lido, eggs were perfect. Lido breakfasts take 15 minutes, dining room breakfasts an hour. I spent my extra 45 minutes preparing twenty copies of the following notice and distributing them to random staterooms:

 

Greetings Neighboring Cruiser,

 

Hello, I am Bernhard the Bavarian Tap-Dancing Yodeler. I hope you will watch my act later in the cruise. I practice my tap dancing and yodeling between midnight and 1:00 AM in my cabin near you. I would like to ask that you vacate your cabin at that time as hearing my act through the ceiling, floor, or walls does not give the proper effect and would ruin the delight of seeing my act on stage. Thank you for your consideration.

 

Kindest regards,

Bernard the Bavarian Tap-Dancing Yodeler

 

Internet continues to be surprisingly fast, pages load almost as fast as at home. I would not try to watch a video or anything, but I am pleased with the speed. I am able to download mail, upload mail, and post this drivel in about one minute. I bought too many minutes, might have to start emailing more photos.

 

The free access to the Holland America website is painfully slow.

 

Lost at afternoon trivia. Spent much of the morning and afternoon searching for sea life on the promenade deck. My method is to relax and read and wait for someone to say they see something. No sea life yet, I did see a ship this morning. We are not alone on the Atlantic. Beautiful day, partly sunny and about 72 degrees with a light breeze across the decks.

 

Came out of my cabin this afternoon and an acquaintance said she did not know we were neighbors. I said, "Shh, don't tell my wife I was here." See how long it takes for the rumors to start or someone to have a heart to heart with my wife.

 

My waiter brought me a massive slab of prime rib tonight, delicious. I did not clean my plate. Sweet and sour shrimp received rave reviews. Lost at trivia.

 

Big crowd for the 10:00 show by Bailamos! Some people must have watched the show twice, never seen so many Prinsendam cruisers up so late.

 

I plan to watch the navigation channel until 2:00 AM to see the time jump back one hour.

Edited November 14, 2016 by whogo

[PhoenixCruiser]

Dear Bernhard the Bavarian Tap-Dancing Yodeler,

 

We are so much looking forward to your act. Please increase your practice time to ensure a perfect performance.

 

Your neighbor downstairs.

 

###

[St Pete Cruiser]

Do check out the elevator day of the week even if you are not allowed to use them!

[kazu]

OMG Whogo. I have to learn NOT to drink coffee and read your posts at the same time -LOL. Very risky to electronic devices.

 

You are too funny :D:D

[Krazy Kruizers]

You are a Hoot!!