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LIVE from the ZUIDERDAM - VOYAGE OF THE VIKINGS


sansterre
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Now we continue to sail West out of Reykjavik at 271 degrees.  Currently we are about half way between Iceland and Greenland.  The temperature is 48 degrees and it is raining with Wind ENE at 35mph.  The Zuiderdam moves smoothly it all.

Captain Vaartjes said the behavior of the ship will change this afternoon as we get closer to the storm.  It should be a wild Gala Night tonight!

I saw a weather report this morning which showed a lot of disturbance off the East Coast up to Maine and beyond.  The map didn't include Greenland but I could imagine we are getting some of the same weather as it blows to the NE.  Hopefully tomorrow we have smooth going through Prince William Sound.  I donated some clothes to go to the village we passed on the way East.  No doubt a tender will be sent in, filled with the collected items.

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I just uploaded photos from last night's sail away from Reykjavik.  Although the  fireworks did not photograph well, they were very pretty and lasted for ten to fifteen minutes.  The ship went slowly through the very calm water and I could hear many people were also watching from their verandas on the port side.  The firework show was late, a little after 11:00, but since we gained an hour to us it was just 10:00.

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The captain made an announcement a few minutes ago with good news that we have passed the northernmost part of the storm.  Now we are headed SW, but as I look at the map, we are 3/4 the way to Greenland and will be somewhat protected by the land to the West of us.  "Go to dinner and enjoy your evening", were the captain's final words. 

Still we experience 16 foot seas so must be careful!

DH and I went to tea this afternoon.  Will post photos tonight.

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I am a novice at this and can hardly explain what I do.

Basically I download all my photos to my apple laptop.  Then I export the photos I might want to share. Finally I import the individual photos as I post them. 

You might want to ask your questions on the Holland America board to learn of other, possibly easier methods.

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Things were a bit rough between the hours of 6 and 9 tonight.  We are still on our SW course but have slowed down a bit.  We were headed to the show after trivia at 7:30 and didn't even make it to the Gallery Bar before we realized getting through the Casino was a real challenge.  Instead we returned to our cabin, using the railings as much as possible.

A few things had rolled off the desk and a glass broke when it hit the waste basket.  We are comfortable in our bed as the ship rocks and rolls to the waves.  

Outside it is 45 degrees with wind of 40 mph from the NNE (behind us) as we go SW.

Tomorrow morning the temperature will be near freezing as we enter Prince William Sound.

 

Here are the photos from the 3:00 Afternoon Tea today. 

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and here is a photo I took around 8 last night and at 8 this morning of the View from the Bow on our television.

We slept very well last night as the Zuiderdam cruised relatively well through it all.  The motion puts one right to sleep!

Today should be beautiful inside Prince Christian Sound.  We are having lunch in the Pinnacle, but otherwise I will be taking more photos and posting the bests ones here.  

The sun is out and temperature is 46 degrees F/8 degrees C.

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Good morning Greenland!

For the last 30 minutes we headed directly West into the Sound's Eastern entrance.

The captain said this area is very dangerous due to storms, icebergs and growlers (small icebergs), winds and currents.  We have seen waves breaking on some shoals in the area as well.

As I write this, the audio has begun on our television (View from the Bow channel, now known as the Forward Camera Channel!).  Since our travel guide Jessica left in Rotterdam,  the commentary will be given by the speakers on board, Dr. Sunny Rose Marlow and Dr. Thorsteinn Hannesson.

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1 hour ago, sansterre said:

and here is a photo I took around 8 last night and at 8 this morning of the View from the Bow on our television.

We slept very well last night as the Zuiderdam cruised relatively well through it all.  The motion puts one right to sleep!

Today should be beautiful inside Prince Christian Sound.  We are having lunch in the Pinnacle, but otherwise I will be taking more photos and posting the bests ones here.  

The sun is out and temperature is 46 degrees F/8 degrees C.

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Wow! What a difference!

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On 7/25/2019 at 5:05 PM, sansterre said:

Our 37 day cruise begins next Tuesday, July 30th in Boston!  I'll be posting updates and a few photos, mostly of ports.

I'm encouraging other Roll Call members to also post interesting information about the ship, as well as cruise and port highlights. 

You are all welcome to come along with us!   And please post any questions or comments you might have.

Thank you for doing this for us!  We hope to do this trip, in the future.

 

Lesley

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We met a sailboat.  It looks small, but actually about a 60 footer with an Irish flag.  With binoculars, we

 counted 12 people on board.  

This sailboat gave perspective to the hugeness of everything else around us.  Can you find the sailboat in the second photo?

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and already we are up to our first glacier!  The captain is taking time to spin the ship around so everyone has a great view.  There are many growlers in the area, those are prices of ice that are less than 2 meters high, so called because of the sound they make as they scrape against a ship's hull.

This photo is LIVE from the Zuiderdam! 

 

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While enjoying lunch in the Pinnacle, the second glacier came into view.  There is a small glacier beside the larger one.  

Lunch was delicious.  I like the new lunch menu in the Pinnacle.  Some of my favorites from the old dinner menu are on it.  I had Beefsteak Tomatoes, the Pinnacle Burger, and the Warm brownie with Coffee Ice Cream for dessert.  YUM!

Life doesn't get any better than this!

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After lunch we noticed the ship was still turning at the glacier so we captured a few more of these beautiful glaciers glistening in the bright sunshine.  This time, without the rain-spattered windows.  

What a beautiful world!

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Now we are at the village of Aappilattoq.  This time the Zuiderdam is dropping off some donations (clothes, school supplies, and toys) and supplies (including pizza and ice cream).

A ship's tender is readied, then dropped to take the supplies to the village.  Meanwhile some villagers and fishermen circle the Zuiderdam to say hello.

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