Venture to the Caribbean with Bill & Mary Ann on the Nieuw Statendam & Nieuw Amsterdam 12-18-21 to 4-26-22

[SilvertoGold]

6 hours ago, rochelle_s said:

The ship needs to keep the number of COVID cases onboard as low as possible. Crew are moved to another ship acting as a sick bay and guests are quarantined in hotels when necessary. This might seem like an inconvenience to those affected but it enables all the other passengers to be able to enjoy their cruise.  A higher number of cases on board, even if they are quarantining on the ship, could mean denial of entry at the scheduled ports and worst case scenario could even mean a fully cancelled cruise.

 

Wishing the OP a speedy recovery, no lingering side effects and an enjoyable return to the ship on its return to Fort Lauderdale.

 

Rochelle

Thanks for this clear and reasonable explanation, Rochelle. Make a lot of sense.

[WCB]

Report # 41   Marriott Hotel   Thursday - January 27, 2022  Overcast in the AM & partly sunny  - 78 degrees   Part #1 Of 1......47 Pictures

 

Another morning with overcast skies is what we woke up to today.  At least it was not raining, but that may happen yet.  After breakfast, we took a hike to guess where?  Yep, Walmart.  We are beginning to feel like we live there, like that movie with Natalie Portman a few years back.  As large as this store is, there were not a lot of people shopping this early.  All of the employees were wearing masks, as well as the shoppers, including us.  Picking up a few items, we walked back a different way to get more exercise.  The sun began peeking out, and it looked like we were in for a nicer day. 

 

Prior to leaving the hotel, we asked when we would be “set free” after our 5 day quarantine.  The front desk ladies called the manager over to speak to us.  He said that the rep from HAL, Linda, would be the one to release us.  We assumed he would get that call, but he said we will be contacted.  Today should be the day according to our calculations, so why no phone call?  He also said we should have been tested, but we let him know that we had not.  There is roaming nurse that comes to the hotel to do such testing, but we have not been invited.  It could be because we intend to re-join the ship, and not fly home.  The manager suggested we call Family Assistance at HAL.

 

Back in our room, we saw we did have a message on the phone.  It was Mary Beth from Family Assistance, who is taking the place of Linda who called originally.  She said she would call the hotel, and let them know we have done our time.  As of 5pm Florida time, we have not heard anything. Guess Rome wasn’t built in a day.

 

Lunch was turkey and ham sandwiches with chips….no surprise there. As we were leaving the room, a maid was bringing chairs into the room across the hall.  She asked if we needed them too, and we said yes, thanks. Then we took a short walk around the hotel grounds, but stayed out of the abandoned golf course.  The hotel manager had mentioned that the property was off limits, and there were actually police in the area watching.  If we had seen that posted, we would never have walked it.

 

Since the sun had peeked out for a while, we decided to take over a couple of lounges at the poolside, where some other guests were swimming and visiting.  Guessing they were also in the same boat as us, we might learn something.  What we did hear was that a nearby restaurant called Hurricane Grill & Wings had a happy hour at 3pm, and that’s where these folks were every afternoon.  Yep, we guessed right…..cruise folks.  Just as we got nice and relaxed, it began to rain hard.  Darn……maybe it’s a passing cloud.  It was.  But most of the people left, leaving one couple behind.  Perfect chance to share info.

 

Turns out they were Canadians who were put off of the Enchanted Princess on January 19^th.  The wife tested positive, while her husband was negative….same as us.  They have been tested at least twice by the visiting hotel nurse, as well as independently testing locally somewhere close to here.  They need to be negative to be able to fly home (international) in two days.  We did learn from them that we can order whatever we wish from the restaurant’s menu, even though the printed one they gave us was very limited.  We wished them well, as they did for us.  If we do not see them in three days, we will  know their tests went OK.  Funny, they both said “think negative”!!

 

Our laundry bag is filling up, so we stopped by the mini-store and picked up a small Tide liquid.  The laundry room is on level 5, and we shall use it tomorrow.  Both washer and dryer take quarters or can be operated with a cell phone.  However, we were informed the phone thing was not working right now.  Doesn’t matter….we don’t have one anyway.

 

The phone call finally came around 5:30pm from Mary Beth in Seattle.  She authorized our “release”, and now we are free to roam around the hotel’s public spaces.  With everything that has happened so far with this pandemic, we think we will remain as isolated as we possibly can be.

 

Dinner time arrived quickly, and we ordered one Margherita flatbread pizza with two Caesar salads.  All of the items were very good, especially pizza.

 

Five days down, and five to go….but who’s counting?

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

[Mtn2Sea]

So glad you’ve been releases from your quarantine!  Hopefully you can enjoy your time in Florida before reboarding the ship.

[regnig]

Mary Ann do you know if HAL will retest you at the pier prior to re-boarding?  If so, would it be wise to schedule a rapid test either from the "roaming nurse" the hotel mentioned but some other place within walking distance?  I'd hate to see you check out and head back to the pier only to be told by HAL you couldn't board.

[ger_77]

Yay on being released from quarantine!  I like your idea of not going overboard with your freedom though for safety’s sake.

 

Any idea why the old golf course is off limits?  Could it be due to alligators, or perhaps human activity that they’re watching for?  Interesting to say the least.   
 

Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂

[jabcruiser]

Mary Ann,

So glad you are Free now.  Hope you have some warm clothes as going get really cold tomorrow nite.  You may have to go to Walmart for sweats!  Have you found a restaurant close where you can dine out tonite? Or are you just going to stay safe and keep ordering in? Thanks for keeping us posted.  Hope you can continue on with no further disruptions.

Jane

[cruzingnut]

So good to hear that you are "free" and even happier to hear that you will still be exceedingly careful!  Last thing you need is Bill getting sick and having to spend another 10 or so days in Coral Springs.  Stay warm, there's a forecast of "falling Iguana's" for the weekend!!  Yes, falling Iguanas....when it gets as cold as it's supposed, they tend to go dormant and fall out of the trees.  They are fine; they just lay there until it warms up and go about their way. 

 

Linda R.

[iflyrc5]

It is great that you will be able to get out and around - looking forward to meeting you on the NS - we are boarding Feb 2 and will be on for 6 weeks.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Glad you are out of quarantine. I assume you decided to stay at the Coral Springs Hotel rather than move to another one. Wise choice IMO.

[NSWP]

Reading these post I cannot believe they left quarantine for a walk outside to Walmart even !!  Seems irresponsible to me. What is the point of quarantine?

 

Here in Australia if you are in hotel quarantine or in special quarantine facilities then you are guarded by police and security. No one gets out until release date.

[cruisejess]

Did you go to into Walmart before quarantine was up?  I've alway loved reading about your travels, but goodness that's not right.

[KAKcruiser]

Mary Ann specifically said that she waited outside Walmart while Bill went inside.  Besides, she had already been quarantined for a few days on the ship and now she was up to 5 additional days.  I'm sure she was fine.

[jlnprt]

IIRC OP said that their instructions were that she could be outside as long as she was masked. I think she mentioned in an earlier post that her (negative) dh didn't have those restrictions and that he was the one venturing inside the store while she remained outside.

[Storylady]

Maryanne, thank you for writing about your experience in Quarantine. So glad you are free at last. Your experience is definitely is more reassuring than some of the scare stories I have read. I am curious as to whether you had HAL Platinum insurance? And did Guest Services get you in touch with HAL Family Assistance or did you have to make the call? So far, we haven’t gotten COVID on a cruise, but it is possible as we now know from your experience. Do you know whether HAL Family Assistance will work if any of us get COVID on the World Cruise? We would like to do what you just did, quarantine in a hotel and then rejoin the ship after 10 days or whenever we are tested negative. I suspect you are right that the Marriott Coral Springs Hotel is probably being used as a quarantine hotel for Carnival Corp ships.

Edited January 29, 2022 by Storylady

[WCB]

Report # 42   Marriott Hotel   Friday - January 28, 2022   Overcast in the AM & partly sunny   78 degrees   Part #1 Of 1.........16 Pictures….Day #6

 

Looking out the window this morning, we saw fog….dense fog.  Thought that only happened in San Francisco?  Eventually, it did lift and the sun even came out much later.  Crazy weather for Florida. 

 

We had a chance to check the charges on our credit card, and found some odd pending amounts posted for this hotel.  Nothing jived with our notes.  So we met with the hotel manager, who said he would check into the room service food deliveries.  We have only been given two receipts so far, so how they check this, we don’t know.  The manager indicated that he had a two foot long list for other guests to check as well.  Perhaps he should not have said that, now we are really concerned.  Also, this hotel does not have interactive TV’s where you can see your running total.  Really needs updating.  They did print what they have up to date, but the food charges were still incorrect.

 

Our morning walk took us much further than we had planned, as we were looking for a certain bank.  However, maps can be deceiving, and a few miles were actually several miles.  Turning back, we did find a McDonalds.  Last night, we had a phone call from good friends who  live in Florida.  They said some areas of the city do not allow signage or billboards.  This must be one of those areas.  The only clue that this was a McDonalds was a letter M on the side of the building.  Even Walmart had a low sign on the corner.

 

Anyway, we turned back, and picked up a few more items from the grocery store.  Heaven forbid, we run out of the biscotti cookies.  We were ready for lunch after our long hike, so after that, we had a few phone calls to make.  And finally after six days here, we had a load of laundry to do.  The room was on the fifth floor, with two washers and two dryers.  Naturally, the first machine we tried to use, did not take the quarters.  The second one worked.

 

From there, we went down to the pool area, and stretched out on the lounges for ½ hour.  The sun was in and out of the clouds, but it was still comfortable.  Until a strong wind came up, and almost blew us away.  At this point, there were about 13 of us relaxing, with one teenage boy in the pool.  Couldn’t help but notice there was a lot of sneezing and coughing going on, so we left right after we put the clothes into the dryer.  That would take another hour, but best to wait it out in our room.  We have never been so aware of our surroundings as we are now. 

 

Our late PM walk took us in the opposite direction, towards a gated community.  We followed the sidewalk until we saw the first bench, where we stopped for a rest.  This concept of gated communities is not something we have a lot of in our area in California.   Yes, there are a few, but for the most part, nothing is closed off to unauthorized traffic.  Guess if it reduces theft and other bad things, it is a good idea.

 

We had hoped our room would have been serviced today, but it never was.  Even with requesting the service at the front desk this morning.  Tomorrow for sure we will follow up on this simple request. 

 

There was a phone call from the guest relations manager on the ship, asking how we are doing.  She went over all the info we needed, as well as getting the description of what happens here at the hotel.  We filled in all the info we could think of, and said how nice it will be to be back on the ship Feb 2nd.   Janine also described the day they missed Half Moon Cay, saying the entire island’s beaches were covered with sea foam, caused by extremely high winds.  They had no choice but to move on to the next port. 

 

Dinner was in room service with a shared chicken quesadilla, Caesar salad, and BBQ chicken flatbread.  It was ample….now we will have to  walk further tomorrow.  By the way, the forecast for the weekend is very cold, like in the high 30’s.  Good thing we brought jeans and jackets with us.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Here are some answers to your questions.

 

The golf course is permanently closed, but only partially fenced. We did not know it was off limits for walking.  Now we do.

Daily hikes around the hotel were allowed, even without masks.  I wore mine most of the time anyway, even with no people around.

We do not have HAL Platinum Insurance, but have a private plan.

Family Assistance contacted us once we checked into the hotel.  They have been most helpful, and available for our calls as well.

As for trips to stores, I have stayed outside and masked, while Bill shopped (masked).  I continued this well past my quarantined time, even with two extra days of lock up on the ship.  

Florida's Covid regulations are much different compared to other countries.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[ottahand7]

55 minutes ago, WCB said:

We had hoped our room would have been serviced today, but it never was.  Even with requesting the service at the front desk this morning.  Tomorrow for sure we will follow up on this simple request. 

This is becoming par for the course at Marriott hotels.  We stayed at a nice Courtyard in Hunt Valley Maryland in November.   We caused a stink when they told us they didn't service the rooms daily.  I made our bed daily so the place looked neat.   We grabbed towels whenever there was a cart in the hall.  I think they are going to use the COVID excuse forever.   I think it was cleaned when we left at day 5.   We are staying for three days in FL at the Renaissance and I expect to be making our bed again.    I am so happy you have freedom to move about.  Good luck with your bill.  🙄

[dmcfad2]

20 minutes ago, ottahand7 said:

This is becoming par for the course at Marriott hotels.  We stayed at a nice Courtyard in Hunt Valley Maryland in November.   We caused a stink when they told us they didn't service the rooms daily.  I made our bed daily so the place looked neat.   We grabbed towels whenever there was a cart in the hall.  I think they are going to use the COVID excuse forever.   I think it was cleaned when we left at day 5.   We are staying for three days in FL at the Renaissance and I expect to be making our bed again.    I am so happy you have freedom to move about.  Good luck with your bill.  🙄

I think Covid has become a great excuse for hotels to stop housekeeping! As you say, I don’t think they will ever go back to daily housekeeping.

[sue1898]

1 hour ago, WCB said:

Florida's Covid regulations are much different compared to other countries.

 

As a native Floridian your phrasing amused me! Florida has practically no Covid regulations and in fact has regulations against having any…sigh

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Covid may be part of the excuse for decreased housekeeping services but I have read they are also having trouble getting workers (as are just about all industries)

[AFNavigator]

On 1/25/2022 at 8:38 AM, WCB said:

 

 

 

 

Bill took a walk and found a Publix, a local supermarket.  He came back with some groceries, and some fixings for breakfast, lunch, and snacks.

Next time you go to Publix, check their seafood department to see if they have any shrimp cocktails ready.  They prepare them with jumbo shrimp in a plastic goblet-like container with cocktail sauce center.  Nice presentation and very tasty.

[Jazmyn49]

Have either of you been tested since entering quarantine?  It would sure be a relief to know the results as that must always be in the back of your minds.  A friend tested positive on the ship, did the 5 days and STILL tested positive and had another 5 days.  He hasn't gotten those results as yet.

[WCB]

Report # 43   Marriott Hotel   Saturday - January 29, 2022    Sunny, Windy & Cool   53 degrees   Part #1 Of 1........55  Pictures.......Day #7

 

Well, the weather sure went south today….literally.  Early in the morning the temperature was in the 40’s, but with the wind chill factor, it might feel much colder.  On our way out for the morning walk, we decided to change from our shorts to jeans.  Good thing Bill thought to bring them when he packed on the ship.  This weather seems much like what we have at home this time of year.  Even the humidity was low today. 

 

Near the lobby entrance, there was a sign welcoming Grandma Irma for a 90^th birthday luncheon.  Obviously, this hotel is not strictly for Covid positive guests.  We sure hope that Grandma goes home with fond memories, birthday presents, and nothing more, like the virus.  We bet that when the family booked this venue for her special day, they never thought it would be under these circumstances.  The good news is that the affair was held in one of the convention rooms, well away from the hotel crowd.

 

So, we went off in search of iguanas and lizards falling from the palm trees, due to the frigid weather.  Darn it…..  we have yet to see any iguanas around this entire area.  Is it possible they have been removed?  One day we did see a lizard, but only one.  The one critter we saw this morning was a squirrel, who held his ground while sunning under a tree.  We got as close as 2 feet away from him, taking pictures, until he scampered up the tree.  Truthfully, we don’t feel that it is that cold, since we are used to it in northern California.  But the animal life here must suffer when the temps drop like this.  Tomorrow is predicted to be even colder. 

 

Today we went to Coral Ridge Drive, and turned left just to see what was down the road in that direction.  Turned out it was a series of gated communities.  Very nice area to live it appeared.  Eventually the street name changed to Nob Hill Road, and we continued to Parkland Reserve,  another large community.  Then we decided we were not going to run into any more strip malls, so we headed back. 

 

Bird watching was super on this walk, as the waterway follows it for quite a ways.  Spotting a hawk, we watched while he dove head first into the canal.  Wish we could see what he had snagged, but it appeared something had hold of him.  The bird struggled several times to get airborne, and after three attempts, it flew off.  There was nothing in its claws, but it did appear he looked injured.  What had attacked him?  Possibly an alligator?  There were signs all of the way warning of snakes and alligators, so they are here, even if we don’t see them.  Now we are on alligator watch as well.

 

There appeared to be several folks checking out at the hotel.  We wonder if the Princess ship was in port today, since the Canadian couple had planned to re-board it.  We have not seen them, so we assume they tested negative.  Then later in the afternoon more folks were arriving, possibly more Covid related stays. 

 

Time for lunch, we worked on reports and photos afterwards, then took another walk.  Since it was so windy and cold, there wasn’t one person at the pool.  What we did see, were scores of fallen palm fronds everywhere we walked.  We needed to be more aware of these suddenly falling, because they are large and that would hurt if it fell on your head. 

 

By the way, our room never did get fully serviced.  That’s when we remembered the letter we got upon arrival.  Reading it closer, it said we would not get any housekeeping services for the entire duration of our stay.  Didn’t notice that a week ago.  But someone did give us extra towels and cleaned the bathroom.  The bed was left unmade.  If we requested a fresh set of bedding, we could do the changing ourselves.  Not a big deal.  Calling for more necessities like coffee, tea, creamers, sugars and cups, it arrived within minutes, hanging on the door.  Except they forgot the coffee pods.

 

Dinner was two cheeseburgers with side salads made with romaine lettuce only.  It arrived at 6:30pm, but without some salad dressings. We did talk to the dining room manager, who said we could order anything we wished from their extended menu.  Like we said, we learned these things a week later. A few more days, and this will be another memory…….we hope.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

[dchip]

If there is water in Florida, there are usually alligators and snakes. I have not fond memories of spending time at my grandparents and the alligators sitting on the front lawn. Worse were the snakes that got in the house. This usually happened when the weather was cold or rains had flooded snake holes or wherever they live. 😂
 

It’s warm at home during the day  between 64-68. Nights are still dropping to 33-35. It will be this way for the next week. Last rain we had was on January 4. 
 

Fingers crossed that you will soon be back on the NS!!

Denise and Howie, too

[WCB]

Report # 44   Marriott Hotel   Sunday - January 30, 2022   Sunny And Cool  55 Degrees   Part #1 Of 1........36  Pictures.......Day #8

 

Today is Sunday, and we have been here for an entire week now.  Truthfully, the time has slipped by rather quickly, as we tend to keep busy one way or the other.  It was as cold this morning as they predicted, so our aim for the day was to search for the famous falling ice cold iguanas. 

 

On our way out of the lobby, we saw a large sign for a wedding reception this afternoon.  Once again, we were surprised to see this, but then Florida has different regulations, and this crowd would be mostly inside a convention room. 

 

Right up the road near the canal, we saw our first iguana laying across the sidewalk, trying to warm up.  We almost tripped over it, as it laid there motionless.  It looked like a young one, measuring about 30 inches head to tail.  Of course, many photos were taken, even close up.  Still didn’t move.  Later on, the iguana was still there, having moved a little.  That was 2 hours later when we walked back. 

 

We walked up to the Heron Lakes Shopping Mall, where most everything was closed (Sunday).  Then headed back to Publix for a few items.  We did check out the seafood, but could not find the shrimp cocktail that was shown on Cruise Critic.  With this being a weekend, we think they were sold out. 

 

Back by 1pm, we had a lunch of ham, turkey, salami, and cheese on fresh hoagie rolls for a change.  We are allowed to visit the hotel’s restaurant now, but still feel that we have to be careful.  Better to get back outside in the fresh cool air. Taking the afternoon walk took us back to the canals.  One of the football games started early, but we didn’t pick it up until later.  It was the Rams versus the 49ers, and it turned out to be a good game all the way to the end. 

 

Dinner was a shared turkey BLT with a side salad.  We also split a Margherita flat bread, while one of us had a cup of noodles.  Catching up on Seinfeld episodes the rest of the evening.  Still funny……….

 

Bill & Mary Ann