"Are We Mad?" - a not quite live review of our Alaskan, Transpacific, Comedy, and Papua New Guinea cruises

[Sparky74]

Part 7

Eurodam Barking Day

 

For those trying to keep track, we’re now up to Saturday August 27th and it’s Barking Day, the day we embark our first cruise of this mad itinerary, Holland America's Eurodam. 

 

Our Uber driver drops us at the port, very close to the ship. DW clambers out of the car, respendant in her moon boot whilst the driver and I unload our luggage from the trunk. (I’m picking up this American lingo but DW refuses to use a bathroom or restroom and persists in saying "toilet" which is crude to American ears.) A porter whisks away our suitcases and unfortunately I don’t have any cash on me so I'm guilty of reinforcing a stereotype. 

 

Q: What’s the difference between an Australian and a canoe?

A: Canoes sometimes tip. 

 

Prior to our previous cruise on Princess, I purchased on eBay a set of four plastic cruise luggage tag holders. Prior to leaving Australia I had placed our Eurodam tags in two of these and our Carnival Splendor tags in the other two. Amidst all the hurry and scurry to get out of our hotel room by the 11am deadline this morning (you may recall we slept in and missed our COVID test) I had still remembered to attach our luggage tags. Gold star for me!

 

We also had a small backpack which will feature later in our trip so I'll give some background now. DW's sister had donated this backpack to one of our op shops and I subsequently purchased it for this trip. It’s like a deluxe school bag with multiple compartments and I thought it would be an ideal day pack for Alaska to carry our jackets if it gets warm. I’ve read that the weather is changeable and that we should dress in layers. I used the backpack as my carryon item on our flights but have decided to "check" it for barking this cruise so I wander up to luggage checkin and they write a tag for me. 

 

I return to DW and we make our way to the wheelchair assistance section. Here we meet a delightful lady by the name of Kathy. DW takes a seat in the wheelchair and Kathy asks if we have the VeriFLY app. For months I’d been reading online about people having issues with this app so I hadn’t even bothered downloading it. Am I mad?

 

"No problem!" says Kathy and she checks that we have all our paperwork before we proceed and of course I do. Boarding Passes, Vaccination Certificates, Passports, and our test results are on DW's phone so off we go with Kathy pushing the wheelchair and me trotting behind. As with the airport, wheelchair assistance gets us preferential treatment and we even skip ahead of people with Super Elite Diamond Pinnacle Plus loyalty status as well as those booked in suites. But even the lines for "ordinary people" didn’t seem to be long. 

 

Just before we reach the wheelchair holding area, Kathy pauses at a table where HAL staff offer us a drink of iced water and cookies to eat. This is most welcome as in our scramble this morning we hadn’t had time to go hunting for breakfast. We’ve never been offered cookies before boarding a ship before. I guess that this is one of those little touches which sets HAL apart as a premium line. 

 

Shortly after a member of the crew arrives and DW transfers to a wheelchair belonging to the Eurodam. We wave goodbye to Kathy and DW is pushed up the gangway. As always, I toddle on behind. None of the wheelchair pushers we have encountered dawdle and this chap is no exception. We scoot along the ship's corridors and he skilfully negotiates a tight corner where someone has parked a mobility scooter. 

 

As we come around the corner we can see balloons in the distance. We get nearer and nearer and then stop outside the door with the balloons. It’s 4041, our number. The balloons are in honour of DW's 50th Birthday which was in February. All she wanted was to spend her birthday on a cruise ship but as the industry was still locked down in Australia, this was not possible. So I keep saying, "Happy Birthday" to her throughout our cruises. When we enter the cabin she will find a small arrangement of flowers with a card from me. Am I mad? DW doesn’t even like flowers!

 

Upon arrival at our balcony stateroom, our key cards are waiting in an envelope in the mailbox outside our door. This strikes me as a much more efficient system than someone searching for our cards during checkin although I do wonder about the security of this practice. I guess with CCTV on the ship they’d soon track anyone who pinched someone’s cards.

 

To describe our cabin as "spacious" would certainly be an overstatement. Until our cruise on the Coral Princess earlier this year I’d never seen a cruise ship cabin that conformed to that description. No, I’m not talking about our inferior cabin on that cruise, nor even Auntie's balcony cabin. On our Princess cruise I was pleased to meet in person CC member Irene, along with her husband, Frank. I visited them in their "spacious" suite. Fancy us associating with suite people!

 

 Rather than "spacious" it seems more appropriate to apply the word  "adequate" to our balcony stateroom on the Eurodam. Perhaps it’s not too much of an exaggeration to describe it as "comfortable". After all, it even has a bathtub but I'll save a treatment of cruise ship showers for a later episode. 

 

I back out of the room as DW takes the obligatory photos of the cabin for the photo book; I don’t need to be in these shots. I think that the album of this trip will run over several volumes, perhaps rivalling that of Encyclopaedia Brittanica.

 

After lunch in the buffet, called the Lido Marketplace on HAL, we return to our cabin and find our luggage has arrived. The task of unpacking falls to me but it doesn’t take long and the now empty suitcases are stowed under the bed. 

 

While DW had a rest, I set out to explore the ship. You may think I’m mad but I always feel a bit discombobulated on a cruise until I’ve done a full explore of the ship. I start at the top of the ship and work my way down, walking and exploring each deck except the ones that are full of staterooms. 

 

I only get part way through my wanderings, however, when it’s time to pop back to 4041 to see DW before I head off to something described as "Meet Your Naturalist" at 4pm. You will be relieved to learn that the Naturalist, Kurt, is not prone to wandering the decks in his birthday suit. Rather he has been invited onboard by the good people at Holland America as an expert on wildlife and geography. Throughout the cruise he presented a series of short talks as well as being, quite literally, "on deck" at appointed times to provide commentary on the scenery and wildlife.

 

On this cruise we didn’t have traditional dining with the same table, tablemates, waiters, and dining time each night. We presented at the dining room on the first night and were seated at a table with two other couples, Doug and Joanie, and Ron and Laurie. Ron is an 85 year old retired blacksmith and we were interested to hear about his working life. He had also served in the US Navy as a helicopter pilot. Laurie, his daughter, has just retired after 38 years as a school teacher. Doug and Joanie are also retired, he had been a minister with the Church of the Nazarene and they had served in Alaska for a number of years. 

 

Successfully watered and fed, we decided to have an early night so we would be well rested for a Sea Day of doing nothing much tomorrow. 

[Sparky74]

Here’s a photo DW took as we sailed from Seattle on the Eurodam; ANOTHER shot of the Space Needle.

Two photos of my suitcase, and one of us at Vancouver airport, awaiting our flight to Seattle. 

[arxcards]

Thanks!!

One must be barking mad on barking day, and yes, always pays to double check when confronting naturist or naturalist.

[cruiser3775]

I like the idea of being pushed in the wheelchair ahead of the super elites.  Thanks for the tip about buying the luggage tag holders on eBay - I just ordered some.  I learn something new about cruising every day on CC. 

I am most impressed by the small size of your suitcases for such a long trip, and you even gave over considerable space to the ducks.

[Cbtours]

18 hours ago, Sparky74 said:

Part 7

Eurodam Barking Day

 

For those trying to keep track, we’re now up to Saturday August 27th and it’s Barking Day, the day we embark our first cruise of this mad itinerary, Holland America's Eurodam. 

 

Our Uber driver drops us at the port, very close to the ship. DW clambers out of the car, respendant in her moon boot whilst the driver and I unload our luggage from the trunk. (I’m picking up this American lingo but DW refuses to use a bathroom or restroom and persists in saying "toilet" which is crude to American ears.) A porter whisks away our suitcases and unfortunately I don’t have any cash on me so I'm guilty of reinforcing a stereotype. 

 

Q: What’s the difference between an Australian and a canoe?

A: Canoes sometimes tip. 

 

Prior to our previous cruise on Princess, I purchased on eBay a set of four plastic cruise luggage tag holders. Prior to leaving Australia I had placed our Eurodam tags in two of these and our Carnival Splendor tags in the other two. Amidst all the hurry and scurry to get out of our hotel room by the 11am deadline this morning (you may recall we slept in and missed our COVID test) I had still remembered to attach our luggage tags. Gold star for me!

 

We also had a small backpack which will feature later in our trip so I'll give some background now. DW's sister had donated this backpack to one of our op shops and I subsequently purchased it for this trip. It’s like a deluxe school bag with multiple compartments and I thought it would be an ideal day pack for Alaska to carry our jackets if it gets warm. I’ve read that the weather is changeable and that we should dress in layers. I used the backpack as my carryon item on our flights but have decided to "check" it for barking this cruise so I wander up to luggage checkin and they write a tag for me. 

 

I return to DW and we make our way to the wheelchair assistance section. Here we meet a delightful lady by the name of Kathy. DW takes a seat in the wheelchair and Kathy asks if we have the VeriFLY app. For months I’d been reading online about people having issues with this app so I hadn’t even bothered downloading it. Am I mad?

 

"No problem!" says Kathy and she checks that we have all our paperwork before we proceed and of course I do. Boarding Passes, Vaccination Certificates, Passports, and our test results are on DW's phone so off we go with Kathy pushing the wheelchair and me trotting behind. As with the airport, wheelchair assistance gets us preferential treatment and we even skip ahead of people with Super Elite Diamond Pinnacle Plus loyalty status as well as those booked in suites. But even the lines for "ordinary people" didn’t seem to be long. 

 

Just before we reach the wheelchair holding area, Kathy pauses at a table where HAL staff offer us a drink of iced water and cookies to eat. This is most welcome as in our scramble this morning we hadn’t had time to go hunting for breakfast. We’ve never been offered cookies before boarding a ship before. I guess that this is one of those little touches which sets HAL apart as a premium line. 

 

Shortly after a member of the crew arrives and DW transfers to a wheelchair belonging to the Eurodam. We wave goodbye to Kathy and DW is pushed up the gangway. As always, I toddle on behind. None of the wheelchair pushers we have encountered dawdle and this chap is no exception. We scoot along the ship's corridors and he skilfully negotiates a tight corner where someone has parked a mobility scooter. 

 

As we come around the corner we can see balloons in the distance. We get nearer and nearer and then stop outside the door with the balloons. It’s 4041, our number. The balloons are in honour of DW's 50th Birthday which was in February. All she wanted was to spend her birthday on a cruise ship but as the industry was still locked down in Australia, this was not possible. So I keep saying, "Happy Birthday" to her throughout our cruises. When we enter the cabin she will find a small arrangement of flowers with a card from me. Am I mad? DW doesn’t even like flowers!

 

Upon arrival at our balcony stateroom, our key cards are waiting in an envelope in the mailbox outside our door. This strikes me as a much more efficient system than someone searching for our cards during checkin although I do wonder about the security of this practice. I guess with CCTV on the ship they’d soon track anyone who pinched someone’s cards.

 

To describe our cabin as "spacious" would certainly be an overstatement. Until our cruise on the Coral Princess earlier this year I’d never seen a cruise ship cabin that conformed to that description. No, I’m not talking about our inferior cabin on that cruise, nor even Auntie's balcony cabin. On our Princess cruise I was pleased to meet in person CC member Irene, along with her husband, Frank. I visited them in their "spacious" suite. Fancy us associating with suite people!

 

 Rather than "spacious" it seems more appropriate to apply the word  "adequate" to our balcony stateroom on the Eurodam. Perhaps it’s not too much of an exaggeration to describe it as "comfortable". After all, it even has a bathtub but I'll save a treatment of cruise ship showers for a later episode. 

 

I back out of the room as DW takes the obligatory photos of the cabin for the photo book; I don’t need to be in these shots. I think that the album of this trip will run over several volumes, perhaps rivalling that of Encyclopaedia Brittanica.

 

After lunch in the buffet, called the Lido Marketplace on HAL, we return to our cabin and find our luggage has arrived. The task of unpacking falls to me but it doesn’t take long and the now empty suitcases are stowed under the bed. 

 

While DW had a rest, I set out to explore the ship. You may think I’m mad but I always feel a bit discombobulated on a cruise until I’ve done a full explore of the ship. I start at the top of the ship and work my way down, walking and exploring each deck except the ones that are full of staterooms. 

 

I only get part way through my wanderings, however, when it’s time to pop back to 4041 to see DW before I head off to something described as "Meet Your Naturalist" at 4pm. You will be relieved to learn that the Naturalist, Kurt, is not prone to wandering the decks in his birthday suit. Rather he has been invited onboard by the good people at Holland America as an expert on wildlife and geography. Throughout the cruise he presented a series of short talks as well as being, quite literally, "on deck" at appointed times to provide commentary on the scenery and wildlife.

 

On this cruise we didn’t have traditional dining with the same table, tablemates, waiters, and dining time each night. We presented at the dining room on the first night and were seated at a table with two other couples, Doug and Joanie, and Ron and Laurie. Ron is an 85 year old retired blacksmith and we were interested to hear about his working life. He had also served in the US Navy as a helicopter pilot. Laurie, his daughter, has just retired after 38 years as a school teacher. Doug and Joanie are also retired, he had been a minister with the Church of the Nazarene and they had served in Alaska for a number of years. 

 

Successfully watered and fed, we decided to have an early night so we would be well rested for a Sea Day of doing nothing much tomorrow. 

we were very pleased to "entertain" you in our once every suite lol

[MMDown Under]

18 hours ago, Sparky74 said:

Here’s a photo DW took as we sailed from Seattle on the Eurodam; ANOTHER shot of the Space Needle.

Two photos of my suitcase, and one of us at Vancouver airport, awaiting our flight to Seattle. 

I smile whenever I look at all those ducks!  BTW You don''t look like exhausted travellers!

[joejoe 59]

19 hours ago, Sparky74 said:

Here’s a photo DW took as we sailed from Seattle on the Eurodam; ANOTHER shot of the Space Needle.

Two photos of my suitcase, and one of us at Vancouver airport, awaiting our flight to Seattle. 

Love those crocheted ducks. I'm a crocheter so would really appreciate finding one of those.

[Cbtours]

14 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

I smile whenever I look at all those ducks!  BTW You don''t look like exhausted travellers!

That’s true they don’t! Can we see the crocheted ducks before you distribute them all 🥰

[MMDown Under]

49 minutes ago, Cbtours said:

That’s true they don’t! Can we see the crocheted ducks before you distribute them all 🥰

Maybe they could have a swim on the bed before they leave for greener pastures.

[arxcards]

3 hours ago, Cbtours said:

That’s true they don’t! Can we see the crocheted ducks before you distribute them all 🥰

The ducks are everywhere, and we found one in the lift on Coral, named Bender. Not as special as the crocheted ones though.

Turns out we found a problem duck that likes to run amuck. Bender by name, on a bender by nature.

[arxcards]

Getting closer.

 

[Cbtours]

1 hour ago, arxcards said:

Getting closer.

 

I fel like "we are on the dark side of the moon" waiting for the next update saga lol

[NSWP]

Bring on the next chapter, LOL.

[arxcards]

25 minutes ago, NSWP said:

Bring on the next chapter, LOL.

Fiji tomorrow. We might get lucky.

[arxcards]

[cruiser3775]

Well they made it to Fiji:

 

CCL's Carnival Splendor is the first cruise ship to visit Suva (Viti Levu Island, Fiji)

   September 25, 2022 ,   Cruise Industry

 

The Port of Suva (Viti Levu Island, Fiji) on Saturday, September 24, welcomed its first cruise ship, CCL-Carnival Cruise Line's Carnival Splendor with 2000+ tourists onboard since the COVID crisis 2 years ago.

According to Leigh Howard (Tourism Fiji chief operations officer), the arrival of the liner was a huge boost to the island's economy.

The 2008-built boat departed from Seattle WA USA (September 6) on a 23-night Transpacific voyage from Alaska to Australia (RepositionCruises.com) with stops in 6 different seaports (Hawaii and Fiji) before docking in homeport Sydney (NSW) on September 30.

Over the course of the 2 days, 1500+ passengers will go on shore excursions and shopping experiences, which are expected to provide a significant economic injection into Fiji's economy.

[NSWP]

Where are the Salvos? We want another chapter, lol.

[Cbtours]

1 hour ago, NSWP said:

Where are the Salvos? We want another chapter, lol.

We sure do!

[Hammoandnads]

We’re being ghosted. Harsh way to break up with us Sparky!

[MicCanberra]

They only just boarded, ( like 27th august) so internet aboard must be non existent.

[arxcards]

3 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

They only just boarded, ( like 27th august) so internet aboard must be non existent.

So far, it would seem they have chosen not to pay for overpriced ship internet. No, they are not mad, all of cruise internet is OTT for month long cruises. I suspect some major instalment updates when they start-up their domestic cruises. They hit Sydney on Friday.

[Cbtours]

8 hours ago, arxcards said:

So far, it would seem they have chosen not to pay for overpriced ship internet. No, they are not mad, all of cruise internet is OTT for month long cruises. I suspect some major instalment updates when they start-up their domestic cruises. They hit Sydney on Friday.

We are not buying it for the month round Aus either, thinking we’re in ports regularly so can check up messages etc then. 
not even comparing of course to us all hanging out for the next mad “fix”. 😂😂😂

[NSWP]

12 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

They only just boarded, ( like 27th august) so internet aboard must be non existent.

And Holland America use USD on board for all purchases, ouch !!!!!  Another reason why I cancelled my Westerdam cruise end of Nov and did the recent Coral one instead, almost half the price, albeit, 3 days less.

Edited September 27, 2022 by NSWP

[MMDown Under]

35 minutes ago, NSWP said:

And Holland America use USD on board for all purchases, ouch !!!!!  Another reason why I cancelled my Westerdam cruise end of Nov and did the recent Coral one instead, almost half the price, albeit, 3 days less.

Yes I was tempted by HAL cruise but US$ cruises are poor value for Aussies.  Ive even reassessed a Hawaii to Aust cruise for that reason.  Sydney to Hawaii is not suitable because I want to bring shopping home on ship.

[arxcards]

Welcome Back!!