On board Zaandam!

[CruiserBruce]

Had a great tour to Gros Marne today. Tour guide was awesome in reading the weather and getting in the important sites in between clouds and the schedule.  We actually saw the sun for 3 or 4 hours, and just caught a couple showers driving to and from. To solve the mystery, we docked in Corner Brook. Here until 11pm.

 

The Captain, in the end, decided the seas were too rough last night, and called off the dance show, flopping the BBC from today to last night, and the dance show will be tonight. We have seen BBC, so no joy.

 

The Ocean Bar pianist is very good and quite the dresser. We listened to her at her 4pm set, then saw her in the hall heading to the Ocean Bar for her 5pm set. I can report at least 10 pax, male and female, suffered injured necks snapping their heads around and coming to a quick stop as she was walking by. It was straight out of a Mel Brooks movie. Even I said ( not exaggerating) " Dem's some boots", because I didn't want to get slapped by her, or the DW!

 

Exercising the drink plan. More tomorrow. 

[Ferry_Watcher]

@CruiserBruce, we were on one of the Gros Morne excursions as well - led by guide Roxanne.  We were lucky with the weather, warm and sunny early on and thru lunch, then misty and foggy on the way back.

[Blackduck59]

So @CruiserBruce what you are saying is that you were proceeding to dinner, walktail in hand, minding your own business. Then suddenly dinner didn't seem that important and perhaps you should catch the next set of pre dinner music. 

Edited September 18, 2023 by Blackduck59

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, 0106 said:

 

@Heidi13I looked at the schedule @VMax1700kindly posted.  According to the schedule, there is no NFL football shown at sea, only in flight.  That being said,  I was on the Rotterdam last year for Super Bowl and it was shown on the big screen by the Lido pool.  I am hopeful that we will be able to see the NFL games somewhere on the ship on Rotterdam TA this year.

 

 

Thanks, I also checked the schedule noting they do broadcast my type of football, especially English Premier League and UEFA Champions/Europa League matches. Personally I don't watch any North American type football, so not showing NFL games isn't an issue for me.

[woodworker&knitter]

2 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

Had a great tour to Gros Marne today. Tour guide was awesome in reading the weather and getting in the important sites in between clouds and the schedule.  We actually saw the sun for 3 or 4 hours, and just caught a couple showers driving to and from. To solve the mystery, we docked in Corner Brook. Here until 11pm.

 

The Captain, in the end, decided the seas were too rough last night, and called off the dance show, flopping the BBC from today to last night, and the dance show will be tonight. We have seen BBC, so no joy.

 

The Ocean Bar pianist is very good and quite the dresser. We listened to her at her 4pm set, then saw her in the hall heading to the Ocean Bar for her 5pm set. I can report at least 10 pax, male and female, suffered injured necks snapping their heads around and coming to a quick stop as she was walking by. It was straight out of a Mel Brooks movie. Even I said ( not exaggerating) " Dem's some boots", because I didn't want to get slapped by her, or the DW!

 

Exercising the drink plan. More tomorrow. 

Was Cat wearing her pink boots???

[Banditswife]

23 hours ago, RuthC said:

I find they are just as likely to be replaced when I hang my used towels as when I leave them on the floor. 

Last time I cruised I let my stewards know that I wanted the same number of chocolates at the end of the cruise, no matter if they left two per night, or 16 on each of the 4 Dressy nights. So long as I took a full complement home with me. They just left two per night, every night. 
I asked for ice twice a day, which I also got. 

I find if I let them know, clearly, exactly what I want, and ask for it nicely, the stewards are happy to do whatever will please. 

This reminded me of a cruise we had on N Amsterdam right after the restart.  It was a 21 day & we had to be covid tested periodically.  Every time we went to be tested, a crew member stood there with the box of chocolates, giving everyone who tested a chocolate.  My husband would always say "I need 2" & was given 2.

[albingirl]

3 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

And for @0106, the Mix has sports on 24/7. I can't give you a coverage report, but it seems like it is US ESPN,  US sports oriented. 

 

As to NFL, they made an announcement yesterday that they would a feed for selected NFL games available in the cabins. I know the 49ers game was among those shown.

Football is KING! Hah! We've been onboard for many superbowl events and we always rooted for the wrong team, according to our fellow cruisers. We were in the super minority, to say the least, but we drank beer and had alot of fun and laughed when our team won. 

[3rdGenCunarder]

@CruiserBruce and @Ferry_Watcher, which of the Gros Morne tours did you do? The itinerary for my cruise to Iceland and Greenland shows two tours. 

 

"Gros Morne National Park" is listed as moderate and includes a couple of stops--small town, lighthouse. 

 

"Gros Morne national Park Interpretive Walk" is listed as strenuous and includes an hour hike/leisurely walk and lunch.

 

Both are 6.5 hours, with 2.5 hours on the bus each way. My basic rule is that time in transit should not be more than time on site. Is it really worth such a long bus ride? 

[CruiserBruce]

8 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

@CruiserBruce and @Ferry_Watcher, which of the Gros Morne tours did you do? The itinerary for my cruise to Iceland and Greenland shows two tours. 

 

"Gros Morne National Park" is listed as moderate and includes a couple of stops--small town, lighthouse. 

 

"Gros Morne national Park Interpretive Walk" is listed as strenuous and includes an hour hike/leisurely walk and lunch.

 

Both are 6.5 hours, with 2.5 hours on the bus each way. My basic rule is that time in transit should not be more than time on site. Is it really worth such a long bus ride? 

We did the standard tour, NOT the Interpretative Walk. Our tour had a choice of a couple extra walks, moderate is a good description. 

 

Compared to the dramatic scenery you will see in Iceland and Greenland,  which we did last summer on N. Statendam,  this will disappoint.

[CruiserBruce]

13 hours ago, woodworker&knitter said:

Was Cat wearing her pink boots???

Well, pink was one of the many colors present!

[CruiserBruce]

15 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

So @CruiserBruce what you are saying is that you were proceeding to dinner, walktail in hand, minding your own business. Then suddenly dinner didn't seem that important and perhaps you should catch the next set of pre dinner music. 

Hehehehehe....nope, DW kept me focused...

[CruiserBruce]

15 hours ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

@CruiserBruce, we were on one of the Gros Morne excursions as well - led by guide Roxanne.  We were lucky with the weather, warm and sunny early on and thru lunch, then misty and foggy on the way back.

We were in the other bus with Mike.

[CruiserBruce]

Day at sea sailing to Charlottetown. First morning I have been able to go out on the stern without worrying about wind or rain. Cloudy, but pleasant, and minor seas.

 

Two events at dinner last night. DW and I both ordered the same app...Thai beef and pickled papaya. Our waiter served us a fancy fruit salad. As we dug through the fruit saying  "where's the beef?" in a crotchety old lady voice, our waiter raced back profusely apologizing for serving us the wrong app. Darn...he was too quick to catch it...we might have got 25% off the next cruise! Both apps were good...but I think I might have preferred the fruit salad! It was very good.

 

Late in our meal, one of the Executive Chef's appeared at out table. We had a nice chat, from which the following was derived. HAL is trying to acquire more "fresh" foods on their cruises where local specialties or supplies exist. For example,  in Halifax we picked up salmon, and tomorrow in Charlottetown, we will pick up mussels.  He said to watch the menu tomorrow night for mussels. 

 

I asked him about the definition of "fresh", and my understanding that protein needed to be frozen. He sort of deflected, but in the end pretty much agreed the salmon was frozen, but the mussels didn't have to be. This gentleman has been a chef on HAL for 17 years, and plans on retiring at 20 years and starting his own hotel/restaurant. 

[3rdGenCunarder]

2 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

We did the standard tour, NOT the Interpretative Walk. Our tour had a choice of a couple extra walks, moderate is a good description. 

 

Compared to the dramatic scenery you will see in Iceland and Greenland,  which we did last summer on N. Statendam,  this will disappoint.

 

Thanks. I get the significance of the mantle being at Earth's surface, but I'm afraid geology was not my favorite science, so to me it would be looking at a bunch of rocks after a long and expensive bus ride. I've been to Iceland and that did get me excited about geology. 

[Ken the cruiser]

Here's hoping for clear skies this evening so you might be able to see the Northern Lights.!

 

 

Aurora Dashboard (Experimental) | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center

 

Here's another link that gives a 30-minute forecast window once nightfall starts to settle in. We used it as an aid last August when we saw Lights around 11 pm while cruising between Iceland and Greenland. 

 

Aurora - 30 Minute Forecast | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center

 

[3rdGenCunarder]

42 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Here's hoping for clear skies this evening so you might be able to see the Northern Lights.!

 

 

Aurora Dashboard (Experimental) | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center

 

Here's another link that gives a 30-minute forecast window once nightfall starts to settle in. We used it as an aid last August when we saw Lights around 11 pm while cruising between Iceland and Greenland. 

 

Aurora - 30 Minute Forecast | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center

 

 

Thank you! Saving the link for my trip to Norway in Oct.

[cruisemom42]

20 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

The Ocean Bar pianist is very good and quite the dresser. We listened to her at her 4pm set, then saw her in the hall heading to the Ocean Bar for her 5pm set. I can report at least 10 pax, male and female, suffered injured necks snapping their heads around and coming to a quick stop as she was walking by. It was straight out of a Mel Brooks movie. Even I said ( not exaggerating) " Dem's some boots", because I didn't want to get slapped by her, or the DW!

 

I am coming to a newfound appreciation for your sense of humor on this thread. Just wanted to say it's fun following along...

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

Thank you! Saving the link for my trip to Norway in Oct.

You're welcome. It definitely came in handy on our cruise. You should definitely see some Lights in October one would think. 

[CruiserBruce]

OK, a bizarre story. I like to gauge the weather by going out on the stern before I start my workout. Today I went twice, due to not being able to until today, and because I had some extra time. The first trip out I noticed dozens of small birds swarming around the stacks and the exhaust column. Aggressively flying in and out, all around in the column.

 

The second trip out (about 10 minutes later) I saw a bird on the deck, who was struggling to take off and get away from me. Eventually it succeeded. But this mid  morning we noticed a few dead birds on the roof over the Lido pool...same small birds. Don't know if something in the smoke intoxicated them to the point of not fleeing the danger, or what caused their clear aggressive behavior towards the smoke.

 

Not trying to cause a major argument,  just saying what I witnessed. 

[Mary229]

1 minute ago, CruiserBruce said:

OK, a bizarre story. I like to gauge the weather by going out on the stern before I start my workout. Today I went twice, due to not being able to until today, and because I had some extra time. The first trip out I noticed dozens of small birds swarming around the stacks and the exhaust column. Aggressively flying in and out, all around in the column.

 

The second trip out (about 10 minutes later) I saw a bird on the deck, who was struggling to take off and get away from me. Eventually it succeeded. But this mid  morning we noticed a few dead birds on the roof over the Lido pool...same small birds. Don't know if something in the smoke intoxicated them to the point of not fleeing the danger, or what caused their clear aggressive behavior towards the smoke.

 

Not trying to cause a major argument,  just saying what I witnessed. 

Big storms can cause bird drops when migrating birds are blocked from their feeding grounds

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird_fallout

[Ferry_Watcher]

15 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

@CruiserBruce and @Ferry_Watcher, which of the Gros Morne tours did you do? The itinerary for my cruise to Iceland and Greenland shows two tours. 

 

"Gros Morne National Park" is listed as moderate and includes a couple of stops--small town, lighthouse. 

 

"Gros Morne national Park Interpretive Walk" is listed as strenuous and includes an hour hike/leisurely walk and lunch.

 

Both are 6.5 hours, with 2.5 hours on the bus each way. My basic rule is that time in transit should not be more than time on site. Is it really worth such a long bus ride? 

We were on the Interpretive Walk Tour, with a lunch stop the the Sea Side Restaurant in the town of Trout River.  Spouse wanted to see the Tablelands because he is into geology.  It is one of 5 places in the world where you can see the earth 's mantle.  The Welcome Center at Woody Point was great, but the 30 minutes we were there wasn't long enough.  Lunch at the restaurant was basic, but hardy - turkey sandwiches on thick white bread with mayo/lettuce ( reminded me of lunch at Grandma's back in the day), along with a delicious fish chowder (white) with large chunks of fish.  A tiny partridge berry tart was our dessert.  Beer (variety) and wine - one red/one white were offered for an additional fee.  The restaurant is literally next to the shore , and there is a rustic boardwalk just above the beach.  While the tour was listed as strenuous, I managed just fine, as did everyone else on the tour.  As for the drive there, it wasn't too bad.  The drive back to Corner Brook seemed longer, but it might have been because we were tired.  We do recommend this tour.

[Ferry_Watcher]

@CruiserBruce, re the birds - we had a small bird on our balcony yesterday, but it disappeared under the balcony partition to our neighbor's deck.

[Ferry_Watcher]

On 9/17/2023 at 6:46 PM, FlorenceItaly said:

Any martini specials?  Other ships have been known to have an hour each evening with martinis on special.  Thank you.

According to the Daily Program, Happy Hour is just in the Ocean Bar (Deck 5) and the Crow's Nest (Deck 9) 4pm - 5pm.  50% off House Brands and Cocktails.  

[albingirl]

On 9/18/2023 at 4:58 PM, woodworker&knitter said:

Was Cat wearing her pink boots???

If my hunney bunny was gawking at the boots, and so on, I  would say to him to grab his runtail, not walk tail, and move along Pronto! Lol! What a funny thread! Love the goodness!

[Ferry_Watcher]

Dramatic change in weather - clear, warm and sunny.  Just spent the last hour and half at the Deck 9 Sea View Bar at the stern of the ship, standing at the railing enjoying the vast view. Surprisingly, we were only 2 of 6/8 people out there.  No jackets needed - just basked in the sun, and the wind was tolerable.  Hoping that this is a good omen for the Aurora Borealis this evening.