Saturday December 16th, 2023 -- The Fleet Report and Daily

[richwmn]

 

Today is Day of Reconciliation, National Chocolate Covered Anything Day, and Stupid Toy Day
 

When someone shows you who they are believe them the first time.--Maya Angelou

Meal Suggestion for today - Leftover Turkey Stuffed Peppers
Drink of the Day - Paris Escape
Wine of the Day - 2019 Full Moon Midnight Cellars Paso Robles
Destination of the Day - Sydney, Australia

Today in History:
1653 Parliamentarian General Oliver Cromwell appointed as Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland
1773 Boston tea party incident - Sons of Liberty protesters throw tea shipments into Boston harbour in protest against British imposed Tea Act

Ship Locations
 

Eurodam

Basseterre St Kitts, Port Zante 08:00 - 17:00
 

Koningsdam

San Diego, California 7:00-17:00
 

Nieuw Amsterdam

Freeport, Bahamas Dry Dock
 

Nieuw Statendam

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas 08:00 - 14:00
 

Oosterdam

Buenos Aires, Argentina -
 

Rotterdam

At Sea Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos eta 12-17
 

Volendam

Guaymas, Sonora Mexico, San Carlos Nuevo Guaymas 08:00 - 15:00
 

Zaandam

San Juan, Puerto Rico 07:00 - 18:00
 

Zuiderdam

At Sea Destination San Juan, Puerto Rico eta 12-19

Eastern Hemisphere
 

Noordam

New Plymouth, New Zealand 08:00 - 15:00
 

Westerdam

Jakarta, Java Indonesia 07:00 - 16:00
 

 

[portofrome]

Thank you for the Fleet Report.

[JazzyV]

Today’s Care List:

Cruising sister’s great niece Murphy post-surgery, on CPAP

Kazu’s DBIL’s DM with pancreatitis

Cruzin Terri with + skin biopsies and PMR not well controlled

Marshhawk’s DH Chuck not feeling well

Passing of StLouisCruisers’ cousin 12/12 from ALS

Passing of Niagarwine’s FIL 12/13

JazzyV with right leg pain, tingling and numbness

 

Citizens of Ukraine, Israel and Gaza

All Dailyites going through worries and stress, whether mentioned or not

 

From the Rotation:

57Redbird recovering from spinal fusion surgery, with some issues

Tana’s pulmonary issues

Mamaofami’s extensive dental work

 

Celebrations and Shoutouts:

Welcome home GTVCRUISER!

Cruising sister’s g-niece Murphy extubated, and on CPAP 

Lady Hudson’s DH Bill with good report from doctor/good bloodwork results

Aliaschief visiting DD for her and DGD’s birthdays

RMLincoln in TX for granddaughter’s wedding

Seagarsmoker driving to FL – safe travels

 

The Daily Gardening Club posting wonderful flower pictures

All the contributors to the Fleet Report/Daily

 

Upcoming Cruises or At Sea:

1 day for Seagarsmoker (Nieuw Statendam Dec 17 to Dec 27, Southern Caribbean)

1 day for Petunia1950 (Nieuw Statendam Dec 17 to Dec 27, Southern Caribbean)

3 days for St Pete Cruiser (Zaandam Dec 19 to Jan 4, Southern Caribbean Holiday)

5 days for Haljo1935 (Koningsdam Dec 21 to Jan 6, Circle Hawaii Holiday)

6 days for Richwmn (Volendam Dec 22 to April 21) 12d Mexico & Sea of Cortez Holiday + Jan 6 94d Grand Australia & NZ Voyage + Apr 6 15d PC Cruise

6 days for Nickelpenny (Zuiderdam Dec 22 to Jan 3) 12d Panama Canal Sunfarer Holiday

 

RedNeckBob (Celebrity Reflection to Dec 17, B2B, Bimini, Grand Cayman & Mexico/ABC Islands), LAFFNVEGAS (Nieuw Statendam to Dec 17, E. Caribbean), Dobiemom (Nieuw Statendam to Dec 17, E. Caribbean), POA1 (Nieuw Statendam to Dec 17, Eastern Caribbean), Suslor (Rottendam to Dec 22, Eastern Caribbean), Crazy For Cats (Rotterdam to Dec 22, Eastern Caribbean), Ichiban Nekko (Rotterdam to Jan 5, B2B, 7d Eastern Caribbean + 14d Western/Tropical Caribbean), Av8rix (Koningsdam to Jan 6, 5n Mexico + 16n Circle Hawaii Holiday), Seasick Sailor (Rotterdam to Jan 14, 51d B2B2B2B Eastern/Western Caribbean (14n) + Tropical/Southern Caribbean Seafarer (16n)) and Lindaler (Volendam to April 6, B2B) 24d Historical Baja Peninsula & Sea of Cortez Holiday + Jan 3 94d Grand Australia & NZ voyage)

[cunnorl]

Good Morning from a windy and rainy day at the beach

be back later after we move the patio furniture. 
   We were in Sydney 1 year ago today.

[StLouisCruisers]

Good morning friends!  Since I've been up the temps have been rising here, it was 42 and is up to 44 now.  High will be 56, cloudy and a chance of rain later.  Thank you Rich @richwmn for the Fleet Report and Daily.

 

Wow!  It's National Chocolate Covered Anything Day!  That sounds great to me but don't try to sneak a chocolate covered insect in there.  I'm sure there are plenty of stupid toys.  It's been a while since I bought a toy since my grandkids are past that stage.  And Day of Reconciliation sounds like a positive thing so I'm okay with it.  I noted that it's also National Wreaths Across America Day,  Quote:  "Each year, millions of Americans come together to REMEMBER the fallen, HONOR those that serve and their families, and TEACH the next generation about the value of freedom."  My DFIL is buried at a national cemetery so there's always a chance his section will be one where they place the American flags.  A touching sight.  The quote today is one of my favorites!  Interesting sounding meal suggestion.  Will pass on the drink and wine.  I'm betting England wishes they hadn't implement the Tax Act.  Look what happened after 1773!  Thank you Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for the great reports on food and beverage.

 

Prayers for all our CC Daily members especially Vanessa @JazzyV.  More prayers for my DB and friends and spouses, the people of Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still being held, and our troops in the area.  Sorry to hear of Terri's @Cruzin Terri friend in England dying.  Condolences to all who knew and loved him.  🙏  A salute to everyone cruising and celebrating their special events.🎂🎉  Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for your work each day keeping the lists updated.❤️

 

The port of the day is Sydney, Australia which many of us have enjoyed in the past.  This was our port on Sept. 27, 2021 and Dec. 20, 2022.  I'll provide the links to make it easier to copy and paste any photos you have shown in the past.  We've visited about 6 times during Australian cruises.

 

 

 

 

I hope you all have a great Saturday and have all your shopping finished for the holidays.  Stay safe and well, y'all!

[summer slope]

Paris Escape cocktail:

 

Ingredients
1 part Pinnacle® Original Vodka
1 part Pineapple Juice
Raspberries, Muddled
Lemon
Raspberries

Instructions
Shake with ice. Serve in a martini glass. Garnish with raspberries and lemon.

 

[StLouisCruisers]

We were lucky enough to see Sydney quite a few times on our trips down under.  In 2013 twice and four times in 2017 on our B2B2B2B cruises.  It's one of my favorite places on the planet to visit. Here's an overview of our stops there.

 

 

Nov. 11, 2017.  Turnaround day so we were exploring.  That is not our ship (which was the Sun Princess).  We were docked at Darling Harbor and took a ferry over.  I believe the ship in the photo was a Carnival ship.

 

 

Here is a photo of us leaving Darling Harbor to sail under the Sydney Harbour Bridge, same day.

 

Then the Sydney Opera House.

 

A ship at Circular Quay, downtown and the Opera House.

 

People climbing the Sydney Harbour bridge.

 

 

The ferry docks

 

 

This photo was taken Dec. 3, 2013 while there on Diamond Princess.  Taken from a pylon on the Harbour Bridge.

 

The pedestrian walk on the Harbour Bridge.

 

Looks like if you take this tour you might get wet!

 

We ran into our friend Marion from Brisbane (CC friend) while walking towards the Opera House.  Several of my CC friends met us the day before when we got off the ship, to have a drink at a nearby cafe.

 

A closer view of the Opera House roof.

 

[grapau27]

Good afternoon.

It is currently 50°F and breezy here.

Thank you for today's daily reports Rich and Vanessa @JazzyV for the comprehensive daily lists.

As a chocoholic who has sold chocolate for over 35 years I will try anything covered in chocolate.

I can't remember ever having stupid toys although Pauline has several soft toy  Bears  and monkeys.

Interesting quote and usually I will take people at face value unless I suspect they are not who they claim to be.

Sydney Australia is definitely on our bucket list and a friend on Royal Caribbean who lives in Sydney has kindly offered to show us around if we make it there.

Pauline is going to spend time helping a good friend today who is very poorly after a hernia operation.

Her friends mam has dementia and 88 years old  was rushed into hospital yesterday from her nursing home and the outcome doesn't look good.

Prayers 🙏 for good health to all of my friends on here.

 

 

 

 

[aliaschief]

Good morning. So far no signs of any bad weather here in North East, Florida. Currently 59 degrees and forecast looks like most of the weather will be later today and this evening. It was great seeing family and granddaughters were excited to see Nana and Pop Pop. After dinner we went for a ride around the neighborhood and enjoyed the Holiday decorations. Many of the homes had really extensive Christmas displays. Obviously there are a lot of Clark Griswald’s residing in the area.

Plans for the day are to enjoy being with family and we have dinner reservations if weather allows.

Sunday will be the same and we will be grand parenting as daughter and son-in-law go to the Jaguars football game.

Left over stuffed peppers? Maybe Debbie can find a recipe that will make the dinner suggestion sound a little more enticing.

Thanks for the Fleet Report and postings. Bruce

 

[kazu]

thanks for our Saturday Daily, Rich

and thank you to Vanessa, Debbie, Ann & Dixie

 

Day of Reconciliation is so important in South Africa.  LOL on National Chocolate covered anything - I know a number of people who will do that.  There’s a bit of truth in the Angelou quote.  Ivan refuses to celebrate stupid toy day.  He thinks they are all great. 😊.

 

 

The meal sounds interesting - the wine I will have to wait for (red/white?). Loved Sydney.  We stayed there post cruise and had a chance to see a good deal of it.  And yes, we went inside the opera house 😉 

 

 

 

OK Mother Nature - really?  If the weatherman is correct, they are calling for a repeat of last week with high winds and rain.  Guess I will get the few things I need and errands done today before the “storm rush” tomorrow.  I definitely need wine for this again. 

 

 

 

The list is slowly being whittled down.  By the time I finally get it finished, it will probably be time to start all over again 😂.  Once I get my donations delivered and the others packed up and added to the growing precarious pile,   it will be time to buckle down and get the Xmas things wrapped and packaged.

 

 

 

Prayers for those on the Care list, those suffering losses, health problems, pain, worries & those that need them 🙏 Cheers to those celebrating and cruising 🥂 

 

 

Have a good Saturday everyone. 

[grapau27]

11 minutes ago, StLouisCruisers said:

We were lucky enough to see Sydney quite a few times on our trips down under.  In 2013 twice and four times in 2017 on our B2B2B2B cruises.  It's one of my favorite places on the planet to visit. Here's an overview of our stops there.

 

 

Nov. 11, 2017.  Turnaround day so we were exploring.  That is not our ship (which was the Sun Princess).  We were docked at Darling Harbor and took a ferry over.  I believe the ship in the photo was a Carnival ship.

 

 

Here is a photo of us leaving Darling Harbor to sail under the Sydney Harbour Bridge, same day.

 

Then the Sydney Opera House.

 

A ship at Circular Quay, downtown and the Opera House.

 

People climbing the Sydney Harbour bridge.

 

 

The ferry docks

 

 

This photo was taken Dec. 3, 2013 while there on Diamond Princess.  Taken from a pylon on the Harbour Bridge.

 

The pedestrian walk on the Harbour Bridge.

 

Looks like if you take this tour you might get wet!

 

We ran into our friend Marion from Brisbane (CC friend) while walking towards the Opera House.  Several of my CC friends met us the day before when we got off the ship, to have a drink at a nearby cafe.

 

A closer view of the Opera House roof.

 

 

Fantastic photos Sandi.

Nice ones of you two too.

[0106]

South Africa celebrates the “Day of Reconciliation”, a public holiday since 1994 to foster reconciliation and unity.

 

Wishing everyone the best possible weekend.

[cat shepard]

Thank you for today’s FR & D, Rich! Looks as if we are in for some bad weather, but not as bad as @cunnorl Charlene is.  My Bindi will not be happy. An increasing number of water birds have been sighted- probably trying to escape the strong onshore winds. Here are some pics of a group of Ibis wandering on my street yesterday afternoon. At one point they were walking down the middle of the street. Our idea of rush hour. Quite comical. 

 

 

Vanessa thank you for keeping up with our happenings. Praying that the neurosurgeon can find a path to permanent pain relief and full nights’ sleep. 
 

Zumba, Bindi walks, battening down the hatches and watching what Mither Nature has in store for us. Should keep me busy. 
 

 

 

 

Prayers for all who need our support. Especially those suffering from debilitating pain and conditions; anyone traveling today and those dealing with the loss of loved ones. 
 

Cheers to all who are celebrating!

 

May we each find a reason to smile today!

 

*********

2019 Full Moon Midnight Cellars Paso Robles

This Paso Robles red blend of Zinfandel, Syrah, & merlot has a great many consumer fans. I would definitely love to try it. Available from a decent number of distributors with online prices starting at $16.99.
Winemaker’s notes

Very pleasing dark garnet color with violet accents. the nose is fresh and fruity with pleasing aromatics of red raspberry and strawberry. the mouthfeel is smooth and rich flavors of red fruit, minerals, and spice mingle in an approachable way. light, fruity, and fun! drink now thru 2025 with pizza, spaghetti, cheeseburgers, or whatever inspires you in the moment.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for the info ..

[Denise T]

Happy Saturday. Thank you for the Daily and Fleet reports. 

A little warm and sunny today. 

I have a houseful of guests coming today. This is our family holiday celebration. I will miss my niece as she tested positive for Covid. She has a very bad cough and fatigue. My nephew is bringing is new fiancé. I am looking forward to this family time. 

Thinking of all on the care list. 

Celebrating with all who are celebrating.

Have a safe and healthy day. 

[Crazy For Cats]

Good Morning from the Rotterdam,  thanks for today's daily fleet report.   It's been a bumpy ride since we left Port Everglades.  DH needed some meds as he was feeling it, I slept very well with the occasional wake up when it felt like we hit something.  

Tamarind last night was excellent.  The hostess is someone we've met on previous cruise and it was a delight to see her.  I will make a stop at the front desk to get my discount, I prepaid for last night. 

Today's meal suggestion sounds good but today will be a PG day. We have lunch and then dinner there, need our bacon fix.

If anyone on board wants to say hello I'm wearing a blue Cape Cod tshirt. 

I hope everyone has a good day. 

Rotterdam 2023

[Cruzin Terri]

Good morning,

Thank you to Rich, Vanessa, Ann, Dixie and Debbie for your contributions.

Thank you to Sandy and @cunnorl for the lovely photos of Sydney.  A place I hope to visit someday.

Today promises to be very rainy.  It hasn’t started yet and I plan to get to the supermarket before it does,

I am hoping for a peaceful day after my crazy day yesterday.

Thank you Graham for the explanation of Reconciliation Day.  However, it is always good to reconcile with anyone where there has been a falling out.

I like anything covered in Chocolate, but don’t have any stupid toys.  If I have it, it’s not stupid.

i am in total agreement with the quote.

Have not been to Sydney.

 

Not too much to say today. 

Hope everyone has a great Saturday.

God Bless,

Terri

[cruising sister]

Good morning,

I had a nice dinner last night with my favorite people from my old clinic. We stayed for over 2 hours in our booth so I tipped extra since the waiter missed out on turning over the booth. It was worth it. I am super excited for my upgrade and have let the guilty thoughts move on. 
 

Poor Molly, she ran into the sliding glass door this morning. I guess I cleaned it too well. Or maybe it has been dirty for too long. I will visit Sydney on my cruise. I am looking forward to it. Chocolate goes with everything in my book. 
 

I hope everyone makes it to Florida for their cruise with the weather forecasts being so bad. 
 

Prayers and well wishes. Condolences for those who have lost loved ones and friends. My hat is off to those who wrote obits for their loved ones. I really couldn’t tell you who did my DS ‘s last year. He was the one who wrote DH’s 5 months earlier. I will one day have to read his obit when I feel stronger. 
 

Have a safe and enjoyable Saturday. 

[Haljo1935]

I like the days - chocolate makes everything better 😌 

Agree w/Ms Angelou's quote; maybe on the meal; would try the drink and wine; never been to the port; 2 important days in history. 

41° headed to sunny 61° with a rainy 68° predicted for Travel Thursday.

Work, cruise shopping and packing on today’s agenda.

I got the MRI last night the surgeon ordered for my other shoulder. The place was packed - who knew imaging is what everyone does for Friday Date Night?! They're open until 9 so I guess lots of people are going after work and trying to get medical things done at year end since deductibles have been met. 

Prayers and positive thoughts for all. 

Edited December 16, 2023 by Haljo1935
Additional comment

[tjcox9]

I know there will be many photos of Sydney today so I'll not duplicate any of those - I think anyway. We've been there several times, but this is one of my favorite pictures taken from the Taronga Zoo.

[ger_77]

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily!  Acknowledging the Day of Reconciliation for those who have been wronged.  Oh @richwmn, you had me at chocolate!!!  I'm sure we (read:  DH) have some stupid toys around here somewhere - he's always looking at things wondering what he can do to make them better or make them into something else.  Thus is the life of the wife of a mad scientist.  I totally agree with today's quote.

 

I'm sorry to hear our Daily family in Florida are in for a storm - looking at the PTZ webcams for Fort Lauderdale and Key West show a lot of rocking and rolling, and in the case of Key West, intense rain.  I hope everyone there stays safe.  And @kazuhave you ever thought of moving somewhere else in Canada where you aren't always pummeled with storms?  I can't imagine the stress knowing there's another blast of something coming!

 

We had a busy day yesterday - I made 2 batches of sugar cookies in the morning, followed by a batch of Christmas Crack.  Just as it was cooling and I was preparing to make another batch, the doorbell rang and friends we haven't seen in a long time just happened to be driving by, so stopped in to say hi.  I made lunch for the 4 of us and we spent the rest of the afternoon catching up on what's been happening in our families over the past number of years.  As soon as they left, we hopped into the shower, changed and headed over to a local church where we enjoyed Handel's Messiah, not getting home till nearly 11.  

 

Today should be a quieter one, the only thing I have to do is continue making the Christmas Crack, then a batch of Puppy Chow for DS, and wrapping some gifts.  I think I'd like the drink of the day, would like to see the recipe for the menu suggestion, and am sure I'd enjoy the wine.  For us it's going to be a simple dinner of burgers made in the George Foreman, tater tots from the air fryer with a side salad at the kitchen table tonight.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who is in pain, in need, and in senseless wars.  Cheers to all with celebrations.

 

Smooth Sailing!  ☺️☺️☺️

Gerry

 

 

[smitty34877]

Good morning. It is already 50 going up to 57 later and we have sunshine in abundance. Someone can have my chocolate. Reconciliation day would be great almost anywhere in the world today. I have always seen the truth in today’s quote and find it particularly apt now.

@Cruzin Terri, Condolences on the passing of your friend in England. I am sorry that you have so much going on right now. It is hard to have to travel so far for medical appointments I am sure. Sending hugs and prayers to you and Jim.
@Niagarwine, I am unable to work the blue bubble but send my condolences on the passing of your FIL. I applaud your ability to write the obituaries.

 

We were  hoping for a quiet day today but I heard the tell tale “beep beep beep” of the digging machine and the jackhammer starting at seven thirty. I told myself it was fine if it gets the job finished someday. At least the workers have a nice day to be outside.

I was going to get to the grocery store but don’t feel like dragging the food back from whatever parking spot I find as the street is closed off again. I decided we would have breakfast for dinner to make things easier. Swedish pancakes are always popular and I will just have to decide on  other dishes to feed the folks.

Have a great day everyone!

Edited December 16, 2023 by smitty34877

[rafinmd]

Thank you Rich, Vanessa, Debbie, Ann, and Dixie.  I peeked at the Halfacts draft today; good catch on Nieuw Amsterdam's holdover in dtydock.  I hope with the extended time the work will be truly finished for the next cruise.  I can't remember any stupid toys and prefer my chocolate as mints.  A great day for South Africa, and a great quote by Maya Angelou.

 

I've been to Sydney a few times.  I think the experience varies a lot based on where the ship ends up.  Circular Quay is extremely busy and not usually available beyond a day. White Bay is the usual destination for ships that can get under the bridge; it's not close to the city but has 2 berths, great for an overnight.  Ships that can't go under the bridge are likely to spend much of their time anchored and tendering.

 

2 great days in history.  I'll pass on the meal.  My alternative is Chilled Raspberry Soup, Oven Roasted Pork Loin with Brandied Raisins, and Peach Crisp as served on MS Prinsendam December 16, 2013.

 

Roy

 

 

 

[Heartgrove]

Thank you Rich, thank you Debbie, thank you Vanessa, thank you Ann, and thank you Dixie for all your work. And thank you everyone for being here!

 

We were in Sydney on our first trip to Australia in 2003. I will try to post some photos from back then.

 

Stay Safe, and prayers for those in need.

- Jack

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is the second half of my December 2012 group featuring my nephew's wedding after a short cruise on Majesty of the Seas..  December 16 was the sea day on the Celebrity Summit:

 

 

Roy