The Fleet Report and Daily for Monday, January 8th, 2024

[kazu]

 

Today is Argyle Day, Bubble Bath Day, and Divorce Monday
 

It is easy for me to love myself, but for ladies to do it is another question altogether. - Johnny Vegas

Meal Suggestion for today - Spaghetti and Meatball Soup
Drink of the Day - Japanese Cocktail
Wine of the Day - Brane Cantenac 2020 (750ML)
Destination of the Day - Napier, New Zealand

Today in History:
1656 Oldest surviving commercial newspaper begins (Haarlem, Netherlands)
1790 1st US President George Washington delivers 1st state of the union address
1835 US national debt is $0 for the first and only time in history

Ship Locations
 

Eurodam

Roatan Island, Mahogany Bay-Coxen Hole, Honduras 08:00 - 17:00 
 

Koningsdam

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Mexico 12:00 - 18:00 
 

Nieuw Amsterdam

At Sea Destination Grand Turk Island, Cockburn Town, Turks and Caicos eta 01-09
 

Nieuw Statendam

At Sea Destination Puerto Plata-Amber Cove, Dominicana eta 01-09
 

Oosterdam

At Sea Destination Puerto Montt, Chile eta 01-09
 

Rotterdam

Willemstad Curacao, Netherlands Antilles 08:00 - 23:00 
 

Volendam

At Sea Destination Honolulu, Oahu Island Hawaii eta 01-09
 

Zaandam

Cartagena Colombia 07:00 - 13:00 
 

Zuiderdam

At Sea Destination Iles du Salut, French Guiana eta 01-09

Eastern Hemisphere
 

Noordam

Kangaroo Island, Penneshaw, South Australia 07:00 - 18:00 
 

Westerdam

Manila, Luzon Island Philippines 08:00 - 23:59

[portofrome]

Thank you for the Fleet Report.

[rafinmd]

Today's maps

 

 

 

Roy

Edited January 8 by rafinmd
Fixing typo in map

[seagarsmoker]

Good morning Dailyites and thank you for the Daily Report!

I am feeling better, closer to normal this morning.

I hope everyone here has a wonderful day!  

[puppycanducruise]

Good morning.  Thanks for the Report.

A quiet Monday for me, no divorce. 🙂 I have an argyle sweater I should wear today.  I haven't taken a bubble bath in years, I prefer a shower.

Love Johnny Vegas, he's very funny.

The meal sounds good, looking forward to seeing recipes.  I'm sure the drink and wine will be tasty too.

I've never been to today's port, but I'd love to.🤞

Prayers for our world.  Cheers for all the celebrations.

Have a wonderful day.  Stay safe.

[JazzyV]

Today’s Care List:

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

Summer slope awaiting skin biopsy results

JazzyV with right leg pain, tingling and numbness; trouble walking

Passing of Norseh2o’s DM Ruth on 1/4/2024

 

Citizens of Ukraine, Israel and Gaza

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

 

From the Rotation:

Rafinmd to start radiation 1/8 for elevated PSA/prostate cancer

Tana with chronic pulmonary issues

Lazey1 with mitral valve stenosis and PAD

 

Celebrations and Shoutouts:

Kazu stepping up to keep the FR/Daily going while Rich is cruising

57redbird released by her neurosurgeon after surgery

Marshhawk’s DH responding to Keytruda

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

 

The Daily Gardening Club posting wonderful flower pictures

All the contributors to the Fleet Report/Daily

 

Upcoming Cruises or At Sea:

 

6 days for Sailingdutchy (Rotterdam Jan 14 to Feb 4) 21d PC Sunfarer & Southern Caribbean Seafarer

 

Seasick Sailor (Rotterdam to Jan 14, Tropical/Southern Caribbean Seafarer), Kochleffel(Anthem of the Seas to Jan 18) 11d Southern Caribbean, Ottahand7 (Eurodam to Feb 24) B2B2B2B2B Caribbean, Cruising-along (Volendam to April 6) 94d Grand AUS & NZ voyage, Durangoscots (Volendam to April 6) 94d Grand AUS & NZ voyage, cruising sister (Volendam to April 6) 94d Grand AUS & NZ voyage, Cruisercl (Volendam to April 6) 94d Grand AUS & NZ voyage, Richwmn (Volendam to May 4, Jan 3 94d Grand Australia & NZ Voyage + Apr 6 15d PC Cruise + Apr 21 The Atlantic Cruise), Cat in my lap (Zuiderdam to May 11) 128d Grand World Voyage and Aliaschief (Azamara Onward WC to June 9) 156d World Voyage 

[StLouisCruisers]

Good morning friends!  Today I have 31F for a temp and will rise to 51, partly cloudy skies and rain beginning this evening.  That will continue all night and into tomorrow with the large storm heading this way from Texas and Oklahoma.  Should be interesting to see how much rain we get.  DH said we got 8/10ths of rain early in the weekend which is a good amount.🌦️  Hopefully no tornadoes!

 

Thank you Jacqui @kazu for posting the Fleet Report and Daily this morning.  Unfortunately someone thinks we should celebrate National Divorce Day on 1/8/24 which is disheartening. I wonder what group is in favor of divorce and thinks we need a day for it?  Strange!  Instead let's take a bubble bath and then dress in our argyles to boost our spirits.  The quote du jour sounds interesting.  So does spaghetti and meatball soup!  I'll just pass on the cocktail and wine.  We have some cool days in history on this date.  The oldest surviving commercial newspaper from Haarlem, Netherlands in 1656.  It would have been awesome to hear President Washington give the first State of the Union address in 1790.  And how amazing would it be to have $0 national debt instead of the record amount we have in 2024?! 💲 Thanks in advance to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for their F&B reports!

 

Prayers for all our friends here in need on the Care list especially Vanessa @JazzyV.  Good luck to Roy @rafinmd for his radiation procedure today, and to Annie @marshhawk at her endocrinologist appointment this day.  Prayers for Israel and Ukraine as they protect themselves in war, the hostages held and the military members under fire on bases and on ships in the region.  Prayers too for DB and DGD, friends Scott and Bob and their wives who care for them. 🙏 Cheers to all celebrating today and for all the cruisers, especially the Dailyites on board ships. 🚢 Have a wonderful time!  Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for posting our Care and Celebration lists for us each day, through pain and weariness.  You are a star!🌟

 

Our port today is Napier, New Zealand a lovely destination, which was only presented here once before on Aug. 21, 2021.  I enjoyed a visit there once in 2017 on Sun Princess and will gather my photos.  When we had it last time in August 2021 I didn't post photos because we went to the visitation in Macon for our dear elderly neighbor Copeland who died from Covid and also his own son Billy who passed away of Covid 2 days after Copeland did.  Very surreal.  Here is the link to the Aug. 21, 2021 Daily.

 

 

 

Have a great day everyone and please try to stay well and keep safe!  Watch out for the bad weather, too.  

 

 

Edited January 8 by StLouisCruisers
clarification

[grapau27]

Good morning.

It is 39°F and raining.

I will give today's food and drink a miss.

Never been to today's port.

I hope everyone is safe and well.

[ottahand7]

Good morning and thank you for the daily reports.  We are on our way into Honduras still at sea.  A big shore excursion to a beach resort.  Leaving early, I hope they have wifi.  

[StLouisCruisers]

On Dec. 3, 2017 our ship Sun Princess arrived in Napier, New Zealand on the final cruise of our B2B2B2B cruises Down Under.  As usually happened on these cruises, the ship provided us a shuttle ride to the downtown Visitor Information Center.  The town appeared clean and had beautiful Art Deco architecture. 

 

 

 

 

Across the street and a short way to the right was an antique car show which all the tourists seemed to be enjoying.  There were people there in period costume, too.  I think this was a regular occurrence in town, especially with ships in port.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The town was so cute and the weather was perfect so we took our time looking around.  This pedestrian street made it easy to look around without worry.

 

 

 

 

 

Being December the Christmas decorations were up too, to get us into the spirit.

 

Love the reindeer faces at the bottom!

 

A trolley in case you couldn’t walk far

 

 

 

And along the beach was this pretty park-like area

 

 

The beach was made up of black pebbles.  Not black sand in my opinion.

 

 

 

And here is the front of the National Aquarium which we passed by to get back to the shuttle bus.

 

A great day in Napier, New Zealand.  

[Denise T]

Good morning and Happy Monday. Thank you for the Daily and Fleet reports. 

Back to the grind of working both in my office and at home this week. I currently am teaching four classes and seeing clients in my private practice. It will be busy. I am determined not to manage the stress much better by hitting the gym each morning. 

The sun should be out today even though it will be chilly. Expecting at least 2 inches of rain tomorrow. 

Thinking of all on the care list. 

Celebrating with all who are celebrating. 

Have a safe and healthy day. 

[summer slope]

Japanese Cocktail:

 

Ingredients
2 ounces cognac
1/2 ounce orgeat
3 dashes Angostura bitters
Lemon peel for garnish

Directions
Fill a mixing glass half full with ice. Add cognac, orgeat, and bitters. Stir well.
Strain into chilled cocktail glass.
Twist lemon peel over the drink and drop in as a garnish.

 

[Crazy For Cats]

Good Morning Everyone, thanks for the daily fleet report.  Overnight a small layer of snow fell so I’ll go out and clear the sidewalk, hopefully the sun will make it bare.  Another storm is on the way Tuesday night into Wednesday but temperatures should be in the 50’s so it will be rain.  Today’s meal suggestion sounds interesting and coincidentally I’m planning on making spaghetti for dinner. It would be nice if our government spent our tax dollars with care and keep the country out of debt.  It’s going to be a busy work day and I’ll squeeze in a load of laundry.  I hope everyone has a good day today.

 

[rafinmd]

Thank you Rich, Jacqui, Vanessa, Debbie, Dixie, and Ann.  

 

I'll pass on the days although sometimes it is better for couples in toxic relations to go for a new start on their own.

 

Funny quote by Vegas.

 

Hats off to the Haarlem Newspaper.  I'm sure Washington's State of the Union was great.  It's nice to be out of debt but not realistic. I own a fair chunk of the National Debt.

 

I visited Napier in 2018 on the Crystal Symphony but bypassed it in 2020 on Crystal Serenity to explore New Zealand's rail system.

 

The meal sounds interesting.  My alternative is Papaya, Pineapple, & Orange, Turkey Roast, and Pineapple Crisp as served on MS Prinsendam December 8, 2019.

Roy

 

 

Edited January 8 by rafinmd

[cat shepard]

Thank you for today’s FR & D, Jacqui! Rich thank you for leaving us in great hands! Roy, thank you for our maps! It is cloudy and 54 this morning. Not sure what to expect the rest of the day. Yesterday turned out lovely. 
 

National Debt day is an interesting thing to celebrate. I spent my career in the Treasury department and back in the 90s the Administration had reduced the national debt to the point where the financial wizards were concerned. Evidently a little debt is important, because it shows you can make payments timely - so if you need to borrow $, you have a great credit history to back up your request. Who knew?
 

Vanessa, thank you for keeping up with all of us! Praying that you hear something soon that sets you on the path of permanent pain relief. 
 

Gym, Bindi walks, chores. Heading to a friend’s for happy hour and then we may go out to eat. 
 

 

 

 

 

Prayers for all who need our support. Especially those with debilitating pain and conditions. And those grieving the loss of a loved one.
@rafinmd Roy, praying that all goes well with your treatments. 
 

Thinking of you & Tana, Terry.

 

Cheers to all who are celebrating. 
 

May we each find a reason to smile today. 

 

*******

Château Brane Cantenac 2020

This Bordeaux red blend comes with a price outside of my budget - unless for a very special occasion. But the price gives you a blend that many critics say is a superb. I would love a taste. A decent number of online distributors with prices starting at $70.00.

Winemaker Notes

Beautiful garnet color, deep and shiny. The nose is intense, complex and fine, exhaling aromas of flowers, black fruits and hints of spices giving an impression of freshness. On the palate the wine is harmonious and long. It is full-bodied and endowed with sweetness. It is ample, soft, spherical, powerful but all in finesse. Freshness dominates with pleasant aromas of fresh black fruits and spices. This wine never seams to disappear as it's finish is long as persistent.

Blend: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 1% Carménère, 1% Petit Verdot.

98James Suckling

Blackberries, plums, currants, tobacco and violets on the nose. Bitter chocolate and mocha, too. It’s refined and focused, with a medium to full body and firm, tightly-knit tannins. Very long, laser-focused and polished. Very classy. Best of the trilogy. 

97Jeb Dunnuck

This estate has been on a roll, and their 2020 Chateau Brane-Cantenac is another brilliant wine that readers will love. Largely in the mold of the 2019, it has a deep purple hue as well as an incredible bouquet of blackcurrants, black cherries, freshly sharpened pencils, tobacco, and flowers. This medium to full-bodied, richly textured, concentrated, yet remarkably elegant 2020 has the vintage's fresher, focused, elegant profile but still brings plenty of flesh and opulence. Beautifully done, it’s going to evolve for a solid 30 years in cold cellars and offer incredible pleasure all its life. Best After 2027

97Wine Enthusiast

From what is one of Margaux's leading estates, this wine is structured and initially firm. Then it reveals luscious black fruits and succulent acidity that gives the wine a fine perfumed character, dense texture and the promise of some serious aging. Barrel Sample: 95-97

94Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2020 Brane-Cantenac has turned out nicely, offering up aromas of blackberries and crème de cassis mingled with notions of licorice, pencil shavings, violets and subtle hints of smoked meats. Medium to full-bodied, rich and fleshy, with a lavish core of fruit, ripe acids and sweet tannins that assert themselves on the savory finish, it can't quite match the purity and sensuality of the 2019, but it's a strong effort.

94Decanter

Violet-edged, lovely vibrant colour. A low-yield wine that has kept an impressively fresh core, with expressive fruits and a vibrant grip through the centre of the wine. Powerful, tight tannins and the concentration becomes clearer in the glass, a ton of bilberry, sage and rosemary aromatics, with a generous helping of graphite and crushed stone. All of these wines are going to need very careful ageing - although the reasonable alcohols should help. A yield of 31hl/ha. 18 months ageing in a mix of new oak barrels and amphoras. 1% Petit Verdot and 1% Carmenère completes the blend.

Barrel Sample: 94

Edited January 8 by cat shepard

[GTVCRUISER]

Christmas on the Koningsdam 2023 

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from my 2018 Crystal 2-ship World Cruise.  January 8 was a sea day from Key West to Cartagena:

 

 

Roy

[RedneckBob]

32 minutes ago, summer slope said:

Japanese Cocktail:

 

Ingredients
2 ounces cognac
1/2 ounce orgeat
3 dashes Angostura bitters
Lemon peel for garnish

Directions
Fill a mixing glass half full with ice. Add cognac, orgeat, and bitters. Stir well.
Strain into chilled cocktail glass.
Twist lemon peel over the drink and drop in as a garnish.

 

Sake it to me! 😀

[ger_77]

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily!  I think DH has some argyle socks, I haven't had a bubble bath in years, and I tell people we can't divorce because neither of us wants the kids.  LOL   I'm kidding!

 

Well it happened, winter has begun.  We had more snow yesterday and I'm expecting to hear the blower going any time as our snow removal guy makes an appearance.  And it's cold.  Right now it's -23C (-9F), and it's expected to get colder as the week progresses.  I took out my downfilled jacket yesterday in anticipation of the change in weather and will put my light leather jacket back in the closet.  

 

DH was supposed to for a tooth extraction today, but yesterday woke with another head cold (what's up with that?), so I called and left a message canceling his appointment.  We'll see how the week progresses and hopefully he can get it taken care of before we leave on vacation.  

 

@rafinmd thinking of you as you begin your radiation treatments today.

@marshhawkhope all goes well with your endocrinologist appointment.

 

Other than staying warm, there's not much on the agenda, so I think I'll work on going through our cruise clothes to see what fits, what should be brought, what should stay home and what needs to be purchased to fill in the blanks.  We're getting to FLL 3 days in advance of sailing, so anything I've forgotten will be able to be replaced without worry.  We've cruised often enough that it's rare to actually forget things, but you never know!

 

I'm going to give the drink of the day a pass - I had one when we were in Japan and drank it to be polite, but that's all.  I'd like the wine, but it's out of my budget, and look forward to today's recipe.  I'm going to take out some salmon fillets that will be baked in the air fryer and served along with tater tots and a side salad that we can enjoy at the kitchen table tonight.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who needs them, especially those in the midst of wars.  Cheers to all with celebrations happening today.

 

Smooth Sailing!  ☺️☺️☺️

Gerry

[Nickelpenny]

Good morning to all and thanks for the daily and fleet reports.  I don't have any argyle anything, don't like bubble baths and I will celebrate Divorce Day, though at the time I didn't celebrate it.  Funny quote.  I think I will pass on the meal and libations and never been to New Zealand.  Interesting days in history.

 

Back to the grind today.  Woke up to cold temperatures - presently it is 31F and we are under a hard freeze until 0900 and it will repeat tonight until 1000 tomorrow.  The rain did come yesterday around 1400 just as I decided to go and pick up some groceries that Frys didn't have in my order with them.  Made some yogurt in my instant pot and today I will start the straining process so that it will turn into greek yogurt.  

 

Off to sub for a middle school math teacher at one of the more "out of control" schools.  I have been there once before for half a day and it wasn't bad.  I can do anything for a day.  Today is the 12th anniversary of when Gabby Giffords was shot at a town hall event at a Safeway where 6 people were killed; it is a somber day in Tucson.

 

@rafinmd I hope all goes well for you today.  Thoughts for all on the care list and cheers for those celebrating.

 

Have a great day everyone!

[aliaschief]

Good morning. We didn’t read our Daily Insider upon returning to our cabin last night if we had we would have switched time zones. We will enjoy our coffee but will have to wait 30 minutes for breakfast.

Last night’s Azamazing Evening was spectacular. Two years in planning. We were bussed a short distance to the venue. Tables decorated with beautiful flowered linen tables where we served different taco’s. You had choice of quality beverages and it top shelf. Tequila was Don Julio.

Then we were entertained by a large variety of musician’s, entertainers and high flying airelist flying around a high pole.

Upon being returning to the ship the ships band was playing and we were offered specialty cocktails or tequila shots. Our Captain Karl and Cruise Director Eric were our official greeters and they had Mayan face paintings.

Today is one of two sea days. We have a lunch scheduled with Lee our World Cruise Consultant with our other full voyagers.and dinner in Prime C specialty restaurant. Though we will miss the pool side large Mexican Buffet. Many choices and there is also cast show.

A little cloud cover but light chop seas.

Thanks for Report and post. Bruce

 

 

Edited January 8 by aliaschief

[dfish]

Good morning, everyone!

 

The winter storm is supposed to hit us overnight tonight and all day tomorrow.  Sue is going to get to use The Beast snow blower.  It was my dad's and she had it serviced.  The guy who did it said it was a beast and should be able to get through anything.  And that is a good thing because this weekend we are supposed to get 6-9 inches of fluffy stuff.  That may impact our ability to have River for the weekend.  It is an hour and a half to pick her up and an hour and a half back home.  I'm thinking we might not want to do that in a major storm.  

 

Today's meal sounds interesting.  It kind of reminds me of all the ways we had to prepare lasagna - soup, roll ups, etc.  We had everyway except the air fryer I think.  Skinnytaste offers us a low calorie/low fat version with turkey meatballs.  It is easy to make and pretty quick!  https://www.skinnytaste.com/meatball-and-spaghetti-soup-5-ww-pts/

 

 

This next one has a tomato based broth and beef meatballs.  It would be a more traditional spaghetti flavor.  It is super easy because it uses frozen meatballs from the super market along with a jar of marinara sauce.  Pick the one you like best.  https://letsdishrecipes.com/spaghetti-and-meatball-soup/

 

 

This next recipe uses Italian sausage for the meatballs and makes the soup in the slow cooker so flavors have time to blend.  https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/spaghetti-meatball-soup/

 

 

Wishing you all a wonderful day!

[cunnorl]

Good Morning from a cloudy and cool day at the beach

     No divorce and no bubble bath but would like a nice argyle sweater.   

    We were in Napier in 2022. Nice town, my pictures are very similar to Sandi`s. Unfortunately we had a not so nice experience there. The shuttles to the ship were a red hot mess. Then one of the bus drivers refused to allow my DD and another passenger in a  wheelchair on the bus. He made some very derogatory statements' about people in wheelchairs. The other passenger were appalled and it was nasty. They put us and the other passenger on the Princess shuttle. I was very upset. The Cruise director and Shore Excursion manager came to see us. Other passengers reported the incident. I wont let one individual  ruin my vision of the town.

     Pretty quiet around post Holiday. Have to take DH for a CT this AM. Nothing else on agenda. Although I do have to start researching some insurance for the VOV.

 

Stay safe and enjoy today

     Charlene

 

[StLouisCruisers]

2 minutes ago, cunnorl said:

Good Morning from a cloudy and cool day at the beach

     No divorce and no bubble bath but would like a nice argyle sweater.   

    We were in Napier in 2022. Nice town, my pictures are very similar to Sandi`s. Unfortunately we had a not so nice experience there. The shuttles to the ship were a red hot mess. Then one of the bus drivers refused to allow my DD and another passenger in a  wheelchair on the bus. He made some very derogatory statements' about people in wheelchairs. The other passenger were appalled and it was nasty. They put us and the other passenger on the Princess shuttle. I was very upset. The Cruise director and Shore Excursion manager came to see us. Other passengers reported the incident. I wont let one individual  ruin my vision of the town.

     Pretty quiet around post Holiday. Have to take DH for a CT this AM. Nothing else on agenda. Although I do have to start researching some insurance for the VOV.

 

Stay safe and enjoy today

     Charlene

 

 

Charlene I remember you telling us about that incident before and it certainly is a terrible comment he made.  I hope the bus service fired him for that.  I can see why that would mar your time spent there.  Maybe you can go back again someday.  

 

I wondered if you heard the rocket that launched from Kennedy Space Center this morning?  It's headed to the moon!

[Seasick Sailor]

 Good morning Daily-ites from beautiful Rotterdam. 

 

Prayers lifted for all on our care list, my book, Sandi's family and friends, Tana, Baby Murphy, and to our Roy with his procedures ahead. 

 

Y'all know where we are, as @kazu posted earlier. We will be going out in a bit and see if there's anything I missed buying  2 weeks ago.

 

Our 51 days will be coming to a close on Jan 14th. We have met some nice folks on board. Our cabin stewards have been delightful. I mentioned on Navigator that one of the mattresses were broken down and before we got back to the cabin they were hauling out both mattresses and replaced them with oh so comfy ones. They left me towel animals even on the non Gala nights, and a vase of flowers (perhaps from a disembarked cabin?)

 

The recently promoted Lido manager is a pill. Several times we saw her calling out a crew member in front of us. The holiday was crazy busy and the crew were working so hard. I sent a message on Navigator..

 

Our bartenders, especially at Lido Bar, are outstanding. John, Manny, and Jun are the best. @sailingdutchy you board when we leave. Please tell the guys Joy and Allen say hello! 

 

Well, time to go ashore. Have a lovely day.