Maasdam as as Wonderful as Ever!!!!

[Krazy Kruizers]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=4]sail[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=4]I have finally had a chance to read the first 2 pages.[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=4]Gee - I hope all the suites have new furniture. We still had the old stuff when we were on her in Feb/Mar.[/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=4][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=4]Even though we rarely ate the hot appetizers, it is good that they are back for those that like them. The only appetizers available on our cruises were the cold ones - just like we got in the Neptune Lounge.[/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=4][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=4]Was there a suite buffet?[/SIZE][/FONT]

[sail7seas]

[B]Hi all.......

GREAT day today at sea with an incredibly wonderful surprise treat.

Captain van der Loo and Hotel Manager Firmin van Walle arranged for us to be able to arrive at Newport early in order for us to view Tall Ships which were sailing out of Newport after a few days in port there and a parage of tall ships event.

Gloriously sunny beautiful day and those pretty ships under sail. Who gets so lucky for them to put on a show we could enjoy.

Wonderful day,,,,,, fun Meet and Greet in the Crows Nest this morning. About maybe 15 or so of us. Nice folks all.

Excellent dinner tonight. If DH and I get anymore spoiled we may never go home.

The Suite Life got sweeter this morning.
We ordered our customary breakfast Room Service but when the lovely Steward who has been taking care of us arrived, he came rolling a brand new cart with our breakfast set out in hot plates aboard it. White cloth; our breakfast omelletes etc set on a table with sides that extend to form a round table on which to eat. It was wonderful. For those in Suites who wish to dine (breakfast en Suite), it just got better on Maasdam. Pull up a chair and enjoy. Four Season/Ritz cannot/does not do it better. Utterly delightful.

Tomorrow we visit Newport again. Had a great time there last week and Captain has informed it should be a beautiful day.

I enjoyed a wonderful filet of sole for dinner (formal night) and DH loved his rack of lamb and crepes suzette.

We are truly having a wonderful time.

Sorry.......gotta go. :) Too much to do to spend lots of time on computer.

Talk later. ;)

Again..fair warning.....didn't proof read.

[/B]

[Sinbad37]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=blue][B]Hi Sail7Seas!,[/B][/COLOR][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=blue][B]I just [/B][/COLOR][/FONT][B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=#0000ff]caught your posts today while researching for our next upcoming cruise on "Your" wonderful Maasdam! She is "Our" wonderful Maasdam also![/COLOR][/FONT][/B]
[B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=#0000ff]I have been away from the Boards lately. - Since becoming a CC Member I have always valued you imput. Thanks so much for taking the time to post! [/COLOR][/FONT][/B]

[B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=#0000ff]I don't play the slots (Congratulations on that win!), but I did once get a Bingo big enough to stay aboard the second week. Not having planned ahead to do that - to good to pass up - we did make the sacrifice. It was even worth changing cabins for! It is hard to leave the Suite life, but harder still to disembark! :eek: [/COLOR][/FONT][/B]

[B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=#0000ff]We cruised last year aboard the Westerdam with Grumpy & Slinkie for the Hal-O-Ween Dam Cruise. Wonderful Couple! Ask them about thier "Pirate" adventures! If they did b2b with you, say Hi from us! I hope we get to cruise with you & DH on some of the Seven Seas sometime.[/COLOR][/FONT][/B]

[B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=#0000ff]Love the infor, but have to admit to being a little jealous - as an avid sailor in my younger years - and missing seeing THE TALL SHIPS! Hope you took pictures![/COLOR][/FONT][/B]

[jhannah]

Thanks for rubbing ... er, uh ... checking in again! ;) So glad all is going so well.

O. T. -- Speaking of tall ships ... If you want to see amazing ships, and are thinking about cruises in 2010, plan a cruise out of Amsterdam in August that year. Every five years they have Sail Amsterdam, where tall ships come from all over the planet. We were there in 2005, and it was truly amazing. Well worth a visit if you enjoy sailing ships.

[Sinbad37]

[B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=blue]WOW! Thanks Jim for the "heads up on that"! [/COLOR][/FONT][/B]

[CENTER][B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=blue]Never too old to dream or too soon to plan ahead! :D [/COLOR][/FONT][/B][/CENTER]
[B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=#0000ff]Sail Amsterdam just hit my sceamer --oops! "PLANNER"[/COLOR][/FONT][/B]
[LEFT][B][FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=#0000ff]Will you return then and do you have pictures from 2005?[/COLOR][/FONT][/B][/LEFT]

[RuthC]

I hope you enjoyed this day in Newport, sail. If you didn't you have only yourself to blame---we certainly gave you weather that was perfect.

I saw the Maasdam in the background of the Parade of Sail newsfootage last night and got more excited about our ship than the tall ships! She looked gorgeous in the bay this morning as I drove over the bridges to meet friends sailing on her.

One thing I noticed was the age of the passengers in the tender line. So young! And I don't mean children (although I did see kids in line). Very few of us in the Social Security-eligible set.

Based on that I would say that HAL's efforts to attract a new generation of passengers is working.

[sail7seas]

Ruth... We most appreciatively thank you for a near perfect day in Newport..... Actually two of them as both weeks were wonderful.

 

We very much enjoyed our visits and only wish we had more time there. Gives us an excuse to return ASAP.

 

Dinner last night (again) in Pinnacle. They changed the night for Master Chef dinner and we decided to 'duck out on it' again. It isn't a favorite of ours. :)

 

Today we are in Portland and again, gorgeous weather. Seeing as we New Englanders endured a pretty miserable, raw cold spring, we are extremely fortunate the wonderful weather we have had for almost our whole time aboard this beautiful ship.

 

DH is sunning at aft pool while I chatter away here but we hope to meet a friend soon and go ashore for lobster lunch. We think we'll go to Portland Lobster Company. A ten minute walk from where we are docked. New England casual as they serve on picnic like benches and we have (partial) view of the ship while we crack open the lobster's claws. :D

 

There are many more children aboard this week than last but it has been a non-issue for us. They seem well supervised by parents and are out of sight a good part of the time with Club HAL activities. Of course, with six ports in seven days, they are off the ship with parents a great deal of the time.

 

In any case, I've seen or heard of no problems.

Ruth's observation about a generally lower aged demographic is true. Yes, certainly there are the social security set but there are plenty of 'young uns'. Lots of dancing last night in Ocean Bar........good band in there.

 

We enjoy pre-dinner drinks there most nights and the music has been good. Not too loud as sometimes is the case.

 

We had an interesting conversation about how to please such a varied demographic that more and more is present on the ships. If they crank up the music, the old cruisers complain. If they tone it down, the young ones seem to be unable to hear it and call the ship 'deadly quiet'. :) What's a ship's crew to do in order to please as many as possible?

 

I think they've reached a good balance here as most seem very happy.

 

Tonight is Dutch night in the dining room but there is no dover sole. Wasn't any last week either and I asked about that. I had no idea that dover sole is very limited in supply these days. There are tight restrictions on how much can be fished and size they have to be in order to not have to be 'thrown back'. I knew it was pricey but can now understand how with 13 ships, it isn't possible for HAL to consistently get supplies of that delicious fish in sufficient quantities to keep it on the menu.

 

I've heard that by about February '08, all HAL ships will have Dine as You Wish on Lower Level. Upper dining level will be traditional. It will be interesting to see how it will work fleetwide. As long as every one who wants traditional at a time for the most part satisfactory to most, it should be okay. We'll see.

 

Happy 4th of July everyone if I don't check back in. As our time aboard grows shorter, I find myself trying to soak in my favorite things. At the start of our b-to-b's, it was easy to say......there's alway tomorrow. Now....It's Do It Now!!! :)

 

Usual apology..... :embarrassed: didn't proof before I posted. Sorry for errors.

[HeatherInFlorida]

Not seeing a whole lot of errors, Sail, and you know how critical I am!!!!:D

 

I'm so happy you're having such a good time. It sounds fabulous and since that's a cruise I want to do so badly I'm literally green with envy.

 

And just the thought of sitting at picnic tables breaking open Maine lobsters is more than I can bear. Poor me ... guess I'll have to settle for some tiny shrimp tonight:) .

 

Keep on having fun!

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Sail, I too am so glad you are having such a good time and great weather:) Oh how I would lover to have some Lobster for Lunch:D Sounds down right tasty, of course a few clams and mussels would be good too;)

Hope you and DH have a wonderful 4th of July on your Maasdam.

[jhannah]

If they crank up the music, the old cruisers complain. If they tone it down, the young ones seem to be unable to hear it and call the ship 'deadly quiet'. :) What's a ship's crew to do in order to please as many as possible?

Well, as long as our communities allow 105 decibel sub-woofers in automobiles, we will propogate generations who are deaf at age 30. But I digress.

 

How about providing wireless headsets for the "jammers" who want to make their eardrums bleed?

[mamaofami]

Sail, sorry if you posted this and I missed it, but I wondered which dining venue you are doing...early or late fixed ? Since you mention the dining steward, I imagine you are not doing the anytime. Is that correct?

[crznby]

We also love the Maasdam - Captain Van Der Loos did a magnificent job last year "parking" the ship in Isiafjord,Iceland - he pulled right up to the peer! Is he still with the lovely Miss Wendy? We did the 35 day trip last summer - it was a magificent trip. I will miss the Maasdam this summer. So many wonderful staff. Enjoy!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Sail is at the 8 PM fixed dining.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thanks for checking in sail.

Hope you have a HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!

Is the Maasdam doing anything special for the 4th?

[Jade13]

HAPPY 4th Sail!

 

You are going to miss those Boston Fireworks. Does the ship do anything special for the 4th, especially if you are in/near the US coast?

[rebeljohn]

Happy 4th on the Maasdam...........can't think of a better way to celebrate than on a ship!

[sail7seas]

We have left the U.S. and are in Saint John, New Brunswick today. They have given us a beautiful but, at the moment, bit chilly day.

 

We saw the menu for dinner and it has fireworks imprinted on the side in 'recognition' of the 4th. Ships are no longer permitted to shoot fireworks as they did on our Rotterdam Millenium cruise. They moved the barbeque from yesterday to tonight----last cruise it was on Portland night.

 

Yes.......we are 8:00 seating and love it. Our regular table and same wonderful steward. He goes home when we do.

 

KK...happy your compyter is back up and running.

 

Lisa, Ruth, Jim and Heather,,,,everyone. Thanks for your nice messages.

 

 

For those awaiting boarding, if it of interest to you, I suggest doiong a little pre-cruise monitoring of your diet!!! :D Chef Robert Schumann's food is so wonderful it is very hard to resist. His breakfasts, his Lido, his dinners all delicious. GREAT choices prepared and served wonderfully. One of the best Chef's with which we have sailed for a while. He was second Chef on Noordam for her takeout.........no surprise. We should have recognized the same excellence that came out of Noordam's galley for all the festivities is coming out of his galley daily on Maasdam.

 

Happy 4th Everyone!!!

 

Bye for Now........:)

[HeatherInFlorida]

............... Our regular table and same wonderful steward. He goes home when we do.

 

....................

 

:D .... home with you, right Sail?????:D (You only wish;) )

 

Happy 4th of July! Enjoy your day.

[jhannah]

:D .... home with you, right Sail?????

Hee! If anyone could pull it off, she could! :cool:

[RuthC]

We have left the U.S. and are in Saint John, New Brunswick today. They have given us a beautiful but, at the moment, bit chilly day.

Um, a day to bring out the jeans, perhaps? Paparazzi, are you ready? ;)

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Oh Sail how I wish we were with you in Beautiful Cool St.John instead of here at work where the temps in Las Vegas will hit 115 today:eek:

Sail I know that if the food on the Maasdam is as good as it was on the Noordam you are loving all of it. Don't worry about any dieting, just enjoy while you can. That diet can start next week;) Besides I am sure you have still been very careful but just enjoy your last few days.

[HeatherInFlorida]

Just got an email from our friends in St. John who we met on the Maasdam a few years ago. She said her husband called from his office because he could see the Maasdam in port. She rushed out of her office to get a peek because they have such happy memories of their cruise on the Maasdam with us.

 

It gave me such a great feeling of how small our world sometimes is ... here we have Sail on the ship and other friends longingly looking at her in port. It comes 'round full circle in a way.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Just got an email from our friends in St. John who we met on the Maasdam a few years ago. She said her husband called from his office because he could see the Maasdam in port. She rushed out of her office to get a peek because they have such happy memories of their cruise on the Maasdam with us.

 

It gave me such a great feeling of how small our world sometimes is ... here we have Sail on the ship and other friends longingly looking at her in port. It comes 'round full circle in a way.

 

 

Heather that is so neat, did he by chance take a picture. I loved our cruise to New England/Canada but I do remember St. John being a bit industrial where we docked. But it was an easy walk into town and the park.

[serendipity1499]

Hi..... back again. :)

 

 

We have never had a disappointing cruise on her. Yes....we have had cruises when maybe the toilet didn't work for a bit; the a/c could have been cranked up or something else of the sort. So what. It has happened in my house, as well. We report it and it gets fixed. I cannot too highly recommend this very beautiful ship. We love her. Just our opinion......

 

This is so true!...

 

Since Memorial Day our dishwasher & microwave broke, the timer for our fishpond stopped running, DH is re-wiring the phone lines because of static & my electric can-opener just broke today!:( So I reported the problems & they are getting fixed, just like on a ship! :)

 

Sail, reading your posts is getting me so worked up about trying to book next year's Bos/Bos on your lovely Maasdam...since it leaves July 5, our Friend (Wife of our Traveling Companions) suggested yesterday that we should plan to fly into Bos July 3, so as to avoid the July 4 traffic from the airport to their Son's home outside of Boston...I so hope we will be able to do it..

 

Happy 4th of July to Everyone, & thanks so much Sail for taking us along on your B2B cruise & hope you enjoy the rest of it... Betty

 

P.S. Missed the Master Chef's Dinner on our last 2 cruises, perhaps we'll get to see on the Maasdam..;)

[Palm Beacher]

Sail, Glad to see you and DH are having a fantastic cruise. Too bad we missed you in Newport. Maybe next visit.