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Noordam LIVE: August Adventure in Alaska

purplenorway

By purplenorway,
in Holland America Line

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purplenorway

purplenorway

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O2B@C, I asked our head waiter about the dining situation. He said that all of the upper level is traditional seating, the inner ring near the stairs on the lower level is traditional, and the lower level outside ring by the windows is open sitting. I have seen people in the open seating section who sit at the same table every night.

The Captain is Hans Mateboer. Shane is the Cruise Director. Tyler is the DJ. Ian McFarlane is in the Piano Bar.

The movies in the theater seem to be played on TV the next day. So if you miss it or can’t stay to finish, you can catch it later. Some of the movies on board: Spiderman 3, Shrek the Third, Blades of Glory, Disturbia, Next, and The Hoax. You can also rent movies from the library. I was watching Shrek in the cabin when suddenly; I saw a huge splash from a whale! It was great.

Laura, Mom and Dad say hello! Yes, I enjoyed the galley tour. I love behind the scenes stuff like that.

Rewopjm, I have not seen lemonade yet. I’m sure they have it somewhere though.

Joken1, I would suggest traditional dining. Sometimes, the line looks long for reservations. Wear layers in the ports. If you will be on a boat, wear a windbreaker and maybe take some gloves. For walking around, a zipped sweatshirt is nice. Clothing with lots of pockets is good. I brought my laptop, I type my posts in Word and copy it to a CC reply, it saves a lot of minutes. I like to post from a comfy chair in the Explorations Café. I am so glad I have my laptop to load photos on! It frees up my memory card. I must have over 500 so far!

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ekerr19

ekerr19

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Becky -

 

Thanks for the update!!! Sonny says "hi" and to tell you he hopes you like the Noordam as much as he does... :)

 

Your photos are awesome, the weather looks just about perfect... can't wait to see & hear more!!!!

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purplenorway

purplenorway

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It’s the last day. Sigh. I can hear them singing “Love in Any Language” while I am sitting in the Explorations Café. However, I am looking forward to going home and sorting out all of my photos! I certainly have had some adventures.

After our short stop in Ketchikan, we sat at a lovely table next to the aft window in the dinning room. We watched the Ryndam come in and practically push us out because we were late and she needed our spot. I had a difficult time getting ready for formal night because there were so many whales out! There were spouts everywhere I looked! I would turn to go back inside, only to see a whale’s reflection in the verandah door. Then, a whale surfaced about 20 feet from the ship! It made the most glorious “snort” sound you have ever heard! That was five times better than the whale watching tour we took! I went to an interesting question and answer session with the Captain; he said they put the stabilizers in whenever they see whales. Good thing.

I’m not sure what we will do in Victoria tonight. Tomorrow, we will take a tour of Seattle before our flight leaves in the afternoon. Got to go, it is almost time for the Mariner’s reception.

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purplenorway

purplenorway

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Hey everyone! I'm trying to use up the last of my Internet time. Looks like we will be taking a shuttle to downtown Victoria.

 

We have had fantastic weather! It almost seemed like we booked a Caribbean cruise instead of Alaska! Most people wear jeans or kakis, sweatshirts, or jackets around the ship in the day. I would suggest packing one warm jacket and a few sweatshirts. If the sun comes out, it is hot! If it is windy and cloudy, it can be freezing! Especially out on the open decks. Just layer and you will be fine.

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purplenorway

purplenorway

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In Victoria, we took a shuttle bus (blue and silver, $6 roundtrip) from the cruise pier to downtown Victoria last night. The city had beautiful lights. Some stores were open there and one shop was open at the cruise terminal. It was really chilly at the pier, but warmer downtown.

When we got back on board, Mom and Dad took a different elevator than I did. I got back to the cabin and had no idea what happened to them. I did some packing and the phone rang. A voice said, “This is the Captain speaking from the bridge.” I thought it was a prank and decided to play along. So I said “Oh, hello!” Then he said, “Is this Becky?” I thought, “Wait, how does he know who I am?” He continued, “Your mother is looking for you. In the Lido deck 9. Please come in one minute.” All sorts of thoughts went through my head after that. Maybe it really was the Captain. Maybe my parents were in some sort of trouble. Maybe they ran into the Captain at the Lido. Why in the world was he calling from the bridge? Maybe they saw northern lights outside. So I grabbed my camera just in case (as if I needed any more photos) and headed to the Lido. Well, I found Mom and Dad, sitting at a table, simply eating ice cream. Turns out, my mom could not figure out how to use the Lido phone, so my head waiter friend Sekon made the call for her, pretending to be the Captain (he really did sound like him). He apologized when he saw me and was willing to bring me any food I wanted. We all had a good laugh out of it, especially the head waiter! What a fun way to finish the cruise.

Disembarkation began at 7:45. We booked the best of Seattle tour and met in the Vista Lounge. Our group was yellow 2 and got off at 8:45. We didn’t need to claim our luggage; it was brought to the airport for us (we never saw if until we were back home). Our bus driver was extremely energetic while we were all sleepy. First, the tour stopped at the Space Needle. It was rainy and cloudy, so we couldn’t see very far. Then, we visited the Pike Market. I loved watching the fish throwing and looking at all the flowers and fruits. We bought a dozen mini assorted donuts. They were hot and the guy literally threw them into a bag. We got to the airport at 12:45 and our flight left after 2:00. The tour was much better than sitting at the airport all day! We made it to Chicago, but our next flight was delayed until after midnight due to rain. I slept until almost noon today.

To anyone going on the Noordam: I think you will love it! I am jealous of you.

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May4

May4

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Welcome home, Becky. I read all of your posts in one session just now and enjoyed each one. What a wonderful week you had.

 

Watch out for those bears. A bear bite will ruin your whole day:eek:

 

I liked your story about getting your summons to the Lido. Hey, when the captain calls, you've got to check it out.

 

Thanks for including all of us.

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ekerr19

ekerr19

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Becky -

 

Thanks for sharing your cruise with us. :) It was awesome, can't wait to see all those pics...

 

Looks like we are going to miss each other on the Westerdam - we are two weeks before you. :(

 

You might have to talk to M&D and see if all of you can do the Eurodam inaugural!!! That would be a blast - our kids are coming along for that one too. ;)

 

Thanks again for sharing such a great Alaska experience. :)

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CrystalWater

CrystalWater

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Becky, welcome home!!! Thank you so much for all the sharing you did this last week on your cruise. I know it's always hard, but good to come home after a cruise. Just get another one booked real soon so you have something to look forward to and ease your pain of withdrawls. That's what I do! It really helps. Again, thank you for your generosity of sharing your trip with all of us.

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rocks

rocks

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It has been great following along on your cruise!

Sounds like this was a great cruise and I can't wait until I leave on Sunday for my own. .

 

Hey Alison!

Hope you have a GREAT cruise too! We will be on the Noordam in Oct. Trixie & Angelo (remember them?) left the Noordam a few months ago & will be boarding the Ryndam soon. See how many Bartenders names you can remember :D ~ maybe we know a few.

Is this your 1st time to Alaska? Hope you have a GREAT cruise! :)

Pat

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spcl4cs_gal

spcl4cs_gal

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Hey Alison!

Hope you have a GREAT cruise too! We will be on the Noordam in Oct. Trixie & Angelo (remember them?) left the Noordam a few months ago & will be boarding the Ryndam soon. See how many Bartenders names you can remember :D ~ maybe we know a few.

Is this your 1st time to Alaska? Hope you have a GREAT cruise! :)

Pat

 

Hey Pat! Long time no see. :D Hope you have a great cruise on the Noordam as well. This is my first Alaska trip and it will be interesting to see if I return to do a land tour in a couple years. I thought that Angelo and Trixie were still on the Zuiderdam but I guess that isn't the case anymore. Have you heard from Shy lately? The last I heard he was on the Veendam...we docked with the Veendam in March at Costa Maya and I was almost tempted to try and get onboard. LOL Since Dean's direct hit last night I somehow think that Costa Maya will not be one of the stops we make next March. :(

 

Have a great cruise in October! :)

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photodoodle

photodoodle

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Your photos are wonderful . You have an excellent eye for composition. Some are really creative, like the sunset reflected in the windows of the door. The night shots and the market shots are really cool - well composed and lively. Brava! I enjoyed that slide show very much.

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