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LIVE from the Veendam/ALASKA

FlorenceItaly

By FlorenceItaly,
in Holland America Line

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FlorenceItaly

FlorenceItaly

Posted
Posted

Hello ALL - I am at a cybercafe checking in with home, so thought I would drop you all a line. This particular cafe is only $5.00 for an hour, and they and I will be able to use this in the other 2 ports also.

 

The weather is GORGEOUS. We are in Ketchikan today(our first port) and I had to go drop my jacket off at the ship, and pick up a light windbreaker for my backpack in case I need it later on my FLOAT PLANE trip with Island Wings.

 

I am really enjoying the Veendam, more so than the Maasdam. I know it's a sister ship, but everyone is so much friendlier. I have great tablemates...lots of other solo's. We do others things together also, and some of us are dining at the Pinnacle tonight.

 

Well, I better go, so I will be able to check in at my other ports. Oh, the ship has lowered their long distance rates to 49 cents per minute!!!!! Great deal, no more $7.99 a minute, something they instituted within the last month.

 

The food is good, service in dining room just average, but very enjoyable.

I have a wonderful room steward, and met some nice bar tenders at the Ocean Bar. They came for the Amsterdam, and a new contract....gotta run.

Tomorrow Juneau..........

 

Marie

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sail7seas

sail7seas

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Thanks so much for checking in with us, Marie. So happy to hear you are enjoying yourself and have bet some nice new friends.

 

 

I hope the beautiful weather keeps up and you continue to enjoy.

 

Blue skies and calm seas.......

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localady

localady

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Marie-

 

So pleased you are enjoying the Veendam and Alaska!! Great to hear that there are other solo travellers, it sure makes things more fun! Hard to go to the Pinnacle by oneself! If Ketchikan is sunny, you must have the luck, as they say it rains 300+ days there!!:) :cool: Have a volcano cake for us!!!:cool:

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PT Cruisin

PT Cruisin

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Hi Marie, Please try to do a helicopter/glacier landing in Juneau if you haven't already planned it. It was the highlight of my Sept 03 trip on the Amsterdam to Alaska (and my first cruise). If you do go...bring an empty water bottle. There is nothing in this world like glacier water!

PT

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zachnlucy

zachnlucy

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Hi there Marie! Thanks for the post. Are you on a northbound? We're planning a northbound on Veendam next August and I would absolutely love to hear everything about it. Having only sailed CCL and NCL before, I have no idea what HAL is like. I have heard that entertainment is lacking and the clientele is mostly seniors, but that's okay with me. We sailed a roundtrip inside passage on the NCL Sun in May and spent most of our time on our balcony anyway.

 

Please tell all! Thanks.

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Tinknock50

Tinknock50

Posted
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Hello ALL - I am at a cybercafe checking in with home, so thought I would drop you all a line. This particular cafe is only $5.00 for an hour, and they and I will be able to use this in the other 2 ports also.

 

The weather is GORGEOUS. We are in Ketchikan today(our first port) and I had to go drop my jacket off at the ship, and pick up a light windbreaker for my backpack in case I need it later on my FLOAT PLANE trip with Island Wings.

 

I am really enjoying the Veendam, more so than the Maasdam. I know it's a sister ship, but everyone is so much friendlier. I have great tablemates...lots of other solo's. We do others things together also, and some of us are dining at the Pinnacle tonight.

 

Well, I better go, so I will be able to check in at my other ports. Oh, the ship has lowered their long distance rates to 49 cents per minute!!!!! Great deal, no more $7.99 a minute, something they instituted within the last month.

 

The food is good, service in dining room just average, but very enjoyable.

I have a wonderful room steward, and met some nice bar tenders at the Ocean Bar. They came for the Amsterdam, and a new contract....gotta run.

Tomorrow Juneau..........

 

Marie

Hi Marie,

Great to hear you are having a good time and the weather is good too.

 

Check out the String Quartet for me and what their name is.

 

Thanks

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mak49

mak49

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Marie, I just returned from my first cruise ever, which was on the Veendam. Just hearing from you, makes me want to go again! We too had wonderful weather, and a great cruise. Our service was excellent. Enjoy the Pinnacle. I had the Volcano cake, and it was a chocolate lover's delite. Hope you planned on taking the Kenai Fjords tour, when you reach Seward. It was the highlight of our excursions. Enjoy!

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FlorenceItaly

FlorenceItaly

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Hello ALL--Back at a cybercafe...this time in Juneau. I went to Mendanhall Glacier this morning on the blue bus...$5 each way...what a deal. It was magnificant. It is currently about 61 degrees but still very enjoyable. This afternoon I will whale watch with Capt Larry.

 

Yesterday in Ketchikan it was sunny and warm. The float plane over Misty Fjords with Michelle at Island Wings was wonderful. I had a small problem with motion sickness but nothing serious. The difference with this tour and the one with the ship, is it was about 1/2 longer, and we actually landed on a lake and got to go ashore for awhile. The ships tour DOES land, but does not go ashore, they sit in the float plane for 10 minutes. I just made it back to the ship with very little time to spare because our departure time was moved up a half hour.

 

I have a BIG DECISION to make as I received one of those wonderful notices in my cabin last evening offer to stay on another week for a very LOW price. I need to decide by Friday, but am leaning heavily towards it. Also, if I do stay, I will be able to cancel my transportation to Seward along with a tour I booked which amounts to $198. My flight doesn't leave until 8:50pm that is why I booked a tour. Also, I have cruise air so very easy to change plans. I think, when I would leave out of Vancouver, I would get a early flight, thus eliminating the need for a tour. Of course, it would be even a better deal if I were not looking at 200% solo rate, BUT, I am going to try to work a deal ;).

 

Well, the Pinnacle was very nice. I am having so much fun. The crew and passengers are so nice....better go, need to save time for Skagway tomorrow.

 

Marie

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dakrewser

dakrewser

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I have a BIG DECISION to make as I received one of those wonderful notices in my cabin last evening offer to stay on another week for a very LOW price. I need to decide by Friday, but am leaning heavily towards it. Also, if I do stay, I will be able to cancel my transportation to Seward along with a tour I booked which amounts to $198. My flight doesn't leave until 8:50pm that is why I booked a tour. Also, I have cruise air so very easy to change plans. I think, when I would leave out of Vancouver, I would get a early flight, thus eliminating the need for a tour. Of course, it would be even a better deal if I were not looking at 200% solo rate, BUT, I am going to try to work a deal ;).

 

Go for it! :D How often does a chance like that come along? WE (on another thread) were just talking about how back-2-back's don't offer discounted pricing any more.

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FlorenceItaly

FlorenceItaly

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Marie, I just returned from my first cruise ever, which was on the Veendam. Just hearing from you, makes me want to go again! We too had wonderful weather, and a great cruise. Our service was excellent. Enjoy the Pinnacle. I had the Volcano cake, and it was a chocolate lover's delite. Hope you planned on taking the Kenai Fjords tour, when you reach Seward. It was the highlight of our excursions. Enjoy!

 

That's EXACTLY the tour I am booked on, but was going to cancel, if I stay the extra week, so now I am confused, LOL. Will you share more about it with me? Thanks.

 

Sean, I will found out the strings name.

 

At the library, but only have 10 minutes. You are limited to 15 minutes at a time. No sun out today, but Alaska is so beautiful, who cares...headed for my whale watching soon.

 

Marie

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localady

localady

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Marie-

If you do decide to stay there is no reason you can't take a Kenai Fjords trip. The Ship will be docked in Seward until 8 at night and if you just hop the free shuttle HAL provides to the harbour (it's the second stop after Sealife Center), you could find a tour right there. There are a couple of vendors there and with the amount of time you have in Seward it should be easy to find a cruise. You might wait till that day and decide based on the weather. Also HAL may give you B2B people free Sealife passes as they did us. It's a nice and not to large aquarium, will take no more than 2 hours to get thru i'd imagine. So glad to hear you are happy!

P.S. Make sure you take the train in Skagway if it's a nice day, it is a beautiful trip and you can buy your ticket right there at the train depot downtown. (You can't miss it!) :)

 

Have fun!!!!:cool:

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sail7seas

sail7seas

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Marie....So good to hear from you and so very good to hear you are enjoying yourself so much. Go for the extra week. When will you hve such an opportunity again?

 

 

Thanks for saying "Hi" to us from the ship. Continue to enjoy.

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Tinknock50

Tinknock50

Posted
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Marie-

 

If you do decide to stay there is no reason you can't take a Kenai Fjords trip. The Ship will be docked in Seward until 8 at night and if you just hop the free shuttle HAL provides to the harbour (it's the second stop after Sealife Center), you could find a tour right there. There are a couple of vendors there and with the amount of time you have in Seward it should be easy to find a cruise. You might wait till that day and decide based on the weather. Also HAL may give you B2B people free Sealife passes as they did us. It's a nice and not to large aquarium, will take no more than 2 hours to get thru i'd imagine. So glad to hear you are happy!

 

P.S. Make sure you take the train in Skagway if it's a nice day, it is a beautiful trip and you can buy your ticket right there at the train depot downtown. (You can't miss it!) :)

 

Have fun!!!!:cool:

Marie,

I agree with Localady....definitely take the Kenai Fjords. I have been on it twice and in bad weather the whales were more active...leaping out of the water!

You have plenty of time...go for it!

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mak49

mak49

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Marie,

The tour is in a much smaller boat, getting you so close to things it is awesome. We saw whales, porpoises, seals, sea lions, puffins, birds of all types on the cliffs, and marvelous glacier calfing. Plus the scenery was so beautiful. Since we are were just off of a week on the Veendam, many of us knew each other, and we all felt the same. We were all glad we took the tour. Hope you can fit it in. Many on our boat could not do it, since it was sold out. Our entire week was sunny, and the water that day (August 15th) just glistened. Have a great time. :)

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