Saturday and
Sunday, Oct 7 and 8: At Sea
We left Boston at 5 pm and for two days were on the ocean.
Indeed sea legs and the second night was the worst as we experienced 35 mph
winds. This was not my idea of rockin’ and rollin’. Residual from Phillip? One
thing is clear, we will not sail across the ocean.
People were walking aboard with canes, support systems,
wheel chairs and one gentleman while trying to carry a plate, slipped and fell. All
rushed to his side.
I could not imagine what my grandparents endured while bravely
crossing the Atlantic Ocean in the early 1900’s and in the squalor of ships
during that time.
4-5 pm was happy hour aboard ship each day and 50% discount on a small measured amount of wine in your glass_ $5. What a deal. We decided to purchase a bottle of wine for the next several days: Murphy Goode, a California Merlot $15 bottle of wine on sale on board for only $40 plus tax = $50. Methinks the 4-5 was the better deal.
It’s been two days, and now at 5 am and calm sailing, we
could see the distant shoreline.
Sunsets have been spectacular! and I love the color of the ocean.
Monday, Oct 9,
Port Canaveral, Florida (10-8pm)
Finally! warmer temperatures, a beautiful sunny day, the
gorgeous ocean water and the coast of Florida.
We docked at Port Canaveral and toured the JFK Space Center. This is the first time we took a bus_ absolutely necessary. Our driver said privatization (Bezos Blue Origin and
Boeing and the Artemis missions) had really allowed this to boom. https://www.boeing.com/space/space-launch-system/index.page And the area is funded as well with the admission of $70
per person.
You can buy your own Space suit
uncanny as the seats vibrated
At 8:42 pm that evening, SpaceX was targeted to launch and with great anticipation we had the best view seated on top of the Lido deck waiting. It was scrubbed! How spectacular
that would have been. We see launches often from our back yard, but nothing
like it would have been that evening. (Due to the bus ride only walked 3 miles today.)
Ocean water is so crystal clear (a light cerulean blue in
places), and the water aboard the ship comes from the ocean and is desalinated onboard.
BUT having said that, we had to buy our water for our cabin room, six large bottles for $30,
purchased twice. Dining room water is free and since we are water drinkers, we drank our fill
there. I don't know why, but the water coming from the faucet in our room had a chlorinated smell whereas the dining area water did not.
We met some wonderful people along the way: an older
gentleman named Ben (who taught at Ohio St) and wife Eileen, Don from Wyoming
who would peek across the barrier when we were on the deck; Debbie and
Randy from Sacramento and who we
partnered with on occasion. We could always find Debbie at the ice cream
station following dinner. (wink wink)
Whenever one of my son’s travels, he might wear a WVU
t-shirt (his undergraduate degree) as it is a conversation starter. So I
wore one for a couple days. We were walking from the Lido Market outside to the
deck and suddenly I hear Where are you
from?!!! I turned to my right and
this guy is wearing a WVU cap. We all laughed out loud and then chatted for a
while.
Tuesday, October
10, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, debark 7 am
And we were ready. The kitchen opened at 6 for breakfast
and we were there and ordered our normal omelet which is made according to one’s
specification. We had packed our luggage the night before, so all we had to do was collect it from the cabin, take the elevator to level 2 and stand in line.
The only disappointment of the cruise was the lack of
fall color, and a few other things like having to buy our own drinking water
for the room. Overall, it was a great! Beautiful sunsets and sunrises,
oceanscapes, crystal clear air, the sound of silence, yet the music and rhythm of
the ocean water…
The taxi from the ship to the airport was 2 miles ($25).
The driver barely spoke English, was polite and appeared to be Haitian. We were
dropped at the shuttle, then rode to the parking garage. Parking fee: $165. As we exited the
shuttle, an illegal asleep on the bench. Face, neck, arms were all covered in
tattoos. MS 13?
While aboard I was called
Ma-Dawm so often I can still hear it.
The traffic from the Ft Lauderdale airport was horrific!
Thankfully we were not headed south to catch a plane as multiple police cars
with flashing emergency lights had traffic stopped for miles heading south.
Once we approached Palm Beach, it was smoother “sailing” from there.
My husband planned the entire trip and it was wonderful!
And we both agree that the best thing of
every trip is getting home!
Holland America’s Zuiderdam:
the ship accommodates 1970 passengers and nearly 800 crew members from 42
countries. They have been taught well, as everyone, well nearly everyone, had a
constant smile and was willing to be accommodative. Our two cabin fellas: Made
(Mah day) was from Bali and Yunan assisted him. They still had 6 months left of their 9 month
contracts.
Each passenger is charged $16 per day for tips for the
journey ($32 per day), but in a few instances we gave extra to some, especially
Made and Yunan and a tip each day to the young man who brought morning coffee to
our room.
Each day: Tai chi, pickle ball, bridge, poker, jewelry auction, bingo, Mahjong,
painting, cornhole, ping pong, Mass is celebrated_ the gym, swimming
pool, hot tub_ never without something to do if you choose.
Changes have been made aboard these ships: when we first
sailed, the Pinnacle Grill with some fine dining that had been offered as an option, was now a premium restaurant, so if you sailed a number of times then it was available to you.
Canaletto Italian restaurant is a separate charge. And the lower level dining room is now basically casual dining_ people dressed in shorts, tank tops, clearly no need for the dress I brought in this beautiful space, and the food is no different than on the Lido Market. The myriad of Lido food options range from main dishes such as beef, pork, fish and served with vegetables, casseroles...; sushi, salads, Asian cuisine, Middle Eastern type stews with spices I enjoy (i.e. Cumin); breads, fruits... and the list goes on. My choice was to eat similarly as being home, good protein
We feel blessed that we made this voyage, but I believe our ocean sailing days are over_ land lover I am.
The ship was headed to Africa from Ft. Lauderdale. That
voyage I cannot imagine.
If you missed Part I
Part II https://voiceinthegarden.blogspot.com/2023/10/an-anniversary-cruise-old-quebec-city.html
Part III https://voiceinthegarden.blogspot.com/2023/10/an-anniversary-cruise-part-iii-sydney.html
Pat IV https://voiceinthegarden.blogspot.com/2023/10/anniversary-cruise-part-iv-portland-me.html
