Friday January 5, 2023

 

My view when I woke up. 

Ah, the cruise feeling has truly begun. We had a discussion this morning about what day it was. It can't only be Friday, can it? This already feels like my glorious new life. 

We set our clocks back an hour last night. The Captain chose to do it last night instead of waiting until we dock in Tobago on Sunday to give us time to adjust.  Losing an hour on-board is just as much fun as "springing forward" to Daylight Savings Time each spring. Sucks, especially for the crew.

Some observations:

• Being served breakfast in a formal dining room then returning to a freshly cleaned cabin is peak luxury for me.  
• Traveling alone does not equal being lonely.  I have more social interactions on the ship than I typically have at home. Plus, my Canadian friend Jolanda is on board. I met her and her boyfriend Don on the 2020 cruise. Sadly, Don died on the 2023 world cruise.  This trip, Jolanda and I will be enjoying breakfast and dinner together in the dining room most days while going our own way the rest of the day.
• I don't know what drugs they give the crew but I want some.  Usually smiling, always helpful even when working hard, long hours.  Last night at the end of dinner our waiter asked if we wanted anything else. I suggested a foot rub would be nice.  Dude didn't hesitate. Dropped to one knee and reached under the table.  He was joking but I have no doubt he'd give me a quick shoulder rub between courses if I asked. 
• It's all about being on the water for me.  The ship provides enough activities to keep you busy all day but I prefer hanging out on my balcony.  Reading, drawing and just watching the sky and sea. 

Breakfast was one of my favorites, Swedish Pancakes. Crepes stuffed with a decadent creamy filling. 

My view as I type. 

Another view of the sky this morning

Dinner last night started with this excellent radicchio, frisee, blue cheese and caramelized pears salad

My entree was described as a veal loin. This wasn't what I expected but it tasted better than it looks. That's marscapone polenta on the side with a mushroom and artichoke heart ragout. 

Well, yeah, of course I had dessert. I went for this flourless chocolate cake. Bad photo. Good cake. 

Photos Onboard the Zuiderdam

 

Fancy coffee on deck 9

On a recent HAL cruise

 my cabin steward would only leave one chocolate on my pillow each night because I was traveling alone.  Not bad enough I'm sleeping alone?  Rony and Mario, my current stewards, not only brought two but asked if I prefer milk or dark chocolate. 

The arts and crafts room.

A very friendly group of officers taking a break to work on a jigsaw together. 

One of my favorite places on the ship, the Crow's  Nest. In 2020 as we cruised in Antarctica you had to be here by 5 a.m. to get a front row seat. 

The arts and crafts room

A spot to chill before or after your spa treatment

As I was walking toward the gym a crew member assumed I was looking for breakfast and directed me toward the Lido. I'm shocked that she assumed donuts rather than sit ups. Apparently she's not blind.

This is the free sauna. I'm looking forward to starting my mornings there. 

I haven't encountered any crowded areas yet. This is next to the Lido pool

Have a meal, read a book, whatever. 

Shower by the Lido pool

I miss the good old days when this sort of thing had no upcharge.  I also miss having firm thighs

My very favorite spot. With some rambutan

 for a snack. If anyone needs me this is probably where I'll be. 

Thursday, January 4, 2024

As usual in a new-to-me bed, I didn't sleep as well as usual. But who cares? I can nap anytime. But my real dilemma is what to do now. Shower and dress?  Room service?  Lido? Main Dining Room? Go for a walk? 

Or sit here admiring the view and kicking myself in the butt for not downloading Holland's Navigator app to my Chrome book so I can work from it instead of my phone.  I'll be able to do that on Sunday in Tobago. 

Today's plan, when I get around to putting on clothes, is to reacquaint myself with the ship and eat. The problem is figuring out the pace and sequence. There are so many options and all are good. 

I'll be adding photos of the ship today along with lots of food photos. 

I'll also be adding observations and commentary on the day. I recommend just looking at the photos unless you ran out of Xanax and just need something mildly boring. 

January 3- We're Underway!

 It's 8 00pm, which is 3 1/2 hours late but I'm kind of glad. I've never cruised out of Fort Lauderdale at night before. 

January 3, 2024- The Cruise has Begun!

Embarkation can be frustrating but today has been very easy.  I took an Uber from the LA Quinta to the port. Handed off my luggage then got into a short line to check in. 

Because of all the problems with Brazilian visas we had to complete a form to provide information on what stage we were in in the application process. My documents have been under review by Brazil for two weeks. 

Once checked in I was given a boarding card. I was in Priority Group 3, thanks to my 4 star status. I waited with everyone else as they began boarding. It went quickly and smoothly.  I dropped my bags at 11 a.m. and was sitting on my balcony at noon. 

Luggage arrived a couple of hours later. My friend Jolanda, who I met on the 2020 world cruise, stopped by and we headed to sail away at 4:30.  Now I've had a lovely dinner, am all unpacked it is 7:30 p.m. and

we're still at the dock. We're scheduled to be at sea for the next three days so it really doesn't matter. 

I'll add more tomorrow but I'm pooped and want to just chill. Here are some photos from my day.  In case you want to check out my cabin I'm in 4133 which seems to be a fabulous location.  

We were scheduled to leave at 430.

My cabin at night. A bit messy. 

Cheesecake for dessert.

My main was haddock, clamp, mussels and risotto 

I started with a shrimp cocktail which is in the menu every night

at 630 the dining room was half empty. They had a special steak dinner in the Lido and I suspect a lot of people went there

I was given a rose at dinner

Typical hall

One of the many pieces of art around the ship

Silverware and a view in the Lido. It was too windy for Jolanda and too cold for me outside

It was really windy and about 65.  I was wearing fleece and a coat. Those not from Florida were in t-shirts 

The view from my balcony today. I'm on the starboard (right) side of the ship

Amazing that most luggage is in the assigned cabins within 2 hours