HAL Zuiderdam 2024

The HAL Zuiderdam can hold 1,916 passengers and 842 crew. Our captain was Frank Van der Hoeven, the hotel director was Glenn Cowley, our Cruise director was Karlijn Verpalen, and when Karlijn had to leave for a family emergency, Glen Michaels the Entertainment Director took over. Our inside cabin was 7132 and our cabin stewards were Johan and Matt. We had dinner at table 23 in the Dining Room 3rd deck. Our servers were Apri and Desri.

Day 1: Embarkation - Saturday, November 23, 2024

Click here for pictures while we were on the ship

We left our FL house at 9:30 and made it to the port by 10:30. There were no lines for dropping off bags and when we got to the parking garage, we found a spot on the 2nd level. Embarkation went very smoothly and we were on the ship by 11:30.

After lunch, we walked around the ship and dropped our stuff off at our cabin. Since our luggage wasn’t there yet, we walked around and got a couple of drinks. We found our dining room table (it was a table for 4) and we also checked on our shore excursions. When we checked, my suitcase had arrived so I put away my clothes. At 1:30, we did the safety drill which meant we had to go to Deck 3 and check in. Once we saw our lifeboat (section 16), we could leave. We watched the safety video on our TV and that was it. Don’s luggage had arrived so we put away his stuff. Then we went up to the Crow’s Nest to watch us leave (supposedly at 3:45). By 4:30, we left to get our jackets for dinner and went to the dining room.

We sat at table 23 and it was only the 2 of us. For dinner, we started off with French onion soup (for me) and a beet, orange salad (for Don). Don had Ocean Hake (fish, muscles, and clams) for the main entree, and I had the NY Strip Loin. We both had a cookies and cream sundae for dessert.

After dinner, we went to the Captain’s reception for 3, 4, and 5-star mariners. I got a picture with the captain. We went to the Crow’s Nest to get a cappuccino and then returned to our cabin so Don could watch football.

Day 2: Sea Day - Sunday, November 24, 2024

After breakfast, we walked for an hour around Deck 3. There were a lot of walkers out there with us. At 11, we went to the talk about The Caribbean Up Close: Water Works with Karlijn. I realized that we had been on the Rotterdam with her in 2022. She did a great job! I left at 11:30 to meet up with knitters and 6 others showed up. At noon, I met up with Don for lunch. At 2pm, we heard Karlijn talk about the Caribbean Up Close: Treasure Islands. Then we stopped at the Pinnacle Bar and had a couple of Bloody Marys before dinner. I enjoyed dinner in the dining room and our servers are excellent. After dinner, we went to the show: Emile Diego Doles, Tyler Michael Breeding & Company in Song & Dance. Then we stopped at the Pinnacle Bar for one last Bloody Mary before heading back to our cabin. Before going to bed, we watched DeadPool.

Day 3: Sea Day - Monday, November 25, 2024

After breakfast, we walked for an hour around Deck 3. There were a lot of walkers out there with us. At 11, Don went to the talk about The Caribbean Up Close: The Islands’ Spirit with Karlijn while I went to the Crow’s Nest to meet the knitters. After lunch, I went to a watercolor class on painting jellyfish. That was a lot of fun. At 3pm, we went to the Rolling Stones Lounge to hear Karlijn answer questions about St. Maarten. When we got there, Glen Michaels, the Entertainment Director, was in her place due to a family emergency. He was very good! On the way out, I gave him a gnome as a thank-you for jumping in to help Karlijn. After that session, we went to the Pinnacle Bar for pre-dinner cocktails. Dinner was very good again and after dinner, we went to the show: The Alans, a husband-and-wife team. He was the magician, and she was the mentalist.

Day 4: St. Maarten - Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Click here for pictures of St. Maarten

We met on the dock at 8:15 for our shore excursion: Under Two Flags, Island Drive. We got on the bus and our driver was Nicholas. We drove through Philipsburg (the Dutch capital) and headed to the French side. We passed by Orient Beach and stopped in Marigot (the French capital). We walked around for 45 minutes and found the post office but we didn’t buy anything since they didn’t accept US dollars. We stopped by Maho Beach on the way back to Philipsburg. We arrived back at the ship around 11:30 and felt this excursion was well worth the $30 pp that we paid.

After lunch, we sat on the deck and relaxed for a little while. Then we had a couple of drinks before going back to the cabin for a shower. After that, we went back out for another drink and then to the Lido deck for French fries. By then, we walked around until it was time to change for dinner. Dinner was prime rib which I enjoyed but Don’s prime rib was tough. At 7:30 we went to the show All That and enjoyed the show because we recognized all the songs. When we got back to the cabin, we watched the movie Avatar, the Way of the Water.

Day 5: Antigua- Wednesday, November 27, 2024

Click here for pictures of Antigua

We got off the ship around 8:30 and walked to the post office. Don bought $2 worth of local stamps. Then we walked to the Central market, the meat market, and the fish market. We got back to the ship around 9:30. We sat on the Lido deck and had some cool drinks while we waited for lunch to open. After lunch, we went to deck 3 to sit in the lounge chairs with a beer. Eventually, we had to move because they were cleaning the lifeboats so we went to the Pinnacle Bar and sat for a while. Then I sat with some knitters before going back to the cabin for a nap. At 5pm, we had a reservation at the Pinnacle Grill.

For dinner, we had lobster bisque as a starter. For the entrée, I had a 15 oz. boneless ribeye and Don had the Chilean Sea Bass. For dessert we had crème brulee. Our whole dinner was fabulous!

After dinner, we watched The Alans again do their magician mentalist show. It was entertaining.

Day 6: St. Lucia - Thursday, November 28, 2024

It was raining when we could get off the ship so we ended up staying on the ship all day. It pretty much rained all day until it was time for us to leave the port. We were glad that we had been here many times so we didn’t feel like we missed anything. In the morning we sat out on the Lido deck and read until lunchtime. After lunch, we spent the afternoon in the Pinnacle Bar listening to podcasts and I knit. After dinner we went to the show – Class Act which features songs by well-known women (Bette Midler, Enya, Helen Reddy, Ann Margret, Tina Turner.

Day 7: Dominica - Friday, November 29, 2024

Click here for pictures of Dominica

We had to get up early because we had a shore excursion scheduled – Dominica’s Favorite (4.5 hours for $60 pp). We met on the pier and got on the bus very quickly. Our tour guide was Corey and he was fabulous. About 15 min. into the drive, our bus broke down. We were right in front of the water treatment plant. 30 minutes later a replacement bus was sent and we were on our way. Some people needed to use the restroom so he stopped at a small store and asked if people could use the restroom. They came back and said that there was no seat and no toilet paper and it didn’t flush. I’m glad we didn’t need to use it. Our first scheduled stop was at the Emerald Pool. It was about a 15 min. walk to the pool downhill which means it was uphill on the way back but it was well worth the hike. Our next stop was at Trafalgar Falls and it was a 10 min. walk uphill which made it a lovely downhill walk on the way back. Our last scheduled stop was at the Botanical Gardens. At one of the Powder Puff trees, the hummingbirds were all over it. Before heading back to the ship, we went to the top of the mountain and got a lovely view of our ship and the town of Roseau. When we got back to the ship, Don and I went to the General Post Office which was a 2 min. walk from the ship. It was really hot and sunny outside. We weren’t sure where to go and the security guard asked us if we were looking for the post office and welcomed us in. It was nicely air-conditioned! The lady in the post office was patient and nice so we ended up buying $7 USD worth of stamps. On the way back to the ship, we stopped at the supermarket.

When we got back to the ship and went up to the Lido deck, it was just closing. Don was able to get a salad right before it closed. I went to the Dive In and got a hot dog and French fries. Then we stopped at the Pinnacle Bar for a drink before returning to our cabin to clean up for dinner.

After dinner, we skipped the show because we both were pretty tired from our busy day. We went back to our cabin and finished watching the movie Avatar. Then we went to sleep early.

Somebody told us that they went to Champagne Reef and went snorkeling. The cab driver wanted $100 but they negotiated down to $60. The driver dropped them off and then came back for them. Maybe next time we will give it a try.

Day 8: St. Kitts - Saturday, November 30, 2024

Click here for St. Kitts

We had to get up early again because we had a shore excursion scheduled – St. Kitts Railway (3 hours for $130 pp). We docked later than expected because it was very windy. It took 3 pilots and a tugboat to get us docked. We got off the ship around 8:30 and rushed to our meeting place on the pier (we were supposed to meet at 8:15). After a 10 min. bus ride, we got to the Needmust Train station where we got on the train. We stayed downstairs because it was air-conditioned. They gave us unlimited drinks (rum punch, punch, soda, or water) and a sugar cake (a candy mixture of brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.) We got back to the ship around 12:30 and got on board to have lunch. After lunch, we sat in the Pinnacle Bar until it was time for dinner. After dinner, we went to the show featuring comedian Bill Boronkay. When we returned to the cabin, we watched the movie, Arthur the King which was very entertaining.

Day 9: St. Thomas - Sunday, December 1, 2024

We arrived in St. Thomas around 8am but we didn’t get off the ship. After breakfast, we sat out on deck 3 and enjoyed the scenery. I knit, read, and listened to podcasts. Around 11am, we went up to the Lido deck to claim our table for lunch. After lunch, we went to the Pinnacle bar to have a couple of Bloody Marys. Then we went back to the cabin to watch the Bridge of Spies. At 5 we had dinner at the Pinnacle Grill and then we went to the show featuring a Celtic violinist, Mairead Nesbitt who was very good. They showed a video of scenery (probably Ireland) while she played almost nonstop for 50 minutes. She was very lively and energetic as she played. We had to turn our clocks back an hour when we went to bed.

Day 10: Sea Day- Monday, December 2, 2024

Today we relaxed all day on the ship. We sat on deck 3 and relaxed until lunchtime. Don forgot his hearing aids and had to go back to the room. Then he had trouble finding his way back to me. I don’t know if his sugar is up or if he is dehydrated which may be causing his confusion. After lunch at 1, we went to Ask the Captain. At 3, we went to the Royal Dutch Tea. After dinner we went to the show Hey Mr. DJ which was very good. We sat with Mari and Viji again and I learned a little more about them. They are fascinating to talk with!

Day 11: Half Moon Cay - Tuesday, December 3, 2024

When we arrived at Half Moon Cay, it was windy and overcast so we decided to stay on the ship. We sat on deck 3 until lunchtime. After lunch, we went back to deck 3 where I read and Don walked laps. Then we went to finish packing our suitcase which didn’t take long. We also worked on a letter to the hotel director complaining about the deceptive advertising of the specialty restaurant. Then we relaxed in the Pinnacle Bar until it was time to get ready for dinner. After dinner, we went to the show which was a combination of the comedian and the violinist. Viji and Mari sat with us, and they gifted me a beautiful pair of earrings! I enjoyed the comedian because he used new material, but the violinist played the same songs that she played the other night. When we returned to the cabin, we put out our suitcases and finished watching the movie Horizon Chapter 1 and it was a horrible movie.

Day 12: Ft. Lauderdale - Wednesday, December 4, 2024

I got up at 4am and then went to the Lido deck. I saved our seats and went back to the cabin at 5:30 to make sure Don was awake. We got everything together and went for breakfast. Since we are 4 star mariners, we were able to get off the ship at 8:15 and we were on the road by 8:30. It was a very smooth debarkation!

Things I Learned:

• St. Maarten – cab ride to the boardwalk is $3 each way; water taxi is $4 one way/$7 round trip. $2 public bus ride to Maho Beach.
• Antigua - Someone recommended going to Jolly Beach so maybe next time we will take a cab there and check it out.
• Dominica – there is a mountain covered in grass and when the rocks get hot, the grass catches on fire and burns. Then the seeds that didn’t burn eventually grow and cover the rocks in new grass.
• We liked Dominica and want to go back.
• St. Kitts – the St. Kitts scenic train ride was bumpy but fun. The view would probably be better upstairs, but the downstairs was air-conditioned.
• I messed up and saw we were charged for Pinnacle Grill last night. I read on the Have It All package that we got 2 nights at the specialty restaurant. Apparently, it is only 1 night at the Pinnacle Grill and 1 night at Canaletto. So we had to pay for last night. I still feel like they misled us on purpose but I learned my lesson for next time.
• I’m glad I brought my magnets with hooks for me.

Original photos by Pat Hensley

Carnival Breeze November 2018 Part 1

For pictures, click here.

We went on a 14-day Journeys cruise on the Carnival Breeze. Our captain was Guiseppe Giusa, Chief Engineer: Vito Antonelli; Hotel Director: Carlos Santos de Melo; Cruise Director: Steven Schwartz. Our cabin steward was Lorenzo and we were in Cabin 1322. Our dinner table was 552 and our dining stewards were Danilo and Ari.

We drove down to Florida on November 1 and stayed at the Sleep Inn at Ormond Beach ($59 including hot breakfast). Then we drove down to Cocoa, FL on Friday. We went to antique stores in historic Cocoa Village and I met my cousins Becky and Carol and Liam at Ossorio’s Bakery for a visit. For dinner, Earl and Dyanna joined us at Mitchell's. We stayed at America’s Best Value Inn for $79 and we could leave our cars there for 2 weeks while we went on the cruise. We paid $10 per person for the shuttle to and from the port. We were asleep at 10:30 when there were people yelling and fighting down the hall but eventually, they left. Then at 2:30am, we heard dogs barking. At 5:30am, another couple was fighting in the parking lot.

Day 1: Embarkation 11/3/18

We took the 9am shuttle to the port and went right into the terminal. We went upstairs and waited in the “red chairs” designated for Diamond members. Then at 11:30, we went right on board the ship. Our cabin was ready, so we dropped our backpacks off and locked up valuables in the safe. For some reason, our safe would not work and open up again. After lunch on the Lido deck, I went to see the Maître D to have our dinner table changed for all 4 of us to sit together. When we returned to the cabin, we had them send someone to fix our safe.  While we waited, our luggage arrived, and we unpacked. Everything was finished by 2:30pm. At 4pm, we had our muster drill and at 6pm we had dinner. We were so tired, that we went to bed after dinner. Around 9:15pm, someone came to our door and delivered a plate of chocolate covered strawberries sent to us by Allie and Sam, our travel agents.

Day 2: At Sea 11/4/18

We had a fabulous day at sea. Even though it was Daylight Savings Time, the ship’s time did not change. I didn’t know this until Dyanna told me about it in the morning.  At 8:30, we had the Seaday Brunch in the dining room. After brunch, Don and I walked for 45 minutes. At 11:00, we had the galley tour and all of the crew seemed happy to be working on the ship. Then we had lunch and sat with Cyndi and Gary from Illinois. The food at lunch was very good! After lunch, we went back to our room to change and then realized that I had signed up for the slot pull. It cost $20 to enter and when it was all done, I got back $9. Next, we went to the lecture – Academy of Fun: All About Food. The lecturer was Jason Rich who we had met on our last Journeys cruise. It was a good session. After that, we had to get ready for dinner and had a drink before dinner. After dinner, we went to the comedy show and heard JR McCollom.

Day 3: At Seas 11/5/18

After breakfast, we walked the track for an hour. Then we went to a lecture on Social Media. By then it was time for lunch and then we returned for a session on Internet Safety. After we ran by the Arts & Crafts session, it was time to go for Teatime. I ate too many scones, but they were so good! We had time to relax for about 30 minutes before getting ready for dinner and then getting a cocktail before dinner. After dinner, we went to the show that featured a comedian and juggler.

Day 4: St. Thomas 11/6/18

We had a lovely day in St. Thomas. Since they were expecting a 90% chance of rain showers, we decided not to go to the beach. Instead, we walked 2.5 miles into town and walked around the shops. It was so hot and humid that we took the cab back and shopped around the port. By lunchtime, we were back on the ship. After lunch, we sat on the deck. Before dinner, we went to another seminar called Let’s Talk Art. We learned a lot about different websites and apps that will teach us more about art. Then we had a cocktail until dinner. Dinner service was really slow, but we had a good time anyway.

Day 5: Antigua 11/7/18

We had a pleasant day in Antigua and walked all around town. We saw our friend, Ninja, who is a cab driver there. We have gone on two tours with him. They charge $25 per person for a two-hour tour around the island but we didn’t go on a tour. We walked to the church at the top of the hill that is being renovated. The graves look like something out of a horror movie. We came back to the ship for lunch and then sat and read the rest of the afternoon. After dinner, we went to the comedy show to see Diane Ford.  

Day 6: St. Lucia 11/8/18

We got off the ship around 8am and we walked into town. It is about .9 miles walk to the General Market. We walked around town and stopped at the Cathedral and the Public Library. We used the bathroom at the library and they are getting renovated. They said they had a lot of rain and would welcome donations of books. We went to a grocery store and was going to buy some turmeric which was marked $2.73. The lady told me that the exchange rate was $2. 67 so we bought a bag but when she rang it up, she rang it up as $5.99 so we left it. We walked to one section and a policeman told us not to go past the next block and warned me to keep my hand on my phone. We turned at the next block and I had put my phone away in my bag. We ended up back at the General Market and bought some Turmeric there ($2/bag). Dyanna and Earl went back to the ship. We had a beer there at the market (Piton Gold - $3/bottle). Then we walked back to the ship and found a café where beer was 3 Pitons for $5. We ended up meeting another couple from our ship (Ray and Barb from Daytona Beach) and bought a few rounds of beer. Then Maggie from DC who was sailing on the Silver Seas ship joined us and bought us some rounds. We had such a great time that we didn’t return to the ship until 3:40. I ran up to the Lido deck and had a couple of hot dogs. Then we came back to the room to rest before getting ready for dinner. It was a fun day!

Day 7: Grenada 11/9/18

We arrived into port almost 30 minutes early, but we didn’t get off the ship because Don had a conference call. I forgot that they changed the time at home but not on the ship so Don’s 8am conference call was 9am on the ship. We walked around the ship to find the perfect spot for his phone call. When his call was over around 11am, we got off the ship and walked around Grenada. We walked around town and to the markets. It was straight uphill to Ft. George but the view was awesome. We walked down steep stairs back to town and then walked through a car tunnel that connects the east and west side of town. We got back to the ship around 2pm. After lunch, we sat on the deck and relaxed. After dinner went to the comedy show to see Mark Simmons.

Things I’ve Learned:

1.     I need to learn more about VPNs for internet safety when we travel.

2.     I want to check out a new movie service called Cinemia or something like that. I will have to investigate further.  

3.     It cost $4 a person to ride into Charlotte Amalie (St. Thomas) by cab.

4.     I want to attend more classes through iTunes U.

5.     In Antigua, the exchange rate is $1 USD = $2.70 EC (Eastern Caribbean)

6.     In St. Lucia, the exchange rate was the same as Antigua

7.     The beer was cheaper by the ship in the port terminal at St. Lucia.

8.     St. Lucia has really improved their port city.

9.     A couple took a tour around Grenada for $15. (Originally, they were told $25 pp but they negotiated it down to $15). Maybe we will do that next time.

Original Photo by Pat Hensley

2018 HAL Koningsdam

Click here for pictures.

Our last cruise was on the HAL Koningsdam out of Ft. Lauderdale. Our captain was Emiel de Vries, the Hotel Director was Don Habetsthe cruise director was Christine Purcell, our dining stewards were Handrie and Suarsana. Our cabin was 1112 (an outside cabin) and our cabin steward was Agus.

 There were 2650 guests, 997 officers and crew. We traveled 3000 miles and used 232,470 gallons of fuel.

1/3/18 Embarkation:

We got to the ship around 10:30 and dropped our bags off. Then we had to go park our car at the Convention Center parking garage. After going through security, we had some difficulty getting checked in. Apparently, something happened to our cabin and they had to reassign us to a new one. So, after about a 90-minute wait, we were upgraded from an inside cabin (5172) to a nice cabin with a window (11121). Then we had lunch and a Mariner’s reception to go to at 2pm. We found our suitcases were sent to the old cabin so we got them ourselves and dragged them to the new cabin to unpack. After the lifeboat drill, we went to dinner which was nice. In the evening, we went to the poolside theater to see the movie A Mountain Between Us which was hard to hear because the pool was sloshing so loudly with waves. We were supposed to leave at 4 and didn’t leave until about 7:30 because the ship’s azipods steering system had a “little” problem. But we finally left and I hope there are no more “little” problems! After the movie, we stopped in the BBKing Blues Lounge but wasn’t very impressed so we went to bed.

1/4/18 At Sea:

Don was up all night with back cramps. He drank some Powerade and took a muscle relaxer around 12:30am. I got up at 5 and went to the Lido deck. While I was there, the crew members came up to the man behind me and asked if he was Mr. Charles and he was. His wife had been looking for him for a few hours and couldn’t find him. They called his wife and had him talk to her. I’m glad they found him. We had breakfast in the dining room but we weren’t impressed. Then we went to a 10am Cruise Critic meet up and I met Julian (Food and Beverage Director) and Fernando (The Wine Director) After lunch, we went to a Flower Arrangement lecture. Then we went to a talk about our next two ports: St. Maarten and St. Lucia. We also went to afternoon tea. By then we had to get ready for dinner and went to a Beatles Show in one of the lounges which was great. After happy hour, we went to dinner. We had reserved the table for at least 3 nights and checked after dinner the first night. The host said that would be no problem and wrote the table number down. As we entered we had been told that if we knew our table number to go ahead and sit down. Apparently, he was wrong and we were supposed to check in first. One host came by to let us know we didn’t check in and made a big deal out of it. Then he came by every 5 minutes to ask how our food was but I think he did it to irritate us. We ended up leaving and when I stopped by the host desk, they made it like we committed a major crime when we were just following directions! Then they said we reserved the time and not the table! (Every other Holland America cruise we have been on let us reserve the table and just told us to go to it each night!) But they were so rude that we will probably not eat in the dining room any more this cruise. We went back to our cabin until it was time for the show. We went to the comedy show to hear Jeff Neas and he was very funny!

1/5/18 At Sea:

We went to several talks about the different ports we were going into. Then we also heard the Captain talk about the ship along with the Hotel Director. We also walked about 3 miles on the walking deck which was fun. There were no lounge chairs on this deck on this ship so there were a lot of people exercising. We ended up going back to the dining room and was treated much better. I think it was because I talked to the Food and Beverage Director at the Cruise Critic meetup and he saw we were upset last night so I think he took care of our problem. But we will probably not go back again until the next formal night. We went to the show last night featuring the ship’s singers and dancers which was a great. Then we went back to our cabin and watched the movie “A Walk in the Woods.”

1/6/18 St. Maarten:

We got off the ship at 8:30 and decided to walk into town which was only a 10-minute walk. We passed a grocery store so we stopped and bought a Powerade for $1. We walked around town and saw a lot of damage from the hurricane. There were a lot of tarps and boards across windows. We also damaged light posts and palm trees. We went to the beach but the water was too rough for swimming so we didn’t rent chairs. When Suzette came to work, we visited her and gave her a bag of food. She had such a positive attitude about life and was so grateful to be alive! She said the sand got so high after the hurricane that she was able to walk right onto the roof of the restaurant and look down inside. Then we walked around town some more before walking back to the ship. There was a rain shower but it stopped by the time we got to the port. The port had beer for $3 but we had passed a shop on the way that sold beer for $1 so we walked back there. We bought 5 beers and then carried 4 back to the port to drink at a table there. When we got back on the ship we had lunch. After lunch, we went back to the room for a nap. At 4 we went for Happy Hour and then had dinner on the Lido deck. After dinner we went to the show featuring Brett Cave, a pianist who was very entertaining. He wore a bright red suit and was trying to imitate Elton John. Then we went to bed.

1/7/18 St. Lucia:

We were off the ship by 8:20 and docked at Port Seraphina. It took us about 15 minutes to walk into town. We noticed that there were a lot of police presence around. Most of the stores were closed because it was Sunday. We did see some food and vegetable vendors on the sidewalk. We came back to the ship around 11am and then had lunch. After lunch, we sat by the pool and relaxed until we left the port. Then we had dinner on the Lido deck. We walked around the ship and then got back to our room to find 5 phone messages. Earlier in the day we had written a letter to the hotel director because we had a charge on our account that wasn’t ours. I had gone to the guest services a couple of days ago and they said they would check into it and let me know but nothing was done. This concerned us because we were worried that someone was charging things to our account. We also worried that someone had another key to our cabin because the same card for charging was the same card used to enter our cabin. We went back up to guest services and met with Cahren, a supervisor, who assured us that it would be taken care of. The charge was entered manually which means that someone might have put in the wrong account number. She also promised to check with security to make sure no one had used a card to enter our cabin. At 9pm, she called us to let us know that security said only the cabin steward and us had gained access to our cabin. That was a relief. We watched a movie Victoria and Abdul and then Big Bang Theory until we went to bed.

1/8/18 Barbados:

We got off the ship at 8:15 and walked into town. The chaos at the taxi stations was overwhelming but once we got past that, everything was fine. It took us about 10 minutes to walk into town along the water. We walked to the famous bridge and it was pretty. They were also setting up the area for the installation of the Governor General at 4pm. It was hard to find a public restroom but we found one at the Colonnade and a guard had to unlock it for you. We got back to the ship in time for lunch. We tried to sit by the pool but when they retracted the roof, it got too hot and we moved. We finally went back to the cabin for a shower and a nap. After happy hour, we had dinner at the Lido deck and then went to see the show featuring the husband and wife juggling team called Airborne. We were in bed by 8:30pm.

1/9/18 Martinique:

We had a nice day in Martinique and walked around town. It didn’t seem as hot as Barbados to us. Most of the places wanted Euros and only some took US Dollars. We did buy some souvenirs at a place that took US Dollars and gave change back in US Dollars. They had people in red vests saying, “May I Help You?” to help tourists get around town and answer any questions. We were back on the ship by lunch time. Then we sat by the pool for a little bit but the rain arrived and they closed the roof over the pool. This made the humidity level go up so we went back to our cabin. Don watched the movie Now You See Us 2 but I took a 2-hour nap. Then we went to happy hour, dinner, and the show. We were in bed again by 8:30!

1/10/18 Antigua:

We walked around Antigua yesterday and there were 4 other ships in the port. I was surprised how over the years it still is as dirty and run down as ever. I know that we pay port fees and taxes and with about 5000 tourists a day coming in, there must be a lot of corruption if there isn’t enough money to improve, clean, and fix the infrastructure. We got back on the ship by lunch time. Sat by the pool again until they retracted the roof and let the sun in. Then we went back to the cabin for a nap until happy hour. After dinner, we went to the show featuring a magician who was pretty good.

1/11/18 St. Thomas:

We docked at the Havensight Pier. Our favorite beach was still closed and we were warned that our other snorkeling place (Coki Beach) wasn’t in good shape. We walked about a mile and a half into town. It was so sad to see all the hurricane damage. We were back on the ship by lunch time and then sat by the pool all afternoon. I actually felt like doing some knitting which I haven’t felt like doing much at all on this cruise. After happy hour and dinner, we went to the show featuring LiveWire, a husband a wife who played music with a Celtic twist. She played an electric fiddle and was very good.

1/12/18 At Sea:

It was a nice relaxing day at sea. After breakfast, we just relaxed by the pool until lunchtime. Then we had a special luncheon. In the afternoon, we packed and then relaxed in the cabin until happy hour and then dinner. We went to the show and then came back to the cabin and watched TV show about Grizzlies in Alaska which was really interesting. We also got to turn our clocks back an hour to Eastern Time!

1/13/18 Half Moon Cay:

We got on the tender at 8:15. As they were loading the 400 passengers on the tender, it started pouring down rain and we were on the top level so we got soaked. By 8:40, we were on the beach, the rain had stopped, and the sun was shining. One part of the beach was roped off because they had a tropical storm that caused dangerous exposed rocks so no one could use that area. The lifeguards spent the whole time chasing people off that part. I couldn’t believe that they would climb over the yellow line or walk around it and ignore that it was closed! Later, a group of people grabbed stacked chairs and was going to block the walkways with them but the lifeguard wouldn’t let them. Instead, he told them that they could make a new line in front of the people already on the front row. This really ticked off the people in the front row. Don calls this the Beach Chairs War. It was fun to watch!  We spent 2 hours on the beach when Don noticed dark clouds forming. So, we offered our chairs to 2 elderly ladies who had just arrived and headed back to the ship. As we got to the ship, it poured down rain again but we were on the covered bottom. Meanwhile, a lady passed out on the tender and before anyone got off, the medical team jumped on and took care of her. After cleaning up, we had lunch on the Lido deck. Then we came back to the room and relaxed until happy hour and dinner. After dinner, we went to the Variety show where past performers did some more (Airborne, Jeff Peterson, and Livewire). We came back to the room, finished packing and then put our suitcases in the hallway.

1/14/18 Disembarkation:

We had Pink 3 tags, so we expected to get off the ship at 8:15 but didn’t get off until almost 8:45. I woke Don up at 6:30 and then we went to breakfast. Our ship docked at Terminal 26 but our car was at Terminal 4. I had to go to guest services to ask if there was a courtesy shuttle to the parking garage and they said there was. I don’t know why they never announced that for everyone to hear. When we got off the ship, we found the courtesy shuttle and the driver was extremely nice. We got to our car at 9:10 and was on the road by 9:20. We got home at 8:20.    

Things I’ve Learned:

1.     Don’t let the dining room staff intimidate you. I’m easily intimidated but my husband isn’t. I’m so thankful he stood up to them.

2.     I’m not a fan of poolside movies because the sloshing of the pool water made it hard to hear the movie.

3.     It is good to get exercise when you are eating lots of rich food.

4.     Having dinner on the Lido deck is pretty nice because you can get the food you want and not wait to be served.

5.     Get to the Show Theater at least 30 min. early to get a good seat.

6.     Check your account statement several times throughout the cruise to make sure you don’t have any mysterious charges on it.

7.     It was nice to walk into the town at St. Maarten.

8.     The hurricane did a lot of damage to St. Maarten but they are coming around. It may take years for them to get back to normal.

9.     The beach at St. Maarten was pretty rough and I worried about the debris under the sand and water.

10.  St. Lucia is not my favorite island but my hubby likes it.

11.  Barbados was a safer place than St. Lucia.

12.  There wasn’t a lot to do in Barbados so the next time we will go to the beach again.

13.  Martinique is a pretty island.

14.  Martinique was friendlier than expected. 

15.  Public libraries are good places to use the restroom and the free internet.

16.  Antigua is a dirty place.

17.  St. Thomas had a lot of hurricane damage.

18.  We like Half Moon Cay.

19.  We like coming back to the ship for lunch instead of the island barbecue.