MS Koningsdam February 19-March 1 AND MS Zaandam March 21 to April 22

Just got caught up again.

Wonderful and I love your pictures.

Day Z6, Monday, March 27, 2017, At sea, MS Zaandam

Thank you Krazy Kruizers.

The Koningsdam is in Barbados. The Crystal Serenity is in Manaus and the Crystal Symphony is at sea from Shanghai to Nagasaki.

Having succumbed to drowsiness early Sunday I had not started on my Falklands post before retiring and had a slow start to the day. It was mostly a foggy day anyway, and I only walked a little at a time, just in the middle of the final lap of my 5-mile walk at noon. I have referred in my walking to “Stairway Oscar” and with no sunrise to report this is a good time for a bit of detail. The older HAL-built ships all have some form of an aft staircase which is partly enclosed and partly outside the ship. The enclosed part looks like it would be a crew area but is not signed as such and is readily accessed by passengers. On the Zaandam it starts on deck 2 with a central aft stairway up to deck 3. On all the ships the route moves to the sides as it goes around the dining room up to deck 6. On some ships the enclosed area has windows but on the Zaandam it is all a steel enclosure. Once above the dining room it returns to the aft area and continues up to the lido deck.

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It was not an inviting day to be outside. It wasn’t bad and with a reason to be on deck it was fine, but there was no incentive to hang out on a lounge chair. I don’t think I saw the sun all day with sometimes a bit of fog and just clouds the rest of the time. The high temperature was about 9C/48F and winds were not an issue.

I think Holland America tends to have some of the best waffles at sea. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case on the Zaandam. They look the same but on other ships they are made as we ordered them, today’s waffle had been sitting for a while and was hard in places. Probably as good as most waffles at sea but not better.

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The highlight of the morning was Ryan’s talk on Punta Arenas and Ushuaia at 10 with a standing room only (and that was tight) Mondriaan Lounge. I did not form a very good impression of Ryan on the Koningsdam but he has been totally different. In both of his Koningsdam talks he appeared with the shore excursion manager implying that independent touring options were limited. I accepted his explanation the first time but by the second became quite suspicious. Here he has been a fount of information, both on his port talks and his talks on related subjects like the Panama Canal.

There was nothing really new in Captain Turner’s noon update. It does sound like a favorable weather forecast for Punta Arenas, a welcome development since Zaandam missed the port on her last cruise and I missed it last year on the Crystal Symphony, in both cases due to high winds. I suspect the Strait of Magellan sometimes acts like a wind tunnel. Expected temperature is about 13C/56F. We will be requiring a pilot for the rest of the voyage from the time we enter the strait tonight right through to Valparaiso.

Turner was featured again with a 2PM Captain’s Q&A in the Mondriaan Lounge. Much of what transpired was the typical questions. One thing that came up was an annoyance to me; the bathroom doors will not stay open; he indicated that was a new safety feature to prevent the door from causing injury shutting unexpectedly with the motion of the ship. It sounds like Captain Turner is in the twilight of his career. A question came up about where he would like and he included “I’ve request the Volendam for my last 2 or 3 contracts so I can visit Asia”.

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We had a full table 84 for out second Gala night although Diane was a bit late after getting bad news; her best friend’s daughter is terminal with Cystic Fibrosis and is not expected to survive the week. The bad news did not entirely dampen the dinner and I enjoyed the fruit appetizer along with the chicken soup, lamb, and linzer torte.

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The prime time entertainment in the Mondriaan lounge was a new act to me. Duo Yalba is a pair of men who play a wide variety of instruments featuring music from around the world.

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A long time tradition on Holland America has been shows put on by the Filipino and Indonesian crews. These shows have been pretty much suspended fleet wide apparently due to concerns about working hours for the crew. Apparently that memo has not reached the Zaandam and the show is scheduled for 11PM. With an early excursion in Punta Arenas I am trying to post early and add pictures and anything unusual to tomorrow’s post.

My parting shot is a wish for a peaceful end for Dianne’s friend.

Roy

Day Z7, Tuesday, March 28, Punta Arenas

The Koningsdam is in Martinique. The Crystal Serenity is in Manaus, and the Crystal Symphony is in Nagasaki.

Monday night’s Indonesian crew show was a bit less elaborate than some of the ones I’ve seen in the past but still very much worth staying up. The enthusiasm these people have in sharing a bit of their culture is very special. Special features were the intricate hand dance and the Angklung Orchestra (Instruments crafted from bamboo that sound a note when shaken), as well as the closing song.

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We were either docked or very nearly so at 5AM, with a few tours leaving as early as 6. There was a flight to Antarctica planned but I believe registration was insufficient but there was an 11-hour air tour to Torres del Paine National Park.

My tour was later but still early, an 8:15AM walking tour in central Punta Arenas. About 15 of us boarded a bus for about a 15 minute drive to the start of our walk. On the way our guide talked a bit about Punta Arenas and it’s remote location. A major stopover for ships before the opening of the Panama Canal had a sudden economic downturn and began aggressively pursuing sheep farming. Punta Arenas is quite isolated from the rest of Chile and the only way to drive to Santiago is to go through Argentina. Feeling the isolation, Punta Arenas has it’s own flag.

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Our dropoff point was at a monument to Shepards, also very close to the municipal cemetery, considered one of the world’s most beautiful.

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We walked towards the center of town, stopping at the Maggiorino Borgatello Museum, with extensive exhibits on the history and features of the area. I found a display of penguins and a carving of a guanaco, a relative of the Llama and very valuable animal, especially attractive.

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We continued along that avenue to a square with a large statue of a Condor, now quite threatened. The town seems to capitalize on it’s remote locations with hotels like “Best Western Finis Terrae”.

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From there we continued to the Plaza de Armes with the home of Sara Braun, a heroine of the independence movement and benefactor of the Cemetery, a monument to Magellan, and the city’s Cathedral.

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From the square the final stage of the walk was a bit more challenging as we climbed La Cruz Hill for a panoramic view of the city. I noticed a MASH type sign post and couldn’t help taking special note of one of the little signs.

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We walked down a few steps where a snack was waiting for us. The hotel where we stopped was on the eclectic side with lamp shades made from kitchen gadgets. When we left the hotel our minibus was waiting to take us back to the ship.

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Punta Arenas reportedly has an attractive cruise terminal but as the last ship of the season found it closed for winter renovations. We were docked at an industrial port and were not allowed to walk from the ship. There were 2 shuttle buses, a paid one to the Plaza de Armes and a free one to a local shopping center. I wanted fast wifi to update my laptop and boarded the free shuttle. Unfortunately the wifi wouldn’t work for me and the food court options were not attractive so I returned quickly and made it to the lido just before lunch ended.

Punta Arenas has a reputation as one of the world’s windiest cities and both the Zaandam’s last visit and my visit last year on the Crystal Symphony were cancelled due to gale force winds. Today the air was almost totally calm, most unusual. The day started out foggy but the sun came out in the afternoon with temperatures around 15C/60F in the sun.

We had our full complement at table 84. My Rhode Island table mates had a good day on Isla Magdalena viewing penguins (and some whales and dolphins on the ferry ride) while Diane just took the shuttle to the Plaza de Armas. The Prime Rib looked really good but with plans for the Pinnacle Grill Wednesday I opted for the chicken instead.

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The featured entertainment was Dance by the Zaandam singers and dancers.

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I’ll take a quick parting shot from the show which was quite spectacular. I just wonder where dance ends and acrobatics begins. Sometimes it seems like a fine line.

For much of the next few days we will be among fjords which may cause internet interference so posts (and especially menus and Daily Navigators) may be delayed.

Roy

Love the way you insert the pictures while writing your reports.

We have also noticed that the crew shows are not as elaborate as they used to be. On our last cruise no pamphlet was passed out before the show giving the names, etc.

Hi Roy, you're correct, Stairway Oscar is not a "crew only" area

Really enjoyed reading your Falklands experience! It's on my bucket list

Keep up the good work!

Day Z8, Wednesday, March 29, 2017, Ushuaia

Thanks Copper and Krazy Kruizers. (Wow, this post from a very stormy south Pacific, became a lot longer than I planned).

The Koningsdam is at St. Kitts. The Crystal Serenity is at Boca de Valeria . The Crystal Symphony is in Cheju, Korea

The morning was very overcast but not raining. As we move south I’ve been adding layers. For this day I added an insulated vest (a nice Christmas gift) to the heavy flannel shirt and gortex jacket I’ve been wearing.

The day’s timing is a bit of a mystery. We had been told we would enter glacier alley about 7 and arrive at Ushuaia at 2. It was in fact about 7:45 when we saw our first glacier and yet we were early in Ushuaia. I had planned on deferring my walk until we got to glacier alley and actually did start walking close to 7. There are 6 named glaciers here, all named for European countries, Espana, Romanche, Alemania, Francia, Italia, and Holanda. Espana is a hanging glacier that stops well up the mountain, and from the promenade deck there was little to see so I hurried up to the Lido deck for a better look.

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Location Guide Ryan was on the bridge giving commentary. He had warned us that the Romanche glacier has 2 arms and the second one was better than the first. I agree.

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Ryan had warned us we would not see much wildlife as the channel is deceptively wide, 3 miles at it’s narrowest point. It really did not look that wide; distances shrink with the expanse of scenery. He talked about the color of glaciers; there really isn’t any but the ice absorbs most light leaving mostly blue being reflected back if the sun conditions are right. The bows of most Holland America ships are technically public spaces although the way to them is not usually obvious. For this scenic viewing there were prominent signs pointing out the way. I frankly agree with Captain Turner that there are better and more comfortable spaces for scenic viewing.

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Alemania glacier was one of the best with waterfalls coming down from the base and huge obvious ice fields.

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Francia, like Espana, was a hanging glacier with the ice ending high up the mountain, but clouds at Francia left only a small band of ice visible.

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This is not an area to see a lot of wildlife although there was one quick look at a minke whale. Officially, the viewing was all on the port side although there were occasional views to the starboard as well including one remnant of glacier.

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Many of the glaciers are in deep valleys with a narrow window where they could be seen for their full length. I think Italia was a tidewater glacier but I missed the entrance and got the top half of it.

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Holanda was the final named glacier and was a beautiful tidewater specimen. There was at least one additional unnamed glacier after Holanda.

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Our scheduled time in Ushuaia was 2PM but we pulled up to the dock just after 12:30 and were cleared by 1:15. In the prime season there are typically a number of cruise and expedition ships in port but today it was just us and the Stella Australis.

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My tour met at 2:30 and I took advantage of the extra time to try and update my laptop. The visitors center was supposed to be the place for wifi but it was very crowded and connecting was impossible. I walked briefly around the town before heading back to the ship. I found wifi at the customs building barely 100 meters from the ship; it was fairly decent and I got my antivirus updated. Once back at the ship I got a message that there were operating system updates, a project for Puerto Montt.

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My tour was “A drive through Tierra Del Fuego National Park”. There were probably 5 bus loads on that tour and they started early so I ended up on the last bus out. While it is a big park most of it is off limits to people with the public areas only at the southern end, within about 20 miles of Ushuaia. The roads are mostly gravel and travel was relatively slow so it took about 45 minutes to get to our first stop, passing one of the world’s southernmost golf courses along the way.

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Our first stop came soon after entering the park at an area called Round Island. I was actually there last year from the Crystal Symphony when I rode the train convicts used in the prison days to get to their work sites. It looks out on the Beagle Channel with islands belonging to both Argentina and Chile and has a small light and a post office.

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Our second stop was Lake Acigami, a large lake near the very western edge of Argentina. It is a fresh water lake but large enough to have fluctuations in the level due to the area winds, and the big hill on the other side shows a very distinct tree line at about the 1000 meter elevation.

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Our longest stop was at the park’s main visitor center. There were displays, a restaurant, and a bird watching tower that provided magnificent vistas of the area.

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Our final stop was at the end of the Pan American Highway, the southernmost point (possibly in the world) reachable in a conventional vehicle. The sign said 3,079 km to Buenos Aires and 17,848 to Alaska (not specified where) while our guide noted we were much closer to Antarctica (under 1000 km) than to Buenos Aires. In theory you should be able to drive there from Alaska but I believe there are some missing sections in the North of South America.

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It was about 6:45 when we returned to the ship. Knowing I would be hopelessly late for dinner I had made reservations for the Pinnacle Grill. It’s actually my first Pinnacle dinner although I’ve had lunch there several times. In some ways the R and S class ships are second class citizens when it comes to Pinnacle grills as they are secluded and have no windows; I believe all the other ships have better locations. Both ships were due to sail at 8PM, as I passed the stairs on the way up to the restaurant the Australis was zipping past us while I hadn’t yet heard from Captain Turner.

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While the location of the Pinnacle is not great the food is excellent. I could feel a bit of movement about the time my salad came. I enjoyed the Petite Fillet and Baked Alaska.

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The evening entertainment was Tango Passion. With my late dinner I had not planned to go but in any case by the time came for the 10PM show I had fallen asleep at my desk and did not wake up and get to bed until after 11:30.

My parting shot comes from the news pamphlet. I find it hard to believe that an NCAA referee actually received death threats over some calls he made. Come on, it’s really a game.

Roy

In some ways the R and S class ships are second class citizens when it comes to Pinnacle grills as they are secluded and have no windows; I believe all the other ships have better locations.

Thank you for letting me revisit some places I have enjoyed. And from the comfort of my warm home and recliner, too!

You are right about the R-class ships, but the S-class ships added the Pinnacle Restaurants later on. They do have windows, with some lovely views possible, and from most of the seats, too!

On the S-class ships the Pinnacle is on starboard, immediately forward of the dining room on Upper Promenade Deck. It is a long, fairly narrow room cut out of what had been a portion of the Explorers Lounge and a private dining area.

Happy that your dinner was delicious.

Day Z9, Thursday, March 30, 2017, Cape Horn

Thank you RuthC. I know I've been at the Veendam Pinnacle; I guess we don't necessarily notice windows until they are not there.

We're still in the stormy Pacific as I post this.

The Koningsdam is in St. Thomas , USVI. The Crystal Serenity is in Santarem, Brazil. The Crystal Symphony is in Inchon Korea .

When I went for coffee about 5:30 it was windy but still viable to use my usual route of around the front of the lower promenade deck to stairway Oscar and up to the lido. It turned out to be the most I was on the outer decks all day.

Our plan for the day was for scenic cruising at Cape Horn starting about 7:30 and Ryan came on the PA from the bridge about that time. By 7:30 the winds were in the 40mph range and conditions were not pleasant on the outer decks but we were quite close then to Cape Horn.

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Ryan said that since this was our last visit to Cape Horn of the season Captain Turner wanted to make it special and chose to sail completely around the island. By 8 signs were posted on the doors calling the outer decks closed (even the aft lido deck) although neither passengers nor crew appeared to be taking them very seriously. The seas were also very riled up, and the wind against our side had us listing to port, while the pool was thrashing violently and at times a torrent of water was splashing over the port side of the pool deck.

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We passed by the back side of Cape Horn a little before 8:30; not long afterwards the warnings about being out on deck became significantly stronger. We completed our circumnavigation of the Cape about 9.

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I headed down to the dining room for a fresh (and delicious) waffle (it may also be my only visit to the lower level of the dining room which is normally open seating).

By the time I finished breakfast Cape Horn was well behind us; watching from the aft deck as it faded into the background the pitching of the ship was quite evident. Most of the day we were headed into the wind with an effective wind speed of about 60mph. Seasick bags were very much in evidence.

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Aside from the scenic viewing there was not a lot on the program that interested me. It became in part a working day as our Fire Department accountants had sent me a draft of our tax return to review. There was a “Cape Horn” sale on the pool deck in the morning; I was tempted to get a Cape Horn hat but by the time I returned they had all been sold.

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We have 3 sea days before our next and final port of the segment, Puerto Montt with at least one more opportunity for scenic cruising on the way. In his noon update Captain Turner indicated the weather would stay pretty much the same until we entered sheltered waters around 6PM,

Knowing that my Promenade Deck options were very limited I took an afternoon walk along the inner corridors of the ship. Ryan had noted that the Drake Passage officially begins at Cape Horn so we at least briefly sailed in the Drake Passage with a good dose of the Drake Shakes.

Lunch was a Hot Dog at Dive In. It was ok but not special, and probably not a good choice given the movement of the ship. Walking was a bit of a challenge with trying to choose where to go rather than going where the ship sent me.

Dinner was interrupted by two announcements. Cruise Director Mark came on about 6 and indicated that the planned evening show, “Heat” by the Zaandam Singers and Dancers would not be happening due to the motion of the ship. He was followed about 20 minutes later by Captain Turner who reported we would be staying in the open Pacific (Pacific means calm, but it’s anything but) because the heavy weather has slowed out progress and we cannot get to a shallow spot before low tide makes it impassible to us. Things should slowly improve and we will now enter sheltered waters about 9 on Friday. For this evening I went with the Apricot soup, the chicken caesar salad, and the Blueberry Mango Crisp.

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The substitute evening entertainment was “Award-winning mentalist Alan Chamo brings a unique form of mind-bending entertainment to our Main Stage that's sure to leave audiences laughing and scratching their heads in amazement.” It was largely an audience participation experience influencing volunteers to follow unspoken commands, quite fascinating.

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After the show I stopped briefly in the Explorers Lounge where Adagio was playing but felt the sand man creeping up on me and stayed for only one number, Bolero. By 10:30 the apparent wind was down from 60mph in the morning to 40mph but the ship movement had changed little if any.

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My parting shot will be a bit of an upbeat note from my Cruise Critic Roll Call for the second segment of the cruise. A person joining the ship in Valparaiso has visited Lima on the way to Chile and reports a solid recovery from the recent flooding.

Roy

Feel like I am right there with you and enjoying everything through your pictures.

I do like the S class Pinnacle -- they took the King's Room and part of the Explorer's Lounge and made it. And there are actually a few tables for 2 right by the windows for great viewing. On the R class ships -- the Pinnacle location is not great but we would ask for a table by one of the 3 windows so that we could watch the people passing by in the hallway.

Day Z10, Friday, March 31, 2017, At sea, MS Zaandam

Thank you Krazy Kruizers.

The Koningsdam is at sea from St. Thomas to Half Moon Cay, Bahamas. The Crystal Serenity is at sea from Santarem to Devils Island. The Crystal Symphony is in Inchon Korea .

When I went to the lido for coffee about 5:30 it was much improved over Thursday’s weather but still on the stormy side. Rather than walk early, I set up my portable printer to print out the VFD draft tax return and a few port maps.

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Fairly early in the morning when returning from the lido there was a nice certificate on my mail slot for our rounding of Cape Horn.

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Things had improved enough that I started walking around 7:30 and on the walk actually saw the sun come up for the first time in several days.

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It was a busy day for me onboard. There was a galley tour at 10:30; I would have gone if not for Ryan’s talk “Fire and Ice” on volcanos and glaciers, especially in regard to South America. By this time we had entered into sheltered water.

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I don’t normally do cooking demonstrations but did go to the Wajang Theater for “Cooking with Cruise Director Mark”. I was expecting some comedy but as it turns out Brignone actually has some valid culinary skills. The highlight for me was seeing him step out of his CD role a bit and his conversation with Beth about their harrowing arrivals to the ship, Mark in his first ever HAL gig as a singer arriving in Ft. Lauderdale in the aftermath of a hurricane, and Beth’s arrival in Punta Arenas early in March, right after the ship had cancelled the call there, and her efforts to catch the ship.

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With the late start and busy morning schedule I was still working on the last third of my walk when Captain Turner gave us the noon update. There was nothing really unexpected but he did run down our plans for the afternoon. By early afternoon we were starting to see some snow capped peaks.

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The original plan for the day had been scenic cruising in Canal Sarmiento but we didn’t get there because of Thursday’s storm delays. Instead we would visit the Brujo Glacier. I don’t believe either Ryan nor Captain Turner had actually been there.

Ryan came on the PA about 2:15 to start his commentary and I started up to Dive In for lunch. My initial thought was negative as there wasn’t much to see and I wondered if the site people on the ship hadn’t actually seen would live up to the hype. There are a lot of pictures and I’m going to try posting them in groups of 4. I walked around the ship as we got closer and first saw just burgy bits in the water, followed eventually by a big snow cap. I was reminded of Petra and Manchu Pichu as we rounded one final bend and the magnificence of the glacier suddenly appeared.

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I spent most of our time at the glacier on deck 8 in front of the fitness center and it seemed like a good choice. I did not see calving but the glacier was both close and splendid with a massive face and a little offshoot on the right side near the top that looked almost like a ski run.

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From my GPS it looked like we came about a half mile from the glacier face and the map showed pretty well the curved channel that ended just off the face of the glacier.

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I went to the aft lido deck as we spun the ship 270 degrees to give both sides of the ship a good view and then turned to head out.

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As we left the entry sequence was reversed as we went from a full view of the glacier to a little slice to bare rock in just a couple of minutes.

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Once the glacier was essentially out of view I took one last look around the ship from various viewpoints including a close in view of the ice field from the bow of the ship.

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We had a full table 84 at dinner. I enjoyed the prime rib (way too big a portion). There was one menu substitution. I had wanted the raspberry sundae but Tonto said it was actually strawberry and I opted for the peach crisp instead.

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The prime evening entertainment was “Heat”, held over from Friday evening. After the show I was still feeling fairly awake but crashed quickly once back in my room and didn’t finish reviewing my photos let alone writing my post.

Today’s parting shot is a bit of a local celebration based on my Fire Department email. Our County’s medical director, Dr. Matthew Levy, has just been named Maryland’s Emergency Medical Services Physician of the year:

“Some of the initiatives Dr. Levy has instituted are: the PulsePoint smart phone application which alerts subscribers when Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is needed, placing public access bleeding control kits in government-owned buildings and schools, active assailant response training efforts, the Cardiac Arrest Workgroup, and the CPR meter pilot project which gives providers real time feedback on compression rate and depth while performing CPR. He is also heavily involved in the opioid mitigation within the county.”

Congratulations, Dr. Levy

Roy

What a gorgeous day! Thank you for those pictures that display the beauty of the area so well.

How I wish I had been there to see that in that weather.

Hi Roy,

Beautiful day at the glacier - love the 4X pics. The one right before (I assume your first full view of the glacier) won't open for some reason. We managed a day like that a couple of years ago in the Sarmiento Canal - beautiful. This last time all fog :(. But then, we had beautiful Antarctic weather, so can't really complain (we've seen the Drake in both phases - Drake Lake and Beaufort 9). Beautiful with the lake, but exciting the other way.

Thanks for taking us along.

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Enjoying your commentary and pictures. What a perfect day you had on Friday viewing the glacier. This cruise is on my DW list for 2019. We are really looking forward to it since riding along with you. Thank-you for your posts.

Day Z11, Saturday, April 1, 2017, At sea, MS Zaandam

The Koningsdam is at Half Moon Cay. The Crystal Serenity is at sea from Santarem to Devils Island. The Crystal Symphony is at sea from Inchon Korea to Tianjin, China.

Thank you kahtrav, RuthC, and freestyling. Oops. The reason that link doesn't work is that I missed including that picture in the blog. I just tried adding it here but with no success.

While still chilly in Chile it is to warm up a bit and I walked alternatively with my heavy shirt or my Christmas vest in addition to the gortex jacket but not both at once. I did most of my walk in the early morning but saved some of it until sunrise and the rest for after we re-entered the inside passage.

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It was not as busy a day as Friday but Ryan had his talk on Puerto Montt and Valparaiso at 10. Since I visited both those ports last year I did not really learn a lot but his slides refreshed my mind about many of the details. I booked tours for both ports then but will explore on my own this time.

For the first time today I heard sounds from the organ in the Atrium around 11:45. I know the console on deck 3 was not used but am not sure if there’s a player piano type mechanism or if it was a recording. In his noon update Captain Turner talked about the Green Flash. We spent the morning in a calm open ocean as one of the passages was too narrow for our use but re-entered

sheltered waters about 2:30.

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I did not have a traditional lunch but got a midday snack at afternoon tea in the dining room followed by ice cream in the lido. By 3:30 we were getting into some fairly narrow channels.

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This was the final Gala evening of the first segment of the cruise. In addition to the festive dinner we were treated to some nice evening scenery as we continued up through Chile’s Fjords.

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It was also a birthday and in addition to the Tiramisu there was also birthday cake to share.

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The featured entertainment was not just a new act to me but also a new genre. Juan Pablo is billed as a “Latin American Virtuoso Pianist”. While some of his music was Latin there were a number of pieces I would not classify as such like Joplin’s Entertainer, the Typewriter Song, and New York New York.

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For once I was able to stay awake as long as desired yet still get to bed early. I’ll keep my parting shot short, Happy Birthday Diane.

Roy

The Typewriter Song by a single piano player? Did he do a good job on it?

I'll have to say, I'm impressed if he did. I've never heard it that way.

For the first time today I heard sounds from the organ in the Atrium around 11:45.

I was under the impression that the organ was "played" every day at about noon. Is that not correct? After you disembark in SD she'll be heading north to Vancouver, where I'll board. Will be my first cruise on this ship and I was looking forward to hearing the organ (by whatever means that they use to play it). I guess that whatever the schedule is it'll be OK as long as I'm able to hear it once.

AWESOME blog and great pictures (as you do always)!

I am so enjoying your reports and pictures.

We sailed on the Zaandam a few times many years ago and I think we heard the organ only a couple of times.

Day Z12, Sunday, April 2, 2017, Puerto Montt, Chile

RuthC, it was all done by one person. He was working the typewriter with his right hand while virtually all the piano notes were done with the left. He may have left a few things out in arranging the piece for left hand alone but it certainly sounded complete. Having the orchestra for accompaniment certainly helped.

The Koningsdam is starting her maiden Eastbound Transatlantic from Ft. Lauderdale to Rome. The Crystal Serenity is at Devils Island. The Crystal Symphony is starting a 3-day call in Tianjin, China.

I have found that on my post on the Brujo Glacier I accidently omitted one picture from the blog.

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Our final port on the first leg of the cruise is almost 600 miles south of Valparaiso and a town of about 200,000. It is really not a very interesting or attractive city but is the gateway to the “Lake District”, a collection of scenic and historic towns roughly 20 miles inland. There are also 2 volcanos that can be seen from town on a clear day but this was not a clear day. I took a tour of the Lake district a year ago from the Crystal Symphony and this time decided to stay around town.

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When I went out for coffee about 5:30 part of the lower promenade deck was already roped off as the crew had started preparing the tenders. The ride to shore here is fairly brief and the town was fairly distinguishable from the ship. At the far end of town sits the “mall”, unusual because of 2 towers, at least one of which is a hotel.

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There are kind of 2 terminals at Puerto Montt. A huge tent is set up right next to the tender dock and once inside there is the mandatory Chile Agricultural Inspection as well as wifi and some displays and merchandise stalls. Next to the tent is a large parking lot which serves as a staging area for both ships and authorized private tours.

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Independent travelers walk through the parking lot and the exit from a cargo area and pass through another terminal on the street which also has wifi as well as a few shops and restaurants. Once at the exit going left leads to a nearby craft market while going right leads to town in about a half mile. The Zaandam was sitting pretty in the bay as soon as I passed some cargo buildings.

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I tried the wifi in the tent; it was fine with my IPAD but would not work with the laptop which I really needed, and continued towards town. One of the closest things to the port is the bus terminal. Curious after my trip to Iguazu, I walked through that. It was much bigger than the Iguazu terminal; just a little smaller than the one in Buenos Aires but was about half long distance lines and half minibuses to surrounding towns. Via Bariloche was there although their kiosk was not open; they were offering Iguazu as a destination from Puerto Montt.

Just past the bus station was what was likely the original site of the train station. There were several pieces of old rail equipment and what looked like it might have been a platform but was in shambles and appeared to be a site for homeless to hang out. Just past the trains there was a skateboard park.

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An open seaside walk continued to the center of town and an iconic statue. The mall (a bit over a mile from the ship) on a Sunday morning was all buttoned up except for one small Kiosk and the Holiday Inn. There was one pedestrian street but the town had a tired feel to it. I stopped at McDonalds and the coffee was fine but I was unable to get the wifi to work.

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I continued past the tender dock to have a look at the craft market. Most of the stalls were closed but there were still enough open to attract a crowd. I did try the wifi at the outer terminal on return with some things accomplished but it was frustrating with a frequently dropped connection. It was about 1 when I got back to the ship. I didn’t have a lunch as such but got a scone at afternoon tea in the Ocean Bar.

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For many years Holland America has carried Priests and Protestant Chaplains, at least on longer trips but have recently discontinued the Protestant Chaplains. The Priests are willing to do a weekly non-denominational service along with the daily mass but on the Zaandam the two events have been scheduled concurrently, making it impossible for the Priest to assist. I knew this was likely, and had prepared to get involved, checking the day’s bible passages and finding a short message using resources from my scouting involvement. One lady agreed to be song leader and it was not a good service but probably better than most of it’s type.

At dinner the Rhode Islanders reported on their tour which was pretty much the same one I had a year ago on the Symphony. They mentioned an outdoor museum I had forgotten but when the memories came back I remembered that it was raining when I was there. Diane took a short walk around town. I went for the pasta dish this time and the apple sundae.

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At dinner someone mentioned seeing people get on with a lot of bags; they appeared to be entertainers. At the evening show Mark mentioned that these would be the current cast’s final performances. The show was “Atlantic Crossing”. I thought I remembered it and was surprised to find that memory came from my last Prinsendam cruise almost 2 years ago. I think the cast went out with a bang.

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My parting shot will be a wish for the current cast for great success in their future endeavors. They will never perform together again as a group; some will return to other ships in the future while others will go on to new projects. Break A Leg.

Roy

I really appreciate you taking the time to write your reports and post pictures.

I was under the impression that the organ was "played" every day at about noon. Is that not correct? After you disembark in SD she'll be heading north to Vancouver, where I'll board. Will be my first cruise on this ship and I was looking forward to hearing the organ (by whatever means that they use to play it). I guess that whatever the schedule is it'll be OK as long as I'm able to hear it once.

AWESOME blog and great pictures (as you do always)!

Thank you Av8trix and Krazy Kruizers, Av8rix, I was thinking that the organ was played daily at noon as part of the noontime activities. That is clearly not the case. My room is just down the hall from the atrium and I happened to be leaving at that time and heard the music a little earlier than I expected. I did get as far as the bench and there was clearly nobody there. I expected that based on the sign on the bench. There may have been somebody on one of the upper decks with a remote console; I didn’t have time to check that out. I will check again on the first appropriate sea day; today is the Mariner luncheon and the next 2 days are in port but there will be more opportunities. I was hoping to attach a photo but that's getting just about impossible to do in Cruise Critic.

Roy

RuthC, it was all done by one person. He was working the typewriter with his right hand while virtually all the piano notes were done with the left. He may have left a few things out in arranging the piece for left hand alone but it certainly sounded complete. Having the orchestra for accompaniment certainly helped.

Ah! The rest of the information explains a lot. Thanks for filling in the gaps.

Curious here, where in Rhode Island are your tablemates from?

It's such a small state it's close to possible to know just about everyone!

Day Z13, Monday, April 3, 2017, At sea, MS Zaandam

RuthC, they're from Jamestown.

The Koningsdam is at sea from Ft. Lauderdale to Ponta Delgada. The Crystal Serenity is at sea from Devils Island to St.. George, Grenada. The Crystal Symphony is on a 3-day call in Tianjin China.

For the first segment’s final sea day there wasn’t a lot of sun in evidence. Because this was the day for “On Deck for a Cause” I kept my morning walk to 3 miles and did not start until about 7:30. That’s likely a good thing since the early morning was stormy and very windy.

My morning’s activities started at 10. Ryan had his talk on Valparaiso along with the first couple ports on the next leg. I had to miss it as that was also the start of On Deck for A Cause. This walk to date has now raised over $5 million for cancer fighting agencies in the 6 countries most represented in HAL’s customer base, US, UK, Canada, Australia, Netherlands, and Germany.

Per Mark this was an exceptionally good turnout with about 100 registered; he normally expects about 40 per cruise. I have wondered about the (lower) promenade deck; the signs say 4 laps to a mile but it says that as well for the Prinsendam and S class ships as well and I’m sure Zaandam’s should be longer. Mark indicated that our 3 mile walk was 10 laps (rather than 12) which may be fairly accurate. I took about an hour on the walk. At the end there were drinks and cookies.

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The walk was followed quickly by the Mariner awards ceremony. About 30 people were awarded copper medallions for 100 days and another 4 silver medallions for 300 days. Several cruisers were recognized for many days with Holland America including one couple very active on Cruise Critic.

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The Mariner luncheon followed. It was a nice event although I was not enamored with the menu.

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As we were moving from the Mondriaan Lounge to the dining room the organ started to play in the Atrium. I still could not tell how the instrument was being played but the bench makes it quite clear that it is not intended to be used.

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In the afternoon we had a virtual tour of the Zaandam bridge conducted by one of the ship’s first officers.

All 4 of us at table 84 are continuing at least to San Diego. The Rhode Island couple left before desert to get to the 7PM movie, Patriots Day. They had friends who were at the Boston Marathon and too close for comfort to the bombing. I went for the steak and the baked Alaska.

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There was a single variety show at 9:30 (Alan Chamo and Duo Yalba) but I skipped it and listened to Lee Strubeck at the mix for a while.

My parting shot will be a welcome to those joining the Zaandam in Valparaiso. I believe there are about 700 guests disembarking and 650 new arrivals.

Roy

RuthC, they're from Jamestown.

Thanks for reading and answering.

Day Z14, Tuesday, April 4, 2017, Valparaiso, Turnaround day

The Koningsdam is at sea from Ft. Lauderdale to Ponta Delgada. The Crystal Serenity is in St.. George, Grenada. The Crystal Symphony is concluding a 3-day call in Tianjin China.

By the time I went up to the lido for coffee we were secured to the dock (virtually the same location as the Crystal Symphony a year ago) and preparations were being made to bunker fuel. The gangway was set up early but it was a bit awkward; running from deck 2 it crossed on a ramp to a platform elevated by a shipping container and another spacer, then continued down a steep ramp to the ground.

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They started calling expedited disembarkation about 7:15 and numbers about 7:25. I was just leaving the ship a little after 9 when the call for all disembarking guests to leave.

I have not found Valparaiso a very friendly terminal and it seemed less so this year. The ship docks virtually in the center of town. It appears likely that there is one slip used by cruise ships but it’s just in the middle of a bunch of cranes and containers. You must then take a shuttle to the terminal in the other side of the port a mile away.

There’s a new terminal that just opened about a quarter mile closer to the ship but it was a step backwards. The new terminal is only 50 meters from a light rail stop but it’s blocked off by a big wall and we must take a second shuttle to the entrance to the old terminal. At that point we are a mile from the city center in a pretty seedy part of town. In addition, while on the ship-terminal shuttle we pass through an area open to the public but the shuttles can’t stop there. It’s pretty much like they are trying to make things as difficult for cruise passengers as possible.

Once finally out of the terminal the walk to the center of town began. The first quarter mile or so was very run down but then came Ave Brazil which at least was wide with a large pedestrian corridor in the middle.

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The heart of town is about a mile away centered around Sotomayor Plaza with a couple of monuments and the very impressive Armada building.

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My plan had been to visit the Maritime Museum which was at the top of a funicular about a quarter mile past Sotomayor Plaza. Built on steep hills, Valparaiso has had a number of funiculars; all are now quite old and several have been shut down. Apparently maintenance is an issue for those that remain; mine had a sign that it is closed for maintenance on Tuesdays. I did not wish to climb the hill to the Maritime museum and started back in the direction of the cruise terminal. I passed 2 more funiculars on the way back and both were closed long term for repairs.

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I took a route back a little further from the waterfront and passed the British Arch and near the cruise port the main market.

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Back at the terminal I had hoped to do some computer work but the wifi was not working. I noticed that the checkin lines at the terminal were quite long. While I am now a 4-star mariner and not directly affected I wish that Holland America would assign enough people at a time to take care of the onflux of arrivals. Other cruise lines seem to be able to do a much better job of this and it does not seem to be good business to make a customer’s first impression of their dream cruise standing in a long line while others go right to the front. I was back on the ship a little after 1.

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All aboard was 4:30 which was also the muster drill. All were required to attend, even those who had boarded in Buenos Aires. A group from Cruise Critic had planned to meet for sailaway on the aft pool deck. While we met as planned, greeting a number of people who had just boarded in Valparaiso, Captain Turner had announced that bunkering operations had been slower than planned and our estimated departure was delayed until about 6PM. I had to leave a bit before 5:30 to prepare for dinner.

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It sounded like everyone at table 84 had a reasonably good day in Valparaiso. I enjoyed the gazpacho, baked chicken, and key lime pie a la mode. It may be interesting for this segment, we now have an infant (about 18 months) at the next table. The sun went down on a clear night soon after I left the dining room.

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There was a single welcome aboard show in the Mondriaan Lounge at 9:30. It was much like the one 2 weeks earlier but with a bit of a surprise. I had understood that the singers and dancers were at the end of their term on the ship but they still have one more cruise to go. What has changed is the Cruise Director. Mark Brignone was just on the ship for 2 weeks and the new one is a guy named Mario. He indicated he is training an understudy who will later become Zaandam’s next Cruise Director.

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Today’s parting shot; I almost missed completely the NCAA tournament but congratulations to North Carolina.

Roy

Day Z15, Wednesday, April 5, 2017, Coquimbo, Chile

The Koningsdam is at sea from Half Moon Cay to Ponta Delgada. The Crystal Symphony is at sea from Tianjin to, Fukuoka. The Crystal Serenity is on a 2-day call in Barbados.

As I started to write today I looked back at my reports for last year and noted then our latitude relative to the Northern Hemisphere. We are presently roughly the same (mirror image) latitude as Jacksonville, FL, but with the Humboldt current it is significantly cooler here.

Sunrise has been quite late and I delayed any walking today until I could see lights on Zaandam’s bow camera as we were starting to close in on Coquimbo. I walked about 8 laps (2 miles) as we approached the town and put started putting out lines about 7, still pretty much in darkness. I went up to the Lido for breakfast about 8 and had just finished when the sun made it’s way above the horizon. A modern landmark of Coquimbo is “Cruz del Tercer Milenio”, a large cross put up in celebration of the millennium.

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When I was here last year I booked a rather long tour going to an observatory a couple of hours distant; today my plans were much more basic. Coquimbo is the port but it is not considered a very attractive city; the more popular destination is the sister city of La Serena, roughly 5 miles away. We kind of hurriedly drove through La Serena last year on the way to the observatory but didn’t spend any time there.

My tour this year was called “Panoramic La Serena”, a very basic overview of the area. We actually started out in the opposite direction, stopping at a yacht club where our guide highlighted a series of statues of very emaciated figures, slaves from a pirate trade called to involuntary sea duty.

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On the outskirts of La Serena we stopped at El Faro, a very elaborately decorated lighthouse which is quite a prominent landmark in the area.

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Most of our drive around La Serena was not conducive to photography from inside the bus and it was disappointing that traffic regulations prevented us from stopping at all at the town square. We did go to the campus of a La Serena University where we had a lovely overview of the surrounding area. On the way back we drove along the Pan American Highway and our guide spoke of the Tsunami that devastated the town in late 2015. Much of the area was a mess a year ago and while there were still some large fields of rubble things are much improved. We returned to the ship about noon.

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After a few minutes in my cabin I returned to town, stopping on the way out at the cruise terminal to use the wifi. While the town is not terribly scenic it was a nice walk. As in many Chile towns there is a narrow flat band leading to a steep hillside. In this case the street where I entered ended in stairs.

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Most of the streets are uncrowded with ample sidewalks. When I was about 3/4 mile from the ship I turned back and walked another street closer to the ocean leading to the Plaza de Armas. The Plaza has a fountain, government headquarters, San Pedro church, and a dome. Our guide had explained that the dome was originally built to shield some archaeological remains of ancient skeletons found on the site but most of the remains were moved to a more visited museum in La Serena. What remains are still there are mostly of animals.

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I paused again on the way back to use the wifi at the terminal. It was quite good when I stopped the first time but not quite so good later on as more people were using it but I did get some useful work done. I was back on the ship a little after 2.

All aboard was 3:30. At 3:45 a tour bus pulled up; while the bus was unloading Captain Turner came on with his sailaway message indicating we were ready to leave as soon as all guests had been accounted for. A few minutes later he came on again with a rather puzzling announcement; calling for people not sailing to leave the ship before the gangway was pulled rather than having to disembark on the pilot boat. It appeared to be local officials collecting customs documents, perhaps not working very diligently. We started moving about 4PM.

We were all present at table 84. The blueberry soup, pork, and apple strudel were all delicious. The featured entertainment was a repeat of Pampas Devils Gauchos, the show presented on the evening we sailed from Buenos Aires. I skipped it and spent a little time in the Mix with Lee Strubeck featuring the Rat Pack. I have been on the same time zone now since the night I left the Koningsdam on March 1, and sailed about 6,000 miles without ever adjusting the clocks. Tonight we finally had to reset our watches gaining 1 hour; we will gain another before our arrival in Peru.

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As my parting shot, Coquimbo has had 2 relatively recent tsunamis. About 20 years ago the warning came and the President said “don’t worry, it will be minor”. People went about their business and about 15,000 people were killed. It was essentially the same in 2015 except that this time people ignored the President and moved to higher ground. While destruction was great only 15 people were lost. Disaster warnings can save lives.

Roy