richwmn

Zuiderdam position around 7:15 this morning

you can also go to internet.hollandamerica.com to go directly to the page to login to the internet on any device.

I am currently on Zuiderdam and have been regularly switching between 3 devices (laptop, tablet, and phone) no problem. If you try and switch devices and another device is currently chosen you will be given the opportunity to disconnect the other device.

According to the list of Charters, Groups, and Drydocks maintained by @VMax1700 08 February 2022 – 11 March 2022 Cadiz, ES. (18 – 31 October 2019) a discussion on her condition is in the thread see particularly post #9

If you could list some of the Carnival options it might be easier to answer

February 13th – Hobart, Tazmania Australia It is 10am on Monday morning, an unusual time for the Super Bowl, but that is what is currently starting. Shortly I will head to the World Stage to see what the ship has set up for the occasion. Luckily I have been to Hobart before, so that is not a priority. Last night was full. After dinner we had a bit of a different session of trivia. Hyperion Knight, the pianist who entertained on the World Stage earlier hosted a session which was actually more of a performance for him, and he started out by admitting that. He then proceeded to introduce each song segment before playing quite a bit of it. For the most part we could determine the answers he requested from the comments and verified it by the song played. The songs were evenly divided between pop and classical with three questions for the pop questions and two for classical. My group totally missed one song, giving us 23 of 25 points, the winner was perfect. At 9:30pm a local band ‘Tasmaina Uncovered’ played local music for about an hour. They were very good both with the music and the stories that accompanied it. They played in the Lido Pool area, and while the acoustics were not great, they still sounded pretty good. During the concert there were fireworks nearby which were nicely visible from the Seaview Bar area. A nice selection of fireworks lasted about 30 minutes or so. A good number of guests were on the aft lido deck to watch them. The ship spent the night moored in Hobart. Early this morning I got off and walked around a bit. The city is as nice as I remember it. The setup the passengers have to go thru to exit and enter the ship seemed to have the same items for sale as I saw in 2019. It is still a beautiful day around Hobart.

I don't know if it is still true, but HAL at one time had a bus that ran from Vancouver to Seattle and was 'sealed'. The passengers went directly from the ship (last port in Alaska) to the bus without passing thru Canadian Customs and Immigration. The bus was not allowed to stop until inside the US border and didn't have to go thru US Customs and Immigration either. The train might have been a similar situation.

Zuiderdam's position today

some of each, mostly Lido.

February 12th – Port Arthur and Hobart, Tazmania Australia Last night on the World Stage we had a performance titled ‘Playback’ featuring Zuiderdam’s singers and dancers. This group has performed several times so far and each show has been pretty good. They are talented artists, and put a lot of energy into the show. Today we visited Port Arthur, Tazmania. This is a small tender port which has a large prison as its main feature, along with a visitor center and museum. It is was an easy tender ride today, although the Captain had indicated that it might not be. We had a short visit to Port Arthur, leaving at 4:00pm. We are now headed to arrive at Hobart at 8:00pm. We have been told that today is a holiday and there is to be a big celebration along with fireworks this evening. Should be fun.

I don't think the social plan would allow texting. I know I can on premium, but I have never had the middle level. As far as I know you can buy the plan mid cruise, but you might end up paying more, definitely more per day, because the cost per day goes down with longer plans. It is not a set rate per day.

I have used several Travel Agencies in the past, and with the exception of the World Cruise I am currently on my TA OBC has always been refundable. On this cruise, part of my TA credit came from the TA, and part from the group that the TA is a member of. The group credit is non refundable. In general, all OBC that comes from HAL or CCL is non refundable, even it it comes as a perk for a group booking. Anything purchased by your TA, you, or your friends is refundable.

Tendering at Port Arthur, Tasmania Australia

I use a partially automated process for moving the quotes into the database that generates the Daily each day. Every now and then something slips thru.

From my port side verandah on Zuiderdam, although if I look forward I see a little of what the previous photo shows.

February 11 – At Sea, Tasman Sea headed for Port Arthur Not too much went on last night. Activities included a music trivia at 6:30pm and a Secret Identity game at 8:00pm. The music session was a bit different, instead of playing small snips of songs, questions were asked about music such as listing three double albums and asking for the artist involved. All three venues had music. Today, another at sea day, had a couple of things going on. The CC Meet & Greet for this segment was held in the Crows Nest. I didn’t think about it until it was over. I didn’t really think about a segment starting until I was chatting with a friend and it came up. I’ll try and make the next one. It is a beautiful day at sea. Temperatures are moderate and the sun is bright. Should be a good evening on board.

As most of you know I maintain a file that is used to provide the HAL fleet locations each day. When I see posts mentioning changes I try to update that file, but sometimes it is difficult because the post doesn’t contain all the information. For example a recent post listed a date, old port, and new port so it took a bit of research to determine which ship was involved. It would be helpful if in advising of an itinerary change you would include a line that specifies the new information, for example: 2/12/2023, Zuiderdam, Port Arthur, 08:00 – 16:00 Thanks!

very cute!

It is amazing what this has become. I want to thank everyone for keeping it going. Special thanks to @kochleffel, @cat shepard, @JazzyV, and @Quartzsite Cruiser for their contributions in starting different sections. Hope everyone has a great weekend Rich

I did, thanks for the beautiful picture!

February 10 – Sydney, NSW Australia – Day 2 Yesterday we had a full day of trivia with sessions at 1:00pm, 4:00pm, 6:30pm, and 8:00pm. Both the early sessions were general knowledge, while the 6:30pm session focused on questions about movies and the last session covered Motown. Out of 15 song snips played, I think we had 14 song titles and 11 artists. We missed tying for first place by 1 answer. Meals yesterday were good and we always have great service. This morning I met with a friend and we took the 9:00am shuttle to Darling Bay. Once there we got on the Big Bus, a Hop On Hop Off Service. I was able to purchase the tickets using their website so boarding the bus wasn’t a problem. For about a half hour we had a very nice ride and saw a bunch of Sydney. At 10:00am we had to change buses in order to complete the loop back to Darling Bay. Once we swapped we continued the loop and were able to see a good portion of Sydney. The total loop lasted about two and a half hours. The weather was beautiful and so was the city. The only real problem was the number of urban canyons we went thru. After the tour we got back to Darling Bay and had lunch at a place called Cockle Bay Yacht Club. I had a very good cheeseburger and fries along with an Australian wine. After lunch, a shuttle was available back to Zuiderdam and we were on it. All in all, a great day in Sydney!

February 09 – Sydney, NSW Australia It’s raining in Sydney! Yesterday was a sea day. As usual relaxing, trivia, food, and entertainment. The trivia session at 4:00pm was about travel. It was interesting and we did ok. We had a full plate of activities. Since we didn’t have a 6:30pm trivia session I attempted to go to the 7:00pm show on the World Stage. Well, that didn’t go well because by 6:45pm the house was basically full. I retreated to my cabin and did get to the 9:30pm show. This was the second show by Cantare and was called ‘Timeless’. The show consisted of songs that stood the test of time. As before the show was very good and very energetic. This morning we arrived on time at White Bay Cruise Terminal in Sydney. This is a pretty nice terminal set up and has shuttle buses to take you on a short (about 20 minutes) ride to an area with shops and restaurants. It was an easy place to walk around and while I was there the weather was nice. However, before I could get on the shuttle there was a little matter of Australian Immigration. We were given information a couple of days ago about the process for going thru immigration, and a group and time to present ourselves. The process started on time, or maybe a little bit early. After the first two groups Ian announced we were a bit ahead of schedule. That process bogged down after the first four groups were called and the fifth group was about 20 minutes late. After we were allowed to leave the ship, there was a long line in the terminal to visit immigration. The line did move quickly and we were finally able to go to the shuttle.

Yes it is White Bay. I don't know if another ship is at Circular Quay, but former Prinsendam is here with us.

Sydney Australia this morning

Good Evening. Zuiderdam is on the way to Sydney, Australia and we will arrive in a few hours. I just left a good show by Cantare on the World Stage. Hope everyone has a great day!