kochleffel

I looked up St. Erasmus. He died around 303 and is the patron saint of sailors and abdominal pain.

I'm reading "healthy" as "not made from diseased ingredients," because I can't really class a chocolate tart as healthful. I'm avoiding sugar right now, so I have to pass. I might like the drink, but I'd be wary of raw egg white. There is Finger Lakes vermouth!  "Method Sweet Vermouth is styled after traditional Italian sweet vermouth, but made using wines and brandy from the Finger Lakes region of New York. It is a versatile bar staple whose quality elevates common classic cocktails and stands on its own as aperitif served on the rocks or with a splash of soda," about $25.

The plot thickens until it curdles. My fall class, which I thought would be on Thursdays, will be on Wednesdays. Disembarkation from the Panama Canal cruise will be on a Wednesday, and I would be in the air during class time. It appears that I'll have to stay an extra day in Panama.

13 hours ago, MacMadame said:

I ban people who file fradulent cc disputes from my events. I'd be surprised if cruise lines didn't also do that once the refunds got over a certain amount.

I'd also be surprised if they didn't.

37 minutes ago, Crazy For Cats said:

Mona says its time for bed.

Your Mona looks a lot like my Mona (Lisa), although I can't see whether there's a white blaze on the chest. Mona Lisa goes up to bed before I do and then yells at me that it's bedtime.

Rabbit, rabbit, grey rabbit. (Does anyone remember the unlicensed bus service by that name that ran up and down the west coast?)

I'm not sure about the juxtaposition of international children's day and the global day of parents. I've been trained in the Heimlich Maneuver.

I have the ingredients for egg salad but I might make a tofu, imitation egg, salad instead. The key is not to load it up with mustard and turmeric; a little to take away the extreme whiteness is good, but enough to make it look like egg salad would make it taste strongly of mustard and turmeric. Instead, add a shake of Himalayan black salt, which imparts the slight sulfurous character that will make everyone think of eggs.

The drink might be OK for dessert, but I don't love tequila and would substitute something else. For yet another SB, Hosmer Estate 2021. "The nose is of rich meyer lemon and coconut cream, leading to lime blossom and cherimoya on the palate. The finish is rich, carried by soft tropicals and notes of jasmine," $22. Kos was not in my 2022 itinerary on the Norwegian Jade, and I don't even know where in Greece it's hiding.

Yesterday I was thinking about packing for the conference in July, and that led to thinking about packing for the Panama Canal cruise in December. Especially, I was wondering whether my distaste for airline baggage fees would persuade me to use only carry-on baggage. (This is only a consideration for the outbound flight, to Miami.)  My first cruise, in 2018, was with bags that could have been carried on, although I actually checked one. That came about through dislocating my shoulder right before; the ortho doc said I could go if I packed light, checked the main bag, and kept my cabin bag light enough to place overhead using just one hand.

The cruise in on NCL, which has no formal nights and has a passable laundry service, both of which help. School will be in session and there will be two class sessions during the cruise. My iPad mini is sufficient for attending classes online, but if I have to give a presentation on one of those days, I might have to take a laptop computer.

Camera gear is also an issue. For travel in scenic areas I usually take a DSLR and multiple lenses, but when photography won't be so prominent, I use just my phone. Would I regret not having the range of camera equipment?

This afternoon I'll be helping at my former organization's booth at the community Pride Festival. The synagogue celebrates Pride Shabbat at the end of the month, closer to the anniversary of Stonewall.

52 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

At least they did not come up with the money saving idea of removing that auto-tips.

On my very first cruise, I met a passenger who cruised frequently and couldn't really afford it. They reduced the cost by disputing credit-card charges (that were legitimate) and getting them charged back.

7 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

Interesting.   I would have thought having synthetics in a rummage sale would be good because if they are not donated they end up in the landfill.     

Yes. This was an organization with affluent members and the person thought that the rummage sale had a reputation for selling only top-quality clothing. (The actual reputation was for checking donations carefully for damage, and displaying them well.)

2 hours ago, Reina del Mar said:

I would add..take your own ‘home pharmacy’. Costs of cough mixture and painkillers etc are highly inflated.

I always pack the OTC medicines that I keep on hand at home. There have been highly entertaining posts from time to time by people who take an entire suitcase of medical supplies and equipment, but some of them were medical workers who would at least know what to do with the stuff.

2 hours ago, Reina del Mar said:

Also, don’t buy watches onboard. My husband buys a watch every year from Fossil..(unnecessary I know and keeping them all in batteries is ridiculous) anyway, he usually buys from outlets and has never had an issue. The only one he bought on a Princess ship, at full price,  died within a few weeks of getting home..it wasn’t just the battery but the watch itself.

No personal experience with buying watches, jewelry, or electronics on board, but I'll mention that people used to like Caribbean cruises for the opportunity to shop in free ports. Marketing in North America has changed since then and the items in duty-free shops in places like St. Thomas, even if genuine, no longer appear to be especially good values.

I was initially put off by the parsnip idea, but I gather that in this recipe the parsnips function like grated carrots. I would probably pass on the cocktail, but the wine is a natural for the Finger Lakes. I'll go with Weis Vineyards; this is the one whose owner is from the Mosel region. Weis produces many different Rieslings in a single vintage, some representing different terroir (slate vs. limestone, for example) but I'll make it simple and nominate the flagship Dry Riesling (2022): "wonderfully crisp, clean, and full. The nice balance of minerality, fruit, and lively acidity make this a perfect wine for pouring a glass or pairing with food. It presents with notes of lime, grapefruit, guava, and lingering undertones of pear," $20.99.

I woke up too early and I didn't like that. It was 42° outdoors and I didn't like that, either.

On 5/22/2024 at 12:06 PM, ldubs said:

 

I honestly doubt I have anything 100% cotton.   I have been migrating towards UPF clothing these days.  Some of which might have come from the Caribbean (just to keep the thread on track).  🙂

I used to be the director of a nonprofit organization that held an annual rummage sale. The person who ran it for years wouldn't allow any clothing that contained even a molecule of synthetic material; everything had to be 100% natural.

I would rather not post insulting comments about people who need or want to save money. There is nothing wrong with wanting to cruise but also watching the budget. Some tips are be appropriate and helpful, just not necessarily the ones cited in the article.

28 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

I don't see NCL being intentionally deceptive here...it's just bad wording on their part. Sort of like the nonsense about disembarkation/embarkation times they had (maybe still do ) on their website giving a two hour time frame when that was intended to apply only to embarkation at the start of the cruise and final disembarkation at the end. The wording made it sound like it also applied to port calls.

Yes - we see that confusion fairly regularly.

Thinking about port names: I don't consider it deceptive to write "Rome (Civitavecchia)" or "Athens (Piraeus)" since those are the ports of those cities, and people who haven't embarked from there before might not know. "Orlando (Cape Canaveral)" isn't quite the same, because Cape Canaveral is not actually the Port of Orlando. Rather, Orlando is the main airport for getting to Cape Canaveral, although I think that Melbourne is closer (fewer flights) and I would likely fly to Sanford (nonstop from where I live).

In this case, it would be clearer to write "Panama City (Fuerte Amador)" and label the first one as overnight and the second as disembarkation.

2 hours ago, Kay S said:

DH is very bummed about the Lincoln Center dismissal

I felt the same way when I had chosen HAL for a TATL partly because of the Lincoln Center Stage, and then it was discontinued before the sailing.

6 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

Here's a different thread where I had provided an answer to a similar question just yesterday:

Thank you.

6 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

I'm not sure why you think NCL is being coy. It's no different than their describing Port Canaveral as Orlando or Civitavecchia as Rome. It's a common practice in the cruise industry to use the nearest recognizable city's name in conjunction with the name of the actual cruise port where the ship will be docking.

Which is also somewhat dishonest, but the information is usually not concealed. In this case they are also using the name of a terminal that appears not to exist. Where a ship overnights at a port, cruise lines usually just say that.

5 minutes ago, dmwnc1959 said:

Someone asked this exact same question recently over on the Panama forum... hope this helps.

 

 

Thank you. The thread started in 2023, and the most recent post bumped it up after the last time I checked. From other posts, I think that more has been completed at Fuerte Amador but it's all still rather up in the air and likely to change by the time I'm there. This sort of thing is annoying and it feels like NCL is being coy about it.

Annals of Stupidity: a man in Michigan had to attend a court hearing over Zoom about his suspended driving license. When he signed in, everyone could see that he was driving at the time.

https://wapo.st/4bVA016

He was ordered to report to jail by 6:00 p.m.

6 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

I stopped reading after the first one with the suggestion to avoid buying alcohol by smuggling it on instead.  Certainly the cruise lines have never thought of that before and would be caught completely off guard!  And how nice for the media to suggest violating the rules as a way to avoid legitimately paying for something.

Exactly.

Some of the other suggestions are not crazy. For example, spa treatments are wildly overpriced compared to where I live, but if it's a luxury you enjoy and can afford, you shouldn't let some online personage tell you not to. I think that an average cost-conscious passenger would be able to figure that out on their own.

I think it was altogether wrong to say that there's free wifi at some bars and shops onboard. However, if your needs are flexible and not too extensive, you might be able to manage with free wifi on shore. I'm currently buying not only onboard wifi, but premium wifi, because of having classes on Zoom. (If you must have wifi on board, for work or school, avoid cabins that are all the way forward or all the way aft, because on some ships they have poor connectivity.)

I need help understanding the itinerary for a Panama Canal cruise that I've booked. It's a one-way cruise from Miami to Fuerte Amador. (Either you fly back from Panama, or you book it B2B with a one-way in the other direction.)

The itinerary shows Panama City, Pacific Cruise Terminal, as a port of call for the next-to-last day. The day after that, disembarkation is at Fuerte Amador. Are they the same place, or...? NCL offers no excursions for Panama City on that next-to-last day.

23 minutes ago, Cruising-along said:

I noticed several posts from yesterday that mentioned not seeing their PCP with the Medicare Wellness Exam, and also that labs aren't done before those exams (?

The AMA website says that the Wellness Exam under Medicare is not an annual physical, nor is it a follow-up for existing conditions. Anyone who scheduled a wellness exam by itself would likely be disappointed.

It's about prevention and screening for unsuspected problems, and does not require hands-on examination or labs. I don't think that annual physicals as such are even covered under Medicare, although some practices might do the equivalent under cover of a diagnosis.  In theory, the wellness exam could take the form of an online questionnaire, except that they don't think we're sufficiently compos mentis to fill one out.

I'm in favor of creativity but there are times when it's not wanted. Are we supposed on water only one flower today? Too many people in my circle have MS.

I always made bean salad for my former organization's annual meeting, which revolved around grilled chicken and burgers. I'd skip the drink, because of the pineapple juice. Many Finger Lakes wineries grow pinot gris, so today I'll turn to one, Idol Ridge, that I haven't mentioned before, for its 2021 bottling. "Fruity, creamy, and savory with aromas of peach, pear, lemon zest, & vanilla," $20.

I haven't been to College Fjord and it's not in my 2025 itinerary. I'll think after the Panama Canal cruise about whether to keep that booking.

I lived in Indiana for some years, but as I was in Bloomington, I'm more familiar with the Little 500 (bicycle race).

3 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

a Beach tree from DD's foyer!  Our little trip to Florida for college graduation must have inspired her!  Where she got the decorations for it, I have no idea!

Thank you for posting the close-ups! I was curious enough to run a search, and found that there are companies with entire lines of "coastal Christmas ornaments," including sharks, which I think I would rather not have if I were to do that sort of thing.

Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser, I composed a reply in yesterday's thread and CC locked thread before I finished! I also read about the wellness check on the AMA website, which says that it's mainly to check for recommended screenings and immunizations.

The substance of the reply was that I'm willing to be examined by a PA or NP, but I won't accept medication changes that the doctor hasn't approved. About five years ago, the NP in the practice (not the current one) changed my blood-pressure medication in a way that required follow-up labs, but didn't order any, and I didn't know that they would be needed. If I hadn't broken my arm later that year, resulting in labs being done in the hospital, it could eventually have killed me.

16 minutes ago, Sharon in AZ said:

Of course she knew the day of the week

This has always been a difficult question for me; it's why I used to have a morning newspaper delivered.

55 minutes ago, dfish said:

Yes, you can.  I have Medicare and I refuse this on a regular basis.  My bills get paid.

My PCP's office phoned recently to tell me that I was due for a Medicare something-or-other. They've never done this before.

Now, the doctor would be embarrassed to ask me those kinds of questions, and the nurse practitioner would think it was hilarious. It's possible that an inexperienced PA might try. Which combination of them I see varies, largely depending on whether there's a medical student in the office that day--if so, the student does all the routine parts. I'm going to ignore the Medicare-whatever visit and book an ordinary follow-up, with blood tests done before it.

8 minutes ago, clo said:

When we were in Norway we went in a shop that had lots of souvenirs. Except for some Norwegian sea salt which I bought everything else was made in China. I was looking for "made in Norway."

I don't think that you would find many "made in Norway" things in a shop selling souvenirs -- they would be too expensive for the souvenir market. Many would be almost too expensive for the luxury market!

I was startled by the reference upthread to cheap pottery. I don't buy much at all when traveling, but during a Greek islands cruise I bought a piece on Rhodes, not very expensive but handmade on Rhodes, that copied the form and decoration of classical pottery. I was especially taken by its depicting the death of Achilles, because I had Achilles tendonitis at the time.

But when Venice was working up to banning cruise ships, one of the arguments was that cruise passengers didn't eat in restaurants or buy anything authentic products in shops -- just got food from McDonald's, dumped the wrapping into the canals, and bought made-in-China trinkets. That may have been true of many passengers on day calls, but the result was that cruises from Venice shifted to departing from Trieste or Ravenna -- even though passengers embarking and disembarking typically stayed in Venice before, after, or both (would have been both with me, but I changed that booking to one departing from Athens).

18 minutes ago, Oceansaway17 said:

leave from Vancouver and go 1 way to Seward and then do a land tour.

I believe that Holland America cruises, however, all use Whittier. This is OK for land tours, not for Kenai Fjords boat tours. I have a 2025 booking on NCL that also disembarks at Whittier, which was a surprise and not a very happy one since the cruise is a catch-up for one in 2020 that would gone to Seward. Then, I had booked a Kenai Fjords tour with Major Marine, and I can't find any practical way to get to Seward from Whittier.