StLouisCruisers

I definitely always wave at exit 278 every time, Ann! Dennis can attest to that fact! It takes forever just to get out of Georgia so you and Bindi will be up for hours!

Well, that trip to pick up a car took way too long. There must have been delays during storms today and the line at the rental car counter was 40 deep. Had we known Avis has us as a preferred customer and if we'd had an Avis app we could have seen our car was sitting out there in the parking garage with our name on it. For some reason cell service was blocked at the rental car parking area. We asked a guy parked next to us if he had SOS only service and he said yes, for the last 35 minutes! Who knows what was going on. Anyway, DH got to the car reserved for him and noticed the PSI was only 17 in one tire so refused the car. Who knows if it had a nail in it? They quickly provided a new vehicle though I doubt the gas mileage will be as good with this one. As long as I get to Ft. Lauderdale tomorrow, I don't care!!! The storms were mostly gone by the time we headed to Atlanta, and no tornadoes so we're good now. Thanks Elizabeth! No tornadoes turned up here, thank the Lord! I hope the med issue gets worked out eventually with the best outcome for you. Thanks Lenda! 👍 Thanks Graham! Not much sleep tonight because we're leaving in the middle of the night practically. We don't drive over the speed limit normally, need breaks every couple hours, and who knows about accidents and other traffic jams. We'll leave lots of time to arrive at the car rental drop off place. Get better soon Terri! Jane, I hope the medication and diet works well for you and thankfully you won't need a surgery that way. Having your son there with you will be a good thing for both of you, I bet. DS, DDIL and Ren go to Bethesda, Maryland tomorrow for an MLS Next Flex tournament. They'll be there 3 to 4 days. The next big tournament is in June in Nashville. It's called the MLS Next Playoffs and Showcase June 15th to 23rd. FC Dallas is already qualified. I've requested we be kept updated since we probably won't have access to much in the way of results. We try to keep up with Ren and his soccer life.

We've made real progress here today. Most is packed up, I stopped the mail for the next 30 days, and posted a review of our stay at the house we rented last weekend. The host will be able to add a rebuttal. Not sure how he can blame anything on us. We didn't plant the roaches there! Leaving in 90 minutes to drive to Atlanta to pick up the car and return home. Finish up some chili for supper, unload the dishwasher and will probably think of something we didn't do last minute. LOL! Water to the house will be turned off near the street and lines drained so hopefully no problems with water during our absence. Thanks for all your words of encouragement and good wishes for our drive tomorrow. I will hopefully be able to check the Daily late afternoon or evening on Friday. Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser to give you a head start tomorrow, the links to the port are currently on pages 503 (March 24, 2021) and 313 (Aug. 11, 2022). My photos are not available since they go back to March 2021, so I can post something later in the day probably. You will probably run across that while I'm gone several times. I hope to be able to post from the ship, but there will be a few times I won't be available due to tours, etc. If I don't post photos you can do it for me while I'm gone if you like. You'll be sick of that by the time I return! 🙂

We were happy to visit Flam twice on the Prinsendam in 2016 and 2017. The photos are from the 2016 Best Norway Cruise Ever as we call it. There's only room for one ship at the dock so we tendered over to Flam. DH and I had purchased our tickets online for the train ride up the mountain and back down. It was much less expensive and we didn't want to wait and possibly have them sell out. This little village gets very busy when the ships are in town and everyone wanting to take that train ride. There is a small museum, a tourist train, a little "mall", and of course the visitor center. Oh yes, don't forget this hotel, too. A train comes in and all onboard depart. That's when we in line boarded and the train begins our journey. You see little towns, colorful buildings, and beautiful scenery with waterfalls and rushing river water. There is a screen in each car with commentary along the way. I noticed a woman sitting on the rock looking at the train in this picture. See her? We went by several small stations along our route. Sometimes we pulled off the main track and let a train pass by going downhill to Flam. The train stops and lets everyone see the Kjosfossen waterfall. Pretty misty right here! Keep your eye on that little stone ruin there. Suddenly you hear some eerie music coming from hidden speakers and we see a seductive forest creature emerge to dance for the tourists. The train then continues up to Myrdal with more nice scenery. This is supposedly the steepest train route in Europe. The train stops in Myrdal and that's where we do our backtracking to Flam. I was able to see the weather forecast for Myrdal while waiting there. My old IPhone - looks tiny! Going back down you of course see the same scenery only on the opposite side for better viewing. The train stopped again at the waterfall to see the nymph once more. Different moves! Hope that wig doesn't fall off! Lots and lots of smaller waterfalls on the route. Nearly back to Flam. I'd say the whole trip took around 2 hours. We walked around the small town a bit and headed back to the Prinsendam. Once sailing away from Flam Captain D.D. headed towards Undredal to pick up some of his favorite goat cheese. And here it comes! It was a very good day in Norway, as usual.

Good morning friends! We are on a tornado watch until 1 pm and I hope that won't be extended with further severe thunderstorms after that time. We leave home around 3 pm to drive to the car rental site at Atlanta's airport, pick up one and drive home. Right now it's about 72F and cloudy with, as I said, thunderstorms and possible tornadic type activity through 1 pm. with a high temp of 78. Thanks Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps. Hurray for Europe, home front heroes and Moscato wine. I think I'll pass on the quiche, cosmopolitan and wine. A tremendous day in history when the British broke the German codes in 1941. Thanks Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for the the F&B reports. Prayers for all our Care list folks, DB and great nephew Alex's twins, The people of Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still held, and the military members in harm's way there. I pray for improvement for all our sick and ailing Dailyites. Jacqui, Richard, Vanessa's BFF .🙏 Cheers for all celebrating special events and the cruisers! 🎉🚢🎂 Thanks Vanessa @JazzyV for everything you do to keep us informed! The port this morning is Flam, Norway which was the destination before on Feb.17, 2022 and April 19, 2023. Here are the links: We are struggling with the kitchen refrigerator (thankfully we have another in the garage), which had water pooling on the floor around the front corners of it. The water was there when we got home Monday from Florida. So we emptied the fridge and freezer yesterday and put everything in the garage one. Turned it off and let things warm up. There is still a drip happening so the floor has plastic and heavy beach towels to collect it. Water was turned off to the fridge yesterday before we turned the power off. We really don't need this problem before our extended absence. It will be left off and open the whole time. Hoping the dripping stops soon! 🙄 Hoping your day starts off better than mine! Stay safe and keep well!

Yes, it is! 82,000 tons. I can't remember much about it.

Thanks so much Graham! It looks mighty big compared to most of the HAL ships we've been on. Westerdam and Rotterdam VI were the largest for us so far. I should get a lot of stair workouts on this ship!

So busy today! We have a lot done but still have more work tomorrow to prepare to leave extra early Friday morning. The mail has been taken care of and several trusted neighbors know about our departure and will keep an eye on things. They've been asked not to discuss it with any other residents and agree to that. Plus we have a monitored security system, live in a gated community and have no incidents of break ins or squatting. We should be fine. Graham @grapau27 thanks for the beautiful photos today! A nice day at the beach. Terry, I'm very sorry to hear this has not been the best of days for you all. I hope you get some more rest and Tana is comfortable. Congratulations to your DS!! Annie, I hope things go well for Chuck next Tuesday. I agree with Debbie that I think I'd call and verify the laser is working before wasting any more time. Sorry to hear about yesterday's frightful drive home! Driving some days scares the living daylights out of me!

Good morning friends! It's 68F this morning, and we expect partly cloudy to sunny skies and a high of at least 87. Pretty steamy! Yesterday they predicted thunderstorms this morning but that rapidly moved to Thursday as soon as I typed it. Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for posting the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps for Rich @richwmn. Today's days concern a previously unknown to me disease. Hopefully Graham @grapau27 will clarify. Also disaster preparedness and cruelty free day (to animals) which are good causes. I think I'll celebrate V-E Day! Nice quote, a pass on the meal and drink, and a maybe to the wine. Thank you Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for your reports each day. Prayers for DB, great nephew Alex's baby boys, the people of Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still held, and our troops in the region. Also to our Care list folks who still suffer and we are praying for relief for you. 🙏 Jacqui @kazu I hope your antibiotics are helping now and the pain goes away. Maureen @RMLincoln good luck at the colonoscopy, and I'm hoping your DH Richard's eye is doing okay. Lorraine @cruising sister I send my prayers to your friend who lost her DGS and has the other one in the hospital with serious problems. I can't imagine the pain and grief she is feeling.😢 Vanessa @JazzyV I hope your BFF is getting along okay and not in pain. Karen @luvteaching best wishes to you today as you remember your DD DH on his 84th heavenly birthday. Joy @Seasick Sailor you asked about my DB yesterday. He is having a lot of problems with breathing, especially with wheezing. He is keeping things more private lately. I'm not sure if the very expensive meds the pharmaceutical company provides are helping any, but better them than nothing I guess. Congrats to those celebrating special events, and those on cruises. I'm in the torturous period of running around trying to get everything ready for a cruise. It will be good to relax onboard and spend the first week at sea. In good news, the family in St. Louis is fine after yesterday morning's wild storms. Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the list keeping today! Hope you are doing well! Since I wasn't on Cruise Critic much yesterday let me say I hope memories of your DM yesterday on her 120th heavenly birthday brought you comfort. 😇 The port today is Da Nang (Hue), Vietnam. This was the port once before on Oct. 27, 2022. I have not been to that port in Vietnam, but did see several others and they were interesting. I hope you will post your photos and thoughts on Da Nang if you can. Here's the link to Oct. 27, 2022. Off this morning to the hair appointment, then back to the packing and preparing. Need to get the mail situation under control, but no call back from one neighbor. Will move on to the other one. Have a great day everyone!

Good morning friends! It is 65F this morning with a high expected of 86 and partly cloudy skies. Watching the news/weather while exercising I saw that St. Louis is under a tornado warning this morning so I hope that nothing comes of it and my family there is safe. 😬 Thanks Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for posting the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps for Rich @richwmn. We appreciate it! Let's recognize cosmopolitans 🍹, Cystinosis Awareness Day, and Sauvignon Blanc. It seems that cystinosis is a rare genetic condition and we could use some awareness of its severity. It is also National Teacher's Day so let's support them! Love the quote from Lennon's song "Imagine". Yes to the meal, and no to the drink and wine. Surprising how early integrated circuits were in our sphere. DS's research involved low-power integrated circuits so new things are always being discovered. Thank you Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for your reports today. Prayers for DB and great nephew Alex's twin boys, the people of Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still held and hopefully still alive, and our military men and women in the region. Also for those here with health concerns and any of our family members or friends with them. Prayers for Vanessa's @JazzyV BFF as he begins the task of healing from that nasty bone break. Prayers also for Richard, Tana and Terry @smitty34877, Amber, Jane @lazey1, Jacqui @kazu and Debbie @dfish.🙏 We send our thoughts and prayers to you all. Three cheers for those cruising and everyone celebrating happy events today. 🥂🎉🚢 This includes anyone with improved health situations. Thanks go to you Vanessa @JazzyV for your fine work keeping the lists up to date! The port of the day is Kushiro, Japan which has been the destination twice before - Nov. 18, 2022 and Jan. 30, 2023. I have not been before so no photos today. Please check the links if you've posted before and add them here for us to review again. My memory is not perfect so I may have forgotten. Thanks in advance! Well, that's an interesting photo/meme/gif showing up on the January 2023 link! It's nice for a change of pace. Well, time to get busy gathering our clothes and checking our lists as we pack today. Tomorrow morning I have a hair appointment so that will take a couple hours, and of course I see we may have thunderstorms then so that's always fun to drive in. NOT! Hope you all have a great day. Stay safe and keep well!

No. We stopped at a rest area early on, then stopped somewhere for that cup of McCafe coffee for DH. We eventually stopped at the Buc-ee's south of Macon, Georgia for a fill up and to pick up some of DH's favorite trail mix. We bought some to share with the bar staff we get to know on our upcoming cruises. They like snacks! We ate a light lunch once we got home. On the way up we ate a Belvita soft baked good in the car that we brought along.

We went to Bar Harbor on the Rotterdam in Oct. 2018. From a T-shirt seen at a store there. Now that we know how to pronounce the name of the town properly, let us continue. This is the exterior of a restaurant. Good thing they hung that sign at the doorway or you'd never find your way inside. Some of the interesting rock formations. Lot of variations in the color in this rock. Here we are at the Village Burying Ground. This plaque tells you more. St. Saviour’s Church circa 1877 Low tide It was quite a pretty little spot to visit. I wouldn't mind seeing this sight this every day, as long as it was on a BHB!

We reached home today by 12:20 because we left Clearwater before 5 am today. We were going to leave later to avoid rush hour traffic but when Jacqui told me she was ready to take over again this morning we decided why not leave before the worst of rush hour. Worked fine. I am doing laundry right now. Time to bring the cruise luggage out today and get going on packing tomorrow. We depart again on Friday morning for Ft. Lauderdale. You are welcome!! It was my pleasure to fill in for Jacqui. We can trust you to decipher the craziest of wine names, Ann! And DH and I both loved the pepper meme! So funny! Thank you for the safe travel wishes, Annie. Morgan will complete some training this month for dive instructor, that she is taking compliments of the Florida Aquarium. After that she will consider her options and make a decision if Tampa is the location for her or not. There are lots of opportunities in Florida for someone with her degree and training. Thanks for asking! Hope you and Chuck are doing okay. Any news on his condition? Thanks to you Debbie for your safe travel wishes. Somehow you can make kale sound delicious.😉 Good luck Jacqui. I'm so glad the foot nurse is so good at her job. Having infection under the skin on your foot would be very painful. Anytime we have something wrong with a foot it makes walking so difficult, even a blister! We want you back to 100% good health. Thanks Joy! Of course that was for photography purposes only - the cup would sit in the cup holder for safety's sake any other time! Thanks for the safe travel wishes, Lenda. Lucky for us there's no Atlanta traffic when we drive home from Florida since we live south of there. From our area north is where the traffic begins piling up. 🙄 I knew my photos had disappeared from Bar Harbor so planned on reposting them today. I may just have enough time as I run in and out of the laundry room! Sorry, no seaside for a background...just north Florida interstate 75 scenery! The driver picks what they want to listen to and it's a good thing I like country music, too. Thanks Graham! It was uneventful, thankfully. Oh no Vanessa! He just left your place yesterday didn't he, after helping you out for two weeks? I'm so glad you're able to drive now, and I hope the doctors find it isn't broken. Life sure isn't fair! Let us know. I hope the doctor visit goes well today. You are a blessing to Richard, and taking such wonderful care of him. You both deserve some good news. No rain down this way Annie. (but who knows later). My radar app on my phone shows a few pop ups north and west of you. And yes, no driving in the dreaded Atlanta traffic!

Good morning! We just stopped to stretch our legs and get DH some coffee. Here’s our version for Graham @grapau27 and @RedneckBob

Have a great cruise Elizabeth!

Thanks everyone for your kind comments about Morgan and her special day. We had an excellent time watching her walk across that stage. Now time to prepare for our drive home tomorrow. Just wanted to let you know how much we appreciate your support!

Terry, thank you for your congrats for Morgan. Last night there was a second even louder group of people celebrating a young lady's graduation, and inside the restaurant just on the other side of the window behind me an engagement party. So many people having a good time! Sending you and the family a hug as you all work together to keep things together there. Just know you are doing a great job! Prayers for Tana and the family who cares for her.🙏

Thank you! Cute meme! Joy, thank you so much! Your community party yesterday looked well planned and lots of fun.

Whoops! Thank you Terri! I hope you and Jim are well.

Jacqui, glad you are home safe though exhausted and hurting some too. Hope you don't get a bad cold out of this. Yes, stay home and cuddle with Ivan today. You deserve it. Hugs to you! Thank you Ann! I'll give her your message and am sure she will appreciate it. Thanks Melanie! She has done a great job of managing Marine Biology along with working at the Aquarium. Always in the water, that one! Debbie, great job of coming up with a menu today! I wondered what you would do with that. I agree we wouldn't care for Eleanor at all. I hope the docs decide it's time for that nerve ablation and can get you over all this discomfort. Thanks for the comments about Morgan! Thanks Elizabeth for the support for Morgan! I hope the Stars do well for you. I was wondering too!! Thank you so much Graham! Three days of celebration so far is a lot for us homebodies but she deserves it! Dinner on the patio of the restaurant last night which was overflowing with people, was interesting. Also noisy! The hotel worked out well and we don't have to go out for breakfast and can just eat downstairs. I am anxious to see Morgan walk across that stage and receive her diploma. Everyone has been by Morgan's apartment and love what she's done with the place. They all say, she "did good"!

Good morning friends! It is 75F in Clearwater, Florida and will be 87 later today. It will be sunny but afternoon clouds could lead to a shower or thunderstorm. Thanks to all who contribute here and I send prayers to all in need of them and congratulations to everyone celebrating a special event. 🙏🎂🎉🎓🥂 Today's port is Exmouth, Australia which is our fourth time seeing it here as Port of the Day. Below are the links to previous showings. I have not been to Exmouth before but would love to, of course. Have a wonderful day!

Today is Cartoonists Day, Chanel No. 5 Day, Childhood Stroke Awareness Day, and Cinco de Mayo What is important in life is life, and not the result of life. - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Meal Suggestion for today - Eleanor Chalstrom (name is of a food writer and likely a mistake) Drink of the Day - Loco Unicorn Wine of the Day - Banfi-Rosso-di-Montalcino Destination of the Day - Exmouth, Australia Today in History: 1891 Music Hall (now Carnegie Hall) opens in New York City, with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky as guest conductor of teh New York Music Society Orchestra Ship Locations Eurodam At Sea Destination Juneau, Alaska eta 05-06 Koningsdam At Sea Destination Juneau, Alaska eta 05-06 Nieuw Amsterdam Vancouver, BC Canada 7:00-16:00 Nieuw Statendam Rotterdam, Netherlands South Holland 7:00-16:00 Noordam Vancouver, BC Canada 7:00-16:00 Oosterdam Santorini, Greece 10:00 - 21:00 Rotterdam At Sea Destination Eidfjord, Norway Hardangerfjord eta 05-06 Volendam Quebec City, Canada 07:00 - 16:00 Westerdam At Sea Destination Kodiak Island, Alaska eta 05-06 Zaandam Glacier Bay, Alaska 0700-1600 Zuiderdam At Sea Destination San Juan, Puerto Rico eta 5/8

Thank you so much! We can't wait!

Well, we moved from the place we were staying because our host was defensive about our complaint. He seemed to think live roaches in the bedroom on the bed and on the wall was okay because "Have you ever been to Florida before" was his first comment. He claimed to have had the house sprayed "last week" but wouldn't bugs be dead or lying on their backs dying if they were seen by us this week? That's how it usually works. He claimed no one had ever complained of roaches before. Hmmm. I guess they just moved in yesterday. He said he'd refund us the next two nights if we wanted to move on. So we talked it over and found a hotel suite with two separate rooms for sleeping and packed up in 20 minutes. Notified him and he initiated a refund for 2 nights. It will cost us more but no roaches in the hotel. We just didn't like his attitude towards us. Tonight we have dinner with the whole crowd again at a nice Italian restaurant. Graduation tomorrow but I think DD said you have to wait outside the venue an hour or so prior to them allowing us in so we don't end up in nosebleed alley in the top row.

Kentucky Derby Today is International Firefighters Day, International Respect for Chickens Day, and National Business Broker's Day Life imitates art far more than art imitates Life. - Oscar Wilde Meal Suggestion for today - Crispy Cod with Charred Snow Peas & Creamy Herb Sauce Drink of the Day - Strawberry Splash Wine of the Day - Zuccardi 2019 Tito Malbec-Cabernet Franc (Paraje Altamira) Destination of the Day - Klaipeda, Lithuania Today in History: 1979 Margaret Thatcher becomes the first woman to be elected Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Ship Locations Eurodam Seattle, Washington 7:00-15:00 Koningsdam Vancouver, BC Canada 7:00-16:00 Nieuw Amsterdam At Sea Destination Vancouver, BC Canada eta 05-05 Nieuw Statendam At Sea Destination Rotterdam, Netherlands South Holland eta 05-05 Noordam At Sea Destination Vancouver, BC Canada eta 05-05 Oosterdam Katakolon, Olympia, Greece 12:00 - 18:00 Rotterdam Rotterdam, Netherlands South Holland 7:00-15:00 Volendam Montreal, Quebec Canada 7:00-15:00 Westerdam At Sea Destination Kodiak Island, Alaska eta 05-06 Zaandam Skagway, Alaska 06:30 - 21:00 Zuiderdam At Sea Destination San Juan, Puerto Rico eta 5/8