StLouisCruisers

I don’t have any photos of the ship but did visit my friend in a Vista suite room and their TV was a wall mounted larger TV on the wall opposite the bed. Public areas have brand new carpet. The chairs in the MDR look brand new. Carpet in our oceanview room looks new. Bathroom mirror is very nice. It has lights in the mirror so well lit. Instead of a tub we have a full shower with glass doors. Too hot for me to walk the promenade in the Amazon bit I plan on doing it before we get off.

@MISTER 67I'm glad to hear you are back on the golf course. All is right with the world once again! Well looks like I don't need to try to find photos of La Rochelle anymore. Thanks to Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser , Graham @grapau27 and Terry @smitty34877. That was another great cruise on the Prinsendam. We did tender over to Alter do Chao and it was another day struggling with docks not at the right height and extreme heat. I wish we could send a little up north to melt some of that snow some of you are having. There was a woman sitting next to us who looked to be about 90 with a walker. I swear that even with the two step box they put into place there was at least a 2 foot step up to the dock. People had to haul this older lady up onto the dock. Then at the end of the wooden ramp was sand that was very difficult to walk through even for us. I think there were a lot of people unable to navigate the conditions here. We ended up walking down a long street to a square, went into the church and saw a stray dog lying in the aisle. He scratched himself for a while and got up and walked out the open doors. I guess he comes inside to cool off for a bit. Then we headed back to the tenders and sweated the whole way back to the ship. Came back and had to shower and dry out our clothes we wear to walk in the heat. No getting all spiffy in this climate! I was dreaming of Norway and Antarctica as we slowwwly tendered back to the ship. Hot climates aren't my favorite!

Good morning friends! We arrived today in Alter do Chao to rain but it seems to be dry out there right now. If we tender over to shore we won't be staying long. I noticed today is La Rochelle, France and that was a port on our European rivers cruise in Sept. 2018. However trying to get those photos on DH's tiny travel laptop is a real chore. Shutterfly doesn't want to load them. I can see some photos on my phone but can't get a great look at the tiny thumbnail photos, so quite a chore. I see Graham's photos and it does bring some memories to mind. Anyway, this is a first time post for La Rochelle so no link required today to Rich's post. Maybe we will go to shore now, and check back in later. If I can get any photos posted I'll do it then. Meanwhile, prayers for all in need and cheers for all celebrating. 🥂 Hope your day is a good one!❤️

Congrats on your niece’s engagement! To get the blue bubble as we call it, type @ and the person’s log in name exactly as they show it. Names should pop up directly below it and you can then click on the appropriate name. Having an avatar picture helps choose the correct one immensely.

My dinner reservations and shore excursions showed up on the itinerary section on my Nav. App. They stuck around too and didn’t come and go like some have said.

We’re on Volendam right now. Service is wonderful (though it did take 3 tries to find the right waiter in MDR) and the ship is being maintained well. Since we’re in the Amazon we didn’t fuss about our ice cold stateroom because it’s better than a hot stuffy room. We just got an extra blanket or two. You’ll have a great time!

Hello all, Thank you @summer slopeDixie for the photos taken today in Santarem. That heat was really draining and we napped for quite a while after lunch. When we were waiting for a tender to return to the ship one of those large local tenders arrived at the dock and no one could get off due to the height difference of the dock and their floor level. What a mess that was! We never did see anyone get off. I'm sure it was a tour group. Hope to hear on the ship how that all turned out. By the way when we got back to our room after getting off our tender, a male nurse was standing outside the room next to us. Uh, oh! We asked one of our room stewards if he was allowed in that room now and he said no. We're back to wearing our masks walking around the ship. @marshhawkAnnie, I feel sorry for you having to see all those ads for the runoff. We checked Informed Delivery and our absentee ballots arrived at our home a few days ago. Not much help to us as they would have had to arrive by Nov. 17 in order for us to fill them out. @JazzyVVanessa, my sympathy on the passing of your BFF's DF last night. I'm sure you're both glad you got back to spend his final days with him. I hope the planning wasn't as bad you had thought it would be. @ottahand7Nancy, sorry to hear of all the problems with your DB's pic line. I hope things start to improve at a faster rate for him. He's certainly had a lot of problems with this. Unfortunately, I've run out of time and get myself out of the door. Keeping busy here. Thanks for all the nice comments about twin's anniversary and the photo of Dixie and I. We had fun chatting and the guys did too.

Sandi and Dixie in Ocean Bar. 🥂

Good morning friends! It's 9 am here in Brazil but we are at our port of Santarem 3 hours early since they made good time last night. When we tender to shore we will take a port shuttle to Fisherman Square and walk around the city. From yesterday, I want to repeat a message or two that were lost somehow. The Volendam has new TVs now and I was able to find the officers on it. The CD is Ryan Baird, but his bio was missing from the list. He mentioned once this week that he lived in Ukraine and when he boarded this ship he met a Ukrainian crew member. Comparing cities they found that they actually lived in the same area, then street, then apartment building. Small world isn't it? I also wanted to send my regards to Vanessa as she and her BFF make the difficult decision about BFF's DF. Never easy. Last evening we spent some time with Dixie @summer slopeand her DH before Dennis and I went to dinner. We had some great discussions and hope to be able to do that again very soon. I have a photo which is on my phone so will post it next. Prayers for all on our Care list and cheers 🥂to all on the Celebration list. Port for today is Port Louis, Mauritius which was our port on Dec. 14, 2021. I haven't been there before. Here is the link to Rich's post from that date. Have a wonderful day! Happy anniversary wishes to my twin and her DH. 53 years just like my hubby and I. They married 13 weeks after we did.

Lucky for you I surreptitiously took a photo from the front row in the World Stage this morning of Ryan and Naki Ataman. I don’t know Ryan’s last name and HAL doesn’t advertise the staff’s full names much like Princess does. Taken from my IPhone and no editing done to the photo so excuse my photography.

Seeing all the nasty discussion in the other thread about water being turned off on Koningsdam in the wee hours of the night and certain people up in arms about it, I've decided I'll post my update here instead! We have a notice at our door that states they will conduct a potable water shutdown in our section for three hours between 1 pm and 4 pm today. That's not the middle of the night when most of us are asleep, so I can just see the uproar this would cause for some people, but we are adjusting just fine to the news. Shower beforehand. Use your HIA and order water or wine or cocktails! We will live through it - somehow...😁

Lunch was not available in the MDR on Nov. 19 on Volendam. Due to Coast Guard inspections and other technicalities due to the ship coming into the U.S. for the first time in several years, the ship had their hands full that day. We all embarked a little later than normal too.

Have a wonderful cruise, @MISTER 67!

The “bustling” port of Macapa, Brazil.

Good morning friends! It's warm and sticky outside but I stepped outside after breakfast and snapped a couple of photos of Macapa. Not much to say about it, that's for sure! It's definitely a scheduled service call. As I mentioned in yesterday's Daily just before Rich posted today's Daily, there was an announcement that the Coffee Chat with CD Ryan had a change in the guest. The doctor would not be the one chatting it up with us (hoping nothing terrible is happening down the hall in the Medical Center), and instead the guest would be pianist Naki Ataman. So I ran down there and sat in the front row. Near the end I mentioned I had a friend from Abilene who had met him while they were cruising and highly recommended going to his performances. I gave first names of Lenda and Steve saying hi. And by the way, what was your connection to Abilene. He laughed and said yes it's surprising how many people he's met over his many years from Abilene. He then told everyone he had been an exchange student in Big Springs. Everyone enjoyed that information, since he hadn't mentioned it earlier. He's a very nice person and I'm sure we will enjoy the second show, which he said is even harder to perform than the first one. Limassol, Cyprus was our port of the day on May 25, 2021. Here is the link to that date's post. I haven't been to Limassol before so thanks everyone who posted photos. Lenda has been there before so hopefully she can post hers again.

Talking about roof leaks reminds me. DD and DSIL saw a drip in their garage ceiling onto DSIL's new truck. Went upstairs and found their garden tub above it must be the culprit. A plumber came, cut out a hole in the ceiling, then a hole in the panel beside the tub, etc. If you don't use the tub the glue the builder used on the piping cracks and water leaks eventually happen. Now they have to repair the pipes, replace the insulation, clean up the mold inside the drywall, and repair the stained ceiling plus the painting involved. Water is the enemy of our homes they say. Well Ryan the cruise director just announced a change in guests for the coffee chat this morning. Instead of the doctor he will have Naki Ataman so I have to run now. Want to hear him answer questions and hopefully give him Lenda's message. (I'm a little shy). Not good to hear the doctor had to cancel last minute though. Hope it's nothing serious!!

Bon voyage!!

The Volendam is moving slowly along as we head into the Amazon and stop in Macapa for pilots and money managers (haha) tomorrow morning. Lenda @Quartzsite Cruisergreat photos today of Vietnam. Sorry about your roof leak. Always an annoyance. And I hope Steve is coming home as scheduled next week. Joy @Seasick Sailorcongrats to the family on Baby Ethan's birth! @Cruising-alongRogue and Pepper look so cute together. Looks like a friendship happening there. Welcome to @lobsternight! Glad you found us! Graham @grapau27looks like a nice dinner! @AncientWandererHarvard, eh? I'll keep you posted. More scouting events happening coming up soon, such as in Palm Springs in about 2 weeks. They might have many offers coming. Looks like Michigan ran away with it at the end. Congrats to the Wolverines and the Dawgs for winning their games. Condolences to the Buckeyes including our DD.😢 Off to the Ocean Bar before dinner!!

Got it. You have mail now too!

I think I would agree with you on this. Soccer careers don’t last forever and he could go to college later. It’s very lucky he has both brains and abilities. Nancy @ottahand7thanks for the reminder on the Ohio State -Michigan game. Since our two graduated from these two universities we have the annual problem of who we root for. Let’s just say may the best team win! DH is rooting for Georgia too! So Go Blue, Go Buckeyes and Go Dawgs!

These photos are so beautiful! Once in a lifetime experience. Thanks for sharing them and I hope you continue to enjoy your cruise. 🛳️

Terry, Terri, and Ann, I agree it's exciting news for those two boys. They are only 15 and have a few years before the professional teams would put them on their team, but they would be training with them preparing for the "major leagues". My only concern is they would not be going to college. Colton is fine with that but I think his whole life Ren expected to go to college. He has parents with Ph.D.s as well as two grandparents and two aunts with Ph.D.s so academia has been a part of his life since birth. Ren and Colton are big time scorers, and since they've joined the Jaguars that team has shot up in the rankings because of them. Their former Scottish coach taught the Tigers to go into every game expecting to win, and they did almost every time. I'm not surprised the scouts were impressed. Such a big decision to make though.

You're finally back on a ship, Father! Bon Voyage!

Good morning friends! It is 9:30 am here in the what the cruise line calls the Barra Norte Sea and later into the Barra Norte River. I plan on attending the port talk for Alter do Chao and Parintins at 11 am. Last night we finally found a decent table away from constant traffic and two very nice and seemingly experienced waiters. Only took a week! They tell us early seating is packed and we are in a half empty dining room for late dining. Happy to hear @seagarsmokeris feeling better. It does sound like the USA soccer (football) team needs some scorers. I'd send Ren and friend Colton to help out but they are not grown men yet and need a little aging on them. I haven't mentioned it but Ren and Colton were spotted by scouts and invited to Dallas to train for a week with the professional soccer team there. They went with their mother's as guardians two weeks ago and the team have offered them a spot on their youth league team Big decision whether they want to move down there. No decision yet because other teams are considering them too. I was able to update my spreadsheet this morning on DH's computer and noted that yesterday's port of Vigo, Spain was a repeat from Feb. 14, 2022. Today's port of Halong Bay, Vietnam was our port on Dec. 13, 2021. I have not been there but Lenda has so if she doesn't have time to post I will be happy to do it for her later. It might be after the port talk though. I think I'll order Onion soup for dinner this evening to get into the spirit of the day. Prayers for all on the Care list and cheers to the happy celebrants and cruisers. Thanks to Rich and Roy, Dixie, Ann and Debbie and all others who contribute here each day. Make it a great Saturday folks!

Bon voyage!!