Sharon in AZ

Taormina is beautiful. I didn’t actually go into the town itself because I went on a wine tasting tour. So I don’t really know how long it takes to get there but it can’t be too far. These are the views from the ship. And this sign was posted near the tender drop off area.

I’m not sure if it’s changed but wine and soft drinks were complimentary in June last year on the Oosterdam in the Neptune Lounge. Not a huge selection but it was nice to go grab a glass of wine before heading out for the evening. Previous to that it was on an honor system and if you had anything you were charged but it seemed like a bigger selection. I haven’t sailed in a Neptune Suite since then so it’s possible that it’s changed. BTW, if you like the snacks and apps offered find out the hours that they offer them. Several times I’d go looking for chocolates and they were put away.

Thank you Nancy for your reply. It sounds interesting and I hope it’s offered on one of my upcoming cruises. I like spicy food. Maybe it will be offered again. It’s a shame that it isn’t advertised more. Your Pinnacle special meal and menu looked and sounds amazing. I agree, that was a big piece of tenderloin. Yes Bob, I get it. 😉. Loved that show.

I’ve been enjoying checking the menus on the Volendam. I am able to view them on the Navigator app since I have an upcoming cruise on the Volendam. Today they are having an Indonesian lunch in the MDR: @ottahand7 Nancy, did you have this for lunch? If so, did you enjoy it?

Good morning everyone and Happy Saturday. It is so nice to see the BHB’s all over the maps today. It is downright cold here at 28F. It’s going to be a cold week too. We decided to cover our plants last night and Blue couldn’t figure out what they were so barked like crazy at them when he went outside this morning. I have not been to Cannes so I’m enjoying all the pictures. I am picky about chicken so will pass on the meal suggestion. But I do like a crispy pan fried chicken cutlet and today Craig is planning on making some with mushroom Marsala sauce, extra mushrooms for me. It’s one of my favorite meals. Have a great day everyone!

If you have the Navigator app you can preview the menu that is happening on your upcoming cruise. It does have to be relevant to your cruise however. For example, I’m cruising in April on the Volendam and right now the Volendam is on the Grand South America so the dishes are a bit different. But if you are looking at say, Alaska, and you are on a cruise in June, you can check out the menus prior to that. The app shows the menu for the day so if your cruise repeats an itinerary it is easy to see what the menu looks like each day.

Hi Susan! I am also on the Volendam PC cruise and will be happy to meet up with you again.

Good morning. My post just went poof and it never restored like it usually does. Grrrrr. I won’t try to recreate it again but I was telling Annie @marshhawkwhat I like for lunch in the MDR. The apple bacon pannenkoek and the Cobb salad are good. The salad bar in the Lido is good too and customizable. We try to book specialty restaurants when the MDR menu isn’t appealing but that’s hard to predict ahead of time. If I can’t find anything I like for an entree on the MDR menu I make a meal out of appetizers and the Caesar salad and sometimes add salmon to the salad. Their salmon is always good. Carolyn @Cruising-along, I am so sorry to hear about your cousin and the results of the MRI yesterday. Prayers for you and your family. Have a great day everyone!

Yes I have to turn the knob. Gosh, I should have bought yours!

Sandi, this is the one I purchased thanks to Carolyn. I have severe arthritis in my hands and can use this.

I just checked the link that Sandi @StLouisCruisers shared and I didn’t post pictures that day. They are on our old hard drive so I won’t bother, anyway the ones already posted are better. Debbie @dfish, thank you for the recipes today. All of them look good.

Good morning everyone and Happy Thursday. Great collection of days today. I purchased the can opener recommended by someone here on the Daily and it works great, no more ragged edges on the cans. We mostly buy canned tomatoes and beans. Thank you to whoever recommended that can opener! We were in Kusadasi in 2001 on the Rotterdam. I’ll have to check if I posted pictures before. We really enjoyed our tour of Ephesus. The more recent photos posted have some sites that weren’t open when we were there. I spent a lot of time yesterday getting excursions and specialty dining scheduled yesterday for my PC cruise. I had added the HIA package so have $300 in excursions and 3 specialty dinners. I’m so happy that there are so many sea days, practically every other day is a sea day. I still have some excursion credit so I’ll work on that soon. Have a great day everyone!

Welcome to the Daily and thank you for your personal experience with your friend. Prayers for Kathi. 🙏

Bon Voyage! ⛴⛴⛴

It’s April 15, 21 days on the Volendam. The only thing I don’t like is that it’s an inside guarantee. I don’t mind the inside part but the guarantee part. But I got a great deal so can’t be picky. I know Craig wouldn’t like that or the length.

Hi Jacqui. Can you please add this cruise for me? Thank you!

Good afternoon! I spent most of the morning booking a Panama Canal cruise. Solo. Crazy. DH doesn’t want to go and be gone for that long. So I decided that I to just go by myself. I’ve done trips solo but this will be my first cruise solo. I’m excited. We are having leftovers today but really do enjoy Chicken Marsala. My preference is to make the chicken in a breaded Parmesan style and then top with the Marsala sauce, extra mushrooms please Prayers for all. Have a great day everyone!

Good morning everyone and Happy Sunday. The rain we are expecting hasn’t arrived yet except for some sprinkles. It sure is cloudy and windy though. I will pass on the meal suggestion. Not sure what I’ll make today. I have a few options in the fridge. My pita came out good although they are a little thicker than they should be. Next time I’ll try to make them thinner. Terri @Cruzin Terri, welcome home! Terry @smitty34877, prayers for Tana. I hope you can get some rest today after the rough night you had. Graham @grapau27, I’m sorry about the death of the lady in your church. Have a great day everyone!

You can set up a HAL account without your booking number I believe but even better…… If you can get the booking number from him you can access the cruise information even before final payment. It’s kind of fun poking around at the itinerary and other things. Just an idea. I’m sure it’s hard when you are not the one booking everything.

Annie, you can preorder water. Log into your account on the HAL website (not the Navigator app), pull up your booking and choose manage my booking. Then go to the beverages: Select water, three will show. One is distilled, one is bottled and one is canned. I prefer this one: You can also order it once onboard by calling room service. 6 bottles were plenty for the two of us taking our meds morning and night for 14 days.

Good evening. We, we’ll really Craig, started putting away the Christmas decorations. He takes them off the tree and I have to pack them away. Tomorrow we are expecting rain for 3 days and much cooler temperatures. The rain will be nice. Blue has to wear a T-shirt since he’s hairless but I don’t call it dressing up. The meal suggestion sounds really good. I’ve never made it myself though. Annie @marshhawk, we started having our big meal at lunch time when Craig retired. Breakfast is on our own and we usually just have a snack or leftovers for dinner. Joy @Seasick Sailor, enjoy the last segment of your cruise. That’s terrible about your friend getting hurt opening the heavy door. I know I always have trouble with them myself even in the best of weather. Have a good evening everyone!

Jacqui, the one time that I was treated onboard by the medical center I was given a paper receipt and paperwork for filing insurance. It never showed up on the Navigator app or final statement. This was on the Koningsdam October 2021.

Good morning everyone and Happy Thursday. After several good nights of sleep I had a bad one last night. So while I was awake I read the Daily and was finally able to get about an hour of sleep before I heard Craig leave to run errands. Craig only drinks hot tea and Earl Grey is his favorite. Pharmacists are really important and even more so now that they give us our covid boosters. I think I’ll pass on the HH, however I have made a chili Mac that is probably very similar. Today I’m making hummus with spiced ground beef. I made the pita bread last night. First time making it and it was so easy. I hope they have the traditional pocket. I’ll try to take a picture. Happy Birthday @ottahand7! What a wonderful cruise to celebrate your birthday. Jacqui @kazu, I hope your luggage turns up soon. Are you in a cast or a sling? Graham @grapau27, thank you for keeping us posted on Sarah’s condition. I would have chosen the injections also. Have a great day everyone!

Jacqui @kazu, so glad you are home safe and sound. Rest up and take it easy. The tales your wandering bag could tell! Thank you to Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser, Sandi @StLouisCruisers, Graham @grapau27, Vanessa @JazzyV, Annie @marshhawk for their good wishes for Blue yesterday. Thank you Terry. He doesn’t quite understand why his dry food is soaked and soft and that his treats are soft. Thank you Annie. I’m sure having the teeth removed like your DH had done was much more difficult. Thank you Lenda. Maxine, I actually asked our vet if I should switch to wet food and she said no. But I do think I might continue with half his food being soft. He has to have soft food for two weeks. I just soak the dry food with a bit of water for about 10 minutes. They did tell me (this was a few months ago) to get rid of all the hard toys and chew sticks. So now the hardest thing we give him is a piece of chicken strip that we get from Trader Joe’s. Maybe I should stop that too. I have never been able to brush his teeth so I make sure he has his dental scaling done every 3 - 4 months. After paying yesterday’s vet bill, Craig said children and pets are expensive. 😉 Graham, I am so sorry Sarah is going through this. Our DD had epilepsy as a child/adolescent and it was really stressful and difficult. Thankfully she outgrew it but she was on medication for quite a while.

Good morning everyone and Happy Wednesday. Little kids like to splash in puddles. I don’t know Morse code. We love lasagna and make one with a bolognese and bechamel sauce. It is very time consuming so we don’t make it very often. On our cruises since shutdown all the BHB’s we’ve been on have had it on the menu and quite frequently. It’s very similar to the lasagna in Canaletto, if not identical. I had it whenever I didn’t like anything on the menu. The first two pictures are from Club Orange, two different evenings: This is from Canaletto: Blue seems better today. Yesterday he was very restless and whimpering a lot but he slept good overnight. Graham @grapau27 prayers for your Sarah. I hope a diagnosis and treatment is made soon. Happy Birthday to Ren Sandi @StLouisCruisers! 🎈🎈🎈 Prayers for Jacqui and Kathi. Have a great day everyone!