Cruisercl

2 hours ago, Hogladyrider said:

Agree to disagree it should have been emptied by Mom's crew.....look at it this way.....a possible bonus coming your way for emptying the storage shed!

Agree.

It  can be pretty bad when you walk into a newly bought home and the previous owners crap is still there. It can be nasty stuff, happened to my sister.

On that note, starting HH now........happy Friday everyone!! 🍷

I have done it in Miami - Celebrity to NCL.

It was no issue, took a taxi, had big luggage.

A fare for the taxi driver is better than just waiting in line....

I tipped well.

Have fun!

Good Saturday to everyone,

@smitty34877, very sad news for you and your family. Prayers and peace be with DH, you and your family during this difficult time. 

@marshhawk, Happy, happy anniversary! Great ideas for special anniversary gifts to each other. 

No comments needed on the weather here because we are getting a nice Fall week here, now how long that will last IDK. OK, that's my only weather comment.

I am terrible at Sudoko so don't even attempt it any more.

Sometimes I think I am a weirdo but the wonderful part may be debated..lol.🙂

Not a quinoa fan, I tried to like it but it just wasn't there for me.

I do not remember ever having a teddy bear, we had dolls we cuddled when we were young. I also had a stuffed kitty which sat cutely on my daily made bed.

I have been to all of the towns listed today, on a Med cruise. Beautiful and historic places. The wonderful pictures bring back good memories. Thanks to those who posted them.

My thanks to all of the contributors here, big and small, informative, funny and just because things. All are welcomed.

I wish safe and fun travels to all who are traveling; travel is why we are all here and what we have in common mostly.

@rafinmd hope you will recover soon; take it easy on yourself to help healing.

Prayers for all of us; special and blessed prayers especially for baby Murphy and Lou.🙏

Celebrate all joys in your life they are well deserved.

Have a good rest of the WE and take care all,

Caron

Thank you so much Megan for the great review!

Safe travels....😎

12 hours ago, bennybear said:

@marshhawk I’m sorry that nurse added to your pain.  I remember when my brother was dying asking for some more pain meds  and being told by a nurse he could get addicted.    

Unbelieveable! So sorry.

1 hour ago, MeganGC1983 said:

Oh for sure but maybe don’t do the ATV excursion at 65. No judgement on age, just thoughts. 

Or in a third world country......just sayin.

14 hours ago, MeganGC1983 said:

Then we walked into what was trying to be a fight outside Havana bar. 

Is this is what is meant by Carnival Classy? Sheesh...

23 hours ago, MeganGC1983 said:

Stewart took our laundry. And our luggage tags are here. 😞

The sad getting your luggage tags day.....😥

8 hours ago, marshhawk said:

I have 15 minutes before im back on the clock, but wanted to share two things.

 

I love hummus.  I hate chickpeas. to me it is a texture thing.  Slimy little buggers.  I used to laugh at my old room mate when she said she didn't like lobster or crab, because it was a texture thing.  Silly girl. I so get it.  I,  of course do not have a problem with the texture of crab or lobster (except for the outside...LOL)

 

When my father was in the final stages of life, his body told him or stopped him from swallowing food.

His doc recommended that we insert a feeding tube, and chances were 50/50 that either he would start eating again, or be fed the rest of his life with the tube.  4 weeks later, he developed severe edema,  and on my last visit to see him, he was bleeding from nose, mouth, tube.   I have no idea how or when that happened, as I had talked to him two days prior.  But two days after I got there he died.

 

After he passed, with my father lying in front of me, the nurse grabbed my arm, and told me what an idiot I was for trying to keep my father alive.  The doctor shouldn't  have made that decision, and I should not have gone along with it.  All you did, she said, was make your father suffer. 

 

So, its not just doctors who lay guilt on those making the decisions.  I will always remember that day, and the evilness in her voice. (dad passed in 1998).  He, in my opinion was not old. Only 81.I think he may have stood a chance of eating again, but perhaps he needed more attention that he was getting at the nursing home he was in.

 

two minutes left-sea tac airport hotel, Holiday Inn express-they shuttled us to the ship, they shuttled us to restaurants in the area.  since Covid who knows.

 

hugs, and back to work.

 

 

@marshhawk I am so sorry about the nurse that spoke to you like that when your father was severely ill. Very unethical and shameful. End of life decisions are not easy and certainly not the decision of a nurse. I am a nurse and am quite embarrassed at times by a nurse and their behaviors. They are not educated alot in end of life treatments so she was putting her own opinion on the situation. Your opinion should have counted.

Doctors are usually trying to save a life with their decisions for treatments. Now I know not all doctors are great, trust me, but most want their patients to live.

Hello everyone,

@cruising sister thank you for the update on baby Murphy.

I am so sorry that sweet baby Murphy is still having problems.

I am going to play devil’s advocate here a bit. Palliative care does not mean do not treat so it appears they are treating her when and if things come up. This is a good thing. This means the surgeon has not given up on Murphy and wants to continue to treat her.

I for one am very happy to see this. I worked in critical care for over 25 years and have seen miracles. I have seen surgeons go to the mat for a patient and succeed when other areas of medical care have given up; it is not about ego. They do care a lot. The surgeon is the doctor in charge of the whole case, the palliative is a supportive team. I am pretty sure this high level of surgeon has seen this type of case before and knows how to treat it and has been successful and will not give up until there is nothing else that can be treated. It is really a fine tuning of a case such as this, looking at trends of numbers, labs, assessments etc.  It is not easy and it can be a long time for treatment, but it can work.

Medicine is not an exact science because every human body is different and reacts differently to medical cares.

That said, no one has ever said that surgeons have great bed side manner. IMO, outside of the patient care realm is where the big surgeon egos show up. The family, especially the mom, is exhausted and vulnerable. I am not going to second guess what he said or how he communicated with the mom, especially if her perception was that he was almost shaming her.

My questions would be, I wonder why he wanted to see the mom alone and I wonder where the negative thinking came from if not from the surgeon.  I am not involved so these are rhetorical questions here.

Continued prayers for Murphy, her parents, the family, and all of the people taking care of her.

Take care,

Caron

4 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

No options. I paid an extra $25 for them to book my first flight two days before the cruise but I had no say on the flights. I picked two days early in case they booked a flight that was too late for me to catch the train on monday or too late for me to do anything in Anchorage on Sunday.
 

As soon as I got the flights I knew the return

was a problem.. Well first it was so late it caused me to take another vacation day I hadn’t planned on. I wanted to get home on Monday so I could work on Tuesday not leave at 11:45pm on Monday and spend Tuesday traveling. I also expressed my concern about the making the connection in Toronto. I had a lot of back and forth in June with my NCL vacation planner and the NCL air department.

 

Ultimately I was told by the NCL Air department that they can book flights with as little as 30 minute layovers. My options were to cancel my entire itinerary and get back 50% of my money (went down to 25% shortly after that) or cancel the return flight and book my own but I don’t get any refund.
 

The return flight was the more expensive of the two so financially those options were all bad and would’ve made it more expensive than me just booking my own reasonable flights from the start.

 

Now I have also done carnivals fly2fun. I used that to Barcelona. With that I got to pick my flight. I actually booked my cruise then a month later went back and added the flight. Someone else on here indicated Princess is the same as carnival so maybe it’s all carnival brands.

 

Thanks for the explanation. Not a good program at all for the customer. You were stuck with NCL's poor processes and planning. Certainly a lesson learned for me. I haved sailed with NCL alot but never their fly program.

So sorry this happened to you, good thing you are flexible, not everyone can be.

Glad you are home safe and sound.

Thanks again for the great live review and pictorial! 😊

Just to be clear, because I have not done CO before, a person can call in advance to see if CO is available for the cruise you plan on booking? It would affect the category of stateroom you book, IMO. 

TIA.

No TA use here...

@MeganGC1983 great ongoing review!! 

Continued good fun and taking one for the career....

Admire your stamina. 😎

Prayers for Teo. 

8 hours ago, Riles34 said:

Nothing with United affected Greg today. And someone with a brain wouldn't do a 30 minute layover with customs. Yes, things happen but this could possibly have been avoided with NCL not making that flight. At least Greg has made it home with a minor hiccup, could have been sleeping at Pearson! 

Ugh. Off topic...  @Saint Greg sorry for the intrusion on your excellent review.

I have never used NCL for air travel but maybe you can answer my question. Are you offered different flight options? Can you refuse a flight and have them re-do it? I am sure the cost is a factor for different flights.

IMO air travel now is a crap shoot no matter who books it. 

TIA.

20 hours ago, AroundWithMAPTravels said:

Last week was first time on a HAL ship, Zaandam. I was puzzled by the antiquated use of paper (with carbon copies) for dinner orders in MDR.  For many years the other ships I have been on have used digital devices to track orders.( this also helped track dietary restrictions as well… no salt, GF, etc). My question is do all HAL ships use this antiquated method, or just the “older” ships, like Zaandam?
 

IMO, unless technology is 100% we will always have paper. Many issues with tech systems failing in many areas not just in the MDR on a cruise ship. Everyone has pretty much had a IT failure so paper back-up is needed, especially in a business.

Good question though. Less paper would be better for the environment but crusielines are usually very good about recycling.

On 9/3/2023 at 11:35 AM, SusieKIslandGirl said:

I think the only way to apply it to your cruise is to call. Then when you have all the details, you can say yes or no.

So, do you have any experience with calling about this, which is what my question was?

Great pictures of Sitka! 

Loved the SE; will look for it next I cruise AK.

On 8/30/2023 at 11:56 PM, SusieKIslandGirl said:

If you decide to do the lowest cabin grade and upgrade with Club Orange, call to make the upgrade as soon as possible. It is a capacity-controlled option. 

Do you know if you can call in advance to see if it is available?

TIA. 😊

26 minutes ago, MeganGC1983 said:

I obviously have to stop drinking and posting. Those were all supposed to be in the live not on the Tribe. Sorry y’all. 

NP, we liked it....😊

3 hours ago, maluhia87 said:

We headed north for the Minnesota State Fair tomorrow, so food-on-a-stick photos forthcoming. Only supposed to be 99°F tomorrow and we have sunscreen so should be an interesting day. Labor day will be spent driving home. 

Have fun at the fair! Didn't make it this year but have many others. It is always fun.

Excellent food on a stick....

Stay cool! 🍻 🧊

8 minutes ago, highscar said:

I understand even MM is not allowed on Holland America ships. 

That is true because other countries and even our Federal Government do not recognize it as legal. The states are doing their own thing without Fed government approval. It is a weird situation that affects the monetary issues that surround MJ. No banks can be involved in the money handling.

Good Saturday everyone!

Happy to hear some are having good things happen this week and should be celebrated.  I like good news!

I like bacon, do not like lamb so won't be making the recipes from @dfish though they look good, and do not have a beard.

@Quartzsite Cruiser very happy anniversary! Your time married is amazing.

@RMLincoln very happy happy birthday to you! Enjoy your day.

@smitty34877 not offended by the medical marijuana; if it helps that would be great. Lots of anecdotal use say that it does help. More research I am sure is in the process. It is legal here (MN) for medical and recreational use. The recreational use, when it gets to be too much, is when there are problems. IMHO. The state hasn't regulated the use of it well, so we will see what happens, recreational use was just put into law Aug 1st. Medical has been approved for a few years.

@Cruzin Terri a belated happy birthday to you! I hope you get to go out and enjoy your birthday dinner this evening.  Maybe you should try the medical marijuana, they say it helps! Too many obstacles for you lately and you deserve a break. 😉 

We are having ANOTHER heat bubble here for 4 days - temps 98-101F. I am over all of the heat this Summer! (whining).

Hope all that are traveling have safe and smooth travels.

Prayers for all in need and everyone else, we all could use some prayers at times.

Celebrate the all joys in your life. Thanks to all contributors here on this great thread. 😎

Take care and have a great rest of the Holiday WE.

Caron

Really enjoyed your glacier SE pics!

Alaska is rainy alot during cruise season, no matter what time you go.

Continue to enjoy and thanks for bringing us along. Good pictorial of it all. 😎

14 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

We will soon be sailing Oceania (balcony) for just about $300 per person per day - uncrowded, superior food included, access to smaller ports not accessible by the Walmarts of the Seas.

 

We used to enjoy Celebrity and HAL, but they have followed NCL and Carnival downhill.  Bigger is very rarely better.

Different products, you are comparing apples to oranges.

Very sad to hear about baby Murphy's status.

Continued prayers for her, her parents and the family. 🙏🙏