WCB

Greetings, In regards to the tunnels in Dover, we gathered our info in the Museum as well as talking to the official at the terminal who related some of the tunnel history. If you heard it differently, then whatever. Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 109 Tuesday April 18, 2023 Amsterdam, Netherlands 8am-Overnite Leave 5pm April 19, 2023 Docked Port Side To Pier Some Sun And Overcast Skies 42-52 Degrees Part #1 Of 4.........66 Pictures One of us was up around 4am and watched the entrance into the lock on the way to Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Despite the darkness, it was still interesting until the coldness got the better of him. At 5:45am, Ian gave a scenic sail-in commentary from the Crow’s Nest, also heard on the promenade deck. A special treat of “anniversary rolls” was served during that time. Of course, they were really Panama rolls, which our trusty morning waiters saved for us. This special day, April 18th, was the same day in 1873 that the Holland America Line was born. Originally a cargo and passenger line taking immigrants from Europe to North America, the line has become one of the world’s longest serving and most loved cruise line. So today will be a busy one, beginning with the President’s Club members and Pinnacle Suite guests gathering in the Rolling Stone Lounge at 12:30pm. We will be bussed to the city of Rotterdam, and be guests of Hotel New York, the original building of the HAL cruise line. Then at 3pm, we will listen to a presentation, hear remarks, and witness a gift given to the citizens of the Netherlands. At one point, we will raise our glasses in a toast to celebrate this milestone, according to the printed invitation. We will depart the hotel at 4:15pm and re-join the coach for the ride back to the ship in Amsterdam. We should get back in time for the Gala Dinner tonight in the dining room, as well as be present for the for the Lido party from 8 to midnight. However, that is not exactly how it happened, but we will explain a bit later. After breakfast, we worked online to keep the blog up to date. While we were busy with that, we also watched a huge delivery of flowers, several large pots planted with blooming tulips, and even some planter boxes. Stacks of extra chairs were off-loaded, not to mention more food products and fresh produce. We wondered if those 2023 GWV duffels bags were in the delivery. We suspect the flowers, chairs, and planters will have to be returned tomorrow. There were also two different security dogs sniffing everything before it was loaded onboard. The suggested attire was “dressy”, so we had to change to something nice, but also warm. The temperature was in the low 50’s, but with the wind blowing, it dropped it even further. Cut right through anything we had on. Our group began gathering after 12:30pm, but all did not arrive until closer to 1pm. The slower walkers of the group went first, since there was a long walk to get off of the ship and through the terminal. The rest of us followed in the rear. Once down the escalator or elevator, we turned left and went directly to the buses in the garage area. We estimate there may have been 50 of us, and we had plenty of space with two coaches. The buses left the garage about 7 minutes late, which wasn’t bad since they had to load the walkers and wheelchairs as well. No motorized scooters were allowed. The ride to Rotterdam took all of one hour and a half, getting us there by 3pm. This was the better part of the tour since we got to see much of the countryside once we were out of the city. It was more like farming country with sheep, cows, geese and ducks. Big stretches of green fields went on for miles. And we took freeways most of the time. We did spot four McDonald’s and a few Starbucks on the way. This freeway was full of big rigs, so their stops at gas stations seemed to come with the coffee and fast foods. The closer we got to the city of Rotterdam, we began to see many high rises, some of which were ultra- modern in design. When some huge bridges came into sight, we knew we were close to the New York Hotel on the river. The traffic at this point prevented a quick access to this spot. As we disembarked the coach, we heard walking drummers and a three-person stilt walker characters parading up and down the street with flashing hand fans. Dressed in costumes like peacocks with painted faces, they must have been street performers. Later on, we discovered these performers were mermaids, all female, and were here for the special celebration. Some ladies were also dressed in period dresses from the 1800’s, posing for the tourists. The Rotterdam was docked right there, walking distance to the Hotel New York. Lucky them. Later on, we were told there were only two President’s Club members from that ship at this event. Our buddy Lyn knew both of them, and they said no one else was invited but them and some of their officers. Upon entering the famous hotel, we had to be checked off of their list, where we were handed a card showing where we were to be located – section C2…..seated. Fighting a clogged entryway, we made our way to the restrooms first, which were down a steep flight of stairs. Coming back up, we picked up a half-full glass of bubbly wine and were offered some pretty strange looking canapies of raw salmon and something brown on a slice of toast. We passed on the food. We could see the area where the seating was filling up, and proceeded to find a chair. We were stopped before we could do that and asked to leave our glasses on a tray. They were not allowed in the seating area. By the time we took one gulp, we found most of the chairs were occupied. We got the last two, but Bob and Martha had no seats. There were several others of our group without seats. Bill offered his to Martha, who said no, she would find one on another aisle. Bob stayed in the back row without a chair. Cameramen were also crowded at the back wall. At least one third of the seating was filled with local people we were told. Not anyone associated with the cruise line. These folks almost knocked us over to get to the drinks and canapies. There was no excuse for not having enough seating for this event, since the number of guests from the Zuiderdam had been given to them weeks ago. The lower front and center section was reserved for other dignitaries, which was appropriate. We have to mention here that at no time was there a mention of our group of President’s Club members being here. No recognition at all. Promptly at 3pm, a speaker announced the beginning of the presentation, but first please stand for the Royal Princess Margarite of the Netherlands as she entered the room with her entourage. Then the show began. The family of the original owners of the HAL company spoke, followed by the new president, Gus Antorcha. He is very new to the team, having worked less than a year now. At one point, a special framed certificate was given the archives of the company, a gift to the people. The mayor of Rotterdam was also a special guest. A new stamp was unveiled, and finally a toast was made by three people pouring champagne over a ship’s bell. There was no toast for the rest of the seated crowd since we had no glasses. Honestly, we were just there to clap for the big wigs. At the end of the event, several officers from both ships, the Rotterdam and the Zuiderdam walked across the upper level behind the stage which was made to look like a ship’s promenade deck. They tossed over the streamers like they did in the old days. Then the show was over. Then an announcement came saying the folks from the Zuiderdam should leave to join their coaches, while the remainder of the guests could stay until 4:45pm. By the way, there were only a few passengers from the Rotterdam ( only two President’s Club members) which was docked directly across the street. As we left the hotel, we were handed a gift bag with a commemorative book all about the 150 year history of the cruise line. When the majority of us got outside, it was freezing with a strong wind blowing. We all checked our watches and the time was only 3:40pm. We had over a half hour before the buses would arrive. Eventually one of the front desk folks arrived and brought us to the parked buses around the corner. Since not all of us were there, we had to wait, wondering where they had gone. It turned out that after most of us left, more hot and edible canapies came out, and the wine was poured as well, mostly for those that were not part of our group. The few of our folks that had stayed at the hotel until it was close to 4:15pm ended up enjoying the food and drinks . They really got teased when they boarded since none of us knew more food and wine was being served. In hind site, we feel HAL should have provided an escort from the ship on both of the buses, telling us the procedure once we arrived at the hotel. We had no directions, nor did we expect a flight of stairs to enter the building. That was most difficult for the guests who really needed a better way to access the building. It was a melee once we entered the hotel, and it was pretty much downhill from there. This was not just our opinion, it was the consensus of many of our guests. The ride back took longer of course, since it was commute time. We have seen worse traffic at home, but at least we were moving even if at times, it was slow. The general comments from the back of the bus were that this event was underwhelming at best. It was a long way to travel for a half hour talk. Anyway, it was a good chance to catch a few winks, which several of the fellows did. We got back to Amsterdam by 6pm , and happy to be home. For a change, we had double whiskey and scotch drinks with tortilla chips, since we had missed lunch. That would tide us over until dinnertime, which was advertised as being a uniquely crafted artisan Gala Dinner in the dining room. Upon being handed the one page menu, we were surprised to see only four appetizers, four mains, and the regular offerings of desserts. Maybe we missed something, but at least there were a few items that looked good. The tomato soup was different, even better than normal, the salad was passable, and the beef entrée was tender, and tasty but cold by the time the plates were served. It wasn’t just us, it was our entire table. One of our entrees had not arrived with the rest, so Bill had the tomato soup, which should have gone to Barb, but arrived too late. She offered it to Bill, so her steak would not get cold. Didn’t matter….it was already cold. Bill ended up passing on the entrée and was happy with the soup. Crazy….. Dessert was back to normal, and two small plates of chocolates from Jacques Torres were placed on the table for us to share. Remember when we got these every formal night? Now that is a thing of the past. The Grand Party Lido Poolside had already started at 8pm with music by the Tiny Big Band, a local group. This is where a fine selection of complimentary drinks, appetizers, and sweets would be available. This would last until 11pm with an after party until midnight. When the word “free” is added to drinks, you better believe the guests will turn out in large numbers. By the time we arrived, there wasn’t a seat left in the entire pool area, and was shoulder to shoulder packed. You couldn’t see the decorations for all the tea in China, which was the only reason we went up there…to take some photos. At 9:45pm, Gus Antocha, President of HAL, was scheduled to give an anniversary toast with remarks at this affair. Since we had already heard the speech in Rotterdam, we got the “heck out of Dodge”, and retreated to our room for the evening. It had been a very long day, but also nice for the birthday boy who did receive several cards, one of which came from the entire front desk staff. What was missing was the birthday cake at dinner. Guess we had to mention his birthday to our waiters, who usually automatically got that message. Funny story: one of our travel hosts had stopped by to wish Bill a happy birthday, and Gene said when he had his celebration at the dinner table last month, his tablemates ordered a different little cake instead of the chocolate mousse one. Unknown to him, it came with an extra charge, which his tablemates paid. It was a banana cake, which Gene did not like, but never admitted. Cannot believe the guests are being charged for something as simple as that. It wasn’t that long ago when we ordered a full- size cake like strawberry, lemon cream, or even pineapple upside down cake. No charge. Those were the days my friends. Lo and behold, when we returned to our room, we had gifts on the bed……the missing duffel bags with the 2023 GWV logo on them. Bet these were in today’s delivery with the flowers and such. When we unfolded one of them, they appeared to be too large to use as an airline carry-on. Useful in other ways though. At least we have tomorrow to explore Amsterdam because we are here overnight. Bill & Mary Ann PS We were given a note this morning saying we would be without telephone service in our rooms and everywhere else on the ship all day. That was a first. Guess that was something else broken and needed repairing.

Report #108 Monday April 17, 2023 Zeebrugge, Belgium 8am-4:30pm Docked Starboard Side To Pier Overcast, Windy And Cool Sun Late Afternoon 42-52 Degrees Part #1 Of 3........66 Pictures Belgium is loaded with medieval towns of castles, belfries, war memorials, museums, and hip cafes canals, and step-gabled houses. They are a country of 11.4 million folks that speak Dutch, French, or German, depending on what part of the border you are located. They are known for waffles, chocolate, frites (fries) mussels and frothy beer. And did we say chocolate? It’s big here. Brussels is the capital and has the largest medieval Grand Palace and square with gabled guild houses, and a 15th century Town Hall. The cobblestones of this plaza were laid in the 12th century and provided the area for a marketplace. Bruges, close to Zeebrugge, is the ultimate picture-perfect tourist city. Other attractions are the city of Antwerp and Flanders Fields with WW I graveyards. And not to be missed is the Carnival in Binche, where at Mardi Gras time, locals dress in barrel costumes with bells, wear spooky masks, and feathered hats. At the height of the festival, they throw oranges at passer-by folks. Whatever floats their boat…..Can’t be much different than the celebration of the tomato harvest in Italy, where they throw ripe tomatoes at everyone. Some of the tours offered out of Zeebrugge were Bruges on your own for $80 for 7 hours. Romantic Bruges was $130 for 4 ¾ hours, while Bruges horse-drawn carriage ride tour was $200 for 4 ½ hours. Bruges and Belgium chocolates was $120 for 5 hours, and Ypres and Flanders Fields was $120 for 5 hours. A Ghent Canal cruise was $100 for 5 hours. The Zuiderdam arrived in the early morning hour of 7am, and was docked by 8am. Shortly after that, the Sky Princess docked right behind us. It’s one of the newest ships in the fleet, launched in 2019. A large resort ship of 142,229 gross tons, this ship holds up to 3560 guests with a crew of 1346. The Zuiderdam is only 82,305 gross tons, and she must look small next to that ship. Another smaller cruise ship was also in the harbor, but too far to identify. It was disappointing to see so much heavy fog which was colder with the constant north wind. Sure reminded us of San Francisco in the summertime. The fog may lift by 4pm, but the temperature would stay cold. Going outside after breakfast, we saw the big crane that was going to lift some equipment into the opened magrodome over the Lido pool area. Actually it said it would be various decorative and entertainment supplies. We cannot imagine what they are going to build for a stage in that space. And here we were under the impression they have no money to do extra things…… Go figure….. In the meantime the deck in that area will be closed during those preparations. But there will be access to the Dive In Grill. It was really nice to hear that our morning waiters and some of their buddies had taken a mini van tour to London yesterday. Even though there was only enough time to do “drive-by” site-seeing, they were thrilled to be there. They had planned on a similar drive to Paris from Le Havre, France, but when it got cancelled, they organized this one. We stuck around until 11am, then went off bundled up wearing our arctic down jackets. We never took them off except during lunch. It was that cold out today. Once on the bus, we found there were maps of Blankenberge, the nearest resort area from the pier. The bus filled up and we left by 11:30pm, studying the map all the way. We were here in 2019, but we still needed to get our bearings. It took less than 20 minutes to reach this beachside town. By the way, there was a shuttle that would have taken folks to the pier gate, then they could hire taxis to go anywhere else. The drop-off was at St. Anthony’s Church directly across from the railway station. The majority of people were taking this train to Bruges, which saved them a lot of money doing independently. Heo and Greg were doing this and they said the train tickets cost less than 10 euro and could be purchased at the station. They just needed to watch the time, since all aboard was at 4:30pm today. We toured the church, then went off across the tram tracks to the pedestrian shopping area. There is a grid of streets here that are full of old colonial buildings and churches as well as modern day stores. The most popular stores were bakeries and chocolate shops. Like we said, chocolate is sacred here. It is said that in the early 1900’s the most prized Belgium chocolates were created by filling a chocolate shell with creamy flavored centers….thus the praline was discovered. Expensive? Yes, but none other can compare with the 100% cocoa butter delights where the vendors fill customized boxes for their customers. We know because we bought some of the sweets to take back to the ship and savor one at a time. We located the tourist information center, but entered just as they were closing for lunchtime. We still were able to pick up some brochures in the open lobby outside the main building. Speaking of closed, today is Monday, and many restaurants and some shops were closed. Weekends are big here, so they take off Mondays and sometimes Tuesday as well. There was a stairway that went up to the oceanside flanked with two large lion sculptures. That came out in the middle of a long beach, where a series of cafes and restaurants lined the sandy beach below. Every restaurant had a section of the beach that was fenced off with their tables and chairs for outdoor dining. Only a few were opened today since the season will not begin until the weather warms up. We checked out some the Italian cafes, but most of them were also closed. Before we left, we did do some research and found a pretty good spot near the marina. Hopefully we could locate it. We made it all the way to the lighthouse and the marina, where tucked way in the back were sailboats and small craft vessels. Few were actually sailing in the waters today. Making our way to Leopoldpark, a large area with a kids playground, golf putting, a restaurant, and a dog walking area, we took the time to study the map we were given. It appeared the street we were looking for was near this park. By sheer luck, we crossed the street with the tram tracks, and found the restaurant about across the street. The name was Al Piccolo Mondo, and they were open. We went inside where it was nice and warm, and found a table for two at the window. We ordered Duval beers and a Hawaiian pizza. Sure was good. Then we added one dessert to share which was chocolate ice cream with a chocolate fondant topped with a generous serving of whipped cream. Don’t know how one person could eat all of it. Once again , we found the price of 31 euro to be quite reasonable. Soon it was time to head back by the same way more or less than we had come here. Locating the main pedestrian street, we were back to the bus stop by 3pm. This time there were two coaches – one for us and the other for the Princess folks. It appeared some tour buses had stopped here as well. The ride was fairly quick back to the pier, but that’s when we recalled we had to switch buses at the gate. We figured we were OK to go straight to the ship when an official came onboard and checked all of our room keys. Nope. The bus made a turn, and we had to get off and go through a security building. We were not subject to the xray there, but our cards were checked again. All of us filed out the back door, then waited in the correct line for the HAL shuttle. Of course, there was a shop in this building, so if you had forgotten anything, like chocolate or souvenirs, this was your last chance to buy some. We finally got on the shuttle, and were off for a 5 minute ride to the ship’s gangway. But before we left, there was a lady who insisted on sitting in the handicap and wheelchair space reserved for only those folks. When she refused to move out of there with her 2 suitcases, an official fellow came and ordered her out saying he would assist with her luggage. Claiming she was also handicapped did her no good, because she probably was. But two guests in the big wheelchair and scooter needed this space. She moved finally, but was not a happy camper. They had a heck of a time getting those wheelchairs in the shuttle, but they did it. We finally got back to our room by 4pm. Then there was an announcement reminding the guests to visit their muster stations, as this was the end of a long segment. We had from 3 to 5pm to do this and would have forgotten if it were not for the reminder. It took a few minutes, and it was done. Now we have to run the drill on the TV and we will be set. Then later this evening, we all got the itinerary stickers for this segment to add to the little booklet for the world cruise. The ship left the harbor very slowly after 5pm, and now we are on the way to Amsterdam. Captain Frank mentioned we will be getting to the lock around 4am, then enter the harbor and be docked by 8am. And they are expecting a nice day – no rain. Dinnertime came soon, and we had the six of us present. Barb had kept Woody company on the ship today, because Susie is still in the hospital in Lisbon. We do hope she will be back tomorrow in Amsterdam. Time will tell. Heo and Greg had gone to Bruges on the train and had a fine time exploring, eating mussels and frites, and buying a ton of Belgium chocolates. Some of the appetizers and mains were Belgium-related, but we stuck to what we know best – prime rib and pork meatballs with risotto. After the sweet treat for lunch, we kept dessert light with a little vanilla ice cream and a lime sorbet. Tomorrow will be a big day with HAL’s 150th Anniversary Celebration and also a birthday for one of us. He will not be 150 though, ha-ha! Bill & Mary Ann

Report #107 Sunday April 16, 2023 Dover, England 7am-8:30pm Docked Starboard Side To Pier Overcast With Afternoon Sun Temps 40-52 Degrees Part #1 Of 3....... 67 Pictures The White Cliffs of Dover is all we remember from a cruise that ended in this port many years ago. We had a two hour bus ride to Heathrow, which was quite scenic passing the green countryside dotted with estates. And since most HAL world cruises seldom venture this far north, we have never visited London. To do it justice, it would be a better idea to begin or end a trip here and stay a few days. However, we suspect that many guests chose to do the 2 hour ride to London, since they missed tours into Paris, which was cancelled. Breakfast was back on deck three, but we found out the cappuccino machine was broken. One of us ends the morning meal with one cup, so it was disappointing that it broke. Oh no, what else can happen? Probably shouldn’t ask….. We watched the pier activity from the promenade deck and wondered if we could walk out of the port. As hard as we tried to listen to Ian’s talk, we sure do not remember if he said we could. The shuttles provided today came with a cost of 8 pounds or $10 USD (cash or credit card). This would be an all day pass coming and going as much as one liked. Doing some research online, we fund that this shuttle service is charged to all of the cruise lines. But it sure would have been nice if HAL footed the bill for the guests and crew, as they have done on previous world cruises. For instance, one time in Singapore, the ship had to dock in the container port further away from the city center. We had to buy a bus pass, but we were refunded the amount after turning in the passes. Having to pay the money, ruffled a lot of passenger’s feathers, but the credit calmed them down. We left the ship at 11:15am and had every intention of talking the bus, especially if we could not walk out of the port. Going through the large terminal, we found our way to the exit. We had picked up a city map in the terminal, but before leaving we asked the agent at the exit if we could walk out on our own. He said yes, then gave us verbal directions on how to walk if we chose to do that. When we saw how long the line for the shuttle was, we changed our minds, and decided to walk. One bus was almost full, but not leaving until noontime. The next bus was not even there yet, and we might not have made that one with such a long line. Just then, the agent came running after us with a better map, and explicit directions, saying it should take 30 minutes to walk to town. And he suggested a better route so we could see more. We thanked him as he ran back to his station. We figured by the time the first bus left, we would be halfway to town. Turned out, we were right. So off we went, and we were not alone. Others had decided to walk as well. Why not? It was a nice day, a bit chilly, but dressed properly, it was OK. We headed out of the port gate, then out to the main road. Turning right, we found a bridge that took us to the Marina and a very large square at the Clocktower. Crossing another lift bridge, we made our way along the Waterloo Crescent where we saw a pavilion, a monument, and Dunkirk Memorial. Also here was a row of elegant houses dating back to 1830 to 1838. Before the war, they extended along the seafront. Both world wars had a huge impact on this city. Taking a left turn, we found the entrance to Market Square where the shuttle stop was. Making our way up the street, we stopped at St. Mary’s the Virgin Church founded in 1100. There was a surrounding cemetery, and in time, the church needed much work due to the number of burials under the floor. It was closed to the public. Just as we were admiring the massive flowering crabapple tree in the front, we heard Heo and Greg calling us from across the street. They were with Ginni and Rich and were headed up to the Dover Castle with 2000 years of history. The shuttle bus would take them there, but where was it? We had taken a walk through town, and visited the Pencester Gardens, then walked part of the river that surrounded the gardens. We read that brown trout are in this river. Having gone full circle, we spotted the foursome still waiting for the bus, along with many more folks. What was not mentioned was the fact the buses were not running as frequently as was reported. But since this Medieval Castle was so high up on the steep knoll, few would choose to hike up there. Then there wasn’t anything mentioned in the lecture onboard that the cost to go inside was 23 pounds. Of course once up there, the group decided to go inside and explore, then they stayed for a lunch on the property. We did walk part of the town but did miss some important sights as we did not go far enough. There is so much history with the world wars here, it would take days to see and understand it all. However, it was past our lunch time, and we went in search of pizza and beer. But first, we went to the Dover Museum right off of the square. It also doubled as the info center, where many maps and booklets were available. Can never have too much information. This museum was on three levels, with the top floor housing a display of the world’s oldest known sea-going vessel dating back to 1550 BC. Incredible seeing the remains of such a vessel, which was deteriorated, but still intact enough to recognize as a sea vessel. The name of this vessel is the Dover Bronze Age Boat. Also in this museum were artifacts from that era, as well as a polar bear and a lion’s head and torso. Someone in town was a collector and donated them to this museum. Right cross from the Museum was a pub by the name of Elephant and Hind. Odd, but true. They had pizza and beer…..right up our alley. We went inside to a table for two and ordered two pints of ice-cold draft beer, and a BBQ chicken pizza for a change of pace. All of it was good, and relaxing for a while was even better. From here, we back-tracked the way we had come, finding the hike back not to seem as far as we thought. If we had the time and the energy of a twenty-five year old, we could have hiked up to the white cliffs and the South Foreland Lighthouse and Tea Room up there. In addition, Fan Bay Deep Shelter with underground tunnels is located on these cliffs. These tunnel were bored through the chalk cliffs and used by the soldiers for speed to get down to the sea level in case of invasion. A better example of these shafts was at The Grand Shaft in town, where you could see the spiral staircase that went straight down with 140 steps. Well if we ever come back here, we will continue our exploration of these famous sights. We were back at the ship by 3:30pm, and spent the rest of the afternoon working online and doing research for everything we had just seen. While one of us was busy processing hundreds of photos, the other sat on the freshly-cleaned veranda writing at the table. That lasted until it got so chilly, it was necessary to go inside to warm up. Without the sun on our side, it was way too cold and breezy to be comfortable. It was interesting to watch the ferry traffic coming and going. We read in one of the many brochures that an incredible amount of people travel on these ferries every year, making Dover one of the busiest international ports in Europe. It was also recorded that in 2014, 120 cruise ships used Dover Harbour. Today, we were the only one here. Time for dinner, we noticed the dining room was not full. All aboard was at 8:30pm, and we figured many guests were taking that opportunity to eat dinner in town. Or perhaps, they had taken the longest tour to London. We had no complaints because the level of noise was far reduced. Most all of us had done something different today, and as always, it was fun sharing our experiences. Greg and Heo reported that they talked to some folks who had a two hour wait for the shuttle bus to either continue up to the castle, or go back to the ship. That reminded us of the ho-ho bus trips in some places, where most of your precious time is wasted while waiting for the connecting rides. Two friends of ours had taken the shuttle to Market Square, then did that strenuous hike to Dover Castle. However, when they got up there, it did not open for another 45 minutes and the entry fee turned them away. However, they had one of the best English meals in a restaurant in town. Since there were several types of English cuisine on tonight’s menu, not familiar to us, we had one fish and chips dinner, and one of us had the cheeseburger, an everyday option. Fun for a change. The clocks went ahead one hour tonight, which was not nice. Despite the loss of one hour of sleep, the entertainer Michelle Montouri was a must see according to Greg, who said her first show was a winner. Tomorrow will be in Belgium bright and early. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #106 Saturday April 15, 2023 Portland, England 7am-5:30 Docked Port Side To Pier Sunny And Cool 48 Degrees Part #1 Of 4........74 Pictures The Zuiderdam was docked sometime around 7am, and even though it was a chilly 48 degrees outside, it appeared the rain had left for good and the sun was out. We had passport inspections this morning and it was located in the upper dining room, displacing our little “Breakfast Club”. Andri and Danu were down in our section, so it was about the same as always. Actually it was kind of nice to have a change of scenery seeing many guests and waiters we have not seen for a while. Even though our deck was called during our meal, we decided to go afterwards, with the last group being called. It doesn’t matter since this was not a zero-clearance check, but a face-to-face with the British officials. We went up to deck three and got in line to have our room key cards scanned. The process went swiftly, even though our passports were neither stamped or scanned. Once again, we got a small sticker placed on our key cards to show we had been cleared. Without this sticker, the security staff at the gangway would know we had not attended the mandatory screening, and getting off of the ship would not be possible. So here is a snippet of info on England. The capital is London and the population of the country is 53 million residents. The official language is English, which makes everything a whole lot easier for those of us that speak the same language. The British Empire was successful in spreading English culture around the world. These days England is famous for football, art, films, rock groups, and real ale. Teatime is all of the time as is BBC, anything to do with the Royal family, as well as four thousand years of history. What else makes England famous? Anything London, Soho, the British Museum, and the London Eye, as well as St. Paul’s Cathedral. The love of sports night top all of these such as Wimbleton, Wembly, and football. Stonehenge has to be the most iconic sight that carries an ongoing mystery to it. The Roman ruins of Hadrian’s Wall, 2000 years old, reveals abandoned forts, garrisons, towers and castles. Cambridge and Oxford colleges rate high too. Favorite foods are pickled eggs, dry roasted peanuts, and pork scratching that are served in the thousands of pubs around town. Drink favorites are real ale, but don’t be surprised if it is served room temperature. Christmas pudding is a much- loved cake with fruit, nuts, and brandy or rum. A Sunday lunch might be roast beef with Yorkshire pudding. Ever heard of a Ploughman’s lunch? We learned it is bread with cheese and salad with pickles as well as pickled onions. So back to the port of call today – Portland/Weymouth. The port of Portland is actually an islet which is mostly military. The population is over 13, 000 people. There are a few sights to see such as a castle, museum, a church, a lighthouse, and a D-Day center for WWII. There is also a kangaroo farm with other animals like goats, sheep, and horses. Our destination today was actually Weymouth, a city of about 53,400 residents. It is a resort town with sandy beaches, Georgian housing, and many things for vacationing people to do during the summer months. Located fairly close to London, it is an easy get-away for those seeking sand and sun. Tours offered today included Stonehenge and Salisbury for $170 for 8 hours (lunch on your own), or just a transfer to Stonehenge for $130 for 6 hours. The bus ride there was 2 hours, then two hours back. Two excursions for $130 for 4 ½ hours were magnificent Tudor Athelhampton and scenic countryside and Corfe Castle. Abbotsbury Swannery and Gardens was $100, as was relics of WWI and both were 3 ¾ hours. Double-decker shuttle buses were used to transport guests from Portland to Weymouth, with a stop outside the port gate for private tours, or to see Portland Castle. Then the bus continued with a longer ride than we expected, mostly because we had no idea this seaside resort was so big. As we got closer, what a nice surprise we had seeing the vibrant community that turns into a thriving summer resort from May to September. We passed Georgian-style housing along the way, along with some very nice estates with a view of the bay and beach below. Being that today was Saturday, the long stretch of sandy beach was full of families. Once again, the water was too cold to swim, but the beach was OK if you bundled up a bit. Definitely not sunbathing weather yet. Speaking of weather, we heard that today was the first one in a month where the locals saw sun. How lucky was that? Our drop-off was 2 blocks from the River Wry and the Town Bridge that spanned it. On the opposite side, the Custom House Quay that faced the Old Harbor, was already filling up their numerous cafes with morning pastry and coffee customers. Doing our homework with the help of Google, we had scoped out a place for pizza that opened before noontime. Most all of the other Italian eateries did not open until later in the day for dinner. This café was located up the pedestrian St. Mary’s Street which was also filled with pubs, cafes, and clothing stores to name a few. We saw the most thrift shops ever. From scanning the menu, we did not see that they served beer. Can’t leave town without one of their famous beers. We searched everywhere else along the way, but came up with nothing. However there were plenty of other streets to walk on the way back. At the end of St. Mary’s Street, we came upon the King’s Statue dedicated the George the Third on his entering the 50th year of his reign. From here we began our hike on the Esplanade along the beach facing the Weymouth Bay. This boulevard was lined with old colonial buildings, the largest being a hotel. There were dozens of eateries, ice cream shops, and more shopping. Several rows of very low lawn chairs lined the seawall, but at a cost of 3 pounds for a ½ day or full day, few people were sitting in them. Ever try getting up from one of those chairs? Near impossible unless you are a young kid. About halfway up the beachfront, we reached the Jubilee Clock, a tower dedicated to Queen Victoria. Many benches lined the esplanade, and we took advantage of a few along the way. It was still rather cold, but when the sun did peek out from between the clouds, it was slightly warmer. One of us had on five layers of clothing (counting the back brace), and the other had on double sweatshirts. Little kids on the beach were digging holes in the sand wearing sweaters with hoodies. By the way, there were almost as many dogs as there were kids. We did see a sign indicating no dogs allowed, but the closer we looked, that was from May through September. We walked as far as Green Hill Gardens, a community project tiered on the side of the hillside. There was a nice café that served a light lunch. Some locals had taken blankets and sat on the slope with their food from the café. Flower beds, putting greens, a wishing well, and plenty of benches filled this small park. We also need to mention that there were many public restrooms along this Esplanade. We stopped at one located at The Bandstand, a two- story shop with a restaurant on the top level. It appeared empty so we figured it would open at night. That was about as far as we needed to go, because it was getting close to lunch time, and we still had not found a suitable place to go yet. Halfway back, we ran right into Heo, Greg, Ginni and Rich doing the same walk we had done. They had stopped for pastries and coffee, which they all love to do. We pointed out the gardens, and they went to explore. We slowly headed back towards St. Thomas Street, which paralleled St. Mary’s. We found no pizza restaurant opened there. Our last attempt was to walk to the waterfront on the river and check out those cafes and pubs. By now (1pm) every seat outside and inside was taken, which did not really matter to us since pizza was not on their menus. The last thing we wanted to do was squeeze into a crowd of folks, some of whom were coughing and sneezing. So we decided to go back to the first pizza café, Nicetta, and see for sure if they served beer. That took us all the way back to the statue of King George. But it was worth the walk when we went inside, took a table, and saw the menu, which had several bottled beers available. We ordered a Hawaiian pizza to share, along worth two Peroni beers. It was worth even more just sitting down and relaxing, while watching the people walk by. What we did not realize was that we had come in at the perfect time. Had we been a few minutes later, we would have been told the café was closed from 2pm to 5pm. At least ten locals had come in to be told they were no longer serving lunch and they left disappointed. Especially the mom with two teenage kids. We still had time to add a slice of cheesecake for dessert, which was really tasty. We found the price we paid for lunch was still a better deal than what we would get at home. Crazy, huh? Time to head back, we got to the bridge and heard some music blasting and people singing. It was coming from a corner two-story restaurant where on the upstairs level, some young ladies were having a fine time singing and dancing. Obviously, this town is for having fun and they sure were doing just that. We made it back to the ship by 3:30pm with a nice ride in the coach, except for the two women guests that quizzed two crew members relentlessly, never coming up for air. An awkward moment for the fellows, but the ladies were clueless. At the second port gate, two officials came on the coach to check everyone’s key cards. Some people were very slow in finding them, but one couple did not produce them at all. These two were escorted off of the bus to a small customs and immigrations building, and we never did see them after that. Either one or both of them lost their cards, or they were not passengers on this ship. Right before 5pm, a group of mostly ladies arrived to sing for us. There must have been close to 50 people singing in this choir, and boy, were they fun to watch and listen to. In addition to this performance, a four-man military group came with a cannon, that they set up on the tip of the pier. After the singing ended, and we were about to leave, they made four attempts at setting it off. Almost became funny enough, because the chorale group began laughing. Finally, with much pomp and circumstance, they were able to fire off the cannon (noise only) for three times. The passengers watching from deck three and the verandas all clapped and said “God Save the King”. What a nice way to end a day in Portland/Weymouth. Dinner had only four of us since the guys went to the Canaletto. We ordered crispy spring rolls, salad, and sweet and sour shrimp. Desserts were frozen yogurt. Finally, Oscar said they are adding some favorite items in the dining room for dinner that can only be found in the Lido. Tomorrow’s port is Dover, a place that we ended a cruise over 20 years ago, and flew home. So it will be new to us. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #105 Friday April 14, 2023 Enroute To Portland, England Arrived At 2pm At Anchor Over Night Very Windy 55 Knot Winds With Heavy Rain 8' Swells Part #1 Of 1..........16 Pictures We were greeted with grey skies, rain, and cold wind when we woke up this morning. The sea conditions left us all rocking and rolling during the night and continued through the morning. As we stated yesterday, the plan is to drop anchor off of Portland, England around 1pm, then wait until a dock becomes available. Hope we will get to shore since it sure looks rough outside. Last night we received a message that the maintenance team will be doing some work on the air-conditioning unit in our section of the ship. This occurred between 9am and 5pm. We did notice at one point while we were working online that the room began to get chilly. Not as bad as outside, but definitely no heat. Eventually, it was working but we did not need to turn the dial up. We actually prefer the room on the cooler side. After breakfast, we ran into Tom M, our former host, who has been sent into a tizzy with all of the itinerary changes. Since he and his team conduct tours in these ports, much has to be adjusted with their clients. Now that Le Havre has been pulled off the itinerary, many guests will be really disappointed if they had booked a trip to Paris. But there is the addition of Dover, England on Sunday April 16th. Certainly there will be new excursions added there like London for instance, a nice substitute if you don’t mind the two hour ride to get there. At his noon talk, Captain Frank said that the winds were an 11 on the Beaufort scale or 55mph. There were 8- foot sea swells to boot. It was a chilly 43 degrees, but by 4pm, he expected the winds to subside and the temps to raise to 48 degrees. Not much warmer. The cargo ship was still in the slip, and the off-loading was running late due to the inclement weather. The Captain planned to drop the anchor around 2pm, at which time we would notice some shaking with the ship, a normal reaction when anchored. Then at 5pm, he came on the PA once again to inform all of us that we would be overnighting here and dock at 7am tomorrow morning. Eventually, the showers and fog dissipated, and we could see the shoreline of Portland and Weymouth, getting a few photos in case it is foggy and rainy tomorrow. An additional list of activities for this afternoon had been left in our mail slot, but we did not find it until dinnertime. Not that we would do team trivia, drawing class, bocce ball in the hallway on deck 5, book lover’s meeting, origami folding, or game time. But we are sure a lot of folks were happy for something to do. Also, there was a movie shown at 1pm, and Greg went to watch it in the World Stage. The title was “Men” and it was billed as a horror movie. Greg said most all of the people walked out, including him. Why on earth would they put a depressing movie like that on, when most folks needed something light, such as a comedy. Even Woody said he put his scooter into high gear and rushed out. Now we know for sure that there will not be an immigration check today, as they were not certain we could be released today if we made it to shore. So tomorrow, we will need to take our passports to the deck three Dining Room after 7am. Our deck will be called somewhere in the middle of the list, the time announced on the speakers. That should give us enough time to eat breakfast, but not at our regular table. The last time we had to do this inspection, our wonderful waiters came downstairs to serve our little group. Being that we dropped anchor outside of town, the casino was closed all day, and the shops were closed at noontime. The future cruise consultant and the art gallery both closed at 2pm. The specialty restaurants, bars, spa, and entertainment venues were all open for business. At least in this country, there was no imposed tax put on these purchases. Today was one of many messages. Another one we got late last night involved more changes due to our aborted ports. In Le Havre, we were supposed to get much needed local French supplies for a schedule “An Evening in France” that was to be held in the Lido we assume. Also, there was a delivery of food and beverages for the upcoming anniversary dinner on April 18th. Now this will arrive in Belgium, but so close to the 18th it will be a challenge for prep time. So because of that, the Canaletto Dinner and A Taste of Tamarind on the 17th will be closed for operations. Of course, they regret the changes and apologize for the inconveniences. Signed by Henk M, Hotel Director. Gosh, he and his staff have the weight of the world on their shoulders with this cruise. We bet retirement is looking better and better if that is in his near future. The sun was setting shortly after we all gathered for dinner tonight. It had to be the deepest orange sun yet, casting that glow all around the aft dining room. Naturally, we had no camera, but for a moment it was captivating. The dinner was good tonight with mains of prime rib. Sometimes it is a hit and miss entrée, but the meat was cooked perfectly and was tender as could be. It was a far better choice than the fish which had some surprise bones in it according to Heo. Barb and Woody both had shrimp jambalaya, the Club Orange option. Now we hope the rain stays away tomorrow in Weymouth, even though the temperature will be quite cold. Good thing we brought the warmer layers. Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 104 Thursday April 13, 2023 Day At Sea Enroute To Portland, England Formal Night Rain And Much Cooler 46 Degrees And 16' Swells As Well As 45 Knot Winds Part #1 Of 1.........0 Pictures Remember when we all complained about the extreme heat and high humidity we experienced in places like Angola and The Gambia? Well, here we are at the other end of the spectrum with temperatures in the 40’s. Not only cold, we are in an area that has produced passing showers, winds at 45 knots, and up to 16 foot sea swells. During his noontime talk, Captain Frank gave us all of the details of why the port of Brest, France had to be cancelled. He reiterated that due to the conditions we are having now, it would not be safe to access the coast of France. He also apologized for the rolling and pitching of the ship, which may be causing some folks to be seasick. He did promise that going the speed we are going (16 knots), he is providing the most comfortable sailing possible. The plans are still in place to anchor off of the port of Weymouth, England tomorrow afternoon, then wait until a berth is available to dock the ship. Currently, we heard that there is a cargo ship in our spot, and we have to wait until it is unloaded. We went down to deck three to take our sea day walk. However, every exit was roped off. Obviously, it is considered dangerous to walk outside, although we did not hear that announced. From the moment we got out of the elevator, we noticed there was not a single person in the lounges, the shops, or even the library. All of the salespeople in the stores were standing around visiting with each other. No customers to be seen. Our big event of the day was room service lunch with some items from the dining room menu. Then we watched a good two-hour movie, Where the Crawdads Sing. For a change, it was most entertaining right to the very end. Now we have to search for more of the up-to-date movies which we were told have been added to the old grid. Tonight’s attire was formal. We figured there are few sea days left to have this dress code, and it appears many of the guests are glad about that. Most all of the larger tables are hosted by officers or staff members on these occasions. We had been told last night that Rene the spa manager was going to host our table. It did not happen since she was tied up with work. Previously, we had asked for a specific officer, but we did not get him. The fellow we had as a host was barely old enough to drink legally. Not that he wasn’t pleasant, we are not always comfortable with strangers. Having someone new douses the normal conversation almost completely. For that reason, we may skip the next formal evening if there is one. All of us were curious as to what the gift will be tonight, since they only show up on formal nights. The dinner menu offered the usual formal suspects. We both had the beef skewer with lingonberry sauce. Mains were a fish plate, and one pasta plate with a side of lamb chops. The fish was full of bones, but the chops and pasta were good. It’s the luck of the draw these days. We still laugh at the tiny size of the ramekins that they serve salad dressings, sauces, gravies, catsup and mustard. They hold 2 tablespoons of product at the most. The portion control using these ramekins has to be saving the company a lot of money fleetwide. Of course, we are free to order more than one. There was a comedian on stage tonight, but also there was an event called Casino Royale. From 7 to 11pm, there was a select complimentary games of roulette, dice, black jack, and slot machines. You could spin the wheel for discounted cocktails, which are 50% off anyway. Finally the Gallery Bar had a Murder Mystery at 9pm. The better news of the evening was that the clocks went back one hour. That is, until we reach France the next day, and the clocks go forward once again. So confusing…… And the gift we got? Nothing. We had heard the gift would be a small collapsible suitcase, but where was it? Now we wonder if the delivery of these suitcases was in the containers that got left behind in Senegal? We’ll never see them if that was the case. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #103 Wednesday April 12, 2023 A Coruna, Spain Docked Port Side To Dock And Town 8am-10:30pm Mostly Cloudy And Cool 58 Degrees With Afternoon Sun And Rain Showers Part #1 Of 3........ 60 Pictures During breakfast this morning, Captain Frank came on the PA to announce a change in our itinerary, completely expected by us as he had dropped the hint yesterday afternoon. Due to a low pressure system in the Bay of Biscay, the port of Brest, France, will be cancelled. The plan is to remain here in A Coruna, Spain, until 11pm tonight, then speed to Portland, England arriving Friday afternoon. Hopefully that will help us to avoid the worst of the weather and provide a safe passage. We can say one thing for sure, this world cruise has been the craziest one for things going sideways. Three cancelled ports and one where we were not allowed off of the ship is more than we have ever experienced on a grand voyage. Of course, there was the 2020 world cruise that simply ended and we all went home. Perhaps that was the worst experience. At least we are still onboard and will continue forward. The Zuiderdam arrived to the port of A Coruna, Spain so early in the morning, it was still dark. It was also raining, windy, and cold…..a cool 50 degrees. The clouds were slowly breaking up, and eventually the sun did appear. However, compared to our last few ports, there was little warmth in the sun, and the breeze went right through our sweatshirts. There were some tours here today that took folks to high estuaries for $50 for 4 hours and a panoramic ride through Old Town for $60 for 2 hours. A Coruna and Belanzos was $90 for 4 ½ hours, while a taste of Spain was $100 for 3 ½. A tour out of town was to Santiago Compostela for $125 for 5 hours, and the historic city of Lugo was $100 for 7 hours. Since this is our first time to stop here, we decided to tour the city on our own, like we usually do. But first of all, we have to address a continuing problem with the TV reception. Sometimes while docking, the TV is temporarily shut down, then returns after we are docked. Recently, the reception while in port has been so bad, it shuts itself off after 30 seconds. This has been blamed on the mountains blocking the signal, being out of the footprint, the moon aligning with Mars (just kidding), or the city shutting us down. Some of which turned out to be false, although that is what we all have been told by front desk people. This morning, the excuse was that the local authorities shut us down again, and the reception will return after we leave the port at 11pm. So…..tonight after dinner, we found a note saying that the TV interruptions will continue to last up until April 15th. By then, they expect to receive an upgraded 5G filter which should descramble the signal to a normal and steady display. Of course, they apologized for the inconvenience. Signed by the IT Department. Now why couldn’t they come clean, and tell us this in the first place as we hate being lied to? Well at least we can watch a movie, even if they are old, or we can turn on the bow and aft cameras, assuming they are still working. We do not have a lot of info on this port other than it is a city of 250,000 residents that speak a slightly different language than the rest of Spain. It is called Galician-Portuguese, a language that came out of the Middle Ages and has remained in this Spanish community of Galicia. Now that’s probably where the local beer got its name – Estrella Galicia. A very nice beer too. We left the ship about 10:30am with umbrellas in case of rain. It was still cloudy, and looked as if it could rain with all of the dark passing clouds. Of course, we never needed them, although we did have a few sprinkles. There were no maps in the tiny terminal, so when we got outside, we asked a policeman where we could find a map. He pointed out a small yellow building which looked closed. There was a kiosk with the “i” on it, so we went around the back and found the doors. We were handed a map along with directions for the best way to take for our walk. So off we went, following the numbers that marked every historical site. This seaside route took us past the small boat marina and a long hike to the Castle of San Anton, a 16th century structure on a small islet. It once housed people with contagious diseases, but was later used as a fortress, and also a prison. Today it houses an archaeological museum. We only had time to take photos today. Following the marina avenue, we passed several historical sites on the left hillside, which we decided to check on the way back. This walled street took us uphill for spectacular views of the Ria Da Coruna, which is the river where the city is located. Down at the bottom of high cliff was a beach called Praia da San Amoro, as well as a beach club with two swimming pools. The road went on for quite a way until we reached a large area that had green rolling hills. We could see the strange stone sculptures on the right, but very far away. By going straight, we could see the famous Tower Of Hercules, built in the 2nd century during the reign of Emperor Trajan. It has the distinction of being the oldest working Roman lighthouse in the world. But we were a little disappointed that a statue of Hercules was not on the very top. Located behind the tower was a Compass Rose done in tile on the ground. And just a small tip: there were restrooms around the backside at the base of the tower…..free. We did walk the long- rock paved road up to the tower, but did not feel the need to go inside. The views were fabulous here, but so was the wind. Walking back down, we ran into Greg, Ginni and Rich who were on their way up as well. It is so funny that we keep running into each other. Heo had taken the long way around to see the “Stonehenge” type sculptures, then re-joined the group at the top. Studying the map, we figured a better way to walk back and see more of the historical buildings along the way. It was more of a shortcut and found us at the Town Hall, another impressive structure from the 1900’s. It has three towers topped with copper laden domes and a very ornate façade. It also happens to be located at one of the largest plazas called Maria Pita, a woman who had a part in fighting off some of the notorious Portuguese pirates centuries ago. Lining the inside of this plaza were many glass- tented cafes where they served pastries, coffee, and tapas and wine or beer. This reminded us it was time to search for a lunch place…preferably Italian. We had researched pizza and did locate some nearby restaurants, but accidently left the list in our room. Coming back into the waterfront section, we walked the narrow pedestrian-only avenues finding mostly tapas and Spanish/Portuguese menus. We did locate one nice pizzeria, but it would not open until 8pm. Running into Rene, the spa manager, she suggested trying the other streets above the one we were on. She has been here many times, and knew of more places to eat. Getting lost in the maze, we never did find another lunch spot that was opened for Italian. Oh well, it was getting late, so we headed back to the ship for a room service lunch. It was already 3pm and we expected a long wait. It arrived 15 minutes after we placed or order, which was lucky, since several of the tour buses had just arrived at the same time. We spent the rest of the afternoon working online, then covering up and relaxing on the veranda while watching the guests coming back through the terminal. Dinnertime came quickly, and we had guests once again…..Ginni and Rich. Quite often their tablemates are missing in action, so Greg likes to include them at our table when we have the room. We had a great time with them, except for an incident with the sun setting. Since the decision had been made to stay in this port until 11pm, we happened to have the blinding sun going down in the aft dining room. None of us could see, so Oscar, our head dining room waiter, kindly asked the three guests sitting at the back window if he could close the drapes for a short time. The answer was “NO”. Really, how rude was that? So Oscar came and informed us we would remain blinded for a short while. He literally stood in a spot that might block the sun for some of us. He needed a tablecloth to block it. Finally Presty came along, and informed the other guests that he had the right to close the drapes in this situation since it was bothering more than just our table of guests. As luck would have it, a black cloud came over the sun for a few minutes, and then it finally it went down behind the hills. Apparently these rude people had complained about the rowdy noisy guests surrounding them, and Presty even suggested he could move them to a quieter table. They refused. Does that mean they were trying to get even with us and other guests for having fun? Sure sounded that way to us. Anyway, on their way out, they passed by all of us and we said thanks for nothing. They had no good reason for being so rude, and one of them actually said sorry. Perhaps they may consider moving to another table at the window on the opposite side. The ship left right after 11pm, and when it hit the river, we were in for a bumpy and wild ride out to sea. The swells continued throughout the evening, and the strange mysterious noises in the walls and ship’s interior were back. This may continue all day until we reach Weymouth, England tomorrow. Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 102 Tuesday April 11, 2023 Day At Sea Enroute To A Coruna, Spain Cloudy And Cool In The Morning With Sun In The Afternoon 72 Degrees Part #1 Of 1.........0 Pictures It was still dark at 7am, so we slept in a bit later than usual. The ship’s movement with the sea swells was much like sleeping in a swinging hammock. Breakfast on sea days is 8am, so if we arrive at 9am for instance, it is not a problem. Knowing what we always order, Andri and Danu are always prepared to serve us fairly quickly. At least some of the fresh fruit has returned with the deliveries yesterday, but we are still waiting for the real Greek yogurt. Sometimes it takes a day or so before it can be found in the refrigerator. Yesterday, we received the finalized invitation for the 150 year Holland America Line anniversary celebration that will occur in the city of Rotterdam on April 18th. As far as we know, only the President’s Club members and the Pinnacle suite guests are invited to this exclusive affair, which will be hosted by Gus Antorcha, the current President of HAL. Business attire suggested. The plan is for our group to meet in the Rolling Stone Lounge at 12:30pm and depart the ship by 1pm. The coach ride to Rotterdam will take an hour and a half to the Hotel New York, getting us there about 2:30pm. At 3pm, we will hear special presentations, remarks, and witness a gift presented to the citizens of the Netherlands. We assume there will be drinks and canapes during this event. We will depart the hotel at 4:15pm for the ride back to the Zuiderdam in Amsterdam. Our normal dining time will have the Gala Dinner, with a continuing party at 9pm on the Lido deck . Along with this event, we got the invite to a President’s Club Reception and Dinner on April 20th. Beverages will be in the Rolling Stone Lounge at 6:30pm and followed by dinner in the Pinnacle Grill at 7:30pm. Once again, business attire recommended. Gus Antorcha, the President of HAL will be present along with other people from Seattle. Today’s weather has changed with the presence of clouds, rolling seas, and cool breezes. During Captain Frank’s noon talk, he brought up the subject of future weather and the effect it may have on our destination. Since it looks like there are a few systems developing near here, we can expect some rain and high seas with strong winds. He suggested to enjoy the sunshine today, since it may be the last we see for a while. At times, we think the Captain overstates possible conditions, and hopes for the best. We do know that the seas of the English Channel can be pretty turbulent, and that is exactly where we will be in a matter of a few days. We took the Captain’s advice and spent some quality time after lunch in the sun on our veranda. As we are heading due north, we had the sun for hours. It was a much- needed break from computer work and fact-gathering research for the upcoming countries. There are so few sea days that it might be hard to keep the reports up. But we will try hard. Around 4pm, we had an unexpected knock on the door. It happened to be one of the plumbers who was checking to see if our carpet was getting wet. He said there was a leak in the cabin above us, and they had to check every room under that area. That did happen to us while on the Amsterdam one year, and we had to move out for a few days. And the leak was coming from in between the cabins from who knows where. By the way, our carpet was dry as was the bathroom floor. With the sun going down after 9pm, it felt strange going to dinner in the daylight. The time change has a lot to do with this, but the further north we go, the lighter it will stay. Right before we left the room, we read tomorrow’s Daily Report and found a really odd message on the front page. It concerned a Spanish VAT sales tax that will be applied to everyone’s account while traveling in waters closer than 20 miles from shore. The explanation left a lot to be desired, because all of us took it differently. Here is the exact message: We must add a 10% VAT on all photos, beverages, Dining Room, Pinnacle Grill, and Canaletto purchases made onboard in Spanish territorial waters. It will be automatically added to everyone’s bill. What??? We bet this put the guests into a frenzy, so perhaps this message will need some clarification tomorrow. But in the meantime, both Barb and Ellen purchased a bottle of wine from their package to avoid any extra charges. And why, we all asked, did this not happen while we were in Malaga and Cadiz, Spain? Definitely not a friendly tourist city. Dinner had some Portuguese choices in both appetizers and mains. One was a tomato soup….very good, but the other was a fish stew, which Heo tried. The rest of us had lamb chops or the Club Orange chicken alternate. The crème Brule dessert made Barb’s day, so much so, she ordered two to go. Nik wrapped it up with foil to take back to her refrigerator for later or tomorrow morning. Tomorrow’s port will be new to us, so we did some research. It is a much smaller city than Lisbon, so it should be fun exploring. And possibly looking for another winner pizza, even it is raining. We’ll go prepared. Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 101 Monday April 10, 2023 Lisbon, Portugal Docked Port Side To Pier 10am-9pm Sunny And Clear With A Slight Breeze 75 Degrees Part #1 Of 3.........66 Pictures Today we are in the country of Portugal. The capital of the country is Lisbon (our port of call), and the population is 10.8 million people that speak Portuguese. Lisbon is located up the Rio Tejo, and has a wonderful scenic sail into the port. Just like in Spain, this country is filled with Medieval castles, cobblestone villages, and golden beaches. They have more museums and Cathedrals that one can count. Portugal has a long history from the Celts, Romans, Visigoths, Moors and Christians. All have left their mark on the towns and cities. This country, which borders Spain, has 800 kilometers of coastline. Lisbon today has a reputation of having people-packed bar-lined streets. In other words, it has a thriving nightlife, which we will not see since the ship will be leaving around 8:30pm. What do the local like to eat? Number one has to be pastries, like pastel de nata or custard tarts. Or they crave travesseira or puff pastries with almond custard. How about tinned fish such as sardines, mackerel, or tuna? They put these on crackers or bread for a quick little snack. Francesiha is a thick open face sandwich with cheese, supposedly good for a hangover. Marzipan is a sweet confection that goes with grilled chicken covered with a hot piri piri sauce. Bifana is a bread roll with fried pork. And the wine goes well with all of it, of course. Shore excursions today included Lisbon highlights for $70 for 3 ½ hours, as well as Lisbon and Estoril for the same price and duration. Medieval Obidos was $80 for 4 ½ hours, while Lisbon on foot and funicular was $80 for 4 ½ hours. For $130 and 8 hours, you could book the Fatima and Batalha trip. Lisbon sites was $130 for 7 ½ hours and Sintra, Cascais & Queluz was $100 for 4 ½ hours. We had done this last one, but with a lunch included, the first time we visited Lisbon. It happened to be Easter Sunday, and we decided to leave town. It was a very nice tour. Early this morning there was scenic cruising from the Crow’s Nest and the promenade deck with commentary from Ian. It began at 8am and ended by 10am. Although it was very chilly on our veranda (temps in the 50’s) , we did watch some of the sailing into the river and the approach to Lisbon. We did get some good photos, because we will be leaving at 8:30pm and it will be dark. Going to breakfast later than usual, but still were able to get Lisbon rolls (really Panama rolls) thanks to our waiter Danu who went and found four of them. We had just missed some excitement due to the fact when the ship had turned to enter the river, it listed dramatically at least twice, and some plates went flying off on the floor. Of course the plates broke everywhere. But it was already cleaned up when we came in late. We were finally docked by 10am, but the ship was not cleared until closer to 10:30am. It took forever for them to line the ship up for the connecting gangway onshore. Ian had to come on the speakers and mentioned that we were running late, and the guests with tours had to chill out by a bit. . Now everyone on tour has to wait in the World Stage, and we suppose the natives were getting restless. Oddly enough, we had no TV reception in the rooms all day. This has been happening so much lately, that we don’t even bother to ask why. There are a number of guests that rarely leave the ship, and enjoy watching TV in their rooms. Bet they are not happy campers. In order to keep up with our blog, we have been staying onboard a bit later, such as noon today. We hate falling behind so this keeps us up to date, and since we were just walking the town, going off closer to lunchtime made more sense. The ship was fairly close to town, but we still had a long walk to access the big terminal, and walk back the same distance towards the downtown area. Two other ships were docked even further away. One was the Ponant L’Austral, and the other was the Semester at Sea which we saw while in Casablanca. The good thing was that the entire walk was flat and slightly uphill. The weather was in our favor. Despite the early morning low temps, it did warm up a lot. So much so, that we still wore our shorts and short sleeve t-shirts. The last time we were here, we had no map, and had failed to listen to the port talk. So we ended up hiking uphill to a big cathedral and even higher up to another church. Thinking this was the direction to the center of town, we discovered we were lost as we were on our way to another district. Asking some locals directions was not helpful, as they did not speak any English. Nor did we speak or understand Portuguese. Finally we stopped at a newspaper kiosk, and the man understood enough to point out the street to follow that would take us to the center of town. Feeling like we had walked many miles, we did come into the correct area, Baixa where all the action was. Today we simply turned left out of the terminal and found that the main square was pretty close. However, listening to the port talk, we were led to believe it was a 5- minute walk to town. Not by a long shot, even for us, getting to the terminal then finding our way to the street outside took 15 minutes alone. Then it was easily another 15 to 20 minutes to walk to the main entrance to town and the Arco da Rua Augusta. There were so many different types of rides available such as tuk-tuks, taxis, the Ho-Ho bus, local buses, and of course, tours either the ship ones or private ones. The best tuk-tuk had a large stuffed tiger on the roof, making it really easy to find your ride. Even though today was a Monday, it got crazy crowded after entering the main square and going under their most impressive arch. They believe in doing things big here. Having enjoyed a nice lunch the last time we were here, we searched the same alleyway where a small café called Taberna 90 was located. Had we ventured deeper on one of the side streets where the store Zara was located, we would have found it. However, we did know there was a Hard Rock Café nearby, and by following the map from the brochure we picked up, we finally saw it behind the Theater, another impressive but imposing building. The square where the theater and other monuments are located were lined solid with restaurants, cafes, and hotels that occupied former colonial buildings. As luck would have it, we ran right into Greg and Heo along with Ginni who were out enjoying the pastries and coffee at a small venue. They had also seen a billboard for the Hard Rock, and pointed the way there. They ended up getting a tour with one of the taxi or tuk-tuk vendors. We were not sure if we would dine at the Hard Rock Café, but when we arrived, there was a short wait for a table for two with a high- top table and chair. We decided to stay. The place was jumping with many people of all ages enjoying the surroundings and the music video. Not sure we wanted to sit under the car that was suspended from the high ceiling though. We had a nice waiter who brought us two Sagres draft beers (really nice), and an appetizer pizza platter. You could never be bored in this café as there had to be at least four birthdays celebrated with singing from a gathering of the waiters. All of the diners joined in the clapping. We ended the light meal with another apple cobbler dessert. On our way out, we did stop in their shop and picked up a city T-shirt. Their prices were a little lower than in Malaga, but not by much. So walking back, we went down a narrow side street, staying off of the busy and crowded avenue. Passing the tower with the elevator, we remembered the café was down an alleyway or two. And there it was, Taberna 90 with a complete Italian/Portuguese menu just like we remembered. Their pizzas were larger, and naturally far less money than the HRC. If we ever come back, we will remember this café. We had to squeeze our way down the avenue there were so many people now. The usual vendors were not set up under the arches, like that last time we were here. There were many policemen though. It was surprising that a message had to be written on the front of today’s Daily Program warning the guests of pickpockets and the like while in the city. We do recall that our waiter at Taberna 90 back in 2019 had pushed my bag under my chair, a reminder than someone could snatch it and run. Sadly, it happens all of the time, and not just here. The hike back to the ship was nice, since the sun was out and there was a breeze. The streets had become even busier with people on those rented scooters and bikes. When we reached the terminal building, the way we had come out was closed. We had to go up another escalator where we saw a large number of passengers in a line to begin a voyage on the Ponant ship. We did not see the other door for the Zuiderdam guests to enter. Going back down, we searched for another entrance, but had no luck. Going back up, we saw the door for us and went through their xray and the long walk back to board the ship. Perhaps this information on returning should have been explained in the port talk. The most fun was watching the massive delivery of stores for the ship. This has to be the largest delivery of food and supplies since we left Ft. Lauderdale. They were loading from 10am to well after 8pm. Hope there are some fresh berries and Greek yogurt in the mix. Bet we have no idea how close we came to running out of many staples. The recent menus pretty much reflected the absence of food. Dinner time found only six of us, as Susie was not there. But that is their story to tell, and we all pray she will be better soon. The appetizers were good – Portuguese soup and salt fish cake. The soup was by far better and way less salty than the fish cake. Caesar salad was a good back-up. Mains for us were the pork schnitzel, which needed more lingonberry sauce which had been thinned with something else to stretch it. A trick the chefs are doing more and more for the late-seating diners we suspect. There is no doubt that the chicken noodle soup is often watered down at dinnertime. Greg had made a pass through the Portuguese Lido Event, and brought us some of the custard tarts. They were really good, especially warm. We had a long conversation with Oscar why these events are happening in the Lido, and not in the dining room. Bottom line, it saves the company more money that way. That seems to be the same excuse for many things that have been missing on this particular world cruise. The ship left after 8:30pm, with only the lights of the city to be seen. The scenic trip out was not as good as this morning. The last thing we all needed was the notice that the clocks had to be pushed ahead one hour tonight. That will put us back on Spain time. On the other hand, with tomorrow being a sea day, we can sleep in a little later. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #100 Easter Sunday April 9, 2023 Cadiz, Spain Docked Port Side To Pier Overcast With Sun In The Afternoon 75 Degrees Part #1 Of 4 .........73 Pictures HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!! It was still rather dark when the ship arrived to the port of Cadiz this morning. This city is believed to be the oldest one in Europe with 3000 years of history. Traces of Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, and Moors can be found in this unique port city. Even Christopher Columbus and other seafarers used this port to sail to the New Continent of America. The current population of Cadiz is about 140,000 inhabitants, and it is the Old City that we plan to explore today. It’s an ancient Medieval town with all of the narrow streets, many small and large plazas, old fishing quarters, and flamenco cafes and bars. What do the local eat and drink here? Sum it up to two things – fish and wine. Wide varieties of fish include dorados, turbot, plaice, and urtas (not sure what that is). They love the shellfish like prawns, crayfish, crabs, and razor clams. Home-made cheeses and cooked meats are sold city-wide. And we love their sweet cookies sold in most bakeries. As for the wines, there are many, but the popular ones are sherry and brandy. Arts and crafts include leather items, woven blankets, ponchos, wickerwork, and cane items. It will be interesting to see what is opened and what is not due to the fact it is Easter Sunday. Naturally, there were tours today beginning with a ride to stunning Seville for $200 for 8 hours, and a walk through Cadiz with a flamenco dance for $100 for 3 hours. Ultimate Seville and hidden treasures was $280 for 8 hours. A transfer to Seville was $75 for 8 hours on your own. Flamenco and a Spanish meal was $150 for 2 hours, while a taste of Cadiz was $130 for 4 hours. Cadiz and Jerez with sherry was $70 for 3 ½ hours, and White Village and countryside was $80 for 5 hours. Tickets for the ho-ho bus were sold for $25 for 1 ½ hour tour. One of the best tours we have done twice was an Andalusian horse show, but it was not offered today as it was probably closed for the holiday. The Zuiderdam was docked across the street from Old Town, but the Royal Caribbean Symphony and a Costa ship were docked, but much further away. We got lucky being so close. We left the ship around 11:30am for one heck of a long hike, but armed with yesterday’s map and a smaller local map we got in the terminal. Crossing the street, we took a left and went right up the main entrance at Plaza S. Juan de Dios. Rounding the corner across from the Cathedral, it appeared that the festivities had already happened as far as the processions were concerned. Now we had been led to think that very little would be opened in town today. Yes, the clothing and souvenirs stores were closed, but just about every café and restaurant was opened for business. It was a good day for the street vendors that were selling souvenirs, jewelry, and sport clothing right on the sidewalks. They had little competition. Making our way around the Cathedral, we made or way to the seawall that faced the Atlantic Ocean. The views up here were wonderful, and the foot traffic was far less than in the center of town. This is where we always see many feral, but neutered cats, that live in the rocks below the seawall. They help keep the rodent population under control. There are even cat houses set up for them and people obviously feed them too. Continuing on, we noticed that many of the locals stroll up here, some even living in the apartment buildings across the street. A great place to walk dogs, we saw many of all sizes. We could see the remains of a castle accessible by a very long road. The name of it was Castillo San Sebastián, and has been the site of many movies scenes…even a James Bond movie. A sandy beach begins from here with many sunbathers taking advantage of the warm sands. An old but closed swim club is still here called Balneario de la Palma, which must have been something in its heyday. This area is known as Playa de la Caleta, and today the tide was out exposing acres of mossy tidal pools. One side of this mushy-looking terrain were several small fishing boats well out of water. We also spotted many people fishing with nets and others appeared to be clamming. A little further we found Castillo Santa Catalina, an old fortress that offers views and a museum these days. Restrooms happen to be here as well, which are about non-existent elsewhere. One of the most pleasant walks is through Parque Genoves and Jardin Botanico. It is loaded with many imported trees, palms, and cacti from everywhere around the world as well as indigenous plants. There are monuments and fountains with tiled seating here and there. Rounding the end of this peninsula, we went through another garden with massive old ficus trees and more tiled benches and fountains. The checkerboard patios were nice, except for the droppings from too many pigeons and gulls. Our destination was our favorite little pizzeria, and we knew we could find it with the help of the maps. As long as we could locate the Plaza de Mina, we knew the way. And locate it, we did, going inside to be seated. Expecting to get menus, they pointed to the icon on the table used by the guests with cell phones. None of the waiters spoke English well, but had we taken our time, we would have noticed a menu printed on the outside wall. We did manage to order two Peroni beers and one large Margherita pizza. With an honest-to-goodness wood-fired oven the pizza was ready within 10 minutes. And it was perfect. Crispy crust and lots of sauce and cheese. Not sure what the bill would be, we were pleasantly surprised to see it was 11 euro. That’s as good as we had in Lanzarote, except today’s pizza was normal size and we were not stuffed to the gills. We followed Calle Rosario until we got to a bakery that was selling ice cream and baked goods. Spotting pre-wrapped cookies, we bought two packages of them for room snacks, if they last that long. They are not overly-sweet, more like a shortbread cookie with zest of orange and chocolate chips. So good. We ran into Heo and Greg on the way back near the big plaza. They had just left having lunch, but paid considerably more for ala carte tapas at a fancier dining venue. All in all, we were all happy with our choices. We headed back to the ship and got there by 3pm. Honestly, we are still feeling the effects of losing two hours in one evening. Hard to fight that tired feeling, so it was nice to relax back in our comfortable room and veranda. Before we knew it, it was time for dinner. There were only six of us tonight, as Susie and Woody had a busy afternoon in town, meeting up with one of their grandsons. Bet they turned in early for the evening. The menu had cute little pictures on it for Easter, but nothing special for this occasion. However, on the table we had a “special of the night” note with the offering of savory ham, veggies, and mashed potatoes. According to Oscar, our head waiter, so many folks complained about the choices, that they added this entrée at the last minute, printing the special notice just in time for the 5pm diners. Both of us ordered it, and the ham was delicious. We added some applesauce on the side as well . Desserts were one panna cotta and rum raisin ice cream. Nik, our waiter, brought us some of the little Cadberry chocolate eggs, just like the packaged ones we got left on the bed this morning. The bigger present was putting the clocks back one hour tonight. That will put us on Lisbon time for one day, then we set them forward tomorrow for the last stop in Spain, A Coruna. Crazy, huh? Bill & Mary Ann

Report #99 Saturday April 8, 2023 Malaga, Spain 7am-6pm Docked Port Side To Pier Starboard Side To Town Clear And Sunny High Of 80 Degrees Part #1 Of 5......74 Pictures Well, here we are in Spain, our first country to visit on the European continent. The population of Spain is 48.6 million people who speak Castilian and Spanish. It has been described as passionate and sophisticated with the people loving the good life. And it is more diverse than you can imagine. It is a country that was created from great civilizations than have risen and fallen, but still leaving their permanent marks. Roman ruins, powerful cathedrals, Islamic architecture, among many other things, are all part of Spain’s history. All types of seafood, paella, tapas, and fine wines can be savored here. Have you ever tasted jamon iberico or Spanish ham, cured meats like chorizo, and so many varieties of olive oil? It is a must while in Spain. Flamenco dancing and even bull fighting can still be seen throughout the country. And that’s Spain in a nutshell. Today our port of call was Malaga, one of the larger cities on the Mediterranean coast, also known as Costa Del Sol. The Zuiderdam arrived on time after 7am, and docked close to the Silver Dawn, the same vessel that was in Tangier yesterday. The temperature was a crisp 53 degrees on our veranda at 9am, but the skies were clear blue with little wind. We had a feeling it might warm up later and would turn out to be a swell day. And we were correct – the thermometer climbed to the mid 70’s, and we shed our long jeans and sweatshirts and put on shorts and short sleeve shirts. There were six of us at breakfast, because many of our buddies were on tours today. There were three long ones with the best of Cordoba for $190 for 8 ½ hours, and another one was Granada and the Alhambra for $200 for 9 hours. A trip to Granada and Albaycin was $200 for 9 hours. City tours ran from $70 to $90 all about 4 hours. A drive to Mijas Village was $70 for 4 hours and tickets on the ho-ho bus was $25 for 1 ½ hours. Some of the longer tours came back late, but the ship waited to leave until they were back onboard. We hung around until 10:45am and took the long walk off of the ship, down the gangway, and through a spacious terminal building. This terminal had many shops with everyday convenience items, some souvenirs, and even a deli. The INFO center was closed. Going down the escalator, and out the door, we boarded the free shuttle to town. It was a short drive from the port along the causeway and finally past a row of very nice restaurants and several small shops. The bus drop off was at Plaza de la Marina, right where an information shop was located. And they had real maps of the city….thank you Malaga! We know we have been here at least three times on past cruises, but we sure did not recognize this nice port area at all. Back in the old days, we had taken tours to the Alhambra, Mijas, and Granada. So we have never been here to explore the city, and that was our goal for today. Arriving to Malaga this time of year brings the excitement of springtime as well as the busy time of Easter Week. A very Christian country, all of the major cities in Spain are loaded with churches and cathedrals and have the special happenings that are celebrated in a much different way than what we see at home. The first thing we noticed was a row of grandstands set up on the main road and up the pedestrian-only Marques De Larios. Wooden chairs were stacked up along both sides of the wide avenue in order for the folks to watch the procession that takes place on Sunday afternoon. We were told that the procession occurred on Holy Thursday and Good Friday as well. We wondered if we would see it today? One thing for sure was that today being a Saturday brought out the locals to this area. Add the vacation folks, cruise line and ferry boat people, suddenly you have a crowd. These pedestrian streets and alleyways are full of high- end shopping, but not all of them were opened yet. The foot traffic increased dramatically the deeper we got into the maze. There is a number of churches in this part of town, but they were all closed to the public. Tomorrow will be their big day. The largest church was the Cathedral Nuestra Senora De La Encarnacion. We did locate this church, but it was closed for inspection….still impressive from the outside. Trying to follow the map, we covered a lot of the alleyways and squares where the tables of the cafes and restaurants were filling rapidly. Many young kids were running around as well. We did cross paths with friends in search of the best paella in town, as well as Gyl and Howard who were searching for Popeye’s Chicken. They said there was a sign at the bottom of the wide street pointing this way. We did see KFC and Burger King, but no Popeye’s. We love the fact that no matter where we go, except for some parts of Africa, we can seek out the cuisine we like the best. For us, that could be pizza sometimes, and we do not apologize for it. Many of the choices today were international….something for everyone. We headed back towards the port but decided to stroll through the Paseo Del Parque. We had spotted several horse-drawn carriages and we figured they would take folks for rides around this stretch of park. This strip was filled with indigenous as well as imported trees and shrubs. The tallest of the palms had huge nests in the tops. They were filled with some kind of noisy parrot. It took us a while to spot them, but we sure did hear them. The only other birds we saw were pigeons, doves, and seagulls. Arriving at the end of the park, we crossed the street and entered the malecon that led to the port entrance. It was here that we had spotted a Hard Rock Café with indoor and outdoor dining. It was located right across from a colorful glass building, a museum called the Pompidou Malaga. It was our lucky day to find this fairly new Hard Rock which opened about four years ago according to our waiter. We took seats at a high-top table near the window and ordered two pints of draft beer. We shared a huge plate of nachos and added a dessert of apple crisp with ice cream. Perfect, we enjoyed the time we relaxed there watching the crowds wander by the souvenir stands nearby. Then before leaving we checked out their t-shirts, buying two of the city T’s. That would be the extent of our shopping today. There was a craft fair across from the restaurants, and it was hopping with customers today. Continuing onward, we took our time strolling past the hordes of diners in each venue that lined this side of the Muelle 1. That led us past the lighthouse, where we crossed the street to see the Playa de la Malagueta, the local beachfront. The sandy beach seemed to go on for miles and was loaded with sunbathers and families enjoying the sunny day. The water, however, look really cold. This stretch of the Malecon provided wonderful views of the local boats, some fabulous yachts, ferries, and the two cruise ships docked at the far end. We were back at the terminal by 3pm where we kicked back in our room, catching up on all of the hundreds of photos taken today. As we had said before, at least one of tours came back by 6:40pm, even though all aboard was 5:30pm….proof that they will wait for HAL tours. Independent late tours….not so sure the ship will wait for you. The ship finally left before 7pm. We had guests for dinner this evening, mutual friends…..Ginni and Rich. Unfortunately, Susie is still not up to par, so missed dinner again. We’re all getting worried, but she is under the doctor’s care. Woody always brings her something special from the dining room, such as fresh blueberries. Barb was happy to see her favorite meal…..liver and onions. Except it came so thin, it was barely there. We had one fish entrée and linguini with shredded beef rib meat in the marinara sauce. That was by far the best choice on the menu for at least two of us. Desserts were light with macadamia nut and mint chip ice cream. We all told our guests to visit our table anytime as they are always welcomed. The next stop will be Cadiz, a short distance from here. Too bad we will miss passing the Rock of Gibraltar, since it will be on the starboard side around midnight. With the two- hour advancement of the clock last night, we are all bushed. And that was one of the reasons there was a movie in the World Stage tonight. No live show….again. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #98 Friday April 7, 2023 Tangier, Morocco 8am-5pm Docked Port Side To Pier Starboard Side To Town Sunny And Windy 65 Degrees Part #1 Of 5......69 Pictures The Zuiderdam arrived to the port of Tangier, Morocco, to a windy but clear and sunny morning. The temperature outside was a nippy 58 degrees, a huge difference from a week ago when we visited the Canary Islands. Tangier is the second largest city in Morocco and has a population of 95,000 people. The city is located across from the Gibraltar Strait, a mere 10 miles between the continents. Gibraltar, a UK territory, has a population of 28,000 living in 7 square kilometers. It is a little corner of England on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. From the top of The Rock, there are spectacular views, and an interesting fact is that the city houses a colony of Barbary macaques, Europe’s only primates. Later this evening, we should be passing the Rock on the portside as we enter the Mediterranean Sea on our way to Malaga, Spain. We had company with two other ships in port. One was Oceania Sirena, launched in 1999, but re-done in 2019. It is described as having English-style charm suitable for older couples. The ship accommodates 648 guests and is 30,277 gross tons. As of 2019, all of their multi-choice dining venues were free of charge, and bottled water, sodas, and beer were included. The other ship was the Silver Dawn, an ultra-luxury vessel with up to 596 passengers and a crew of 411. Launched in 2021, it is a 40,700 gross ton ship. Having sailed with Silver Seas before, we can say they deserve the 5 star rating for sure. Except for tours, they are all-inclusive. At breakfast this morning, our waiters brought us hot cross buns, something we always see around Easter time. They were so good, we opted out of the English muffins we usually order. Now that the ports are happening about every day, the President’s Club breakfast group has been coming later and later. Those with tours have not come at all. We hung around until music began pouring throughout the ship at 10:30am for one hour. This was done to work on broken speakers inside and outside. Good time to leave because the crew were cleaning our veranda as well. The walk to get to the shuttle bus was not as long as yesterday’s port. Being that this was our first time visit, we felt it a good idea to take the bus to get our bearings. Without a printed map, it’s hard to navigate a good route to take. Ian’s talks do help, but he even recommends taking a photo of the local maps on the TV screen. We hate that much of the world is going paperless. Anyway, the trip to Mandoubia Garden took about 20 minutes uphill most of the way. This park was located directly across from the maze of the old souk. Once off the coach, we wandered down the street and entered the souk at the best place we could have. It was the food section that held all of the fresh fruit and veggies, along with a number of seasonings and spices sold from sacks. We could see that some of the items such as bananas were imported. There were plenty of plastic baskets full of ripe raspberries too. Funny thing, they were packaged in the identical clear containers we buy at home. Here they cost 50 dirham or the equivalent of 50 cents USD. We pay up to $6. at home for the same amount of fruit. The next items for sale were the chickens, which looked very fresh. Then we came upon what looked like lamb or possibly goat meat. The prices were posted at each stall, but it was all in Arabic….no English. And the vendors did not speak English, so we do not know for sure what the meat was. Finally, we entered the fish market, which was quite clean and not even smelly. Most of the catch had already been sold, but we did see tons of anchovies, small shrimp, octopus, crabs, and smaller fish. It appeared they were beginning to clean up for the day. Going back outside this area, we entered through another portal, and into the souvenir souk. What we saw pretty much was the same as in Casablanca, but far less to choose from. The souk in Casablanca was far better, we thought. This one with multiple alleyways and streets, we still managed to get lost. Much of this market was set up for the locals, who filled the streets. Most all of the women wore robes and head scarves, while most of the men were dressed in traditional clothing too. Few restaurants were opened, and we figured that was due to Ramadan happening now. We had spent an hour here exploring, and thought we had seen all we needed. Somehow or another, we had made our way downhill, passing through the artist and carpet section. This part of the market appeared to be newer with much nicer stalls. However, the last thing we needed was to go to any carpet demonstration. That could go on for hours, and after their presentation, they expect you to buy something. The carpets we saw hanging on the walls of the stalls were good enough for photos, but we sure do not need to own one. It came as a surprise to us that by the time we made our way downhill a little at a time, we had successfully come out near the port area. And we did all of the exploring without buying anything. The souvenirs we saw yesterday were much nicer we thought. As we were exiting the final archway, we heard someone behind us saying hello. It turned out to be Greg, Heo, Ginni and Rich. They happened to be leaving at the same time we were. It is a mystery how we got that timing just right as there were hundreds of folks in that souk going this way and that. They ended up taking a taxi for a tour, and we headed up the side of the hill to the old fort. Thinking we might be able to see the insides of this fortress, it ended up being a museum and we were at the back door. Oh well, it was a nice hike up there. Going back down, we took a left turn to follow the coastline highway. The landscaped cliffside followed the fortress around the corner, then ended with clifftop housing and other buildings. Good spot for a hotel, the views of the Atlantic Ocean must be spectacular from there. The fishing boat harbor was along this stretch of road, as well as trails through the park-like setting. Pathways from the very top brought locals down to the road. We walked far enough to sit on the seawall for a while, catching the stiff breeze that was blowing. Looking down on the water side, there was a wall of concrete blocks, reminding us of being in Cadiz, Spain, not far from here. A similar wall there houses a bevy of feral cats. Just as we thought about that, we began seeing cats coming out from under the large rocks. They had made a home in here. Now in Cadiz, these feral cats are trapped, neutered, and returned to the wild. They serve a purpose and that is ridding the city of rodents. The souk and marketplace were full of them today. From there, we headed back to the port gate, going around a mosque that was in session. It was full of men only and we could hear the Iman preaching from the inside. Locating the correct road to access the port gate, we made our way to the ship. We got back around 1:30pm, wind-blown, but happy to have gotten some good exercise. We ordered lunch of salad, soup, and shared sandwich. One chicken quesadilla on the side and a few cookies completed our meal. As the afternoon progressed, it got colder outside. All aboard was at 4:30pm, but we did not leave until about 5:45pm, as we waited for the Oceania Sirena to leave first. We are very close to the next port of Malaga, Spain, so we will be going slow. Once we got halfway across the opening to the Mediterranean Sea, the winds actually blew the mist right at us. These have to be extremely turbulent waters as the two seas meet. Captain Frank had said that we would be passing Gibraltar around 7pm, but we were still far from shore, and had difficulty seeing it. Once we leave Malaga, we will be passing this area again, so chances of spotting the Rock of Gibraltar may be better. Dinner found everyone present but Susie, as she is still not feeling well. Under the doctor’s care, we hope she gets better soon. The guys shared their amusing stories from the last two days, one of which they spent in Marrakesh. Long ride, but worth it they said. They are fans of Moroccan food and enjoyed the exotic meal they were served on the tour. Heo had taken many great photos and even a video of a belly dancer. They did get back to the ship after 8:30pm, but they had kept the Lido open after that time. They said there were four bus-loads of guests that took the 13 hour tour. The dinner menu had three choices of fish entrees. One of us had the salmon, and the other tuna (more well done). Both were pretty good. Now Barb had the Club Orange special, which was shrimp fettucine, and it tasted great she said. But it is served in the bowl where your forks and knives drop in the bowl. From now on, she has asked for that pastas to be served on a regular plate. Will see how that works. Desserts were a chocolate mousse slice and one frozen peach yogurt. Now the strangest thing happened with the time change for tonight. It went forward 2 hours so we will be on the correct time for Spain. Our waiters suggested going to bed early, but that’s not always an option. As this is being typed, the time is 12:55am. We will not notice the difference until it is time for breakfast tomorrow. We will not worry, since we do not have a tour booked and can sleep a bit later and still not miss the dining room breakfast. Finally leaving the continent of Africa, we are looking forward to the ports in Spain. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #97 Thursday April 6, 2023 Casablanca, Morocco Docked Port Side To Pier Container Port 7am-9pm Overcast And Warming Up 80 Degrees With Some Sun Part #1 Of 3........52 Pictures Casablanca is the largest city in Morocco with a population of 4.7 million people. It is also the chief port and primary base for their Navy. One of the highlights of this city is the Hassan II Mosque, rebuilt in 1993 with the capacity to hold up to 25,000 worshippers. Its minaret is 210 meters high, which is 689 feet, the tallest in the world. The minaret has a laser beam directed towards Mecca in Saudi Arabia. However, since this is Ramadan in the Arabic world, the mosque might not be opened to the public. The ship docked by 7am under overcast and smoggy-looking skies and temperatures in the mid 70’s. We happened to be at least two lengths of the ship away from the terminal and the tour buses as well as complimentary shuttles. We were in no hurry to get off of the ship, so we did what we always do……go to breakfast after 8am and do some internet work for a while. A crew drill began at 9:30, then we left the ship by 10:45am. There were some tours here today, but the only one that had a description was the cooking demo and market for $170 and 5 ¼ hours. The rest of the excursions had been erased from the TV screen since they had filled to capacity and had already left the ship. Sort of forgot to look yesterday before they were gone. We do know there was a trip to Rabat, the capital, a tour that included the mosque, highlights of Casablanca and a panoramic drive. And we were not the only ship in port today. The World Odyssey – Semester at Sea was docked near us with a capacity of 520 to 636 guests. A small German ship, it has a crew of 290 people and is on a 105 day trip from Dubai to Germany. From watching the foot traffic from our veranda, we can say that the passengers on that ship were very young, like students perhaps. And the majority of those we saw were girls with a few guys here and there. We took the long walk out of the dock area, had the passports checked, then continued through an empty terminal, and past the taxi guys putting maps in our face in hopes of us booking a tour. On the way out, we ran into friends Peg and Rich who were already returning from their walk to town. They are brave souls that did not take the shuttle, but walked to the United Nations Square, the actual bus drop-off point. We toyed with the idea, but the way out was not an easy one. Better to ride when you’re not sure of the direction or the activity around the port gate. Although the transfer was supposed to be 20 minutes, it only took 10 or so minutes. It was actually closer than we had remembered from our last visit here in 2017. There is not much to see at this massive square except the downtown area. There are always vendors present, like the ones selling men’s belts or sunglasses or hats. And the most interesting attraction, other than KFC, McDonald’s, and Pizza hut, has to be the souk across the street from the Hyatt Hotel. Peg and Rich said that only part of the souk was opened, but we found most all of the vendors were opening their doors when we arrived. What we found here was an array of Moroccan items such as traditional and modern clothing, shoes, belts, ceramics, knick-knacks, and knock-off handbags and purses. Jewelry was on display in some shops as well as some small silk carpets that are used as prayer carpets. One can get lost in here quite easily and never find your way out. We did manage to buy a Burberry scarf, which will be handy when the temperatures drop in northern Europe. Then we negotiated for two dressy tops suitable for dinner on the ship. It happened to be the same shop we bought some tops in 2017. We had researched some pizza places, but without a map, we doubt we would find them. Nothing else here appealed to us, so we got on the shuttle and rode back to the ship. We worked online until lunch arrived at 2pm. Captain Frank came on the speakers at 4:45pm and stated that the sea conditions might make for a rough and bumpy ride leaving the pier at 9pm this evening. He expected high winds tomorrow as we approached the port of Tangiers. It is located very close to the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea, and it always a turbulent area. He added that possible 35 knot winds may necessitate the outside decks being closed off for walking until we are safely docked. Hope we make it there since it will be a first-time visit for us. All aboard was 8:30pm, and we watched the guests climbing the gangway while dining in the Pinnacle Grill. These guests must have been the ones on the 13 hour trip to Marrakesh. Anyway, we had our usual wedge salads, warm and delicious rolls and bread sticks with garlic butter and the cream cheese/bellpepper spread. Mains were the same – 8 ounce filet mignon steaks, a baked potato with the sides, and a shared bowl of mushrooms. Desserts were also the same – crème Brulee, the best on the ship. We made it back to our room in time to see the gangway being removed, and the ship pulling away from the pier. We understand Tangiers is quite close, and we should be docked by 8am tomorrow morning. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #96 Wednesday April 5, 2023 Sea Day Enroute To Casablanca, Morocco Rain With Sun And 45mph Wind 12' Swell With A Rolling Motion 55-68 Degrees Part #1 Of 1.......38 Pictures About the same time we were waking up, the Zuiderdam was leaving the port of Agadir, Morocco. As promised, Captain Frank departed the port when it was felt safe to do so. The temperature began in the high 60’s , but later in the day it had dropped to 55 degrees. The winds had picked up and we were experiencing significant sea swells up to 12 feet. The “white horses” were back, which we have not seen since Captain Friso was at command. In addition to the winds and waves, it had rained during the evening and it continued on during the early morning hours. One nice thing was that it helped wash off some of that desert sand that had accumulated all over the ship. It appeared that it was going to be an overcast day at sea. We were the very first customers at breakfast, even going after the 8am opening. When they can do it, a lot of folks like to sleep later. Especially after going on several shore excursions day after day. For the second time this cruise, Barb popped into the upper dining room and joined us for a spell. She loves the fresh squeezed orange juice, so had two glasses of it. Downstairs that would have cost her $7 plus gratuity. Crazy, huh? Two lectures took place – one with Ian discusses the upcoming ports of Malaga, Cadiz, A Coruna, Spain, Lisbon, Portugal, and Brest, France. That is a whole lot of info for a 45 minute talk. A new speaker has boarded by the name of Dr. Palshikar lecturing on the Tangier Traveler. It was a good day to spend some down time sitting on the veranda, even though it was chilly, and reading while watching several gannets fly by and skim the high waves. They are much prettier bird that a sea gull, and we would have loved seeing them do their high dive, but that wasn’t happening today. Oddly enough, there was a small fishing boat that we passed that had no one in it. We guess that the officers from the navigation deck had spotted this empty boat as well. There have been times when Captain Mercer actually stopped long enough to make double sure there was nobody stranded. An ice cream social was held in the Lido at 3pm, which is a new activity here. This may have been better when the weather was warmer. Funny fact: ice cream sales increase in the wintertime….go figure. The other big event was a special Seder Dinner that was held in the Lido portside, by reservation only. Five of our tablemates attended, although not all of them are of the Jewish faith. Each of them get, among other items, half of a chicken and bottomless complimentary wine. We chose to have a quiet dinner for two at our table, and found many other guests were missing, also at the dinner. Or perhaps at the Tamarind which was held again in the Pinnace Grill. The menu selections were from the Culinary Council, and we had a baby beet salad, one regular salad, halibut, and tempura shrimp with the vegetarian ramen noodles and tempura vegetables. Sure was good for a change. The halibut was even better than in the Pinnacle Grill. Dessert was not fruit, yogurt, or jello, but two donut-like chocolate-filled pastries. Vanilla ice cream was suggested by Nik, so we ordered it. Very good. The entertainer this evening was Michelle Montouri, a cabaret singer. We are sure that Greg and Heo will attend unless they call it an early night, and get some extra sleep for their 13 hour tour tomorrow. We should be in the port of Casablanca by 7am tomorrow. Besides our pillow chocolates and a happy note of the day, we had a notice that our clocks will be going ahead 2 full hours the morning of April 8th. Most unusual, it must have something to do with daylight savings time, which not all the countries recognize. A comedy show had to be switched to April 6th, probably leaving the 7th a dark night. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #95 Tuesday April 4, 2023 Agadir, Morocco 9am-Overnite Till 7am On The Fifth Of April Docked Port Side To Pier And Town Sunny And Very Windy 72 Degrees Part #1 Of 3.......60 Pictures Well, here we are….back in Africa. To be more specific, we are now in Morocco, and the city of Agadir. But first, here is a bit of info on Morocco with a population of 34 million people that speak mainly Arabic. The capital is Rabat, located on the northwest coast of the country. Visiting Morocco is like taking a magic carpet ride, especially in cities like Marrakesh, Tangier, and Fes. It has been described as “dizzying diversity” as far as the culture is concerned. It’s Arabian nights, with souqs, kasbahs, spices and dates. It is a mix of Africa, Islam, Berber with a bit of Spanish Andalusia. Want to see an endless sea of sand dunes? Take that long ride to Marrakesh, like our friends Heo and Greg plan to do. A 13 hour tour, it will be fun for them for sure, and we will look forward to their stories when they return. Famous for their handicrafts, you can find just about anything in the souqs. They sell the most colorful items with their ceramics and clothing as well as the knock-off purses, jewelry, and watches. The market produce includes seasonal figs, pomegranates, grapes, apricots, cherries, strawberries, and peaches. Watermelon, wild artichokes, and tomatoes are abundant in the summer. Winter produce can include oranges, mandarins, onions, beets, carrots, and potatoes. However all of this comes with a warning. It is mandatory to thoroughly wash or cook the produce before eating it. Locals can test the fruit by tasting a few grapes, for instance, but don’t do it if you are visiting from elsewhere., or you could be sorry for days afterwards. So what do the locals like to eat? Couscous steamed for hours and eaten with meat and veggies. Trademarks are mint tea, Berbers, the Marrakesh market, quality rug displays at a rug gallery, and Bogart and Bergman in “Casablanca”. A random fact is Casablanca’s Hassan II Mosque can hold 25,000 worshippers and its minaret is 210 meters or 689 feet tall, making it the highest worldwide. Since we are visiting during Ramadan, the mosque may not be opened to the general public when we pay a visit there. Tours offered in Agadir begin with a city drive for $60 for 2 ½ hours, and a Fantasia horse show was $80 for 3 ½ hours. Agadir and the Berber market is $90 for 3 ¾ hours, while Paradise Valley in a 4x4 vehicle or trekking the same area are both $200 for 4 – 4 ½ hours. And the big trip was Agadir to Marrakesh for 3 days and 2 nights (44 hours) with a two night stay at the Savoy Hotel (or similar) in Marrakesh. There would be several stops for $1899 (double) or $2300 (single). There were 14 people doing it and will return to the ship in Casablanca. And that brings us to today with our stop in Agadir. We arrived later than expected at 9am, due to leaving Lanzarote late yesterday. It seems that the high winds were giving the Captain problems, so we were lucky to get here only an hour late. He indicated at his early morning talk that the weather conditions were better than expected. This would not last. The weather here was rather cool, about 70 degrees, with a chilly breeze, even though the sun was out, there were also clouds passing over. All of the tour times had to be adjusted, as well as the complimentary buses to town. During the morning, Captain Frank mentioned that we would be staying a bit later than the 4:30pm all aboard time, and the Lido would remain open until 3pm for the full lunch service. Nothing like the promise of food to keep the masses happy. And it seemed that the masses had booked tours here today as we watched the exodus coming off of the gangway around 9:30am. We left the ship after 11am and boarded the shuttle for the ride to the beach area. The ride was not too long as we traveled a highway on the side of a dry barren cliffside. We were dropped off in a parking lot at the local beach filled with tons of resorts and hotels. The first thing we spotted was a KFC, followed by a Pizza Hut, and a McDonalds. Besides snack-shopping, our crew members will be delighted to see their favorite fast food places. Once we got off of the coach, all of us were propositioned by the taxi guys offering us tours to anywhere we wished. They seemed to appear from nowhere, and did not take a no thanks easily. We did not see many folks taking them up on their offers. About a block away, we could see the sandy beach, which was lined with a seawall and a very wide promenade walkway that appeared to go on for miles (we figured about 7 miles round trip). We lost count of the number of swanky hotel resorts that faced the beach. It looked like each hotel had their own stretch of beachfront with lounges and umbrellas. Some were filled with guests, but other not so much. Obviously it is not the high season, but we are sure these resorts fill up with many Europeans looking for sunbathing, swimming, volleyball, soccer, surf boarding, and kite surfing. Today the water looked very cold. Despite some wind, the walk was pleasant. We did encounter numerous vendors selling pareos, tunics, and jewelry for the ladies, and sunglasses and hats for the fellows. Their white scarves they sold were perfect for protecting you from the sun and sand, which we would find out later on. The further down the beach we hiked, the fewer vendors we saw. Now the most fun sighting of the day had to be the dozen or more camels and their handlers we saw on the beach. Selling a thrilling ride, the handlers would make their animal lay down, or bring them over to the seawall, where you could mount easier. Wish we had not seen one of the owners thrashing his camel over and over with a long stick. If you have ever mounted a sitting camel, you would immediately understand the meaning of “whiplash”. Being downwind of these noisy beasts, was not the best place to be because they reeked something awful. Sure brought memories back of our first camel ride out of Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt like 22 years ago. It wasn’t only the initial whiplash, it had to be the smell that stayed with us days afterwards. We had a long ride to a Bedouin camp where we had sweet, sweet tea in a tent. The hardest thing was having to get back on the camels for the ride back. Yep, once was enough for us. We decided riding elephants was far easier. The best part of seeing the camels today had to be the colorful photos we took with other people on them. Ian had warned everyone to negotiate the on and off price before the ride, because the handlers will charge twice as much to let you off. So tourists…beware. Getting to the end of the malecon walkway, we decided to turn back, as we had been hiking for over an hour. The wind had picked up significantly to the point where we were getting sand-blasted. This has got to be the winds the Captain said would return in the afternoon. An indication that a mini-haboob was coming was the fact we saw the hotel staff stacking the lounges and storing the umbrellas. The sunbathers had returned to their hotels, where they had use of the beautiful swimming pools. There were some nice restaurants along this stretch, but we assume they were hotel property and only for the guests. And we were not certain if these restaurants would accept credit cards or even US dollars. We do know the vendors were asking for Euro, but we never did buy anything. The “souk” or the main marketplace was located up one of the side streets, but we did not know exactly where. After watching Ian’s talk on TV, we recalled it was a long walk to get there, so we never attempted it. Once again, we did not feel the need to purchase more souvenirs that would weigh down the luggage. All we would have come away with was a lot more photos. Back at the parking lot, we boarded the shuttle for the short ride to the ship. We ordered room service lunch at 2pm, and it was delivered by 2:20pm….quick. We worked on photos and reports the rest of the afternoon, catching up on news. By the way, we have TV here. Later in the afternoon Ian came on the speakers and announced that our stay was being extended. Following that, Captain Frank came on and informed us that the all aboard time was extended to 9:30pm, but we would not be leaving here until tomorrow morning. Another surprise, this was due to the extreme winds once again, but he did not say we would be late getting to the next port of Casablanca in two days. In addition, the reason for the early all aboard time was for security and safety reasons. Looking out from our veranda, we saw that several police were on the dock watching any activity. Interesting….. There was only six of us at dinner, since Susie was still not feeling up to par. The new menu seems to include many more items that we like. Tonight the appetizers were arancini and pork skewers, as well as salads and soups. Our mains included chicken breast with many fresh vegetables, and sea bass, cut thin and fried. Woody had the pork wrapped with cabbage and covered with tomato sauce, galumpki we think. Most all of us had a different dessert, except for us, we had frozen coffee yogurt. Greg and Heo were on their way to see the show Ever After, performed by the singers and dancers. Tomorrow will be a day at sea, one of the few we have left until we cross The Pond. Bill & Mary Ann

Greetings..... Yes, the fresh fruit and veggies made everyone so happy. As far as being told the Canary Island government had blocked the TV signal? Guess that was a "little white lie". We also enjoyed the visit to the Canary Islands and would love to go back someday. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #94 Monday April 3, 2023 Arrecife, Canary Islands 8am-5pm Docked Starboard Side To Pier Port Side To Town Cooler And Sunny With Some Wind 72 Degrees Part #1 Of 4.........66 Pictures Arrecife, Lanzarote, Canary Islands was our destination today. A short distance from Tenerife, we arrived on time despite leaving Santa Cruz late yesterday. The population of this island in 2018 was over 61,000 people living on an island full of volcanoes, 19th century churches, museums, castles, beaches, lagoons, and many markets. Excursions sold here today began with panoramic Lanzarote for $50 for 3 hours, or hidden Lanzarote for $ 70 and 4 hours. Or you could see Jameos del Agua and Mirador del Rio for $80 for 4 hours, or for the same price, trekking volcanoes for 4 hours. Caesar Manrique and Canary culture was $90 for 4 hours, and for $100 you could see the island of volcanoes with a camel ride for 4 ½ hours. Last, but not least, see the best of Lanzarote and ride a camel too for $150 for 8 hours. Hopefully, not 8 hours on a camel. This is a good time to mention the TV reception, which did not exist while in Tenerife yesterday. The last “story” about why we were blocked was due to local authorities forbidding it, more or less. However, low and behold, when we turned on the TV very early this morning, it was working. Must have been a miracle….. Since we have never been here before, we decided to see what we could of the city today. We felt no need to leave this fine resort city. It was certainly a fine day to walk for miles, since the temps were in the 70’s, and despite some wind, the skies were blue and the sun was shining. On the horizon and over the highest volcanoes, a thin layer of fog hung over everything. And we were not alone in port today as the Mein Schiff Herz was docked across from us. This ship was the former Celebrity Mercury, one that we had sailed on many years ago. It is over 77,000 gross tons with up to 1912 passengers and 780 crew. Belonging to Marella Cruise Line, it appeals to mostly German-speaking families with kids. Once again, it rates 3 plus stars from Berlitz, the same as the Zuiderdam. A crew drill took place at 10:30am with “a man overboard” exercise. This was a good time for us to leave the ship after doing some research online first. The shuttle bus was waiting at the end of the gangway, but once boarded, we had to wait at least 20 minutes before it left. By then, it was full of guests and crew. The ride was said to be 25 minutes, but it turned out to be about 15 minutes to Marina Lanzarote. There were two ways to walk or stay on the marina spit where we had seen some restaurants. One of them happened to be a Burger King, and we know for sure, many of the crew members will go there. And if they know their way around town, they will find a supermarket and buy snacks. We chose to go to the main city, and not the inner marina where the small boats were in a sheltered lagoon. If we had time, we could always check this older area out on the way back. It was a very long hike, but all on level ground as we followed a wide promenade sidewalk along the coastline. We passed by the remains of which appeared to be a castle/turned museum. The best photos would be right from the walkway from the moat and bridge. No need to walk to it, as we did not feel we had time for a museum. Down a narrow alleyway, we spotted a bell tower of a church. Numerous shops, cafes, restaurants, and hotels lined this street, all with views of the ocean. Since little was opened this early except some coffee shops, we continued walking to a very large building that soared over everything else around it. Thinking it to be apartments, we soon realized it was the Arrecife Gran Hotel and Spa, more than likely a 5- star hotel, and the nicest one in this area. We explored the lobby and did find a menu for their restaurant, which was mostly fish. Not our choice for today. Directly next to the hotel was a long stretch of white sand beach and a shallow protected cove in which to swim or sunbathe. No one was in the water more than just their feet so we assume it was really cold. A few young ladies happened to be topless, but stayed mostly facing the water. This is common in this part of the world we guess. During the warmer summer months, we bet this beach is loaded with people. There were outside showers for washing off the sand, and very clean restrooms. We might mention that it is always wise to pack tissues since the restrooms did not have TP. We could see a round dome further ahead, so we went to see what it might be. That happened to be Disco Lanzarote, a nightclub. But right across the road, a much more impressive colonial-style building stood out by far. Without a map, we had no idea what it was, other than it appeared regal like a government building. The name on the front was Cabildo de Lanzarote. It was time to turn around and search for the perfect place for pizza and beer. We are not into tapas that much, and pizza sounded so much better. There seemed to be as many Italian restaurants as there were Spanish ones in this city. Spotting two Dutch friends we know by sight, but not their names, we noticed they were dining outside at La Rustica, an Italian eatery with great food and wine they said. So we entered the upper patio seating, and sat at a table on the railing. We ordered two Estrella Galicia draft beers and one extra large pepperoni pizza. Our waiter said extra large? Are you sure? Yes, we love pizza and judging from the price, we figured it would be medium size. What he did not tell us was that the pizza was almost half the size of our table. When the pizza arrived on its own wood cutting board, it was as if the music stopped, the crowd became still, and all eyes were looking at us looking at this HUGE pizza. Holy moley…..this pie was big enough for two adults and a couple of young kids. Needless to say, it took us a while, but we did a pretty good job of coming close to finishing it. The beers were excellent as well. They were served in mugs that had been frozen in ice. One thing for sure, we will not be very hungry at dinner tonight. So two pints of draft beer and the humongous pizza plus the tip cost less than $27 USD, but in Euro. There is no place where we live that we could come close to that price. It would be double that, if not more. Time to walk back, we took our time (don’t know why?) and got back to the bus drop off point at the marina. We never did go explore the other part of the marina, but if we ever come back, we shall do that. With the buildings painted bright white and sky blue, it looked so much like we were in Greece. We suspect this may be the tourist area. We joined the long line of guests and crew waiting for the next bus. It appeared that the Mein Schiff folks were walking back to their ship since it was on this side of the marina. We did not have a long wait, but when we got close to boarding, the coach was full. Another bus pulled up, and we got seats right in the front for the 15 minute ride back. We were in our room by 3:30pm, enjoying ice cold Cokes on the veranda. All aboard was at 4:30pm, and we expected to leave by 5pm or so. Well that didn’t happen because of the high winds, the Captain said our departure would be delayed until after 6pm. Then that time was changed to 9pm. By the time we finished dinner, the ship had left the pier, and was backing up slowly. By the way, we had one Caesar salad, a tomato mozzarella cheese appetizer, one hake fish plate and one pasta dish with marinara sauce. Desserts were sorbet and a strawberry jello. Light as we could keep it. We continued watching the ship while it backed out of the harbor, turned around, and headed out to sea on our way to Morocco tomorrow. The Captain mentioned that we have 226 nautical miles to sail, but warned the 40 mph gale force winds will close the outside decks to all guests tomorrow and perhaps beyond that. That is a first on this cruise. Speaking of firsts, we heard that the Zuiderdam’s visit today and yesterday was a maiden one, and there was a private ceremony which involved receiving a commemorative plaque from the Canary Islands. Pretty cool…. And we must not forget that the clocks went back one hour tonight, putting us on Morocco time. We can certainly use it. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #93 Sunday April 2, 2023 Tenerife, Canary Islands 7am-5pm Docked Port-Side To Pier Starboard To Town Sunny And Windy, Cooler 70 Degrees Part #1 Of 4........ 72 Pictures It has been over 20 years since we last visited the Canary Islands on a cruise ship. At that time we stopped at Las Palma, Gran Canarias, if memory serves us right. Taking a tour back then, we drove into the crater of a huge volcano where the locals had farms producing vegetables and fruit, as well as raising animals. Of course, the volcanoes were considered dormant, but who knows for sure? We do remember that local potatoes were brought onboard and they were gigantic, thin-skinned, and yellow on the inside. Also, they were full of water, making the mashed potatoes very moist and almost runny. Today’s port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife was a new one for us. Had it not been a Sunday, and Palm Sunday at that, the information booths may have been opened and we might have gotten a map of the area. Without a printed map, we had to rely on our memory of what we found on Google about the city. The Canary Islands belong to Spain, and the archipelago is autonomous. They speak Canarian Spanish and use the Euro for currency. You may have heard that these islands are named after a pretty yellow canary bird, but that is not so. The word “Canarias” actually means dog. This is also based on the info we learned 20 years ago, but a specific type of dog is indigenous here, and they are like bull mastiffs. Large and powerful, some were considered dangerous. There is much more to the story, but that’s all we can remember. And the internet has been so undependable, we cannot always get online to check the facts. Anyway, these islands are volcanic and the beaches are natural black sand. Some exceptions are where the white sand is imported by the thousands of tons to create beaches here and there around the islands. What is their favorite food? A sauce called mojo is served with every meal especially one that has potatoes. They prefer fish, chicken, rabbit stew, and lots of fresh goat cheese. Wine is a big item here, as is olive oil. It is considered proper to leave a 10% tip on your restaurant bill. And before Covid, up to 4 million cruise ship passengers visited these islands every year. The Zuiderdam arrived to the port under sunny skies with temps in the low 70’s. With the clocks going ahead one hour a few days ago, it was still dark at 7am, and the island was lit up. By the way, the ship docked portside to the pier, but starboard side to the island. We had company….the Costa Fascinosa was docked directly across from us, just steps away from the downtown area. This ship is 113,000 gross tons, and was built in 2012. It holds as many as 3000 guests with a crew of 1100. It also has 650 balcony rooms. It is described as an upbeat Italian ship with décor to match. Mostly trendy families sail on her, and at Christmas and Easter, it can be half full of kids. It offers continental European dining with many Italian dishes. It is reported to have 50 pasta dishes between all of the restaurants onboard. It has a three plus star rating according to Berlitz travel book, which happens to be the same as the Zuiderdam. So we expect to see a lot of folks in town today. There were seven tours offered here beginning with Panoramic Mt. Teide for $70 and 4 ½ hours. For $90, you could book either Tacoronte Wine and Walk for 4 ¾ hours, or gardens of the valley for 4 ½ hours. Anaga Mountains and Colonial Laguna was $80 for 4 ½ hours, while for the same price, you could see Santa Cruz and Pyramid Park for 4 hours. A Tenerife 4 x 4 adventure ride in a safari vehicle was $140 for 4 ½ hours and Mt. Teide with lunch was $150 for 8 hours. To begin, there was no TV reception here today. We know that sometimes it will be turned off temporarily while we are docking, but then it resumes for the rest of the day. Calling the front desk, we were told that the mountains were blocking the signal. We have heard that excuse more than we like. Then we were advised that the reception would return after we left this island, so we would have to wait and try it then. Kind of funny that the islanders have TV reception from satellites that are not blocked by the volcanoes. Something was not adding up. We left the ship by 10:15am, after watching a whole lot of produce and other items being loaded into the ship. Now we know we will not all starve. This pier looked so much like the one in Funchal with high concrete walls blocking the choppy seas on the other side. Even a few vendors had small shops opened within this wall bulkhead. There was no terminal building, but just a gate to walk through. From here we followed the blue line painted on the sidewalk, which led to the lagoon where the sailboats and yachts were moored. We walked across a pedestrian bridge that crossed the highway, putting us at the base of the downtown area. This walk took us over 20 minutes. We also found it odd that there was no shuttle to take the folks to town. We did not even see taxis near the gangway either. Our destination was the marketplace, but had sort of an idea where it was located. There were some street signs, but not detailed enough from the pier area. So we continued on the waterside promenade walkway and ended up near the central bus depot. Right across the road was a very modern building which we were told was a new aquarium. Then directly across the busy street was a rummage sale with a block-full of tables set up with stuff from old jewelry, to used books and levis, purses, backpacks, and household knick-knacks galore. If we had walked the length of this street, we would have run right into the marketplace. Instead, we continued up the road past the bus station. This is where the road ended, and we went around the back streets, then followed that back towards what we thought was downtown. At this end of town, were two identical towers of apartments and condos, and that’s when we realized how far we had come from the pier. As luck would have it, we ran right into the old market by the name of Questra Sinosa Market, which was extremely busy today despite that fact that it was Palm Sunday. The center section of this old-tiled structure housed mostly the produce stalls. They had the nicest fresh fruit and veggies we have seen thus far, and we do hope some of it has made its way to our ship today. The outside stalls held the cheeses, chicken, deli meats, and bakery goods. There were even a few live garden plants and fresh flowers sold in stalls. Their Easter lilies were about to open up, and when they do, the aroma will carry for blocks. What a stark difference between this market and the last one we saw while in The Gambia. Finding the main pedestrian avenues by crossing a bridge that spanned a highway and a canal, we had discovered the heart of downtown Santa Cruz. This area was full of small shops, but the cafes and restaurants were not all opened. There were a few street cafes set up with coffee and sweet pastries, but no real lunch venues. Many locals were out and about with their families and dogs. We relaxed on a nice bench in the sun watching the locals pass by. Our buddies Rich and Peg wandered by with their tablemates, and told us they had ridden the tram up the hill, then were making their way back down, also looking for the marketplace. Remarking how much this looked like Barcelona, Peg said we happened to be sitting near their La Rambla street. So we headed up the hill on this pedestrian-only avenue finding more and more people doing the same. Many of the old colonial buildings were up this high. Some of them looked like government facilities, but others were actually clinics and a hospital. At the end of this street was a very lovely roundabout park, complete with tiled benches and a central fountain. Each bench was created by a different artist, so each one was unique . Ancient trees were in the center as well. We did pass by one restaurant that might have been perfect for a pizza and beer lunch. However, the doors were opened to their patio seating, but no one was in there. Perhaps they opened later in the day. We continued walking back down the people-only streets until we reached a main square down by the water. There was a craft faire going on near the huge fountain and monument. At this tented faire, we did buy some almond cookies. We also saw McDonalds on the corner. It was full of lunch folks, and perhaps many cruise passengers and crew members. Following the blue line once again, we were back to the ship by 1:45pm, where we ordered a room service lunch. Considering that many of the shorter tours were filing back on the ship, our lunch came within 20 minutes. No it was not the pizza we had wanted, but club sandwiches, and just as nice. All aboard was at 4:30pm, but we still were not moving by 5pm. With no message from Captain Frank, we did not know what was happening. Wanting to get some photos from deck 10, we went up there to discover that we were still in the process of bunkering fuel. We watched the Costa ship leave by 5:30pm, but we did not move until close to 7:30pm. No explanation from anyone, we figured we were close to the next island of Lanzarote, and had plenty of time to get there. Heo and Greg had dinner plans in the Canaletto, so there were just 5 of us. The salads were back on the menu. Speaking of menus, now the format was changed. There are several “everyday” items listed on one side, then the appetizers, mains, and desserts on the opposite side. Now we have a more complete list of the types of ice cream and sorbet they serve each night. If they would only drop the fancy but mysterious descriptions of the food, and use simple English, we would all be most grateful. By the way, we did turn the TV on when we came back from dinner and guess what? No reception yet. Calling the front desk, we were told this time that the local government had blocked our signal, and it will not return until we leave Lanzarote tomorrow. How do you think the guests will like that? Has this happened to others of you that have visited these islands on a ship recently? Sure would love to know…… Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 92 Saturday April 1, 2023 April Fools Day Lost At Sea Sea Day Enroute To Tenerife, Canary Islands Windy And Cooler 70 Degrees Part #1 Of 1.........0 Pictures We did get online long enough to Google sandstorms. The name we were searching for was “haboobs”. You would never associate a sand-filled wind that settles on everything while we are at sea. Guess the Sahara is one great BIG desert. This morning the sky was not as hazy, but the winds had picked up to 45 mph and the temperature had dropped to the low 70’s. What a difference from a few days ago when we were melting in The Gambia. At breakfast, we heard some more stories about last evening’s event in The Retreat. We had been lucky enough to get a hightop table that was more protected by the elements….namely the wind. On the far side of this deck, the winds tipped over a tray of wine with full glasses, spilling over seated guests, then breaking all over the deck. No one could move until the crew came and cleaned up the broken chards of glass that scattered under and around the tables. Guests wearing caps or hats had to hold on tight, or they would go overboard. And forget the hair-dos. It was a “big hair” evening for most, even some of the fellows. By noontime today, the waves and the winds increased and the temperatures dipped below 70. We still spotted some whale blows on the horizon, but way too far to photograph. It would have been nice to watch from the veranda, but with the chilly wind, we needed sweatshirts and blankets because we are not willing to give up our shorts yet. By the way, today was April Fool’s Day, and the Daily Program had some funny things printed, such as upside down. Instead of a day at sea, it said lost at sea. Hmm, that might not be so funny. Some of the elevators had different days of the week on the carpet. Oddly enough, few folks even noticed, as they do not pay attention anyway. Every day is Sunday when you are on vacation. Later in the morning, we took our walk on the promenade deck to find it very windy. Few people were using the lounges. If they did, they were wrapped in the towels like mummies. Evidence of the sand was everywhere you looked. Common surfaces had been wiped down, but there will be a thorough cleaning later we are sure. Looking down from our veranda, even the tender boats were covered with the gritty sand. We wonder how that affects the filters that take in the air from outside? Taking this a step further, we wonder what we are breathing? The usual events took place on the ship such as the talk on the upcoming ports in Morocco. Will watch that on TV later, even though their recording process is not working properly. We have been to Casablanca five years ago, but never stopped at Agadir or Tangier. That one kind of fascinates us from watching shows about it on the Travel Channel. There was another Block Party at 4pm, which was promoted as meet your neighbors in the hallway. Then the officers and crew went from deck to deck with champagne and canapies. Checking the hallway after 4pm, we saw no one outside in the hall. The guests on either side of us have been sick, so they would not come out. We learned at dinnertime, that many of the people on our deck went to the elevator lobbies instead, and visited as a group. Barb said there must have been 50 people down our end. About the same time, the sun had finally come out on the port side, and we had taken advantage of it and sat on the veranda soaking it up. At the party yesterday, we talked extensively with one of the heads of the food and beverage department, George. He had mentioned to expect a special dinner this evening in the dining room. He would not reveal what it was, but said we might be surprised. Well, when we checked out the dinner menu on the TV, we discovered there were only three starters, three mains, and three desserts. No other choices. Perhaps the surprise was we were running out of food. When Nik handed us the menus, we found they had been customized for April Fool’s Day complete with pictures and special sayings. In addition to the limited meals, we were given a flute of champagne with our dinner. Funny, we had just commented two nights ago that when we used to miss a port on previous world cruises, they would serve champagne that same evening saying they were sorry. Lo and behold, here it was tonight. One meal combo was surf (lobster) and turf (tenderloin steak), usually reserved for formal dinner, wiener schnitzel, or salmon. Appetizers were carpaccio of beef, shrimp cocktail, or French onion soup…..no salads. Desserts were crème Brule, baked Alaska, and a chocolate sundae. Barb ordered two of the crème Brules……one for the road. Nik had made some napkin animals like a bird, an elephant, a slipper, and a rose. Woody took the rose in a glass home to Susie who did not come to dinner. There was no entertainment in the World Stage tonight. This looks like that will occur twice a week now. However, there was an April Fool’s Day costume party in the Crow’s Nest at 9pm, ending at 10pm with awards for the best duo/group, and best homemade costume. We did spot a few folks dressed silly, but for the most part, we suspect they went back to their rooms to change. Tomorrow we will be stopping in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands. A first time visit for us….. Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 91 Friday March 31, 2023 Sea Day Enroute To Tenerife, Canary Islands Hazy And Cooler 75 Degrees Sea State Flat......Part #1 Of 1.......59 Pictures A day at sea on our way towards the Canary Islands, found the temperature cooler at 75 degrees and the humidity of 67%. What we found really strange was the haziness in the air, which actually shrouded the horizon. The dull color of the sky blended with the ocean water as well. What we learned later was that the particles in the air was sand, carried on the winds from the Sahara Desert. While traveling on the other side of Africa on past cruises transiting the Suez Canal, we saw the same thing with smoggy-looking skies. All sand dusts. At times it can become overwhelming and obscure the air to the point one cannot see much more than a few feet ahead. There is a name for it which escapes us at the moment, and it begins with an “h”. For the first time ever, we had no yogurt for breakfast, since the ship has totally run out of it. We thought a close substitute would be cottage cheese, but when they brought a few ramekins, it turned out to be sour cream, which they insisted the container said creamy cottage cheese. Since this item and many other things never made it to the ship yesterday, we know it will be coming soon when we arrive to the Canary Islands. We do expect many other regular every day dishes will be missing such as green salads, a lot of fresh fruit, and entrees such as fish and assorted produce. One job we had this morning was to pick up the passports on our designated decks by 10am. This will have us prepared for our ports in Morocco. Those folks that had booked the overland in Morocco did not have to collect them. They will more than likely have a face-to-face with Moroccan officials. There was absolutely no line at 9:45am. Easy. After our morning walk, we went up to deck 10 for a little time in the sun. It was most comfortable up there, and now several other folks have discovered this quiet area. We were lucky to get two lounges at the railing. Going back to the room by noontime, we listened to Captain Frank’s talk. Later in the afternoon, we received a letter from the Captain with an update on the health conditions onboard. The cases of the gastrointestinal illness had decreased, but they are still on the alert, and suggest keeping up the good work with our personal hand cleaning. The self-service areas in the Lido will return to normal very soon. It is funny….since the outbreak of this sickness, we have not heard the word “Covid” even mentioned. And we doubt that there are many, if any, cases onboard now. The internet was terrible today as the connection went in and out all day long. It probably has something to do with sailing out to sea and far away from land. Hope it improves as we near the Canary Islands. The biggest highlight of the day had to be spotting whales in the distance while sitting on our veranda. They appear to be humpback, so we looked it up on Google, and discovered they can be migrating this time of year. We had counted at least seven sightings with these whales partially surfacing and blowing their spouts. Although we never saw one dive, we did spot their fins as they rolled on their sides while eating. Then we also saw a pod or two of dolphins, but really far out. Too far for photos. We did capture some of the whales which looked like huge logs floating by, their telltale spouts giving them away. It was hard to tear ourselves away, but we had been invited to a cocktail gathering in The Retreat at 6:30pm. The theme of the party was “Out of Africa” with other invited travel friends, DJ Nyron, drinks and snacks. The suggested dress code tonight was “dressy”, and the code here was African-ish dressy. What did other invited travel friends mean? Well it turned out to be a combo party with the President’s Club members as well as the Neptune folks. In our humble opinion, it was way too crowded with up to 120 to 140 guests, who were joined by many officers as well as the Captain. This time there were more stand-up tables, and we commandeered one. This worked well for us, since we do not like to sit in one spot. We were joined by people we had not met before, then one by one, some of the staff came along and introduced themselves. Shiv and Christel graced us with their company, and the party was complete. Bob and Martha stopped by to take some photos. Since it was African-ish clothing, more than a half dozen fellows wore tunics they purchased while in The Gambia. Some of them were twins, by accident. Made for great pictures and fun conversations. The party looked to be on-going when we left at 7:30pm, but we’re sure the bar closed at that time. Dinner for us was in the Pinnacle Grill, also at 7:30pm. Our table was waiting, a four top by the window set for two. We suspected that our favorite salad, the wedge, would not be available. And we were correct. So we ordered Caesar salads and were told we got the last ones. No more lettuce was available. It was grilled lamb chops and a shared baked potato for us. The halibut was not offered, but the substitute was sea bass. Desserts were one crème Brulé and two small scoops of the darkest red sorbet we have ever seen. Sure was tart. Chocolates were served, which we nibbled on. We enjoyed every bite as always. Tonight the clocks went ahead one hour. That will put us on GMT plus 1, the correct time in the Canary Islands, as it is part of Spain. Now we will be current with the daylight savings time that occurred a few days ago in northern Europe. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #90 Thursday March 30, 2023 Service Call Dakar, Senegal 8am-6pm Docked Portside To Pier Overcast With Sea Haze And Afternoon Sun Warming To 95 Degrees Part #1 Of 1.........76 Pictures You know funny things can run through your mind when you least expect it. For example, the thought had crossed our minds like what other surprises are up HAL’S sleeve in regards to this voyage? Our first clue was the fact that the ship had docked in a far different slip in Dakar this time, and definitely not where the extensive street craft market was located on the 2018 GWV. And last night, we were made well aware of the fact that the ship would be receiving 8 forty- foot containers of much needed food and supplies while here. Also, what about the free shuttle to downtown? There was no mention of that either. Our suspicions were confirmed when Captain Frank came on the speakers at 8am during our breakfast time. He began by saying he hopes we are enjoying our voyage BUT….. There had been a change in our scheduled itinerary. Long story short, today’s visit had been cancelled and no guests or crew would be allowed to leave the ship. We would stay docked until the containers were loaded, as well as two or three medical debarks were completed. The first set of passengers taken off in an ambulance had to be around 9:30am with a ton of folks watching from the promenade deck. This seems to be happening at every stop now. Anyway, the reasons for the abrupt cancellation was due to recent political developments in Dakar with a degree of unrest in the city. The Captain relayed his fear for the safety of the passengers, especially those on the HAL shore excursions. Looking up the recent info on this situation, we went to Google and discovered really bad things have been occurring here for a while. Recently a bus was burned, tear gas was used to break up demonstrations, many arrests made, people injured, and protests were promised by political opposition groups. Stun guns were used by police to disperse protestors. There was heightened security around all government facilities. Today the schools and banks were closed down, as were many of the businesses. Needless to say, none of us wanted to be in the middle of that volatile situation. We had a long discussion last night at dinner regarding our last visit here in 2018, where guests and crew had gotten robbed of money, cell phones, and jewelry ripped off of lady’s necks. What part of do not bring valuables off of the ship did they not hear? At the time, we had taken the shuttle to Independence Square, got off the bus, looked around, and re-boarded for the ride back to the ship. To be perfectly honest, we may not have even gotten off of the ship today, except to check out the huge street market across from the gangway. It’s too bad, because Dakar had the biggest and best wood-carved African animals and figurines. Prices were good too. Those that waited until today to buy some of their treasures will be disappointed for sure. On the plus side, we did not have to pay for visas here, and we will all be refunded the port taxes back to our shipboard accounts. Once again, the tours will be credited back, except those who had independent excursions. They are on their own and understand booking this way is taking a risk. Especially knowing that the itinerary is not set in stone. Far from it….. We wonder how long the people in charge knew about the cancellation of this port? A commercial ship was already in the slip we normally use, and no vendors of any kind were present. Funny they knew we were going to be kept on the ship. Why would they wait until 8am this morning to inform everyone, when all of the tour groups were waiting in the World Stage to be stickered for their buses? The ship was docked portside today, so we had a birds-eye view of container ships being off-loaded. For us, it is a fascinating work in progress. Right now, it’s 10:30am and there is no sign of any containers being delivered on the pier. We suspect we will be here very late today. We have to add that the temperatures in the morning were cooler, about 74 degrees, but eventually heated up to over 95 degrees. Oddly enough, the outside decks and verandas were soaking wet at dawn, due to sailing in heavy fog last night. We were told the foghorns blasted all night long. We kept plenty busy working on photos and reports as always. Reading on the veranda was pleasant while keeping a watch out for those containers. By 1pm, they still were not there. One pickup truck did arrive with several cases of soda. We watched as some people left the ship with a few suitcases, perhaps entertainers. The Grimaldi Line vessel across from us continued off-loading containers and taking on new vehicles from the parking lot. No work cancellation for them. At 3:30pm, still no containers in sight. We think we have been “stood up”. In the meantime, another ambulance arrived taking away another seriously ill patient at 4:15pm. We expected to be leaving the port by 5:30pm, but so far, there had been no announcement from Captain Frank. There was a sail away party held on the promenade deck at 4:30pm, but the ship was going nowhere. It was a good time to watch Ian’s talk on the upcoming ports in the Canary Islands, but the TV continued to stall at times, and the sound could not be turned up beyond halfway. Even though we reported this back in January, nothing has been done to fix it. We took a walk after Captain Frank finally came on the speakers and announced that we did not get the 8 promised containers. Duh, we knew that. A note we got after dinner indicated that the political unrest was responsible for our containers not being approved by the local customs. They hope to get replacement orders to be delivered in Tenerife and beyond. In the meantime, we may see some shortages of fresh produce, such as lettuce and other delicate veggies and fruit. We will survive, no doubt, because they promise we will NOT run out of toilet paper and wine. Guess it’s a joke…. The ropes were dropped by 6:20pm, and we had a naval escort vessel follow us out of the harbor. We should be on time for the next stop in Tenerife, Canary Islands. Now what did we miss today? Senegal has a population of 14.5 million people that speak primarily French. It is the most western country and city on the continent of Africa. It is promoted as the Land of Hospitality….really? Not today that’s for sure. They have coastal beaches, mangrove forests, savannahs, and woodlands. Bird-watching is big here, like in The Gambia, it is the route for a large number of migratory birds from Europe. They eat rice cooked in tomato sauce with fish and spicy veggies. Favorite drinks are hibiscus juice, ginger beer, and baobab juice. Here is a random fact: Senegal has one of Africa’s largest pilgrimages. Two million people will do it. Tours offered here were to the Island of Goree- all about the slave trade (restaurants and beaches are there now) for $300, 8 ½ hours with lunch. Or the same shorter tour without lunch for $130. Dakar and the Pink Lake was $270 for 8 ½ hours, while Bandia Wildlife Reserve for 4 ½ hours was $150. Dakar highlights was $130 for 4 ½ hours and a tour to an abbey was $140 for 4 ½ hours. Of course, none of these took place. At dinner we had a good discussion about being in this part of the world. All of us agreed that a return visit to this part of Africa was highly unlikely to happen with any of us. Oscar paid us a visit, promising peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for tomorrow’s night dinner, teasing of course. We both ordered tuna niçoise but it came without lettuce. OK, but needed extra dressing, since it was mostly potatoes and deviled eggs with a little tuna. Our mains were a traditional turkey dinner with lingonberry sauce. Dessert was rocky road ice cream….finally. Hoping for a couple of better days at sea now as we sail northwest to some pretty nice islands off of the coast. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #89 Wednesday March 29, 2023 Banjul, Gambia Docked Starboard Side To Pier 7am-5pm Sun With Sea Haze 90 Degrees Part #1 Of 5........70 Pictures And here we thought today was going to be spent onboard with the biggest event being another veranda cleaning. Boy, were we wrong or what? As we had stated a few days ago, we had no intentions of leaving the ship in Banjul, The Gambia. But that changed once the locals decided to charge all of the US citizens the $155 visa fee regardless of staying onboard or getting off. We would make it a point to get off and explore. But a few facts first. The Zuiderdam began sailing into the Gambia River around 5:30am, and one of us did snap some shots in the dark of moored vessels that were passed on the way. The Gambia happens to be the smallest country in mainland Africa with a population of 2 million people that speak English as well as many African dialects. This country attracts sun-seekers and bird-watchers from Europe, but mostly during the migration season in November. This migratory route begins in Europe and ends in South Africa. Even beyond as the terns will fly to Antarctica. It has as many as 600 species of birds. Hippos, crocodiles, colobus monkeys, and even manatees can be found up the massive river. What is the special dish here? A peanut stew with rice and baked fish and veggies. The favorite drink is Julbrew beer. We had it and liked it just fine. The coastline has only 80 kilometers with some nice resorts. Banjul, our port of call for today, is the capital of 31,000 people, where 96% of them are Muslim. A huge portion of the population is under 14 years old. That is about 45%. It is also among the poorest of the countries in Africa with mostly old towns and decrepit colonial buildings. Some of the tours offered today were Roots Experience, a riverboat ride to a slave trading island with lunch for $150 for 8 hours. Another long tour of 7 hours was Gambia Adventure Drive in open-air trucks where you climb the ladder to get in for $175. Banjul highlights, a tour we did 5 years ago, was $150 for 4.25 hours, while Abuko Nature Reserve was $130 for 3 ¼ hours. Makasutu Culture forest and canoe ride was $185 for 5 ¾ hours. It was actually sunny, but with a foggy haze by the time the ship was docked up the river. Our thermometer read 82 degrees with humidity at 36%. That makes the heat a lot more tolerable. After another great breakfast, we went outside on deck three to watch the frenetic activity on the dock. The ship had docked starboard once again. There were a ton of vendors that had set up an instant street market right off of the gangway. This was nice for the folks who chose not to take the shuttle to Albert Market, a short drive away. We would check out these items when we got back from town. Scheduled for another veranda cleaning, the fellows showed up at 10am and began hosing. This was a good time to leave the ship. One shuttle had just left for town, so we waited until another came back. The next vehicle happened to be a 6 passenger mini van, which was tight, but had a lot of knee room. This driver took us on a little tour on the way to the marketplace which was an all-in-one shopping place for the locals. The majority of the nicer souvenirs would be found on the pier. This place was an eye-opener and at times, an assault on the senses. One area of this corrugated tin and cloth-tented market housed ladies selling produce, spices, and everyday necessities. Where the shuttle dropped us off, there were some typical souvenirs for sale. This is where Bill had purchased a very nice t-shirt 5 years ago, and he was wearing it today. The locals liked that, or least most of them did. Deeper into the complex, we saw the “sweatshop” of men selling a variety of fabrics from cottons to silks. We saw many more young and older men sewing and ironing clothing using a low bench and a sewing machine. Recognizing the stall where we purchased some fabric five years ago, we stopped and looked again. Not intending to buy more, we did purchase 1 ½ meters of 60 inch wide heavy cotton. The price was right at $10 USD. The aisleways in this maze were quite narrow, but it did not stop the vendors from pushing their wheelbarrows down them. Move aside or get run over. We can see why these vendors really do not like it when cruise ships stop here. As curious tourists, we crowded their already mad marketplace. Not all of the locals were friendly as we have seen in other recent ports. Most of the older women would sooner hide their things for sale and even themselves when they see a camera. We mean no disrespect , but photo-taking seems to ruffle their feathers. The local men do not mind at all. Best to ask first, especially when you see young children. Venturing into the fish market was a trip. Heaven only knows what we tracked on our shoes by stepping in the little puddles on the floor. Some of the catch was huge, things we did not recognize. Hundreds of smaller fish lined their counters. So did hundreds of flies, which you just had to ignore. We have to say that this was the only place the fishermen were happy to show off their abundant catch and photos were welcomed. However, due to the pungent smell, we were out of there in about 60 seconds. The more colorful section of the market had fresh produce for sale, along with sacks of staples like rice from Thailand, and spices from everywhere. It is customary for them to dry veggies like okra to add to soups and stews. Lots of fish had been cooked or smoked and left in baskets in the open air. Flies were extra. All types of clothing were in each stall, as well as Muslim-style robes for both men and women. We saw few t-shirts for sale, but a whole lot of shoes and sandals were available. Finding our way out to where we had been dropped off was tricky, because we had been let out at a different spot. We did finally locate the real Albert Market portal with the broken cement and muddy drainage ditch, where some guests had fallen 5 years ago. It was still not fixed, and we doubt it ever will be. A quick drive through town found us back at the pier by 12:30pm. We ran into friends Pauline and Mike who told us all about their overland trip in South Africa. They had seen a lot of Africa they had never toured before as it was a land trip by bus mostly. Now today, they had organized a tour for themselves and some friends. It had to be cancelled when they realized the visa fees were so high. Now that we were paying anyway, their tour was off. Hope they are able to get their money back. We did a speedy look-over of the pier treasures, finding one small purse made with fabric and leather. Suitable for dinner, it will work well with beiges and browns. The vendor was most willing to play the bargaining game and would have been disappointed if we did not barter. The friendliest of the vendors were here and had no problem asking too many questions of us. Usually it is where are you from, where have you come from, or is this your first time here? One vendor lady asked me how old I was? Really? Bill spoke up and said I was strong and could still pack firewood at home. She was most impressed, but her bottom line was to sell us something…anything. Even a local cop working the pier wanted to give us a private tour later in the afternoon. Why he was interested in getting our email address confused us. Of course, we would never give that info to anyone we don’t know. We thanked him for the tour offer, but since we have been here before, we had seen all we needed for one day. As you know by now, the dining room is always closed on port days. So we had another cozy lunch delivered by room service. Our meal began with chicken noodle soup (which Susie is trying to have them add real noodles instead of spaghetti). Sharing one cheese quesadilla and a BBQ pork sandwich was plenty to tide us over until dinner. Spending some down time on the freshly-cleaned veranda found the temperature had climbed well over 90 degrees, but being that we were facing the river, we were in the shade. It was comfortable and the best place to watch ship traffic and birds flying overhead. Oddly enough, we got shots of one Dalmatian pelican, a small flock of gannets, possibly a peregrine falcon, and one African white-back vulture was spotted extremely high in the sky. We went up to deck 10 to see more red kites attacking the local crows. Some terns were dipping into the waters, testing the floating plastic items that had blown off of the pier in the river. Several herons and egrets from the mangroves perched on the ship’s ropes. Seeing these birds was icing on the cake for us. We did spot friends Gyl and Howard who were spending time in the smoking section of the Seaview Pool. We exchanged our shared ideas concerning the recent events that have combined the President’s Club members with the Neptune folks. We all agreed that with the larger number of P. Club guests, we do not need the extra people there for a shared cocktail hour. Too crowded and noisy, we wish they would keep the groups separated. For them , it is killing two birds with one stone. Sail away should have been around 5pm, but it was delayed due to late tours arriving or missing people. It did give us time to watch the vendors cleaning up their goods and packing it all away. Bet they made a ton of money today. By 4:55pm, we could hear the minarets going off in the city, a reminder for the call for prayer. The ship finally left after 6pm, headed west, the finally turned north to our next stop in Dakar, Senegal. Dinner was good. We both ordered the chicken satay with peanut sauce with a kick. Caesar salads were next, followed by the mahi-mahi entree and a chicken parmigiana with lots of spaghetti- enough to share. Desserts were Heath bar frozen yogurt and a strawberry sorbet. Excellent. Like we said, today was unexpected, but worth making another memory to share with everyone. Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 88 Tuesday March 28, 2023 Sea Day Enroute To Banjul, Gambia Overcast With A Sea Haze And Some Afternoon Sun 75 Degrees And Cooler Sea State Flat Part #1 Of 1.........0 Pictures Another day at sea brought with it slightly cooler temperatures of 75 degrees, but still some humidity. The skies were overcast, but there was also a fog-like haze everywhere, keeping the breeze on the cool side. It could be that the water temps are changing as we travel northwest and creating this high mist. Anyway, we are happy to have things more comfortable. There was an interesting Q and A with Ian and Nyron this morning at 10am in the World Stage. Our friend Bob happened to be passing by the doors when he heard the question asked regarding the excessive amount of the visas The Gambia was demanding. In fact, one person said why are we even going there? With that said, everyone in the audience clapped in agreement. What none of us knew at the time, was that the option of not going ashore and not paying the $155 visa charge had been rescinded. We knew that option was too good to be true, as it was not an option in 2018, the last time we were here. Later in the day, like at 5:30pm, we all got a message in our slots that the Gambian Immigration Authorities said that all visa-required nationalities, whether going ashore or not, MUST be issued a visa. This applied to mainly the USA citizens who are the majority of guests onboard. Some other nationalities such as the Australians, Canadians and other commonwealth countries will not have to pay. We would love to know the actual number of guests that had opted out of buying the visa. Our guess it was a substantial number and the local government would have lost the easy revenue. In addition, the shore excursion office would stay open until 7pm for any last- minute bookings for Banjul. Lastly, they apologized for this late change that was beyond their control and thank you for your understanding. Yeah, we get it, but it should have been sorted out much sooner than the last minute. Almost sounds like extortion to us. On the last stops in Africa, we have heard there has been some trouble with loading the buses for shore excursions. In the “old days”, those on tours had to enter the Mainstage, get “stickered” for their tour, and wait (seated) in the lounge until your tour was called. It was much more controlled back then. There was no running ahead to get the front seats in any bus, as there were guards at the lounge’s exit. This had changed we guess, so now, in the interest of safety and security, people will be dispatched at the control gate exit of the World Stage. You will not be allowed to leave the lounge until your tour number is called. The shore excursion crew urgently asked for the guest’s understanding and compliance with their assigned tasks. We are SO glad that we do not take tours anymore. Once again, knowing that this voyage is such a long one, and not 7 or 10 days, the staff should have known better to get so lax with their operation. Lesson learned we suppose. We did listen to the port talk on Gambia and Senegal on TV, but when we looked for today’s Q and A, it was not there. Perhaps they did not want everyone to know the reaction they got concerning the visas in The Gambia. It had been rumored that the excursions in Gambia had been reduced, but they remained the same. That would have caused another fiasco had they done that. Don’t know why, but we continue to get the impression that they are flying by the seat of their pants with this particular cruise. After our late morning walk, we went up to deck 10, and checked out the activity around the Seaview Pool. Other than a few folks waiting for lunch to begin in the Lido, there was no one in the pool or the spas. The lounges had perhaps 6 people using them at the most. We relaxed up on 10 with a couple of ladies sunbathing up there. Even though we are close to the Equator, the intenseness of the sun has gotten much less. With a very strong breeze blowing, it was more than comfortable up there. Back together at dinnertime, we were happy to try out some of the new appetizers. Some of the regular items are now seasoned differently (African spices, etc.) and called something different. They must have run out of the variety of fish entrees they offered. Now the everyday salmon is the most offered fish plate. We were most happy to see the veal chop on the Club Orange menu, and we both ordered it. However, everyone had their entrees, and we waited. Telling them all to go ahead, and not wait for us, we got our meals 20 minutes later. We really did not complain, but Barb sure did. She does not like it when things do not go smoothly as they usually do. Had we known it would have taken that long, we may have ordered something different. Oscar, our head waiter, came running with our meals, apologizing all of the way. But let us tell you, it was worth the wait. The over-sized chops were freshly-cooked and hot. So good we savored every bite. Woody had not liked his undercooked meal, so he also ordered a substitute. The three of us dined, while everyone waited for dessert. Crème Brule was the special, so Barb had two of them, and one to go. We were about the last of the tables to leave, but it was only 9:25pm, and time for all to go to the show. Oh wait a minute…..there was no show tonight. At 7pm, there was a game, Call My Bluff Game Show, but it was not repeated at 9:30pm. Greg and Heo call this show “DARK”, which means nothing, and it does not make them happy. Tomorrow instead of spending the day onboard, we will now be taking the complimentary shuttle to the Marketplace in Banjul. As long as we are paying the visa fee, we may as well make the most of it. Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 87 Monday March 27, 2023 Day At Sea Enroute To Banjul, Gambia Overcast With Some Sun In The Afternoon 82 Degrees Sea State Slight Part #1 Of 1.......0 Pictures It was one of those near perfect days at sea, as the Zuiderdam continues its travels up the West Coast of Africa. Despite the overcast skies, the temperature of 82 degrees was tolerable as was the nice breeze that came along with it. The humidity had dropped to 75% and we could feel the difference. Sailing within 12 or more miles off of the coast, the seas have been smooth with little to no swell. The sun did appear in the afternoon, but it was not as intense as it had been for the last several days. Pretty soon, we will be complaining that it is getting cold, so we had best enjoy the warmth while we can. This morning Ian had Q and A with Henk, our hotel manager. This was the place for the guests to inquire about some things we have all been wondering about such as, what got so many people sick? His answer confirmed our suspicions that it was a food-borne illness, possibly brought onboard with produce shipments while in South Africa. That could be lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, carrots and fruit. The most contaminated fruit products are the melons. They can harbor bacteria on the outside skin or rind, and it can be transferred with the simple cutting of the fruit with a knife. Same applies to oranges and apples, which are abundant on the ship. The old saying goes like this: If in doubt, throw it out. And according to Henk, that is exactly what they did. Being in the food service industry for 20 years, one of us knew that a little bleach in the rinse water solves most all of the bacteria problems. Henk reassured everyone present that the problem seems to be better, and will be gone soon. Other questions involved the upcoming events that will occur while we are in Amsterdam on April 18th, celebrating their 150 year of its inception. Our buddy Rich, who went to the talk, said that our group of President’s Club members, those who will be inducted, and the two Pinnacle suites will be spending the evening in the city of Rotterdam. We assumed that affair was just a cocktail party with a drive back to the ship. Now we are hearing that we will be guests at the Holland America Line building for cocktails and dinner. Gus Antorcha, the new CEO of HAL will be our host, along with several others from corporate we are guessing. We will arrive back to the ship by 9pm, where there will be another event held in the Lido poolside for everyone. As stated on our invite, more details will be forthcoming. Ian also gave a port talk on Banjul and Dakar, one of which we will not be visiting, since we are not getting the visa. Greg and Heo, being Australian citizens, found out today that they do not need visas for The Gambia, so they will be getting off of the ship that day. It will be a new port for both of them and they are game for exploring. The usual events took place on the ship, while we worked on photos and reports. Looking ahead, one of us needs to prepare well ahead of the port stops in order to keep up. Greg pointed out that once we reach the Canary Islands, there are few sea days in between. Port intensive is the word for it, so the more than can be done now, the better for all. We enjoyed a light lunch splitting two sandwiches. They have run out of potato chips, heaven forbid. Or at least, they are going to be doling them out carefully. We are not sure when the next big delivery will be, but rumors have it that it may happen in Senegal. Bet they will be most careful when ordering local produce as the contaminates are odorless and tasteless. Tonight there were four of us for the dressy dinner. It had been such a lazy day, we did not feel up to dressy, but we did go dressed nicely. Greg and Heo had gone to lunch in the Pinnacle Grill, and were not overly hungry. One of the entrees was surf and turf with lobster thermidor and a slice of tenderloin. They both agreed it was good. One of us had the chicken, but with the sides from the salmon. The other had beef rib meat with mashed potatoes and green beans. Both were ample. One of our friends, Linda, had a birthday tonight, earning her a specially-made cheesecake. Before they left the room, they had sent some slices our way. It went well with the strawberry jello and sorbet we had ordered. It was nice to have only the four of us, making conversation much easier for a change. Barb, Susie and Woody had gone to the Pinnacle Grill, but two of them will be madder than wet hens since they had calves liver on the menu tonight and they missed it. The show tonight was “Dream”, a performance by the Zuiderdam’s singers. Better than another movie we guess. Another day at sea tomorrow is working for us. Bill & Mary Ann