Prinsendam 2005 World Tour... it has begun

[blackbird71]

 

Some passengers tell how they like to sleep with their balcony doors open. Very naughty.... it wrecks the AC flow to any cabins nearby!!!!!

 

 

Stephen

 

LOL, on my Amazon cruise on the RSSC Mariner, my room stewardess was down right paranoid about the balcony doors being opened on the Amazon at night.. (Keep closed Keep closed .. no bugs no bugs) was her favorite words at night to me. :p

 

I have been on the S/R HAL ships and not the newer ones. But I fell in love with the tempature control in my room. It was an electronic one with a couple red lights above, one green light, and a couple blue lights below. It had an up and down button. I found green light on was great for the day, then I down one to the first blue light for a colder night time temperature in the room... Gooooood sleeping. :)

[andre2p]

Does anybody know the brand/model of the GPS unit that Grumpy is using during their world cruise? :confused:

 

If not, maybe Grumpy can let us know with his next post. Thanks in advance, and thanks G&S for taking the time to write such wonderful reports.

 

AC

[TexEm]

Andre2p--Grumpy wrote in a very early post that he had a GarminV GPS unit with him that had built-in world map software. Hope that helps. (Don't know anything about the unit myself, that's what he wrote it was.)

 

Mary

[ricktalcott]

G&S -

 

Just found this thread and am delighted that I can at least get in a thank you before the cruise is over. I really appreciate the writing.

 

Rick

[PRINSENDAM]

Hi Grumpie & Slinkie,

 

May I suggest that after you are home safe and sound from PRINSENDAM that you keep this thread going for a while longer? I'm sure there are a few things you would like to share with us after your cruise.... some small bit of information or 'dirt' that might otherwise be forgotten.... :-).

 

In the meanwhile...... enjoy your last week on board... and best regards to everyone!

 

Stephen

[RuthC]

Should we all start a pool taking bets on how many reams of paper it will take for Grumpy to print this entire thread out?

[mrssbi]

Ruth C.....I have only printed out the posts by Grumpy and Slinkie to save for ACD Johnny to read and am almost finished with my second 1.5 inch binder. Lots of paper but lots of fun and interesting information.

 

Grumpy and Slinkie - it has been wonderful "cruising" with you and we all love your posts. It will be hard to go on the boards and not see it.

 

Thanks again

 

Mrs. SBI aka Mommy I

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Should we all start a pool taking bets on how many reams of paper it will take for Grumpy to print this entire thread out?

 

 

He could edit it all into a book,

complete with photos,

and have it in shops for the Xmas Gift market!!!!!!!!!!

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Hi again Grumpy........

 

As your trip is starting to wind down I have been thinking about the logistics of keeping Prinsendam supplied for a World Cruise.

 

Is the ship starting to run out of "things"?

 

Was she stocked up with all your needs at the start of the voyage?

 

What provisions were picked up along the way?

 

Another question that can wait till you get home,

 

What gifts did HAL give , to remind you of your wonderful voyage,and give you memories of your many exotic ports of call?

[Cuttle]

Thanks Grumpy, for your explanation about how you were able to change the ship name to Slinkiedam on the last photo you posted. As I am basically computer illiterate, and marvel at all these things you all do with graphics, photo editing, etc. It just goes to show how any picture can be "doctored" and then published. No longer "seeing is believing"?;)

[Time2sail]

He could edit it all into a book,

complete with photos,

and have it in shops for the Xmas Gift market!!!!!!!!!!

 

It should at least be available in the HAL shop that has just opened. How about it, Grumpy? I believe you have a best seller in the works.

[cruiseacecat]

Another lurker thanks Grumpy1 and Slinky for their excellent posts. Hope someday to be able to follow in your footsteps. Hope you enjoy your land based life and can cruise again soon.

[Grumpy1]

Prinsendam 2005, April 28, Day 105

 

Cruising up the river... on a rainy Thursday morn... It IS a rain forest after all... Yesterday, in the wee hours of the morning, the Prinsendam passed the Sea Bouy that marks the end of the Amazon River and the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. Grumpy was not up to record that momentous occasion... some of the diehard navigator wannabees were... but when Slinkie and Grumpy arose, the water was muddy brown with lots of debris floating by. A quick check of the GPS showed that the Prinsendam was in the very wide area at the mouth of the river, well beyond the nearest land. Not much to see yet except the drastic change in color of the water from the deep blue ocean. While at breakfast on the aft Lido deck, the first land came into view on the starboard side as the Prinsendam sailed past some of the islands of the Amazon Delta. For the next seven hours the Prinsendam continued up river to the town of Macape. The weather was mostly clear, a few sprinnkles about noon, but mostly sunny... perfect day to sit on the verandah and watch the shoreline for signs of life, take some pictures, check out the occasional small boats on the river and dwellings along the shore... get burned to a crisp in the hot sun...

 

Before Macape, there were only a few small villages and some individual dwellings. Macape was quite a surprise... modern high rise buildings, long docks, buses trucks and cars on paved streets... very different from the almost unspoiled nature that had been the views... Just upriver from Macape, about 2p, the Prinsendam dropped anchor and the Brazilian customs officials came aboard along with a river pilot. After an hour or so, the ship was cleared by customs, the anchor was raised and the Prinsendam continued upriver toward Santarem. There hasn't been much wildlife to view... a few birds, no crocs within sight, though... there are quite a few rather small quaint boats with enclosed cabins... in almost every cove there is a building and a boat... there are ocassional buildings on the long narrow islands that dot the river. Right now, most of them are only a few feet above the waterline. From the amont of floating vegetation mats in the river, Grumpy is guessing that the water level is fairly high right now and a lot of ground cover is being washed into the river. Some of the mats appear to be more than 50 feet long. When they float by close to the ship, they appear to be tangles of small vines and ground cover, like ivy, very fresh and green looking. There are probably enough nutrients in the water to keep them growing until they hit the Atlantic salt water.

 

The highlight of entertainment other than river watching was the afternoon performance in the Queen's Lounge by the four excellent pianists on the ship staff. The show opened with three numbers by the lovely pianist of the Rosario Strings Trio, followed by three numbers by the one and only Randall Powell, the Crow's Nest Pianoman. Next up was Chris Cartner of the Prinsendam Orchestra. His talents are usually not showcased, since he plays the synthesizer with the orchestra and doesn't attract much attention, but he is an accomplished concert pianist. The fourth set was by Tina Marie LoRusso, pianist and director of the Prinsendam orchestra. All in all, a very good show, but there was a finale number that many did not expect. Tina started playing "Heart and Soul"... after a few bars she was pushed aside by the Rosario Strings pianist... Tina slid down the bench and continued a few octaves lower as the two played. Randall then pushed them both aside and took the top octaves as the other two continued down the keyboard. Chris then got into the act and there were now eight hands vying for space on one keyboard. They took turns jumping around and elbowing in between each other, all without missing a beat or note... well, not too many beats or notes... and it was very entertaining. One of the featured acts a few weeks back was Katzenjammer, four hands, one piano. Our Prinsendam musicians doubled that. Now those that know Randall know that he has a width almost equal to a grand piano, so it was no small feat for the other three to find a place at the keyboard... Great show...

 

The Prinsendam continued upriver overnight... between Captain Gundersen and the river pilot, they were able to keep her in the channel and moving along at a speed of 12 to 18 knots. In fact, they did such a good job that the Prinsendam will arrive in Santarem 1 1/2 hours earlier than expected. It's been a very rainy morning, so there isn't much to see beyond the shoreline. Everything else disappears into the haze very quickly. As the Prinsendam moves up river, there are more small settlements along the river... most are pretty rustic looking, but then there is often a cell phone tower among them, so civilization is intruding everywhere...

 

Slinkie and Grumpy have an excursion planned this afternoon... Tapajos River and Jari Canal Boat Tour... from the looks of things, the boat had better be covered or there will be a lot of wet Prinsendamers... Grumpy and Slinkie will make sure the ponchos are in the bag along with the bug wipes... Grumpy will let you know later how it went... and answer the questions that are starting to pile up...

 

Grumpy and Slinkie...

 

[Cuttle]

Just checked the map. You are a long way inland. I just think of the Amazon area being all jungle, don't quite think of a city with high rise buildings etc. What a surprise! I am learning so much on YOUR world cruise. Must be quite the trip up the longest river in the world. How many miles are you from the ocean?

[emerald777]

Just wanted to take this opportunity to chime in with my THANKS too!!! I've absolutely loved reading of your adventures and daydreaming that someday I might be able to follow in your footsteps. I leave tomorrow for Ft. Lauderdale (Caribbean Princess), will just miss you guys by one day! So does it feel like the time has flown by? Or do you feel like you've actually been sailing for months? Hope this last week s t r e t c h e s out! Take Care!

[DesrtDrmr]

Here is my latest creation... not the usual oil paint on canvas, but a painting in the majolica technique on ceramic tiles. The paint on 20 tiles measures 24" x 30" and shows PRINSENDAM with HAL crest at bottom and the City of Rotterdam crest at top. The tiles will be shipped to Holland for framing and will ten be hung on board PRINSENDAM in Amsterdam at the end of June.

 

The big oil painting for PRINSENDAM is still unfinished... perhaps another four or five days work to go.

 

Stephen

 

Hello Stephen,

Your tiles are beautiful! They look like 17th Century...........you must have taken great care in painting them. I can see we are going to have to jump back to Holland America (home of our first and alltime favorite cruise) to see your wonderful work. Thanks for sharing some of it. We're going to miss your postings, too, while we are missing Slinky and Grumpy................you three are going to have to start another thread to keep all this wonderful information flowing.

[Cuttle]

Correction! I posted that the Amazon was the longest river in the world. Well, that is what I learned in school - many - many - many years ago. At that time I think there was some dispute as to which was the longest - the Nile or the Amazon. No one could decide and I think it was a case of where the headwaters were presumed to be. The Amazon has always stuck in my mind as the longest ever since. Sorry if I confused anyone. I guess I would have lost a trivia point with that one.

 

I also noticed I suddenly got to 100 posts - is there a prize of .333 of a blue ribbon? Just thought I would ask. 3,000 seems to be soooo far away.

 

Prinsendam, I also loved the picture of the tile mural you painted and posted. It is beautiful. I don't think all my HAL tiles will look quite the same on a wall. Thanks for the posting.

[Rotterdam]

Dear Slinkie & Grumpy -

 

As you have 8 days left of your wonderful, momentous, adventurous, romantic, comedic world cruise onboard Prinsemdam....I want to thank you for the hours of enjoyment, education, laughter, sympathy, cocktails, dress parties, piano playing, GPS trotting reading this thread has brought me.

 

I wish you limitless hours of happiness & joy as you both continue your voyage back home. You have lived well - thank you for sharing.

 

"You can say it is blue, and even as you define the color it has turned to purple, or green or grey, or black or violet and back to blue again. You can say it is restless, and while you speak the wind drops, the swells subside and from the horizon to horizon there is no ripple, no flaw no movement, only a vast sheet of pallid satin color. You can say it is calm and it rises and sweeps your coast cities away, throws your ships ashore, washes the keels of the flying clouds above. At the last, when you have sailed enough and that far enough, you come to understand that the sea is everything. It is calm and restless, stormy and laughing, many hued & one colored, salty & fresh, warm & cold, an enemy & a friend, a help and a hindrance, a tragedy and a jest. Everything! Sufficient for every mood, for every dream. for every hope , for every sorrow."

 

Albert Richard Wetjen (1900- 1940)\ From " Way for a Sailor".

[DFD1]

Grumpy, Your river post was beautifully done. I could see and feel the river and the things you were seeing and feeling about it. Very nice writing and a pleasure to read. Thanks

[blackbird71]

Grumpy,,,

 

On my Feb Amazon cruise and I am sure on yours, at night the bridge will have their spotlight going to target the matter in the water. I enjoyed sitting on my balcony watching the light play against things. Also at night there are some kind of white birds attacking the ship. :D

[Ziggy7]

Stephen

Is this some of your art work on the Zaandam posted on this website :)

 

http://community.webshots.com/album/328269607VoHtAR/3

[KathieKata]

Hard to believe that this "wonderful World Cruise" is almost over.

Slinkie and Grumpy thanks in advance for sharing it with all of us.

 

When you're home and I want to know how you packed up all your purchases and if they all made it back in one piece!! Slinkie did you have to have a Brinks Truck meet you at the docks?? :D

 

I'll be vacationing in Longboat Key, FL starting the end of next week. I'll need to find a computer to catch up on the last of your trip.

 

God Bless you both with many many happy years together.

You two put new meaning to: 'spend it while you can.......you can't take it with you'!! ;)

[eddie]

K2 Art says don't even think about it. Happy Easter for those who don't know k2 its a long story

[BeverlyAndWalter]

Thank you for taking the time to share your world cruise adventure with all of us. I have been looking forward to reading your entertaining posts each day. I will be on the Prinsendam for the October 4 Rome to Athens cruise so I have also enjoyed reading about the ship and crew.

[PH8]

K2.not to worry............I do believe they said they get back May 6th.........so you wont miss a thing.............

 

Now go enjoy that egg hunt!;)