A Walk Down Memory Lane - s/s NORWAY

[Davechipp74]

am i missing something, your link just takes me to the flicker home page, and not your photos :confused:

[eroller]

am i missing something, your link just takes me to the flicker home page, and not your photos :confused:

 

 

 

Just checked and both links I listed on the first post seem to be working fine. Maybe it's something with your computer as no one else seems to be having any issues?

 

Sorry you're having trouble.

 

Ernie

[tjc78]

Thanks for the pictures. I never sailed on Norway but for some reason I just love that ship. I've read a lot about her here on CC and various places on the web.

[bob brown]

. The Norway looks huge -- very long and sleek, but there aren't that many decks compared to today's massive superships.

 

What you are describing is a good example of the difference between an ocean liner and a cruise ship....:)

[crew mom]

If you really want to know more about the Norway be sure and visit http://www.captainsvoyage-forum.com/ and also http://www.captainsvoyage.com/captainsvoyage/Welcome.html

 

Jan-Olav Storli was a First Officer on the Norway and an accomplished photographer. Both of these sites are his and they are very informative. One can spend hours here learning about the Norway and other ships.

[sail2sea]

Now THAT is a ship!

[suepell]

the norway was my first cruise in 1988. Wonderful memories! I enjoyed seeing the pics.

[Cruzinnana47]

Thank you for posting your photos of the S/S Norway. We were so fortunate to have sailed her in 1995 and 2001 (in the same stateroom--N49 on the Norway deck). What a wonderful ship. Our cruises on her gave us a taste of what her past life had been as a true ocean liner. I am still obsessed with her and appreciate seeing any info./photos I can find of her. And thank you also for posting the name of the book--I will try to find it in our local bookstore.

 

We try not to think of the unfortunate end to this lovely vessel, but focus on the great memories we have of sailing on her.

[bob brown]

A book I highly recommend for you is called:

FRANCE / NORWAY by John Maxtone-Graham

ISBN 978-0-393-06903-07

 

This excellent hardcover picture book chronicles the life of FRANCE / NORWAY from her launch as the FRANCE, all the way to her breaking up on the beaches of Alang, India.

 

It's a much have for any lover of this great ship!

 

Ernie

Just ordered it from Amazon.....and at a nice discount....can't wait to get it.:cool:

[bob brown]

Real serious, that is.

You can own your own.....

http://www.maritimereplicas.com/details.php?id=277

:)

[cruzincurt]

We were on the last cruise of the S/S Norway in 2003. We had arrived back in Miami that morning when the ship shuddered and black smoke poured out. Eight crewmen were killed.

 

We were in the "penthouse" cabin on the rear top deck. The room was not structurally well built (I think I recall hearing the walls were aluminum so as not to add to much top weight) and the bed shook like a cheap motel vibrating bed. We tried turning sideways on the bed to hope to reduce the shaking. Eventually, we were able to ignore the shaking. That cruise for 2 in the penthouse cabin was $800 total.

 

We were fond of the International Lounge. We also liked watching the tenders being raised and lowered.

 

In St. Thomas, we had to tender because of the deep draft of the ship. It was a wonderful experience riding the tender back out from the pier, past all the other cruise ships to "our" ship. She was a graceful lady.

 

When we departed first from St. Thomas for the return to Miami, all the other cruise ships blew their horns in salute. Leaving the port, the Grandeur of the Seas, raced along side of us for probably an hour before blowing her horns in final salute before turning away.

 

Who would have known this was her last cruise leg for all time. We were planning to book another cruise on her because she was so elegant. But alas, not to be.

Edited August 16, 2012 by cruzincurt

[Cruiser Bruiser]

A book I highly recommend for you is called:

FRANCE / NORWAY by John Maxtone-Graham

ISBN 978-0-393-06903-07 Ernie

 

You beat me to it, Ernie! I bought this book for the library where I work and I couldn't put it down. Even though newer ships surpass it in elegance, size, etc., there's just something so romantic about the Love Boat era. It also gives a lot of history of the early days of NCL and other cruise lines--the beginnings of the industry, really.

 

Thanks for posting these photos -- what an incredible trip back in time!...And the fashions -- short shorts on the men... I guess it was all good at the time! Thanks again for the photos!

 

Better, I think, than the culottes and skorts that men wear now. Ah, the late-seventies and early-eighties. :cool:

Edited August 16, 2012 by Cruiser Bruiser
Added content; fixed grammar error.

[hmsdos]

I've been in a photo scanning mood today, so I finally got around to scanning old photos of my early s/s/ NORWAY cruises. The pics are from July

1980 and August 1983. As you can imagine both cruises were awesome experiences, when NORWAY was in her prime. The July 1980 cruise was during her first month of service in the Caribbean. We missed out on the power outages that plagued the ship early in her NCL career.

 

Something unique about NORWAY in 1980 was the casino. It had slots only. Also

the production show was Hello Dolly and it was awesome. I even managed to grab some photos of the production. The Lido Lounge was a wonderful spot, one of my favorite places onboard. Everything on NORWAY was color coded back then to help you get around, even the carpet patterns. Turquoise color was forward, and salmon color was aft. Even your ticket jackets matched where you were staying on the ship, and what pier you embarked from (Pier 1 or Pier 2).

 

Not much had changed when we returned in 1983. Thankfully the Lido Lounge was still in tact. The biggest change was that table games were added to the casino and Hello Dolly was gone, replaced I believe by My Fair Lady but I'm not 100% sure about that. On our first cruise we dined in the Leeward Restaurant, but this time around it was a large center table in the Windward Dining Room which I much preferred.

 

Hope you enjoy this little walk back in time.

 

Ernie

 

 

Thanks for the memories.... we sailed her July 20-28, 1980... loved her!

Edited August 16, 2012 by hmsdos

[jwitt2]

Thank you so much, made me want to cry. We were also on twice in the 80's. Also were on in 2001, but because of pinhole leaks in the sprinkler system, we did not go anywhere, sat in Miami for several days. But what a great hotel she was! Love the old ships.

[sdmike]

Hey Ernie. I just got around to going through this thread and the pictures. What great memories! Your grandmother was a lovely person. I met her a few times with Fred. I actually remember when you guys used to go on these trips with your grandma.

 

Now I have to go look at more pictures to see if I can find any blackmail pictures of your brother from the 80's :)

 

Update: HA! found it in the 83 album. Fred's got some awesome shorts on. LOL

Edited August 18, 2012 by sdmike

[OceanDreams]

We had the most wonderful experience cruising on the Norway in April of 2003. About a month before we sailed I was talking to a fellow CC member and he was kind enough to send me a copy of the architectural plans which shows the changes from the SS France to the SS Norway. I will treasure these.

OceanDreams

[intrepid_guy]

Ah, how I miss the NORWAY. I cruised on her 4 times (as you can see in my signature) and I would probably still cruise on her today if she was around. I love today's ships but there was something about the old NORWAY. This makes me want to go dig out my photos from the 80's

 

~Intrepid <-- anyone for martinis in Club I?

[TDM99]

HAPPY DAYS onboard the s/s NORWAY ( my Lovely FRANCE ) .

 

http://tdm99.skyrock.com/

 

 

Friendly NOËL

[Norway97]

A book I highly recommend for you is called:

FRANCE / NORWAY by John Maxtone-Graham

ISBN 978-0-393-06903-07

 

This excellent hardcover picture book chronicles the life of FRANCE / NORWAY from her launch as the FRANCE, all the way to her breaking up on the beaches of Alang, India.

 

It's a much have for any lover of this great ship!

 

Ernie

Thank you for this post re John Maxtone-Graham's book. We had no idea this had been published. I just ordered and now can't wait. One of my favorite of many Norway memories are of his daily lectures on the '97 transatlantic. To this day, never sailaway in NY Harbor without hearing (in my head!) his sailaway lecture over the loudspeaker as he described the skyline of an earlier day and gave history of building after building. We have all his previous books, each signed.

[loubetti]

It really breaks your heart to see a photo like this:

 

 

Holland could save the Rotterdam V (1958), but France could not save France / Norway (1960).

[bphman]

When I was 16 in 1967, my parents took the family to Europe and we returned on the S.S. France. We traveled First Class and it was a truly elegant experience. Caviar flowed like water and no request was denied. With a cruising speed of 30 knots we crossed the Atlantic in under 5 days. There was a true division of the classes which did bother me. We sailed the Norway in 1990 and it was an unfortunate venture and I blame my lofty expectations in trying to revisit my past and I didn't find the conversion from ocean liner to cruise ship a complete success. It did rekindle fond memories and I loved walking the decks and exploring. I, too, purchased the S.S. France/S. S. Norway book and thoroughly enjoy it. I am grateful to NCL in extending the life of this magnificent ship.

Edited September 8, 2012 by bphman

[SeaHunt]

loubetti, such a sad sight :(

 

I much prefer thinking of her like this, at sea, sounding her horn (which you could feel down in your bones LOL):

 

Edited September 9, 2012 by SeaHunt

[lordchaos]

thank you for the great pics of the Norway.

[Vol fan]

Thanks for the pictures. Still one of my favorite cruises and ships. I remember her so fondly and am sad every time I think of how she was treated at the end.

[Luckynana]

Ernie, thank you so much for the memories! The Norway was a great and beautiful ship!