Come along with Judy and Pete on the Zuiderdam’s Canada & New England Cruise

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Enjoying your blog on the current cruise. I did similar itinerary back in May. I wonder if your rough weather is because of the remnants of hurricane Matthew or just a normal North Atlantic storm.

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Enjoying your blog on the current cruise. I did similar itinerary back in May. I wonder if your rough weather is because of the remnants of hurricane Matthew or just a normal North Atlantic storm.

 

 

 

Normal North Atlantic storm.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Dismomx5]

Sad to miss the ports, but safety is paramount. The maritimes got hammered on Thanksgiving-lots of lost power, apparently-and huge winds. Hoping that the rest of your cruise is smooth sailing!

[Skipper's Mom]

We also missed Charlottetown and Sydney in 2012 on our Maasdam cruise from Montreal to Fort Lauderdale due to bad weather. However, we got an extra day in Halifax for our trouble.

 

Enjoying your posts! Thanks for taking us along.:D

[swin26]

Last year on our cruise from NYC to Quebec we had one night with 120 mile per hour winds and we listed 7 degrees. By the next morning the seas were calmer and we luckily didn't miss a port. It was a bit of a scary night when things went flying off our desk and we thought we might fall out of bed.

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Last year on our cruise from NYC to Quebec we had one night with 120 mile per hour winds and we listed 7 degrees. By the next morning the seas were calmer and we luckily didn't miss a port. It was a bit of a scary night when things went flying off our desk and we thought we might fall out of bed.

 

 

 

Wow, 120! I thought 88 would be close to a record. Our night was a non event by comparison.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[kazu]

Sorry to hear about your missed ports. Sydney has no tugs, and in windy/rough weather, turning around can be tricky with no help standing by.

 

I guess it just means more time to knit and "donate" at the casino! ;)

 

Not picking on you Kathy, just quoting you because of the reference to Sydney.

 

The tail of Matthew came through here (we did well compared to others but got a lot of rain and wind).

 

Sydney got the brunt of the storm. No one is going there. Poor Cape Breton is flooded and many without power. Newfoundaland also suffered.

 

I imaginet there will be itinerary changes for Sydney Nova Scotia until they can recover. They have a real mess on their hands.

[cccole]

I'm enjoying "our" cruise and it was nice to have a couple days of good weather before hitting the storm. I had to look up the definition of "apparent wind"...as someone who has spent many years onboard a ship, do you know if there is a calculation used to translate "apparent" to "actual" wind? It sounds like you are in hurricane strength winds. The knitting group must be getting projects close to completion with the additional sea days. Thank you for doing this and also the photos and other info on the website, Cherie

[3rdGenCunarder]

Not picking on you Kathy, just quoting you because of the reference to Sydney.

 

The tail of Matthew came through here (we did well compared to others but got a lot of rain and wind).

 

Sydney got the brunt of the storm. No one is going there. Poor Cape Breton is flooded and many without power. Newfoundaland also suffered.

 

I imaginet there will be itinerary changes for Sydney Nova Scotia until they can recover. They have a real mess on their hands.

 

I don't feel picked on. I appreciate the info. Our TV weather people seem to be unaware that there's a country to the north of our border. (Newspapers, too, for that matter) I saw one mention of Matthew going to Nova Scotia, and how it was a surprising change in the projected path that had predicted a southward loop. No mention at all of the impact, so I didn't know Cape Breton got smacked so hard. I'm sorry to hear that, it's a lovely place. We've enjoyed our stops at Sydney.

Edited October 12, 2016 by 3rdGenCunarder

[kazu]

I don't feel picked on. I appreciate the info. Our TV weather people seem to be unaware that there's a country to the north of our border. (Newspapers, too, for that matter) I saw one mention of Matthew going to Nova Scotia, and how it was a surprising change in the projected path that had predicted a southward loop. No mention at all of the impact, so I didn't know Cape Breton got smacked so hard. I'm sorry to hear that, it's a lovely place. We've enjoyed our stops at Sydney.

 

I have noticed that when it comes to certain U.S. Stations ;). Parts of Newfoundland are in real trouble. We just had what I call minor flooding here - and much needed rain. Winds were high (and higher than predicted). The same thing happened to Cape Breton. They were totally caught off guard by the volume only their volume was much heavier. I consider us blessed and feel so bad for all people affected by this one, especially with another coming potentially.

 

Hoping Pete and Judy have smooth seas and following winds here on in :)

 

and most importantly, stay safe :)

Edited October 12, 2016 by kazu

[The-Inside-Cabin]

I'm enjoying "our" cruise and it was nice to have a couple days of good weather before hitting the storm. I had to look up the definition of "apparent wind"...as someone who has spent many years onboard a ship, do you know if there is a calculation used to translate "apparent" to "actual" wind? It sounds like you are in hurricane strength winds. The knitting group must be getting projects close to completion with the additional sea days. Thank you for doing this and also the photos and other info on the website, Cherie

 

Here is a web site that makes the calculation for you

 

http://www.csgnetwork.com/twscorcalc.html

 

You can calculate it yourself if you remember some trigonometry from high school.

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Day 4, At Sea (Sydney, Nova Scotia, Cancelled)

 

The weather started to clear in the morning and the winds and seas calmed down considerably since the peak gusts the previous evening.

 

We spent the morning in our cabin relaxing until it was time for me to head out to the Texas Hold’em tournament at 11:30. There is some skill in playing in a Hold’em tournament, but at some point you have to get some good cards. The key is to stay in the game as long as you can and then bet aggressively when you have what you think will be the winning hand. I enjoy the tournaments as it puts everyone on an equal financial footing and your losses are capped at the buy in of $60. I managed to stay in the game and keep my head down until I was one of two people left – in the money. I only had $600 compared to over $14,000 dollars for my opponent. Fortunately my luck changed for the better and I won 6 hands in a row and I was able to end up in first place. As they say in Texas Hold’em – as long as you have a “chip and a chair” you are never out of the game.

 

After the first Texas Hold’em Tournament, Judy and I went to the Lido deck by the pool to try out the Poutine Bar. We have sampled some wonderful Poutine when we were in Ottawa last year. The Poutine Bar on the Zuiderdam was OK, but could benefit from some lessons from the Poutine trucks we found on the streets of Ottawa. It may be dependent on your personal preference, but the cheese curds served on the Zuiderdam were quite small and I prefer them to be larger. They also had a variety of other items to use to top your Poutine, e.g. small chicken nuggets, calamari, taco meat, diced chicken, pulled pork, mushrooms and more.

 

 

There are two Hold’em tournaments each day on the Zuiderdam. In the second game, I managed to finish second place – still pretty nice – can’t complain. I have played in 6 tournaments and finished in the money in 3 of them. There are 4 more tournaments left on this cruise on the final 2 sea days.

 

Because we skipped our last two ports, the ship was unable to pick up someone who was scheduled to lecture about the Citadel in Halifax along with other topics. Bad news as we missed what would have been an interesting lecture, but the good news is the Cruise Director, Linda, had Hyperion Knight put on an another performance today at 3pm. I missed this show as I got caught up in the Texas Hold’em cash game and left too late to get a seat, so I returned to the casino and got back in the Cash Game.

 

This show was every bit as wonderful as the first and Judy enjoyed it very much. Afterwards, she spoke with Hyperion and after we cleared this with the Cruise Director, invited Hyperion to join our group for dinner and he graciously accepted.

 

Hyperion was a wonderful dinner guest entertaining us all with fascinating stories of his adventures performing on cruise ships as well as Carnegie Hall. I enjoyed “Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie” which was outstanding and is one of the best pot pies I have enjoyed anywhere. If you like pot pies and don’t mind some extra calories – don’t miss these pot pies on your next cruise. Hyperion posed for our traditional “Jazz Hands” photo after dinner.

 

After dinner the knitters assembled in the Ocean Bar for group knitting, storytelling and general chit chat. Judy continues to work on her Frostline shawl designed by Amy Miller. As soon as she finishes the shawl she’ll post it on her Ravelry page.

 

About 9:00 pm the ship arrived in Halifax and we were cleared to go ashore about 9:15. We’re not sure how many people decided to head into town, but we elected to go to the Vista Lounge and see the late show featuring flute player Tara Rachelle. Tara put on an amazing performance and we especially enjoyed her medley of ABBA hits.

 

Tomorrow should be a nice day and we are looking forward to visiting Halifax.

[StartrainDD]

Afterwards, she spoke with Hyperion and after we cleared this with the Cruise Director, invited Hyperion to join our group for dinner and he graciously accepted.

 

Pete, a quick question if you don't mind?

 

I noted with great interest your inviting various entertainers to join your dinner on the WC. We did that (once) during our recent Princess cruise and it was wonderful.

 

I intended to do this again on our upcoming cruise. I don't recall previous mention of "Clearing an invitation" with the cruise director. Is this something that should be done?

 

Thank you and enjoy calmer seas!

 

Arie

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Day 5, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

 

After 2 unscheduled sea days we arrived in Halifax last night and were looking forward to our day ashore. The temperature was in the high fifties to low sixties with clear, blue skies. The poor weather of the last few days was a fading memory.

 

Craft Cruises arranged a private excursion to Tradewind Knitwear Designs, home of Lucy Neatby, then visit the Titanic Cemetery and finally stop by the Fleece Artist/Hand Maiden yarn shop where they also dye their own yarn. We had been on this tour the last time we were here, but have never visited Halifax itself so we decided to head into Halifax on our own and explore the city on foot.

 

We were alongside a cruise terminal with a folding gangway that connected the terminal directly to the ship on Deck 2, port side.

 

About 12 noon we left the ship and headed into the terminal, stopping by the visitors bureau kiosk to pick up a map and get their recommendations of some of the best places to see in the three hours we would have ashore. All aboard was 3:30 PM. Free Wi-Fi was available in the terminal, but is generally not worth the effort. Their access point could handle 500 simultaneous users, but with three cruise ships in port today the Wi-Fi was quickly saturated.

 

There are is a farmers market right in the terminal which has a lot of craft type shops with local vendors selling a variety of items in addition to a few restaurants.

 

There is a Harbour Walk that runs along the water from the cruise terminal down toward the Nova Scotia Casino. We would walk on a big loop and return to the ship via the Harbour Walk, but first we headed down Lower Water Street, turning left on Morris Street and then right on Barrington to Blowers Street were we found a yarn shop called The Loop.

 

This shop specializes in natural fibers and had a wonderful selection of yarns. Immediately after entering the shop Judy noticed what appeared to be a long scarf rolled up and draped over the top of their yarn bins. We chatted with Morgan, who works in the shop, and we learned that years ago a woman spent 10 months knitting this scarf until it was over 150 yards long and was recognized, at the time, as the longest scarf in the world. Judy spotted a few balls of one of her favorite yarns, Leinen Los, a felted blend of wool and linen. She also picked up one hank of Corriedale Sock yarn dyed by the ‘indy’ (independent) dyer AbiGood in the most beautiful dark blues. After the obligatory photo op outside the shop with her purchases, we continued on our way.

 

We walked up Spring Garden Street past St Mary’s Basilica and the Halifax Central Library. Along the way we stopped into an interesting hobby shop, “Maritime Hobbies and Crafts” that sold a variety of models from ships to planes. In the back they had a lot of inventory for people interested in building Radio Controlled Airplanes. Judy found some iDye fabric dye that she is going to use to dye a scarf she has recently knit in an olive green. She’s hoping she’ll end up with a blue-green scarf. Time will tell.

 

Across the street from the Library there was an upright piano with a someone playing a variety of popular tunes to a small audience. There wasn’t any hat or tip collection container so I gather he was playing for the sheer joy of playing.

 

We continued down Spring Garden Street, past a Rolex store and few other high end shops along with a Tim Hortons and a Starbucks in addition to several other restaurants.

 

A few blocks later we entered the Halifax Public Gardens which were established in 1874 and according to the complimentary brochure, is “one of the finest surviving examples of Victorian Gardens in North America.” The Gardens cover 1 large city block and contains a wide variety of trees, plants, and ponds in addition to a bandstand and the Horticultural Hall which is now a café and gift shop. We found the park beautiful and very relaxing and if we had more time we would have enjoyed exploring it further.

 

After we left the park we walked back toward the water down Sackville Street until we reached the entrance to the Citadel National Historic Park and Army Museum. Reaching the Citadel requires an uphill walk that gradually brings downtown Halifax into view along with the waterfront and the Old Town Clock. There is a nice spot across from the Citadel Entrance where you can take in the wonderful view. We didn’t have time to go inside the Citadel so we have another reason to return to visit this wonderful city.

 

We headed down Carmichael Street where we passed thru a nice park with a war memorial and an amazing mural on a building in the background. Continuing on down the street toward the water, we turned right onto the Harbour Walk and starting walking back toward the ship. Along the way we passed an interesting sculpture called The Wave, by Donna Hiebert, which used to be surrounded by a fence to thwart climbers, but this proved ineffective so they replaced the area around the wave with a rubberized mat to provide a safer surface for people if they manage to fall off the sculpture.

 

Sitting on a pier across from the Bicycle Thief restaurant is a sculpture called “Got Drunk, Fell Down” which displays three light posts which are bent and curved and lying on the ground as if they were alive but quite intoxicated.

 

We were soon back where we started by the Farmers Market and arrived at the bottom of the gangway exactly at the 3:30 all aboard time. There was about a 15 minute line, but the time passed quickly as we chatted with some fellow guests about of their experiences on the new cruise ships that can carry up to 6000 passengers.

 

There was a SailAway from 3:30 to 4:30 by the Lido Pool where they were selling beer and passing around small plates of sausages. One of the waiters also entertained the small crowd by juggling some glasses and beer cans. He was pretty good. I didn’t get a chance to try any sausages as they were all gone by 4:15 when I started looking for them.

 

We headed back to the Sea View Pool area to watch us pull away from the dock. While waiting we saw the Disney Magic head out to sea in front of us.

 

For dinner I had the Wiener Schnitzel while Judy had the Baked Crab Cakes. Both of these were very good and the service was wonderful as usual.

 

For a change we attended the early show and got to the Vista Lounge about 7:20. The theater was already starting to fill up. By 7:45 most of the seats were full with only a few singles seats left here and there. We didn’t notice anyone saving large numbers of seats, which was good to see.

 

The show was called “Avalon” – and is a Ballroom inspired show featuring the Zuiderdam Singers and Dancers. They are all quite talented and we enjoyed their performance very much.

 

 

On the way back to our cabin, we always poke our heads inside the Piano Bar and the BB King Club. They are both very active with the talented musicians playing great music. We are planning to set aside some time to attend these venues and spend more than just a few minutes.

 

Tomorrow will be our first USA port, Bar Harbor.

 

More pictures on the blog at http://www.theinsidecabin.com

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Pete, a quick question if you don't mind?

 

I noted with great interest your inviting various entertainers to join your dinner on the WC. We did that (once) during our recent Princess cruise and it was wonderful.

 

I intended to do this again on our upcoming cruise. I don't recall previous mention of "Clearing an invitation" with the cruise director. Is this something that should be done?

 

Thank you and enjoy calmer seas!

 

Arie

 

If the dining room is very very full, they may not want extra guests. I always touch base once with the Event Manager or CD and see if there is an issue, usually not. Once you know there is no issue, then no need to ask again. Sometimes there is a difference between Guest Entertainers and Staff Entertainers. Guest Entertainers usually have more flexibility to join tables. Other people from the ship you may want to invite - the spa manager say - they will check with the HD or someone to get clearance. The person you invite will get permission if you ask and tell you before they accept if they have to check with someone first.

 

Never hurts to ask! Most entertainers hang around after shows and are readily accessible.

[Cruisepucks]

Ahoy Judy and Pete,

 

We've been reading and enjoying your posts from the MS Zuiderdam cruise. We will be on the Zuiderdam next month. Thanks for all the information.

 

I wonder if you would be able to add the wine package wine lists to one of your posts. We would like to check out some of the wines at home before our voyage so we can make some wise selections on board.

 

Thanks for considering this request and enjoy the rest of your trip. We hope the weather is good for your remaining sailing days.

 

Cheers

Cruisepucks

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Ahoy Judy and Pete,

 

We've been reading and enjoying your posts from the MS Zuiderdam cruise. We will be on the Zuiderdam next month. Thanks for all the information.

 

I wonder if you would be able to add the wine package wine lists to one of your posts. We would like to check out some of the wines at home before our voyage so we can make some wise selections on board.

 

Thanks for considering this request and enjoy the rest of your trip. We hope the weather is good for your remaining sailing days.

 

Cheers

Cruisepucks

 

I should be able to get one....

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Day 6, Bar Harbor, Maine

 

Bar Harbor would be our first and only tender port. We were assigned a closer anchorage so our boat ride would be less than 10 minutes. There was an NCL ship anchored further out that probably had a 20 minute tender ride.

 

Since this was our first USA port, we were required to have a face to face immigration screening process starting at 8AM. US citizens were seen in the Queens Lounge while other guests went to the Hudson Room. Passengers were called by floor, starting with Deck 1. Deck 4 was called about 8:40 am and headed down to the Queens Lounge. Our cruise card was scanned as we entered the lounge. Next, one of three agents took a quick look at our passports, asking chatty type questions like, “Where are you from?” and then said “Welcome Home”, and we were on our way. We barely had enough time to stop walking. After we were screened we wound around some back doors and through the Northern Lights where they punched a hole in our cruise card. I surmise that this was Zuiderdam’s simple way to ensure no one left the ship before they were screened – no hole punch – no tender. We weren’t ready to go ashore, so we headed back to our cabin to get ready for the day.

 

The weather was beautiful with crisp blue skies with temperatures in the high 50’s. I was comfortable with a light sweater over a polo shirt (I did have a windbreaker in my bag if the weather turned colder unexpectedly).

 

We left the ship around 11 am, there wasn’t any tender line at this point, and we were able to walk directly on to a tender that was getting ready to leave. The water was a little choppy causing delays when the tender and the loading platform were temporarily out of sync and we had to wait for everything to stabilize before we could resume loading. The tenders were completely loaded into the stern section first, then into the forward section. They said it was required to load this way for weight and balance reasons. I haven’t seen this on other tenders and wondered if it was the design in this particular tender or if they had some incident that raised this issue.

 

Once we were ashore we headed down the street to the Harborside Hotel where Karen Grover from Seven Sisters Arts was hosting a special yarn sale in one of the event rooms. There was a nice selection of yarn and Judy added a few (more than a few?) skeins to her stash. Check out the blog for Judy’s expression when I asked her if she might have enough yarn.

 

 

Paddy’s Irish Pub is right on the corner of Main Street and West Street. We stopped in for lunch and took a table inside. We both ordered Fish and Chips which were very good, but more expensive ($24) than you may have expected. Service was prompt and the atmosphere was pleasant. We had an enjoyable time relaxing and sampling the local fare. You can surely find less expensive spots in Bar Harbor, but Paddy’s Irish Pub is close, convenient and serves very good food.

 

On our previous visits to Bar Harbor, we have always noticed that Bar Island, part of Acadia National Park, was accessible via an 8/10ths of a mile long sand bar from 2 hours before to 2 hours after the twice daily low tide. Today’s low tide was about 3 PM giving us a window from 1pm to 5pm. Our all aboard was at 5:30 PM so we would have plenty of time to visit Bar Island.

 

We walked over to Bridge Street and headed north to the sand bridge which was much wider than we had expected. There didn’t appear to be any restrictions on driving and later on we did see a few cars drive out to the island. Signs were posted cautioning about parking on the sand bar, complete with pictures of partially submerged cars from previous misadventures.

 

It took us about 20 minutes to make the crossing to Bar Island. We had anticipated that the sand bar would be wet and muddy, but it was completely dry and covered with a mixture of gravel and shells. The walk across was quite pleasant and not difficult. If you could walk a mile down a gravel road, you could easily hike out to Bar Island.

 

After we reached the Island we continued on a dirt path that curved around and then headed toward the islands high point which was about 1 mile away toward the center of the island. It was a steady, gradual climb until the last ¼ mile which got steeper and rockier, but still easily passable. Colorful trees surrounded the summit and we enjoyed a spectacular view of Bar Harbor to our south. Our hike back to the sand bar was easier, once we got past the steeper section near the summit, since it was a nice gradual downhill slope. The temperature was perfect for our hike. If you do this during the summer, be sure to bring plenty of water is none was available on the island.

 

We had about an hour before the last tender, so we strolled through town, walking down Main Street and then turning down Cottage Street stopping in the Trailhead Café for some hot chocolate, a latte and a large molasses cookie. Before we went inside the Trailhead Café, we noticed a café called the Route 66 Café which struck us as odd since Bar Harbor is about 1000 miles east of the Route 66 starting point in Chicago. We nibbed around a bit and couldn’t find any particular reason why this came to be called the Route 66 Café other than one of the earlier owners may have been a collector of Route 66 memorabilia.

 

As it got close to the last tender time, we headed back toward town center and snapped a picture with a giant lobster holding an ice cream cone. We always enjoy these types of local color and are sure to take a picture with them whenever we have the opportunity.

 

There was about a 20 minute wait for the tender, but we were enjoying the beautiful weather and didn’t mind the wait. Whenever there is plenty to do very near the “All Aboard Point” you will usually find people waiting to the last second which causes a little bit of a line as you near the All Aboard time.

 

We got back to the ship right at 5:30 – dinner time! (this is one reason we prefer late seating – no rush to dinner when returning to the ship) so we only had enough time to quickly wash up and then head down to the dining room.

 

The food for this cruise has been exceptional, which it what we have come to expect on Holland America. Tonight I had the Red Snapper with Garlicky Clams and Judy had the Tenderloin of Beef. Both were delicious.

 

Our dining arrangement with Craft Cruises works out wonderfully as we are always moving around different tables and have chance to meet many people with similar interests in our group. We were informed at dinner by the Assistance Dining Room Manager that 3 of our tables would be hosted by Ship Officers tomorrow evening so if people in our group wanted to sit at a hosted table they should select one of the three designated tables.

 

Nathaniel Rankin was the headliner tonight in the Vista Lounge. He is a juggler, mind reader and magician and put on an entertaining show. We prefer singers and musicians to jugglers, but Nathaniel put on a good show and we enjoyed it very much.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Enjoyed your photos in and round Bar Harbor. Nice to see John aka Copper 10-8 hard at work.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Just catching up on your "Live" -- which is wonderful.

[The-Inside-Cabin]

I should be able to get one....

 

I have the package, but the file is too big for cruise critic. You can find it HERE on the blog

[Cruisepucks]

Hi,

 

Thanks so much for posting the wine package lists. That's great.

 

We appreciate your help with our request.

 

Hoping the rest of your travels are enjoyable and without hassles.

 

Cheers

[easyboy]

Enjoying your live review. Thanks.

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Day 7, Portland, Maine, US

 

The poor weather earlier in the cruise were a distant memory as we arrived in Portland to another wonderful day. Today we would be taking a Craft Cruise Excursion visiting the Maine Fiberarts Center followed by 3 yarn shops with some time for a local lunch. This was going to be a busy day.

 

As we were leaving the ship – we ran into the outgoing Captain who was kind enough to pose for a selfie with Judy. Captain Jeroen would be leaving the ship today as he recently moved to Maine and this was a convenient drop off point for him.

 

Craft Cruises chartered a beautiful 40 passenger motor coach that was waiting for us at the end of the long walkway outside the small cruise terminal. Future cruisers note: It is at least 600 yards from the ship to where the tour busses assemble, so if you have any mobility issues, you should make arrangements for a wheel chair. About half way to the cruise terminal there were some golf carts available to ferry passengers the final 300 yards or so.

 

On the way off the ship, Judy posed for a photo with another officer, John, who we knew from the World Cruise.

 

Once our group was assembled outside the cruise terminal, we boarded the bus and headed off to Topsham, Maine, which is very close to Brunswick where the Navy used to have a Naval Air Station that was home to P-3 Orion Anti-Submarine aircraft.

 

Our first stop was the Maine Fiberarts Center, (http://www.mainefiberarts.org) which is a small facility that hosts rotating exhibits dedicated to the fiber arts. They support basketry, beadwork, clothing design, crochet, embroidery, felting, knitting, lacework, needlepoint, quilting, spinning, weaving and more.

 

Katharine Cobey, who wrote the book “Diagonal Knitting”, was here today and she was available to sign her book. She also demonstrated her diagonal cast on technique, a video of which will be posted HERE when I have more internet bandwidth available.

 

Our next stop was Halcyon Yarn, 119 Commercial Street, in Bath, Maine, about 30 minutes away. Halcyon Yarn is a huge shop that is in a standalone building with very high ceilings and several connected rooms. Halcyon is named after one of the owners first name which came from a bird in Greek mythology who built her nest in the midst of a storm. They specialize in natural fibers and support a large weaving community in addition to knitters and crocheters.

 

One room is bright and cheery and used for demonstrations and classes. Another room has rows of floor to ceiling shelves holding a wide variety of yarns. In the central section, there are books, patterns and knitting supplies, along with more yarn along the walls.

 

While most of the people in our group were busy moving around the shops many aisles, Gretchen, the daughter of the owners, demonstrated a felting technique in a room off to one side. It was very easy and they had some books and kits available for purchase.

 

We spent a little over an hour in the shop before getting back on the bus and driving a few blocks to Kennebec Tavern for lunch. Kennebec Tavern was wonderful with a commanding view of the Kennebec River. Their menu has a wide variety of choices, from Lobster Rolls to Reubens and everything in-between. They were able to serve our entire group of almost 40 people, who all ordered off the menu, and provide separate checks in less than an hour. Highly recommended. They prefer that large groups arrive by 1100 to beat their normal lunch rush and get better service.

 

Thirty minutes after we left the tavern, we pulled into the parking lot in front of our next shop, “Mother of Purl” yarn shop in Freeport, ME. While not as large as Halcyon, it had a large selection of yarns from Indie dyers and Maine artisans. They focus on practical yarns that can be used for shawls, baby clothes and gifts along with other projects. Business partners Susan and Patty were on hand to greet us as we arrived and passed out small gifts to everyone as they entered the store. A very friendly “Shop Dog” patrolled the store and tried to engage everyone in a game of ball toss during breaks from their shopping. We spent about 1 hour here before getting back on the bus and heading back to downtown Portland, 20 minutes away, for our final shop, KnitWit.

 

KnitWit is located in downtown Portland at 247A Congress Street and was the smallest shop on our tour today. Located less than 1 mile from the ship, it’s an easy walk downhill for some in our group who wanted to stretch their legs and enjoy the wonderful weather on the way back to the ship. KnitWit has a wide selection of yarns from local dyers including One Lupine and is the flagship store for Quince & company yarns made in Biddeford, Maine. The shop is very cozy and friendly and was a wonderful way to finish a busy day of yarn shopping.

 

We all piled back onto our bus and were back at the cruise terminal a few minutes later. Security was in the cruise terminal so there weren’t any X-rays in use on the ship.

 

Unlike in the morning, golf carts were not available to ferry passengers part of the way back to the ship, so keep that in mind if you have mobility issues. On further reflection, it may have seemed further than it was as compared to some other terminals where you have to walk some distance thru large cruise terminals before you get to the street.

 

We were scheduled to have three of our tables hosted by officers this evening. When you mention this to many people they assume you mean one of the ships deck officers. From my experience, this rarely occurs, but is always possible. You normally get one of the officers from one of the other departments/areas: Front Office, Spa, Medical, Shore Excursions, Housekeeping, Security etc. One of our scheduled officers was a no show but we enjoyed the company of an officer at two of our tables. Another treat is that they will provide complimentary wine for guests sitting at their tables.

 

Lilliana, from the Spa, was our guest. She is from Venezuela and provides cosmetic treatments including treating wrinkles and other procedures. This is her first contract with a cruise line and she is enjoying her new work environment very much.

 

Holland America’s fried chicken hasn’t been one of my favorite dishes over the years. I always order it with great expectations that it will be wonderful but am usually disappointed. I am pleased to report that the fried chicken on the Zuiderdam was outstanding – crispy, tasty crust and tender chicken. Judy and most of the people at our table ordered the Bacon Wrapped Scallops which also received rave reviews from everyone.

 

Jesse Kazemek was the headliner in the Vista Lounge. Jesse is an outstanding Beatles cover artist who can play any number from the Beatles songbook with skill and enthusiasm. His wife joins him on stage for a few songs and she has a wonderful voice in her own right.

 

After a short break, many Filipino members of the crew performed traditional songs and dances in an outstanding variety show. Since it started at 11 pm, most guest were long gone, so attendance was light, but for those who attended they were rewarded with a wonderful show.

 

 

More on the blog

[The-Inside-Cabin]

Day 8, Boston, Massachusetts

 

We arrived at the Black Falcon Cruise Terminal in Boston before 8am and we were cleared to go ashore shortly thereafter. I was intrigued by the name Black Falcon Cruise Terminal, and learned that it is also the name of the street that runs alongside the terminal, so the terminal must have been named after the street. A Black Falcon is a type of Falcon that is indigenous to Australia with no mention that it is even present in the USA. My brief research could not determine how either the street or cruise terminal came to be known as “Black Falcon”. Any insight appreciated.

 

We were planning to visit a friend who lives up in Gloucester so I headed off on foot for about 1 mile to the nearby Westin Hotel where there was a Enterprise Rental Car agency in the lobby. A car for the day would cost $84 including all taxes. Although the rental car counter was closed when I planned to return the car, you simply give the keys to the valet parking attendant upon your return and you are on your way.

 

Since this was not a turnaround day, and even though the Veendam was also in port with us, the traffic around the cruise terminal was very light, so it was easy to drive back to the cruise terminal and find free parking directly across the terminals pedestrian exit. Once I was parked I alerted Judy who joined me and we were soon on our way thru Boston traffic which, since this was a Saturday, was pretty light.

 

About 1 hour later we arrive in Gloucester and had a wonderful day visiting. We had lunch at a restaurant called “Lobsta Land” which was very nice and highly recommended if you are in the area.

 

After a pleasant day visiting, we headed back to the Westin Hotel to drop off our car. It took about 20 minutes longer going back due to heavier traffic. Dropping off our car was a breeze – simply give the keys to the valet and you are done. I received my receipt via email 2 days later.

 

For dinner this evening we enjoyed the Island Spiced Berkshire Pork and the Barramundi. They were both very good. The complete menu is available on the blog.

 

Jeff Taveggia, an outstanding juggler was on the main stage this evening. We have learned that jugglers usually feel unappreciated because they make all of their acts seem so easy, that we forget that they are actually quite difficult and don’t fully appreciate the diffusely of what they are performing. We always find the jugglers entertaining and Jeff was as good as they come.

 

Tomorrow will be the first of two sea days before we arrive in Port Canaveral for our last port visit.