Live and life from the Eurodam and her New Year's cruise

[Vict0riann]

Yay!  I finally got on to CC and see you are on a ship and posting!  A real novelty.  I'm enjoying your thread.  Love Eurodam.

 

Happy New Year to Mr. and Mrs. Copper10-8

[DAllenTCY]

There is no shortage of parking, just none downtown on the Embarkadero, unless you want to pay $40+ per day.   The pier is downtown!

 

At least 6 parking lots within 2 miles offer reduced parking rates ($15-19/day) and free shuttles to/from the pier.

 

The cruise season starts in September and ends in May......not hardly a way to substantiate a purchase of land anywhere nearby to accomodate once or twice a week patrons.

 

A group of "downtown residents" fought for years against the construction of the Broadway Pier (ultimately being successful in reducing the size needed for future ships) and the Manchester development of the Navy complex.   Lawsuits have lasted more than 10 years.....so not a simple process.....and the average cost per acre?

 

We also have Amtrak, Coaster, and Trolley access 3 blocks away.  There are so many options other than building a parking structure to block views of the bay.

David

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Himself]

John:

 

thank you for reporting on your New Year's Cruise.

[skypig]

21 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

Yeah, sorry! The ship's internet connection, today, has been as slow as a herd of snails traveling through peanut butter. They say it does this every time on the two sea days out of San Diego. Finally able to post now, but still unable to download pics

Lol now that is slow! 

[Cruising-along]

Loving your "live and life" thread, Happy New Year and thank you for bringing us along!  Have a great cruise!

[Copper10-8]

Day 3 - Tuesday 01 JAN 19

 

GELUKKIG NIEUWJAAR/SELAMAT TAHUN BARU/HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM THE EURODAM!! 

 

After partying the night away, we awakened to overcast gray skies around 7:30 AM as Eurodam passed Cabo San Lucas on her way south. Forgot to add yesterday that we had lost an hour at 0200 on Monday morning after setting our clocks one hour forward and tonight (Tuesday into Wednesday), we would do that one more time.

 

Breakfast was in the Neptune Lounge where we were once again served by Peter and Bayan. We reversed selections with Maria taking the Eggs Benedictus and moi choosing the All-American Breakfast. When this was consumed, we checked into the Neptune Lounge while Arie and Putu took care of our cabin. That coffee machine in the Neptune is good. It gives you six selections plus hot chocolate. The NL is manned ……...wrong word…. womanned by Guest Service associates Magie and Darlynne, two very nice and outgoing young ladies who do a great job running the place as well as a tight ship in there! They assisted us with some internet connection issues although, as already stated before, that connection on Tuesday was pretty non-existent.

Around noon Eurodam, after entering the Gulf of Mexico, adjusted her course to the south-east, now headed for the Mexican mainland. We passed the ms Volendam on her way north to San Diego, having come all the way from Ft. Lauderdale and a Panama Canal transit. We wound up basically doing a lot of jelling & vegging for pretty much the entire afternoon. That’s what vacation is for, right?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

Ever get that feeling when you exit the elevator which corridor leads to your cabin? Dutch painter Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, a Dutch draughtsman, painter and print maker, generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in the history of art and the most important in Dutch art history, portraits posted mid-ships on Deck 7 one on port and the other on starboard side, assists us with that. You just need to remember which side he is facing, as to which corridor is yours

 

 

The Dutch Royal couple; King Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand van Oranje and Argentinian-born Queen Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti, displayed outside the Queen's Lounge

 

 

The personal in-cabin safes are the combination kind and are of pretty decent size for valuables 

 

[Copper10-8]

The Neptune Lounge on Deck 7

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

Explorations Central in Eurodam's Crow's Nest. Shorex staff/EXC guide moved from Deck 1 up here, taking the place of the Explorations Cafe (starboard side). Explorations Cafe coffees can now be had in the former 'regular' bar along with alcoholic drinks. The port side area is now an EXC lecture area, at the time of this pic, used for Spanish 101 lessons by the "Mexican ambassadors"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

Day 3 - Tuesday 1 JAN 19 (con't)

 

So tonight, we had a six thirty reservation in the Pinnacle Grill and, upon arrival, were duly escorted by the restaurant’s female host s to a nice table for two across from one of the windows. The place wound up being packed, I’m telling ya! We received primary service from an Indonesian male steward by the name of Hirawan Sucahya from the island of Java. Our wine steward was a Filipina by the name of Emely Ortega. I counted ten staff members inside Eurodam’s Pinnacle Grill and they were busy tonight. Emily got us an Appletini and a very masculine Lemon drop! Tonight’s PG menu:

 

“Chef’s Amuse Bouche” (fun for the mouth/stimulate the taste buds):

A lonely dead shrimp on a small slab of toast, OK, just kiddin’ 😉

Lobster flan with somethung else

 

A tenderly prepared and laid out basket of Bread, Rolls & thin Toast (with a cup of beurre blanc next to it). The basket had two of those “stand up” thin big cracker bad boys with sesame seeds on them, whose correct name I received just last week from my friends up north but, as expected omitted to write down, resulting in my very simple brain already having deleted it (the name of that awesome cracker with the black as the dead seeds on them) I know, simple minds 'alive and kickin'

 

“First”:

Tomato Broth with Spicy Lemongrass Chicken Soup

Lobster Bisque

Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail

Beefsteak Tomato and Basil Salad

Spinach Arugula Salad

Caesar Salad (no longer prepared tableside)

Crab Cakes

Ossetra Malossol Caviar ($70 supplement)

Steak Tartare

 

“Land”:

Double-Cut Kurobuta Pork Chop

Grilled Colorado Lamp Chops

Roasted Jidori Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms

Baked-stuffed Eggplant

Wild Mushroom Ravioli

Roasted Pumpkin Risotto

 

“Double Ranch North-west beef”:

7 oz. Petite Filet Mignon

10 oz. Petite Filet Mignon

12 oz. New York Strip Steak

18 oz. Bone-in Rib Eye Steak

23 oz. Porterhouse

Rib Eye Steak

President’s Cut 36 oz. Bone-in Rib Eye Steak ($59 supplement)

 

All steaks are served with choice of hand-crafted sauce

(Bearnaise green peppercorn, hollandaise, horseradish-mustard, maître d’ garlic butter, sun-dried tomato)

 

Surf and Turf (by the addition of a 5 oz. lobster tail ($10 supplement)

 

“Sea”:

Broiled Alaskan King Salmon

Steamed Alaska King Crab Legs

Cedar Planked Halibut with Shrimp Scampi

West Coast-Style Seafood Cioppino

12 oz. Maine Lobster Tail ($20 supplement)

 

“Sides to share”:

Creamed Spinach

Sautéed Mushrooms

Roasted Baby Carrots

Grilled Asparagus

Sautéed Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan and Pancetta

Classic Whipped Potatoes

Shoestring Fries with Truffle Aioli

Jumbo Baked Idaho Potato

(individual serving)

 

Desserts:

Not-so-classic Baked Alaska (Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia ice cream with Bing Cherries Jubilee)

Grand Marnier Chocolate Volcano Cake

Pinnacle Soufflé

Creamy Home-made Raspberry Cheesecake (with fresh berries)

Lemon-Brule Tart

Fresh Berries (with Sabayon sauce)

Premium Ice Cream or Sorbets

Assortment of International Cheeses

 

Maria chose the two crab cakes, followed by Cedar Planked Halibut with Shrimp Scampi. We shared the Shoestring Fries with Truffle Aioli. I had the Tomato Broth with Spicy Lemongrass Chicken Soup, a Caesar Salad, followed by a 7 oz. Petite Filet Mignon. Maria had Lemon-Brulee Tart while I had two scoops of mint chocolate chip ice cream. We ended the whole shebang with an Espresso and a Cappuccino and both felt that dinner turned out to be “enak sekali” (excellent) and the service by Hirawan and Emily very good and professional.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

Day 3 - Tuesday 1 JAN 19 (con't)

The B.B. Kings were dark tonight however, we still wound up in their lounge because we wanted to check out a game show at 9:00 PM in there by the name of “Secret Identities.” It was hosted by CD Christine, assisted by her assistant Erica. Soooo, in a nutshell, they asked for three volunteers (three different ones for each topic) from the crowd who would sit down on stage with their backs to projection screen. As if by magic, a text then appeared on the screen (by topic, it could be a profession, an animal, an actor/actress, etc.) with the objective of the three contestants to find out who they are supposed to "be" by asking the audience ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions. As an example, for the “profession” topic, one was a cruise director, the second, a pole dancer and the third, a zookeeper. It turned out to be an entertaining show.

 

We closed the night off with the first production show by the cast, “1000 Steps” at the kinda strange start time of 10:30 PM. 1000 Steps is a really good show if you happen to be into Latin music and Latin dances. When you are married to a hot Latina, you naturally are into those things. It was a high energy show which we and the assembled audience, judging by their reactions, really enjoyed. We called it a night around 11:30 PM as tomorrow (Wednesday) is our first port of call, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[POA1]

Great thread! Thanks for the production show photos

 

And lavash or lavosh on the flatbread. 

[0bnxshs]

20 hours ago, rafinmd said:

Do you know if those directional carpets have made their way to the R and S class?

 

Roy

 

Happy New Year, Roy!

 

I can confirm that Zaandam is equipped with the latest in carpetry-based location and direction finding mats.

[kazu]

6 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

We closed the night off with the first production show by the cast, “1000 Steps” at the kinda strange start time of 10:30 PM.

 

Really great pics of the show.  thanks so much 🙂 

 

Sounds like a show DH and I would enjoy 😉 

[Skipper's Mom]

John:

 

In conducting your research, would you be so kind as to check to see if there are Maj Jongg sets available for play?  They used to be in the library behind lock and key only accessible to the librarian (what's that?).

 

Enjoying your posts as we will be on the E in March.  Thanks.

 

Lynne

Edited January 3, 2019 by Skipper's Mom

[Copper10-8]

Day 4 - Wednesday 02 JAN 19 – Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco

 

Eurodam pulled into PV’s Terminal Maritima at approximately 7:15 AM. Once inside the basin, Captain Eric, using his fwd thrusters and azi-pods, turned his ship 90 degrees using available space (which wasn’t much at all, an admirable job) until her bow was facing southbound alongside Muelle No. 2. Puerta Vallarta’s port allows for three large cruise ships to come alongside its three berths. So, we woke up to a lovely view of the PV Wal-Mart and Sam's Club , very much a favorite of the crew, on the other side of Carretara Al Aeropuerto. With us in port today were the Ruby Princess at Muelle No. 1, the original dock, and Carnival Splendor at Muelle No. 3

 

We decided on a leisurely breakfast in the Lido since we both really like the feeling of ‘having the ship to ourselves’, meaning that by 0945, most of Eurodam’s passengers were already off the ship on shore excursions and there were almost no pax in the “fish bowl” part of the Lido. There was no ‘having to get ready for an 8:30 AM meet on the pier (we get that in Cabo) or in the show lounge’. Nope, just taking our time, having breakfast.

 

Puerto Vallarta is a beach resort city of approx. 250,000 inhabitants located at the center of the 25-mile wide Banderas Bay (Bay of Flags) and alongside the Sierra Madre mountain range. The 1963 movie "Night of the Iguana" with Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Ava Gardner helped place the then "remote little fishing village" on the map. The name honors former governor Ignacio Luis Vallarta. The city proper comprises four main areas: the hotel zone along the shore to the north, Olas Altas - Col Zapata to the south of the Cuale river (recently named Zona Romantica in some tourist brochures), the Centro along the shore between these two areas, and several residential areas to the east of the hotel zone.

 

The oldest section of the town is the area of Col. Centro near the church of Our Lady of Guadalupe, especially Hidalgo street. The climate here is tropical (and can be humid) with sunny days most of the year. The rainy season takes place from July to September. The economy is based mainly on tourism and construction with a small percentage derived from agriculture and tropical fruits. To the north it borders the southwest part of the state of Nayarit. To the east it borders the municipality of Mascota as well as very picturesque San Sebastian del Oeste, and to the south it borders the municipalities of Talpa de Allende and Cabo Corrientes. Puerto Vallarta is frequently shortened to "Vallarta", while English speakers call the city P.V. for short.

 

At around 12:30 we strolled off the A-Deck gangway and picked up one of the white over yellow Nissan Tsuru cabs with a friendly driver. For $5 apiece, he took us to Restaurante ‘Pipis’ on Calle Guadalupe Sanchez for a bit of lunch. Pipis was introduced to me in late 2017 by the then Oosterdam’s techspert. It’s a very cool local eatery in the “El Centro” cobblestone part of vieja Vallarta. They have a selection of huge Margaritas, a gent comes over to your table to make fresh Guacamole, and eventually, two musicians will walk over and play, among other hits, “Cielito Lindo” table-side. A very nice experience.

 

After lunch we strolled PV’s Malecon, with its numerous sculptures, restaurants, night clubs, access to boat-pulled paragliding over the bay, and various other tourist specific activities and markets. southbound until we reached a local Starbucks on Boulevard Francisco Medina Ascensio adjacent PV’s aforementioned and very nice 1903-built La Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe/Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The church is a city icon, it dominates Vallarta's downtown skyline and is one of the favorite symbols and landmarks of the city, both in photos, shirts, logos and postcards.

 

Another Nissan Tsuru brought us back to the Terminal Maritima and Eurodam which departed at 5:49 PM (all aboard was at 5:30) with a "toot fest" between her and Ruby Princess. After dinner in the Lido, we took in the B.B. King’s. The plan was to see BBC Earth II in the Main Stage however, after such an intensive day, counting sheep seemed like a better idea! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[OlsSalt]

2 hours ago, Skipper's Mom said:

John:

 

In conducting your research, would you be so kind as to check to see if there are Maj Jongg sets available for play?  They used to be in the library behind lock and key only accessible to the librarian (what's that?).

 

Enjoying your posts as we will be on the E in March.  Thanks.

 

Lynne

 

Just off the Eurodam and the new Gallery Bar was the place where they now have all the board games as well as "foosball" things - good space transformation and not really a bar over all, but a lounge space with tables and games where you can be noisier and have fun. Well used. Sports bar is in another corner of this new location.  Only issue is it is all indoors - no ocean views. 

[pc_load_letter]

19 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

There is no shortage of parking, just none downtown on the Embarkadero, unless you want to pay $40+ per day.   The pier is downtown!

 

At least 6 parking lots within 2 miles offer reduced parking rates ($15-19/day) and free shuttles to/from the pier.

 

The cruise season starts in September and ends in May......not hardly a way to substantiate a purchase of land anywhere nearby to accomodate once or twice a week patrons.

 

A group of "downtown residents" fought for years against the construction of the Broadway Pier (ultimately being successful in reducing the size needed for future ships) and the Manchester development of the Navy complex.   Lawsuits have lasted more than 10 years.....so not a simple process.....and the average cost per acre?

 

We also have Amtrak, Coaster, and Trolley access 3 blocks away.  There are so many options other than building a parking structure to block views of the bay.

David

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They just used about ten acres of land on a car rental lot. The land is there. If the city and or port is serious about the cruise industry, they need to make it as easy as possible to get parked and to the terminal.

 

New Orleans, Long Beach, Charleston, NYC, etc etc ALL have dockside parking. If I came to San Diego and needed to bounce around to three different lots to find a parking spot, that would be the LAST time I come to San Diego.

 

But alas, the Port is run by a bunch of monkeys and they'd rather have pie in the sky plans instead of supporting what is already there...Seaport Village anyone? 

 

And cmon, views of the bay? Look at all the Little Italy, hotels and new condos blocking the view to the bay. Laughable. 

 

And to remind you...San Diego is getting a Carnival ship here in 2020.

Edited January 3, 2019 by pc_load_letter

[Copper10-8]

At around 12:30 we strolled off the A-Deck gangway and picked up one of the white over yellow Nissan Tsuru cabs with a friendly driver. For $5 apiece, he took us to Restaurante ‘Pipis’ on Calle Guadalupe Sanchez for a bit of lunch. Pipis was introduced to me in late 2017 by the then Oosterdam’s techspert. It’s a very cool local eatery in the “Centro” cobblestone part of vieja Vallarta. They have a selection of some huge Margaritas, a gent comes over to your table to make fresh Guacamole, and eventually, two musicians walk over and play, among other hits, “Cielito Lindo” table-side. A very nice experience

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[nutensteve]

Great review Copper. Really appreciate you taking us along.

[Copper10-8]

Puerto Vallarta's Malecon (a stone-built embankment or esplanade along a waterfront), satisfying our Starbucks fix, the "crown" of the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Nissan Tsuru white over yellow taxi cab in PV and getting back to the ship

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

What linesmen do; we're off, Ruby Princess, RP's officer of the watch and more than likely the man responding to the "toeter blow-off" with E-dam; PCL's Sea Witch logo, departing PV, the huge Mexican national colors at the harbor entrance, and harbor security seeing us off

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

"Boys with toys" Anchored in the Bahia de Banderas (Bay of Flags) while we were on our way out was this bad sister; her name is Artessa IV (looks like she's getting some work done on her bow), complete with Airbus (formerly known as Eurocopter) EC120 Colibri helo.

 

Her owner is American, Montana-based industrialist/billionaire Dennis Washington. With an estimated current net worth of around $6.1 billion, he is ranked by Forbes as the 76th-richest person in America. Dennis also owns a Boeing Business Jet (737-700) with registration N162WC

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

PV's pilot boat approaching and, after completing the transfer and that same pilot tipping his hat and waving to EUDM's pax, making an exit stage left, and getting outtahere/making her way back to port. We're on our way to Mazatlan, Guerrero

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

Not a real great pic, sorry, but an image of April and (still don't know his name ), the lead singers of Eurodam's awesome B.B. King's All-Star Band