Brerpossum Posted August 28, 2020 #101 Share Posted August 28, 2020 (edited) Edited August 28, 2020 by Brerpossum Change wording Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brerpossum Posted August 28, 2020 #102 Share Posted August 28, 2020 (edited) Correction to above..... Our first cruise was 1994 on the Dolphin line “Seabreeze”, what a cruise. The food was excellent, and the wait staff taught us the proper use of the silverware. We had an ocean view room, being a port hole that you unscrewed the two bottom bolts and swung the window upward. Oh, I can still remember that ocean sound going to sleep. Seven night eastern and western Caribbean cruises. Last cruise was a 15 N Hawaii in the Eclipse in 2019. Loved it so much we returned for another, and then we were hooked. Jerry Edited August 28, 2020 by Brerpossum edit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romulus22 Posted August 28, 2020 #103 Share Posted August 28, 2020 On 8/26/2020 at 7:33 PM, Happy Cruiser 6143 said: First two ships: USAT Henry Gibbons which took us from New York to Cuba and Puerto Rico. MSTS Buckner which took us from New York to Bremerhaven. Can't remember at the moment the name of the ship we took in the Med. Boy, does this bring back some memories. My dad was stationed in Puerto Rico, so our first trip to San Juan was the MSTS Pvt William H Thomas in August, 1956. I was going into 4th grade. All of our other trips (3 in total) were on the Henry Gibbons, which I think is the top picture. My dad, and one of my brothers and I were in cabin 301, which had 8 bunks, and was as far back, and as far down as you could go for a passenger cabin. Shared bathroom down the hall. This ship was in service until about 10-15 years ago, mostly as a training ship at the Cape Cod Maritime Academy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Cruiser 6143 Posted August 28, 2020 #104 Share Posted August 28, 2020 1 minute ago, romulus22 said: Boy, does this bring back some memories. My dad was stationed in Puerto Rico, so our first trip to San Juan was the MSTS Pvt William H Thomas in August, 1956. I was going into 4th grade. All of our other trips (3 in total) were on the Henry Gibbons, which I think is the top picture. My dad, and one of my brothers and I were in cabin 301, which had 8 bunks, and was as far back, and as far down as you could go for a passenger cabin. Shared bathroom down the hall. This ship was in service until about 10-15 years ago, mostly as a training ship at the Cape Cod Maritime Academy Our cabin on the Buckner had a private bathroom which was a good thing because all of us got seasick during a storm in the North Sea! No stabilizers on those babies. Don't remember the details of the cabins on the Gibbons, I was younger then and I'm quite sure they didn't allow us to be separated from our parents as they did on the Buckner when we were teenagers. Which was probably not their brightest move--what could go wrong with a bunch of teen girls in a cabin together?! Let's just say we didn't sleep much. Did I mention there were troops on those ships being shipped to Germany? Boys! Teenaged girls pretty much unsupervised. It was a great trip! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr&MrsBee Posted August 28, 2020 #105 Share Posted August 28, 2020 I sailed on the USTS Simon Buckner to Bremerhaven in the early 60's and returned on the USTS Gordon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Lois R Posted August 28, 2020 #106 Share Posted August 28, 2020 On 8/24/2020 at 3:32 PM, phoenix_dream said: First and worst cruise ever - Carnival Carnivale. Our honeymoon cruise. Weather and seas were horrible. I was seasick almost the entire time. Swore I would never cruise again! DH convinced me otherwise, and here I am with 60+ cruises under my belt; 50 of those on Celebrity and hoping for many more! Hey stranger😀 what year was that? I sailed her way back in 1992---it was my parent's 50th anniversary and they took us on a 3 night cruise to celebrate. There were 9 of us (I think) LOL. It was bittersweet.......my mom had cancer at the time but the Dr said it was ok for her to sail.....she died 4 months after that cruise. To be honest, I remember having fun......Mom had a blast.......she was in the passenger talent show and they had a game like a horse race and she was in it too......😀 actually, I have a photo of us on the gangway in Freeport! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Cruiser 6143 Posted August 28, 2020 #107 Share Posted August 28, 2020 1 hour ago, Lois R said: Hey stranger😀 what year was that? I sailed her way back in 1992---it was my parent's 50th anniversary and they took us on a 3 night cruise to celebrate. There were 9 of us (I think) LOL. It was bittersweet.......my mom had cancer at the time but the Dr said it was ok for her to sail.....she died 4 months after that cruise. To be honest, I remember having fun......Mom had a blast.......she was in the passenger talent show and they had a game like a horse race and she was in it too......😀 actually, I have a photo of us on the gangway in Freeport! Lois, how wonderful that your mother got to enjoy that. And that your parents got to celebrate their 50th anniversary. Sadly, my dad died before they made it to their 50th. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Cruiser 6143 Posted August 28, 2020 #108 Share Posted August 28, 2020 1 hour ago, Mr&MrsBee said: I sailed on the USTS Simon Buckner to Bremerhaven in the early 60's and returned on the USTS Gordon. We were flown back on Pan Am. Thanks, Germancruiser, for starting this interesting walk down memory lane! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Lois R Posted August 29, 2020 #109 Share Posted August 29, 2020 47 minutes ago, Happy Cruiser 6143 said: Lois, how wonderful that your mother got to enjoy that. And that your parents got to celebrate their 50th anniversary. Sadly, my dad died before they made it to their 50th. Hi Linda🙂...... I have to say it was fun. Yes, their anniversary was in October 1992 and she died in Feb 1993. Hope you are doing well🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Germancruiser Posted August 29, 2020 Author #110 Share Posted August 29, 2020 Those wonderful - sometimes sad, sometimes funny stories are so interessting to read. Back to the times when the US- Army were stationed in Germany. We had a big American Society up until the " winds of changes" altered everything. I myself have such fond memories of the American Army - they mingled with us Germans of the city. They kind of belonged to the city. Wilson and Nelson Barracks- were the names of those facilities. As kids we loved to walk through those " American Borroughs" seeing all them great cars parked - we used to call that parts of the city- " Little America"! When they all left- everything changed. Ironicly after they Americans left all those houses, apparmtents where given to Russian Refuges who left after the Iron Curtain fell. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BridgeMates Posted August 29, 2020 #111 Share Posted August 29, 2020 On 8/26/2020 at 6:33 PM, Happy Cruiser 6143 said: First two ships: USAT Henry Gibbons which took us from New York to Cuba and Puerto Rico. MSTS Buckner which took us from New York to Bremerhaven. Can't remember at the moment the name of the ship we took in the Med. This was great! I went from Seattle to Yokohama on the Buckner with my mom and siblings in 1952, joining my AF dad who had gone over 6 months earlier. I was 11 years old. I seem to remember it was 10-12 days for the transit. Got terribly sea sick but haven't experienced it again in 45+ cruises. We came back on the "Randolph" two years later. Thanks for the picture. It's amazing what you find out on Cruise Critic some days..... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alwaysonaship Posted August 29, 2020 #112 Share Posted August 29, 2020 18 hours ago, romulus22 said: Boy, does this bring back some memories. My dad was stationed in Puerto Rico, so our first trip to San Juan was the MSTS Pvt William H Thomas in August, 1956. I was going into 4th grade. All of our other trips (3 in total) were on the Henry Gibbons, which I think is the top picture. My dad, and one of my brothers and I were in cabin 301, which had 8 bunks, and was as far back, and as far down as you could go for a passenger cabin. Shared bathroom down the hall. This ship was in service until about 10-15 years ago, mostly as a training ship at the Cape Cod Maritime Academy We were stations at Ramey AFB, Puerto Rico and came back by ship to New York via Cuba 56,or 57...it had to have been one of those ships. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AC Stew Posted August 29, 2020 #113 Share Posted August 29, 2020 Wonderful topic, and a welcome breath of fresh air. Thank-you Germancruiser! I've looked forward to checking in and catching up on the memories and reflections of much respected posters that I've followed over the years. Not to mention the incredible array of old photos! How fun will it be to see each other on a future sailing! One day ... hope springs eternal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KEN31VA Posted August 29, 2020 #114 Share Posted August 29, 2020 Does anyone remember the first "cruise" ship - SS Nassau? She was almost 50 years old when converted to single class, cruise only - which was unique in the early 50s. In August of 52 we did the one-week cruise from New York to Nassau. I can remember being sea sick from the rough weather only to look out in the morning and see that we were only about 10 miles from the coast. The ship's pools were converted cargo holds, no balcony cabins and most cabins had bunk beds without private bathrooms. Even so it was considered a luxury with mostly Italian crew and food. There were no shows, but the cruise director had a "party" every night which was a big hit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare MISTER 67 Posted August 30, 2020 #115 Share Posted August 30, 2020 On 8/26/2020 at 1:41 PM, helby said: I think Fairsky became Sky Princess. My first cruise was on Sky Princess from Miami in 1989. When she was built in 1984 she was the largest ship built exclusively for cruising, we sailed on her 3 times and she was a beauty. Sitmar Cruises was a great line and we were really upset when Sitmar and Princess merged in late 1988. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
romulus22 Posted August 30, 2020 #116 Share Posted August 30, 2020 13 hours ago, alwaysonaship said: We were stations at Ramey AFB, Puerto Rico and came back by ship to New York via Cuba 56,or 57...it had to have been one of those ships. My dad was at Ft Brooke, in San Juan, where El Morro is, and we lived at Ft Buchanan, which is where we got off the ship. Ramey was the nicest base on the island, we were so envious of you guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike981 Posted August 30, 2020 #117 Share Posted August 30, 2020 Selfishly I hope more folks add to this wonderful thread. Such a breath of fresh air. Thank you to all who have shared their wonderful stories. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shipgeeks Posted August 30, 2020 #118 Share Posted August 30, 2020 Germancruiser, Thank for for starting another wonderful thread. My first ocean voyage was in 1969, on the Columbus Lines cargo ship, Cap Vilano, New York to Sydney. The trip took 42 days; after Panama we had no other ports until we reached Australia. Our cargo consisted of a yacht and 40 tons of dynamite. Our cabin was huge and comfortable, with big picture windows in the bedroom and the living room. Twelve passengers. Our dining room assignment was with the Chief Engineer. The food was German, and very good. Entertainment consisted of the books left behind by previous passengers, and the game of Yahtzee we took aboard. It was wonderful. In 1991 we took our first cruise, on the StarShip Majestic, former Spirit of London. After that, our favorite ships were Norway, Rembrandt, Island Breeze, Sea Breeze, Ocean Breeze, and Regal Empress. We loved the histories of those older ships, and often went looking for signs of their original fittings, rooms, and names on the hull. I wish I knew how to post pictures, as I am loving seeing the ones from other posters. But the words are great, too! I hope there will be lots more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shipgeeks Posted August 30, 2020 #119 Share Posted August 30, 2020 On 8/28/2020 at 2:46 PM, Brerpossum said: Correction to above..... Our first cruise was 1994 on the Dolphin line “Seabreeze”, what a cruise. The food was excellent, and the wait staff taught us the proper use of the silverware. We had an ocean view room, being a port hole that you unscrewed the two bottom bolts and swung the window upward. Oh, I can still remember that ocean sound going to sleep. Seven night eastern and western Caribbean cruises. Last cruise was a 15 N Hawaii in the Eclipse in 2019. Loved it so much we returned for another, and then we were hooked. Jerry Brerpossum, How nice to see your post! We had the pleasure of sharing a dinner table with you on Celebrity Century, back in 2013, to Hawaii. Good to see you are still cruising, as are we. How is Mrs. Possum's back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George C Posted August 30, 2020 #120 Share Posted August 30, 2020 My first 7 day cruise was Rotterdam in 1977 , great ship , have cruised at least once a year since then, agree great thread. My first job was a computer operator for US lines in the 60’s which owned the SS United States. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Cruiser 6143 Posted August 30, 2020 #121 Share Posted August 30, 2020 On 8/28/2020 at 8:40 PM, Germancruiser said: Those wonderful - sometimes sad, sometimes funny stories are so interessting to read. Back to the times when the US- Army were stationed in Germany. We had a big American Society up until the " winds of changes" altered everything. I myself have such fond memories of the American Army - they mingled with us Germans of the city. They kind of belonged to the city. Wilson and Nelson Barracks- were the names of those facilities. As kids we loved to walk through those " American Borroughs" seeing all them great cars parked - we used to call that parts of the city- " Little America"! When they all left- everything changed. Ironicly after they Americans left all those houses, apparmtents where given to Russian Refuges who left after the Iron Curtain fell. We've been in touch with some of the Germans who moved into our quarters in Fryar Circle. The people who live in our house sent a picture taken out of the window of what was my bedroom. Somebody found some dog tags buried in a garden and we were able to unite them with their owner. There was a very active German-American group in Augsburg. Our high school is now a school for the deaf. Some of my classmates have been back to visit and were allowed in to look around. Not sure what happened to the hospital. My father was the hospital administrator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Cruiser 6143 Posted August 30, 2020 #122 Share Posted August 30, 2020 19 hours ago, romulus22 said: My dad was at Ft Brooke, in San Juan, where El Morro is, and we lived at Ft Buchanan, which is where we got off the ship. Ramey was the nicest base on the island, we were so envious of you guys Our quarters in Puerto Rico were on the grounds of San Cristobal. Right on the ocean. They've been torn down now that it's a national park. The lawn in front of El Moro was the golf course and the swimming pool was located there. It was really interesting to return on cruises and see what it looks like now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Germancruiser Posted August 31, 2020 Author #123 Share Posted August 31, 2020 58 minutes ago, Happy Cruiser 6143 said: We've been in touch with some of the Germans who moved into our quarters in Fryar Circle. The people who live in our house sent a picture taken out of the window of what was my bedroom. Somebody found some dog tags buried in a garden and we were able to unite them with their owner. There was a very active German-American group in Augsburg. Our high school is now a school for the deaf. Some of my classmates have been back to visit and were allowed in to look around. Not sure what happened to the hospital. My father was the hospital administrator. The same in our city- there where made many friendships between Americans and Germans. Those who lived in Nelson or Wiley Barracks would never regocnize there quaters- totaly changed- ah yes - some houses remained but still...! Also many German Fräuleins lives now in the United States- happyly married to an American who was stationed here. LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
osborne66 Posted August 31, 2020 #124 Share Posted August 31, 2020 On 8/27/2020 at 10:03 PM, Germancruiser said: What beauty this Windsor Castle was- i have book with some pictures of her interiour rooms. Wonderful. As a little kid I enjoyed the activities they put on every day for the kids. Remember back than all kids ate seperately from the parents at Dinner 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
osborne66 Posted August 31, 2020 #125 Share Posted August 31, 2020 On 8/26/2020 at 7:39 PM, Germancruiser said: @Happy Cruiser- wouw that is very very close to home- Augsburg I mean. Less than an hours drive to Ulm. Had a German friend wgo lived close to Augsburg in the village of Kissing 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now