Life and live from Zuiderdam's 10-day Mex Riviera/Sea of Cortez cruise

[Ine]

On 4/10/2022 at 6:20 PM, TiogaCruiser said:

Here’s a bit about that Méxican cruise line whose ship was docked on the adjacent dock

 

https://www.vidantacruises.com/en/itineraries.html

 

Personally, I’m interested in more information, if they’ll take gringos.

Since Vidante is a large company in Vallarta (with  often very ambitious sellers) for Timeshare, very likely at least one or more  timeshare presentations will take place. 

[TiogaCruiser]

20 minutes ago, Ine said:

Since Vidante is a large company in Vallarta (with  often very ambitious sellers) for Timeshare, very likely at least one or more  timeshare presentations will take place. 

Ahh! Perhaps in place of tanzanite and diamond sales?

[TiogaCruiser]

@Copper10-8 Are these the birds?

 

We were watching them, too, trying to figure out what they were. Anyone know?

[Copper10-8]

48 minutes ago, TiogaCruiser said:

@Copper10-8 Are these the birds?

 

We were watching them, too, trying to figure out what they were. Anyone know?

IMG_0409.MOV

 

 

I used to be a Booby watcher before I got married, but I don't think these were Boobies. My pesos is on a Gannet 😉 

 

[Sir PMP]

1 hour ago, Copper10-8 said:

Day 9 - Monday 11 APR 22 – At Sea

 

After departing Puerto Vallarta on Sunday late afternoon, Zuiderdam’s navigators set a northwesterly course across the southern part of the Gulf of California /Sea of Cortez towards Cabo San Lucas. The Sea of Cortez (Mar de Cortés) / Gulf of California (Golfo de California) is considered part of the Pacific Ocean. The body of water was named after Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés who conquered the Aztec Empire and sailed its perimeter between 1539 and 1540. It was renamed the Gulf of California by the Mexican government. The name "Gulf of California" predominates on most maps in English today however, the name "Sea of Cortés" is the one preferred by most local residents.

 

We had a light breakfast of fruit and cottage cheese and hot oatmeal in the Pinnacle Grill, entering this fine establishment at 9:19 AM (they shut down for breakfast on sea days at 9:30 AM). “Light” because we would be back in there for a PG lunch at 12:45 PM.

 

There is no Mariners reception scheduled for this particular voyage so, upon return to our cabin, we found two Royal Goedewaagen Mariner “tegels” / tiles on our bed (see pic). Mariners are folks who have sailed on HAL ships for at once

 

Dutch company Royal Goedewaagen is one of the oldest earthenware / ceramic factories of Europe and are the makers of, but not limited to, the famous Dutch Blue Delft products. These particular tiles we received are from the 2018-2020 series that depict the bow and upper structure of a ship from the HAL Vista class with one of the bell towers of the hotel New York, the former HAL HQ in Rotterdam, in the background. The 2018-2020 series of tiles is basically a copy of the 2017-2018 series without the “ms” (motor ship) in front of the four ship’s names of the Vista-class in the lower right corner of the tile.

 

HAL has come out with a 2021-2022 series of tiles (see pic of the Vista-class ships series) however, they were apparently not yet available on Zuiderdam for this voyage and/or HAL is attempting to lower the inventory on the earlier tiles. This series depicts sea monsters with the crown of the Statue of Liberty on the approach to New York harbor in all four corners. That crown has seven points representing the seven continents and oceans.

 

At 9:30 AM on boat deck/deck 3, they had the “On Deck for a Cause” non-competitive walk going on. This has been going on for years on HAL ships however, in lieu of the tragic situation happening in Ukraine for six plus weeks, the proceeds are now going into a fund to provide assistance to Ukrainian refugees.

 

At around noon time, Zuiderdam passed Cabo San Lucas, our first stop a week ago, on starboard side, as we now started heading northbound along the coast of Baja California Sur. Capt. van der Hoeven was nice enough to sign my Stephen Card’s great HAL book “The Spotless Fleet,” the 30th captain’s signature received so far.

 

Baja California Sur or South Lower California in English, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California Sur / Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California Sur, is the second-smallest Mexican state by population and the 31st admitted state of the 31 states which, with the Mexico City, make up the 32 Federal States of Mexico.

 

The state is named after the peninsula on which it is found, Baja (Lower) California, with the term “Sur” meaning “south.” The name California applied to this peninsula along with the area now known as the state of California in the United States. The coat of arms emphasizes the state’s connection to the sea, including images of silver fish, a silver shell, and a blue background.

 

I had a 12:15 appointment with Alex, Zuiderdam’s future cruise consultant inside the Neptune Lounge and was able to book a couple of cruises for 2023, a northbound Pacific coastal cruise on Koningsdam and a Alaska land/sea cruise on Nieuw Amsterdam 🙂

 

This was followed by a 12;45 lunch reservation inside the Pinnacle Grill where Maria, still feeling better, had the crab cakes, shredded chicken bibb salad, and Strawberry Pavlova, while I had the Tomato Broth with Spicy Lemon Grass Chicken soup, the PG burger, and some cookies & cream ice cream.

 

At 2:00 PM, cruise & travel director Ian hosted Capt. van der Hoeven in his “Ask the Captain” Q & A inside the main stage, which lasted for pretty much 45-50 minutes and was informative. We have never sailed with this captain before but he comes across as an outgoing, pleasant, informative individual with a good sense of humor.

 

We did pretty much nada and jelled in the cabin for the remainder of the afternoon, watching the Pacific Ocean pass by with a couple of sea birds keeping formation on the starboard side of Zuiderdam’s bow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some good names out there: Arjan van de Loo, Chris Turner, Tim Roberts, Van der Berg, Wouter van Hoogdalem and

Pieter Visser, we had him in 2011 on the 'famous' Tsunami cruise.

[Copper10-8]

1 minute ago, Sir PMP said:

Some good names out there: Arjan van de Loo, Chris Turner, Tim Roberts, Van der Berg, Wouter van Hoogdalem and

Pieter Visser, we had him in 2011 on the 'famous' Tsunami cruise.

 

Dirk "Watch the finger" van der Berg! Great captain/funny guy! Frans Consen is in there also

 

[quack2]

8 hours ago, TiogaCruiser said:

@Copper10-8 Are these the birds?

 

We were watching them, too, trying to figure out what they were. Anyone know?

BWB's.  Big White Birds.  In contrast to LBB's.  Little brown birds.  There are also TLF's.  Tiny little f-ers.  They fly off just when you get them into focus.  As you can tell, I'm an expert birder.

[Alphen]

11 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

Day 9 - Monday 11 APR 22 – At Sea

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nice reports, great to see Ian is still around, we had him as a travel host on 2013 on Eurodam, together with JC as CD (I think he is freelance), which was a great team.

Edited April 13, 2022 by Alphen

[Boatdrill]

On 4/7/2022 at 6:39 PM, SJSULIBRARIAN said:

I've always liked Loreto - hope it retains its old Mexico aura. So pleasant.

Loreto was wonderful. Charming, quiet, pretty. Had a delicious lunch at Santo Cielo restaurant across from the mission.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g150772-d16958939-Reviews-Santo_Cielo_Cocina_Gourmet-Loreto_Baja_California.html

[Boatdrill]

Just want to add answers to a few questions that I often see asked after a HAL cruise.

On this terrific 10 day Sea of Cortez trip:

1. Embarkation day Mariner reception is the Crow's Nest was packed. Champagne flowed freely and generously.

2. No Mariner brunch was held during the cruise. 

3. No recognition during the cruise of a change in Mariner rank (example: 3 to 4 stars). 

4. No  final night parade/Radetsky March, intro of Exec Chef, napkin waving, etc. in the dining room by waiters. (This felt very odd. We lingered after dinner, hoping someone from the ship would at least make introductions) 

5. Crew was exceedingly cheerful and welcoming. Every. Single. Day.  

6. Chocolates at evening turndown service: yes.

7. Towel animals: Gala nights only

8. The Z was immaculate and in great condition. 

9. Food in all outlets was excellent. 

10. I would absolutely do this cruise again !  (depending on the ship)  

 

 

Edited April 16, 2022 by Boatdrill

[Florida_gal_50]

I really like this itinerary.  I was actually going to do it but I jumped ship to the koningsdam because I absolutely love the pinnacle class ships.

[Copper10-8]

4 hours ago, Boatdrill said:

..........................

6. Chocolates at evening turndown service: yes.

.........................

 

 

 

Just the set the record straight in our case; Evening, formerly pillow, chocolates; got them once on this 10-day cruise and that was on the night of the first gala evening (1st Monday) along with, yes, a towel animal. Have not seen both after that!  

[Copper10-8]

Day 9 - Monday 11 APR 22 – At Sea (con't)

 

Around 3:00 pm, we got ourselves a Chai and a Peppermint Mocha at the Explorations Cafe coffee bar inside the Crow's Nest/EXC Central. They make good coffee in there and the Crow's Nest on sea days is still a popular venue.

 

Tonight was the second and final gala night on this 10-day voyage. Just like a week ago, the majority of pax made at least some effort to dress up; the majority of guys were wearing slacks and a collared shirt; there were also suits, jackets with and without ties, and even some full blown tuxes. The majority of the ladies looked nice also.

 

Dinner for us was once again in the main dining room at 8:00 pm where we caught up with the two Peters and their spouses, as well as with David. Pete and David both grew up in San Francisco and both have really good senses of humor. We have enjoyed this table very much after not having visited the MDR on the last two cruises prior. Dinner itself was once again good with great service by our two dining room stewards and Puguh, their supervisor.

 

The main entertainment tonight was the second performance this cruise by pianist humorist and songwriter Dale Gonyea. We are not real big fans, so went to the BB King’s Blues Club instead where we enjoyed the music by the BB Kings All Stars. We closed out the night around 11:00 pm. Tomorrow (Tuesday) will be our second and final sea day before our return to San Diego on Wednesday

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[12cruise2]

Re the Vidante--DH and I had googled and got info on the ship, then I told a fellow cruiser about it.  She in turn got off and immediately encountered a sales person for the company; since we'd talked about the concept with her (3-day, 2 night cruises designed to be part of a 5-night land stay at one of their resorts), and she had nothing better to do, she went to the resort and spent a couple of hours there; she wasn't interested in buying in, but enjoyed learning more about the whole thing.

[Copper10-8]

Day 10 - Tuesday 12 APR 22 – At Sea

 

Last day at sea started with breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill. As stated, there was no Mariner reception scheduled for this particular voyage and Mariner luncheons have been on hold due to Covid. Zuiderdam was now alongside the coast of Baja California, still heading northbound for San Diego. We had a bit of a swell going since Monday, which made Zuidy move a bit.

 

Baja California is the twelfth largest state by area in Mexico and has an estimated population of 3,769,020 (2020), much more than the sparsely populated Baja California Sur to the south, and similar to San Diego County, California on its north. Over 75% of the population lives in the capital city, Mexicali, in Ensenada, or in Tijuana. Other important cities include San Felipe, Rosarito and Tecate. The population of the state is composed of Mestizos, mostly immigrants from other parts of Mexico, and, as with most northern Mexican states, a large population of Mexicans of Spanish ancestry, and also a large minority group of East Asian, Middle Eastern and indigenous descent. Additionally, there is a large immigrant population from the United States due to its proximity to San Diego and the lower cost of living compared to San Diego. There is also a significant population from Central America. Many immigrants moved to Baja California for a better quality of life and the number of higher paying jobs in comparison to the rest of Mexico and Latin America.

 

Following breakfast, I conducted a bit of a photographic tour of the Zuiderdam which included a bit of news. When Zuidy came out of dry-dock in Palermo, Sicily in April 2008, she gained a dedicated high-end 36-seat (six rows of six theater-style reclining leather seats with small tables in between) home theater called the "Screening Room" in place of where her original Internet Center and Java Corner used to be. Those screening rooms have not been used for what they were designed for several years now and most, if not all, have been turned into extra meeting rooms/art studio under the name ‘Tasman Room.’ Rumor on Zuiderdam has it that HAL has plans to turn the Screening/Tasman rooms into……………..Grand Dutch Cafés, the popular eateries that can be found on Koningsdam and her two sisters. We’ll see if that pans out but, in my opinion, it would be a huge improvement! Other meeting rooms on that same Deck 3 forward are the Hudson, Half Moon and Stuyvesant rooms, all names from HAL’s past.

 

The former Digital Workshop on Deck 2 aft, starboard side, is now being used as a studio by the photo people. Looks like the fwd portion of Deck 6 is still being used as an “isolation ward” since the fire screen doors on both port and starboard side were secured with “Do Not Enter – Authorized Staff Only” signs on them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The original Screening Room on Zuiderdam

 

 

The current Screening Room on Zuiderdam

 

 

The current Screening Room on Zuiderdam

 

The current Screening Room on Zuiderdam

 

Possibly, the future Screening Room on Zuiderdam

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The former Digital Workshop

 

 

 

[Florida_gal_50]

Would love to see the Dutch cafe.  Also I wish they’d have the New York pizza.  

[cruzingnut]

The idea of adding in the Dutch Cafe was considered but the price tag was too much so that idea has been dropped, unfortunately.  I've got friends that have been on the ship for a long period of time now so I heard that thru them.   The world cruisers would have loved to have had that added, lemme tell ya!

 

Linda R.

[Copper10-8]

1 hour ago, cruzingnut said:

The idea of adding in the Dutch Cafe was considered but the price tag was too much so that idea has been dropped, unfortunately.  I've got friends that have been on the ship for a long period of time now so I heard that thru them.   The world cruisers would have loved to have had that added, lemme tell ya!

 

Linda R.

 

Zuidy is scheduled for dry-dock in December of this year, so prior to the 2023 grand world voyage. We'll see if the Grand Dutch Cafe project is still alive when she comes out of that maintenance period

[jhsocal]

Boatdrill, thank you for that review. Was the Mariner Reception limited to any level or open to all?

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

On 4/16/2022 at 7:22 PM, Boatdrill said:

Just want to add answers to a few questions that I often see asked after a HAL cruise.

On this terrific 10 day Sea of Cortez trip:

1. Embarkation day Mariner reception is the Crow's Nest was packed. Champagne flowed freely and generously.

2. No Mariner brunch was held during the cruise. 

3. No recognition during the cruise of a change in Mariner rank (example: 3 to 4 stars). 

4. No  final night parade/Radetsky March, intro of Exec Chef, napkin waving, etc. in the dining room by waiters. (This felt very odd. We lingered after dinner, hoping someone from the ship would at least make introductions) 

5. Crew was exceedingly cheerful and welcoming. Every. Single. Day.  

6. Chocolates at evening turndown service: yes.

7. Towel animals: Gala nights only

8. The Z was immaculate and in great condition. 

9. Food in all outlets was excellent. 

10. I would absolutely do this cruise again !  (depending on the ship)  

 

 

I agree with you Holland America is doing a great job. Restarting.. the ships.

[TiogaCruiser]

5 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

Zuidy is scheduled for dry-dock in December of this year, so prior to the 2023 grand world voyage. We'll see if the Grand Dutch Cafe project is still alive when she comes out of that maintenance period

Does GDC require a separate kitchen?

 

I’d be interested in trying it. Many people warned us about the food in Amsterdam before we went, but we really liked what we had. (Except the pizza and ramen at the Amsterdam Bibliotek…) Even the sandwiches and apple tart at Schipol was good. It really put LAX to shame.)

Edited April 21, 2022 by TiogaCruiser

[Boatdrill]

10 hours ago, jhsocal said:

Boatdrill, thank you for that review. Was the Mariner Reception limited to any level or open to all?

The invitation said 3, 4, and 5 star Mariners. Key cards were checked before going in.

[jhsocal]

Thank you. That was the situation on our 2019 cruise. we are 3 star.  some recent cruises have not had a reception and others limited to 4 and 5.

[Caribensun]

Hi, we’re youCoVID  tested getting on or off the ship or were excursions testing?
what do you recommend doing in Loreto.

Thanks

[KroozNut]

16 hours ago, Sandipalms said:

Hi, we’re youCoVID  tested getting on or off the ship or were excursions testing?
what do you recommend doing in Loreto.

Thanks

Not tested and,.... wait for it... nothing