Live from Nieuw Amsterdam 14-Day Alaska Explorer

[Stateroom_Sailor]

If I heard the captain correctly, they're trying to contain the spread of norovirus onboard.  I'm going to stop using buffet tongues unless I can property wash my hands afterwards.

 

That and stop licking the handrails.  😜

[Stateroom_Sailor]

We had Tamarind tonight.  The service was great, a little more on the fun side.  The shrimp chips were ok, similar to the texture of pork rinds.  We tried a couple but didn't want to get full before our entrees.  Appetizers: the potstickers were so-so, the beef salad was good, and the sampler was delicious.  I had the chicken curry, spice hot, and it hit the spot.  My wife had lamb, which she enjoyed the different flavor profile than what is offered in the MDR.  The desserts were delicious, delicate and full of flavor, among the best we've had at sea.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

Positive Update:

 

Valdez was the most beautiful port I've ever seen.  It is surrounded by snow-cap fjords and mountains, full of wildlife.  The town of 4,000 population is nestled in the center of beauty 360 degrees around.

 

Negative Update:

 

The captain again warned that the spread of norovirus needs to stop.  We only saw the cleanup crew, but apparently someone made a bodily mess on deck 2.  I believe our neighbors are quarantined to their cabin.

 

Edited May 14, 2023 by Stateroom_Sailor

[Florida_gal_50]

Would love to see pics of Valdez if you have any.

 

Gross on the noro. This is yet another reason I like to stay away from others.

[VacationCharlene]

1 hour ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

Positive Update:

 

Valdez was the most beautiful port I've ever seen.  It is surrounded by snow-cap fjords and mountains, full of wildlife.  The town of 4,000 population is nestled in the center of beauty 360 degrees around.

Wonderful news to hear this.  We are scheduled next year for the 28 day Alaska Arctic Circle Solstice and this is one of the new places we will be visiting.  We dont see any shore excursions yet....any MUST SEE tips or excursions you can refer?  Thanks

[Stateroom_Sailor]

1 hour ago, VacationCharlene said:

Wonderful news to hear this.  We are scheduled next year for the 28 day Alaska Arctic Circle Solstice and this is one of the new places we will be visiting.  We dont see any shore excursions yet....any MUST SEE tips or excursions you can refer?  Thanks

 

Yes, absolutely do the Colombia Glacier and Wildlife Tour!  Dress warm and ignore anyone getting territorial over regions of the boat (we had about 3 or 4 of them out of 144).  The views were breathtaking, I'll post some photos in 2 days.

[VacationCharlene]

35 minutes ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

 

Yes, absolutely do the Colombia Glacier and Wildlife Tour!  Dress warm and ignore anyone getting territorial over regions of the boat (we had about 3 or 4 of them out of 144).  The views were breathtaking, I'll post some photos in 2 days.

Was it a HAL tour or private?  Love any and more info

Lu Lu Belle at $175 pp? 

Edited May 15, 2023 by VacationCharlene

[Stateroom_Sailor]

4 minutes ago, VacationCharlene said:

Was it a HAL tour or private?  Love any and more info

Lu Lu Belle at $175 pp? 

 

It was a HAL tour, somewhere in the neighborhood of $150 - $200.

[Zagqwest]

3 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Would love to see pics of Valdez if you have any.

 

Gross on the noro. This is yet another reason I like to stay away from others.

Here is a couple photos from Columbia glacier criuse. 

[Crew News]

When I opened my curtains yesterday, I saw heavy overcast skies and watched droplets of rain hitting my balcony railing. 

144 Nieuw Amsterdam passengers went on the Columbia Glacier excursion. For the first time in my experience, facial recognition was used to both disembark and embark the ship.  Instead of the normal two Security checkpoints, only a single facial recognition camera slowed the disembarkation process.  Temps were in the low 40’s when boarded the excursion boat.  Much to my surprise, there were more than 30 comfortable seats on the aft deck of the boat.  Photographs taken under overcast skies made them look dreary but a small break in the clouds eventually grew to blue partly cloudy skies with amazing pictures (coming as soon as I can build the webpage that supports my photos).

The excursion boat entered the Columbia Glacier ice field and got within five miles of the glacier before having to stop or risk running into large ice chunks that could cause damage to the boat.  In addition to taking a lot of photos of whales, stellar sea lions, snow-capped hills, and glacier ice, I learned the full story of the Exxon Valdez oil spill as well as the aftermath of the 9,2 Richter scale earthquake many years ago.  The Captain gave the most detailed description of glaciers I have experienced on my many HAL glacier-viewing opportunities.

While proceeding to my stateroom from my Lido Market breakfast this morning, memories of those Chocolate Seduction Nights flooded back as the Executive Chef had created an amazing Mother’s Day display that brought out lots of passenger and crew cameras.  By 2:00 PM, the magnificent pastry creations and the huge cake were gone.  Consumed??

Another day at sea gave me the opportunity to upload the Lido Market Late Snack and MDR menus for the 2023 Alaska cruise season.

With all of the new crew connections that I have made on this cruise, acquiring the Caribbean menus in October on this ship will be a breeze.

Again, big thanks to those posting pictures and comments on this thread.

Miscellaneous Musings:

·       I gave up on seeing Norther Lights and opted to maximizing my sleep.

·       The night light is across from the bathroom in my verandah stateroom so it is dark until I am close enough to grab the bathroom door handle.

·       The bathroom electrical outlet is high above the sink and part of the light fixture.

·       Tonight was the first time since May 2 that I have noted a Specialty Restaurant more than 2/3 filled with passengers.

·       Still searching for saltine crackers, or equivalent.

·       Balcony curtains are an estimated 80% effective in blocking early morning sunshine.

·       Weather forecasts look good for the remaining ports.

Tomorrow is Glacier Bay and hopefully some calving photos.

More later.

[SightCRR]

Looks like a nice day in G/B. 

FAA WeatherCams

sightcrr

[Stateroom_Sailor]

21 hours ago, Zagqwest said:

Here is a couple photos from Columbia glacier criuse. 

 

The captain really put his life on the line to give us this shot.

 

 

[Stateroom_Sailor]

Positive:

 

Glacier Bay was sunning and serene, so glad we booked a veranda for this cruise!  A picture is worth a thousand words, so probably better to just upload them tomorrow.  The park rangers added to the experience, personable and informative.

 

Negative:

 

I just saw a gentleman being reckless with a snotty tissue, and another passenger tried to instruct him on being more sanitary with it.  After the sick passenger was called to the shore excursions desk, the advice giver then put his hand on the surface where the tissue had been! 😲  When the sick passenger returned, his wife said, "He's got that virus going around and a cold.  If he's feeling better tomorrow, we'll go into Sitka."

 

We've decided to limit our time outside of our cabin.

 

Overall:

 

Despite a few hiccups, we're impressed enough with HAL's food and service to upgrade our 2024 cruise to a 14 night Atlantic Costal, Montreal to FL.

 

Edited May 16, 2023 by Stateroom_Sailor

[Zagqwest]

Not a cloud in the sky. 

[Crew News]

The day began as a wonderful day in the Glacier Bay neighborhood with cloudless blue skies and warm sun.  It was truly the best photography weather I have experienced in all of my Glacier Bay visits. 

As usual, I took photos of Marjorie Glacier from my aft stateroom balcony.  Interestingly, there were far less ice chunks in the water than in previous visits and strangely, only two birds came into my view.  As we made a right turn to visit three more glaciers, I looked forward to seeing more ice flow, birds, and new-born harbor seals.  A single bird flew near Lamplugh Glacier and no harbor seals floated on the very few ice chunks.  To a many-time visitor today was vastly different than just one year ago in sightings and I did not hear the Park Rangers mention it. 

I did hear the Park Ranger declare that correcting the environment begins with a single step.  Since I don’t recall hearing what that first step was, I jumped to the conclusion that buying their merchandise for sale in the Crow’s Nest was that step.

As the Park Rangers departed the ship, one passenger was medically evacuated by ship tender to a local hospital.

Continuing my avoidance of the MDR, I ate dinner in the Lido Market and found the captain chatting with diners.  I was impressed.  Saran wrap covered all of the serving stations to block any self-service.  When I asked for chocolate chip cookies, I was told that someone was bringing them from the bakery and after eight minutes, I was served three cookies still warm from the oven.  At that moment, all was right in the world.  During my wait, I noticed more than a dozen passengers ask what flavors of ice cream were available since the normal ice cream flavors sign was missing.

A good number of passengers are now wearing masks with our minor outbreak of Norovirus aboard.  In spite of the captain asking all sick passengers to remain in their stateroom, I heard someone tell a line server that her husband was really sick so she was coming to the Lido Market to get him some dinner.

Tomorrow is Sitka and berthing away from town with shuttles to the downtown area.  The weather forecast is partly cloudy with temps in the mid ‘60’s.  Nice photography weather.

More later.

[Copper10-8]

8 hours ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

 

The captain really put his life on the line to give us this shot.

 

 

 

That's an oldie - Richard Harris in "Orca" 1977 😉

 

[Copper10-8]

1 hour ago, Crew News said:

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

 

As the Park Rangers departed the ship, one passenger was medically evacuated by ship tender to a local hospital.

 

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

 

 

Unfortunately, there is no local hospital at Gustavus, or at Park Ranger HQ at Bartlett Cove, some 10 miles away. After being off-loaded from the Nieuw A tender, this patient is/was looking at a medevac flight from Gustavus Airport to Juneau, AK and a visit to Bartlett Regional Hospital there. Hopefully he/she took out extra insurance because that will not be cheap event! Not the first time, nor will it be the last time, for a medevac from a cruise ship near Glacier Bay National Park via ship's tender. to Gustavus Airport

 

[whogo]

9 hours ago, Crew News said:

I did hear the Park Ranger declare that correcting the environment begins with a single step.  Since I don’t recall hearing what that first step was, I jumped to the conclusion that buying their merchandise for sale in the Crow’s Nest was that step.

Love it.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

10 hours ago, Crew News said:

 

I did hear the Park Ranger declare that correcting the environment begins with a single step.  Since I don’t recall hearing what that first step was, I jumped to the conclusion that buying their merchandise for sale in the Crow’s Nest was that step.

 

 

We purchased a magnet and some postcards, saving the planet one souvenir at a time.

 

I forgot to mention that the MDR ran out of Guinness Beer last night.  A German couple behind us were not impressed with the Bud Light offered as an alternative.  They took one sip, sat them aside and asked for water.

 

 

[Kathscof]

On 5/13/2023 at 10:35 PM, Stateroom_Sailor said:

That and stop licking the handrails.  😜

I tell people that all the time and no one listens 🙂 

[Hlitner]

3 hours ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

 

We purchased a magnet and some postcards, saving the planet one souvenir at a time.

 

I forgot to mention that the MDR ran out of Guinness Beer last night.  A German couple behind us were not impressed with the Bud Light offered as an alternative.  They took one sip, sat them aside and asked for water.

 

 

Hmmm, Didn't know there was a difference between Bud Lite and water.  Live and learn?

[Crew News]

Amazing weather yesterday in Sitka with jackets and coats coming off in the afternoon.  Weather forecast for today in Ketchikan is 70's temps and clear skies for photographing eagles this afternoon.

 

Half of the Lido Market is now closed for sanitation.

 

My investigation has revealed that only oyster crackers are available on board.  With the rough seas early this cruise, there was a great demand for crackers to counteract seasickness but to no avail.  Perhaps an emergency supply of crackers could be maintained on each HAL ship just for bad seas.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

Positive:

 

We really enjoyed this first visit to Sitka.  Nice weather, the city's downtown has quite a cold water beach charm.  The residents seemed very friendly and personable.  Low crime, lot so of culture, history, and nature.

 

Ketchikan is a bit more crowded and got a bit humid in the afternoon.  We did separate city tours after I cancelled my zip line excursion last minute (1 hour beforehand).  Big thanks to HAL for allowing such a short notice refund while in a bind.

 

We're impressed with HAL's norovirus precaution, including regular deep cleaning, and closing off all self-serve options in the buffet.

 

Negative:

I received a call this morning from a detective in Henderson, NV, that our personal belongings inside our truck had been found on a thief.  We called our airport hotel in Vegas, and a window had been smashed out.  No time for zip lining today!

 

 

 

[LuvCruising88]

That is so terrible, Stateroom_Sailor!  I am so sorry that happened to you and wish you only the best for the remainder of your vacation and travel plans.  So sad.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

1 hour ago, LuvCruising88 said:

That is so terrible, Stateroom_Sailor!  I am so sorry that happened to you and wish you only the best for the remainder of your vacation and travel plans.  So sad.

 

I appreciate it.

 

Turns out both driver's side windows were busted out, front and back.  We had a suitcase with a change of clothes for a couple nights in Las Vegas, post-cruise.  He grabbed this and everything in our glove compartment.  He also smashed the windows out of another vehicle at the same hotel, opposite side of the building.

 

The hotel is claiming that it is our responsibility to inform them if something happens to our vehicle while we're away 🙃.  Despite having done just that, I got sass when I called to ask if the vehicle was even there.  "How would you know if something was stolen?  When did the detective call, weeks ago?"