Land & Sea - LIVE (nearly) from Amsterdam and ms Rotterdam 15 day Atlantic Sojourn - October 7th, 2023

[kopykat]

On 10/1/2023 at 1:46 PM, kazu said:

 

Certainly will if I see her Ann 🙂 

Say hi from me too. Tell her I’m one of the twins. Bruce’s sister in law 

[Overhead Fred]

Another request to say Hi to Khay from Fred & Mitzi!

 

We went to several of her wine tastings and she hosted a lovely Cellar Master's dinner (we sat with Tony, Martha, Ann, and Pat @sailingdutchy and @Vict0riann) on the April 150th Anniversary crossing. 

 

[Holly g]

11 hours ago, kazu said:

 

The is indeed an elevator.

There are steps (around 5) at the entrance to the hotel.  Thar’s where the little gadget was that you could put your luggage on.  Staff will help with luggage if needed.

Thanks so much. That clears it up!

[SusieKIslandGirl]

Jacqui, so glad your time in Amsterdam went well-and thanks for the photos. Reminded me of the great time DH and I had there last May after the Norway cruise. Have a great cruise and stay well!

[grannyshell]

23 hours ago, Nodakboiler said:

When we visited the Haarlem church we were told Mozart had played there when he was 10 years old.

True story. I took thus pic when we were in Haarlem with Jacqui. Obviously it’s in Dutch and I was intrigued so looked it up later. Many famous composers played this organ.

 

[wandb]

I am really enjoying following along on this "Live" report. I've been away from Cruise Critic for a while, but happily back as I prepare for a July cruise on Rotterdam. 
 

Kazu, I loved the pictures and comments of your time at the home of Corrie Ten Boom. She has long been an inspiration for my life. I almost got to meet her once---she was to be a special guest at our local Bible Study, but became ill 2 days before the meeting. I think she was really exhausted from traveling and speaking. What an inspiration she was to so many. 
 

Loving all your pictures and commentary. 
 

Barb

[kazu]

Waiting for photos to sync 🤞 so will go back to Amsterdam to give you a quick chuckle.

our last night in Amsterdam and friends wanted something simple.  I gave up on savouring the flavour and caved.  The hotel said if we liked Italian that Michaels was close and very good.

 

CC friends we chatted with said they had been there last night and the bruschetta was the BEST.

 

So we went.  It is a true Italian restaurant it is only a 5 minute walk (yay). We did a lot of walking in Haarlem. 😉 

 

And yes the bruschetta was delish.  We each had a piece.

 

 

 

Angelo had the spaghetti

 

 

 

Helen the veal parmesan

 

 

And since the pizza was only for 1 person, I ordered a special one.

 

 

 

The pizza would have fed both DD DH and I.  thankfully I had some help.  Otherwise, I fear they might have been insulted.

 

 

When I got back to the hotel, they had sorted me out as a past guest realizing that the previous reserve was in Jose’s name and assured me next time I would have a bath tub.  I thanked the lovely lady for her great care as she would not be there in the morning.  She wanted to gift me and asked if there was anything I liked.  I said maybe the socks and she asked which colour.  Hmmm I went aloud, which one would Jose choose?  She said easy - you get both.  OMG.

 

 

 

Really enjoyed my time there.  A tear came to my eye at times but it was still wonderful.

 

I had planned to pack as carry on - but, when I saw how much roll call stuff I had I realized it was impossible.  When I say we have a big roll call, I’m not joking.

 

 

I had to recalculate to get what was needed for sail away etc in my carry on to be sure I had it 😉 

 

[kazu]

Today the Rotterdam is in Bruges.  Ok, technically Zeebrugge.  We had arranged for taxis to take us to Bruges and they will be back to pick us up.

 

Just finished a lovely canal tour and since I have been here before, I decided to let the others go exploring along the canal some more and find a comfy spot, listen to the church bells, try to sync photos  and get a bit up to date.

 

Oh, and of course, I am savouring the flavour.

 

Had to try the beer - you HAVE to savour the flavour, right?

 

 

 

Here are a couple of pics from our Amsterdam sail a way.  it’s a very pretty sail away and takes about two hours.

 

 

 

 

 

 

and last night’s dinner menu from the MDR.

 

 

 

I did check the Lido at lunch for that lovely chocolate peanut butter pie - not to be found 😔 

[ski ww]

Thanks for taking us along, looking forward to your posts.

[kazu]

Here is yesterday’s daily program

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And today’s. 

 

 

 

 

Notice anything missing?  No weather information.

[kazu]

We started out our day heading off to Bruges and several of us planned to do a canal cruise.

 

I’ve been here before but never done it so I was keen.  

 

Cost was only 12.50 euros and our guide/captain was very good.  A woman and seemed to do a lot more than the other boat we saw.

 

this may be a tad boring for some but a lot of this is the “real Bruges”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These boats are the only way to get underneath.

 

 

Some of them are REAllY low.

 

[kazu]

Having fun loading here but need to move on soon.

 

Had to savour the flavour to kill the effect of the beer.

Shrimp croquettes and boy were they good.  They are a local specialty.

 

 

And the obligatory fries.  

 

 

they were good but I can only need a few - I needed help LOL

 

Iphone is getting low (it has the pics and syncing isn’t going well so I’ve been airdropping.

 

Off to get to my fave chocolate shop here and BBL with more - internet permittting.

[seagarsmoker]

Jacqui, thanks for the wonderful updates and I hope you have a great cruise!

[0106]

Thanks to @kazu we had an efficient and inexpensive taxi ride into Bruge.  A few of my pictures.  My husband was extremely impressed with the architecture.

 

 

 

We were on the hunt for mussels.  Got a great recommendation from a local.  Delicious!

[kazu]

Happy Thanksgiving to all the Canadians out there from Le Havre.

 

I can see I am going to run behind until sea days 😉. 

 

We have a full today.  But I will be back.

 

In the meantime - here are the Lido menus for lunch and dinner last night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And our dining room menu (Gala night).

 

[kazu]

Do people get turned away from the MDR?  Yes.

 

Leaving Club Orange I heard 3 people complaining loudly.  To say 2 were not dressed appropriately would be an understatement.  I heard the one lady say loudly -“it says suggested, not mandatory”.  The ironic thing was she was dressed very nicely.  I don’t go around looking at how people are dressed but the fussing drew my attention 😉 

 

Captain’s toast was in the mid ship Lido pool.  A great spot IMO - better than the show room.

 

 

[0106]

Departed at 8 for Normandy with Overlord tours.  Incredibly knowledgeable guide.  Highly recommended.

Views while standing on Omaha Beach.

 

 

 

The American cemetery

 

 

 

 

[0106]

Next stop was Bayuex, a beautiful old city that survived the war.

 

 

 

 

[BetsyS.]

Jacqui - Happy Thanksgiving to you and to all who celebrate! 🥂😊 Thanks for your reports and beautiful pictures!

[1of4]

Happy Thanksgiving to all Canadians onboard!  I caved and turned on the furnace this morning as our high is only 7 and no sun in sight for 3-4 days. It has been snowing not too far away so the furnace may just stay on for the next 7 months. Hopefully it isn’t chilly in Normandy and you are enjoying a beautiful day in a beautiful region of France. 

[aliaschief]

Jacqui I’m happy too see you having a great and so deserved good time. Thank you for sharing your cruise with us. Outstanding cruise blog.

Edited October 9, 2023 by aliaschief

[Cruising-along]

Jacqui I'm thoroughly enjoying following along!  Loving the photos and commentary and so happy you're having a good time. 🙂  

We also have enjoyed Khay on several ships -- she's great!  The last time we saw her she sought us out as soon as we entered the Tamarind -- we didn't know she was onboard, what a treat.  Please tell her Hi from the Mullers Carolyn and Henry.  Hope to see her on many more cruises.

[Vict0riann]

2 hours ago, Cruising-along said:

Jacqui I'm thoroughly enjoying following along!  Loving the photos and commentary and so happy you're having a good time. 🙂  

We also have enjoyed Khay on several ships -- she's great!  The last time we saw her she sought us out as soon as we entered the Tamarind -- we didn't know she was onboard, what a treat.  Please tell her Hi from the Mullers Carolyn and Henry.  Hope to see her on many more cruises.

 

Khay has left the Rotterdam and will be joining Noordam in December.

[0106]

The final stop of today’s tour was Honfleur, a very picturesque town.  It is where the Seine meets the English Channel.

 

 

[ottahand7]

@0106  you covered a lot of area in your tour.   Honfleur and Bayeux aren't that close.  Ioved your photos.