The Fleet Report and Daily for Thursday February 22nd, 2024

[summer slope]

Dude's Delight cocktaiol:

 

The "Dude's Delight" cocktail is a creamy and indulgent drink that combines the rich flavors of coffee liqueur, sambuca, vodka, and milk or cream. It's a popular cocktail that's perfect for those who enjoy a luscious and smooth beverage with a hint of sweetness. The combination of the different liqueurs creates a deliciously balanced and satisfying drink that's perfect for sipping on a special occasion or as an after-dinner treat.

1 oz. vodka
1 oz. kuhula
4 oz whole mild
.25 oz sambuca
1 oz. cold coffee

In a shaker filled with ice add vodka, Kahlua, samba, milk, and coffee, and shake until chilled.
Strain into a large glass filled with ice and garnish with cocoa dust (optional)

[Lcubed]

 

Good Morning! The temp this morning is 57f/14c and very sunny.  My DH goes to donate platelets this morning. @JazzyV hope your procedure goes well today.

Astrolabe Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 

Winemaker Notes

#15 Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2023 

Pale straw color with green highlights. Powerful gooseberry, white currant, red capsicum, passionfruit and lime peel aromas. Medium-bodied, with strong flavors of makrut lime, passionfruit, lemongrass and a refreshingly smooth, dry and persistent finish. 

This is a white wine that seems to have a lot of fans. Pairs well with summer salads, salmon, seafood, including green-lipped mussels.

On line price $19.99

Professional Ratings

• 94 Wine Spectator

  This stunning version is fresh and vibrant yet also complex and full of flavor, from toasted green tea and lemon thyme to mouthwatering passion fruit, yuzu and mango. Ends with hints of white pepper, lemon blossoms and sea salt on the long, expressive finish.

• 92 Wine Enthusiast

  Zingy lime, pineapple rind and guava aromas—flanked by ground white pepper, bell peppers and dried herbs—burst from the glass of this aromatic, layered Sauvignon from a consistently solid producer. There’s a slightly chalky texture and a pop of flavor on the palate. Food-friendly but easy solo sipping, this is a steal for the price.

• 90 James Suckling

  Aromas of fresh peaches, sliced mangoes and jasmine. Medium-bodied with silky texture. Bright and succulent with fresh tropical and stone fruit at the core. Subtle spice at the finish.

 

[Crazy For Cats]

14 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

Interesting collection of days - I have no tobacco to give up, but hope success for those who do. Humility is a good trait - Tim McGraw has a really good song "Humble and Kind."

Both quotes (I like a bonus) are good.

Would try the meal, drink and wine; not been to the port.

Thanks @StLouisCruisers for the update on @marshhawk and @catmando beautiful pictures - the churches are amazing, fingers crossed the hair cut results meet your expectations. 

@JazzyV prayers and positive thoughts for you today.

@seagarsmoker another stunning picture!

Too bad you're missing a port @richwmn - hull cleaning is important, but I don’t think I've ever missed a port for it.

@Crazy For Cats I have attended far too many of those "here's why we're great" talks 🙄 I love the way you recognize it and would like to borrow that, if you don't mind.

No PT today - still waiting on a call from them, so it's all work today.

Currently 63° headed to sunny 79° and 90° on Monday!!

Prayers and positive thoughts for all. 🙏

I don’t mind at all.  During last year’s meeting they blamed staff for the company not being as profitable as they wanted to be.  The reason, they gave raises.  The raises did not keep up with inflation.

[ger_77]

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily!  A couple of years ago it was 2-22-22, so we've dropped a couple of 2's. One should always try to be humble - unless someone is trying to take advantage of you, then do what you have to.  Not sure about spitting anything out, yuck.

 

I also heard from @marshhawklast evening and was happy she replied to my email.  She also said that some thieves came along after the utility box was hit and removed all the copper wiring (of course they'll sell it to a scrap dealer for $$), so she's not sure how long it will take before she's back online.  This also affects her work as she needs her computer, which isn't good at all!

 

@JazzyVVanessa, I'm sending good vibes to you today in the hope that this will help give you relief from your pain so you can get some much needed sleep .

@lazey1Jane, I hope your medical appointment goes well today.

@kazu I know it's your own back yard, but be careful when you are out there cleaning up Ivan's "gifts". 

 

We're going out for lunch today with our friends Wayne & Fran to hear all about their cruise experience.  I know they had an issue with their cabin steward not wanting to empty the mini-bar; he told them they prefer to leave the items so people can buy them - which is weird, as they had the HIA package.   Apparently after a couple of requests, it finally took a call to Guest Services before it was emptied a number of days later.  

 

And yes, it is Margarita Day - I'll take a strawberry one, please!

 

I'd like to try the drink of the day, but with regular coffee in it, I'm sure I'd be up most of the night from the caffeine.   I'll let others enjoy the white wine, but the menu suggestion has me interested, especially if I can tone the sauce down with honey so DH might find it palatable.  I like the heat, he doesn't.  We're having something different for dinner tonight - Sloppy Joes.  I haven't made that in ages, so we'll enjoy them and a side salad at the kitchen table tonight.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who is in need, in pain, in grief, or just out of sorts.  Cheers to all with celebrations.

 

Smooth Sailing!  ☺️☺️☺️

Gerry

 

 

[Sir PMP]

Port of Helsinki:

[quilty964]

Good morning, another nice day in Wisconsin.  Thanks to all who contribute here. @JazzyVso happy to hear your procedure is today, prayers it all goes well and you that you get relief after.  @StLouisCruisersthanks for the update on @marshhawkand her DH.  I'm hearing there is a big AT&T outage this morning and now other carriers are also having issues.  

The meal today looks good!  I could also try a margarita, the plan is for Mexican food from a Food Truck in our neighborhood tonight!   

Have a good day, K

[kochleffel]

I'm not very impressed by any of the special days. Would probably pass on the meal suggestion and on the cocktail. I don't think that there's any way to make wine with an astrolabe; in the Finger Lakes we use conventional methods. I'll nominate Fulkerson's 2020.

 

I visited Helsinki during a cruise from Stockholm in 2020. Just a few pictures, first from the Seurassari open-air museum. One of the buildings is a church that can be booked for weddings; the second photo is a wedding party waiting for the bride (who did eventually arrive).

 

Our guide rushed us around the open-air museum and then kept us for way too long at the Temppeliaukio Church, but I won't post all my photos.

 

I'm due to donate blood this afternoon, and I've already filled out the Rapid Pass.

 

2 hours ago, grapau27 said:

toasted fruit bread with Danish butter and Strawberry jam

 

I'm envious. I was looking forward to Danish butter when I took a cruise from Copenhagen in 2022, but the butter in my hotel was French, not that there is anything wrong with French butter, and on the ship the butter was Dutch. FWIW, a cruise from Cape Liberty, in New Jersey, this year also had Dutch butter.

 

[ottahand7]

@GTVCRUISER and @ger_77 thanks for the Margarita Day reminder.  Lunch in the PG on the casino may call for a couple.  Cheers!

 

[kazu]

3 hours ago, Crazy For Cats said:

Today there is a company wide meeting that will be mostly leadership telling us how wonderful they are.

 

LOL - I know exactly what you mean.  Leadership is wonderful, staff at fault sheesh. 🙄 

 

 

2 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

First I'd like to put aside some of our worries about Annie @marshhawk and Chuck @catmando.  I received an email message from her and she said a car ran into their AT&T box (which if it's like our neighborhood all the utilities are underground with "boxes" with wiring in them standing upright in certain areas along the street).  Annie says that no one in the neighborhood has internet or home phones.  Chuck's surgery was moved again, this time by the doctor.  She says they are spending their time walking in the park, cooking at home, and watching old movies on the VCR.  She also says she misses the Daily!  I suppose this means they can't work either since they need internet and good phone service for that.  I assured her we missed her too and were concerned about them both.  I hope they can get something fixed soon so they and the neighborhood can get back to normal.  

 

Thank you very much for this update, Sandi.  Even if their AT & T box was fixed, I doubt they could get reception today.  Major massive cell outage nation wide.

 

 

1 hour ago, StLouisCruisers said:

It is also National Chili Day and National Walk Your Dog Day!  So much to celebrate in one day!

 

It’s National Walk Your Dog every day.  At least it is in this house 😂 😉 

 

 

 

4 hours ago, richwmn said:

We found out a couple of hours ago that we will not be visiting Kangaroo Island. A hull inspection found that NZ might reject us so we are going to spend some time at sea getting the hull cleaned again by some divers.

 

That’s a shame you are missing Kangaroo Island, Rich.  😔 Your captain is wise though to make sure the ship will pass New Zealand requirements.  New Zealand is fabulous and worth missing one port IMO.  I hope you enjoy it 🤞 

 

 

 

[0106]

Happy Thursday!  Thought I’d make a quick post while I am unpacking and doing laundry.  One more day until Four Star and free laundry!  I’m on a Collector cruise at the beginning of March.  Wonder if I can convince them to give me free laundry after the first 7 days? It was cheaper to book as a Collector instead of a B2B.  We found our Bronze medallions on our bed one evening.  I know there was a ceremony for Silver and Gold because I spoke to someone who attended but there was no other acknowledgment for us.

 

I believe the “Dude’s Delight” might be a tribute to The Big Lebowski movie.

 

We drank some excellent Chilean Sauvignon Blanc on the cruise but I have always enjoyed those from New Zealand.

 

Thank you to all the regular posters, particularly those who post port pictures.  Positive thoughts to those who need them.  Cheers to those celebrating and cruising.

[superoma]

Kudos to my DH who finished the puzzle of the Sistine chapel in about two weeks. It is quite the intricate puzzle. 

[rafinmd]

Thank you Rich, Jacqui, Vanessa, Debbie, Laura, and Dixie.  Welcome home Tina.  Wishing Vanessa a successful procedure and happy to hear from Ann and Chuck.

 

I like the days although 2Twenty2 day was at it's best 2 years ago.

 

Two interesting quotes today.

 

I visited Helsinki in 2003 and 2015.

 

Three great days in history although the consequences for Galileo were unfortunate.

 

I'll pass on the meal.  My alternative is Classic Caesar Salad, Turkey Roast With Giblet Gravy and Cranberry, and NSA Strawberry Ice Cream as served on MS Koningsdam February 22, 2017.

 

I see the radiation oncologist today for what will probably be the last time for a while, a followup to my series of treatments.  I do not expect to learn much from it.

 

I slept well last night but am still fighting drowsiness this morning.

 

Roy

Edited February 22 by rafinmd

[Lady Hudson]

Good morning.  Prayers for all who are not well and best wishes to all.  Weather here is pretty moderate for the end of February.  Long term forecast looks good too.

 

So…my twin “spends some time in the casino”.  As a result she gets “free” cruises.  She has been on me to join her in her cabin on Anthem of the Seas for seven days starting on Sunday.  Since my daughter is available to stay with her dad I finally said yes.  So the next few days will be busy since I haven’t totally unpacked from the 2/8 cruise!  Silly me.  But I will get it all done.  
 

Thanks to all our regulars who make this site a must read every day!  Katherine 

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

Good morning from sunny Quartzsite where it is 53F and warming to 72F this afternoon.  It was 47F when I got up about an hour ago.  Today I hope to finish going through the pile of paper that needs sorting, filing, etc., and the finishing touches on getting the paperwork ready to start doing our taxes. 

 

We also have to go to the post office today to jump through hoops, and it may not help.  USPS has added a layer of security to the online mail forwarding in order to protect our information.  Basically, it takes away the ease of the online method.  We now have to take the email they send and a photo ID to the PO for them to verify we are the people who submitted the request.  Beside having to go to the PO there is another problem for those of us who live in one state and spend months in another.  The photo ID has to show the old address.  I don't know anyone who can have a driver's license or other state ID in two states at the same time.  That is illegal.  Since this town has a lot of snowbirds, I'm hoping the clerk will "bend" the rules, but the new station manager is a stickler for rules.  🤞  Most people don't make accommodations for those who's lives don't fit the "norm" of one home and short trips.  End of today's gripe.

 

2Twenty2 and Be Humble are good days to celebrate.  It would be nice if tobacco can be eliminated, but that's really a pipe dream.

 

Two interesting quotes and I like the second one better.

 

Today, we'll pass on the meal, drink and wine.

 

We have visited Helsinki twice on BHBs and once on Marco Polo.

 

Three more interesting days in history to honor.

 

@JazzyV  Vanessa, I hope all goes well with the procedure today and that you get some much needed relief and sleep.

@richwmn  Rich, I'm sorry you are missing Kangaroo Island, but missing all of New Zealand would be a bigger loss.

@StLouisCruisers Sandi and @ger_77 Gerry, thanks for your updates on Annie @marshhawk and Chuck @catmando.  Sandi, I hope the haircut goes well.  

@superoma  Eva, that is a very detailed puzzle.  Good work by your DH.

@rafinmd  Roy, I hope there are no surprises at your appointment today.  Thank you for posting the maps.

@Lady Hudson  Enjoy your cruise, Katherine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lenda

 

Edited February 22 by Quartzsite Cruiser

[cunnorl]

Good Morning from a sunny and warming day at the beach

      Interesting collection of days. I have not been to todays port, thanks for the pictures.

      @richwmn  Sorry you are missing Kangaroo Island. New Zealand is very serious about the condition of the ships hulls. Last year when we there on the Noordam, 2 ships were denied entrance to Fjordland , one was a Princess ship. We were ok., hope you will be  also.

     @JazzyV   Wishing you the best  today. Hope it gives you relief.

  I am still working on the catering issue. Hope to resolve today.

  My SIL, her sister and cousin are coming for the next 5 days. They will be here shortly. They will keep me hopping , thats for sure.

 

Stay safe and enjoy today

    Charlene

[JazzyV]

Just a quick check-in. I’m back home. My right leg is numb and feels like Gumby. I almost fell to the ground twice. Thank goodness for the rollator. The steroids will take a few days to work, so once the anesthetic wears off, I’ll be back to the same way for a few days. BFF is here and just made me coffee since it’s hard for me to get around. I appreciate all the good wishes and prayers. 

 

[kochleffel]

5 hours ago, kazu said:

Today in History:

 

Also: The "Miracle on Ice" in 1980, when the U.S. hockey team defeated the U.S.S.R. team in the Winter Olympics at Lake Placid.

 

https://apnews.com/article/today-in-history-3c9b07ea1a2cc199d1e30ddee2805f1a

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

We have been fortunate to have visited Helsinki on three occasions.  The first time was in 2003 on the 33 day roundtrip from NYC on the Rotterdam.  Just getting to NYC and the ship was an adventure as we sailed the day after the blackout, but that's another story.  We were in Helsinki in 2005 on Marco Polo and in 2016 on the Prinsendam.  

 

I have quite a few pictures of Helsinki, so I'll break them up between two posts.  These pictures were taken 2003.  As usual, we did our own thing and took the Ho-Ho and a boat tour on the waterways around Helsinki.  

 

We visited the church in the rocks, but since @StLouisCruisers Sandi, shared pictures of it, I'll not repeat them.

 

Walking around town, we came across this statue of Johan Ludwig Runeberg on the Espandi.  He was a  Finnish priest, lyric and epic poet who wrote exclusively in Swedish.

 

These next pictures were taken on our boat ride.  Since this was on September 4, 2003, it was chilly on the water.

 

 

 

 

This is the monument to Sibelius, Finland's greatest composer.  He mainly composed symphonies, but his best know work is Finlandia. 

 

This is a bust of Sibelius near the monument.

 

I'm not sure what this was, but thought it was interesting.

 

Sailing that afternoon, we were treated to a full rainbow, one of the best I've ever seen.  It was so wide, it took to two pictures to capture the entire rainbow.

 

 

Lenda

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

These are the pictures from our 2005 and 2016 visits to Helsinki.

 

In 2005, I did not take many pictures.  We docked near downtown, and just walked around.

 

 

 

On our last visit in 2016 on the Prinsendam, we were docked out by the shipyards.  That day we took the shuttle into town, then we walked around.  Before taking a tram from the shopping street to the end of the line and back, we wandered through some of the stores. 

 

The pedestrian shopping street.

 

Inside the tram

 

We passed this brass band on our walk

 

An interesting building 

 

Eventually, we walked back to the shuttle pickup point.  While waiting for the shuttle, I took some pictures of the waterfront area, including their big Ferris wheel.

 

 

 

 

Lenda

[Himself]

5 hours ago, rafinmd said:

Today's maps:

 

 

 

 

Roy

 

 

Thanks Roy

[smitty34877]

12 minutes ago, JazzyV said:

Just a quick check-in. I’m back home. My right leg is numb and feels like Gumby. I almost fell to the ground twice. Thank goodness for the rollator. The steroids will take a few days to work, so once the anesthetic wears off, I’ll be back to the same way for a few days. BFF is here and just made me coffee since it’s hard for me to get around. I appreciate all the good wishes and prayers. 

 

I am glad that BFF is with you and I am hoping you have relief soon. Sending hugs.

[1ANGELCAT]

Good sunny morning. I know it’s early but I just scored Easter brunch reservation for the Circular at the Hotel Hershey. 🎉

The good news is that they are also resuming the regular Sunday brunch starting March 3rd. This will be the first time for regular brunch in 4 years. I’m excited. It’s expensive but the service and atmosphere can’t be beat. The dessert selection is amazing. 
Ad far as 222 day, I was just on this highway, in Pa the road runs north and south. 
Blessings and prayers to all on our lists.

[rafinmd]

One more sunset, this time from my 2016 Crystal Symphony Antarctica cruise from Buenos Aires to Miami.

 

February 22 was a sea day from Salavery to Guayquil:

 

 

Roy

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

45 minutes ago, JazzyV said:

Just a quick check-in. I’m back home. My right leg is numb and feels like Gumby. I almost fell to the ground twice. Thank goodness for the rollator. The steroids will take a few days to work, so once the anesthetic wears off, I’ll be back to the same way for a few days. BFF is here and just made me coffee since it’s hard for me to get around. I appreciate all the good wishes and prayers. 

 

 

Vanessa, thanks for checking in.  I'm glad the procedure is finally done, and that BFF is there taking care of you.  Hoping the steroids give you some relief.

 

44 minutes ago, kochleffel said:

 

Also: The "Miracle on Ice" in 1980, when the U.S. hockey team defeated the U.S.S.R. team in the Winter Olympics at Lake Placid.

 

https://apnews.com/article/today-in-history-3c9b07ea1a2cc199d1e30ddee2805f1a

 

Paul, that is a great day to celebrate.  While we normally don't watch hockey, we did see that game.

 

Lenda

[sailingdutchy]

 

Good morning all from a mild SW Ontario . Thank you to all the contributors to the daily , I do not post every day but when I am at home I enjoy reading what is going on in the cruising community. 

 

Today a few pictures from when we were on the Baltic cruise on the MS Rotterdam (VI) in August of 2011 and yes I see many were on the same kind of tour as we were ! 

 

 

 

 

I always wonder if the sculpture artist includes a bird on the hero’s head in bronze right from the start if another bird wouldl still go on top of that bird ……….?

 

 

Yes those were still the days when we still went on sticker tours , haven’t done that in years.

 

 

Gorgeous church in the rocks !

 

 

 

 

 

 

Older camera did not do any good to this nice monument on a grey day in Helsinki

 

 

Finish composer  Jean Sibelius , his most famous work was "Finlandia  "

 

 

Time to go back on board after a very nice day 

 

 

We loved the old Rotterdam 

 

 

 

Getting ready for the Chocolate surprise 

 

 

 

Have a great day everybody , Take Care ! 

 

Tony 😄