'Twas the Cruise Over Easter - 9 Day Southern Caribbean - March 29 - April 7, 2024

[Blackduck59]

9 minutes ago, POA1 said:

Swedish Pancakes by madame continued our International Breakfast theme this morning. I had traditional Eggs Benedict which has Canadian Bacon (not from Canada) and an English Muffin (not from England.)

Thank you for pointing out that "Canadian Bacon" isn't, and earlier you called it by the proper name of "Back Bacon". I'm not sure what to say about your suggestion of a "Canadian Breakfast". I can't think of anything off the top of my head that says Canadian breakfast. I guess it would have to include Maple syrup, and back bacon. At least with a "full English" breakfast there is a set list of inclusions, and when when someone wants "Substitute" or take the meat and eggs out of the list (as others have suggested) it's not a "full English" breakfast anymore. 

[POA1]

It is a perfect day for HMC. If you are 4*, 5*, have Club Orange or are in a Neptune Suite or the PS, you don't have to report for tender tickets.

 

They didn't start open tendering until around 10:50 AM. Because we are both 4* and in Club Orange, they catapult us over to the island. If we were in a Neptune, we could have used the chopper.*

 

* That last paragraph is made up info.

 

 

[POA1]

We tried the gelato at last. We didn't make it on the Nieuw Statendam in December. Obviously, seven days is far too short, and you need at least 8 for gelato.

 

Michelle had the Espresso Chocolate Chip and Pistachio. I had the Stracciatella and the Amerena Cherry. We ordered the small size, in a cup. It's very good gelato, and quite a deal at $2.95. There is ice cream for no charge if you don't want to pay extra.

 

 

Edited April 6 by POA1

[Haljo1935]

40 minutes ago, POA1 said:

It is a perfect day for HMC.

The Bubble of Awesome continues to serve you well.

[POA1]

2 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

The Bubble of Awesome continues to serve you well.

It is a lovely day. It's 79°F / 26°C, low humidity, and a few whispy clouds.

 

We're back on ship, up in the cabanas, killing time by doing nothing - until we order lunch in a bit.

[POA1]

Cabanas from Deck 12, Observation Deck.

 

Retreat Cabana entrance near cabana #1.

 

Towels

 

Coffee, tea, infused waters and, in the morning, juice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shower

 

 

Restrooms

 

 

Edited April 6 by POA1

[Haljo1935]

3 minutes ago, POA1 said:

Cabanas from Deck 12, Observation Deck.

 

Retreat Cabana entrance near cabana #1.

 

Towels

 

Coffee, tea, infused waters and, in the morning, juice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shower

 

 

Restrooms

 

 

Life IS good!!

[POA1]

Dinner menu for the final night of our cruise -

 

 

 

 

co_mdr_dinner_day_14.pdf

[Fortunate 2 travel]

Really enjoying your trip from SWFL.  We are booked on the Rotterdam for a holiday cruise.  Got our cabana booked.  First time back on HAL since early ‘90s when we sailed on the Noordam.  Your wonderful and colorful information worked to get us very excited.  Enjoy your last evening.

[Huskerchick]

Poohby Joe enjoying his fairwell to vacation champagne. He's a bear and little so I only ever let him have one glass 😏

Edited April 6 by Huskerchick

[POA1]

We just finished our Dive-In lunch in the Retreat area. We paired the burgers and fries with sparkling wine... just because.

 

We'll be heading down to the room to pack in a few minutes.

 

I have a bunch of interior photos of the Rotterdam's public areas to post later. We also took quite a few room photos to share with you - and HALfacts. We're in one of the pointy Cat V verandahs. We really like the layout and location. We're on Deck 7, the Poohbert Deck - opposite the Pinnacle Suite. It's a great location for cabana access, and getting home after a long night of work in the clubs.

[chill6x6]

I'm used to NCL and Royal's menus....Haven Restaurant/Coastal Kitchen/most speciality restaurants on both....I have to say Holland America's menu's sound GREAT! LOTS of great choices each night!

[Petunia1950]

9 minutes ago, Huskerchick said:

Poohby Joe enjoying his fairwell to vacation champagne. He's a bear and little so I only ever let him have one glass 😏

Poohby Joe's tag is showing again ... ☺️

[Vict0riann]

I was looking on my Navigator, and I noticed that dinner tonight on the NS is the same menu as yours.  

[POA1]

5 minutes ago, Vict0riann said:

I was looking on my Navigator, and I noticed that dinner tonight on the NS is the same menu as yours.  

Yep. Unless there's a malfunction, you see the real time menus for the ship on which you are booked. We watched the previous two 9 days sailings to plan our specialty dining. They flipped our last formal night around, but thanks to your escargot suggestion, our vacation was saved! 😁

 

 

[Vict0riann]

I’m hoping things are a bit different on the TA. 
 

I did like your caviar happy hour.  Might try that!

[pirate cruiser]

Sir,

As you are the CEO of the Institute of Cheer I am putting a motion on the floor for the board to consider-I am not completely up on Robert's rules of order but since my name is Robert here goes-from this day forward any and all posts that refer to packing and getting ready to come home be disallowed-violators shall be punished with long debarkation lines, cramped shuttle buses and crowded return flights-respectfully submitted for consideration, thank you.

[POA1]

Starting some of the the public area photos. The Grand Dutch Café. (Best fries on the ship, winning the @Huskerchick

Gold Medal for super-hot, salty excellence.

 

Also recommended for Espresso Martinis and coffee in general.

 

 

There is a tiny village trapped in the table here. No one was home when I visited.

 

[whogo]

5 hours ago, POA1 said:

Shower

 

Ah, the joys of the trial and error system to figure out a unique shower control system. This one is scary. Is that a boiler attached to the shower head?

[Haljo1935]

3 hours ago, Petunia1950 said:

Poohby Joe's tag is showing again ... ☺️

Tag Patrol!! Poohby Joe cannot get past you 😉

[POA1]

52 minutes ago, whogo said:

Ah, the joys of the trial and error system to figure out a unique shower control system. This one is scary. Is that a boiler attached to the shower head?

No, I think it's a pressure system to keep the flow regulated. Either that, or it's a muffler to keep the shower "street legal."

[NotLikeBelleRosen,IHope]

Thank you both for giving a glimpse into the Bubble of Awesomeness. I found your posts to be informative and your writing style is hilarious. I especially appreciate your wine choices and look forward to giving a few of them a try. My only disappointment is that, as a lowly 3-star, I can't use the catapult. Maybe that's not a bad thing; I'm leaving on a trans-Atlantic tomorrow.

[Copper10-8]

5 hours ago, POA1 said:

We just finished our Dive-In lunch in the Retreat area. We paired the burgers and fries with sparkling wine... just because.

 

We'll be heading down to the room to pack in a few minutes.

 

I have a bunch of interior photos of the Rotterdam's public areas to post later. We also took quite a few room photos to share with you - and HALfacts. We're in one of the pointy Cat V verandahs. We really like the layout and location. We're on Deck 7, the Poohbert Deck - opposite the Pinnacle Suite. It's a great location for cabana access, and getting home after a long night of work in the clubs.

 

Save travels home, Brian and Michelle and many thanks / dankjewel for the as always outstanding travel blog! I know you have a very loooooong way to get home from Port Everglades! 😉 Drive careful and have three safe flights!  

[1ANGELCAT]

I can’t believe it’s already over. I hope Poohby Joe had a great time, but he needs to get a photo taken with the Captain . 
Looking forward to more adventures.

[POA1]

Really sorry about Poohby's tag. After months of therapy, he's finally comfortable with it. He knows the the tag signifies his status as an officially licensed Disney character.