NCL Sky October 9-19, 2024 Quebec City to Baltimore live

[boffoboffo]

Freestyle daily for day 5. Sydney, NS. About two hours until we’re scheduled to dock and it looks like we’re still heading in that direction. The weather is not at all dissimilar to what we had yesterday so I’ve been expecting most of the day yesterday that this port would be cancelled as well. That’d probably lead to riots but so far so good for actually docking. 

[boffoboffo]

Last night it was back to the Crossings for dinner. Got there shortly after they opened so we were seated right away but asked if we’d be willing to share. One of the main reasons we sail NCL is so we don’t have to eat meals at a table with strangers. 

Bruschetta. 

Pork belly with smashed yams. 

And of course a fruit plate. 
 

After dinner we went to the theatre to see Banachek the mentalist. He was pretty good but it was a very slow paced show. That was it for the day. 

[boffoboffo]

Finally got up at 5am and was able to get pictures of most of the ship while it was empty. Most of the outside decks are closed due to high winds. Large photo dump ahead, so dialup warning(haven’t thought to say that in years). 

No fish on the floor so no way to tell where I’m going.

Even customer service was empty this early. 

Roughly half the buffet area. The other half just doubled what is on this half so there’s only 15-20 different food selections for each meal, but they do rotate each day. 

[boffoboffo]

MDR dinner menu for today. Breakfast specials are the same as day 2. 

[boffoboffo]

Currently cruising into Sydney Harbour. 9°C but with the wind it feels like 2°. Supposed to be windy all day with a 35% chance of rain. Not really much different weather than yesterday but Sydney Harbour does come in a decent way off the ocean, so perhaps it’s better protected than Charlottetown was. 

[boffoboffo]

We docked successfully as did the Oceania Nautica which was right behind us. Got the all clear to disembark right at 8am. We were heading to breakfast at that time. A benefit of not having excursions is there’s no rush to get off the ship. 

[boffoboffo]

I know no one has specifically asked for it, but people often seem interested in it so I took a couple pictures of the current officers. 

[boffoboffo]

Got off the ship around 10 and back on near 11. The sun made a brief appearance when we got off but was eventually replaced by some very strong wind gusts and drizzle. As I already knew there isn’t really that much in the port area outside of the terminal, so we just walked the boardwalk and back. 

[boffoboffo]

Make the difficult decision of the buffet for lunch since it was the only place open. Went over to La Cucina for a seat and some pizza. Food was actually somewhat decent. I guess a benefit of having so few items available is perhaps you’re getting quality over quantity. 

There’s some chili with cheese sauce, cottage pie, potato salad and cheddar cheese salad. 

Getting down to our last couple of days of clean clothes so we figured it was time to take advantage of our half price bag of laundry. We’re also on day 5 of the cruise and we haven’t spent a penny of our $100 shareholder credit so we should get to work on that. I tried by ordering a Coke the other day but the waiter just gave it to me for free so that didn’t work. 

Easily fit 5 days worth of clothes in here and that included a hoodie. 

[mking8288]

Thanks for taking us along, Norwegian Getaway is ahead of you at Halifax today, friends onboard said they felt the sea again last night once they sailed from Sydney ... windy & wet, etc. for them yesterday but nice, cooler day now.  Being a Sunday and everything slower, they are meeting w friends for a waterfront lunch.  

 

Read that the cruise met expectations but you are still a little disappointed, still making the best and most out of it.  We had previously booked her on the TA later this month, leaving from NY to go across but plans changed.  They're on the Sky's TA last Fall and knew / seen the pluses & minuses but felt the drydock work did gave help modernize the ship.  

 

Looks like the sea will be less choppy after sailaway but not as bad sailing toward Halifax.  Enjoy.  

[boffoboffo]

This is totally cheating but I’m digging into my 2021 archives when we did a road trip to the three Maritime provinces to include some pictures from the Cabot Trail and Bouladerie Island. Once again these were not taken today but in September 2021. I don’t think any excursions either ship or third party would go to most of these spots. 

[boffoboffo]

1 hour ago, mking8288 said:

Thanks for taking us along, Norwegian Getaway is ahead of you at Halifax today, friends onboard said they felt the sea again last night once they sailed from Sydney ... windy & wet, etc. for them yesterday but nice, cooler day now.  Being a Sunday and everything slower, they are meeting w friends for a waterfront lunch.  

 

Read that the cruise met expectations but you are still a little disappointed, still making the best and most out of it.  We had previously booked her on the TA later this month, leaving from NY to go across but plans changed.  They're on the Sky's TA last Fall and knew / seen the pluses & minuses but felt the drydock work did gave help modernize the ship.  

 

Looks like the sea will be less choppy after sailaway but not as bad sailing toward Halifax.  Enjoy.  

I’ll eventually get around to giving specific thoughts on the ship. It has its quirks, some good and some bad. While it lacks the modern amenities you expect in a cruise ship built today it also doesn’t feel like it’s a 25 year old ship. And the crew has been amazing with no noticeable exception. 

[boffoboffo]

Pulling out of Sydney 2 minutes late. Good thing they cut two hours of port time off this cruise for “fuel efficiency” because we’re going to have to go full tilt to make up that lost time. Plus the last anchor rope didn’t get properly disconnected so a part of that snapped off and was left behind, so that’ll cost them a couple of bucks for replacement rope. 

[boffoboffo]

Passing North Sydney where the ferries to Newfoundland leave from. The Highlanders and Leif Ericsson are currently sitting there. 

A bit of nostalgia since we took a sister ship, the Blue Puttees over to Newfoundland from North Sydney in 2018. That was a 7-8 hour ride but was our first experience on a large ship crossing the ocean. Safe to say that trip played a very large role in in sparking an interest in trying a cruise. 

[PhillyTravelBug]

Gorgeous photos! For being the oldest ship in the fleet, the Sky looks to be holding up well. Loving the report.

[boffoboffo]

Switched things up and went to Palace MDR instead of Crossing. They did not ask about table sharing here. 

Mozzarella and plum tomatoes. 

Baked walleye cod fillet. 

Fig and apple cobbler. 

[GALSews]

16 minutes ago, boffoboffo said:

Baked walleye cod fillet.

Okay, on the Prima there are three names for branzino depending on the restaurant you choose. The names are branzino, loupe de mer and Mediterranean sea bass. But they are all the same fish. Walleye cod makes 0 sense. Cod live in the ocean. Walleye are a freshwater fish. Both like cold water, but walleye cod. Nope. 

 

[graphicguy]

Thanks for the pics.  I’ve been locking around sailing NCL’s smaller ships for a while.  Looks in great shape.

 

Plus, I really like your itinerary!

[boffoboffo]

15 hours ago, GALSews said:

 

I was more than a little confused what a walleye cod fillet was so I just assumed it was like the fish version of a hot dog. A collection of different meats blended together into something that barely resembles or tastes like meat. It was better than that and fish is fish is fish to me, so no complaints. 

[boffoboffo]

Docked in Halifax. About 9°C, overcast with a chance of rain. Seems familiar. Freestyle daily for today. 

[boffoboffo]

After dinner we ended up in the theatre for their Showdown! production show. A singing and dancing show with music from the 50’s and 60’s. Nothing super fancy of course but the performers are all talented and it’s not the worst way to kill 45-60 minutes. Not exactly my type of music but I’ll be waiting a very, very long time for a cruise line to even acknowledge my musical preferences.

 

For all the complaints about the state of the entertainment on NCL ships these days that’s already three shows we’ve seen in the theatre which is the most we’ve ever done. Broadway shows were never anything that influenced our decision to sail NCL so we have no problem with the shift to smaller, less elaborate shows. 

[boffoboffo]

This morning was just a quick breakfast in the buffet. Food was still warm so it wasn’t that much different than eating in the MDR. Crew is insanely fast at picking up empty plates and clearing tables. 

[cruiseny4life]

On 10/12/2024 at 8:48 AM, boffoboffo said:

The daily breakfast features of the day. 

Alright, you've shown me a good use of those breakfast potatoes! While not exactly a scramble, this looks delish! I think I'm going to wander down to the main dining room on my February cruise for breakfast one day. This looks yum! Just have to add a bunch of salt and pepper, but that's no different than any other restaurant. 

 

As an aside, I'm sorry they keep trying to throw you together with others at each meal (except for a couple exceptions you've noted). After the first couple of times, I think my answer would change from "no thanks" to "oh hell no!" I don't cruise to eat with random folx I don't know or care about. I hope the trend of not asking you to dine with others continues! 

[schmoopie17]

2 hours ago, boffoboffo said:

I was more than a little confused what a walleye cod fillet was 

"Walleye cod" makes as much sense as "hamburger pork chop".

 

Of course, one of my (many) pet peeves is "tuna fish". What else would tuna be but a fish?

[boffoboffo]

Rainy day in Halifax. Walking the boardwalk but my only pair of shoes are starting to soak through, so I think it will be another short day off the ship today.