Saga Rose Greenland Voyager August 2007

[RalphRackstraw]

Ralph, I was on one of these paddle steamers during my 1964 European tour with my parents. I had always thought that Vierwaldstattersee was the name of the steamer, but now I find out it is the Swiss name for Lake Luzern? Whenever I see unusual names I always make it a point to memorize it, and "Vierwaldstattersee" has stuck in my mind over the past nearly 5 decades.

 

 

Donald.

German is a very logical language, and one thing they like to do is to string several small nouns together to form a larger name. Lake Lucerne borders the four forested cantons of Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden, and Lucerne, so German-speakers call it the "vier" (four) "wald" (forest) "statter" (cantons) "see" (lake or sea).

Steamer-lovers, feast your eyes on these beauties: http://www.cgn.ch/eng/galerie

[Saga Ruby]

German is a very logical language, and one thing they like to do is to string several small nouns together to form a larger name. Lake Lucerne borders the four forested cantons of Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden, and Lucerne, so German-speakers call it the "vier" (four) "wald" (forest) "statter" (cantons) "see" (lake or sea).

 

The pix of those Swiss steamers are loverly. The photo of the one that is gaily flying her flags makes me smile. I wonder which cruise ship is tied up at the pier close to the steamer? Thanks for the fond memory jog of my tranquil cruise on the Earnslaw sailing the NZ lake.

 

I thought the German language used nouns first that are then tamped into order by a verb at the end?

 

You're reading this thread from the beginning? Stout fellow! How are the eyedrops doing for ya?

 

Conte - you posted yesterday. Is the power on at your house?

 

Ruby

[seabourndt]

it must have been worrying about the hurricane nothing like that in uk. my friend was on QUEEN ELIZABETH last week he kept going on about them selling models of the shipon board. i have been omn almost all cunard's ships and have never seen any!! but they were sold out they did have some others\ at $330 they must have been awesome!! i have one of ROYAL PRINCESS.

dave

[Conte Di Savoia]

I traveled on a lake steamer on my first trip to Europe in 1961. We went from Montreux to Geneva making a series of stops along the way. Unlike Donald, however, I am ashamed to admit that I don't remember the name of the vessel we were on but I do recall the the beautiful docks we tied up to. Each one had colorful flowers along the railings and the quaint towns as the backdrop. I wonder if I can find my pictures.

 

Hurricane Irene is now out of here but it has been a harrowing few days for us. First there was the anxiety associated with the approach of the storm and the the long night and a day of torrential rain and wind hallowing through the swaying trees. We lost electric only for a few hours but there are several towns around us which will be out for several more days. Our community has trees down (it's like losing old friends) and lots of debris to clean up. My other passion besides ships is gardening and our community is set on 99 acres of gardens. As a member of the board my responsibility is the landscaping so I will be busy for some time overseeing the clean-up and then making decisions about what needs to be replaced with new plant material. Loss can also be turned into new opportunity and nature has a way of healing herself over time.

Edited August 29, 2011 by Conte Di Savoia

[Conte Di Savoia]

Here's a picture from the steamer on Lake Geneva back in August of 1961. I'm sorry I don't have a pictured of the boat but this does capture the beauty of the area. I have no idea what town this was but perhaps Ralph might recognize it.

[RalphRackstraw]

Here's a picture from the steamer on Lake Geneva back in August of 1961. I'm sorry I don't have a pictured of the boat but this does capture the beauty of the area. I have no idea what town this was but perhaps Ralph might recognize it.

Ah! A puzzle! :confused: In the first place, the rather steep slope in the background indicates that this is almost certainly on the north shore of Lac Léman. This is supported by the license plates on the cars, which are white with black lettering (Swiss) rather than black with white lettering (French). This is not the landing at Lausanne or Nyon, both of which I know well. This could be Rolle, a north shore village known for its upscale villas, or one of the smaller communities near Montreux, such as Clarens (famous as the setting for the opening chapters of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's romantic epistolary novel, La Nouvelle Héloïse). In any case, it's good to know that Conte was enjoying the region of my boyhood home in 1961, though if it was midsummer I was away in the States on home leave.

[RalphRackstraw]

In keeping with the preference of most discussants for the smaller vessels, I will be spending the holiday weekend cruising out of Bandon, Oregon aboard my private yacht, a Pelican Apex 116: http://www.pelicansport.com/index.php?language=en&category=kayaks&nauticalboat=KOF11P109

Never any competion to secure a deck chair, excellent all-around views, exercise equipment not only available but mandatory. Sleeping space severely limited, catering limited to BYO (mostly granola bars and dried fruit). Propulsion system virtually pollution-free.

I fell in love with sit-on-top kayaks on my first visit to Hawaii in September 2010. Paddling on Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, we were suddenly surrounded by about 20 sea turtles (Honu) swimming along with us --- so beautiful and graceful, and when they chose to be, so fast! :D

[Conte Di Savoia]

Ralph

Do you host a Captain's Welcome Aboard Party? Where's the martini bar?

[Kapricorn]

Today I had a most pleasant first-time visit with Ruby and also enjoyed three hours exploring Silver Shadow. I was very impressed with the ship and the staff, and will put in a good word about the ship to my travel agent.

 

Ruby has a very nice-looking Filipino butler named Gideon, with a Marilyn Monroe beauty mark on his left chin. The cabin attendant, Yolanda, is also very nice. Ruby is extremely pleased with her comfortable suite and is looking forward to her three weeks away in climates much cooler than Dallas'.

 

By coincidence Ruby and I showed up in clothes of similar colour schemes.

 

 

Bon Voyage, Ruby!

 

Donald.

[Conte Di Savoia]

Great picture!!!

I'm not sure that I believe that the outfits weren't planned in advance. I hope both of you had a great bon voyage party, like in the old days but I understand that there were no streamers to be had. Don't want to pollute Vancouver Harbour! I was watching Silver Whisper's departure on the North Vancouver Web site and will be tracking Ruby's voyage on one of the ship tracking sites and trying to grab a view of her (Ruby and/or the ship) while still in Alaska waters, so Ruby, remember to smile, you may be on Candid Camera!

 

Perhaps one day all of us can get together for a cruise together....2013 anyone?

[Host Sharon]

Bon Voyage Ruby. What's not to love with Silverseas !

[seabourndt]

saga ruby you mean? and silver whisper never donme silversea on regent and seabourn but they are so pricey now for singles i am glad i went on them when they werre affordable.

dave

[Kapricorn]

Great picture!!!

I'm not sure that I believe that the outfits weren't planned in advance. I hope both of you had a great bon voyage party, like in the old days but I understand that there were no streamers to be had. Don't want to pollute Vancouver Harbour! I was watching Silver Whisper's departure on the North Vancouver Web site and will be tracking Ruby's voyage on one of the ship tracking sites and trying to grab a view of her (Ruby and/or the ship) while still in Alaska waters, so Ruby, remember to smile, you may be on Candid Camera!

 

Perhaps one day all of us can get together for a cruise together....2013 anyone?

 

Conte, you are much more computer savvy than I am ... I did not know of a North Vancouver Web site with a view of the Canada Place cruise terminal (do give me the URL), nor a ship tracking site in which I can follow Ruby's progress. The one that I know of just says: "out of range." She must still be off the coast of Alaska today, or heading towards the former Soviet Union? I wish that I had given her a few Cyrillic alphabet lessons so that she can impress the locals.

 

Ruby e-mailed me recently saying that her butler, Gideon, has been going beyond his duty in making her as comfortable as possible in her suite. That's wonderful that she is being well looked after. I wish that I had taken a photograph of Gideon to show you how handsome he is. I doubt that Ruby is neither oblivious nor immune to his charms.

 

Thumbs up from me regarding a Saga Ruby thread cruise in 2013, but please nothing too exotic or expensive.

 

Marion and Barry, are you back home yet from your Canadian adventures?

 

Donald.

Edited September 6, 2011 by Kapricorn

[Conte Di Savoia]

Here are a few Web sites which I find useful for tracking ships and occasionally catching a view of them while in port.

 

http://www.kroooz-cams.com/ This site lists ships by cruise lines and links to their web cams, if available. It also has ports listed and the webcams which are available. The Web cam Web sites themselves may have a choice of multiple views so you have to play with it a bit. Sometimes you will see the ship in port but other times there may be a view of a ship in another ship’s Web cam.

 

http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/ This site allows you to find ship positions in a number of different ways. If you click on “Vessels” and then “Search All” you can enter the name of the specific ship you are tracking. Sometimes the vessels are out of range and sometimes there may not be a recent update. It also gives you the ability to have the service track the ships course and speed. The times are in UTC which is Greenwich mean time which is standard time, i.e. it never changes for day light savings time. For you it would be UTC time minus 7 hours, presuming that you have day light savings time in BC.

 

You can also select “Maps” and click on the part of the world you’re interested in. You decide what types of vessels you want to see. There are also pictures of the ships which people have downloaded to the Web site.

 

http://www.cruisecal.com/portal/ This site lists where ships are each day. You can sort it by ship, by port etc. Looking at today’s locations is free but if you want to know where a ship will be beyond that you have to pay. You can also access ship and port Web cams from this listing. It used to be entirely free but no more. I just use it for the daily information.

 

http://members.chello.nl/~a.horlings/wei-cru.html This site has ship Web cams and current views all on one page. There is also a map which, if you click on it, allows you search for cruise ships and shows the position. It’s not quite as detailed as the second site above, but sometimes if that site doesn’t show the current position of the ship, this one might.

 

http://www.northvancouver.com/webcams/cruisecam/ This is the North Vancouver view of Canada Place.

 

 

Well, Donald, this should keep you busy for awhile. It’s fun to use these for armchair cruising.

[Kapricorn]

Conte, many thanks for the links to these web cam and ship tracking sites! I have bookmarked these sites. These sure will be very handy.

 

I got word from Ruby today: ... this cruise line is what i've been looking for all these years. Colour me happy. Royal Viking has become Silversea. Ahhh.

 

That's great! Despite the haircut in the ship's salon, her cruise is off to an excellent start. :)

 

Donald.

[Kapricorn]

Ruby wants all to know that she doesn't remember her password to Cruise Critic, so she hasn't been able to post here. Conte, she said to tell you:

 

... that I ain't smiling for the camera: I'm trying to stay warm!

 

She is continuing to enjoy the cruise. Tomorrow (Friday) she'll be at a remote island's culinary school at Homer. Then Kodiak on Saturday, Dutch Harbor on Monday.

 

On Sunday I will be aboard Century for my cruise to Alaska. It is continuing to be sunny and warm here in Vancouver, and I still walk along the seawall in my shorts and sandals. :)

 

Donald.

[Conte Di Savoia]

Sounds like Ruby has gone from the fire into the ice chest. I've been following her trip on various Web cams and it seems that it has been cloudy and rainy for most of the trip. These northern cruises are often tricky especially at this time of the year. It's a good thing that Silver Shadow has very pleasant interiors and activities. I wonder if Ruby is participating in the afternoon trivia. SilverSea passengers take these contests quite seriously and seem to comment on any CD who does not handle them well.

 

Donald, Bon Voyage and have a great time on Celebrity Century! Have a martini (or two) for us.

[Host Sharon]

Ruby sounds like she's have a great time - and well away from the forest fires!

 

Well, I've nothing booked for 2013 yet - but again - nothing too expensive or exotic - goodness what the economy will be like by then ! Think I will be lucky to still have a job!

[Kapricorn]

Well, I've nothing booked for 2013 yet - but again - nothing too expensive or exotic - goodness what the economy will be like by then !

 

Same here, I am watching my retirement investment funds fluctuate wildly day by day. Usually I have several cruises booked by now, but no ...

 

Conte, Ruby said no trivia yet. But she said that she'd rather read her Kindle.

 

Ruby is continuing to have a grand time. Today she was at Tutka Bay Lodge: we lucked out with a flawless weather day of bright sun & blue skies, a small shuttle to the island, a pod of whales playing in front of us on the way back to the ship - a day so flawless it should be in the cruise brochure.

 

Ruby accepted an invitation to dine at the Hotel Director's table for formal dinner tonight, which she said should be fun.

 

Donald.

Edited September 10, 2011 by Kapricorn

[Kapricorn]

I forgot to mention that when Ruby stayed overnight at the L'Hermitage Hotel in Vancouver, the fire alarm went off at 5:30am, rousing all the guests who milled in confusion in the corridors. It was a false alarm. The hotel apologized by deducting $100 from Ruby's account, and probably the same for every other guest. She was delighted at already saving money at the start of her vacation!

 

Donald.

[MMDown Under]

Just a quick hello from Trinity, NF. We Have been blessed with good weather here and are loving our fortnight in NF.

 

Missed the cute puffins, but plan to see an iceberg near Twillingate. No moose yet!

 

Our ferry cruise from Montreal to Magdalen Islands exceeded expectations, with the unique itinerary and entertainment being highlights.

 

Have been thinking of Ruby on her cruise and Donald on Century and hoping you are both having a wonderful time.

[RalphRackstraw]

Good gracious! I'm learning things about my Mom I never knew before!

 

From the Oceangoing Memoirs of Lady Frances Rackstraw, b. 1922

 

"My memories of sailing the Atlantic deal more with people we met, than the ships themselves. Aboard the Independence in 1963, I, travelling with four sons and my husband, was alone on deck one day enjoying the solitude, sun, and breezes. Along came a man who flirted with me, telling me I reminded him of Ingrid Bergman. Unlikely; I thought of myself as more a Shirley Temple type, with blond curls and dimples. I even tap-danced as a child. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I laughed; he apparently assumed I was laughing with pleasure, rather than at him, and he kept flirting with me, to no avail, for the entire crossing. He told me he was the singer on the ship and invited me to his cabin to make beautiful music together. That line evoked no response --- so he did handstands on deck to demonstrate his prowess! Bless his heart, he kept trying. At a concert on one of the final days of the crossing he sang with the ship's orchestra and looked my way through the entire song, to my embarrassment. Had he been Sinatra, Carreras or Aznavour, he might have become a special memory!"

[Host Sharon]

Uhmm Ralph - I spent one cruise desperately trying to avoid amorous advances from someone. He just would not take the hint, however clear I tried to make it! Blow me, he was then on another of my cruises about 3 years later! He took great pleasure in flaunting his new girlfriend/wife? at me. I was just soooooo pleased he'd found a soulmate !!! Now if he'd been remotely handsome/interesting.................

Edited September 11, 2011 by Host Sharon

[Conte Di Savoia]

Ralph

Great story and apparently new to you after all these years.

Ships have always been the backdrop for romantic adventures. Inhibitions as well as lines were/are cast off at the moment that a ship sets sail. Social interactions which might casually take place on land over weeks, months or even years have to be compressed into hours or days. This particular musician's sense of urgency was very much misplaced but of course, that makes the story that much more humorous.

 

I remember on our first trip to Rome 50 years ago that my mother was ogled by some of the locals as we toured around the city. I became very protective and placed my 14 year old body between their eyes and her.

[Kapricorn]

Marion & Barry - I'm so pleased to hear that you are enjoying your travel across Canada, especially the weather having co-operated for the most part. Thanks for the Bon Voyage.

 

Ralph - That is a really interesting account of your mother's attempted seduction by the staff member. From what Sharon added and also what Ruby told me, it does not seem to be isolated incidents.

 

Conte - Century is scheduled to chug away from Canada Place at 4:30pm. It is a very beautiful, sunny day. At 10am I have already finished packing and will leave in about half an hour, ready for lunch and my first on board beer.

 

Talk to you all when I am back. :)

 

Donald.