Our Experiences on our Alaska Cruise

[sagiv666]

Last month, my wife and I cruised to Alaska aboard the Radiance of the Seas (which left Vancouver on September 14). I am a microbiologist retired from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

I am sensitive to cleanliness of food, water, and basic living conditions, and I was quite impressed with these on the ship. I ate my meals with no concern as to any health problems.

This was a happy surprise, as years ago the US government was threatening to take away the licenses of many cruise ships to operate in and out of US ports. To combat the problems, they would hire a special Health and Sanitation Officer to watch over the ship (it was a good job, which I may have taken had I not been married ). If the Radiance reflects conditions on other ships of Royal Caribbean's fleet, we should all enjoy our cruises without being concerned for our health (other than seasickness).

When I first started at the Health Department, I learned that a number of passengers cruising to Alaska had eaten meat they were told was from reindeer. The meat was in fact polar bear meat, and because it was undercooked, the passengers caught Trichinosis, a well-known parasitic disease. We also learned that among Eskimos infection by the fish tapeworm Diphyllobothrium latum was quite common as they often ate raw fish. While we did not hesitate to eat on shore, we made sure any meat or fish we ate was well-cooked and what we ordered.