Today the Volendam was docked starboard side right before sunrise. The weather looked promising, so we may see some sun today. Fast forward…..it was a marvelous day. Breakfast was served at 6:30am for us, but we went at the regular time. No rush to get off, we had excellent service since there were just a few customers.
We left the ship after 8:30am, making sure Mariner Rep Jennifer saw us, and knew we went off without the group again. We understand that there were only 10 folks sailing onward like us.
Today we made it all the way around the harbor to Stanley Park, past the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, and gated-off Deadman's Island. We located the Totem Park and turned left to see them. Every one is expertly-carved by native artists and each one tells a story. There is a nice souvenir shop there as well as restrooms. There were a few tour groups listening to the guide's story of the totems, while we just read the plaques in front of each one. Then we followed the water's edge to the Girl in the Wetsuit figure on a rock in the water. Sure reminded us of Copenhagen's Little Mermaid. Continuing around the bend, we began to recognize the road we usually cross to access the harbor and a view of the Lions Head Bridge.
It took an hour of walking from here to get back to Canada Place, and then on to the Steamworks Brewery for lunch. We ordered two Lions Gate beers and a mile-high pile of cheese nachos with bacon and guacamole. One of the toppings was sliced green olives, which one of us loves. We stayed until 1pm after sharing another freshly-baked apple galette. So good. Then we headed back to the terminal.
Any given day can bring surprises, and today was no exception. With the intransit cards in hand, we were directed to follow the "crew" lane, which led to the xray area. An official had checked our room keys and said to proceed. Passing quickly through the xray, we were shown the crew lane and the way out. Something felt missing, like the immigrations/customs check. Oh well, we were just following directions we were given.
Back onboard, we spent a few hours relaxing and working on photos. Glenn was repeatedly announcing for the new guests to log into their muster stations. We did not need to do that, since it is only required every 30 days.
We had an invite left on our bed for another Mariner gathering in the Crow's Nest at 3pm. We went up around 3:20pm for a quick sip of the bubbly. That's when Jennifer came and asked if we had gone through the customs check. We explained what happened, and she said we needed to get our passports and go off and have them cleared. She came with us while we took them out of our safe, and then went off to clear up the mix-up. And guess what? The person that met us at the gangway was Sarah Coles, the former luggage service manager who we know well from many grand voyages. She remembered us too. We let her know how much she was missed on this year's world cruise. After the Covid shut-down, Sarah left HAL and went to work for shoreside services. She seemed very happy to be here, so things work out for a reason. Anyway, the whole process took only 10 minutes and Jennifer led us back to the Crow's Nest for more sparkling wine. We found out later, that our names had been announced shipwide on the outside decks. Oh boy…….
Sail away was around 4pm, and we tried to get an elevator to go to deck nine. Nothing was working right. Some elevators were stuck on other decks, and others passed us up. Strange….they had been fine until today. Once up on deck nine, we found all the railings full of guests. The Seaview Pool was not as crowded as last week, but we still made our way down the back stairs to deck six. We had most of the whole deck to take as many pictures as we wanted. Since the sun had come out, the photos should be a lot nicer with color. The Captain picked up speed and when it began to cool down, we retreated to our room until dinnertime.
Dinner was in the dining room with one very hot French onion soup, one breaded cod slider appetizer, and salads. Mains were the chicken with stuffing, however, one of us got one that had as many bones as meat. Tasty, but you had to be careful cutting the chicken. Since we indulged at lunchtime with a dessert, we passed on them tonight. Another maitre'd appeared and introduced himself. His name is Johny and he has come from the Lido. Pande will be leaving soon, and someone will have to replace him.
For entertainment, there was a movie called Origin Story in the World Stage all about the last 150 years of Holland America. There was also a movie in the Wajang called The Flash. Even at 9pm, all of the lounges, shops, and casino were filled with people.
Bill & Mary Ann
