Report #91 Saturday March 30, 2024 Male' Maldives Anchored Using Our Tenders 7am-Overnight Scattered Clouds And Very Hot 92 Degrees 74% Humidity 12mph Wind---Casual Dress

 

The Zuiderdam sailed into the lagoon of the main island, Male, early just after sunrise.    There must have been some small boats in our way because the Captain blew the horn more than once as he approached the anchorage spot.  Or perhaps the pilots tooted the horn.  The capital of the Maldives is Male with 1/3 of the population living there.  The total population is 393,000 people that speak Dhivehi, a close relation to Sri Lankan language.   Three factors associated with the Maldives is unrivalled luxury, gorgeous white sand beaches, and an overwhelming underwater world.  It is advertised as a guaranteed choice for a vacation of a lifetime.  

 

There are 1200 islands here, many of which are natural atolls.  Private luxury resorts are situated on these outlying islands, some are only reachable by a floatplane.  Over one million visitors come here in a year to enjoy this Indian Ocean paradise. 

 

The big draw at these resorts are the diving and snorkeling opportunities.  There are dazzling corals, tropical fish, manta rays, turtles, not to mention hammerhead sharks.  The world's largest fish is here….the whale shark.  Despite their  massive size, they dine on plankton.   

 

Male is the best place to get to mix with the locals, although this is not the best weekend to be here.  For most of us, it is Easter weekend, but locally, it is Ramadan, a time of Muslim fasting.  It will last until April 9^th.  Many shops and cafes will be closed until sunset.  And forget about drinking beer or any other alcoholic drink, as it is not served here in town.   You would have to go to the airport or to a resort to enjoy alcoholic drinks. 

 

The anchors were dropped giving the port side the view of part of the city, a connecting bridge, and the ever-so-busy international airport.  For such a remote part of the world, we never saw so many airplanes landing.  There were commercial jets, twin Otter seaplanes and helicopters. 

 

The ship was cleared by the local authorities by 8:15am.  Due to tendering, most everyone had to get tickets.  Shortly before the thundering herd went off, Kimberly announced that there were steep cement stairs to access the landing so those with mobility problems had to be able to do these stairs.  Furthermore, she said that no one should be seen in public sipping our water bottles , since it was considered impolite due to the fact that all of the locals were still fasting during Ramadan.  

 

We would never go off without water for safety reasons, but we would be discreet drinking it.  Being in a Muslim country, we knew to dress conservatively.  Not everyone from the ship got that message. 

 

We joined the tenderboat about the same time "open" tenders were announced.  Many folks had booked tours, but just as many had not.  Here is what was offered for the two day stay here.  The least expensive was the snorkel excursion for 2 ¼ hours for $100.  Two tours that were $160 were Bandoss Island Resort for 4 hours or a 2 hour ride in a submarine.  A dinner and beach party for 4 hours went for $240, while a trip to a remote resort for 7 hours was $281.  An over night stay at the Maldives Full Moon Resort was $630.

 

The ride to the ferry landing took about 15 minutes.  Turning right, we walked past the fishing boats crowded next to each other to unload their catch of the day.  The first market we entered was the produce section.  Most everything sold here must be imported from elsewhere.  For instance, the oranges came from Egypt,  the fresh berries were from Turkey, the wheat flour was from India, and Sri Lanka provided the tea and coffee. 

 

We have to mention here that what we saw in town was far from the idealistic paradise described in the tour books.  This waterfront area was littered with trash discarded in piles on broken sidewalks and uneven cobblestoned streets.   Tons of motor scooters filled every inch of the street and side alleys.  To say that it was crowded is an understatement.  On the other hand, the busy fruit and veggie markets were bustling with locals shopping for the weekend.  Their fish market had the biggest and plumpest snapper we have ever seen.  There were barracudas, wahoo, swordfish and tuna and more.  In fact, they catch up to 100,000 pounds of tuna annually.  It was all fresh, and there was little smell.  Sometimes these types of markets will knock you over with the smell, but not today. 

 

A string of butchers were skillfully chopping and fileting some of the largest tunas we have seen.  They seemed to enjoy having their pictures taken.  Sometimes they don't.   Continuing on up this street, we passed a few hardware stores, but it became difficult dodging the many parked scooters blocking the sidewalk.  Taxis and trucks were also weaving their way through the traffic.  Time to turn back, we went down a narrow side alley to the back street.  There were fewer cars here, and also a few cafes.  But they were all closed until later.  Truthfully, there was not one place that we would even consider going to. 

 

Some of the local favorite foods are called "short eats".  One is called karaubu, a small deep-fried dough ball with tuna, mashed potatoes, peppers and lime.   Other finger foods are fish pieces coated with chili, and another is a fried dough ball with fish and spices. They like spicy fishcakes rolled in batter and fried.  Doing some online research, we did locate several pizza places and international cuisine too.   Useless info now that most everything is closed.  And there was no way we would desire to come back after dark.  The crew will come over in groups for sure tonight.  And they will be happy to find there is a KFC in town.

 

The ferry landing was already full of folks ready to go back either from short tours or just exploring like us.  Good thing that the HAL tent had some hidden containers of ice water to serve because most of them were "melting" from the high heat and humidity.   We decided to walk into the center of the island to see some of the sights.  Across the busy road was a square with tall shade trees and a place to sit for a while.  We could see the minaret of the Grand Friday Mosque and went in that direction to see it.  It has an impressive golden dome and is made with white marble.  A symbol of the city, it is the largest mosque in the country.  It happened to be a non-praying time, but the surrounding patio was chained off for people to get closer.  Some tourists were clueless as they went up on the marble stairs to pose for photos.   Located in this square was the Victory Monument, a tribute to a war fought with the Tamils not too long ago.  There was a nice garden beyond the mosque, but it closed just as we got there at 11:30am.   We found a small park with benches under some huge old trees and sat for a spell.   Locals were out and about shopping.  There was more to see, but we found it way to hot to explore further.  We have another day here tomorrow, so we shall save the other side of this city for then. 

 

The tender ride was easy, and we were back to the coolness of our room by 12:30pm.  We found that our every two- week delivery of Coke Zeros were on our coffee table.  Just in time as we were running  low.   Working online and doing research took the rest of the afternoon.  Lunch was room service salads and sandwiches. 

 

We did have a good exposure on our veranda with no direct sun and somewhat of a breeze.  And we had a great view of the lagoon and the boat traffic as well as the airplane activity.  Before we knew it, the time had come for dinner.  We enjoyed appetizers of a Thai salad and one arancini with marinara sauce.  Salads for both, then one honey mustard chicken and one Club Orange short rib dinner.   Both were excellent.  Dessert was a sliced banana with a little chocolate sauce of course.   One coffee and we were ready to go. 

 

There was no live show tonight, but a movie, Oppenheimer.  We do need to watch it, but we think it is also on the TV movie grid.  Tonight we would fall asleep in the middle of it.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

335 Pictures

Report #90 Good Friday March 29, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Male', Maldives Sunny And Warm 79% Humidity 8mph Wind 86 Degrees Sea State: Flat---Casual Dress

We woke up to fairly clear skies and smooth seas, a low swell,  and gentle breezes.  After yesterday's exciting thunder and lightning storm, it was a surprise that system had not followed us. 

 

This morning at breakfast, they served hot cross buns with bleached raisins.  A clear indication that Easter is approaching soon.  In fact today is Good Friday and as always, Mass was celebrated at 8am.    Also at 7pm, there was an interdenominational service in the Hudson Room.  

 

While Kimberly was delivering her talk on the Maldives, we took our walk on the promenade deck.  There were only a handful of people out there because it was too darned hot.  We are rapidly approaching the Equator once again and we are feeling the effects of the heat and humidity.  We expect the stop in the Maldives will be a warm and sticky one.  The only sea life we have seen are flying fish, and very few of them.  Still hoping for dolphins sightings, but so far….nothing.

 

The day was spent working on photos and reports from yesterday, and doing some research on Male, Maldives.   This stop has been on our itinerary a few times in the past, but we have never made it there.  Perhaps the tides were wrong, or we got bumped by another ship, it was cancelled each time.  So during Captain Friso's noon talk, he shared some basic info about tomorrow's stop.  Since this is the first time for him to visit this island country, he is unsure as to the immigration process with the locals.  He is expecting things to be slow.  He sort of relayed that he is nervous of navigating the many islands of this archipelago, but reassured us all that there will be a pilot onboard.  The ship will be at anchor, and tender boats will be used to go ashore.  It has been some time since we needed these.  By the way, we will have a two day stay there.

 

Today while at the Seaview Pool, we asked the bartender, Gerald, if he went into Colombo yesterday.  Previously, he had asked us about the conditions there and we were perfectly frank with him.  We told him of our experiences there, and he decided it was best not to go anywhere.  So what he and other friends of his did was make a collection of money that they gave to other buddies who went to the KFC not far from the port gate.  He said it was the best $5 he spent and enjoyed the chicken immensely.  Then he added that his friends told him the same type of stories about the tuk-tuk guys and taxi drivers and figured he made the right choice.

 

We did watch the Maldive talk and got more information about where we are going.  We have been told that nothing is there and there is no place to walk.  However, looking at the photos of Male, the capital, it is a small city, but there are things to see and do there. 

 

This evening before dinner, we were invited to a President's Club Samosa Cocktail Party in the Gallery Bar hosted by the Captain  and Henk M, and other officers and staff.  There happened to be another pop-up dinner in the Pinnacle Grill at the same time, an Indian-Themed Dinner, so there were fewer of our group present.  The officers circulate among the guests so everyone has a chance to meet Friso, since he recently boarded after Captain Frank departed.  We had been chatting with the Assistant Accountant, who is in charge or ordering supplies and food for the ship.  He is the money man next to the purser, or whatever they call them these days.  It could be Finance Manager.   He was very interesting explaining what goes on behind the scenes.  Then Captain Friso came along and the conversation continued.  He filled us in with the whereabouts of many Captains we have known over the years.  Friso had been staff captain under several of the best and keeps in touch with most of them.    Then it was his turn to move along and we had Mila, Henk's assistant.    By the time the hour was up, we barely had time to finish our drinks.  The waiters served some nice, but elaborate appetizers, but we still had to go to dinner, so we passed on the treats.  Last but not least, Henk came along and we had a fun time with him as always.  We congratulated him on his recent memos he sent out regarding the new shore excursion process as well as the rescinding of the peanut shell mess on the carpets.  It is not often he has to pull rank like that, but we commend him for his efforts in keeping the peace. 

 

Time for dinner, we ordered salads and the shrimp cocktails.  Always good.  The only really appealing item on the menu was the jerked pork tenderloin which really would have been better with some applesauce.  It was more spicy than we are used to, but still tasty.    Dessert?   In a word….pineapple of course.  And coffee.

 

Entertainment was a repeat performance by Sharene, the female harmonica soloist.  Her songs were those you love played in ways we will not believe.  

 

Ready, set….Male – here we come.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

No Pictures

Report #89 Thursday March 28, 2024 Colombo, Sri Lanka 8am-11pm Docked Port Side To Pier Hot And Humid-84% Humidity Sunny With Afternoon Thunder Storms---Casual Dress

 

The Zuiderdam arrived to the port of Colombo, Sri Lanka around 7am, but was docked by 8am.  Nothing looked familiar to us since we were in a different area of this very expansive port.  It has been a few years since we have visited here, so perhaps the other dock cannot accommodate a ship of this size.   The good news is that there were shuttles provided to take us on a 20 minute ride to the port gate.  But which gate, we did not know. 

 

The country of Sri Lanka has a population of 22.2 million people that speak Sinhala and Tamil, as well as some English.  The capital is right here in Colombo with 750,000 living in the city.  One quote says it all:  "There are endless beaches, timeless ruins, welcoming people (not quite all of them),  oodles of elephants, rolling surf, cheap prices, fun trains (not always), famous tea, and flavorful food."   This best describes this teardrop-shaped island off of the coast of India.  Once known as Ceylon, it is one of the most desired destinations for many vacationing  Europeans.  And cruise ships too.

 

With all of the good stuff said, there have been years of war, tsunamis, train accidents, and interior unrest.  Despite that, the people are resilient.  Many UNESCO World Heritage Sites are here such as the world's oldest living tree at Anuradhapura or witnessing hundreds of Asian elephants bathing in a river in Minneriya.  And it was our pleasure to have stayed in Yala National Park out of Hambantota several years ago.  We had a 6 day stay there to witness the world's highest concentration of leopards – an unforgettable experience.  The only downside at the time was an untimely deadly heatwave that struck the country.  That made "roughing it" take on a whole new meaning while staying in not quite so much semi-luxurious tents with ceiling fans….no air-conditioning.  This safari camp did not have a swimming pool, but did have a nearby pond where one could take a quick dip.  However, there were wild buffalo there as well as crocodiles.  Sometimes.  No thanks, we will stick to a cool shower in the bathroom of our tent.   What an adventure we had while sitting on our raised veranda watching for the procession of the Sri Lankan waiters coming down the hillside with our meals.  Dinnertime was the best…magical, as they came down in the dark with flashlights.  The highlight of this safari were the sightings of leopards every day we were there.  On the drive back to Colombo, we spent a night in Galle Fort another UNESCO site.  Perhaps some day, we will do it again if the ship stops on the east coast of the island.

 

There was an overland tour from here to India.  It was 4 days and 3 nights with visits to the Taj Mahal and Pink City of Jaipur.  At least that was the original plan, so this may have been amended when the world cruise itinerary changed.  After the tour, they will fly to the Maldives and re-join the ship.  The price was $4000 per person.   The other fun excursion was a long 3 hour bus trip one way to see Pinnawela elephants.   That was 9 hours for $160 with lunch.  A long drive to Galle with lunch was 10 ½ hours for $160.    Shorter tours were Holy Colombo and Panoramic Colombo 4 ¼ hours for $55, and 2 hours for $50.  We have done all of these over the years, so no buses for us today.

 

There was a big show of Sri Lankan dancers and drummers on the pier when we arrived.  They danced their hearts out for over an hour as the guests joined their buses.  Not sure of the temperature today, but we guarantee it was hot even more steamy.  However, that would change later in the early evening.  We went off the ship after obtaining a nice map that was available in the Explorer's Lounge.  The information ladies said the port gate was # 8, and insisted it was the only gate.  That would work for us because we know our way to town from there.  The ride was 20 minutes, and the buses were leaving on the ½ hour. 

 

From the port gate, we were inundated with the most persistent tuk-tuk drivers and taxi guys.  They were all offering incredibly cheap tours, and we knew not to fall for it.  As usual, we were out for a walk with no desire to get into a car let alone one of the really unsafe tuk-tuks.  We hate to admit it, but some of these guys lie about who they are and what they will provide as far as tours go.  And have you ever heard of "touts"?  They are well-dressed men, usually carrying a nice leather briefcase, and offering to get you a taxi to some kind of special event happening.  It could be an elephant parade or like today, a Ramadan faire.  Some of our buddies have fallen for that and had a ride to anywhere but an event.  Usually a very expensive jewelry store. 

 

We were followed by several guys who did not know the meaning of "no thanks", even saying it politely.  This just goes with the territory, and we are well aware of the practice.  But today we heard a new approach.  One fellow behind us said he recognized us from the pool on the ship, saying he worked there as a bartender or a deck hand.  Yeah….sure.  He said he was on his way to see his family in town.  Again, yeah, sure.   We waited for him to suggest selling us something, but when we got to the crosswalk, we turned around and he was headed back to the gate. 

 

We made our way through the Fort area, passing the old Cargill Building, the Clock Tower, and finally, The Kingsbury Hotel.   Great, we could duck into this lovely hotel to cool off and ditch the remaining tuk-tuk drivers who were stopping and offering us tours.  We laughed and said we need to have T-shirts printed with "NO THANKS" on the front and back.   Once inside the lobby, we had to pass through an xray portal.   This was new to us.  We have always had to do this precaution in Mumbai at the famous Taj Hotel, but never here.  Funny thing – it did beep when we passed through, but nothing was said and we were greeted nicely.  We checked out their dining options, but we were too early for the buffet or the outdoor pool dining.  

 

Continuing on, we located Marine Drive, and followed the seaside walkway passing the Colonial Government Building, the Beira Lake, and the Galle Face Green with many towering luxury hotels facing the Indian Ocean here.  Besides crows and pigeons, we spot a few pelicans and white egrets.  Thank goodness for the breeze coming off of the water with the pounding waves about hitting the seawall.  It is one long walk, but it is far away from the road, and no one bothers you for rides here.  The strip of the Galle Face Green used to serve as a race track in the old days.  Now we could see some stands of hawkers selling beach toys for little kids.  There are a few food stands that are mostly opened on weekends.  

 

Located at the far end of the Green is the Galle Face Hotel, a Sri Lanka icon and where we always go for lunch.   We heard rumors that after Covid, the high- end hotels limited access to their properties to registered guests only.  It would be very disappointing if that were still true.  However, upon arriving to the front entrance, the doors were opened and we welcomed inside.  Of course, there was another xray check upon entering.  And again, the buzzer went off but no one double-checked either of us. 

 

We went right to the outside patio, and took seats under a working fan on the side veranda.  Usually there are small squirrels that will search for crumbs on this patio, but it appears that they have been eliminated.  Ordering Lion draft beers, we followed up with a burger with fries and one plate of Bolognese spaghetti.  The nice aspect of dining here, besides the colonial atmosphere all around us, is the fact they never rush you.  The Lion beer never tasted so good, and their cuisine was excellent.  Some of the common foods here include a type of sambol, a condiment with spicy chili powder.  Hoppers are bowl-shaped pancakes made with rice flour.  If a fried egg is added, then it is called an egg hopper, which they top off with sambol.  A national dish with spicy fish or meat is called rice and curry.  Pani pol is a small pancake with sugary cardamom and cinnamon.  Tea, of course, is popular with everyone, and they like it with lots of sugar and hot milk.   The menu at this hotel did have some of these typical meals. 

 

Close by this veranda was a full buffet which began at noontime.  We knew that one of the travel groups was on its way here at the end of their 4 hour tour.  We have done it dining in both the inside convention hall as well as outdoors on this patio.  As long as the breeze continued, being outside was the best option.

 

We had spent almost 1 ½ hours relaxing here while finishing our meal with a shared tiramisu and caramelized banana dessert.   Perfect ending for a hot afternoon.  Time to leave, we went into the side bar and lounge to pay our bill.  There were many photos of famous folks that had stayed here in the past.  One was of Gregory Peck, another of Emperor Hirohito, and also President Nixon to name just a few.   Many world leaders had graced these verandas as well as famous actresses of the day like Jean Simmons, Ursula Andress, and singer Sade and even Harrison Ford, who may have starred in a movie here.

 

Back outside, we strolled down the stairway to the swimming pool and discovered some of our neighboring dinner mates on the ship were here.  Four of them were enjoying the strong breezes of the India Ocean while sipping pints of cold beer.  It is really the best place to spend an afternoon we think.  Asking how we got here, we told them we walked, which they did not believe at first.  Yes, it was hot, but taking our time was the trick.  Taking a taxi here, they had avoided all of the "fun" dodging the tuk-tuk group.  We were heading back into the melee as we walked back.

 

Actually , it was better going back as most of the drivers did not bother us much.  Only when we got to the port gate, they stuck their tour offers in our faces.  And guess what?  The price had dropped to half as much, if we could believe that.  While waiting for the shuttle bus, one elderly man was being harassed by a taxi fellow, and seemed quite perturbed.   He said this is the reason we should have never stopped here in this port.  When one is a single elderly person carrying a cane, they pester you more.   The 20 minute ride went quickly and we were back home to the wonderful air-conditioned ship by 3pm.  Other than going out on our veranda, we never left the ship again. 

 

By 5:30pm, we noticed that the string of tented vendors on the pier began covering their outside tables of treasures with sheets of heavy plastic.  In fact, they worked frantically because in the distance we could see black clouds dropping rain coming quickly our way.  Then we saw the lightning and heard the thunder.  The sunny and partly cloudy skies we had all day had turned on a dime and a good heavy rain was imminent.  And that it did by 6pm…..heavy driving rain which had the vendors piling racks of clothing and other items into the waiting vans.  Not everything was packed away, since there were still people coming back from tours and the shuttles to buy stuff.  Even with the pier almost flooded, the guests and crew continued to shop.  From out of the 12 to 15 tents, about 4 of them stayed open until 10:30pm when the all aboard time was in effect.

 

Dinner had some nice Sri Lanka items, but we stuck to what we know best.  One appetizer was fried calamari and another was a very tasty tomato-veggie soup.  Our mains were the same – prime rib (half-size) with baked potatoes.  It was plenty filling, so no dessert was needed.  Only coffee. 

 

The ship finally left the pier after 11pm with the rain mostly gone by then.  Now we are heading to new territory for us – the Maldives.  Should be interesting.  Glad we have some sea days getting there.

 

The clocks went back another ½ our tonight.  Not a bad idea….we need it.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

331 Pictures

Report #88 Wednesday March 27, 2024 Sea Day #3 Of 3 Heading West Transiting The Andaman Sea Enroute To Colombo, Sri Lanka At 18 Knots Rain And Clouds 12mph Wind 84 Degrees 77% Humidity--Casual Dress

 

Today we woke up to heavily-overcast skies, so much so, that it seemed dark at 7am.  Of course, we did have that time change, so that may have been part of the later rising of the sun.   As the day advanced, we would have thunder, lightning, and rain.  Not a lot of rain but passing showers.   As we watched more commercial ships sail past us, we could see they were under the clouds and getting wet.  Sometimes showers can be avoided by sailing around them.

 

We forgot to mention that we spotted dolphins yesterday morning around 10am.   By the time we took the camera out on the veranda, the dolphins were about gone, and the camera immediately fogged up.  Today while we were at the Seaview Pool, Captain Friso said there were a few pods we were cutting through.  It is possible we caught a picture of one jumping.  Once again, they were gone as fast as we saw them.  Appearing to be smaller dolphins, they skim the surface, but don't jump like the larger ones.   Better than nothing, we were happy to see some sea life.  The best we have witnessed on the way across this sea have been flying fish.  They are lucky since we have not seen a sea bird for weeks now.

 

The usual sea day activities keep the folks busy.  The most attended ones are the lectures.  The Hidden Life of Trees was a talk given by Lauren and Merge, who has been onboard for a long time now, spoke about the Indian Ocean. 

 

Lunch for us was salads and sandwiches.  Then at 4pm, there was another Block Party, which was scheduled for yesterday, but did not happen.   The theme was "Zling & Nuts Block Party".    The rules were bring your own glass and a sort-of Singapore Sling beverage would be poured.   The nuts we assume were peanuts in the shells, where we could drop the shells on the carpets in the hallways.    What???  No way would we do that.  Even while dining in  Raffles Long Bar where it is acceptable, we did not do it.    So there was a note given to everyone with a change of plans.  Since some folks are highly allergic to peanuts, we were asked to refrain from disposing of them on the carpet.  We have no idea where this idea originated, but the note came from the hotel manager, Henk.   We cannot imagine Captain Friso and Chantal briskly walking down each hallway avoiding the shells.

 

The sprinkles stopped long enough to get in the late afternoon walk.  We have noticed more people we have not seen before, so these are probably the newbies that joined in Singapore.  In the old days, these folks would be teased and called "segment people" in good humor.  Sometimes it is difficult to come onto a ship that has been sailing for a couple of months where people have formed groups with the games, in the bars, and at dinnertime.

 

Dinnertime had a few new items.  The salads are getting more creative and new items such as Shanghai ribs were on the appetizer menu.  We both went for the sweet and sour duck with what we thought were sauteed egg noodles.   They turned out to be ramen noodles.  This has to be the third or fourth time ordering a noodle dish that sounded different, but it turned out to be the ramen noodles.  They were good with the sweet and sour sauce.  Dessert was fruit – pineapple and a cup of coffee, which our waiter Yanwar insists is not dessert.  He did remind us to put our clocks back ½ hour, which we knew was coming.   It is one of those few places where we do the ½ hour, and once we leave Sri Lanka, we will put the clocks back another ½ hour.    There is another place in the world we have done this, but we cannot seem to recall where that was.  

 

Tomorrow will be Colombo and now we are wondering what the weather will be like?

 

Bill & Mary Ann

No Pictures

 

Report #87 Tuesday March 26, 2024 Sea Day #2 Of 3 Transiting The Andaman Sea Enroute To Colombo, Sri Lanka Sunny And Warm Very Humid-75% 84 Degrees---Formal Dress

On sea days, there seems to be a lot more folks sleeping in later since we are always the first to arrive at breakfast.  We get the best service with the several Pinnacle waiters (girls and guys) in attendance.  Eventually more guests trickle in, and by 8:30am, the place is full in the window area.   As long as we continue ordering our breakfast items carefully, our meals arrive just the way we like.  At times, we think there is a language barrier, and we are not understood clearly.

 

After taking our morning walk outside, and completing the photos from Singapore, we had a bunch of notes arrive in our mail slot.  The first one was an invitation to our travel agency's cocktail party in the Crow's Nest tomorrow at 6:30pm.  That will be fun connecting with our friends there, some of whom we seldom see on the ship.  Those who dine at the early seating have a whole different routine during the day.  Our paths never seem to cross. 

 

The next note was about the laundry service, which may be delayed due to urgent maintenance issues.  They do anticipate resolving this issue soon, but as a result there will be delays in delivery.  Of course they appreciate our understanding, and we are not too concerned because we do have not any outstanding laundry to be delivered.   With all of the ship's laundry, especially in the dining venues, not counting the stateroom linens, it is understandable that things break down.

 

The next Note For You was an invite to a President's Club Samosa Cocktail Party held in the Gallery Bar on Friday at 6:30pm.  We shall be present.   Another happening tomorrow will be the delayed Block Party on the stateroom corridors and elevator lobbies.  Zuiderdam Slings will be served (regular or virgin) as well as peanuts in the shells if we are reading this correctly.   We can throw the shells on the floor indicating it was a good party.  This follows the tradition of the Long Bar in Raffles where you toss the shells on the floor.  Hmmm, poor crew members that have to clean it up afterwards.  Maybe not the best idea.  Captain Friso and Chantal will briefly visit with the guests as they fly from deck to deck.

 

Tonight we had two more notes – one informing us that we will each receive $500 onboard credit to our account.  This was their promise when the itinerary was adjusted and it is very much appreciated by all.  The extra money will help pay for unexpected visas and perhaps added shore excursions.  Today we researched the added African safaris now that we will be going there.  The prices were sky high compared to what we paid last year.  Of course, we did ours on our own and not with HAL.  From what we read on the Navigator page, every one of the overlands are booked solid.  Most all of them are places we have been, so we did not choose to book anything.  And you all know how much we love bus travel…….

 

Finally, the last note was to turn the clocks ahead one hour this evening.  That works fine with us.  And today, the vanity mirror on the desk had the bulb replaced.  It has been out since we boarded but we forgot to report it.  Our room attendants are very good about following up on anything broken.  The light it provides is just enough light to read notes for reports which are mainly written at night.

 

We had a light lunch of a Dive-In chicken sandwich and hot dog.  They forgot to add the fries, doing us a big favor.   They are still oily and stuck together, so it is better not to have them.  We tend to keep whole apples in our room when we feel a need for a snack.  Also have some popcorn and nuts such as pistachios.

 

The news of the Baltimore bridge collapse dominated the news this afternoon.  Such a horrible accident.   By the time we left our room to take the afternoon walk, it was close to 6pm.  Coming back after 7pm, we barely had time to get ready for dinner, which was formal tonight.  That meant a suit or a tux for the guys.  Or at least a jacket and a shirt and tie.  Right before the first seating at 5pm, Kimberly announced that a jacket for the fellows will be OK.  We wonder why the change in the dress suggestion?  Honestly, it was a mistake to say that because we saw some men in collared shirts (dressy) and one elderly man who changed from a jacket and shirt to a pull over sweatshirt.  Unbelievable.  And he was part of a newbies group sitting near us so we saw what he did.  He must have been testing the waters and as far as we could see, no one said a word.   If Presty was around, as he usually is on formal nights, he may have questioned that maneuver.   Oh well, we are not the clothes police.

 

The menu was formal with special Asian cuisine like a Vietnamese veggie roll and a bowl of Indonesian soup.  Nice for a change.  One of us had the Gato Gato salad, which had one large Boston lettuce leaf with cooked cabbage and carrots with a peanut sauce.  The other salad was Caesar.  Our ,mains were the same with surf and turf, or lobster and beef tenderloin steak.  A good cut of meat, the steak was coated with teriyaki sauce and tender.  Dessert was sliced pineapple and a cup of coffee.   With the hour back on the clocks, the crew had a special party happening later tonight.  Our waiter Yanwar invited us, but we know he was kidding.  We could tell they were looking forward to it.  Sure helps keep their spirits up.

 

A new instrumentalist joined the ship by the name of Sharene Tang.  Her description was "Star of the Pocket Piano" and the recipient of the Two Time World Champion Instrumental Virtuoso.  Now that's a mouthful.  Our buddy Greg is the go-to guy for attending the shows.  He always updates us on what we missed.

 

A  note on our bed along with another towel animal and two chocolates was:  A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.  -Lao Tzu-

 

Bill & Mary Ann

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Report #86 Monday March 25, 2024 Sea Day #1 Of 3 Transiting The Malacca Straits Enroute To Colombo, Sri Lanka Sunny And Warm Very Humid 90 Degrees---Casual Dress

 

We have all agreed that a few days at sea have been well-earned.  If we had stayed a week in Singapore, it still would have not been enough to see it all.  If all goes as planned, we will be visiting Singapore again next year and looking forward to exploring further.

 

We are currently heading northwest in the Straits of Malacca, one of the longest straits in the world, if not the longest.  Situated between Indonesia and Malaysia, it is another busy body of water for commercial ships.  Today we are seeing many vessels as they pass by on the horizon going both ways.  We happened to spot two old-style fishing boats from either Indonesia or Malaysia.  They were wooden and built similar to those we saw while in Vietnam.   Comparatively speaking, the waters are shallow and we were lucky to have smooth seas and very little swells.  And we had a really nice breeze going all day, which helped to cool things down.  Yes, it is still hot and humid, but nothing like in Singapore. 

 

This morning while waiting for the Pinnacle Grill assistant manager Dhana to open the doors, we noticed a crew member who we have not seen for a week or so.  He appeared today, and mentioned he had been quarantined with Covid for a week.  He seems to be on the mend, but that is a sign that this nasty virus is still around.  It is a reminder to all of us to continue the hand washing and sanitizer.  Usually we are more conscientious of that when we leave the ship, but the real culprits could be right here onboard. 

 

Most of today was used processing an enormous amount of photos taken over the two fabulous days in port.   Who can resist the Orchid Gardens and the gorgeous flowers we saw?  It was a feast for the eyes.    It was time well spent after what seemed like walking for miles and miles the last two days.  And we will be talking about our travels in the city for days to come. And half of the fun comes from shared stories of our friends as well.  We all did something different.

 

We were so involved with working, that we sort of forgot lunch.   Sometimes it is nice to have a few snacks instead. Taking a deck walk around 6pm, we came back to the room in time to get sunset shots.  When dinnertime came, we were hungry.  There were good appetizers of pork and shrimp spring rolls with a BBQ sauce.   Salads came next, followed by pork and veal-stuffed cannelloni and one order of lamb chops, slightly under-cooked.  Sharing , one of us took the rarest chop and traded one cannelloni.  That worked just fine.   A dish of  a sliced banana with a touch of chocolate sauce was even better than the sticky sweet desserts. 

 

There were several folks missing in the dining room, so we bet they went to the first pop-up of Morimoto By Sea, the new contemporary Asian cuisine that has replaced Rudy's Sel de Mer.  There are always Morimoto items on the every day dinner menu, but this meal is probably more complete.  It should be for $55, which is among the most reasonable of the pop-ups. 

 

A new entertainer joined us by the name of Rebecca Kelly.  She is a comedy vocalist  with a powerhouse voice with amusing tricks of the trade. 

 

Two more days at sea to enjoy are on the way.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

26 Pictures

Report #85 Sunday March 24, 2024 Singapore Day #2 Genting Dream Along Side Us - Queen Mary 2 Left Hot And Humid 95 Degrees, Sunny With Clouds, Sailaway At 5pm

 

Day two in Singapore found the tour groups going off early.   Forgetting to mention some of them yesterday, here they are.  The Best of Singapore included a lunch for 8 ¾ hours and $280, while Around the Island also with a lunch was 6 ½ hours for $150.  A ride to the Gardens By The Bay and the Marina Bay Sands Hotel was 4 hours for $140.  Yesterday, there was a tour to the Night Safari for 4 hours and $130 and iconic Singapore was 4 hours for $130.   Private vehicles were also available as they are in most every port.

 

Sadly, we heard the news about a fatal accident on the Nieuw Amsterdam that took the lives of two crew members.  We are all heart-broken as are the crew members here.  Our sincerest condolences go out to their families and friends.   It will probably take time before the cause of the explosion is discovered.

 

We tried starting our explorations earlier today, but we ended up going off of the ship a bit before 10am like yesterday.  Since the all aboard time was 4:30pm, we decided to stick closer to the pier today.  Taking the hike back out through the terminal and the checkpoint seemed to go smoother, as did the long walk to the Marina South Pier MRT station.  We had hopes that the temperatures would have been lower, but it remained pretty much the same as yesterday.  Hot and humid.

 

At this end of the Marina South Pier MRT, it wasn't so busy, but when we got off at City Hall, it was a different story.  Today was Sunday and even more locals were out and about.   The City Hall station dropped us off at the Raffles City Mall, where we had to find our way to the street outside.  Thank goodness for a lot of signs in the mall, we found where we wanted to go.  Walking around the block, we located the famous Raffles Hotel.  For the last several years, their property was mostly closed for renovations.  When it was ready to open up again, Covid hit and our stop here was cancelled.  Back in all of its glory now, we were able to see most of it with the exception of the main lobby which is reserved for hotel guests only.  And you had better be dressed properly (no shorts) or you will be allowed inside a bar or restaurant.   The Long Bar is more casual and does offer their famous Singapore Sling.  Kimberly mentioned in her talk that these sweet drinks cost $39 Singapore dollars these days.  With tax that would be close to $30 USD.  We'd rather have an ice- cold beer, which is not cheap in Singapore either.

 

We had passed some signs in the hotel's hallways announcing a wedding reception party here.  We happened to run right into the group posing for photos in one of the colonial stairwells.  The bride and groom were dressed in traditional Singaporean clothing, mostly red embellished clothing, not the usual white gown and tuxedo.  The cameraman had them posing in one shot, then dancing in place in the next frame.  Always fun to watch as long as we stayed in the background.

 

We made our way around to the front entrance to see the turbaned Sikh doorman greeting the guests coming in taxis as well as limos.   The front of this iconic hotel is finally finished and was looking mighty fine.  In the parking area we spotted limos with flowers attached.  Then we saw another bride and groom posing for photos in the front entrance of this iconic hotel. 

 

Across the street was St. Andrew's Cathedral, built in 1856, and Singapore's oldest cathedral.  It is a landmark in this part of the city and just by luck, it was opened today.  The local parishioners were just leaving a service holding palm leaves.  Then we remembered it was Palm Sunday and the giving of palms is a tradition in the Catholic Church.  We were lucky to gain entrance through a side door to see the cathedral's interior.  Very impressive with blue vaulted ceilings, it was beautiful and peaceful.  Another mass was about to begin, so we took our pictures and quietly left. 

 

The MRT station was right next to the cathedral, so we went down the escalator to find our way to the Gardens By The Bay.  This would be the red line for one stop, then a transfer to the brown line.  That one was not as easy to find.  We found long hallways with few people, and figured we may have been able to walk the streets there faster.  The only bad thing was the oppressive heat outside.  It was good to be more like gophers and cool off down under.   Finally finding the correct connection, we ended up coming out at the far end of the Gardens By The Bay.  It was here that we found the park with reportedly 250,000 rare pants and two giant-domed conservatories.  The Cloud Forest houses the world's tallest indoor waterfall.  Since our time was limited, we did not enter the domes today.  Sunday has to be their busiest day of the week because the lines to tour the domes was long.  Too long for us.  We did stroll much of the 250 acre park surrounded by a moat.  Trying to remember how we crossed over a footbridge to access the Marina Bay Sands Hotel, we finally found it and walked out of the Gardens to get a bird's eye view of the Singapore Flywheel.  Then we made our way through the center upper level of the fabulous "ironboard" hotel.   We continued out the doors to another bridge that took us into the Shoppes By The Bay.   Escalators took us down to the lower levels where we searched for a pizza restaurant we had found online.  This mall is the newest and most opulent in Singapore.  It is as glitzy as they come and well worth the visit.  There is a huge casino in this complex and the destination of many of the locals as well as foreigners. 

 

Going from floor to floor, we went in the direction of where we had lunch 5 years ago.  It turned out that restaurant had changed hands and was a Chinese restaurant now.  Only opened for dinner it appeared closed.  However, right next door was the place we were looking for  - Roberta's Pizza.  It was not a large pizzeria, but one that had a wood-fired oven and Italian food.  We lucked out and got two seats on the hightop chairs by the bar and the busy cooks.    The way it worked here was to look over the menu, then go to their counter and pay for the food and drinks.  Then we sipped our Tiger beers while watching the cooks make and bake the pizza.   It was pricey by our standards but well worth it for a meal in Singapore.  Even the beers were rather high, but that is expected since Singapore adds a hefty tax to anything alcohol.  We read somewhere it is an attempt to prevent alcoholism.  

 

This is probably a good time to write the list of forbidden items to be brought ashore.  There is no chewing gum, chewing tobacco, or imitation cigarette products.   Lighters that look like a pistol or revolver are banned as are controlled drugs or psychotropic substances.   No surprise here.  No endangered species, obscene articles or videos are allowed or reproductions of copyrighted materials.  Severe fines and or imprisonment can occur.  Finally, e-cigarettes and vapes are prohibited.   If found, they will be trashed.   Possession and using of hard drugs can be punished by death.

 

OK, back to our story.  After relaxing for at the pizza café, it was time to head back and find the correct station to turn in our transit cards and get the refund.  Only a few of the stations were able to do that, so we had to choose from the list we were given.   We went back to the MRT and were told to go to the Bayfront station.  Just by luck, we happened run right into it and they did do the refund there which was S$10 each.  Then we had our original S $10 passes to get back to the Marina South Pier with some change left over like $2 each.   Our weekend visit had been such a whirlwind of activity, and we have the MRT to thank for getting to places very quickly and easily. 

 

On the way out of the MRT station, we spotted many groups of local picnickers on the grassy fields on the waterfront.  Some of the younger kids were doing karaoke with speakers, having a really good time.   A  nice breeze coming from the harbor had cropped up, making our walk a lot more pleasant.  We noticed many Asian folks arriving to the cruise terminal and we suspected another ship had docked across from us.  It turned out to be the Genting Dream Cruise, a gambling vessel we think.  The guests were arriving with only one small suitcase and hand carrys.   These types of cruises are numerous between here and Hong Kong and have no trouble filling up with local gamblers.  

 

By the time we got back into the terminal hall at 3pm, it was full of guests in line to board the gambling ship.  Lucky for us, we had another entrance just for the Zuiderdam.   Once through the security and xray checkpoints, we entered the ship and turned in our passports to be held at the front desk.  Done for the day, we relaxed in our room and veranda until sail away, which happened after 5pm.   Being one of the busiest harbors in the world, the Captain had to zig-zag his way around the many vessels.   Our next port will be Colombo, Sri Lanka with three days at sea to arrive there.  We are very much looking forward to that break to re-charge our batteries, so to speak. 

 

Dinner time found most everyone present after two busy days and a night in port.  One of us had a rice paper-wrapped chicken appetizer and one bowl of tortilla soup…..both of which were very good.   The Club Orange lamb dinner was one choice and the other was barbacoa sauced beef slices.  Different but good.  Pineapple was a perfect dessert and one cup of hot coffee as well.

 

If people have the energy, there was a show tonight featuring an instrumentalist by the name of Dennis Lau.  He was described as being a showman with finesse and determination to adapt to different music genres.   Between the four other music venues, there is something for most everyone.

 

The clocks went back one hour this evening which was appreciate by everyone.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

369 Pictures

Report #84 Saturday March 23, 2024 Singapore Day #1 Of 2 Docked Starboard Side To Pier 8am-Overnight Sunny And Hazy 9mph Winds Very Humid 96 Degrees Queen Mary 2 Also A Long Side---Casual

 

The Zuiderdam arrived early this morning to Singapore around 7am, but we were not docked and cleared until closer to 8am.   We have gotten used to being at a different spot ever since we got the boot from the Harbourfront pier.  These days we dock at Marina Bay South and we were not alone.  The Queen Mary II, one of Cunard's large ships was docked across from us.  It's possible that they were ending a cruise here, and taking on new guests.  We did learn that about 60 new passengers will join this ship today or tomorrow.  And 130 guests went home.

 

Singapore is a small country with only 697 square kilometers.  However, it houses 5.8 million people that speak Mandarin, English, Malay and Tamil.  It happens to be one of the world's hot-list destinations and also one of our favorite cities to explore.  For those out there that adore shopping, you could take up to 6 months to locate all of the stores.  Many are topside, but there is a city down under that equals what you find at ground level. 

 

We waited for the tours to go off before we left at 10am.  We heard a funny story at breakfast this morning that concerned the mess with the excursion groups.  Not only were people making their way to the buses too early, but some guests who were not on tours, were sneaking off with the tour groups to get off earlier.  It's no wonder that the staff eventually blew their stacks.  We have noticed that sometimes the excursion groups go off before the general clearance is announced.  

 

Today's process was complicated to say the least.  We all had to have our room keys, our passports, and the Electronic Singapore Arrival Card ready to present to the immigration booth.   Things have changed here since the last time we stopped in Singapore.  Now there are banks of kiosks where we scan our passports, do a thumb print, and have our photo scanned to match the passport.  Once completed, a glass door opens and we are released.  No one asked to see the arrival papers, which basically declares we are healthy.  The next stop is xray, where we are checked the same as when we come back.   

 

From here, we walked through the huge parking garage outside the terminal.  It leads to a very long covered walkway which took us all the way to the Marina South Pier MRT station.  It would have been nice if we could have bought the Singapore Tourist Passes at this station, but they did not sell them here.  We had to purchase two $10. (Singapore $) in order to get to a station that sold them.  Since we were headed to Harbour Front where these tickets were sold, that ticket got us that far with some left over.  There are 15 stations in the system that sell these cards, and tomorrow we will drop them off close to the Marina station and get $10 Singapore refunds on each of our Tourist Cards.    In the meantime, we can travel to our heart's delight and probably exceed what we paid for the cards by a lot. 

 

We had to transfer to a different line to access Harbour Front (the purple line), which does involved time and a lot of walking.  But we knew exactly where to find the ticket office, and by luck, there was no line there.   Normally it is 20 thick.  We had a local gal who spoke perfect English and explained how the cards work and where to get our refunds.  The price for the two day unlimited card was $29 Singapore dollars each.  Tomorrow when we return the cards, we will get S$10 back for each card.    From there we walked to the end of the mall where the old cruise terminal was for us a few years ago.  We saw that the Silver Shadow was docked there and leaving tomorrow.  Ships of that size fit there, where we are too big.

 

Back on the train, we made our way to Chinatown (purple line), got off, and explored the whole busy area.  It was close to lunchtime now, and the food court was filling up with customers.  We took a lot of photos of the Chinese food items being cooked at each stand.  Some of their specialties are duck parts like tongue, feet, gizzards, hearts, necks and livers.   This would be a good place for bargains if we were looking for any.  Today was just mainly for pictures.

 

Job done, we hopped back on the train (still purple line) and went to Little India.   This place was really busy with folks buying fresh produce, meat and fish in the huge marketplace.  Going up and down every side street, we saw so much that reminded us of shopping in Mumbai.  By the way, did we mention how hot it was today?  It was well over 90 degrees with a humidity level in the 70% area.  Hot and sticky.  It pretty much stopped the hawkers from being aggressive with their shop items. 

 

Back to the MRT, we switched to the blue line that took us to the Botanic Garden.  This would be the highlight of the day.  Walking in the heat of the day might have not been the best idea, but we had no choice….it was now or never.  We had brought water with us, but it wasn't near enough.  We remembered that in the center of the garden were vending machines with water, sodas, and ice teas in many flavors.  These machines only take coins (no paper money) or credit cards.   We had no coins, but watched as some locals used their credit cards to buy drinks.  OK, we gave it a try by tapping the card, and it worked.  Before we left the park we had bought three drinks that way.  And they were life-saving in the heat. 

 

Going deeper into the garden, we walked around a pond where we saw a large monitor lizard under a mangrove tree.  We had seen two smaller ones when we entered the garden, but this one was big.  Thinking it was dead, it finally moved its head….it was simply sleeping in the heat.  This pond also had turtles, fish, and some smooth-skinned otters that were reportedly nursing young ones.  We searched for them, but they hid successfully. 

 

Then we came upon the jewel of the park- the Orchid Garden, which is world-famous.  There is a small charge (S$3 each) to get inside, but well worth it.  Five or six years ago, this garden underwent a transformation, redoing the Cool House.   That was a dome that mimicked a misty mountain zone with different types of orchids and bromeliads that can handle cool and moist weather.    On the way to the new build, we took pictures of every orchid, big and small, along the pathways.  Gardeners were watering everything, so we suspect they have not had a lot of rain recently.  In the Cool House,  we saw parasitic orchids, insect killers, and many types of ferns and trees from all over the world.  This was the best place to linger as long as we could because it was so much cooler.  Eventually we had to leave, but going back outside was torture.  It made it seem ever hotter than it had been.  

 

Continuing up the hillside, we made our way back to the entrance where we went through their shop on the way out.  Many years ago, possibly 20, we had bought a Risis necklace and earring set.  These are real orchids that have been dipped in nickel and gold to preserve them.   It made us happy to see that the price had gone up substantially over the years. The time was getting away from us, so we headed back to the MRT, which was pretty far away it seemed.  If we had something that counted our steps, we may have been surprised how far we had walked so far.  Sometimes it is better not to know.

 

Now we had to go a short distance to a different line, the brown line, to access Orchard, the high end area of Singapore.  And also the place of the Ion Mall.  It is one of the largest in the city and has the most expensive stores that exist.  Our destination was lunch at the Hard Rock Café, where we always go to relax for an hour or more.  It took us a while to find our way out of the mall  until we remembered we had to find Wheelock Place to be at the right exit.  It was a good thing there was a concierge in the mall for us to get directions. 

 

Once out in the street on Orchard Road, we knew where to find the café.  Climbing their stairs, we were seated at a window table where we ordered a draft beer and one Coke Zero.   Adding a plate of cheese nachos with grilled chicken, we were happy campers.  Resting up with cold drinks and a little food gave us our second wind to continue on our journey.   But before we left, we made a stop in the HRC shop and got two t-shirts.  Not expecting it to work, we provided our member number and did receive 20% off.  

 

It sure would have been nice if a hint of a breeze popped up, but it did not.  By now, we noticed the heat had taken a toll for one of us, and there was just enough energy to get back to the ship.  That was an adventure in itself.   Finding our way back into the Ion Mall, we switched to the red line which went back to Marina South Pier, the end of the line.  By the time we walked the covered walkway back to the ship, it was 6pm.  Needless to say, it was good to be back on the ship with air-conditioning. 

 

Tonight we had been promised that the veal cutlet or veal chop was available for Club Orange.  Both of us had Caesar salads and the grilled chops, which were delicious.  Tender and tasty, we wish they offered them more often.  So far they have appeared once a month.  No room for dessert, we opted for a cup of coffee and one scoop of sorbet instead.  

 

There was no live show in the World Stage, but a very good movie we have seen three times, was Crazy Rich Asians.  Filmed partly in the Gardens by the Bay, we recognized many areas in the 250 acre park that we had visited on past trips here.

 

The best show for us had to be the view from our veranda of the Marina Bay Sand Hotel, the one that looks like an ironing board, and the Singapore Flyer, the Ferris wheel that offers spectacular views of the city.   Seeing the city all lit up was magical.

 

Hopefully with a good night's rest, we will be ready for another busy, but shorter, day in Singapore.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

549 Pictures

Report #83 Friday March 22, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Singapore Sunny With A Few Clouds 82 Degrees 7mph Wind Seas Are Flat---Casual Dress

 

It was a lazy day at sea for us and many others as the Zuiderdam sailed towards Singapore doing 20 knots.  Captain Friso said that the smooth seas and following winds were in our favor.  And the warm but comfortable weather with a nice breeze was just about perfect. 

 

We learned that around 130 guests will be leaving the ship tomorrow and only 60 or so will be joining.  More than likely some of the crew members will be ending their 8 month contracts and leaving as well.  But we suspect that not all of them will be replaced.  As this voyage continues, we believe there will be a further drop in the passenger count, especially when we head across the Atlantic Ocean in May.   When the current itinerary changed, eliminating the Mediterranean, we feel that a number of folks made a decision to leave in Singapore.  They were given that option to leave and receive future cruise credit for the missed days.  Not everyone wanted a repeat of Africa, especially West Africa, since we did that last year. 

 

This morning we all received two more stickers for the cruise log booklet, adding the ports from Tokyo to Singapore.  We are well beyond the halfway mark now. 

 

We still had not received our copies of the Singapore landing card info we had requested from the front desk folks as promised by this morning.  So we made a call to our concierge, Michelle, who had to search for our emails from yesterday.  In the meantime, she gave us her personal email to re-send the forms.  While doing this, she located our emails and had already made copies for us.  And even nicer, she delivered them personally to our room.  She had brought her two daughters with her, who are visiting from the Philippines.  How nice to meet them.  They are teenagers we are guessing, and are having a fine time sailing for a few days on the ship.  Their dad, Ray, is the bartender in the Ocean Bar, so having to see both of their parents at the same time is rare.  The two young girls will be among the guests departing the ship tomorrow.

 

Everyone had to pick up their passports to carry with us when we go off of the ship.  The tables were set up in the passenger deck  elevator lobbies, and it went smooth as glass. 

 

Kimberly delivered her Singapore talk this morning at 10am, so we looked for it on TV  and found it this afternoon.  Deciding to watch it around 4pm, we discovered it was gone.   Will try after dinner, but have no faith it will be there.  Of course we have been to the city several times in the past, but sometimes Kimberly adds extra tips, or closures we do not know about.   Every bit of info we can gather is always a good thing.   Doing online homework has been a big help with figuring out the MRT ticket counters that will be open tomorrow where we are docked.   If nothing has changed since we were here last, we will be OK. 

 

The Culinary Council Dinner menu was the theme tonight.  It had a different type of salad with lots of things we like, including breaded shrimp.  Both of us ordered the prime rib, but ½ size orders.  The serving size was still more than enough.  And it was good.  One of us had the craqulin  dessert, a chocolate pudding- filled type muffin.   Our friend Heo surprised us and came over to say goodbye.  We wished him a safe trip and we sure hope to see him and Greg in the future.  We will really miss seeing him and also getting his port pictures.

 

Annie Gong was on the stage again tonight showcasing her one woman symphony concert.  She is a favorite of the longtime world cruisers. 

 

Ready or not….Singapore, here we come.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

No Pictures

Report #82 Thursday March 21, 2024 Phu My Port For Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 6am-5:30pm Docked Starboard Side To Pier Sunny With Sea Haze Hot And Humid 95 Degrees--Casual Dress

 

Well, we're up a river today, one of  the hundreds of Vietnamese rivers with foreign-sounding names we cannot pronounce.  This river or its tributaries might go as far as Ho Chi Minh (formerly Saigon) but only the smaller vessels and cruise ships can sail there.   The Zuiderdam is way too large, so we docked at an international cruise port near Phu My.  You might ask what's in Phu My?  We can verify there is absolutely nothing for tourists except the place to take bus tours elsewhere.  Today we are docked in a different spot and although there are buildings, it is totally industrial.  This dock seems to be a storage area for gigantic metal cylinders that are wired in the center core and made to connect to each other.  Their purpose is a mystery to all of us.  However, we will investigate later. 

 

Since we do not plan on going into Ho Chi Minh or anywhere else, we figured it was a good time to attend to another directive sent to us this morning.  This letter gave instructions on Singapore arrival cards we will need in two days from now.  They are free and we do not need tourist visas there.  So we went online and filled out their required information for each of us.  Some of the questions were fuzzy, such as what ship are we on.  Zuiderdam was not in their data base.  So the correct answer was "others".  Once completed and accepted, it was recommended to download the form on our cell phone.   Of course, we do not have a cell phone, so what now?

 

A further request was to fill out Sri Lanks electronic arrival cards.  Before we left home, we applied for the free Sri Lanka visas and were granted them.  No print outs were required with these.  However, just to be sure, one of us went down to the front desk to ask for help with the Singapore cards.  And besides, we needed to buy some Singapore money….might as well kill three birds with one stone.

 

Expecting to find only a few guests in line due to the tours that went off, it was surprising to see a line that had formed down the hallway.    Many others had trouble figuring out the questions and answers with their cell phones.  Normally, we do all of this on paper forms and turn them in.  Now it is all online.  I helped a nice but upset lady behind me figure out what to answer on the fuzzy questions.  Even her city of residence was not there, just like ours was not. 

 

Finally my turn to get help, I was told to email our Singapore approved applications to the website of the Front Desk.  We had to request printed cards to be sent to our room.   So far, it is 10pm and no cards have been delivered.  Surprised?  No.  The money buying was easy, as was breaking large bills into 20's, 10's, and 5's.  We like the ship's cash because it is new, clean and not torn.    Many countries will not accept old or worn currency. 

 

Back in our room, we tried to complete the Sri Lanka electronic arrival card, but we were a day too soon.  We will be there on March 28^th and have plenty of time to figure it out. 

 

So much for the big job of the day, we headed off of the ship by 10am to temperatures near mid-90's and high humidity.  Good thing there was a breeze going on.   Intending only to check out their souvenir tables, we talked to some folks who had ridden the shuttle bus to the port gate.   They never got off of the bus and rode it back to the dock.   They said nothing was there.  We had to find out ourselves, so we got on the next shuttle and rode the one minute ride to the gate.  All that was there were maybe a dozen taxi drivers offering us cheap tours.  No thanks….been there done that three times.  We did see some happy crew members coming back with large bags of KFC, so there was civilization somewhere.  Taxi drivers mentioned a mall, but frankly, that was the last place we wanted to go. 

 

So outside the security checkpoint, there was a wide road with nice walkways under tall shade trees for quite a way.  The tide was up in the river and along the walkway were tidal basins on the riverbank where we spotted some birds.  There were mostly egrets, pigeons and more swifts.  Not much else, except lots of road trash.   We ended up walking an hour or more taking pictures of the factories and industrial buildings.  Other than the big rig drivers, we saw few local people.  Occasionally some motorbikes passed by, but that was about it.  At one end of the walkway, we watched as one of those huge cylinders was being trucked into the dock area.  We did ask a few fellows what these were, but no one spoke English.  We ended up bussing back with many crew members who had gone "snack" shopping.  For us, it was Coca Cola time since we had not thought to bring water off with us.

 

It turned out our timing was bad.  It was close to noontime and some of the tour buses were coming back.   We did check out the souvenir tables with t-shirts, caps, magnets, little kid toys, purses, handbags, and wooden lacquer items.  They also sold some Vietnamese clothing and flip-flops, as well as designer watches – all knock-offs.  No sense to even attempt bargaining (which they expect) with so many people shopping there.  Better to come back later, if at all.  We never did go back.

 

We cooled off with those sodas and spent some time on our veranda watching the river traffic.  There were all sizes of boats and ships, but nothing like what we saw in Da Nang.    Checking out a website, we did see that the Celebrity Solstice and another ship were also docked in the river.  The Solstice is quite large and had to be docked closer to the river's entrance.  We would see it later on our way out to sea.

 

So where did some of the guests go today?  The best of Ho Chi Minh was 8 ½ hours for $150, and a tour to see the Cu Chi tunnels for 10 hours was $140.  Both of these excursions included lunch.  Also a lunch, there was a taste of Vietnam in partnership with Food and Wine for 7 hours and $140.   Shorter tours were Vung Tau for 4 hours at $60 or Ba Ria for 3 ½ hours for $50.  A transfer only to Ho Chi Minh was also $60 for 8 ½ hours on your own.   Comparatively speaking,  today's excursions were the most affordable so far in our opinion. 

 

All aboard was 5:30pm, and we all had to turn in our landing cards to a box at the front desk.  Before 6pm, Captain Friso carefully turned the ship around and headed back down the river.  We stayed on the veranda the whole time enjoying the scenic cruising.  The sun went down and the lights came on, which really made everything look so much nicer, even if it was all industrial.  Numerous container ships were operating through the night, which is smart since it is much cooler.  And like we said, we passed by the Celebrity Solstice just as she was ready to leave as well.  With up to 3400 passengers, this ship is much larger than the Zuiderdam.  Captain Friso did toot the horn as we sailed by.   It was dinner time by the time we passed by Vung Tau, the city on the seaside.  It was lit up like a Christmas tree.

 

Dinner time was celebrating the end of another segment with the parade of the cooks and waiters.  Why tonight, we do not know, since tomorrow is a day at sea.  No one goes home until Saturday we believe.  We ordered the spicy chicken/peanut sauce dipped appetizer with one salad and one chicken noodle soup.  It's still spaghetti soup and we gave up trying to get the noodles.  Entrees were the veal tenderloin – one with rice and one with a baked potato.  We skipped the parsnip puree which is really of swipe on the plate.  We passed on dessert, which really upsets our waiter.  He loves to bring a complete dinner, but it can be way too much at times. 

 

Showtime featured instrumentalist Dennis Lau, a pianist and violinist.  People were filing out of the dining room early, so we are not sure how many of them make it to the later show.  Since some of the tours left at 6:15am, we doubt many folks will go to the show tonight. 

 

We knew that the clocks had to go ahead one hour tonight, but our waiters forgot to tell us, and there was no card left on the bed like they usually leave it.  The front desk folks verified that yes, the clocks went forward tonight.  We don't like that, but at least we have a sea day to relax before Singapore.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

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Report #81 Wednesday March 20, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Phu My Cruise Port For Ho Chiu Minh City Sunny With Heavy Sea Haze 84 Degrees 27mph Winds 4" Swell----Dressy Night

 

The rain from last night was gone when we woke up this morning, which was a nice surprise.  It did seem to be warmer with temperatures in the mid 80's and accompanied with high humidity.  Hard to believe only 10 days ago, we were wearing our heavy coats in ice cold China, complaining about it.  What a big difference now.  We expect the same warm and sticky weather now for most of the remainder of the cruise. 

 

Taking our walk this morning, we finally saw more folks coming outside on the teak lounges.  Gone are the blue plaid blankets.   The dark blue towels are back.  During our walk, we saw some more of the small swifts still flying around the ship.  We were certain they would find a home in our last port of Da Nang.  Guess they did not like the neighborhood.   Another bird that was really lost was one white egret and possibly one booby.  The flying fish are starting to appear again indicating we are sailing in warmer waters now. 

 

Going to the Seaview Pool, we had a nice visit with Greg, our long time tablemate..  He informed us that Heo is going home in Singapore and will not be returning.  His parent's health has been failing recently, and he feels the need to be closer to home to help his brother out.  Since they live in Sydney, Heo will be at home to give them extra care.  He will be missed by their many friends. 

 

Our big job of the day was attending to another muster drill procedure, which is a piece of cake now.  We could have sworn we just did one, but looking back on the calendar, it has been exactly one month since the last one.  Passengers in the odd numbered rooms went first at 1pm.  The even numbered folks, like us, went at 1:30pm.  We headed down to deck three around 1:20pm, and beat the crowd going down.    Our cards were scanned, then we watched our stateroom TV with the vital information in case of an emergency.   We should be good for another month now. 

 

We are still not sure where the ship will be docked tomorrow, although Captain Friso did mention something about changes at his noon talk.  Honestly, it really does not matter since every one of the docks on the river are just that.  Docks…a place to tie the ship up and nothing more.   There is no place to walk to such as a town or village, so we plan to stay onboard.  If there are souvenir stands on the pier, we might check it out. 

 

With Singapore coming up this weekend, we did some research on their transit cards and where to buy them.  It used to be easy when we docked at Harbourfront.  But now we are out in the sticks at Marina Bay South, and they may not sell those tickets there.   One way or another, we'll figure it out because this is one stop we make the most of our time.  And the good thing is we will have two full days to explore and enjoy it. 

 

The dress suggestion was "dressy" this evening, although while taking a late walk on the promenade deck at 5:30pm, we noticed some folks did not get that memo.   Casual is as good as it gets for some, which is fine.  Jackets for the fellows are a bit on the warm side with this weather, but it is only for a few hours.   The appetizers were a little strange, but there is always the choice of jumbo shrimp and Caesar salad.  We had both.  Mains were the surf and turf (shrimp and a tenderloin steak) and a lasagna.   We have been waiting to see the veal cutlet show up on the Club Orange menu, but so far, we only saw it twice on this whole trip.  So we asked our head waiter, Hazel, who checked into it and said it will be served on March 23^rd.  We said count us in….we will be there.  One of us had a little serving of pineapple for dessert which was perfect. 

 

The show tonight was a performance of the singers and dancers with These Dreams: A Journey To Love.  Their routine should be a piece of cake since the seas have been behaving with slight swells and following winds. 

 

There was a very pointed note waiting for all of us in our room after dinner.   It came from Henk M, the hotel director, and it concerned the shore excursion dispatch procedure for the tour groups.  Really, this did not apply to us since we no longer participate in bus tours, but we found it interesting.  Several years ago, a change had to be made to sticker the guests on tours at the exit from the show lounge.    Prior to that, they were stickered on their way inside the lounge, then left to run to the buses to get the best seats.  It worked better back then, but somewhere along the line, they went back to the old way.  We assume it has caused some conflict with the staff and other guests.  Here is the way Henk worded the warning:  While nothing is ever perfect, we can implore, plead, or urge you all, especially those of you seemingly not wanting to comply with the principal effort behind the complexities of this operation to cease and desist being a "rebel without a cause".  A mouthful of words, we hope people take notice.  You do know that if things get out of hand, people can be removed from the cruise.  We have seen it happen.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

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