ginger and professor

If you wear glasses with transition lenses you'll find they get too dark and its hard to see through the viewfinder. Get a pair of glasses without the transitions to use outside in the cold. I found the monopod to be very useful not really time for a tripod and its too bulky.

Have a great trip.

We were there a couple of years ago on the Prinsendam. HAL provided a shuttle to the train station with instructions on obtaining tickets and getting off. We found it very easy. We spent the day in Edinburg touring the castle, royal mile and all. You will enjoy the visit. Try to be in the castle at 1pm when they shoot the cannon, makes a great photo.

I don't think HAL has any problem with loyalty and repeat cruisers. I would like to the ability to review our charges and statement on the TV like some other lines. The music doesn't bother me but it may just be an age thing......

We have flown Alitalia several times. We fly business class and our experience has been great. The food and the wine were good and the service has always been fine.

Another vote for Arcadia tour and Cadillac mt. We have taken Ole's trolley and found it fun and reasonable. If it is a nice day in Halifax I would try to visit the botanical garden. The flowers were superb. They had Dahlia's whose blossoms were as big as your head and in all colors. The titanic cemetery is also of interest as the victims of the tragedy were brought to Halifax.

You will enjoy yourself no matter what you do. It is interesting to see how much these cities count on the tourists often with music at the pier.

The wine steward keeps track of the wines that you drink. When your package is empty they will tell you or offer to sell you another. They will deliver a bottle to your room if you ask them to. Normally the wine is kept with the wine steward and delivered to your table. We are red wine drinkers and prefer the Admiral's package. Hope this helps.

Judy, so sorry to hear of the loss of your husband. Our thoughts and prayers go out to you at this difficult time.

Ralph and Jean

Thanks for the reminder. I will be waving from her in about 10 days.

I agree with faxing. The reply is usually very quick and you can print a hard copy just in case there is a mix up.

We book our cruises with many travel agents. For the OBC I always fax a request for the stockholder's credit directly to HAL and ask for an Email confirmation. Upon receipt of the credit you are all set. I do copy the confirmation and bring this on board just in case there is some type of mix up.

I travel with both. I purchased a pair of compact Leica 8x25 nearly 35 years ago and they are always in my travel bag. Their are many times that a small quality binocular can give you a great idea as to whats out there compared to trying to find it in a long telephoto lens. I don't see it as a question of either /or but feel they compliment each other when traveling. Just my 2 cents.

I would assume yes. Distillation is energy inefficient and take up room for a boiler and distillation tube.

You are not wrong. The water produced on the ship via reverse osmosis is excellent. It certainly is of better quality than most municipal water on shore.

You can purchase bottled water at your dining table should you desire. The water in your cabin and in the minirefrig is usually glacier brand and is $3 per bottle.

Thanks for reminding us Chief.... Nice sail away. We are considering steaking away on the Zuiderdam around the first of Feb.

Wow, we do seem to be keeping a similar itinerary. We got back from Antarctica on Feb. 1. It was a great trip unfortunately we didn't get to stop in Ushuaia or the Falklands. Saw great numbers of whales, penquins and icebergs. Glad you enjoyed your trip, we sure did.

Ralph and Jean

Thanks for the great review. We were on the Queen Mary with you and in fact went on to New Zealand. I only regret that we didn't get a chance to meet you and Sailor Jill, we were at the meet and greet but there were a lot of people. It was a great trip and your colorful review brings back a lot of memories.

Thanks again.

I don't believe that smoking is still permitted in the Oak Room on the Noordam. I do remember enjoying the entire ceremony when it was. The attendant would take and snip the end of your cigar. He would then light a small cedar shingle which he would provide for your lighting the cigar. The cedar was used so that there would be no trace of sulfur as from a normal match. It certainly was a touch of the refined olden times. The thick leather chairs and fine brandies only served to enhance the entire experience.

Considering using epoxy to adhere them to all external surfaces of a 10 year old toyota...

I agree with Gibbs. I always have my swiss army knife in my checked luggage. I can't think of how many bottles of wine it has opened. The larger knifes are really a tool box with pliers, scissors, screw drivers, etc. Things have changed over the years. We visited Finland about 10 years ago. I purchased a Puko hunting knife and brought it on board in its package that went through the xray machine. No one said a thing about it. We used to go through airport security with pocket knifes no problem. That was a different time and I fear we will never return to those days.

I have to agree that when all the games are combined, the thrill is diminished. We had this on the Zaandam to Hawaii in January and it was not nearly as much fun. I hope the discontinue this particularly on the longer trips. Even if it is only a mug, people still enjoy receiving a little something at the end of each game. We are addicted to trivia and will continue to be there either way but the new trend is not for us.

Another vote for Capt. Frans Consen, he is very funny and truly enjoys interacting with the passengers. I am glad to hear he may be moving to the Eurodam.:)