StLouisCruisers

That really does look like comfort food! I'll send this recipe to DH to see if he'd like to try one of these versions. Thank you for the love, Joy! Sending some back! ❤️ Good luck with your team tonight.⚾ That's wonderful news Lorraine on Baby Murphy. Hoping for more good news as days go by. Hoping for a good result for your DB and that he is able to cope with the loss of this additional toe.🙏 I'm glad you went today, too. Twelve days isn't a lot of time and you will want to be in tip top shape for that cruise. Thanks for the report back, and please relax and take care of yourself! Looked like the Queen Mary could have used some BHB painters for that hull! I wonder what she looks like today, 7 years later? Thanks for posting!

Thank you so much Terry for your thoughts of my DB and his condition. I imagine he is pretty miserable suffering from those GI issues every day. Living with a pulmonary fibrosis patient in your household you are going through a tremendous amount of stress. I hope Tana's pneumonia has resolved with the new antibiotics. She is a trooper! Prayers for her every day as well as your family.🙏 Jack @Heartgrove I hope you will be okay! A Benadryl or two might help with allergic reaction to the sting. Take care and let us know what urgent care says.🐝 Maureen @RMLincoln hoping for a smooth move and sale of your condo. It's a lot but I have confidence in you with that positive attitude of yours.👍

Bon Voyage all!

I was wondering if you had a Block Party yet. Lots of fun! I'm happy to hear the steak was great as is the entertainment. Watch out for a Galley Market Lunch on a sea day. I hope they are having that this cruise. Quite an experience going into the Galley to choose your lunch. It was one of the best lunches we ever had! Thanks for your reports from the Quest. Keep 'em coming!

Good morning friends! Depending on whose thermometer you trust it is either 52 or 53F here in my neck of the woods. High today will be 79 and sunny. It's a great day for the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail party when the Georgia Bulldogs take on the Florida Gators in Jacksonville. Go Dawgs! 🏈 Thank you Rich for the Daily and Fleet Report for Saturday, Oct. 28. We have some very nice days to celebrate. The dedication of the Statue of Liberty, plush animals and chocolate! I am a big chocolate lover so that is number 1 for me. I also think the Statue of Liberty deserves plenty of accolades. The plush animals are okay but for some they are pretty important. 🧸 For instance, Ivan who has his plush toys to play fetch with Mom Jacqui. Better do a little more fetching than usual today Jacqui @kazu! The quote today is interesting. I'll be glad to see today's recipes and photos of ground turkey pasta bake. No thanks on the cocktail and chianti. I never knew about the fingerprint usage starting in St. Louis. 1904 is the same year St. Louis hosted the World's Fair. And a dark day in history in 1919 when Prohibition started!🍷 Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for your reports today. Prayers for all on our care list, DB, Scott, Mark, the people of Maine grieving their loved ones, those in war torn places and the hostages, and anyone in need that we are unaware of. Thankful the shooter in Maine is no longer a threat. 🙏 A toast to those celebrating something and to those cruising! Bon Voyage @seagarsmoker and Annie @marshhawk and Chuck @catmando who are on turnaround day in Rome. They begin their transatlantic to head home now. I pray they are both healthy enough to enjoy their ports of call. 🚢 Welcome home to those disembarking! I hope another cruise is in your future!🥂 The port of the day is Long Beach, California. This is a first timer. No links to post and I really never took any photos in Long Beach as far as I know. We have never been there on a ship, but probably drove there while hanging out in L.A. with family members who live out in the Southern California area. I know I saw the Queen Mary once from afar. At one point we lived in Northern California and used to drive down to see aunts, uncle, cousins, etc. Thanks to anyone who has photos to share of Long Beach. Hoping we all have a safe, healthy, enjoyable Saturday!

Bon Voyage!!

Bruce, that was the same captain on our Route of the Vikings II cruise in August 2018, Alexander Golubev. Everyone joked that it took a Russian captain to get through the icebergs in Disko Bay in Ilulissat, Greenland. However I'm not sure if he's Russian or Ukrainian. He attended the Odesa State Maritime Academy. He is an ice captain and the other captains of ships nearby stayed way out of the bay due to the icebergs while we were up close to shore. Made for a lot shorter tender ride. Our other Captain on the Antarctica cruise was the one whose name shall not be said. Well, okay, just a hint (Captain D. D.) Roy @rafinmd I'm sorry to hear of all the deaths in your church family. I had heard about that judge on the news. Very sad about him, and the firefighter killed in a rowhouse fire. Prayers for all three deceased local residents and their families. Terri @Cruzin Terri I was sorry to hear about your DH's fall last night. Guess those rugs will have to go. I'm ordering some sensor nightlights that come on only at dark so I don't have to turn them on and off manually. One for the bathroom I use during the night and another for the walkway to get there. Then I won't turn around and walk into the door smashing my nose! Ouch! I'm so glad Jim wasn't hurt badly! Vanessa @JazzyV thank you for the reminder of the Tree of Life Synagogue. Appropriate to remember that right now. Graham @grapau27 your dinners looked very good! I see that Sarah is a pasta lover like me! I finished 3 1/2 books today and have only 3 left to edit and save. This is taking a lot longer than I thought!

Bon Voyage!!

After my grooming and some small chores this morning I looked outside and we are all fogged in! Earlier it was just over the tops of the trees on the horizon but now it's pea soup! Back to work updating my cruise photo books. I hope I can finish doing that and saving them to my computer via PDF today. I have 6 or 7 more to finish up but they are mostly shorter cruises taken early in our cruise history. Easy peasy.

Graham @grapau27 I know you, Pauline and Sarah will enjoy your evening sharing a meal together. You deserve the very best birthday ever! 🎂🥂 Our time goes back one week later on November 5. Always a difficult time to adjust to. 😴

When Callao (Lima), Peru was last port of the day I was aboard Volendam cruising the Amazon River so didn’t post photos. So I’ll go back to our two South America cruises in 2012 and 2015 that visited that port. The first trip was on Star Princess on March 7, 2012. According to my photo book the ship was delayed for several hours that day due to fog, so they allowed the ship to stay longer in port by the same number of hours. From my photos it appears we boarded a bus at the port and took a tour of Lima highlights. We saw this guy in the city but I hope he has a seat for that bicycle somewhere! Next photo is of one of the many large, ornate buildings seen that day, the Archbishop’s Palace. The Government Building, home of the President of Peru, located on the edge of the Plaza de Armas. The yellow building is the Municipal Palace of Lima The Cathedral of Lima. All these buildings line the massive Plaza de Armas. After driving around and around the city, we next went to the Parque del Amor in Miraflores. There is a famous statue there called The Kiss or "El Beso". There were plenty of people in the waves of the water below the Parque del Amor. And though I didn’t take a photo I remember people paragliding from the cliff to the water below. Three years and 2 days later on March 9, 2015 the Ruby Princess arrived in Callao. This time DH was recovering from an allergic reaction to something he ate, no doubt a wild mushroom. It had happened before. So in the afternoon I took a Princess shuttle bus to a local mall. I stuck around about an hour and went back. Not very exciting. Here’s a few pictures I took along the way. I took no photos inside the mall, which was modern and big. I would not be happy to be a driver with these vehicles right on my bumper! This may be the actual mall – Real Plaza Salaverry You definitely should find something to do outside of Callao when there unless malls are your thing.

Good morning friends! We woke up to a clear morning with a temp of 55. High will be 78 and nice sunny skies today. Thank you Rich @richwmn for the Daily and Fleet Report. First and foremost, a very happy 67th birthday to our friend Graham @grapau27. We hope you have many more. How will you be celebrating today? Nice days to celebrate today. Black cats get a bad rap being bad luck but I think they are some of the most beautiful cats I've seen. American beer day is a good one too. A salute to our Navy on their special day. The quote is an interesting way of looking at vegetarianism. The cauliflower parmesan might be acceptable to vegetarians. I would pass on the mango hurricane and the red wine. Good days in history. Thank you Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for the great work reporting on food and beverages here. Prayers for all here on the Daily who are sick or in pain. Prayers for those at war and the hostages involved, plus those who died and their families in Lewiston, Maine. Also my DB, Scott and Mark, and friends Bob and Sandy. Glad to hear Sam is home now Carol @mamaofami. Cheers to those cruising, preparing to cruise and celebrating happy events. Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for your excellent list keeping! Prayers for you each day! I enjoyed the photos yesterday of Oban @Mtn2Sea. DS is traveling to Los Angeles for Parent's weekend at UCLA, as is his DW. Last weekend it was Columbus, Ohio and the weekend before Frisco, Texas. Next weekend will be Minnesota for another away soccer game for Ren and teammates. I told him he must have a lot of American Airlines miles already and he said yes! He is using some to plan a trip to Spain during Spring break for his DW and himself. Sounds good to me! He used to travel exclusively on Delta but Dallas is a hub for American so he switched. He said the miles go further on AA when using them for special trips like Madrid next year. The Daily port is Callao, Lima, Peru. It was our port on Dec. 2, 2022 which happened to be during my Amazon river cruise. However I've been to the port twice and will have some photos to share with you this time. Here's the link to that posting. Oosterdam is in Naples and our friend Annie @marshhawk is there also on Carnival Pride. I'm sure she and Chuck are having a fantastic cruise. I hope each and every one of you have a wonderful day!

Good morning friends! Another typical fall morning with 57F and clear skies. High will be 77 and sunny pleasant weather. Thank you Rich @richwmn for the Daily and Fleet Report for Thursday, Oct. 26. Today's days of celebration are widely varied. First and foremost, let us thank our servicemen and women on National Day of the Deployed. Their service is appreciated even more lately with all that's going on in the world. Mom used to make mincemeat pie for the holidays but I didn't like it. And last but not least is Horseless Carriage Day. Anyone who has preserved one of those ancient vehicles have real gems on their hands. Imagine how exciting to move from horse and buggy to a mechanical vehicle! Today's quote is amusing. Turkey with wild rice soup sounds hearty on a cool fall or cold winter day. No thanks to whatever the cocktail is. Yes, I would try the Sauvignon Blanc as I prefer white wines to red. Interesting days in history regarding the Northwest Passage and soccer/rugby facts. Thank you Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for your great reports every day!🤗 Prayers are taking longer and longer to finish each day and now we have the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine to add to them. What an awful night for the residents there last night! I hope this man is caught soon and with no further death or injury to innocent people, including our law enforcement. He should never have been allowed to own a gun after his mental health issues this year. Too many people are falling through the cracks who should have been reported to law enforcement. Then of course we still have those in Israel and Ukraine to pray for. Too much conflict and war happening! Prayers for all our Daily members along with our family members and friends. Personal prayers for DB, friend Susan's DH Scott and DB Mark. Praying for improvement in pain and disability for all here! 🙏 Cheers to all celebrating happy events and cruising!🥂 I see Annie's ship Carnival Pride is in Messina with Nieuw Statendam. That's interesting. Good news having a new Speaker of the House. Rep. Mike Johnson made a great speech yesterday and now they can all get back to business and hopefully get something done.👏 Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the Care and Celebration list today and I hope you got a few more hours sleep. May you receive help with your painful leg condition soon. Our port destination today is Oban, UK Scotland. This is the second time having that port mentioned and last time was Nov. 10, 2021. I haven't been there before and have no photos to share. Here's the link to Nov. 10, 2021 for your convenience. Let's hope today is a better day for all. Stay safe and well!

Vanessa @JazzyV it sounds like you had a thorough exam today. I hope the suggestions help with alleviating pain, that the MRI shows something they can do to help, and the neurosurgeon appointment can be made soon. I'm so sorry you're in this much pain!

Yes, definitely got spoiled. We have received emails from the new president and I hope everything that was taken away during and right after the shutdown is back soon. Same for Holland America though. Ray @USN59-79 if you'd rather ask your questions here we will answer as best we can. Hopefully no one minds us discussing other cruise lines. Speaking of other cruise lines, our friends Annie @marshhawk and Chuck are in Katakolon today and in Messina tomorrow. I hope she remembers to be in front of the Messina Cathedral before noon to see the wonderful display of the figures going round and round and the music and sounds played. She must not have internet on the Carnival Pride because I haven't heard from her again. Bruce @aliaschief I guess the fact there are so few guests to memorize faces helps with them remembering you so quickly. Plus they probably have your face on the screen when you check in for dinner.

Not a flavor I would have thought of, but...DH would probably like it. He also ordered the caviar once or twice on our cruises. Oh, and a cold bottle of champagne to go with it. The knitting and stitching ladies (me included) would sit in the Observation Bar at the top front of the ship and drink champagne or whatever else caught our fancy. Sometimes they would ask for a hot coffee with Bailey's. Anything you want at your command. You and Sue have to go up to the Observation Bar and see how nice it is for viewing scenic places. In Antarctica we could run out one of those two side doors and stand on that deck in front of the windows to see whales or seals, icebergs or penguins, then run back inside and continue looking out, stitching, knitting, talking. Same with Seabourn Square at the rear of the ship, deck 7 only not a forward view of course. I often wished for a way out of HAL's Crow's Nest to take a few photos and get back inside quickly.

I think you could be right about that. Brenda @bennybear maybe you'd better wait to see what Bruce @aliaschief says about their current chocolate menu. 😉 It was 5 years ago this month since I had the pleasure of devouring my Seabourn chocolates. I'm a big fan of mint chocolate and they had those too.

Joy, I almost missed your post because it must have popped up while I was posting earlier today. Thanks for the good thoughts for Ren. I'm sure he'll do what's best for himself. I'm just worried about what's going on these days on so many college campuses. What a bummer about your new phone. I'd definitely turn that lemon in and demand a new one! Hope you have a nice dinner tonight! We had a similar dinner last night. Rice and brussels sprouts but with baked chicken tenders instead of pork chops. DH loves pork chops but probably prepared the chicken just because I prefer it. My Mom would have been so proud of me! I didn't eat brussels sprouts as a child, but learned to like them due to better preparation methods as I got older. Mom always boiled the heck out of them. The house reeked with the smell! I remember those glue bottles. Always glueing the opening in the lid shut so you had to poke a new opening in that rubber top. I must be really old!! Funny, I thought the Ruby Princess was going to be rammed by a Thomson ship in 2015. Now called Marella cruise line. It's not that small of a harbor! From what people say on Cruise Critic you need to call immediately to get these upsell offers but at least you're on a waitlist. I don't know because I've never taken an upsell before. I usually pick the cabin I want, and the prices of the upsells have been ridiculously high. $99 sounds like a bargain!

Lorraine @cruising sister I'm very sorry to hear of your DB's (and Baby Murphy's grandpa) new health problem. You're right, that family has been through way too much. We will certainly add him to our prayers each day.

Nice choices. Does Seabourn still have their special pillow chocolates with different flavors. I seem to remember an orange flavored chocolate. And they were large, too. Of course chocolate doesn't last long around me...

Debbie @dfish the meatball recipes looks sooo good today! Thank you for posting them. Especially appropriate on pasta day as Nancy said.

Nancy, that's when we were in St. Lucia in 2019, February 17. We were on Rotterdam and Koningsdam was across the harbor. That was a nice sail away following Koningsdam. Were you in an aft NS that cruise, having dinner on the verandah? We started our cruise on Feb. 3 with too much fog to leave Tampa and had to spend the night tied up at the dock until midday Feb. 4.

Same here Roy @rafinmd. Very frustrating plus not looking forward to the PET scan is worrisome.

Thank you Graham. I'm her godmother and she never forgets to send me a card on my birthday. A really sweet niece! This meme is hysterical! Thanks for enlarging. I also enjoyed the ghost fashion meme yesterday so much. What talent the originator has! I meant to ask if they offered you a choice of soaps? When we arrived the stewardess asked us to pick our favorite out of four brands. All designer brands but I had no idea! I liked the fact when you finished a bottle of wine or champagne from your refrigerator, the stewardess added a new one. The curtain between the living area and bedroom area was nice too. Helped to keep the room dark in the morning so you can sleep in, like you slept in today. I don't know if this is current advice but when we were on board we made reservations at the no extra charge specialty restaurant The Grill by Thomas Keller. Since there's no extra charge dining times book up fast. They hope to accommodate each stateroom at least once per cruise. I read that they will be replacing the Grill with a new restaurant on Quest in January 2024. Here's a blog article about it: https://blog.pavlus.com/2023/10/24/seabourns-new-solis-specialty-restaurant-to-replace-thomas-keller-eateries/ I was going to recommend to @USN59-79 Ray, that you check the Seabourn board here on Cruise Critic. They can probably answer all the questions you might have. It's not as heavily populated as the Holland America board so it might take a little time to get answers to questions you post. I haven't been over there in a long time!

Checking out a few pics from our 2015 Ruby Princess and 2019 Rotterdam cruises which stopped in Castries. In 2015 the Ruby was docked on the good side of the harbor, in 2019 and 2022 Rotterdam and Volendam were on the opposite side. When you step off the ship on the wrong side of the harbor the environment isn't the best. Here is a photo of the Koningsdam on the best side, where you see the triangle shaped building along the shore. When you walk to downtown from that side it isn't too bad. There is Koningsdam, photo taken from Rotterdam. See the pyramid? From 2015, a sailboat from Stockholm as seen in Marigot Bay. Far from home, and a recent port of the day here. a nice resort at Marigot Bay, named Capella. I just read they've done some renovations recently, but it's still there. Want to get to that little beach across from the marina? Here's how.