StLouisCruisers

Bon Voyage! Have a wonderful time!

The more booking numbers the better when it comes to shareholder credits. 👍 Carolyn, nice photos of your visits to Corfu. It's a good thing your DH got himself checked out at the walk-in clinic. Wishing him a swift recovery. Love the photos today, Tony. Sarande is coming up in early November but you will be on a cruise then. And I looked for a post from you the one time we've had Sarande in the past, but you didn't post photos that day. Otherwise I would have copied them and pasted to the Daily for you. Maybe next time you can post your no doubt wonderful photos. Sharon, Craig had some really nice photos from Corfu. My DH rarely takes photos, only if I'm sick or if he doesn't take a tour with me. Thanks for sharing! So many cats, eh? Excellent photos Brenda. It's good to see some variety. Hope the return home is not too taxing for you. I bet you're glad you decided to go ahead with these two cruises. It looked like you enjoyed yourself.

Thanks to all for the anniversary wishes for DD and DSIL. Much appreciated! Lorraine @cruising sister you story about the dog giving you a disgusted look and moving to the other end of the sofa cracked me up! I hope your cough is better soon. I can sympathize due to my own dratted cough. Jack @Heartgrove great photos today! @Mr. Boston thank you for the door photo! Beautiful photos of your recent visit to Corfu. Nancy @ottahand7 that's an excellent deal with all the shareholder credits. Did you have three booking numbers or just one? Debbie @tupper10 stay safe as well as all Floridians in the dangerous weather conditions this week. Terri @Cruzin Terri thanks for the pictures taken while in Corfu. The snack looks yummy! Paul @kochleffel thank you for your photos as well. Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser Nice pics of your various times spent in Corfu. Thanks for posting them. Terry @smitty34877 nice to hear the aide is getting along well with Tana. Your planned gathering for memories of your DH Lou sounds like it will be quite nice. I agree that having some time to grieve before the gathering can be beneficial due to shock and stress at the time of passing. Sharon @Sharon in AZ the cat looks "healthy", meaning well fed. Either that or expecting!

Thanks Graham! I'm going to text them now since she's getting ready to go to work (school) and he is preparing to work now too. By the way I just read World Sight Day was yesterday but that's okay, we can celebrate our Gift of Sight any day of the year!

Carol @mamaofami I'm very sorry to hear of more troubles for Sam and that he's back in the hospital. Also you certainly didn't need the smoke alarm going off. I hope things turn out better than you expect today. Prayers for you and Sam!🙏

Good morning friends! It is damp outside and 59F. We only expect a high of 64, cloudy with some afternoon showers possible. Still any day you wake up is a good day! Thank you Rich @richwmn for your Daily and Fleet Report for this Friday the 13th. Apparently it is International Skeptics Day but I'm not entirely sure about that. 😉 I hope I don't say too many silly things today, but most importantly it is World Sight Day. All of us should be grateful for our sight and not take it for granted. I'll pass on the cod dish, the Beam and Hops (?) and the wine. Three interesting days in history. Even though I wouldn't partake in the food and beverage I thank Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for their reports on them. Prayers for so many. The people on the Care list, especially those with chronic pain. The people of Israel and Ukraine, my DB, my friend Susan's DH Scott and DB Mark, and especially for dear little Baby Murphy who has such an uncertain future.🙏 But we must remember to celebrate! Those of us cruising, preparing to or just returning. Ann @cat shepard for her sister and her own safety from tornadoes. And even improvement in the health of our Dailyites since we have had some good news there.🎉 Happy wedding anniversary to my DD today. I hope they celebrate even if it is Friday the 13th. Don't wait for tomorrow!🥂 Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for your keeping of the lists for us! Wonderful job! The port of the day is Corfu Island, Kerkyra (or Kerkira), Greece. It was listed here once before on Oct. 2, 2022 spelled as Kerkira. I'll post the link to that date for you. I have been there three times (2012 Crown Princess, 2017 Westerdam and 2018 Pacific Princess). Pictures from the 2017 visit to follow since we had the best weather that trip. It was August. We arrived in Kerkira on the island of Corfu, Greece on Aug. 20, 2017 on Westerdam. It was a pretty day for a change. We hadn't had good luck weather-wise there before. But it would be worse on the next visit after this one. In 2018 we were there on Pacific Princess on Nov. 27 and got totally drenched down to our socks walking back to the ship. I thought this was a pretty little carriage to take a ride in. I hope the horse is given numerous breaks though. We walked past the New Fortress built in 1577. Not a wide street but it gets the job done. Protecting the beautiful produce from the morning sunshine. I've never seen that done before at a market. But look how perfect it is. The Old Fortress of Kerkira, on the sea, built around 6 A.D. We enjoyed this sunny, not wet day in Kerkira. Here is a photo of a rainbow as we left Kerkira, Corfu in Nov. 2018 after heavy rainfall. Good luck today everyone! Have a wonderful day.

I'm glad you weren't in the path, but sorry for those who were. My town hasn't recovered from the tornado in January. The apartment across the road from our Kroger store still has crushed roofs with blue tarps on them, dozens of them. I have no idea why insurance hasn't moved that project along. The Hobby Lobby is still out of business too and it looks like it's still open to the elements. 🤷‍♀️

Looks like a fabulous Meet and Greet! I love that the officers decided to show up and hope that continues. I hope everyone behaved themselves and didn't barrage them with complaints! SMH!

I have made many projects on Shutterfly.com including magnets and tote bags/shopping bags with photos on them. There are many different size magnets to choose from. I suggest you look at them for some ideas. If you have all the items shipped to one address you only pay one shipping fee. Shipping ahead of time to each address adds to the cost.

Lorraine @cruising sister a very happy birthday to you today! Enjoy it and may you have many more!🎂 Annie @marshhawk if there is any way to keep in touch here and let us know how you are faring on your pre-cruise stay and your Rome to Home cruise, please do. If you can only email and not log in to CC, please consider emailing one of us to let us spread the word. If you would like to email me I am StLouisCruisers at yahoo dot com. Safe travels and Bon Voyage!!❤️

Costa Maya, Mexico is located on the Yucatan peninsula. What was at one point a fishing village is now a tourist destination for cruise ship passengers. You can stay right by the pier and lay by the pool, go shopping, eat at restaurants or even see the dolphins and flamingos they keep on the property. We have been there twice. The first time I took a tour of the Chacchoben Mayan ruins and the second time walked around the immediate pier area and even outside the walls to see a Mayan ruin replica we saw from the ship. On Dec. 10, 2015 we arrived on Regal Princess and I got off the ship to join my tour. This is what the area looks like from your ship. You walk through the “village” and get on your bus for a tour. Once we left, we saw this replica of the ruins outside the walls of the village. I had seen it from the top deck of the ship that morning. Arriving at Chacchoben. This area was excavated by an American archeologist in 1972. My grandson’s Flat Stanley (school project) was excited to be this close to the ancient ruins. Here they are, what looks like stairs, all uncovered Our tour guide Pablo telling us about the ruins’ history Carved stones uncovered Last looks at the Chacchoben ruins Then on Feb. 8, 2019 we sailed to Costa Maya on the Rotterdam. This time we simply walked off the ship and explored what was available there. At breakfast I saw this huge ship, Allure of the Seas arriving. It looked like they were going to run us down! Walking between the two ships, you can see there’s not much space between the overhanding sections of each ship From this view you can see how freaky the two ships so close together look. Here’s some shopping for you The pool area Walking outside the walls we went about a block or two away and found the ruins replica seen in 2015. Back inside, we found a lovely group of flamingos And a dolphin pool Not to mention a healthy looking iguana A good comparison between “just right” and “way too big” If you prefer the ocean to swim in I recommend the right side of the dock and not the left Actually, I’d stick with the pool!

Good morning friends. We have had a good long rain since late yesterday afternoon and it will continue this morning. Temp is 57 and this afternoon it will be 65 and cloudy. Thank you Rich @richwmn for our Daily and Fleet Report! Today is Cookbook Launch Day for some reason. Seems like they launch all year long to me but whatever. 😄 I am glad to see National Savings Day because everybody should try to save for "rainy" days like today. Hurray for Old Farmers! My grandpa was a farmer and thankfully lived to age 87. The quote is interesting. Beef taco soup sounds good, no thanks to the Rye Opener (?), but I'd like to try the Rosé. Good for Christopher Columbus, but he was way off thinking he was in East Asia! Amazing the first modern submarine was launched in 1900. I wouldn't have been brave enough to get in it. Thanks ahead of time to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for their food and beverage reports this morning. Prayers first thing today for the people of Israel and Ukraine. Such horrific happenings on our news these days. Also for my DB, Susan's DH Scott and DB Mark, our Care list of those in need, and a miracle for Baby Murphy and her parents. 🙏 May all our aches and pains go away! Extremely minor soreness in my arms. Meanwhile congrats to all celebrating happy events and glorious cruises around the world. May everyone have smooth seas, superb food, and interesting ports of call.🥂 Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for your great lists each day. We appreciate you!🎉 The port of the day is Costa Maya (Quintana Roo), Mexico on the Mexican Riviera. This is a first time for this port so no links to post for you. I visited there twice in 2015 (Regal Princess) and 2019 (Rotterdam). Once I took a tour and the second time just explored the local development not going too far. Hoping everyone has a great day. Try to stay safe and well!🤞

When we stopped at Fanning Island I brought a tote bag of Ziploc baggies, each with a new toothbrush, dental floss and toothpaste tubes for the children. We walked back to the school (since we wanted to see some of the island anyway) and took it to a classroom where the teacher was happy to distribute to the class. Other passengers had the school supplies. No customs or forms to fill out. I didn't see a table to drop off donations that trip, 2017 on Maasdam.

I agree, that dock looks like one closer to downtown and much smaller. We've always docked at the larger one just a short distance away from Las Ramblas and to the south. It wouldn't be far by taxi, and in fact we've walked to Las Ramblas from there. Annie, I bookmarked a tipping article and usually forget to refer to it but this time I thought about it and checked for you. Here is what they say about Italy. Italy is another of the most visited countries in the world, home to some of the most romantic and beautiful cities in the world, as well as the Vatican, a ton of famous artwork, and fantastic food. Tipping is not expected in Italy. Restaurants and Bars – A service charge may be added to your bill, but the restaurant must make you aware of it. If there is no service charge, you can simply round up the bill, or hand a few euros to your server instead. Hotels – You should leave a couple of euros for the porter and the same again for the housekeeper. When you leave, you can tip the concierge if they offered you a good service. Guides, Tours, and Drivers – Tours are popular in Italian cities, and you should tip the guide €5-€10 (~$5-$11) depending on the length of the tour. Your taxi driver will not expect a tip, but round up the bill if you want to. Here is the article url in case you want to check other countries. https://upgradedpoints.com/travel/tipping-etiquette-around-the-world/ Good idea to not have all shots at the same time. I had two yesterday, flu and RSV and have no problems at all today, but YMMV! Thanks Jack @Heartgrove and Roy @rafinmd for your great photos of Kiel today.

Sounds like we're all getting jabs! My arms feel fine and no side effects so far. Not even fatigue. Annie @marshhawk I hope Chuck got to his infusion appointment okay and he returns home soon. And I hope the credit card arrived. If we were waiting for one it would be late too! Rotten luck! After the talk about the scam USPS texts yesterday I got one this morning too! What is wrong with people wanting to hoodwink us all and steal from us? Happy belated birthday @Nickelpenny! Sorry we missed you. Enjoy your subbing job today. I hope the kids behave for you. Thanks to Terri @Cruzin Terri and Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser for their photos today. I wouldn't mind doing that cruise again but I'd need a small ship on another line to do so.

Hamburg was a nice place to visit in 2017, too. We did some scenic cruising along the Elbe River as we approached Hamburg. Somehow they even found the wherewithal to make a beach on the river. Nearing the city center This SUV atop two shipping containers caught my eye. How did it get up there? Crane? The Louisiana Star would appear to be a long way from home. I'm guessing it's not really from the Bayou. A unique building with a whole lot of people enjoying the balcony. On Sundays like this everyone must spend their day together with family and friends. We were docked there overnight so on Monday we went for a walk around town and stopped at a botanical garden in Hamburg. I noticed a fancy doorway on a church (for my door people). We continued on and saw an actor taping a scene The impressive Town Hall. Next we came upon Alster Lakes in the middle of the city The botanical garden was quite large but the flowering plants were fairly ordinary. I've seen some great botanical parks in my travels so this one wouldn't compare. However, it was nice to find a calming spot to stroll. There were a couple of greenhouses as well. This greenhouse had a more desert landscape. Going back to the ship we passed by the bridge of love. We came right by the Philharmonic building which is where all the people were standing on the balcony the day before. Our little home A few hours later we were visited by an oompah band! Where else would you rather be? Nowhere! That concludes my pictures for today.

Good morning friends! It is 61 here, and will be cloudy and 74 later on. There is a good chance of showers this afternoon and evening, possibly overnight. Thank you Rich @richwmn for our Daily and Fleet Report! I will certainly celebrate the International Day of the Girl Child. Besides me having been a girl child, I have one daughter and two granddaughters who mean the world to me. No parties here unfortunately. A huge thank you to Emergency nurses! That's an extremely tough job. I think the quote is a good one. I'm sure Debbie will have some great recipes for the Thai turkey meatballs in coconut curry. I'll pass on the Pinnacle Moscow Mule but would gladly try the Sauvignon Blanc. Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for their reporting. As for the Day in History there were big changes in the Catholic church back in the early 1960's, all for the good. Prayers for the people of Israel who have had so many massacred. This also applies to Ukraine. Personal prayers for my DB with PF, Susan's DH and DB who are both extremely ill. In addition I pray for all here on the Daily, Baby Murphy and family who need a miracle, and those in pain needing relief. Hoping Annie and Chuck are able to finish up their preparations for their cruise. Congrats to all cruising currently and heading out for one. My arms aren't really hurting much from my two shots yesterday, thankfully. For Vanessa @JazzyV who keeps the lists so well for us, thank you for that! The port this morning is Kiel, Germany. The last time it was posted was March 28, 2022 but was shown as Kiel (Hamburg), Germany. Having been through the Kiel Canal and a port stop of Hamburg on the Prinsendam in 2017, I posted photos of our journey through the Kiel Canal first and then a second post with photos from Hamburg. I have not spent any time in Kiel itself. I will post the link to March 28, 2022 and my photos afterwards. Photos first of the Kiel Canal. On May 23, 2017 we were headed towards the Kiel Canal after visiting Hamburg the day before on the Elegant Explorer, Prinsendam. Hamburg was a beautiful city and we had a great time there just looking around. We approached the lock we had to go through to get into the Kiel Canal. People sat on the benches and waved to us. This would continue on along the canal. Leaving the locks. Some of our "fans". These people had a Welcome flag, a Prinsendam flag and a U.S. flag. Some people would stop at a pullover, wave to the Prinsendam, then hop in their cars and drive along further to stop and wave some more. It was really fun keeping an eye out for them that afternoon. I made a comfy spot in the window sill of our room so I wouldn't miss anything. The window wasn't clean enough for good photos though, so I'd run outside once in a while to take some pictures. More new friends! I'll never forget our journey down the Kiel Canal. Not that many cruise ships are able to navigate that busy waterway. Photos of Hamburg will be next. I hope everyone here has a positive, healthy day!

Maybe the bananas aren't up to his standards. I know I like mine just as they turn from green to yellow. 😉🤣

I agree with what Tony @sailingdutchy that at the end of your walk down the hill of the Botanical Garden, you will be easily able to walk back to your starting point, or wherever the shuttle bus drops you off. You will walk right by the Beehive and the Parliament Building. The Beehive is the executive building of the Parliament. I found this nice map of the downtown area which may help you plan for your trip. Try printing it off to take with you. You can right click on the map, then click on open image in a new tab, and should be able to print it off with your printer. DH and I went to a local grocery pharmacy before lunch and got our flu shots and RSV shot. I'll have to let you know which arm hurts worse tomorrow, but the RSV shot hurt more to receive than the flu shot did.

Annie @marshhawk I'm very sorry to hear of all these problems cropping up in the final days before your cruise. I hope you can get the Euros delivered, the credit card sorted out, and the cat sitter Donna to actually fulfill her promise to help with the cats while you're away. I'll add you to my prayers to get all the help you can with your last minute problems. I hope you can finally get to relax once setting sail. You two deserve it!

Thank you for more info on the Countess, Graham @grapau27. It's nice that someone thought to honor this very unusual for her times woman.

Here is a little bit of info on Ada Lovelace. English mathematician (1815–1852) Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace was an English mathematician and writer, chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine. She was the first to recognise that the machine had applications beyond pure calculation. Ada Byron was the only legitimate child of poet Lord Byron and Lady Byron.

Good morning friends! Today it is 10 degrees warmer than it was yesterday at this time - 53F. Today will be mostly cloudy and 79 for a high. Thank you Rich @richwmn for today's Daily and Fleet Report. I would love to know who Ada Lovelace is and if Graham @grapau27 doesn't know, then I will "DuckDuckGo" it to find out who she is. But first we must face our fears and honor metrics! It is also National Angel Food Cake Day and National Cake Decorating Day. Ironic how the quote today mentions Angel Food cake, too. But I don't like tarantulas at all! The chicken penne pasta dish sounds very good, and the drink reminds me of the salmon dish that was so popular here a few months ago. No thanks to the pinot noir. In this day in history, that was a horrific number of deaths in 1780 after that gigantic hurricane in the Caribbean! Very nice that Mr. Johnson was able to patent the bicycle frame in 1899. Thank you Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for your posts on the food and beverages each and every day. Prayers this morning again (and this will continue) for the Israelis and Ukrainians. Also for DB and Susan's DH Scott and DB Mark. I received two texts from her yesterday and they are having ups and downs every day. She's praying for him to get his heart back into cardio rhythm with ablation and pacemaker to follow. He has already been in the hospital about 12 days now. Thank you everyone for your prayers for him. I can't and won't forget prayers for my friends here on the Daily. Hoping for improvement for all! In addition I offer my congrats to all celebrating something, and for the large group of cruisers out there. I hope you all enjoy every minute of your cruise! Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the wonderful job of list keeping you do! The port today is Wellington, New Zealand, a wonderful place to visit. It was our port once before on Dec. 25, 2022. Roy @rafinmd posted the Daily and Fleet report that day, so here is the link from that post. We were lucky enough to stop in Wellington, New Zealand on Dec. 2, 2017 on Sun Princess. We spent a very enjoyable 62 days seeing the sights in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. We had a shuttle drop us off downtown and walked a few blocks to the Cable Car ticket counter. This is where they load and unload. It actually seems like a funicular to me, but once on top we stopped to take a photo of the view up there with the cable car going past. Planning our route into the Botanical Garden The visitor center and entrance to the Garden. In the visitor center we saw this old time cable car Outside we saw this sundial This tells you how to use the sundial during each month of the year. They had a cactus and succulent section in the garden. This family was feeding a whole flock of ducks From the gardens we walked past the Parliament Building and the Beehive which is the Executive wing of the Parliament. Then we passed by the National War Memorial before heading back to our shuttle bus. An interesting sculpture along the way. Hoping we all have a great day and don't forget to stay safe.

I was checking out the roll call for the Nov. 9, 2024 42 day Volendam Ultimate Mediterranean and Passage we booked this summer. The one certain relatives of ours are supposedly booked on? I saw Carolyn @Cruising-along is booked on it too. 👋 I haven't signed up on that roll call yet. I wanted to know what others thought of the possibility of Israel being replaced on that cruise with other ports. Israel is set for Dec. 2 and 3rd, 2024. I'm also going to check out some of the upcoming cruises that have Israel as a destination to see what's happening with them. But of interest to me was that Julia @JAM37 is also going along on that cruise. We've missed seeing her post here since summer of 2022. Just wanted to let everyone know she is still around, but not very active on Cruise Critic anymore. That's perfectly fine, but I was relieved to hear she's okay.

On Zaandam in August we had fresh eggs prepared to order for us most every day. They brought trays of small cups with the eggs already broken and ready to go. Some had one, some had two eggs in them. No need to waste time breaking an egg to begin cooking. The fresh scrambled eggs were much better than the already prepared scrambled eggs most people had plated for them. DH would order his scrambled eggs "dry" so they weren't all watery like they are sometimes prepared. I think breakfast in the Lido is for the most part excellent!