CGTNORMANDIE

2 hours ago, Donald said:

McLipLids

All the parts of a cow that you would never, ever consider eating go into what Americans usually call hot dogs.

That’s an old story oft told.  We have some excellent host dogs here in NE.  Kayem, Old Neighhood, Deutchmaker, Marketbasket, etc. etc.  None of these use cattle byproducts.  

On 5/8/2024 at 7:57 PM, BklynBoy8 said:

BANANA SPLIT

 

BUTTERSCOTCH W VANILLA ICE CREAM

Ahhh…the banana split…vanilla, chocolate and strawberry…with crushed pineapple, strawberries and chocolate syrup.  The best banana splits are made with hot fudge rather than chocolate syrup.  

On 5/13/2024 at 1:08 PM, XBGuy said:

 

That old wives' tale was no match for my wife's rule:  Do not eat raw oysters taken from warm waters--ever.

On 5/13/2024 at 1:08 PM, XBGuy said:

 

That old wives' tale was no match for my wife's rule:  Do not eat raw oysters taken from warm waters--ever.

Agreed…warm water oysters are no match for North Eastern cold water oysters.  We have many oyster farms in Mass, NH and Maine.  These oysters are some of the best in the world.  I love my own version of Oysters Rockefeller and a good “Oyster He Stew”.  

On 3/1/2024 at 1:16 PM, CGTNORMANDIE said:

We had to postpone lunch today and move it to next Friday.  I’ll report on the veal situation then.😋

Well…we were finally able to go to lunch and I ordered the veal parm…just so-so

Looks like I’ll stick with the chicken and egg plant.  

14 hours ago, Lois R said:

CGT, OMG.........sounds like you went through some really bad s***. I hope you are feeling better soon! And I am glad you are home!

 

My next cruise is at the end of this month.......going on Celebrity Eclipse to Bermuda. Sailing out of New Jersey. It is my first time back on Celebrity in 7 years😮I booked a Sky Suite, all the way aft......so a nice big balcony.  

 

Thanks Lois, I’m about 99% at this point.  I’m feeling better every day.  Celebrity Eclipse in a SS!…SWEET!  Bermuda is best in late May.  

12 hours ago, Lois R said:

Hi CGT, haven't chatted with you in a long time.......how are you doing? I was in the hospital twice since the beginning the of the year😮......I had kidney stones........the Dr gave me a print out with the type of stone I had and food that is good for stones, some not so good and the "avoid and limit" these foods........seems some different seafoods are on the "limit them" list. 

Anyway, they got the stones out and I feel fine.

I don't like a Manhattan but would love to come to your cocktail party anyway😃

Hi Lois, I’m just a week out from a three week stay in hospital.  I had septicemia from an infected catheter that went directly into my heart.  It was a close one…two more hours and I would have been cashing in my chips!  It took a week to clean up my blood and give me a new catheter for dialysis.  Then they found a GI bleed.  They tested me thoroughly but found nothing.  The septicemia and heavy antibiotics left me leg less.  I had to go to rehab for my third week.  I’m home for an entire ten days and I’m walking fine though sometimes with a cane.  So how was your April…LOL? 
 

Where are you cruising next???  

As an ocean liner historian I have yet to figure out what the purpose of this venture is???  This project was first announced after the movie “Titanic “ appeared 1997.  It was also reported that the ship was being built in a Chinese ship yard.  Rumors os an impending new build have been rampant for 25 years…but again I ask…what’s the point?  Maybe a floating museum exhibit hotel would be a better business plan.  At any rate I seriously doubt we are going to see Titanic sailing into New York Harbor anytime soon.  

10 hours ago, Harters said:

Do people still have cocktail parties? 

 

 

YES! I just hosted a cocktail party

and three people came…me, myself and I!🫢

We had Manhattans!

On 3/9/2024 at 9:42 AM, dreameral000 said:

I never been on a transatlantic cruise and we are considering the Adventure of the seas on October. It leaves port canaveral and arrives in Lisbon. Do the cruise lines increase the daily events/activites and offer more choices? Does rcl offer guest lectures. Not sure if  I would get bored, but consensus appears I shouldn’t. Looking for any input would be welcome. What else is different than a 7 day cruise besides the sea days.

The good news is that RCI Adventure Of The Seas will have an increased activity vibe.  You will have plenty of activities and entertainments to interest you.  Sea days mean you will need to enjoy the ship.  Have a plan…start your day with a brisk walk around the ship either outside or inside. Have a nice breakfast after your walk. Then go for a swim or hit the spa. Bring a good book along and find a nice spot to read for an hour or so.  Have a nice lunch.  Hit the casino, go to a lecture or watch a film on TV then take a nap.  Get ready for dinner and go have a cocktail or two before dinner.  Have a nice dinner then see a show then go dancing and a nightcap or special coffee.  Go to bed and then repeat the next day.  Whatever your preferences you will have plenty of activities to interest you.  You will also have an opportunity to get plenty of rest, good food and sea air while you unplug and unwind.  

On 3/5/2024 at 11:36 PM, jlawrence01 said:

 

I was at a travel show on Sunday March 3rd and I was talking to one of the Cunard reps.  He told me that what I was wearing that day - dockers and a collared golf shirts would be fine in the dining room on any night except for the two formal nights.  On those nights, you would wear a sports coat or a regular suit as opposed to a tuxedo.

 

I want to take a transpacific to Japan and continue on to the Philippines and Singapore but I am not going to carry an extra bag all through SE Asia with all sorts of formal clothing.

You need to meet my wife! 😂

Do not plan for balmy weather in May while crossing the North Atlantic.  The weather is still cooler in early May.  You might luck out in late May but the North Atlantic is very unpredictable.  

1 hour ago, Lois R said:

Lunch? I just made a ham and cheese omlette with 2 pieces of dark 8 grain bread, toasted. I love a good omlette🙂

Sautéed asparagus with spiral ham and either baby Swiss or sharp cheddar finished under the broiler and served fat and flat…yummmmm!  

15 hours ago, donaldbihl said:

We need some serious discussion about food. Our last two cruises were NCL Prima and Gem. The same food and exact menu on both. MDR was 2* at best. The specialty restaurants we tried were 5*. Why has the quality gone down so badly, and where can you find good quality meals without paying for specialty services? This is ruining our daily enjoyment, especially on sea days.

$$$$$$…You get my point…lol.  The days of NCL SS Norway are long gone.  When Knute kloster sold his interest NCL was changed forever.  I really miss the SS Norway and the level of food and service they offered onboard. Today NCL is a money machine that will “Nickel and dime all the time”.  The MDR is mediocre so the new ships have a dozen specialty restaurants that charge $$$$$.  

We had to postpone lunch today and move it to next Friday.  I’ll report on the veal situation then.😋

On 2/24/2024 at 3:36 PM, lenquixote66 said:

My all time favorite Italian dish is the old standard Veal Parmigiana.The best I ever ate was in a restaurant in Boston in 1973.

Finding a great veal parm these days is a near impossibility.  I’ve given up and I’ll just stick to chicken.  I tell you what…I’m going to lunch today at a good restaurant.  They have veal parm on their menu.  I’ll order it and report back here afterwards.

On 11/9/2023 at 8:20 AM, CGTNORMANDIE said:

Favorite seafood:  Alaskan King Crab, Maine/Canadian lobster baked stuffed, steamed, sautéed, served cold in salad/sandwich/roll, baked haddock, smoked haddock creamed Finan Haddie style, baked stuffed flounder with mornay sauce, Dover sole, shrimp any style, halibut mornay, seafood/lobster Newburg, oysters mornay, fried clams, steamed clams, mussels marinara, broiled or fried scallops and a few others along the way.  I love them all.
 

I have to say a real close first place would be The Fisherman’s Platter.  This is a fried feast of clams, scallops, shrimp, haddock and French fries with cole slaw and Tartar sauce.  You can also get this with the addition of fried lobster tail!

I forgot…Italian baked stuffed calamari with a red sauce made with the tentacles and pan sauce.  Served over linguini…this is my all-time favorite Italian dish!  

Check out MSC.  They have repo cruises to Brazil usually starting from Barcelona and Lisbon…an easy flight from Florida. 

Royal Caribbean has a high activity level onboard.  A definite difference when compared to Celebrity.

The Celebrity Eclipse is sailing Fort Lauderdale to Southampton on March 22, 2025 and The Holland America Niew Statendam will sail from FLL to Rotterdam on April 5th.  You will enjoy a number of activities onboard these gorgeous ships…especially the food and socializing.  You will not be bored.  The beauty of five or more consecutive days at sea is the ability to unplug completely.

I’ve sailed through some mighty rough water…a hurricane on QE2…Storms off Cape Hatteris…a 135 mph microburst off Bermuda on RCI Jewell Of The Seas.   Some of the worst weather I’ve ever heard of was from a gentleman who had been in the Merchant Marine in WW II.  He had sailed the ominous run to Murmansk during the war.  He was on a freighter.  He told me he had been through seas that were so rough that he was surrounded with a wall of water and could only see the sky if you looked directly up!  The run to Murmansk was, without a doubt, the most dangerous convoy duty there ever was.  Those merchant seamen were heroes.  

15 hours ago, Lois R said:

Have you tried smoked salmon?

Smoked salmon with onions fried with scrambled eggs…delish!

Thanks for the memories Norboy.  The red cloth looks like a scarf.  The clock is very impressive…and yes they were only given to First Class pax.  I see you have the Blue Book…in excellent condition…very nice.  

For those of you, who are Normandie aficionados and arm chair ocean liner historians, Youtube has just posted SS Normandie Le Harvre New York 1939.  This is a color film taken by a French engineer who was testing some new color film and equipment.  He and his wife were given a First Class ticket to New York so he could film Normandie in service.  This film shows Paris and New York as well as many glorious shots of the beloved Normandie with her incredible interiors.  It also shows the destruction of Normandie in New York harbor at the hands of incompetent Navy overseers and fire departments when the ship could have been saved.  The ship’s designer, Yourkevitch and members of the Normandie fire squad begged the Navy to go onboard and scuttle the ship.  Instead the ship was allowed to be filled with water topside and rolled over…a total loss.  French citizens all over France saw the newsreel of the fire and destruction and the wept in the theaters and on the streets at the news of Normandie’s destruction.  We ocean liner historians are thrilled with this film.  There were very few color pictures or films of Normandie.  This film was recently discovered by the son of the engineer who made the film.  
SS Normandie Le Harvre New York 1939 on YouTube.  

On 1/25/2024 at 10:25 AM, rnr4thatsme said:

Hi there!  Just wondering, on a transatlantic, does one usually encounter rough seas?   Since you are unsheltered by land?

We would need to get a bit more information.  Are you contemplating a transatlantic crossing?  If so…where and when.  You see Mr.4 a North Atlantic January crossing on the QM2  is a lot different than an April crossing in the Southern Atlantic on a repositioning cruise to Florida.  Weather conditions on the Atlantic can vary greatly depending on time of year, Northern or Southern etc.  

Thank you CFKM.  You have given us an excellent view of a Princess feast!