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[quote name='buggins0402']
For our international guests, including Canada, the luggage delivery may take longer, based on available services through Federal Express. We apologize for the additional delay.
[/QUOTE]

Something I noticed as Oceania scheduled flights out for passengers. The approximately half of the passengers that are Canadians, Brits, and "other" seemed to be last to be scheduled to leave. Now I'm learning that my luggage might not get to *distant* Canada until [B]after[/B] Christmas?

My suspicion is that Canadians tend not to complain or worse, sue.

By the way, I live closer to Miami than about half of the USA.

On the one hand, I'm glad it wasn't worse and there is a plan to get me my luggage. However, being constantly stuck at the end of the line is starting to go against my easygoing Canadian nature. Bah, humbug!

Did anyone else notice this?

--- JRW

I've posted the pictures I took that day with timestamps on Facebook.

 

 

The news reports don't seem to be getting it quite right on a few points.

 

--- JRW

About an hour after given the clearance to go ashore at St. Lucia, the power shut off, most remarkable as the ventilation fans went quiet. There was a call of "Code Bravo" over the PA system in our cabin. You know, the PA system that means something serious. A bit later, the Captain's calm voice reported a small fire, nothing serious. We took him at his word.

 

To get off the ship, they manually wrote down cabin numbers since computers require electricity.

 

We walked around St. Lucia for a bit, dodging cab drivers soliciting fares: in St. Lucia, the taxi hails you. Just before 11:00, came back to check for a status update to find an ambulance and EMTs furiously working on someone.

 

The update: we are working on the problem. Some passengers taking them at their word waited outside forward for the problem to be resolved. Meanwhile, aft, someone was dying.

 

Decided to leave and walk about as we waited. Returned at 4:00, where we took them up on what was being presented as an "option" to wait at the ferry terminal. The terminal is a big warehouse with two big rooms. Got there too late for the food, so we had bread sticks, cookie crumbs, and bottled water.

 

I mentioned the two big rooms, right? At first, announcements were made in the room on the left, so the right-roomers kind of missed a lot of information updates. Kudos to the General Manager and "blue shirts" who got things running more efficiently as the night went on.

 

After sitting on plastic lawn chairs in a warehouse for almost 10 hours, surviving on bread and water, we boarded busses to the main St. Lucia airport. Much like the warehouse experience, the airport food ran out before I got there.

 

Miami was pretty organized. We got a hotel room even though Oceania had already booked a same-day flight.

 

Arrived home in Ottawa, Canada at 9:00 p.m. on Friday, about 30 hours after being sent to the ferry terminal (warehouse) and about 36 hours after leaving the Insignia for the last time with the shirt on my back.

 

Lessons learned? If it's valuable, put it in the cabin safe since that's all you get back in a situation like this. If there's a problem and you can leave the ship before it's evacuated, take a bag with a few more things than you'd normally take. Always leave your room clean and like someone else might need to pack it. Fare categories have no meaning when selecting your plastic lawn chair and bread sticks at the warehouse.

 

--- JRW