JimnKaren

Our 'retirement' cruise was like this. I gotta agree that, although I like sea day, those days getting back to California is a looong time. However, since it was a 'special' cruise, I put up with doing not much but reading.

Jim

Oh so sad! Now I gotta get a life!

Jim

I'm bummed! I did not get that.

Jim

We flew a seaplane in Honolulu. Great trip, lots to see. Four of us plus the pilot. Got lots of good photos.

Jim

Welcome to Cruise Critic. Weather patterns are variable. Storms along the west coast can (and will) create some rough water. Just like in Florida, sometimes it is good and other times it is "what are we doing here?" type weather.

Low and toward the center will keep things on an even keel.

Jim

This old man is confused. We will be flying into Seattle on Monday 9/17 (Southwest doesn't go to Vancouver) for Island Princess on 9/19. I can get a bus from Seattle going north within 2 hours of arrival at SeaTac. Take the light rail (approximately 33 minutes) and get on the bus. However, it indicates that we would be limited to two less-than-25 pounds pieces of luggage. What? Does that mean those buses don't have storage?

We could take the train, but that would mean staying overnight in Seattle to get the morning train. If I have to, I will; but I don't really want to do that.

Comments are welcome. Solutions are even better!

You will have days of cruising only; generally the front deck of the ship will be open. Good views. You book a verandah and all you see is one side. Not always the best view (north or south).

More days in port than cruising. Save you money for doing 'things', not looking out the side of the ship.

Jim

I once asked a HAL captain about things crossing from one line to another. His comment was something along the line of, 'not in our lifetime'!

I was asking about the Princess benefit for veterans. Nope, No way. Nada. Nil.

Jim

We did the Atlantic Adventurer twice. Great time with lots of wonderful people. However, HAL had to discount the fares toward the end as not enough people wanted to do it. My guess is that if they were to add a second Voyage of the Vikings, so many would book it that the price would go down and it would be the same as the Atlantic Adventurer.

If the Atlantic Adventurer were to come back, we would book it on the first day!!!!!!

Jim

I agree with the above.

Jim

OK, we will be in town in mid-May and probably stay at Doubletree. It appears that Von's would be a decent place to shop for stuff that we cannot fly with. I looked at their ads and it appears that all the pricing is reflective of the 'club pricing'. I'll be there this time for one day, what kind of hoops will I need to jump through (that would be a sight!!) to get their special pricing on a couple of bottles of wine?

Jim

I sent a letter to the office of the President of HAL indicating that I would never book something like this. They did not care --- obviously.

Jim

Yeah, that non-refundable is goofy. I recommend pleading ignorance and pay a bit more, but you can cancel with only a small deposit.

I sent a letter to Seattle and they responded that they feel the non-refundable is the way of the future. NOT!

Jim

For those who might enjoy being on board a large Navy ship, The Midway Museum in San Diego is worth your money. Be sure to set aside several hours for the experience. Amazingly, the place is basically staffed by volunteers, very few paid people are involved.

When I was in boot camp in 1966, the 'old' Bonnie Dick went sailing by (different class ship). It was an amazing sight to see.

Jim

I believe that those cook-outs are now referred to as a "cook-in"; same concept, but they cannot cook outdoors near the pool.

Jim

Rizal Park is really nice. On Sundays, the park is packed with locals. So glad that you had an opportunity to see so many things.

Jim

It is too bad that so many museums around the world are closed on Mondays. I try to figure that kind of thing into plans when we are in port.

Jim

I was in the Navy in the late 1960s and was stationed at a transmitter site in Capas, Tarlac, north of Clark. Three times a day a bus made the run from our base to just outside Clark in the part of Angeles City called Balibago (pretty much Navy territory, not Air Force space). The Navy base has been de-commissioned, but what made it famous was that was originally called Camp O'Donnell, the end of the Bataan Death March. It was a long trek and most did not make the entire distance.

Clark was huge, our base had 98 enlisted men and 2 officers and our PX was smaller than my bedroom. If we wanted anything of significance, we ordered it thru the Clark PX and had it delivered to our base. If we wanted to really do some shopping, we rode that bus onto Clark and did our purchasing that way.

I used to tell people that the weather where I was stationed was only two seasons: hot; and hot and raining. When I first arrived on base that looked at my footwear and got me some above-the-ankle boots. When I asked why that was necessary as I was an office-type person, I was told that eventually I would be outside and those boots helped to deter the snakes!

Jim

We were on Veendam twice last year. First time, we noticed that there were lots and lots of books in the exchange. So many that most of them were moved to another part of the library. When we went later in the year, I took aboard 8 and came off with 15 (don't count the ones I read and left there).

Unfortunately, we also cruised on Zuiderdam shortly after dry-dock. I was aghast that there were no (zero) books in the crow's nest until the second day. New books. Lots of pretty 'coffee-table' books about travel and birds and snorkeling, etc. But way short on biographies and fiction. I managed to find and read two HAL books, but I relied on the exchange books. I asked a staff member where they intended to put the book exdhange and was told that Seattle has strongly discouraged such things. Way too much space in The Crow's Nest was taken up by their EXC program.

We had to cancel our 28-day Incan Empire cruise on Maasdam, and I had 8 books to take to the exchange. Now I will have to wait until later in the year before making the trades. The smaller the ship (in my experience), the better the library.

Yeah, I did let the 'powers that be' in Seattle know of my displeasure about the situation on Zuiderdam. You should, also.

Jim

Actually, many of the wines that were on the Navigator and Admiral packages are no longer listed as being available. If you have a favorite from one of those previous packages, ask your wine server - your favorite might still be back there somewhere. It was for us and we were happy.

Jim

A cruise could be something different from your daily activities. Or not!

I read at home and I read on a cruise ship. The difference is that there are meals served that are different than what I usually get at home. There are people who I can chat with who are different from those at home. I can get off the ship and explore different things (and sometimes, I don't get off - Aruba 12 times so far). I don't have a piano player at home, as there is on a cruise ship. I don't have the opportunity to view 'things' from up high (The Crow's Nest) when I am at home. I don't often have the opportunity to hear live classical music at home as I might on a Holland America Line ship.

To each his own. Possibly, the OP could elaborate what other experiences have been seen negatively.

Jim

So much to do that you will be tempted to book another Hawaii cruise! Have fun.

Jim

Icy Strait Point is not a huge port for cruise ships. I find it somewhat difficult to believe that there will be two ships on one date.

As to the hip thing. Mine was done in August 2005. I did my therapy and continued at home doing the exercises for several months. If you do the right things, you should not have a problem. Tell your PT people what you intend to do and ask if there are solutions to potential problems. If there is a line to get on the ship when you embark, sit and wait a while or allow yourself to be pampered and ask for assistance with a wheel chair (tip appropriately).

Having spent two years in the Navy in Maine (real, real close to the Bay of Fundy), I can tell you that it rarely gets hot. The sun will shine, but having a jacket handy is a smart move. Be aware that the sun comes up quite early that far into the eastern portion of the Eastern Time Zone. And, there are liable to be pesky bugs, take your spray with you when going ashore.

Jim

I am constantly amazed that DI stays in business. Often, when walking by, I see 2 employees for every potential customer. That also goes for most of the jewelry stores that cater almost exclusively to the cruise passengers. Doors are open, cold air is blowing out, lots of lights and hardly anyone in the store.

Jim