rkacruiser

I have never heard of such a Federal form and have voted during two long cruises. ( Is this an attempt to restrict who is allowed to vote?) In my Ohio County, I have filed an absentee ballot request providing the detailed address of the cruise line's Port Agent where I want the ballot sent. Both of my requests were to have ballots sent to Hong Kong. The Port Agent's address was many lines in length, One of the Election Office's employees called me and asked if all of that information was required. I said: yes. Her response was, we can't get all of that on an address label. I suggested two address labels. Yes, we could do that, I suppose, was her response. The Amsterdam was in Hong Kong for two days. My ballot was delivered to me on the ship during the first day. I voted and took the Star Ferry to the Island and walked to the nearby Post Office to mail the following day. If you are successful in getting a ballot, do not mail it at your ship's Front Office! Trying to do so, the price for postage did not seem appropriate for the size of the envelope and the kind of mail it was. (I was quoted post card postage price.) Mailing it at their Post Office in Hong Kong, the price for postage was considerably higher than what the Front Office staff member quoted. This was not difficult to do. And, arriving home, I checked with my Board of Elections Office to see if the ballot had been received and counted. It was. Also, you MUST do the proper planning as to how long it may take for the ballot to make it to the Port Agent. And, as I found, if you are in a port for more than one day, it will be easier for you to get it to wherever their Post Office is.

Every tour that I have taken on Princess, Carnival, or HAL ships has included the laundry as well as the garbage/trash disposal area. The ship's Chief Environmental Officer would be our "host" and provide much information about the "hows, whys, and the whats" of the process. As well as speaking about the purity of the water that we consume. Photo ops with the Captain varied from one tour to another. Questions from guests ran the gamut. One tour that I was on during a HAL cruise, my fellow guests were very knowledgeable. In the Engine Control Room, asking questions of the Chief Engineer, he must have been impressed enough with us that he guided us down the steps outside the Room into the Engine Room itself for a short walk through part of the Room. Walking by those green engines, seeing the spinning of the shaft, the noise: I won't forget that! Interestingly, when I have reported such a visit on CC, I have been told several times: "You don't know where you were. This didn't happen." Well, it did! These tours are worth every penny spent, if one is interested in such and the tours are offered, because each one seems just a bit different--in a positive way.

No. Flipping from one web site to another to compare features and how the cars were equipped was cumbersome and, at least for this person, frustrating. Having two hard copies, laying on my kitchen table, side by side, being able to compare "Car A equipped as I wanted it" with "Car B so equipped" was more valuable than the websites. Did I use the websites? Certainly did! If their counter of "visitor counts" existed, I add much to their totals.

You are an erudite person. Thank you for this quote. Agree with the quote. However, is it acceptable for me to be displeased with today's marketing efforts of HAL?

This is an excellent menu! An interesting observation and one that I have not made. Yes, juice is offered after being seated, but, coffee very soon appeared. Which Steward served which? Never really noticed, but, I "think" it was the same man. My PG breakfast experience was different. There was a definite division of labor: the juice person, the coffee person, the pastry tray person, the order taker, the deliverer of the order. (I cared not for such a situation.)

Those are excellent menus and, I think, better than what I experienced on the Volendam on New Year's Eve, 2019. However, I had was not dissatisfied with the menu or the experience. My recommendation is to celebrate the New Year's Eve dinner in the MDR. There likely will be more "energy" and "festive" than one might experience in the PG. Based on the menus that Crew News posted: both are excellent in my opinion.

As was I on Thursday. Watching a documentary on BBC and NBC's coverage, all were excellent and brought me to tears frequently. I remember as a young boy watching her coronation. Maybe it's because of a bit of my English ancestry, I have been interested and admirers of the Royal Family and of the queen for decades.

This is very good advice. The size of the group is very small and when the tour is full, it's full. Agree! Some of us have much interest in what takes place behind the scenes and these tours provide a much better glimpse of that. When I sailed on QM2, such tours were not offered. I have taken these tours on Holland America Line, Princess Line, and Carnival line ships. Each time, I learned more than I had the last time. At the end of the tour, there is a further Q&A/discussion with the Host of the tour when whatever one wishes to drink and a very nice assortment of canapes are served. Gifts are given to the guests. I have a complete set of Rudi Sodamin's cookbooks, another large cookbook from Princess, and a Carnival backpack, soap sculpture, and ball cap. The cookbooks are costly to buying them, so, these aren't inexpensive gifts. Yes. Part of the time, guests will be using crew stairways and, particularly in the engine room area, are steep metal stairways. Some crew elevator (or guest, when appropriate) use does occur.

Who knows? What has changed in the cruise industry to cause this. The market was up, so why not the cruise stocks.

Draft Heineken was 10 cents a mug on Rotterdam V.

This becomes very tiresome very quickly for me and contributes to my preference for fixed dining.

Disco remains good music, particularly for dancing. Have the group play Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" and I don't understand how anyone cannot start dancing or, at least, "gyrating" in their seat!

Very good news. Upgrading and a better use of the space was needed.

Yes. Treats are in there.

It is. But, when one decides to "wander afield", the experience is not as unpleasant as it might be. If, one has done the necessary research before making that decision.

Yes, I have. This is a silly comment by you in my opinion. Is it too much to expect the administrative heirs of the product that Mr. Kruse and he helped to create to continue to provide a traditional HAL experience as well as updating that experience in those areas that were required? I view the my dollars spent on items that I must accept because of whatever (market?) conditions differently than the dollars I spend on discretionary items, such as travel. This is an excellent example of a change, if I wanted to remain a Buick customer, that I was forced to accept. It took me many months, much thought, many visits to dealers and test drives before I decided that I could be OK with a SUV. What helped me in making my decision? Glossy brochures that detailed the equipment that one vehicle had in comparison to another. One hears "stuff" from a salesperson. So much "stuff" is thrown out that my feeble brain is unable to retain--let alone compare--a Lincoln MKZ to a Buick Envision. Having "hard copies" to compare the features of the two, as well as repeated test drives, finally led me to a decision.

You do realize that there are differing opinions about this "great" entertainment experience?

Excellent points! The times that I have chosen open sitting dining was when I knew before the cruise that I wanted/needed to try different dining options or times. Not far to tablemates (or Stewards) at a fixed seating table when one is this mysterious figure that seems to appear and...then not....then appear again.....etc. Most certainly, if one has chosen fixed seating, it is common courtesy to inform the Stewards and your tablemates that you expect not to appear for dinner the next evening.

Given the fact that these bills are legal tender, if a US resident/citizen doesn't use them, that is clearly their problem.

It is good that your husband did that. But, given the condition of the US Silver Certificate, it is possibly worth more than just an "odd piece of money". Even in poor condition, the bill is possibly worth more than it's face value.

Based on my experiences, you are correct. As pre-cruise hotel guest with no car, the Westin (which is on the East side of I-95 rather than the Marriott's location on the West side), was also a pleasant hotel, but, it's dining/lounge area (if I remember correctly), was not as nice as the Marriott North's. Outside the hotel, one would need to walk/drive a longer distance to get to a different dining area. It really is a "business person oriented hotel being located in adjacent to an office park. The pool area, in comparison to the Marriott's? No comparison! The Marriott's is much better for a leisure traveler.

Thanks. I understand your answer to my question. This is a fish "that I would refuse to "kiss"!

Grills, Fishlips, Rusty's: all are good for seafood.

Thanks for this information and, just like the reduction in Delta service to their MSP hub from DAY, it is surprising. Those flights were well patronized, particularly during the Alaska cruise season.

Good idea; cruises with a repetitive itinerary, particularly if one is interested in getting off and visiting the ports, can be less interesting than one with an alternating itinerary or with just a few ports being repeated. What can be even more interesting is a cruise on Ship A with whatever itinerary followed by a cruise on Ship B with either the same or a different itinerary. My last series of cruises I hopped from Volendam to MSC Meraviglia to Eurodam. All with a variety of ports. (On MSC, I even experienced for the first time their Yacht Club.) Good variety and I enjoyed them all!