Grenouille21

About Us:

I am a teacher, as well as a travel agent. I mostly work with people who are booking vacations to Disney World, Disneyland, Universal Studios, or sailing on Disney Cruise Line, but I am branching out and learning other cruise lines and resorts as well. Teaching is my main job.

I love to travel (obviously!) and I love to take photos. These two hobbies pair well together! I tend to be sarcastic, which is appealing to some, totally lost on some, and downright insulting to others. I try to reel it in, but sometimes I can't hold back. I also like musical theater, nature, knitting (though I am 100% self-taught and thus a total hack), and walking. I sound like a barrel of fun, no?

I feel like I need to expand on my love of walking. Walking makes me feel more connected to the place where I am and the people I am with. I feel more connected to the land, the trees above me, the flowers below. I notice things more. My kids talk more. I listen more. We laugh more. I like to walk.

So when we travel, I like to walk in new places.

Anyway, back to boring details about me....

I am a single parent to my kids. Well technically I am divorced, and I could go into great detail but it will sound dramatic and it will be obviously one-sided (though also miraculously 100% accurate!), and anyway that story goes down much better with alcohol and I have no idea whether you have a glass in your hand at this moment, so suffice to say I don't wear the Single Parent label as a means of gaining attention or insulting anyone. I have been doing the vast, vast majority of the parenting since day one with each child, so I have earned the title of Single Parent, and then some.

Oh, and as I write this I am 44 years old, but on embarkation day I'll be turning 45.

Dear Future Me: Happy Birthday!! Signed, Past Me.

My daughter is 14, and she will be starting High School in the Fall. She has some severe food allergies, which can make traveling a bit scary. I'll go into further detail about our preparations later, but I am confident that she will be well-fed and safe in Canada and on board the Nieuw Amsterdam.

DD enjoys theater, particularly musical theater. She has seen Hamilton twice, we are planning to see Dear Evan Hansen this year, we have seen Wicked twice, and she has starred in school/theater class productions as Joseph in Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat, one of the step-sisters in Into the Woods, Aunt March in Little Women, and various roles in a theater class production based on Hamilton. She pretty much loves all musicals.

Except Les Miserables.

I don't know why she doesn't like that one and it bothers me more than it should. What's funny about this is that she just had an appointment with our allergist, who is AMAZING, and the allergist was talking about musical theater and how her favorite was Les Mis. DD was all ME TOO and I was all WHAAAAA.....? Teens are funny.

She loves photography, like me. She goes away to overnight camp for 4 weeks each summer, and she spends most of her time in photography class, drama class, art class, tubing, and archery or riflery class. She has already earned three photography awards at camp and is one of the highest "ranked" photographers at her camp. She is enrolled in a photography class at her school this year, which is really exciting! She will be taking as many photos as I will on this vacation!

She enjoys traveling, though you wouldn't always know it in the moment. She can be VERY 14. She can also be VERY awesome, sweet, cuddly, and hilarious!

My son will be turning 13 in September. He enjoys building and making things. He has always had a passion for building Lego sets and he has always been able to independently build any set. He has been tested and he is extremely gifted in visual-spatial areas.

DS loves the outdoors. He goes away to overnight camp for 4 weeks as well, and his camp is very much based on wilderness experiences. They spend 2-3 nights per week hiking/canoeing and camping, and spend the rest of the week at camp. This is his favorite month of the year, and as I tell everyone: he spends 11 months of the year talking about the 1 month he spends at camp. Everywhere we go, everything we do... it reminds him of camp.

He has never really been terribly interested in sports. Sports were never big in my family growing up, so I don't really have a passion for anything sport-related. DS tried baseball for 2 years, but when his team won the championship he decided he couldn't ever top that and he retired, at age 8. He has said he will be coming out of retirement this year to play for his school team, but we shall see if that actually happens. He also said he is going to run on the cross-country team. This will be an interesting year!

DS has recently taken up skateboarding. He doesn't do tricks; he is not an aspiring Tony Hawk. He just likes that it looks cool and gets him to his destination faster. Mostly he likes that it looks cool.

He can be a bit moody, he is a pre-teen after all, but he is also sweet and hilarious most of the time.

Teenagers get a bad rap, but I rather like them. I used to be afraid of teenagers. Well not exactly AFRAID, but I had no idea what to expect and you know the stereotype teens have. When I was a substitute teacher I was terrified of being "thrown" in anything over 4th grade. Terrified! Then I found a few classes at one school where I subbed that were awesome. And a few that were NOT awesome! But the awesome outweighed the not awesome, and I found that I actually really enjoyed working with teens/pre-teens. When push came to shove I decided I still preferred to teach younger kids (I am currently in a 3rd grade classroom). Perhaps it was my comfort zone, perhaps it is because I would have to specialize in one subject and I am not sure I am passionate enough about one subject to teach ONLY that subject. Who knows.

The point is: my kids are fun and I like spending time with them.

Most of the time.

Except when they bicker.

Then I send them somewhere else.

And oddly enough, that's when they usually decide to get along with each other.

Dear Future Me: Don't stay up past midnight working on your trip report! Sleep is your friend! Signed, Past Me Who Wanted More Sleep.

Welcome! Thanks for stopping by! Geez now I have to actually post something! ;)

I wanted to start writing about our trip, and I like to take notes about the process so it helps me in the future! Also, I know I will forget things, and thus boil it all down to a bland unrecognizable mush if I wait until later to write about it. So I am starting now and I won't stop til its done!

Buckle up because I'm taking you along for the ride!

Depending on Wifi, this may be posted live, or it may be posted... not live? What do you call it? Later? That's not fun.

So stay tuned!

Just a few more from this week.

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Fish at the zoo

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Ohhh got it! Just reserve it for myself and add the others as guests. Or maybe I should tell my kids they have to earn their way in, ha!

Awesome, thanks!

Hey there! We are scheduled to sail to Labadee, and I was looking to reserve a bungalow on Labadee. When I go to the Labadee page, it says the price is per bungalow. So our family of 3 would pay one price for the bungalow, which seems reasonable.

But when I go to select the bungalow, and select the guests who will be on the reservation I am charged the same price for each person. So while it looks like the price will be $263 per bungalow, we are charged $263 per person.

Is that correct? If not, how do we resolve this?

Awesome! We are a Carry On Only family as well, and it truly is liberating! We just breeze off the plane and head to our destination. So easy and stress-free!

Great info! I am dutifully taking notes!

Perhaps you are going to get to this, and if so I don't mean to jump ahead, but about how long would you say you spent walking along Creek Street and going up to the lodge/overlook? We have plans in Ketchikan, but I want to be sure to see Creek Street as well. If we have time I'd love to hike up to the overlook as well, but I worry about time.

Thank you so much for sharing such detailed information!

Following along! We are sailing on Holland America next month (!) and I am trying to absorb everything I can about Vancouver and sailing to Alaska. I'm really enjoying your report, and have added some restaurants to the list of places to try, thanks for sharing!

Thanks for sharing this! We'll be sailing on the Nieuw Amsterdam in August. My kids will be 12 and 14 and I'm hopeful there will be other kids they can hang out with on board. Glad to hear you all had a great time!

I’m glad to hear everything is being looked after for you. Enjoy your cruise

Thank you for your well wishes! I'm sure we will have a great time!

You started out in your original claiming you would need a three person evacuation from the ship if there were any mishaps. You also made multiple claims about HAL menus that did not sound in fact. Since medical evacuations are problematic to those on board as well as harrowing for those affected, this was a curious way to start out the discussion. One would hope you had both issues under control - prevention, as well as first line defense before the ship has to arrange for your threatened three person medical evacuation. Glad this is working out for you. Happy travels.

Thanks for your extensive interest in my posts and my family. Your interest and attention is now crossing a bridge too far over the river of concern. I've made numerous comments thanking helpful individuals and thought perhaps others would take the hint to stop commenting but apparently they require personal requests. Please stop questioning and challenging me. It is very odd and inappropriate.

An Epi-Pen does not work as your first line of defense? https://www.webmd.com/allergies/news/20100326/kids-with-food-allergies-may-need-two-epipens

A "first line of defense" is avoidance of allergens, not an Epi-Pen. I know how to handle allergic reactions, unfortunately. My post was asking for assistance in avoiding the reaction in the first place. I'm not asking for help with managing allergic reactions.

Thanks to all who have answered my questions. I spoke with Ship Services today and in case anyone else is wondering, they were glad I had noted the allergy on the reservation and in the special needs form. They gave me the number of where to call if I have any further questions and were able to answer my questions regarding food allergies. Thank you to those who pointed out the form and phone number as that was helpful!

My friend's daughter is vegan and I know the challenges they face when traveling. How difficult is it on a cruise?

I can't speak on behalf of HAL, but we sailed on Disney back when I was vegan and gluten-free and they were amazing. I ate like a queen and gained weight from having so much food! Just like with an allergy, you'll want to make note of the dietary needs on your reservation, and speak with the head server when you board. Talk to someone at every dining venue until they "know" you and you have a go to person. The first person we spoke to on DCL happened to be our head server, by coincidence, and my friend and I managed to shmooze him a bit and he had his friend the allergy chef make special off-menu meals for me any time we saw him. He even made my friend (who is not vegan and not allergic to anything) special meals because we were so nice to him. Similar to what is said here about allergies, I ordered all of my meals the night before and had special food waiting for my on Disney's private island. It was amazing. Happy to chat more about my experience with Disney, if that is a line you are considering.

OP, I empathize. I am allergic to mushrooms or to to anything which touches a mushroom or has MSG in it. HAL has taken very good care of me in the past because I've followed their protocol. Please complete a medical form at least 4 weeks prior to leaving on cruise. If you call ship's services @ 1-800-541-1576, they can email the form.

I always check in with the maître d' when I first board to confirm that the ship received notice of my allergies. He has always advised me to steer clear of the Lido where I cannot be assured that my special diet will be adhered to, since there is sometimes a language barrier.

In the MDR, you will be given the next night's menu to complete. At the top, please note your name, cabin number, type of allergies, and table #. (Even when dining on the open reservation, I am given an assigned table, however, I agree to eat at the less busy times, which has been okay with us.)

If I ingested a mushroom, had cross contamination or ate any food laden with MSG, I wouldn't have to be air-lifted, but would have serious gastro issues. If anyone in your party is so allergic that they cannot be in the vicinity of those foods like nuts, I would suggest another type of vacation where you would be closer to medical help. Did I understand you correctly that this is the situation? If not, ignore my suggestion.

I hope this information helps.

Thanks. This sounds similar to how DCL handled it, which is what I expected. I just didn't know if my expectations were sound or not. Thanks!

Hopefully we wouldn't need to be airlifted, but that depends on the quality of the medical staff on board and how well-versed they are in treating allergic reactions. As I said, we have been to numerous restaurants and resorts and... knock on wood... all has been well. We'll be well prepared on our end, so hopefully all will be well.

See if they will let you transfer dates to a later sailing, if that works for you. Sometimes that is a way around the cancellation fees.

I am so glad to hear that your husband is doing better. Health issues are so scary.

Thanks. I've filled out the form online, and it is still noted in our cruise reservation through HAL. I'll call the phone number when they are open, and of course I know to talk to the servers in the restaurants. I am feeling better about it today. Just wanted to make sure they are as accommodating as other cruise lines, restaurants, and resorts, and it sounds like they are.

Here you go: https://book.hollandamerica.com/specialServices/login.action

Thanks!

I cruised NA with a nut allergy. I’d listed it in the special form prior to embarking, and also gave the head waiter or and waiter a written list with that and a few other preferences. They give you the next days menu to fill out for breakfast and lunch. I even asked them to do things like removing the nuts from the sundae, etc. some dishes were beyond them, like sauce with nuts already mixed in. Or no banana bread, due to the nuts.

 

Rotterdam and noordam even sent us a menu to our cabin a few times, but not NA. On our b2b, the first waiter did much better than the waiter on the second leg. All wait until the end of the meal to bring the menu.

 

In Club Class dining on the Emerald Princess, the head waiter handled my allergies, by bringing (much to our delight) the menus at the beginning of the meal. But got to be careful, we had a hazelnut dish, that we were told had walnuts.

 

 

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We were a family of 14 on the Rotterdam, 7 adults and 7 children. In our group we had 3 lactose intolerant ( they order mashed potatoes every night). One person with a citrus allergy, and one anaphylactic to all legumes, all nut and peanut, and shell fish, fresh water and salt water fish. No problems with food at all. Everyone left the table well fed.

Not all desserts contain. If you do see something that you really like they will make it for you, just make sure you pick your evening meal by 9 a.m. Make sure you call Special Services 1-800-541-1576

Thank you to everyone above who posted helpful information! Where is this special form for allergies? Is it on the HAL website?

There is a fruit crisp served every night that has no nuts in it. There is a soufflé at least one night. Balsamic strawberries another night. Ice cream sundaes are served without nuts. I have not seen the menus you are looking at, but I have at least one dessert every night (sometimes two, but who is counting/looking?) and none have ever contained nuts. Having said that, I would never go on a cruise if one bite of a nut would mean that I would have to be airlifted to a hospital. If time is of the essence, that sounds like a death sentence.

 

As for the main courses, I do not eat seafood and can't remember ever ordering pork, so I'm pretty sure I have had plenty of choices on our 25 or so HAL cruises. I have had steak, duck breast, mushroom risotto, bucatini, lamb, vegetable curry and prime rib. (On surf and turf night you can easily order turf and turf)

 

For the appetizers, there are soups and salads galore -- goat cheese/tomato tarts, brie in phyllo, etc. etc. etc.

We've been on 2 ships and dined at countless resorts and restaurants without incident so it is 100% possible to be safe with food allergies. Anyone can develop a life-threatening food allergy at any time. At least we are smart enough to carry life-saving medicine on us. I worry more for the people who are caught by surprise by an allergy after their 40th shrimp or nut dish and have to rush to the hospital since they don't carry an epi-pen.

It sounds like we will be able to order food that suits our needs, despite the seafood and nut-heavy menus on our sailing.

Grenouille21, I think that you'll find this link very useful: https://www.hollandamerica.com/blog/topics/food-beverage/special-dietary-needs-its-easy-to-cruise-with-holland-america-line/ Do phone the number provided.

 

In my experience, I'd say that those items comprise less than 25% of your menu choices on any given day, and you'll have lots of other offerings from which to pick.

Thanks! I'll call them.

Hmmm, 4/5 desserts on any given night contain nuts, and at least half the appetizers and entrees contain seafood, nuts, or pork, so I think your "less than 25%" estimate is a bit off. At least on the 7 MDR menus from the NA I have seen. Also all 3 of us will have to be airlifted to the hospital if my daughter ingests even one bite of a nut, so we can't really just "pick them out" or "push them to the side" as some people might suggest. We need them to be nowhere near our food. But thanks for the phone number. Hopefully they can put my mind at ease.

Make sure you notify in advance and they should easily accommodate that

 

 

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Thanks. I did mark it in our reservation (one of the advantages of being our own travel agent!). So we will be able to order food "off menu"? We do like the atmosphere of a Main Dining Room but we can't eat most of what's on the NA menu. We've sailed Disney Cruise Line and their menu had very little seafood or pork or nuts or there were just more options that we liked, so this just wasn't an issue before.

We will be sailing on the NA soon. I thought I had looked at menus when considering cruise lines but apparently I didn't look at this line, and this is where we wended up. We can not eat shellfish, fish, pork, or nuts. This seems to eliminate 95% of what is served in the Main Dining Room. Will they accommodate us with something simple like steak/potatoes/veggies or chicken/potatoes/veggies (this would make us happy)? Everything on the dessert menu seems to contain nuts. Will they even have desserts for us?

Has anyone safely dined with food allergies on the NA? Too late to turn back now, so we will have to make do.

At least we won't have to worry about gaining weight on this cruise!

Mocktails are not covered under the soda package to my knowledge. I think a Shirley Temple would be considered a mocktail?

You're probably right. Oh well. We'll manage.

We have the signature beverage package which came complimentary for us from our booking through Costco. That covers soda, wine and a Shirley temple. I believe the drinks need to be $9 or less but I defer to more experienced HAL cruisers.

 

 

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That's the package I'd like for myself, but my kids are too young for alcohol so they don't qualify for that. I guess I'm wondering if those coveted Shirley Temples will be covered by the soda package? It's just fountain Sprite with a splash of cherry juice, but I don't know if that counts as a bar drink, or a soda drink, or a specialty drink, or... whatever.