OlsSalt

It was a wonderful trip down many memory lanes, for us old timer HAL cruisers too. Wonderfully done, and even better for us since the Noordam will be our next cruise. She looked lovely.

Here is one possibility for charging up front for the water required for CPAP use. It may help them control the inventory they need to stock. Water is heavy to store, and one gets the sense they are cutting down on carrying weight in every way they can. Carry just enough as needed, but not too much that may go to waste. Will weighing passengers come next, like they do for smaller air craft - before, after or during the cruise? Somethings I wish they would kick me off after I exceed a pre-set BMI number, gained while just on board. 🤐

There are times when "cavitation" affects the newer duck-bill sterns - the sound and power of air bubbles generated in certain seas and maneuvers can be very jarring. We experienced this once on the Nieuw Amsterdam and on another smaller cruise ship on another line. A badly loaded washing machine, hitting the spin cycle and rocking off its support legs is a perfect description. It passes, but it certainly cannot be ignored.

As chengkp noted: it can depend upon different sea, weather, wind, location, time of the year, and current conditions. We once happily reached the tender dock in Nome Alaska once, only to be turned back just as we were really to step on land. The ocean currents had picked up so badly back at the ship, they were afraid we would not be able later to re-board the ship. So that was a major change in only the span of a half hour.

We often dress up for dinner, just because we just want to -- so if you want to have a special night on even a five day cruise, have at it. HAL ships support some formality because they try to make the seated dining experiences still special.

There are some notoriously rough passages, but even those have good days and bad days. From my own experience: 1. Drake's Shake Passage -Cape Horn; 2. Madagascar Straights to Cape Town; 3. Bay of Biscay - North Atlantic; 4. Alaska run out of Seattle. 5. That wind blast gap on the western Mexican coast. 6. 7.

Interesting to look at many of the private cruise blogs online from people who end up finding Holland America is not anything like they had originally expected .... "a dull ship full of old people" .... and they remark especially they liked the low key and relaxing atmosphere after all, and the classic decor and traditions ..as such as they remain today. High points are consistently the food, the cleanliness, the nice mix of passengers, and always the incredible and professionally trained staff. They share similar reactions to having less lavish production entertainment and the annoyance of the smoking areas. But the rest of their HAL experience is always a surprising thumbs up. Yes, they would sail HAL again. Only caveat is HAL is not a good recommendation for the under 30 party ship crowds. So while the commercial nature of these (marketing?) blogs are undisclosed, they admit up front they had negative perceptions about HAL ships .....until they tried them.

One "complaint' we had about a Pinnacle sister ship Konigsdam is it sailed too smoothly and too quietly. Easy to forget one was on a ship on the ocean and not inside a land based hotel. So as a class of ships, our Pinnacle experience was just the opposite. Constant piped in music was our other "complaint" because we like being at sea with all its sounds, waves and endless vistas tying the ocean voyage experience all together.

Zinc oxide-eugenol

A very small bit of beeswax can provide a **temporary** fix for a loosened crown, if it is necessary to put it back in place temporarily until you can get professional service. (I did say temporary, right?)

Check also with Club Hal-- the onboard programs for young people. Maybe they have at least a special galley tour for young people? Typically in the past they offered open tours of the galley and the Showroom back stages. But agree, those special and pricey "behind the scenes" tours of almost everything except the engine room (security concerns) were incredibly interesting. The 24 hour nature of ships services becomes obvious when one sees that goes on behind the front of the house, and how self-contained ship must be 24/7. Can't run down to the local hardware store for a missing part, or send out for a grocery store delivery when you run out of eggs..

Think about going to Lucca by train from Livorno, if you are looking for new things to see. Delightful, small walled city. Not overly touristed. Puccini's birthplace. Meander around the city's tree shaded and wide walking/paths on top of the walls, and peer down into the daily lives in this formerly very wealthy Italian city state - also center of the former Italian silk trade. Fine dining options also in this mainly car-free city.

We were on a 51 day bi-lingual English Dutch HAL cruise from Holland to Indonesia and Singapore years ago. Loved traveling with the Dutch, who often also have excellent English skills as well as generally good natured and fun passengers. The cheese offerings onboard were better than any prior cruise too. So we were told by a Dutch couple across from our dining table that the Dutch hate to fly, so when a cruise leaves from a Holland home port they are very eager to sign up. When there is a certain percentage of non-English speaking passengers on board they do offer bi-lingual services - announcements and excursions etc - and not just in Dutch, but other languages as well depending upon the passenger base. We even picked up a few words in Dutch ourselves after hearing the daily announcement sign off ...... "toot zeits" (spelling?? - basically, have a good day.) And on a South American cruise, it was bi-lingual in Spanish - the sign off was always " lavamos su manos" (sp??? - wash your hands!)

There are plastic soap dishes, or some rubbery mesh ones. We have a very light weight wooden slat one. Allows the soap to dry - not like the ceramic ones with no drain holes which are also heavier and bulkier. Here are some nice packable, light weight soap dish options: https://theyamazakihome.com/collections/soap-dishes-dispensers I believe on most ships the small retail offerings is often found in the duty free liquor store, much of it behind the counter, but with a fair amount of OTC drugstore type items.

The Vikings that did come to the New World from Iceland-Greenland, so in a technical, nit- picky sense this Voyage of the Vikings.... to the New World.... does not need to include Norway. . But certainly the Vikings themselves did come from Scandinavia originally. Fascinating range of Norsemen (Normans) conquests all across Europe and Russia. One of the great HAL cruise offerings.

They used to do "theme" nights - like Pirate's Nights, a Dutch Night or an Indonesian Night with special hats and instruments., now only the occasional Orange Night. On the smaller, older ships on longer voyages only. Dressy Night is festive - don't let anyone sell it short. It is special and many participate. There was even an informal group "Tuxedo Junction" that celebrated still wearing black tie. Maybe 10% still do.

Our favorite HAL ship - last cruise was to Antarctica (2020). Fabulous cruise - even if we "did not land" - we saw plenty, slowly and up close. Incredible voyage. We would take her anywhere she sails. Knowing we choose for itinerary first - that is as much "entertainment" as we ask for. And we are never disappointed on HAL ships for that reason alone.

Best you do pick only a HAL Pinnacle class ship then. Plenty of loud and noisy venues. We personally love the quiet-zone libraries the older HAL ships. There you have it, for our own "lively" tastes.

I believe the small store on board also carries various brands of soap bars. We always pack lightweight soap dish as well. Others take the small bars from any overnight hotel they stay in before the cruise.

Talk to your oral surgeon- get their advice and any protective prescriptions you might need for possible complications. Personally and dry sockets after wisdom teeth extractions decades ago - they were a nuisance to keep flushed out, but in those days good old time was the course of treatment until they filled in.

Nieuw Amsterdam is a good introduction -- half way between the smaller HAL ships that we personally love, but not the larger more impersonal new ones which we do not.

Even the rather grand EmiratesPalace Hotel in Abu Dhabi UAE showcases Elemis products for their spa. Spotted their spa display case on our way to have Tea during a cruise stop. I find the scent pleasant. It is now an evocative reminder of good times and good cruises. Though I use the Elemis body wash for shampoo, and the shampoo for body wash. But I also bring a tiny smidgen of my favorite Biolage brand shampoo - so little of their products go such a long way, if you are looking to save packing space.

Agree, West End Cafe in Bar Harbor was a great find. But to get to the lobster roll, one had to first get past their delicious clam chowder and know when to stop to leave room for something more.

60 days, around the world - Genoa to Genoa - inside cabin - sink, but no bathroom - Lloyd Triestino Galileo - $900. (1970's) Subsidized by the Italian government, since it was still the last Italian flagged ship on the high seas - Italian officers, staff, crew and food. Mainly served an immigrant ship between Italy and Australia Genoa - Naples - Port Said - Suez Canal - Djibouti - Mombasa - Durban - Perth - Melbourne- Sydney - Auckland - Papeete - Acapulco - Panama - Curacao - Genoa. Long at sea days between some ports - Trans-Indian Ocean Africa to Australia - TransPacific Tahiti to Acapulco - Transatlantic West Indies to Italy. No frills - bunk beds, bathrooms down the hall - 8 person dorm rooms were even cheaper.

No one can say, but most fingers are pointing to trawling - harvesting methods. As well as shifting population grounds, due to variable ocean temperature changes. Maybe they still are out there, but they have not yet been discovered in their new homes? Good survey of possible causes: https://news.mongabay.com/2022/11/did-climate-change-really-kill-billions-of-snow-crabs-in-alaska/ Who does or can really patrol the seas when various nations choose to follow their own rules, as well as their own country's commercial taste demands.