The Happy Wanderer (reprise)

[obriendan]

Here are pictures from Torshavn. It is a colorful, quaint town easy o visit in a few hours. We are now in Akureyri (sing "It’s a long way to Tipperary...(Akureyri).., it's a long way to go.") w3aiting for the fog to lift. In the competition between spectacular scenery and fog, fog wins every time (see last photo)!

[obriendan]

More b\pictures.

[RevNeal]

THANK YOU so MUCH for the photos! They help to convey the trip so well! Felt a chill rush over me when I saw some of those shots, though ... :) which is saying something considering that it's going to be 95-100 degrees here in Texas today. :)

[RandyD]

Maasdam at dock in Iceland is currently visible at: http://webcams.costa.it/ShipInfo.asp?name=Europa

[rocks]

THANKS so much for the photos! Especially the one of Shy! I got a BIG smile when I saw that one!

rocks

[RuthC]

Last evening the ms Maasdam sailed north of the Arctic Circle and a few intrepid souls took the opportunity to join the Polar Bears' Club. The cruise staff hosted the " Swim Across The Arctic". Most people used the (heated) Lido pool; the dome was closed. A few hardy people called that "cheating" (not like longtimecruiser last year) and went to the aft (also heated) pool on Navigation Deck instead. Getting in was fairly easy---oh! but getting out! :eek:

Congratulations to all. Special congratulations to CC members TedC, bickhal, and LizB1's husband Earl. I saw them; I apologise to anyone I missed.

We had Gershwin Hour in the Piano Bar last night. It's a pity it was held on a night followed by early and long shore excursions---with no turning back the clocks to make it easier. Bill Forrest was at the best I've seen him, and the crowd was the biggest this cruise.

Just goes to prove---if you play what people want to hear they will come.

[longtimecruiser]

Hi Ruth,

I was glad to hear that there are other hardy souls who braved the outdoor pool to swim across the Arctic. I still say it is cheating to swim in the Lido pool...lol

The piano bar sounds like it was fantastic last night. You must have finally broken Bill in. It took a few weeks but I knew you could make him come around. You must have loved it!! So happy to hear that you had an enjoyable night in the Piano Bar. Just like old times.

Would love to hear about Akureryi. What tour did you take? The pictures that were posted indicated that it was very foggy. Keep on enjoying your cruise. Till the next installment. Adele

[RuthC]

At least I hope so, 'cause it sure hasn't been out the last few days. We arrived at Isafjord, Iceland to find fog only slightly higher than it was in Akureyri, Iceland. Let me tell you a bit about my day there.

The alarm went off at 5:30 :eek: so I could be ready for an 8-hour shore excursion. (No, I don't know whatever posessed me. Perhaps an exorcism is due? :confused: Rev?) Anyway, off I went on a bus that took us higher up the mountain into---thicker fog! We traveled to sites and sights around Lake Myvatn. There were boiling sulpher pits, volcanic craters, a great waterfall at Godafoss, and an underground bathing spring. Probably the best stop of all, though, was a walk through some lava formations. You see, Iceland was formed on the fissure between the two tectonic plates of North America and Europe. There's a spot where you can stand with a foot on each continent!

Isn't that neat!? The walk was strenuous, but oh! so worth it. Now I'm glad I joined that walking program a few months back.

There were two really cool things I learned in Isafjord today:

1.) the bus seats in Iceland slide sideways to make more room

and

2.) there's a 9km (just under 5 miles) tunnel through the mountain with an intersection! That's right---about 4km in you can make a turn down another tunnel. Imagine that.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

More b\pictures.

 

 

What Great pictures, thanks so much for sharing. What a great picture of Shy, you must tell him "Hi from Lisa and Tom" Tell him we have been thinking of him and wishing we were still cruising:)

[trubey]

It could be worse, you could be visiting Iceland in the winter when it is always dark, not just foggy.

 

I have Icelandic friends who say winter is bad, not because of the cold, but from the lack of sunshine. I'd go crazy. susana.

[Robert AG99]

Thst right Ruth. I've spent a few weeks of winter in Norway. Sun comes up after tten and goes down again by 2 . And being from the desert the cold is very cold.

 

Enjoy that crazy tunnel and have fun in the fog.

[Aussie Gal]

Hi Ruth, Liz, Earl, Ted and Cathie, Joanne and other C.C. members on board the Maasdam,

 

We finally arrived home last night after a wonderful 5 and a bit weeks away from home. Reading your instalments Ruth has been great as it has brought our 17 days on the Maasdam so clearly back to me. I am sorry that this leg hasn't been quite so good as the first.

 

We had a wonderful 4 days in Zurich. We caught the train from Rotterdam on a sunny day and went through 6 countries before arriving in Zurich. We had sunny weather in Zurich and we spent the time walking and enjoying the wonderful scenary of beautiful Switzerland.

 

We then flew to Singapore and spent another 4 days relaxing in the heat and getting our time clocks back to a more realistic state - as Europe is 8 hours behind us.

 

It was a fantastic around the world trip. The highlights of the trip I would say were New York, what a fantastic destination, Boston - so much history and beautiful Zurich.

We enjoyed our cruise, loved the entertainment, the food and meeting up with our C.C. friends. We were lucky on the last day, as we won a wonderful HAL bag through filling in the survey, which came in very handy with all our purchases in Zurich and Singapore. We were happy to leave the ship, as we felt that 17 days was long enough, especially as we were in cold weather most of the time and we were longing for some warmth as it is winter down here.

 

Someone asked about our long flight to New York. Yes, it did take 19 hours non stop flying. We went over the Philippines, over Tokyo, Japan, over Toronto and down to New York. I wouldn't want to do it again in a hurry but it wasn't too bad. Remember, all our flights are long if we want to go to Europe or the U.S. so we just have to grin and bear it. Unfortunately, the trip was very bumpy due to severe turbulance and was made longer as the pilot tried to avoid the bumps by flying lower and therefore not as fast.

 

With regard to the Dance Partners, there were four originally and there were 2 afternoons when they were teaching social dancing but that was in the first week and unfortunately it clashed with the Guest Lecturer sesssions. We felt that the programming could have been a lot better. Some days there was too much on and others there wasn't enough.

 

Finally, it was great to put a face to our C.C. friends and to get to know them better. We miss you Ruth, Liz, Earl, Ted and Cathie and have fond memories of our time together on board.

 

Jennie

[RevNeal]

The alarm went off at 5:30 so I could be ready for an 8-hour shore excursion. (No, I don't know whatever posessed me. Perhaps an exorcism is due? Rev?)....

 

Don't worry, Ruth ... based upon what you outlined about what happened on that excursion, I would have needed to have been exorcised too. :) It sounds exactly like the kind of excursions I like to take. :D

[RuthC]

Some random thoughts at the end of week 4:

1.) Service has generally been excellent. Using the soda card has not been a problem.

2.) Read the fine print very carefully if you expect to be fed on a shore excursion. If the description says there's a stop where "locally made pastry, coffee, and tea are served" you should expect to pay.

3.) The wine steward in the dining room must have found the key to the liquor cabinet. They serve the best drink on the ship. :D

4.) The Art Auction pieces hanging all over the place are tacky. Not only that, they detract from the Maasdam's own beautiful artwork. :(

5.) There is a list of Useful Websites in the Internet Center.

Cruise Critic is one of them.

[sail7seas]

Jennie.....I enjoyed your post so much. Glad you had such a wonderful vacation. You certainly saw and did A LOT!! Welcome Back!!

 

Ruth.......Great to hear from you today. Your posts are great to read. Are you feeling almost ready to come home? Seems like 35 days have flown by. Hope you and Liz and all the rest enjoy the rest of your time aboard.

It is absolutely wonderful that you have barely missed anything from the original itinerary. How often does that happen on a five week cruise? I know there was some concern that Maasdam wouldn't be up to the trip but that beautiful ship never disappoints IMO The beautiful and elegant ms Maasdam :) ahhhhh!!! Kudos to Captain Draper!!

 

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Jennie, I just want to say Welcome Home to your Down Under Home:) I have enjoyed reading what you have wrote and think it is so wonderful that you can travel the world. I have flown to Europe and Japan and know how long those flights can be but your flight was trully much longer. But I think when you set your brain to know that you have that long flight ahead somehow it just is not that long. I am sure it feels good to be back home.

[longtimecruiser]

Ruth,

I still can't believe that you got up at 5:30 AM to get ready to go on a tour. I didn't think you knew 5:30 AM existed, only 5:30 PM.....lol Sounds like a wonderful tour. At least it made it worth the effort of getting up so early. Glad you enjoyed it so much. It will probably be one that you will never forget.

Interesting comments on week four. I totally agree about the tacky artwork around the ship. It DOES distract from the beautiful and tasteful artwork of ANY Hal ship. They can get rid of those art auctions any time IMHO. I know lots of people like them and I guess they are good money makers for Hal or they would have been long gone.

I know you have another relaxing day at sea tomorrow until you get back to Greenland. Continue to have fun your last week. Till the next installment. Adele

[RevNeal]

The Art Auction pieces hanging all over the place are tacky. Not only that, they detract from the Maasdam's own beautiful artwork.

 

You know something, I HATE all the crappy "artwork" that sits around in the halls on sea days. It clutters up the ship and looks UGLY.

[RevNeal]

Hey, Adele, if you want the banner to display in your signature you need to put the

 

http://www.revneal.org/hibanmove1.gif

 

link inside the IMG codes

 

open bracket IMG close bracket http://www.revneal.org/hibanmove1.gif open bracket /IMG close bracket.

 

[ <--- that's an open bracket

] <--- that's a close bracket

 

in other words, it should look like this:

 

[sail7seas]

Hi ruth and all,

 

 

Sail7Seas...were you in 8099 on the Z for that sailing? If so, I'm truly sorry we didn't get to meet you. I think we were in 8097. (or 95) The one forward the bumpout.

 

 

RuthC...Thanks for taking all of us along.

 

Blessings,

 

Gail

 

 

Hi Gail......

I'm sorry but I just now saw your question to me or I would have answered sooner.

We were not in 8099. All our cruises on Zuiderdam, we were in 7070.

I, too, would like to meet you on a 'dam' ship someday.

[elmorejj]

Gotta agree with you Ruth re the artwork. I think its awful and cannot imagine ever buying a piece to hang in my house! Heck, I don`t even want the free prints they give out for attending! Continue to have a ball on your last week aboard.......jean :cool:

[longtimecruiser]

Greg,

Thank you SO much for helping me with my signiture. I need all the help I can get when it comes to computers. I think I learn something everyday. Is it right now? This is a dumb question but how can you see your signiture? Don't laugh too hard over that one...lol Adele

[RevNeal]

you forgot to put the / in the closing IMG tag.

 

/IMG with brackets on either side.

[RevNeal]

Is it right now? This is a dumb question but how can you see your signiture?

 

Do you not have signatures turned on? You should be able to see your own signature, along with everyone else's, when you have them turned on.

[sail7seas]

Sorry for the double post. The board is still doing weird things. The first post 'hung up' and I didn't think it had posted so I redid it. I thought the second one had hung up as well. :(