LAFFNVEGAS "LIVE" from the Nieuw Amsterdam/The Return.... Part Two

[atexsix]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Why would that be?  The Chef in charge of the Lido Galley does a better job with beef than the Executive Chef in the MDR?  

 

Has there been a change of Executive Chefs on the Nieuw Amsterdam since your earlier cruise?  

 

 

That's a change.  HH always began in the Ocean Bar during my most recent cruises at 4:00.  

[atexsix]

2 hours ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

Trying again to post pictures …….

????ok definitely strange things about 10 minutes ago I posted a long update on what we did last night and so far today. The pictures would not upload but what I wrote did post and now it’s totally gone 😱

I maybe need to copy everything thing I write.

Well long story short. 
Prime Rib last night in MDR was good but the meats are much better in he Lido. Today the Beef Brisket in the Lido is amazing.

We ended up not getting off in Icey Straight Point last night it was raining and foggy. We also stayed on board today. I had a 75 minute Hot Stone Massage this morning which I booked and purchased on line prior to the cruise at a discounted price. Definitely worth doing if you plan to have services in the spa. The weather here in Sitka was foggy and raining this morning but the rain did go away just cloudy with patches of fog.

Tonight we eating in Canaletto, we have not done that in 11 years. So giving it a try again.

I wanted to mention that over all not much has changed since the first cruise July 24th other than the first cruise we did not have to wear masks now it is required and everyone is wearing a mask. Also on the first cruise the crew were pushing that we had to use the QR code for any kind of menu. While the little plaques with QR code’s still remain, menus are handed out everywhere with no mention of using the QR code.

 

MDR for us has been a disappointment, we've tried twice and I don't care if we don't go back the rest of the trip.

 

Pinnacle has been fantastic!

 

Lido meh

 

 

The desserts have been superb everywhere!

 

[atexsix]

2 hours ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

A few weeks ago on a thread it was mentioned about night lights and that there is a night light in Neptune and Signature Suite bathrooms. I took a picture last night. My phone automatically goes to a night vision mode so the bathroom does appear slightly brighter than it is but you can see on the ceiling the little bluish light.

We just crack the door, so perhaps they should put em into all bathrooms, otherwise they are encouraging the waste of power despite the new card system which we don't care for actually.

[luvteaching]

We're the odd ones out I guess. We had a wet but fun time in Icy Stait Point. Yes, it was raining but it was more of a mist than anything else when we were out. We did a round trip on the gondola, got our dozen mini-doughnuts, and did some shopping at the Icy Strait Point Company store (DH saw a hat he had to have - to join the 50 or more at home). This is with him on a scooter. 

Today we did the Birds, Bears and Barnacles tour in Sitka. I'm using up a bunch of on-board credit and excursions seemed to be a good way to do it. The tour left at 8:30 and there was a bit of misty rain but it stopped as we were heading into town and we had cool but cloudy weather the whole visit. The Raptor Center was interesting as was Fortress of the Bears and the Aquarium and Salmon Hatchery. We walked back into town, looked for the Lutheran Church ladies with their jelly for sale (They weren't there), got DH some fudge and headed back to the ship. It was a nice day overall. 

 

Laundry has been done and back in good time and our cabin stewards are doing a good job but alas no towel animals. Oh well. We've done the MDR every night and our service has been good, the food delicious (I'm not having to cook) and we have good tablemates. DH loves the mousse and his Dive-In fries at lunch. 

 

Karen

[atexsix]

2 minutes ago, luvteaching said:

We're the odd ones out I guess. We had a wet but fun time in Icy Stait Point. Yes, it was raining but it was more of a mist than anything else when we were out. We did a round trip on the gondola, got our dozen mini-doughnuts, and did some shopping at the Icy Strait Point Company store (DH saw a hat he had to have - to join the 50 or more at home). This is with him on a scooter. 

Today we did the Birds, Bears and Barnacles tour in Sitka. I'm using up a bunch of on-board credit and excursions seemed to be a good way to do it. The tour left at 8:30 and there was a bit of misty rain but it stopped as we were heading into town and we had cool but cloudy weather the whole visit. The Raptor Center was interesting as was Fortress of the Bears and the Aquarium and Salmon Hatchery. We walked back into town, looked for the Lutheran Church ladies with their jelly for sale (They weren't there), got DH some fudge and headed back to the ship. It was a nice day overall. 

 

Laundry has been done and back in good time and our cabin stewards are doing a good job but alas no towel animals. Oh well. We've done the MDR every night and our service has been good, the food delicious (I'm not having to cook) and we have good tablemates. DH loves the mousse and his Dive-In fries at lunch. 

 

Karen

We feel the meat is different at the Dive-In, they aren't as juicy, taste more cardboardy now, or is it just us? Love the fries though and I get em every day.

 

We got off in ISP, felt like Seattle but we weren't dressed for it and got back on ship after an hour.  We did the gondola though and enjoyed it.  Wish we had been there for more than a few hours.

[dfish]

29 minutes ago, atexsix said:

MDR for us has been a disappointment, we've tried twice and I don't care if we don't go back the rest of the trip.

 

Pinnacle has been fantastic!

 

Lido meh

 

 

The desserts have been superb everywhere!

 

I have not been inspired by the MDR menus, so we've booked Tamarind twice, Pinnacle twice and Sel de Mer.   We thought we would do the first Gala in the dining room and maybe try the crab place at Icy Strait Point.  Either that or Halibut Fish and Chips.

[Sharon in AZ]

57 minutes ago, aliaschief said:

On our cruise when you sat down in a bar or dining venue majority of folks removed mask. A few left mask on until taking a sip but that was rare.

Same with ours last week. 

[SightCRR]

Did the dog sled people get to go? Thanks. 

[atexsix]

1 hour ago, dfish said:

I have not been inspired by the MDR menus, so we've booked Tamarind twice, Pinnacle twice and Sel de Mer.   We thought we would do the first Gala in the dining room and maybe try the crab place at Icy Strait Point.  Either that or Halibut Fish and Chips.

I think that's wise.  We're even doing Pinnacle room service which at $15 for a 10 oz filet mignon is easily the best deal on the ship, it was just as good as eating in there.

[Euby]

Can someone who is currently on board confirm for me whether or not you can still order a 'Frosty Chocolate Mint Buzz' from the bar?  It's like a adult mint chocolate shake.

It's been several years since I was on a HAL cruise and this was my go-to drink.  To the point the waitress in the Theater would see me and ask if I would like "my drink".  I didn't see it listed in any of the current bar menus on the app.  I found this photo on the internet (dated 7 years ago).  

[Himself]

 

 

 

 

 

Lisa you are docked long before 7 AM at  Ketchikan.  I hope there is not too much Liquid Sunshine.

 

 

 

li

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SusieKIslandGirl]

7 hours ago, Euby said:

 'Frosty Chocolate Mint Buzz'.  It's like a adult mint chocolate shake.

Ooh, I want one of those! Sounds delish!

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Good Morning from Ketchikan, yes we were docked quite early . I stepped out on the balcony at 6:30 and we were docked right downtown and it was a noisy busy port this morning. 
While I am on my Verizon in port I have no problems posting on my phone or iPad, but the minute I try on ship premium WiFi it starts up with all kinds of wacky things on both devices and keeps me from posting. So today may be my last post till we are back in Seattle.

Wow the sun just came out. This could be a very nice day today.

This morning we did what we usually do we head up to Explorations Cafe to get me a large Caramel Latte made with almond milk then we head to the Pinnacle for breakfast.

Last night we ate lunch n Canaletto, it was better than I remembered but not sure it had the Wow but it was good. Service though was excellent and those in Canaletto really want to please. After dinner we caught an amazing sunset from the promenade deck starboard side.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Here are the pictures from this morning here in Ketchikan.

The sun is really shining bright now.

 

[Himself]

Thanks for the Ketchikan pictures.  It brings back good memories.  Is the Christmas store still open.

[dobiemom]

Cruise Critic doesn’t like me. Tried 3 times yesterday to post. 🙁

I’ll read everything later but just wanted to tell you about a wonderful lunch we had in Sitka. https://yuyositka.com/ It’s right across the street from St. Micheal’s Cathedral. Yulo’s is a tiny place (maybe 8 tables?) and serves pizza and Mexican food. We opted for Mexican. We just wanted a little snack so I got a quesadilla and my GF got a sincronizada, which is “like a quesadilla only better.” And they had sopapillas which I haven’t had in a long time. Everything was wonderful! Joel was our server and I think the owner. He is a “local” born in Nome. He also lived in Texas for a bit. They don’t serve alcohol but had Mexican Fanta and Coke. He might be serving wine and beer soon (i.e., next season). 

[LAFFNVEGAS]

2 hours ago, Himself said:

Thanks for the Ketchikan pictures.  It brings back good memories.  Is the Christmas store still open.

Yes it is 😃

[SilvertoGold]

3 hours ago, SusieKIslandGirl said:

Ooh, I want one of those! Sounds delish!

They are!!! Can order with coffee instead of mint, but the mint is superior! Be warned: exactly 2 million calories per, a meal in itself :)

[ger_77]

@dobiemomthe lunch sounds yummy, especially the sopapillas!  I don't want to hijack this thread, but can you please tell me where you got those amazing masks?  Want some!!!

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

Edited September 9, 2021 by ger_77

[kazu]

13 minutes ago, ger_77 said:

@dobiemomthe lunch sounds yummy, especially the sopapillas!  I don't want to hijack this thread, but can you please tell me where you got those amazing masks?  Want some!!!

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

IIRC a post correctly either here or on FB, I believe Marcia had them specially made or made them. 😉 

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Good Afternoon from a very sunny beautiful day in Ketchikan. This is extremely rare for September. 
we decided to do some walking and check out the shops. The last several time we were in Ketchikan we were docked at the far end dock 4 that is past the tunnel. So even if you do some shopping like going to Tongass you miss the heart of Ketchikan. OMG I had forgotten how many Jewelry stores there were here. I don’t know how they survive even if there are 5 ships in town. But right now has got to be hard. But there were a few stores that were very busy.

After shopping we decided to try something different. We went to a restaurant called New York Cafe. Dobiemom met us there. Tom had Halibut fish and chips and Us girls had a bowl of Seafood Chowder and a dessert called Butterscotch Molly. Oh my that Butterscotch Molly was so good. 
The restaurant is near Creek Street so we walked that saw some salmon dead and alive 😁 Then headed back to the ship. 
There are three ships here NCL Encore is at their new pier so we don’t see the ship but there is a small ship up at 4 where were were last time that I cannot figure out what ship it is. I will post a picture maybe someone will know.

Below are some Ketchikan pictures and lunch as well.

[Boytjie]

22 hours ago, Thorswife59 said:

Are masks required if you’re sitting a bar or club with a drink? Thanks!

 

Three weeks ago people at the Casino bar (where we hung out the most) usually removed their mask when seated and drinking.

[madera1]

We enjoyed the time in both Sitka and Ketchikan. Today was perfect weather and the ship was docked in town whereas the NCL ship was docked further away outside of the downtown area. Walking back from Creek Street we enjoyed watching the seals chasing the fish. We came back to the ship and shared a Dive In Cannonball burger and fries. I thought the burger was as good as we have had on  prior trips although there was just a small piece of bacon on it. We have enjoyed our 3 meals eaten in the MDR. Our waters are very attentive and the food has been tasty. One of the servers has been giving all the women origami items each evening. Our room

stewards Martin and Yadi are wonderful! 

 

Edited September 9, 2021 by madera1

[Boytjie]

10 minutes ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

There are three ships here NCL Encore is at their new pier so we don’t see the ship but there is a small ship up at 4 where were were last time that I cannot figure out what ship it is.

 

 

 

That's the American Constellation. 

[zelker]

@LAFFNVEGAS Wow!  You're definitely having gorgeous weather this time around!  Thanks for sharing more pics.

 

If you run into Mark Pells, can you ask him if he and CD Valerie will be onboard the Panama Canal transit on NA next month, please?