Nearly Live from Oosterdam Med Empires June 13th - 25th.

[VMax1700]

Today's Lido Lunch menu:

 

[VMax1700]

As many will be taking late tours or just going ashore after arrival in Istanbul at 4pm they have announced that Lido will stay open until 9pm tonight.

 

 

[VMax1700]

They have opened the bow for the sail in to Istanbul.

[VMax1700]

 

 

 

 

 

[VMax1700]

On 6/15/2022 at 2:09 PM, VMax1700 said:

I will try to remember to update this info too.

Day 1 Upgrade Surf to Premium Internet package was $50 for 12 days (1 device)

Day 2 ..................................................................................$50 for 11 days (1 device)

Day 3...................................................................................$50 for 10 days (1 device)

 

Starting to look like it may pay to upgrade on day1!

Day 4 Upgrade Surf to Premium Internet package was $50 for 9 days (1 device)

Day 5 ...............................................................................  $50 for 8 days (1 device)

Day 6 ...............................................................................  $40 for 7 days (1 device)

[VMax1700]

Today was my first visit this cruise to Dive In.

I used the app to order a Gainer and Naked Fries.

Result:  Double Fail.

Gainer had no Dive In sauce on it and the fries were just fries.  Not the usual coated fries but just plain fries, like out of the freezer at home.

😟

[*Miss G*]

1 minute ago, VMax1700 said:

the fries were just fries.  Not the usual coated fries but just plain fries, like out of the freezer at home.

😟

 

That was our experience on the Nieuw Statendam.  Very disappointed.  I am hoping it’s just a supply chain issue.

[terrydtx]

20 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

Today was my first visit this cruise to Dive In.

I used the app to order a Gainer and Naked Fries.

Result:  Double Fail.

Gainer had no Dive In sauce on it and the fries were just fries.  Not the usual coated fries but just plain fries, like out of the freezer at home.

😟

What are Naked Fries, if not just plain fries without any seasoning? Now the Dive in Sauce is what makes the burgers so good.

Edited June 18, 2022 by terrydtx

[VMax1700]

7 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

What are Naked Fries, if not just plain fries without any seasoning? Now the Dive in Sauce is what makes the burgers so good.

There are three Fries options: Naked; Topped with Dive in sauce; or Smothered in Melty Cheese sauce.  They were always 'coated', whether naked or dressed!

Today they had no coating.

[terrydtx]

1 minute ago, VMax1700 said:

There are three Fries options: Naked; Topped with Dive in sauce; or Smothered in Melty Cheese sauce.  They were always 'coated', whether naked or dressed!

Today they had no coating.

Not what I would have thought "Naked" meant. That is like saying the lady was naked with her clothes on, LOL

 

Sounds like the ship has run out of the Dive In sauce since neither of what you ordered had any.

[Florida_gal_50]

I find the dive in highly overrated.  I get burgers from the grocery store that I have on occasion that are 100 times better.  It’s hard to screw up fries but it sounds like that happened.

[Torquer]

@VMax1700When you woke up this morning exactly where was the ship?  Was it still in the Dardanelles Strait or was it already in the Sea of Marmara?  I have heard the Dardanelles Strait is rather scenic so on our cruise later this summer I want to be out of bed early enough to see it, if possible.  Any recommendation of which side of the ship to be on for best viewing?

 

Thanks for your continued excellent reporting.

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

1 hour ago, VMax1700 said:

Today was my first visit this cruise to Dive In.

I used the app to order a Gainer and Naked Fries.

Result:  Double Fail.

Gainer had no Dive In sauce on it and the fries were just fries.  Not the usual coated fries but just plain fries, like out of the freezer at home.

😟

 

I'm sorry your experience at the Dive-In was not good.  For years we avoided the Dive-In because of hit or miss burgers, mainly way over cooked and dry.  This spring on Koningsdam, we decided to give them another try.  We both ordered the High Dive and naked fries and were very pleasantly surprised.  First, the fries were coated and lightly seasoned.  The burgers were wonderful, the best Dive-In burgers we've ever had.  They were so good we went back another day.  I think a lot depends on the person who cooks the meat.  Like a lot of food items, they tend to vary from ship to ship and even between chefs and cooks on the same ship.

[Seasick Sailor]

27 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

 

I'm sorry your experience at the Dive-In was not good.  For years we avoided the Dive-In because of hit or miss burgers, mainly way over cooked and dry.  This spring on Koningsdam, we decided to give them another try.  We both ordered the High Dive and naked fries and were very pleasantly surprised.  First, the fries were coated and lightly seasoned.  The burgers were wonderful, the best Dive-In burgers we've ever had.  They were so good we went back another day.  I think a lot depends on the person who cooks the meat.  Like a lot of food items, they tend to vary from ship to ship and even between chefs and cooks on the same ship.

 

I agree! Once you get to know the staff, you can ask for the way it's cooked. I am not much on bread so I get a salad from Lido to eat with my patty. 

 

BTW, we order our pizza extra crispy crust and they are really good.

[cruisemom42]

@VMax1700  I may have missed it because I'm just skimming, but what did you do in Kusadasi and what did you do in Istanbul (or what are you planning to do)?  Really curious what your experience is/was like as ships really haven't been calling in Turkey for the last two years.

 

I'm considering a cruise in the fall that goes to both of these ports. I've loved them in the past but not sure what may have changed for the worse in current environment....

 

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

1 hour ago, Seasick Sailor said:

 

I agree! Once you get to know the staff, you can ask for the way it's cooked. I am not much on bread so I get a salad from Lido to eat with my patty. 

 

BTW, we order our pizza extra crispy crust and they are really good.

 

Yes, when you get to know the staff and crew, it does help to get food prepared the way you like.  However, at the Dive-in on Koningsdam, we just ordered and were very pleasantly surprised at how good the food was.  BTW, I made a point to catch the cook when he wasn't busy to tell him how much we like our hamburgers.  Even with the mask on, you could see his face light up.  

[srnash]

3 hours ago, Torquer said:

@VMax1700When you woke up this morning exactly where was the ship?  Was it still in the Dardanelles Strait or was it already in the Sea of Marmara?  I have heard the Dardanelles Strait is rather scenic so on our cruise later this summer I want to be out of bed early enough to see it, if possible.  Any recommendation of which side of the ship to be on for best viewing?

 

Thanks for your continued excellent reporting.

I can't answer your timing question, but if you want to see the Gallipoli area, it would be on the port side going towards Istanbul.  

[VMax1700]

6 hours ago, Torquer said:

@VMax1700When you woke up this morning exactly where was the ship?  Was it still in the Dardanelles Strait or was it already in the Sea of Marmara?  I have heard the Dardanelles Strait is rather scenic so on our cruise later this summer I want to be out of bed early enough to see it, if possible.  Any recommendation of which side of the ship to be on for best viewing?

 

Thanks for your continued excellent reporting.

It has been quite disappointing as scenic cruising is exactly that, scenic, no commentary or comments.  Previously on the interactive inroom TV there was a section showing the ships position, speed, direction etc.  That is no longer available.  I had to use ship tracker type websites to try to find our location.  Most of the Dardanelles was during the night so nothing could be viewed.  I am hoping that the sail out is better and I will let you know my thoughts on which side of ship.

We are in a starboard cabin, which tonight is giving wonderful views of the river and the shipping.  

[terrydtx]

8 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

It has been quite disappointing as scenic cruising is exactly that, scenic, no commentary or comments.  Previously on the interactive inroom TV there was a section showing the ships position, speed, direction etc.  That is no longer available.  I had to use ship tracker type websites to try to find our location.  Most of the Dardanelles was during the night so nothing could be viewed.  I am hoping that the sail out is better and I will let you know my thoughts on which side of ship.

We are in a starboard cabin, which tonight is giving wonderful views of the river and the shipping.  

I am surprised that the cabin TV does not show the ships position and speed, does it have a forward view of the forward ship's web cam? We had all of that on the Equinox last year. I also use Google maps on my tablet to find out exactly where the ship is located, it works off the GPS satellites and online information.

[VMax1700]

4 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

@VMax1700  I may have missed it because I'm just skimming, but what did you do in Kusadasi and what did you do in Istanbul (or what are you planning to do)?  Really curious what your experience is/was like as ships really haven't been calling in Turkey for the last two years.

 

I'm considering a cruise in the fall that goes to both of these ports. I've loved them in the past but not sure what may have changed for the worse in current environment....

 

We are docked at Galataport the new port terminal in Istanbul which only opened last November.  It is a very modern building with direct access to a large (open to the public) shopping centre.  There are various docks with a central processing building for passport control, security etc.  This leads to surprisingly long walks!

 

In Kusadasi, we just walked around the town, which was a typical Turkish resort town full of shops selling 'Genuine Fake' watches and rip off designer wear, bags etc.

Tonight in Istanbul we did the HAL  Dinner cruise on the Bosphorus, just as another way to see the city.

Tomorrow we are planning to take a HAL bus tour which is scheduled for 5 hours.

(just as a FYI, my DW recently had breast cancer treatments and has not yet got her full strength back.  This cruise is more a way of relaxing and encouraging eating habits than anything else, so perhaps I am not the best person to offer ideas on tours etc)

[VMax1700]

3 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

does it have a forward view of the forward ship's web cam

There is a bow cam and an aft cam, both viewable on the TV.

[terrydtx]

15 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

We are docked at Galataport the new port terminal in Istanbul which only opened last November.  It is a very modern building with direct access to a large (open to the public) shopping centre.  There are various docks with a central processing building for passport control, security etc.  This leads to surprisingly long walks!

 

In Kusadasi, we just walked around the town, which was a typical Turkish resort town full of shops selling 'Genuine Fake' watches and rip off designer wear, bags etc.

Tonight in Istanbul we did the HAL  Dinner cruise on the Bosphorus, just as another way to see the city.

Tomorrow we are planning to take a HAL bus tour which is scheduled for 5 hours.

(just as a FYI, my DW recently had breast cancer treatments and has not yet got her full strength back.  This cruise is more a way of relaxing and encouraging eating habits than anything else, so perhaps I am not the best person to offer ideas on tours etc)

How was the dinner cruise, we are doing that same shore excursion when we are there in August. How was the food  and wine?

Edited June 18, 2022 by terrydtx

[VMax1700]

Funny thing happened this evening!

 

At lunchtime DW mentioned the little sheets that were placed at the side of the bed each evening at turn down.  I have no idea what they are called?  Do they even have a name?  Anyway, she said that we hadn't had them in quite a few cruises.  I can't remember the last time that they were there each night.

 

Tonight we arrive back to the room and there they are, on the floor beside the bed!

 

 

[VMax1700]

Tonight's  towel animal.

The 'tongue' is made from a strap that we use to hold our KN95 masks.

 

[VMax1700]

Tonight's dinner cruise.

We left the ship at 6.45pm and returned at 10.30pm