Live from the Majestic Japan Cruise on Westerdam Sept 1 - Oct 24, 2024

[bennybear]

How exciting!  Looking forward to following along!  Japan is one of my favourite destinations!  

[Sir PMP]

1 hour ago, richwmn said:

Tell me more please

Howard and Gill are not joining you, so you need to find another trivia group.

[richwmn]

34 minutes ago, Sir PMP said:

Howard and Gill are not joining you, so you need to find another trivia group.

Sorry to hear that, I hope everything is ok. Howard has my email if he would like to get in touch

 

[Cruise Junky]

Amazing itinerary. Have a great time. 

[Seasick Sailor]

Rich,

Allen and I are excited to join you again, this time on the beautiful Westerdam. I'm glad you started the Live From. Also looking forward to seeing Linda again, and meeting Ray and his wife.

 

Enjoy Seattle. We have been there many times (good friends live there, and have 10+ cruises out) We are coming in on Saturday and staying at the Astra Hotel, under 15 minutes to Pier 91.

[Happily@Sea]

Thank you, Rich, for the ride-along.

[richwmn]

08/29/24 Seattle, Washington pre cruise

 

Today has really been a beautiful day in Seattle. The temperature has been nice and it is currently (6:30pm) 77°. I intended today to be a lazy day recovering from crossing from Eastern time to Pacific and that is what I did. I ended up staying awake until about 11pm Pacific time but that really didn’t help. I still woke up at 6am Eastern. I was able to go back to sleep for another two hours, finally waking up at 5am Pacific. Breakfast at the hotel started at 6am and was ready when I went down within a few minutes after that. The breakfast area was pretty crowded but I found what I wanted and was able to sit long enough to eat. The selection was scrambled eggs, sausage links, waffles, and three types of cereal. There might have been a bit more. Also available – apple and orange juice plus two more, and of course coffee. A staff member was there to make sure everything went smoothly.

 

After breakfast it was back to the room to catch up with social media and email. At 11am I went back to Silver Dollar Casino for lunch. Today I went with the chicken tender plate with french fries. I’m not one to photograph my meals, but I managed to today.

 

 

The food was again good. What was interesting was that for some reason I recognized the server from several years ago when I stayed at the same hotel and we talked about it. She has worked there for 13 years. Unfortunately, she is now off for the rest of the week so I won’t see her again.

 

After I left the Casino, I walked around the area for a little bit and found a 7-11. It is also within short walking distance so I grabbed some snacks and went back to the hotel. Again I have used today to relax and I will see what tomorrow brings.

 

[Seasick Sailor]

Sounds like a nice day.

[AV8rix]

On 8/28/2024 at 8:52 PM, richwmn said:

 

I am boarding in Seattle on September 1^st, after spending a couple of days there. Others are boarding in Vancouver and I supposed there will be some people who are only on the Seattle to Vancouver segment.

 

Just so's ya know, Rich:  The little Seattle-Vancouver segment is generally a booze cruise for corporate folks.  Because I live here I've done that one a few times as a starter to Hawaii and other cruises.  I generally just stay in my stateroom for that segment -- away from public venues.  One time on Edam or NA I figured that Tamarind would be safe for dinner so I booked it.  When I got there they had pushed some tables together for a group of 12 very loud drunks.  As I was leaving I said to the manager, "They're corporate, aren't they?".  He just rolled his eyes and nodded in the affirmative.

[richwmn]

25 minutes ago, AV8rix said:

Just so's ya know, Rich:  The little Seattle-Vancouver segment is generally a booze cruise for corporate folks.  Because I live here I've done that one a few times as a starter to Hawaii and other cruises.  I generally just stay in my stateroom for that segment -- away from public venues.  One time on Edam or NA I figured that Tamarind would be safe for dinner so I booked it.  When I got there they had pushed some tables together for a group of 12 very loud drunks.  As I was leaving I said to the manager, "They're corporate, aren't they?".  He just rolled his eyes and nodded in the affirmative.

Thanks for the warning, but I expected this. Not necessarily corporate, but considering the timing and distance involved it is an easy thing to imagine.

[atexsix]

2 hours ago, AV8rix said:

Just so's ya know, Rich:  The little Seattle-Vancouver segment is generally a booze cruise for corporate folks.  Because I live here I've done that one a few times as a starter to Hawaii and other cruises.  I generally just stay in my stateroom for that segment -- away from public venues.  One time on Edam or NA I figured that Tamarind would be safe for dinner so I booked it.  When I got there they had pushed some tables together for a group of 12 very loud drunks.  As I was leaving I said to the manager, "They're corporate, aren't they?".  He just rolled his eyes and nodded in the affirmative.

We did that once too because it was a segment of our Hawaii, it was awful, after the first evening we also decided to spend the rest of it in our room, we emerged when the boozers all disembarked in Vancouver and the difference in the atmosphere was like night and day. 

[albingirl]

Such a wow cruise!  Have a wonderful time.  I will look forward to following along.  Bon voyage!

[richwmn]

08/30/24 Seattle, Washington pre cruise

 

Another lazy day with a late start. I did manage to sleep until almost 5:30. Maybe tomorrow I’ll make my normal 6am. Breakfast wasn’t as crowded as yesterday, but more than I would have expected.

 

I headed downstairs about 11am expecting to ask the front desk if the shuttle driver could take me to the train station, as happened when I stayed here a few years ago. I came to the realization that I wasn’t going to the train station. It seems another ship (or more) is leaving here today. There was a massive backup of people to get on the shuttle to in the lobby when I got downstairs.

 

With that in mind, I took a walk in another direction. A short distance away, next to the 7-11 from yesterday was an Asian restaurant named Teriyaki. Further along is a Taco Bell and a Jack in the Box. I also saw a sign for Dave’s Diner and I walked a bit in the direction the sign said but I didn’t see it and it didn’t show up on Google Maps. It might be the diner I had a good meal at during my first visit to Seattle a long time ago.

 

I ended up walking back to Teriyaki. This is a very small mostly take out restaurant. It only has two small tables set up as two tops for dining in. The menu is typical for this type of place, a bunch of pictures with prices. I ended up with Teriyaki Chicken which came with rice and cabbage. Drink, Meal, tip and all came out to $20, and portion was generous. The meal was very good, and extremely filling.

 

 

Back at the hotel, there are still many people checking out with luggage that suggests going on a cruise.

 

I hope everyone enjoys the rest of the day and the Labor Day holiday weekend.

[puppycanducruise]

Thanks for taking us along.  Have a great time!

[atexsix]

35 minutes ago, richwmn said:

08/30/24 Seattle, Washington pre cruise

 

Another lazy day with a late start. I did manage to sleep until almost 5:30. Maybe tomorrow I’ll make my normal 6am. Breakfast wasn’t as crowded as yesterday, but more than I would have expected.

 

I headed downstairs about 11am expecting to ask the front desk if the shuttle driver could take me to the train station, as happened when I stayed here a few years ago. I came to the realization that I wasn’t going to the train station. It seems another ship (or more) is leaving here today. There was a massive backup of people to get on the shuttle to in the lobby when I got downstairs.

 

With that in mind, I took a walk in another direction. A short distance away, next to the 7-11 from yesterday was an Asian restaurant named Teriyaki. Further along is a Taco Bell and a Jack in the Box. I also saw a sign for Dave’s Diner and I walked a bit in the direction the sign said but I didn’t see it and it didn’t show up on Google Maps. It might be the diner I had a good meal at during my first visit to Seattle a long time ago.

 

I ended up walking back to Teriyaki. This is a very small mostly take out restaurant. It only has two small tables set up as two tops for dining in. The menu is typical for this type of place, a bunch of pictures with prices. I ended up with Teriyaki Chicken which came with rice and cabbage. Drink, Meal, tip and all came out to $20, and portion was generous. The meal was very good, and extremely filling.

 

 

Back at the hotel, there are still many people checking out with luggage that suggests going on a cruise.

 

I hope everyone enjoys the rest of the day and the Labor Day holiday weekend.

Dave's was over by the south airport entrance, it permanently closed about 6 or 7 years ago IIRC when the owner retired.

[richwmn]

20 minutes ago, atexsix said:

Dave's was over by the south airport entrance, it permanently closed about 6 or 7 years ago IIRC when the owner retired.

After I wrote the previous entry I did a little checking and found this out and it wasn't the place I was thinking about

Edited August 30 by richwmn

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

Rich, I hope you enjoy your last day in Seattle tomorrow.  Your cruise sounds wonderful, and we would have been on it if things had worked out differently.  I'm looking forward to following along on your adventures.  Thank you for taking us along.

[Foggy Bay]

This looks like an amazing trip! We are on a two-weeker from Vancouver to Tokyo at the end of September, so I will be eagerly following your trip. ENJOY!

[quilty964]

Sounds amazing!  Enjoy your next adventure!

[richwmn]

08/31/24 Seattle, Washington pre cruise

 

Good morning. According to Navigator on my phone this morning, our adventure begins at midnight tonight. That would be nice, however tomorrow at noon boarding the ship will be fine. We will be leaving the hotel at 11 and I believe it should take about 30 minutes to get to the pier.

 

This morning is College Game Day, followed by football from 9:00am to Noon. A friend will be arriving then, followed by dinner with Seattle friends. Maybe a little more college football after eating.

 

I hope everyone has safe travels today, and no delays arriving in Seattle. See everyone tomorrow!

 

[seagarsmoker]

31 minutes ago, richwmn said:

08/31/24 Seattle, Washington pre cruise

 

Good morning. According to Navigator on my phone this morning, our adventure begins at midnight tonight. That would be nice, however tomorrow at noon boarding the ship will be fine. We will be leaving the hotel at 11 and I believe it should take about 30 minutes to get to the pier.

 

This morning is College Game Day, followed by football from 9:00am to Noon. A friend will be arriving then, followed by dinner with Seattle friends. Maybe a little more college football after eating.

 

I hope everyone has safe travels today, and no delays arriving in Seattle. See everyone tomorrow!

 

The nice bonus of being out west today is the noontime games start at 9am out there! 

[richwmn]

2 minutes ago, seagarsmoker said:

The nice bonus of being out west today is the noontime games start at 9am out there! 

Part of college game day has always been a drink with the game. 9am is a bit early for that.

 

The other part is that with the first game starting at 9am more games will be shown before midnight.

[Sharon in AZ]

Rich @richwmn, I’m so glad you are doing a Live From!  I’m already enjoying your pre cruise escapades. I’ve never been interested in seeing Asia so hopefully you can change my mind. 

[dfish]

Rich, 

 

I hope you have a fantastic cruise!  Enjoy every moment.

[Hogladyrider]

I also are REALLY excited to follow along this adventure!

 

Susan