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

[sunviking90]

Thank you for taking the time to do a Live from. We are very envious of you on this cruise as we were in Japan last spring and loved the country so much!

We are currently on the Nieuw Amsterdam in Alaska and I am surprised that our menus look quite different than yours. We haven’t seen the Lasagna or Spaghetti and Meatballs at all in our 2 weeks on board. I wonder how HAL decides on the menus. Either way we have really enjoyed everything so far, but wishing we were headed to Japan!

[WriterOnDeck]

1 hour ago, sunviking90 said:

Thank you for taking the time to do a Live from. We are very envious of you on this cruise as we were in Japan last spring and loved the country so much!

We are currently on the Nieuw Amsterdam in Alaska and I am surprised that our menus look quite different than yours. We haven’t seen the Lasagna or Spaghetti and Meatballs at all in our 2 weeks on board. I wonder how HAL decides on the menus. Either way we have really enjoyed everything so far, but wishing we were headed to Japan!

About the menus: My understanding is that Holland America puts more $ in the food budget for the Legendary Voyages such as this one. I know they do it on the Grand Voyages. They also make an effort to never repeat a menu (but certainly repeat some items -- just mix them up) and include lots of local food when they can.

[sunviking90]

1 minute ago, WriterOnDeck said:

About the menus: My understanding is that Holland America puts more $ in the food budget for the Legendary Voyages such as this one. I know they do it on the Grand Voyages. They also make an effort to never repeat a menu (but certainly repeat some items -- just mix them up) and include lots of local food when they can.

Yes, that makes sense. Our menus have been heavily Alaskan themed, but we’ve also been quite pleased with them. 

[atexsix]

5 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

@richwmn

Good morning Rich. I believe tonight is Silver Gala in MDR with a different menu?

How many galas will they have for an itinerary of this length?

[NextOne]

6 hours ago, richwmn said:

6 hours ago, richwmn said:

09/04/2024 At Sea Destination Sitka Alaska eta 09-05

 

Good Morning from Westerdam.

 

 

The temperature aboard the ship is 57°F/14°C under clear skies. We are underway, headed for Sitka tomorrow morning.

 

Yesterday we were in Vancouver to drop some passengers and get a few more. I had decided early that it was going to be a ship day. All passengers had to go thru a face-to-face meeting with US Customs & Immigration and had a pretty long time frame to do it. Still, they had to announce several times that people still hadn’t complied. The process was easy, but a bit time consuming because a Princess ship was also in Vancouver. We did this just after lunch and it took maybe 30 minutes.

 

Because we were in Canada the ship was only allowed to open one bar per deck. This caused some long walks for beverage stewards. All bars were open shortly after we left the dock.

 

As mentioned earlier, the 1pm trivia was general knowledge and I was able to meet up with two friends from Grand Australia along with two new players. It is a good team. The 4pm trivia was canceled for the sail away party, and for the late trivia we teamed up with the Bridge Director and his wife. His name is Peter and he told me he was the head bridge instructor for HAL. We again did well, but another team got a perfect score again. Looks like they are going to win most of the time.

 

The show last night on the World Stage was a welcome to the ship and an introduction to the entertainment staff. The Cruise Director, Karlijn, introduced the various people that would be supporting her during the next two months. We have about 12 people in various roles for this cruise.

We listened to the Rolling Stone Rock Band again for most of the 9pm set, and all of the 10pm set. The musicians are good and the singers are very good. They played a nice assortment of songs and had the dance floor full.

 

It was a late evening, but very enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

for the late trivia we teamed up with the Bridge Director and his wife. His name is Peter and he told me he was the head bridge instructor for HAL

 

 

for the late trivia we teamed up with the Bridge Director and his wife. His name is Peter and he told me he was the head bridge instructor for HAL. We again did well, but another team got a perfect score again. Looks like they are going to win most of the time.

 

The show last night on the World Stage was a welcome to the ship and an introduction to the entertainment staff. The Cruise Director, Karlijn, introduced the various people that would be supporting her during the next two months. We have about 12 people in various roles for this cruise.

We listened to the Rolling Stone Rock Band again for most of the 9pm set, and all of the 10pm set. The musicians are good and the singers are very good. They played a nice assortment of songs and had the dance floor full.

 

It was a late evening, but very enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6 hours ago, richwmn said:

09/04/2024 At Sea Destination Sitka Alaska eta 09-05

 

Good Morning from Westerdam.

 

 

The temperature aboard the ship is 57°F/14°C under clear skies. We are underway, headed for Sitka tomorrow morning.

 

Yesterday we were in Vancouver to drop some passengers and get a few more. I had decided early that it was going to be a ship day. All passengers had to go thru a face-to-face meeting with US Customs & Immigration and had a pretty long time frame to do it. Still, they had to announce several times that people still hadn’t complied. The process was easy, but a bit time consuming because a Princess ship was also in Vancouver. We did this just after lunch and it took maybe 30 minutes.

 

Because we were in Canada the ship was only allowed to open one bar per deck. This caused some long walks for beverage stewards. All bars were open shortly after we left the dock.

 

As mentioned earlier, the 1pm trivia was general knowledge and I was able to meet up with two friends from Grand Australia along with two new players. It is a good team. The 4pm trivia was canceled for the sail away party, and for the late trivia we teamed up with the Bridge Director and his wife. His name is Peter and he told me he was the head bridge instructor for HAL. We again did well, but another team got a perfect score again. Looks like they are going to win most of the time.

 

The show last night on the World Stage was a welcome to the ship and an introduction to the entertainment staff. The Cruise Director, Karlijn, introduced the various people that would be supporting her during the next two months. We have about 12 people in various roles for this cruise.

We listened to the Rolling Stone Rock Band again for most of the 9pm set, and all of the 10pm set. The musicians are good and the singers are very good. They played a nice assortment of songs and had the dance floor full.

 

It was a late evening, but very enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 4 by NextOne

[NextOne]

I remember Peter, the Bridge instructor! I took beginner classes with him on the 2021 San Diego - FLL trip through the PC. He was the nicest man. I was the only one in the class that followed his suggestion to try the duplicate bridge session, and he paired me with a very experienced player, and sat behind me for most of the hands to coach me. I ended the session with 0.34 master points! Please tell him that Edi says hi and I'm still playing!

[tigervixxxen]

1 hour ago, atexsix said:

How many galas will they have for an itinerary of this length?

I have the same question as well. I’m definitely interested in the logistics of such a long voyage. I’m enjoying following along. I hope to do a crossing to Japan in the coming years (tho not the full circle unfortunately, DH not retired but what a lovely itinerary). 
 

As a HAL newbie, is the silver gala usually first? DH would like to sub PG on one of the gala nights but I’m not sure which to choose. 

[ger_77]

I see on the Daily it says Walk a Mile with the location being the Ocean Bar.  Just how big IS that bar?????  😉

[Seasick Sailor]

1 hour ago, ger_77 said:

I see on the Daily it says Walk a Mile with the location being the Ocean Bar.  Just how big IS that bar?????  😉

 

It's a nice bar area Gerri. The bar itself curves around a bit. There was a string quartet playing tonight before dinner. I wouldn't mind walking a mile or two to get to the bar.

[Seasick Sailor]

Kelana gave me the Proforma.

 

Looks like we have 7 Gala nights.

 

I'll take a picture of the pages and share them.

[Seasick Sailor]

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

20 hours ago, richwmn said:

Howard was my trivia partner for the Grand Australia & New Zealand and continuing on to Fort Lauderdale. We talked about meeting up again the day before he left Volendam, so I'm not sure when you talked to him. As to losing, we had 15 correct and the winning team had 16. We lost a couple over the 106 days we played together, but not many.

 

 

Howard has been our trivia partner on a few cruises, and we rarely lost.

[Seasick Sailor]

17 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

 

Howard has been our trivia partner on a few cruises, and we rarely lost.

 

We want Howard!!!

[richwmn]

09/05/2024 Sitka Alaska 0800-1700

 

Today we are in Sitka, one time capital of the territory of Alaska. The temperature outside is 55°F/13°C with rain. We have arrived and should be cleared to exit the ship shortly.

 

Yesterday was an entertaining day at sea. As always, the meals were good. I rarely eat in the MDR, as the Lido food is good and fast. I do enjoy a slow relaxed meal now and then as well. Lunch was from the Asian station and as always was tasty and well prepared. Dinner was Salmon and rice. They dish out good portions and I was satisfied when I left the Lido.

 

We had three rounds of trivia, 1pm, 4pm, and 8:30pm. All were well attended and hosted by Jose. If he can keep his energy level up for another 48 days it will be amazing. He is a fun trivia host. My teams won once yesterday and on the other two were within a point of winning.

 

In the Ocean Bar a group called Third Avenue West (HAL’s Seattle Address) plays soft Jazz several times a night. The are very good and play at a volume level that encourages chatting. They play a good selection of songs, and play them well.

 

The Rolling Stone Lounge has a 6 piece band that does R&R standards. Most of the vocals are done by two ladies, sometimes one guy sings. All singers have good voices and seem to know the songs. Unfortunately the volume in the lounge is a bit high for conversation, even sitting at the outside area of the bar. On the other hand, the dance floor was full for most songs.

 

Billboard Onboard contained the two piano concept. Trivia comes during one of their gaps, but on the first day they played into the trivia time slot by a bit. Because of that, the venue is full and it takes a bit of time to transition to trivia. I arrived early to get a seat, and was not really impressed with the duo. I do realize that they had a good crowd, so others did enjoy their sets.

 

The Captain introduced the senior staff on the World Stage starting at 7:15 and then had the welcome toast. The Captain is a very accomplished speaker and his introductions were funny. After the toast, the show for the evening started. It was a tap dance show which I didn’t attend but heard mostly good reviews.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 5 by richwmn

[atexsix]

Very interesting about the banking, I always have cash with me when I travel, especially when going overseas. 

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

15 minutes ago, atexsix said:

Very interesting about the banking, I always have cash with me when I travel, especially when going overseas. 

Most country's are liking the card More than cash,  except -------

[ikesyd]

Enjoying reading your posts. We will be on the 28 day arctic solstice cruise next June. What hotel did you stay at in Seattle? We will be arriving about 3 days before and trying to decide where to stay. 

[richwmn]

I stayed at a Quality Inn near the airport. There are several restaurants within walking distance and I believe the hotel will still shuttle you to the train into town. It is a nice, basic hotel. The breakfast is good but not a lot of variety. Shuttle to the ship is easy.

 

[richwmn]

A walk thru Sitka, Alaska.

 

While the weather wasn’t perfect, it was nice. We left the ship early and the temperature remained below 60°. The ship had a shuttle from the pier to downtown Sitka. Our driver into town gave a very good commentary on the area, and the history of Sitka. He dropped us off in an area that was central to the city.

 

We walked from the drop off point several blocks and admired some of the stores and the Russian Church, which is in need of repair. We did a little bit of shopping, and I went into one of the last remaining Radio Shack stores. We took a slightly different course back to the ship and saw a little more of the city’s downtown. Sitka is a pretty town and the people are very friendly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[vms]

Thanks for the photos and info about Sitka- headed there on my cruise in a couple of weeks and this was very helpful for our planning!

 

Enjoy your cruise and thanks for bringing us along!

[Haljo1935]

We really enjoy Sitka and appreciate the more "local" less commercialized atmosphere. Your pictures are making me anxious for our cruise to start - hurry up Sept 28.

[RobTheGob]

Thanks for your GREAT thread!

 

We haven't been on HAL since 2022 - but it appears from The Daily and other threads that the Crow's Nest Happy Hour is gone... When I first started following along, I thought it was due to port restrictions or something else.

 

If it's gone fleet wide, that's really too bad! It was on our daily schedule more often than not. Having said that - it likely means a smaller bill at the end of the trip...

 

I'll have to see what Happy Hour options there are on our upcoming Zaandam cruise.

[Hogladyrider]

@richwmn  right there with you on skipping the MDR.  HAL has so many options on Lido and it is much more relaxed IMO.

 

Last cruise we never visited the MDR.

 

Enjoying your review!

[atexsix]

8 hours ago, Gail & Marty sailing away said:

Most country's are liking the card More than cash,  except -------

They didn't like my card in Europe last time I was there.  It wasn't always an issue, but whether or not it would go through was hit or miss.  

[richwmn]

Some additional pictures of Sitka on our way out.