Saga Rose Greenland Voyager August 2007

[bcscot]

After staying up late on the first night of our Ryndam cruise, to help my FIL enjoy his first night onboard a cruise ship, I was looking forward to a good sleep on the second night. Unfortunately I was thwarted in this. At about 3am my sleep was disturbed by a loud & incessant noise. As I felt myself floating up towards the surface of consciousness, I struggled against the unwanted buoyancy, wishing to sink into the depths of slumber once more. Try as I could to ignore the noise,eventually I realized that it was hopeless & I let myself float up to the surface again. I then became aware of the fact that it was the smoke detector screaming so inconsiderately in the night.

 

My wife was already up, pulling on clothes, feeling the door for heat & trying to penetrate my fog of incomprehension with sensible instructions. The acrid smell of burning cooking oil began to clutch at my throat. I picked up the phone & called the front desk. A pleasant Filipino lady answered, seemingly totally unaware of the drama unfolding on the lower decks. The alarm stopped screaming at that moment & the smell began to dissipate a little. The lady promised to dispatch the night steward to investigate our dilemma.

 

The steward soon arrived at our door, wearing a heavy outdoor coat but thankfully no lifejacket (maybe they really do not live onboard!). He apprehended the offending smoke detector & made off with it to find someone in a more senior position. The senior night hotel officer arrived & told us that the kitchen was cooking bacon for the crew breakfast & somehow the fumes from the burning cooking oil had found their way into the air conditioning system supplying our cabin & our neighbours. He assured us that the engineers were looking into the problem & that the cooking had been stopped. He then left us to go back to sleep.

 

After lying down again we realized that there was no way we would be able to sleep as the cabin was still heavy with the smell of burnt cooking oil, so we donned our clothes & made our way up to the front desk where we explained our woes to the very smart looking Filipino lady. Once more senior help was summoned. At this point, a junior bridge officer wandered past. Being very bored on his night duty, he sniffed the prospect of excitement at the sight of passengers up at the desk at 4am (this was HAL remember, not Carnival) & he immediately cheered up & became animated. On hearing the story, he enthusiastically made off to report to the bridge. At least we had made his night!

 

The same hotel officer came & arranged for us to have a spare cabin for the rest of the night. Everyone was genuinely apologetic for our disturbance. On the way to the new cabin, I explained that on our only other voyage on an S-Class ship, the Statendam, we had a cabin which smelled strongly of stale cigarette smoke for the entire two week cruise, inspite of several attempts to clean it. I suspected a ventilation problem & a nearby crew smoking area. We had to have clothing dry-cleaned on our return home, the cost of which was eventually refunded by HAL. On the strength of these two experiences, I asked if S-Class ship really stands for 'Smelly Class' ship! I think the man was amazed that a passenger who had just had a night of his cruise ruined, could find something to laugh about!

 

So we arrived at our new temporary cabin & were left once more to try to salvage a little sleep from the night. Only then did I realize where we were. Oh no! Yes! It was one of those dreaded outside promenade deck cabins!:eek: The first thing I did was to tightly close the curtains, making sure that no chink remained open for the use of any of those Thomases or Thomasinas out there, not to mention the possibility of a passing D'Maniac!

 

Then as rational thought gradually took over from sheer blind panic, I realized that this was the perfect opportunity for the furtherance of science. Throwing the curtains open & leaving the light on, I went out & onto the promenade deck where I was able to peer into our own cabin with no risk of setting off a blood curdling scream from within. I could see clearly into the cabin. I then got some sleep & repeated the experiment in daylight with the lights off. It was very difficult to see anything at all under these conditions, only a few inches from the window. I wondered what those out for their morning promenade made of this 'Peeping Thomas' peering into a cabin window!

 

A bottle of wine duly arrived at our cabin by way of apology. It was barely drinkable but the bottle was a special HAL one, so I kept it. The gesture was appreciated. Engineers were seen to be scouring the ship that day & the smell took a few days to totally disappear, but we never received a full explanation. The smell seemed to be only in a small block of cabins & ours was the worst affected. Several days later we received a letter saying that because we had been so understanding, head office had been contacted & they had agreed to give us a $200 cabin credit; which was very nice thank you! The story,for me to report on the Nostalgia Cruise, was free.

 

Has anyone else had any problems on a Smelly-Class ship?

 

Graham.

[CGTNORMANDIE]

THANKS FOR YOUR WONDERFUL REVIEW CONTE!!!:D

 

GRAHAM...You should have been a novelist!!! LOL...a wonderful story!!!:D

 

I hope all of you are enjoying this thread as much as I am.

 

Ross

[Saga Ruby]

Has anyone else had any problems on a Smelly-Class ship? Graham.

 

Your Smelly Cat, um, Smelly Class experience was nicely written and I most enjoyed it especially since I wasn't the one with the pre-dawn fire alarm and subsequent odours. Of course I have questions.

 

How were you assigned that cabin - travel agent or personal choice?

 

Can you tell me about the Ryndam? How large is she - a behemoth?, older, what? For example, how many pax does she carry?

 

As a person who sails mostly senior ships, I expect problems but I also expect resolution and Saga Cruises excels at that very thing so I never worry about any lingering problem. I know it will be resolved instanter to my satisfaction as discussed in my cruise diary about the iron pipe rolling around in the overhead.

 

So your "new" cabin was lit like a stage play, eh? Back in the day, my sister and I were strongly counseled about pulling drapes in our cabin by our parents when we occupied promenade deck cabins so it's fun to hear you and D'maniac talk about possibilities on a modern-day cruise ship.

 

Why didn't Ryndam let you stay in the Promenade Deck cabin for the remainder of the cruise? When I had endless HVAC failures in my cabin on Saga Ruby, on the third day I was upgraded four levels and moved to a large cabin across the hall for the remaining 14 days of my cruise.

 

To our Nostalgia Cruise members, what do you think of HAL'S resolution of the Ryndam episode for Graham and his wife?

 

Ruby

[Conte Di Savoia]

Conte, how long were youse guys onboard? Were you hustled around or allowed to stroll the ship?

Ruby

 

We were on board for about an hour and allowed to roam completely unescorted. I timed the arrival to be on board at lunch thinking that we might graze up on The Lido, but then I had second thoughts about it. I didn't want to take advantage of our hosts and besides we were wearing our visitors' passes (which felt like the scarlet letter). I saw the quizzical look on the faces of some passengers wondering who this fellow was that was snapping all these pictures.

 

And I got's to know - what Broadway matinee did you attend?

Ruby

 

After the visit we strolled over to Broadway and got tickets for the RoundAboutTheatre Company revival of Terrence McNally's play The Ritz with Rosie Perez. It's in previews now and officially opens next week. Very funny! We had a few good laughs and it was much better than cruise ship entertainment.

[Conte Di Savoia]

Graham, I always thought that there's nothing that a little bacon can't make better but I guess that doesn't apply to sleep. How naughty to look into the cabin window. Maybe next time you'll see something like this famous scene.

[Druke I]

bcscot mentioned the Crown Odyssey awhile back.

 

We sailed that ship twice while she was the flagship of the late great Royal Cruise Line. Nice little ship, but I am afraid that she was not well served while sailing for NCL.

 

NCL plated over the inside swimming pool, and added cabins down in the bowels. They also removed the cinema and added cabins. I'm not sure what else they might have done to that fine little ship, but knowing NCL, I'm sure they did not enhance her.

 

Our river boat down the Danube was MS River Adagio, 160PAX - and I have misplaced the fact sheet that gave draft, length, beam, and registered tonnage. Although I call it a boat, they did refer to her as a motor ship!

[Kapricorn]

How naughty to look into the cabin window. Maybe next time you'll see something like this famous scene.

 

LOL!! That was a very amusing scene. They don't make movies like that anymore, just dumb and dumber stuff.

 

d'Maniac.

[bcscot]

How were you assigned that cabin - travel agent or personal choice?

 

Can you tell me about the Ryndam? How large is she - a behemoth?, older, what? For example, how many pax does she carry?

 

As a person who sails mostly senior ships, I expect problems but I also expect resolution and Saga Cruises excels at that very thing so I never worry about any lingering problem. I know it will be resolved instanter to my satisfaction as discussed in my cruise diary about the iron pipe rolling around in the overhead.

 

Why didn't Ryndam let you stay in the Promenade Deck cabin for the remainder of the cruise? When I had endless HVAC failures in my cabin on Saga Ruby, on the third day I was upgraded four levels and moved to a large cabin across the hall for the remaining 14 days of my cruise.

 

To our Nostalgia Cruise members, what do you think of HAL'S resolution of the Ryndam episode for Graham and his wife?

Ruby

 

We chose the cabin which is in a good central position on A-deck. We usually choose these cabins on the S-Class & Rotterdam Class ships.

 

Launched in 1994, Ryndam is 55,000 grt & carries about 1,200 passengers. She is not a behemoth & is a lovely ship. Apart from our smelly problems, we like the S-Class ships & will be sad when HAL finally get rid of them.

 

The ship was almost full so there was nowhere else for us to go. We would not have wanted the promenade cabin. Ours was bigger & better, as well as being in a better location, ie amidships rather than far forward, not to mention the promenade deck location. Besides, there was no need. The smell was only mild for a couple of days after the first night.

 

We were happy enough with HAL's resolution of the problem. Too many people today are too quick to complain & seek compensation for minor problems. People who travel have to expect problems & should be used to dealing with them up to a point,which especially seems to apply to flying these days. Our experience was far better than a bad flight.

 

I am glad you enjoyed my story. Thank you.

 

Graham.

[Saga Ruby]

We were happy enough with HAL's resolution of the problem. Too many people today are too quick to complain & seek compensation for minor problems. People who travel have to expect problems & should be used to dealing with them up to a point,which especially seems to apply to flying these days. Our experience was far better than a bad flight. Graham.

 

In reading your story, I also felt that HAL and the onboard staff did everything possible to make a negative situation into a positive one. You were obviously satisfied with the ultimate outcome.

 

In these litigious times in America, I feel that cruise lines passengers sometimes use a minor onboard incident for an excuse to try to wring money or a free cruise out of the ship's owners. Then they walk around bragging about how they got a freebie out of the cruise line. Which brings me back to civility. Things happen and, if a corporation makes an honest gesture to make it right, I'm perfectly happy.

 

In Canada, is litigation a parlour game as it is here in the States? I don't know who makes me more tired - greedy lawyers soliciting clients for their own gain, or vice versa.

 

Ruby

[CGTNORMANDIE]

LOL!!! CONTE!!! LOL!!!

 

That is one of my all-time favorites with the Marx Brothers. One of the other funny scenes in that movie happens when they get off the ship...THE ILE DE FRANCE...by the way. Harpo comes marching up the Promenade Deck singing like Maurice Chevalier...with a phonograph strapped to his backside!!! LOL!!!

 

Ross

[Kapricorn]

In Canada, is litigation a parlour game as it is here in the States? I don't know who makes me more tired - greedy lawyers soliciting clients for their own gain, or vice versa.

 

Ruby

 

I agree that what HAL did for Graham was to its credit.

 

Canadians are not sue-happy, and those who do sue and win, do not usually get enormous amounts of money. John Maxtone-Graham in his book "Liners to the Sun" wrote: America's judicial system is succumbing to what Chief Justice Burger has called "an orgy of litigation," and some cruise passengers are adding to the load.

 

The family of the young man who got drunk and fell overboard last year is suing the cruise line, claiming that the cruise line should have warned passengers that it is dangerous to walk on the open decks in the night! I wouldn't be at all astonished if the family of the young man who fell several decks while sliding down the stair railing a few months ago would sue, claiming that the cruise line should have posted signs warning that it is dangerous to slide down the stair railings. :rolleyes:

 

D'maniac.

[Kapricorn]

This is a first ... Ross and I have posted at exactly the same time!

[CGTNORMANDIE]

HI RUBY!!!

 

I think that Graham got good treatment from HAL...the extra room and $200 was a fine gesture on their part. BOTTOM LINE: Graham will return to HAL...that was certainly worth it for HAL.

 

Ross

[bcscot]

Litigation is a problem now all over the developed world Ruby, but I think that you folks are still the leaders.

 

Next time I am on a HAL ship, Conte, I will watch out for the Marx brothers!

 

Thank you for your comment Ross.

 

Please tell us more about Crown Odyssey & Royal Cruise Line, Michael (or Doug.).

 

Graham.

[Conte Di Savoia]

I made a Mexican Riviera cruise on Crown Odyssey back in 1988 when she was new. A product of the Meyer Werft yard in Papenburg, she was a well designed ship of moderate size, only a little over 34,000 tons. The interior was very glitzy utilizing a lot of polished brass and mirrors. She was considered very smart with innovations such as bay windows and jacuzzi tubs in some of the suites.

My fondest recollection of the cruise was of one particular passenger, Ruby Keeler, the star of the original 42nd Street. She was post stroke and spent most of her time in the casino gambling, smoking and drinking. She did allow herself to be interviewed by the cruise director one afternoon. We filled the theatre to hear her recollections of her long career and short marriage to Al Jolson.

[Druke I]

The late Royal Cruise Line, headquartered in San Francisco, had several ships: Crown Odyssey, Golden Odyssey, and Royal Odyssey.

 

We have been on the Crown (twice) and the Golden once. The Golden was very small indeed, about 10,000 GRT, with a correspondingly small passenger load. We were on her, trying to outrun the back end of a typhoon, in the China Sea, 11-86. Rough ride, green water over the bridge, screws out of the water, and inclinometer pegged several times. Last I heard, the Golden Odyssey had been renamed Macau Success.

 

Twice on the Crown Odyssey, once under the Greek flag, and later reflagged under the Bahamian flag. Conte's description of the ship is right on, at least while she was sailing for Royal. As I indicated, NCL redid her interior, and I think "botched" the job. We were on the Crown, Mexican Riviera, 11-88, and trans-Atlantic, 8-90.

 

I think Royal Cruise Line was gobbled up by Kloster, who also had a majority of the stock in Royal Viking Lines.

 

I'm sure Doug Newman can give you a better rundown on the company and the ships.

[Saga Ruby]

I needed a laugh so I went back and watched the YouTube clip again. My favorite part, "May I come in and use your phone?" "I'll lay even odds you can't even get in the room!" Don't forget to watch Duck Soup - it's a winner! When I peruse the Comedies list on Netflix, I find nothing but profanity and vulgarity where creativity has failed.

 

Rose Perez is on Broadway? I knew she was a Fly Girl on "In Living Color," then in the Spike Lee ensemble. I wondered what happened to her and am glad to hear that she is still active in the entertainment medium.

 

Conte, are you saying you can visit a ship at a pier and see a Broadway show all within the distance of a stroll? And D'maniac can walk to his cruise ship? Mamma mia! In Texas, if you don't have a car, you ain't gettin' anywhere or seein' anything.

 

Ruby

[Conte Di Savoia]

We were on the Crown, Mexican Riviera, 11-88, and trans-Atlantic, 8-90.

 

 

We were on in November 88 as well. We spent Thanksgiving on board. Is it possible we were on the same sailing?

 

Yes, Ruby, it is possible to do see a ship and show just by walking. New York is really a small town!

[bcscot]

Thank you Michael & Conte for the information on this ship. It is interesting that you have both sailed on her in the past (maybe even on the same sailing!). She is a really nice looking ship with looks, age & size similar to Prinsendam. Depending on what Fred Olsen Lines do with her, she may be a very nice small ship for the future. If Saga took the Prinsendam, they would make an interesting pair for those who would like a British flavour to their cruise. It would be nice to try the Balmoral from Miami sometime.

 

Graham.

[Druke I]

No, we were not on Crown Odyssey for Thanksgiving 88. If memory serves, we sailed around the 10th or so, on a 7 night cruise. I don't keep track of the exact dates, just month and year.

 

I believe I read that Fred Olsen is going to stretch her after they take her over.

[Druke I]

Delete - duplicate post.

[bcscot]

I thought that I should just complete my account of our recent Ryndam cruise, although all the interesting stories have been told.

 

After our good fortune with the weather in Juneau, we were due for a downturn. Unlike Donald's ship free experience in Skagway, we arrived to a veritable 'azipod' of cruise ships. When I looked out in the morning, it was still dark & what I saw confused me a little. Two NCL ships were lined up, one behind the other, all lit up in the early morning darkness, making it look like one super long 'sausage dog' of a ship!

 

The day was cold, wet & windy, just as we had expected to have for the whole week. We could not complain though, after our sunny day in Juneau. What would be in store for Glacier Bay next day,(our last two visits being cold & wet)? We wandered round Skagway for a while before returning to the ship. I am sure that those paying good money for a train trip up to the 'White Pass' would have been better served by staying in bed.

 

Next day proved to be another surprise. It was dry with light cloud & we had very good views of the glaciers. For the first time, we were able to get up close to the Johns Hopkins Glacier (the approach being barred by the presence of a seal colony earlier in the season) & had a great view. Contrary to all the concerns of global warming, this glacier is actually growing.

 

The Marjory Glacier was as spectacular as always, & the better for not having to stand in wind & rain to look at it. The late September weather was much better than on our previous August visits! We had our best experiences of glacier calving so far. One great sea stack like pillar of ice came crashing down into the water with a huge roar & splash. As if this was not impressive enough, it was shortly followed by a giant piece of ice calving off the other side of the glacier. They said that the glacier face was one mile wide & 250 feet high. From this, I estimated that the huge chunk of ice must have been about the width & height of an eight to ten story building! That made a big splash! I thought the ship would rock but she did not.

 

The Grand Pacific Glacier, quieter but majestic non the less, extended back up into Canada for 35 miles. The Ryndam slowly turned & made her way gradually back down the bay. It is a really impressive place. Along the shoreline we were able to see a moose & a bear. Seals were lying lazily on 'bergy bits' that floated on the water.

 

One of our favourite experiences in Alaska, is sailing back through 'Icy Strait' after leaving Glacier Bay. Most people have retreated indoors for other pursuits by then, missing the action & leaving the decks nice & quiet for us. This is the best area for whale sightings. The numbers of whales seen on this trip were less than before as they were now heading south to Mexico & Hawaii for the winter. We had seen many pods in transit on the open waters on our way north. Never the less, we had some good sightings, with one whale breaching next to the ship. Sea otters were also less in evidence this time.

 

That night, on leaving sheltered waters to turn the corner & head up to Ketchikan, we met Donald's storm which caused us to get a little shaken ( but not stirred) in the night. Next day was rain & a walk in Ketchikan. On our return to Canadian waters, the following day, the weather had again improved. I sighted dolphins, porpoise & a pod of orcas north of Vancouver Island. However, inspite of standing at the bow all afternoon as we sailed through the famous Johnstone Strait, on this occasion, the orcas (killer whales) kept themselves well hidden. On our last visit on the Statendam, a pod came right up to the ship, which had stopped, & hung around at the bow for quite a while. At the same time, we could look over to the 'Rubbing Beach' at Robson Bight & see the orcas rubbing themselves clean in the shallow waters.

 

Next day was back to Vancouver & home, with the unwanted souvenir of a cold, caught onboard. On the ferry from Vancouver to Nanaimo, we had a good view of Donald's beloved Mercury, anchored in the bay off Nanaimo. Next time maybe!

 

Graham.

[Saga Ruby]

Graham and D’maniac - I have enjoyed your Alaskan cruise reports. I had a friend who cruised to Alaska in the middle of September years ago and her comment was "we couldn’t go out on the deck in Glacier Bay because it was hailing so hard." Back then, September was considered "shoulder season" meaning it was at the end of the tourist season. But, give or take a miserable night of aquatic churning, it sounds like both of you had good trips and acceptable weather. At what point does the cruise season in Alaska shut down? I assume all the ships in that area have been repositioned as we speak. (I was going to say "repo’ed" but that didn’t read right.)

 

In Smithsonian, I saw a photo of the Ketchikan dock during tourist season with cloudy wet weather and 6 cruise ships crowding the bay and the dock area - ship, ship, everywhere a ship ship. Some ships were tendering, some ships were tied up - rush hour in Ketchikan. Did you feel that the town was too saturated with tourists when you were there or does the area absorb the numbers?

 

What I really like about all your reports is that they refresh my memories of a given area (New York City is small?) without having to go back personally.

 

Conte - What are your thoughts about your next cruise? Will you be going to a "place" or trying out another ship? Back when it was just you and me on this thread, I enjoyed so much your "ships sailed" list. On the assumption that you have had enough of Saga Cruises for awhile, what are your thoughts about your next ship? I settled into RVL for a decade and have found "my" ships in Oceania and Saga but I like the variety of your own experiences.

 

Michael - where do you sail next?

 

To all - Some years ago, I was in the Scottish Highlands, around Fort William, Ben Nevis, and Mallaig for a week. The romantic peaceful beauty of the area was soul-satisfying - I felt like I had found Brigadoon. I have never been to the Lake District in England, but last night I watched a movie filmed in that area plus the Isle of Man (Miss Potter about Beatrix Potter). The film locations, including the Lake District, looked so much like the Glen Nevis area with a natural beauty and an air of tranquility. Can anyone speak to the differences? Do I need to see England’s Lake District?

 

Ruby

[Druke I]

Our next trip is a trans-Atlantic on Regatta, Mar 22-08, Miami (ugh) to Barcelona, with a stop in Funchal, Madeira, where we will probably ride the street sleds again. That is a hoot!

 

We may stop off in London on the return, to see daughter and grandkiddies again - although they may be in the US early April, in which case they can stop and see us!

 

Toying with the idea of a paddlewheeler on the Columbia - jury still out on that one. We could Amtrak up and back, and avoid flying at all! I am a train lover from way back!

[Saga Ruby]

We could Amtrak up and back, and avoid flying at all! I am a train lover from way back!

 

Have you "Amtraked" before? I hear so many versions of "on time, never on time, loved it, hated it." What are your thoughts and/or experiences?

 

By the bye, I feel your pain about air travel - I want to go see my grandsons in ATL but can't bear the idea of walking down a jetway anytime soon.

 

Ruby