Cheated, poisoned, insulted & ignored.

[trilinearmipmap]

Sorry but I don't buy any of your complaints.

 

If you got ill after a meal, it may or may not have had anything to do with the meal. A temporal relationship does not imply causation. If you did get ill because of the meal, it may have been an allergic reaction, scombroid (a non-allergic reaction to certain types of fish), food poisoning, or gastroenteritis.

 

I doubt you became unconscious, stopped breathing etc. No doubt you felt weak, had to lie down etc. This is different from losing consciousness.

 

I commonly come across people who say "the doctors were baffled". I have never met a doctor who was baffled. Usually when people claim the doctors were baffled, they mean the doctors told them something they don't want to hear. Eg. "I saw fifty doctors and they were all baffled until I was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease", this really means fifty doctors correctly told me I was healthy and I met one quack who falsely diagnosed Lyme disease.

 

I think you are overreacting to the ship's staff and you are exaggerating both your own symptoms, and the allegedly rude behaviour of the staff. Like I tell my five year old daughter when she is having a hissy fit, "it is up to you if you want to have a good day or a bad day today".

[cnmiranda]

Good luck YNOTTONY. I wouldn't respond to this thread anymore either. You will only be inundated with more responses telling you that you've made all of this up, weren't really sick, etc. Try a friendlier message board where bullies don't control a rational discussion.

[YNOTTONY]

Sorry but I don't buy any of your complaints.

 

If you got ill after a meal, it may or may not have had anything to do with the meal. A temporal relationship does not imply causation. If you did get ill because of the meal, it may have been an allergic reaction, scombroid (a non-allergic reaction to certain types of fish), food poisoning, or gastroenteritis.

 

I doubt you became unconscious, stopped breathing etc. No doubt you felt weak, had to lie down etc. This is different from losing consciousness.

 

I commonly come across people who say "the doctors were baffled". I have never met a doctor who was baffled. Usually when people claim the doctors were baffled, they mean the doctors told them something they don't want to hear. Eg. "I saw fifty doctors and they were all baffled until I was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease", this really means fifty doctors correctly told me I was healthy and I met one quack who falsely diagnosed Lyme disease.

 

I think you are overreacting to the ship's staff and you are exaggerating both your own symptoms, and the allegedly rude behaviour of the staff. Like I tell my five year old daughter when she is having a hissy fit, "it is up to you if you want to have a good day or a bad day today".

 

Wow. On what basis do you make your accusations?

 

Do you have a statistically signficant study that shows "doctors do not become baffled"? How can you know possibly know wether or not I fainted, and how can you make such irresponsible and mean comments without any basis other than your intuition?

 

Comparing a distraught 42 year old mother having to deal with insulting, immature Noordam staff to your five year old daughter's hissy fits. Do you know my wife? Do you know her character? How is it you make this claim? And btw, my children do not have hissy fits. They know better.

 

Reducing the most miserable time in my life, when I could not sleep for days because painful ithching drove me crazy, going to the bathroom was painful, and breathing while lying down hurt my lungs... to an "over-reaction". Wow. Wow. I am truly beyond words.

 

My wife was correct. I would find no satisfaction here. Just people that try to cut you down so they can feel better about themselves. You are not a perceptive genius that sees through others as you no doubt assume. You are just a nasty, uncaring person that amuses himself by assaulting others.

[Cruisin' Ron VA]

I spent one day getting tested at the hospital when I returned. Doctors felt it was an allergic reaction coupled with poisoning, a viral infection or something else. It progressed slowly so I initially tried to shrug it off so I wouldn't ruin my family's vacation. Once I realized how serious it was, I was medicated and it ceased to be dangerous, but the pain and other symptoms persisted and made me miserable. As for leaving the ship, I let the ship's doctor decide that. He did not think I had to leave, and I certainly wasn't going to strand my family on some little carribean island.

 

Thank goodness for trip insurance, which being an experienced cruiser I am sure you had. It would have come in handy for airlifting you from the ship. So I dont think you would have to worry about stranding your family on some little caribbean island.

 

There are more questions than answers to your thread which I wont touch. But thank you for sharing your story with us. I am sorry your vacation didnt turn out so well.

[YNOTTONY]

Good luck YNOTTONY. I wouldn't respond to this thread anymore either. You will only be inundated with more responses telling you that you've made all of this up, weren't really sick, etc. Try a friendlier message board where bullies don't control a rational discussion.

 

Wise advice. My wife gave it to me earlier today, but I did not take it. I will now. Thanks.

[Jade13]

YNOTTONY - Can you tell me if you had trip insurance? I am just curious. if my Dh went unconscious I want have insisted that he get airlifted to the nearest hospital..

[CocoKai]

Sorry about your experience. That must have been extremely scarey.

 

I'm probably repeating what someone else said as I didn't read all posts but.....I would make an appointment ASAP with an allergist....TODAY!

 

I'm not a doctor but if that was a first time allergic reaction.....the second time is always worse. Sounds like you need to be carrying an Epi-Pen with you.

[Bellalu]

I would have reacted as your wife did to the very unprofessional attitude of the HAL childcare staff member. I would not have wanted to subject my kids to that either. This behavior was very immature, and I would have questioned this person's ability to make good decisions regarding my children. I taught elementary school for many years, and believe me, I can't count the number of times I was inconvenienced by parents, some for valid reasons, some not. Regardless, it would have been highly unprofessional (and unproductive) of me to register my annoyance to the parent - not to mention what a poor example this is for the kids. I can put up with a lot of junk, but not when it comes to children. HAL representatives should not have defended this behavior.

[newmexicoNita]

Attached is an excerpt from my letter to HAL describing my recent cruise experience on the Noordam. Names have been removed.

 

....in my ten years of cruising, I’ve never seen such a cold, self-absorbed and self-righteous staff that made no attempt to help a family in visible need of support.

 

The incident I refer to occurred during the March 10 cruise from New York to the southern Caribbean. This was the 8th cruise for my family, our first on HAL, and a trial run to assess HAL service before booking a family reunion later this year.

 

At the end of the second day at sea, I became ill after eating in the main dining room. Over the next few days I went through a myriad of symptoms including unconsciousness, 60 hours with no sleep, large painful welts, exhaustion, difficulty breathing, etc. At one point, I collapsed to the absolute terror of my four young children (ages 4 to12), who tearfully asked “is daddy dead” while I was unconscious and non-responsive. The ship’s doctor administered a large dose of steroids and antihistamines to stabilize me.

 

The morning after this incident, my wife called guest services so she could be transferred to the kids club and arrange for much needed child care. She was hoping for some quiet resting time for me, and a fun-filled diversion for her worried children.

 

The receptionist at guest services informed my wife that on port days, we had to register for kids club the night before. My wife explained our predicament, which did little to impress the receptionist, who repeated several times that we could not avail ourselves of the service because we did not have the foresight to call and book during the panic of the previous night. As we later found out, the issue was not safety, or overbooking… it was because no other guests had registered for child care that day, and the kids club staff were preparing for a day off at port.

 

My wife insisted on talking to the kids club staff, at which point the receptionist took it upon herself to call the kids club supervisor. After a few minutes, my wife was told our children would be accepted at the kids club, under the condition that we go there immediately to fill out forms.

 

My wife rushed the children out of the cabin and upstairs to the kids club, only to be met by a visibly unhappy staffer, who admonished her repeatedly for not registering the night before, even after my wife explained our unhappy predicament. And to make absolutely sure we knew she was being inconvenienced, the staffer added “You should know, the only reason I am here today is because of you”. The staffer’s attitude unsettled my wife, and she started to leave the club stating that in spite of our need for help, she could not leave her children where they would be resented. As my wife and children left, the staffer called out unapologetically “I’m here now, you might as well stay”.

 

My wife went down to the front office to express her concerns regarding the quality of care she could expect from the staff at the kids club, and her reluctance to return until the issue was addressed. The supervisor promised to look into it and call us back. We received no call, no update. Shocked at the lack of concern, I wrote a brief letter to the captain asking him to intercede on our behalf. Days later, there was still no response.

 

Once my strength returned (around day 10 of the cruise), I went down to the front office to ask why no-one had bothered to address our concerns. XXX, the cruise director, claimed he had tried to phone me as soon as the captain forwarded the letter to him, but he had not left a voicemail, and had not attempted to call me again. He claimed to have written a letter apologizing for the incident and offering assurances regarding the kids club, but again, no letter had appeared in my mailbox. And five seconds after offering a supposed unconditional apology, he started to defend his staffer’s behavior, claiming we had misunderstood her comments! Indeed!

 

 

There are other encounters, similarly cold and self-righteous, that I will not recount here. Even before the cruise had started, HAL had decided to re-fare our tickets by over $1,000 per cabin due to a HAL internal error. This was done some time after we had paid for the cabins and booked our travel. Even though an offer of a refund was made, HAL would not compensate us for the losses we would have incurred as a result of cancelling the cruise, so we decided to keep the booking, albeit very disappointed that HAL did not choose to honor the price we had originally agreed on, instead of having us bear the brunt of their mistake.

I have to butt in here even though I haven't read the rest of the thread: how do you know you got sick from something you ate on the ship? WHat you are discribing certainly doesn't sound like the food poisoning I have heard of or had in the past, more like an alergy. I am totally amazed you were not airlifted or met at the next Port a call by a medical staff. On our HAL cruise a lady fell out of bed and sustained a very serious neck injury. The seas were rough and you can't imagine how fast the captain moved the ship, just to get her to a hospital in Aruba. As for the lack of concern, I am sorry your experience was so awful. I had a reason to visit the doctor on our last HAL cruise. I had an injury that didn't happen while on the cruise and had nothing to do with HAL, still, for 2 days the hospital nurse checked on me to see how I doing. Why I got different treatment than you, I don't know. it sounds to me like your problems started way before you sailed so everything that followed added to your displeasure. NMnita

[trilinearmipmap]

I think your approach dictates what kind of a response you will get, both on the ship and on these boards.

 

Over-dramatization and exaggeration of the facts does not help your cause, in fact it will have the opposite effect and turn people off. An example of this is when you claim you were "shocked" by your treatment. Save your claims about being shocked for things that are really shocking. I am shocked that prisoners in China are executed so their kidneys can be sold for transplant. I am not shocked when the waiter brings me my steak well-done instead of medium.

 

In any case I am sorry for any discomfort you experienced on your trip.

 

On my cruise a few years ago I had a very unfortunate experience with the bus taking people from the hotel to the ship. After that all was well. I supposed I could lament how the "nightmare" on the bus ruined my entire vacation, and rage about how the uncaring staff laughed at my complaints. In fact I could make enough drama out of it to last a few weeks. As it was, my wife and I agreed that the bus situation was a shambles and we went on to forget about it and enjoy the rest of our trip.

 

And no I am not a bully, just telling it like it is.

[Moonglow]

We will never cruise Hal again due to indifferent treatment we received on the Noordam in the fall of 06. The only people who were good at their jobs were the cabin stewards and the diningroom and buffet waiters. All of the other personnel were cold and acted as if they had an attitude, so I don't doubt for a minute that this family was treated this way. We have cruised a number of lines and have never run into this before. Just my 2 cents worth. Let the dogs loose!

[Juanita462]

YNOTTNY - what a miserable experience! I had a similar episode, but on land, not on a cruise. My allergist said it was an "overload allergic response" - caused by exposure to several things at once. Never thought of that before. Ended up in hospital - so now I watch my known allergens but also carry an epipen at all times. A nuisance but can make the difference in surviving an allergic episode.

 

I can't understand how people who weren't there and don't know what happened can make statements as though they do. Sometimes it seems that unless people make only positive statements they are put down. I like to hear both sides - the good and the bad - how else can we decide what is best for ourselves.

 

Here's hoping that your next cruise experience will be much better.

[jachol]

I just want to say that I just returned from a great cruise on the Noordam. Having said that I also feel that if I had had the experience this family did, I would be very upset just as he is. I don't post often but I really am appalled at how uncaring some of the other comments have been. His experience was awful- just because yours or mine was good, doesn't make his cruise any less horrible for him or his family.

[trilinearmipmap]

As far as people claiming that someone is pretending to be someone else, I don't have a clue about that.

 

As far as me posting my opinion and being accused of being abusive just because I don't believe someone's story, give me a break.

 

Trilinearmipmap is my name of choice because long ago I did computer graphics. I needed a name that is easy to remember and is not duplicated anywhere else. Most of the other passwords or usernames I chose for various boards etc. had already been chosen.

[SakeDad]

As far as people claiming that someone is pretending to be someone else, I don't have a clue about that.

 

As far as me posting my opinion and being accused of being abusive just because I don't believe someone's story, give me a break.

 

Trilinearmipmap is my name of choice because long ago I did computer graphics. I needed a name that is easy to remember and is not duplicated anywhere else. Most of the other passwords or usernames I chose for various boards etc. had already been chosen.

I know the feeling. I had a post deleted when I questioned someone's "reality" when they were complaining VEHEMENTLY about something....then a few pages later there were several OTHER posters saying the same thing I did:rolleyes: Go figure.

 

As for not being "you", I was on another non-cruise board a few years ago and a woman passed herself off to everyone that she was wife, mother of two, miscarriagees, husband went to help in the tsunami, she exchanged gifts with people overseas, the whole bit!! Found out she wasn't ANYTHING she said she was:eek: :eek: The internet is a strange and wonderful, and sometimes very frightening, world.

[Scrumpy]

If you're still reading...I'm sorry you had this experience. I'm sure your children were very frightened and my heart goes out to them. We have had a few (a VERY few) encounters with staff members who were less than courteous and, I hate to say it, even downright rude. Our first HAL cruise, my MIL was in tears one day. Distraught - and my husband and I thought "well, there goes our vacation" and that we'd never hear the end of it. Luckily, she and the staff member "made up" and actually enjoyed each other the rest of the cruise. It doesn't always happen that way, obviously. We never had to deal with the staff in the children's area, but I don't doubt for one second that you could have come across one who was less than professional, cold, rude, etc. We've gotten that vibe with shore excursion people once or twice. I'd say the poor treatment you received was really inexcusable, especially considering the circumstances. It's a shame that your attempts to communicate with her superiors did not help matters. Management should be more responsive. While many of us have had very positive experiences overall onboard, I certainly don't think everyone does. Please take care of yourself and I am sincerely sorry about the way you were treated. I hope your next vacation, cruise or otherwise, is more enjoyable.

[sail7seas]

Trilinearmipmap is my name of choice because long ago I did computer graphics. I needed a name that is easy to remember and is not duplicated anywhere else. Most of the other passwords or usernames I chose for various boards etc. had already been chosen.

 

 

:) Thanks.

[MercedMike]

Good luck YNOTTONY. I wouldn't respond to this thread anymore either. You will only be inundated with more responses telling you that you've made all of this up, weren't really sick, etc. Try a friendlier message board where bullies don't control a rational discussion.

 

My goodness, "bullies"??

 

This is a discussion. In any discussion there are going to be varying points of view and disagreements. None of that constitutes "bullying," it just constitutes discussion.

 

The OP chose to throw his complaints out here, thereby opening them up to public discussion. We get sooooo many posters on this board who start our with being "poisoned" or some other outrageous accusation, and seem to think everybody is just supposed to say, "NASTY cruise line. You poor baby, let us commiserate with you." The OP has my sympathy. It must have been a terrible experience. It is always scary to be sick far from home. But claiming the cruise line "poisoned" him is ridiculous! [there -- am I a "bully" now also?]

 

I saw lots of posts here which did give sympathy to the OP. I saw others that rationally discussed many points related to the OP. I didn't see anybody getting "bullied."

 

If you can't stand the heat, don't post notices in the kitchen!

[surfklutz]

Sorry but I don't buy any of your complaints.

 

If you got ill after a meal, it may or may not have had anything to do with the meal. A temporal relationship does not imply causation. If you did get ill because of the meal, it may have been an allergic reaction, scombroid (a non-allergic reaction to certain types of fish), food poisoning, or gastroenteritis.

 

I doubt you became unconscious, stopped breathing etc. No doubt you felt weak, had to lie down etc. This is different from losing consciousness.

 

I commonly come across people who say "the doctors were baffled". I have never met a doctor who was baffled. Usually when people claim the doctors were baffled, they mean the doctors told them something they don't want to hear. Eg. "I saw fifty doctors and they were all baffled until I was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease", this really means fifty doctors correctly told me I was healthy and I met one quack who falsely diagnosed Lyme disease.

 

I think you are overreacting to the ship's staff and you are exaggerating both your own symptoms, and the allegedly rude behaviour of the staff. Like I tell my five year old daughter when she is having a hissy fit, "it is up to you if you want to have a good day or a bad day today".

 

 

I think this is vastly unfair to the OP.

First, let me tell you that many doctors are baffled by what goes wrong with a body. Medicine is a very inexact science. My husband was treated for cancer - and the doctor - who was a world specialist even claimed that treatment for cancer was pretty much of a "best guess" type of thing.

 

I do believe that the staff was rude and non responsive and to allude to the fact that the OP was making any of this up is not fair at all - to what end would he post a fabricated story?

 

And while I am all for making the best of a situation - this had nothing to do with the OPs attitude and "what he made of the situation". Perfectly appropriate to tell a 5 year old in certain situation - but the fact that he was dissappointed in various aspects of the cruise should not be treated as a personality flaw.

[turia]

I was on the same cruise with you and through reading your story here I am pretty sure I witnessed your wife with your children beside the service desk practically in tears, she mentioned her husband being sick and fear of leaving her children with one of the staff.

 

I am sorry for your experiences on the ship as I myself loved the staff but was not in your situation nor do I have any children. I did however have my own experience with the medical staff as I was having problems with my ears, so I went down to the doctor and one of the nurses said it sounded like congestion and said I could see the doctor at $70 or take these pills, the idiot I am I took the pills and went for a nap. I woke up 1/2 an hour later with my heart racing and had to go back to the doctor for a visit and to have an EKG, he was very nice and taught be a Scuba Diving trick to clear my ears and gave me a bill for $160.00.

 

As for the rest of you picking on him, you may not appreciate his choice of words but take into consideration his anger and upset and put yourself in his position or maybe one of your kids in his position and tell me you wouldn't be upset. To have to be sick with just a high fever and take care of kids and your spouse is hard let alone an allergic reaction, a little compassion would not be unwarranted.

[Ocean Sailor]

 

By the title of your post I doubt that you will be sailing on HAL again. I was on the same cruise and had an excellent experience. I do have a few questions: did the doctor suggest you stay in the infirmary? I don't know anything about the children's program but do they provide an 'on call' service? What cabin category can accommodate two adults and four children?

Fortunately, there are many other cruise lines out there for you to consider for reunion next year. Good luck with your health.

[cnmiranda]

My goodness, "bullies"??

 

This is a discussion. In any discussion there are going to be varying points of view and disagreements. None of that constitutes "bullying," it just constitutes discussion.

 

The OP chose to throw his complaints out here, thereby opening them up to public discussion. We get sooooo many posters on this board who start our with being "poisoned" or some other outrageous accusation, and seem to think everybody is just supposed to say, "NASTY cruise line. You poor baby, let us commiserate with you." The OP has my sympathy. It must have been a terrible experience. It is always scary to be sick far from home. But claiming the cruise line "poisoned" him is ridiculous! [there -- am I a "bully" now also?]

 

I saw lots of posts here which did give sympathy to the OP. I saw others that rationally discussed many points related to the OP. I didn't see anybody getting "bullied."

 

If you can't stand the heat, don't post notices in the kitchen!

 

 

To respond to your comment to me, bullying is when someone is tag teamed long enough they are chased away which is exactly what happened here.

 

This is past the point of ridiculousness and I'm sorry some here can't see how immature they are acting(what else is new). Some can't bear the thought of something improper happening on their favorite cruise line, are they theat uptight about about someone not liking their favorite bar of soap? It sounds so foolish.

 

The next thing to follow is that I will now be attacked for calling out this type of behavior.

 

I also notice in these type of attack the poster threads there is a general miscomprehension of what is originally stared and subsequent changing the op's words to make them sound worse. Then follows comments from the nautical and/or medical experts who weren't there at the time of the incident.

 

In any event this is time for me to bid this thread adieu, I've read enough bad human behavior to last the next few weeks as it happens daily on this board.

 

Sorry for the OP's experience but after one's been here long enough they will learn not to post anything negative without hearing the worst personal attacks possible from other human? beings. It's just the way it is here and there are plenty of other message boards out there to discuss topics without enduring personal insults.

[cnmiranda]

Hmmmmmmm this ius news to me . I must have missed a thread or two

 

I also thought Constructiondude seemed like anice guy and enjoyed his posts abd the revie he gave of his cruise. I remember him posting that he was leaveing the boards because of some problems and remember he did mention he was gay..

 

Guess I missed the fraud posts

 

I am not disputeing you, just came as a shock to me , and didn't rememebr seeing these or anything about him being banned from CC

 

There are levels of being banned from what I understand, there's the "penalty phase" for some and the permanent ban for others! But you can always resurrect in some cases which I won't print for inspiration:)

[Chivalrygirl]

There are levels of being banned from what I understand, there's the "penalty phase" for some and the permanent ban for others! But you can always resurrect in some cases which I won't print for inspiration:)

 

Excuse me, what exactly are you trying to say :confused:

[SakeDad]

Excuse me, what exactly are you trying to say :confused:

Well....it IS Easter after all!!:p