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The Dream? Or the Nightmare? (or why I may give up cruising?)

SailorJack

By SailorJack,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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SailorJack

SailorJack

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As best described by C.C. member Zamboni Girl

 

 

Originally Posted by family cruisers

We just returned from the Dawn ,NYC to BERMUDA and so many people we talked with were saying "Did you hear about the Dreams cruise to bermuda? Crew and passengers were talking about the horrible ride out there, very rough seas etc... which we also experienced but being such a large ship we didn't get beaten up like they did.

 

WE had dishes flying, very rough seas for about our first 30 hours of sailing. 12 - 18 foot continuous rough seas.

 

Would love to hear how those did on the Dream, heard they were in lock down for a few days?

I was on the Dream. What a ride!

 

I think it might of been a perfect storm kind of deal for the combination of where and when the Dream was leaving, with a rather large tropical depression to the east of Bermuda. I dont know when the Dawn left, but I believe they were not scheduled to be in Bermuda until Wed, giving them some leway in travel plans, plus leaving a little further south certainly puts the dawn in less of the storm. I am not sure having a bigger ship would of helped, as the cruise ships now sit so high on the water. Having a ship with a deeper hull would of helped but they just dont make them like that anymore.

 

The swells on the Dream were up to 32 feet in height. Twice the bow went under, and the propeller came out of the water. Which is apparently bad. If that kept happening rumoer has it, they would of had to stop the ship and just let us bob in the water. I dont think anyone anticpated the swells of that height. The crew expected a rough ride (about 20ft swells) but not quite what we experienced.

 

After hearing what had happened, i guess it makes sense the decks were all closed. Certainly dont want a passenger fall off in a wave, but I would of liked better pictures of the ride!

 

The dinning staff were friggen CHAMPS that night. It took two hours for dinner, but because of the lack of dishes they had to wash stuff as it came in, and half the kitchen equipment was down so that is why dinner took so long. The people I sat with at dinner had a good time of it. The poor waiter kept appologizing, nothing much he could do about it but I appreciated him at least letting us know why service was taking so long.

 

The shops were all smashed up, booze bottles everywhere, broken glass, it was not until about 4PM on the sea day that stuff started to open. One of my poor room stewards was feeling awful and the cart even fell on her once. TVs were falling everywhere, I heard one fell on some guy's leg. Just about every staff person I talked to would say something to " This is the worst I have ever seen it in X number of years working for NCL". x = number of years that employee worked for NCL.

 

The CC meet and greet was short and with no goodies, mostly for safety reasons. They didnt want tables of hot coffee spilling everywhere. As I heard that a couple of tables did flip while people were sitting at them, and there were numerous chair tippings.

 

Me I was loving it! I mean I wouldnt willingly sign up for a trip like that again, but there wasnt much the staff could do about it and I felt self with such an experienced seaman leading the way. Captain Hoddevick spent 36 hours on the bridge, the entirety of the storm. In the end it makes a heck of a story/ adventure!

 

WOW...I had not seen that before! That was, indeed, a wild ride. Thanks for sharing... it will add to my story telling of our Dream cruise.:)

 

 

One of the best reviews I've read on these boards. Thanks!

 

Glad you enjoyed it!

 

Jack

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SailorJack

SailorJack

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Interesting... our first ever cruise was also on the Dream, in spring of 2002, in the Baltic/North Sea (when were you on her?). We were so new to cruising that we never heard of the 1999 incident. If we had, we might not have signed up!

Our day going through the Kiel Canal was memorable: people waving all along the shore, and the folding Dream funnel to get under a bridge.

And yes, we know about the ship being cut apart but might have learned that after the cruise. Another thing we were probably better off not knowing! :)

 

The story about the Dream and the Kiel Canal where it collided with another ship and actually would up with shipping containers from the other ship landing of the Dream's bow end - together with biker@sea's recount provides an interesting history of that ship.

Edited by SailorJack
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biker@sea

biker@sea

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We were in the aft. dinning trying to eat when the props came out of the water .:eek:

 

The shake and shudder of the ship was the scariest thing I ever lived through .

 

All I could think about was the pix's of the ship in dry dock when it was cut in half / and praying that the weld's hold her together .

Edited by biker@sea
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MagnoliaBlossom

MagnoliaBlossom

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we were on the Dream for our first Baltic cruise. Because she was able to "flip her lid" we were able to go through the Kiel Canal. It was so neat to see that stack fold over and pass within feet of bridges. It was not too long after 9/11 and people lined the banks and bridges waving American flags. After dark several bridges were lined with folks waving candles and lights. It was a beautiful day.

 

Yep, it was a strange layout, indeed, but we enjoyed her several times.

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jertom

jertom

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We were on the Dream in December of 2002. Very interesting itinerary that left out of Miami and after doing the Panama Canal, we went on a side trip to Machu Picchu (through NCL) for three days mid-cruise finally disembarking in Valparaiso, Chile. Great first cruise... I think it was 16 days.

 

Great that you could do that...I wish that combination was offered now !

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SailorJack

SailorJack

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We were in the aft. dinning trying to eat when the props came out of the water .:eek:

 

The shake and shudder of the ship was the scariest thing I ever lived through .

 

All I could think about was the pix's of the ship in dry dock when it was cut in half / and praying that the weld's hold her together .

 

That had to be extremely frightful, but I like to think about the fun I could have had writing about it - after ensuring that everyone was safe!

 

I like your line about praying the weld held - very funny.:)

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Presto2 Great Review Rare

Presto2

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Came on here to see if we would enjoy cruising NCL.

 

This post has to be the funniest I have ever read - brilliant ! :D

 

If everyone on NCL is like you then I know that we will love cruising on this cruise line ------ whatever went wrong.....;)

 

Have a great Christmas and more ncident free cruises in 2015

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SailorJack

SailorJack

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Came on here to see if we would enjoy cruising NCL.

 

This post has to be the funniest I have ever read - brilliant ! :D

 

If everyone on NCL is like you then I know that we will love cruising on this cruise line ------ whatever went wrong.....;)

 

Have a great Christmas and more ncident free cruises in 2015

 

Thank you. I have sailed on most of the major cruise lines and I can assure you that you will enjoy sailing on NCL. We have met people from around the world who have become friends and with whom we keep in touch. Of course, a little adversity does bring people together a little more quickly.:)

 

Have a great New Year.

 

Jack

 

Best. Cruise Critic review. Ever.:)

 

A high compliment indeed - thank you. I don't know about best ever, but it is certainly one of my favorites.

 

Jack

Edited by SailorJack
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jertom

jertom

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I don't know about NCL, but Holland America offers a cruise with a shore excursion to Machu Picchu.

 

Thanks for the tip. We have not been on Holland but will look into it.

And thanks for your informative and entertaining review !

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SailorJack

SailorJack

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Thanks for the tip. We have not been on Holland but will look into it.

And thanks for your informative and entertaining review !

 

Glad you enjoyed the review. I hope you make it to Machu Picchu. We went several years ago and it remains the most impressive place we have ever visited. It is simply stunning.

 

Jack

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Barb Nahoumi

Barb Nahoumi

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The story about the Dream and the Kiel Canal where it collided with another ship and actually would up with shipping containers from the other ship landing of the Dream's bow end - together with biker@sea's recount provides an interesting history of that ship.

 

This story would make a great book and movie.

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lgdesign

lgdesign

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I concur about Machu Picchu being the most amazing place I've been to as well. The location and environment is jaw dropping.

 

The ill-fated Dream is still plying the seas as the SuperStar Gemini:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SuperStar_Gemini

 

http://www.starcruises.com/en/home/ships/superstar-gemini/introduction.aspx

 

I joked with my husband that we should sail her again someday just to see what happens next! :eek:

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SailorJack

SailorJack

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I concur about Machu Picchu being the most amazing place I've been to as well. The location and environment is jaw dropping.:)erstar-gemini/introduction.aspx[/url]

 

I joked with my husband that we should sail her again someday just to see what happens next! :eek:

Now that's funny!:D

 

I am glad to hear that the Dream is alive and well. I thought I had heard that it heading for the scrap heap. I have to admit I do have a bit of fondness for that old ship.

 

Jack

Edited by SailorJack
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DavyJoneses

DavyJoneses

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Now that's funny!:D

 

I am glad to hear that the Dream is alive and well. I thought I had heard that it heading for the scrap heap. I have to admit I do have a bit of fondness for that old ship.

 

Jack

 

I also thought that it had been scrapped. If it is alive and well are you up for Dream/Nightmare II?:D

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SailorJack

SailorJack

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I also thought that it had been scrapped. If it is alive and well are you up for Dream/Nightmare II?:D

 

LOL. Like the old saying, "you can never go home again", a second trip just would not be the same. Best to stick with the good memories of the first time around.

 

 

 

AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE

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