Maasdam Voyage of the Vikings

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for checking in.

 

I really love to hear about the ports.

[sail7seas]

Great reports. Thank you.

Enjoy your sea days.....

 

[crazy4cruisn]

So how are the seas? Is the weather what you were expecting as far as what you packed?

Thanks for the updates. I hope we can get early seating as the 4 of us are waitlisted.

[ddcl]

What a treat to find your trip report! My Mom and Aunt are traveling on the 35 day route with you, and this is great to be able to follow along. Please give hugs to Carolyn and Vesta if you meet them. Thanks! Dale

[crazy4cruisn]

Hi Dale,

We will board the Maasdam July 22 in Rotterdam. Carolyn and Vesta are going to take some tours with us; I am looking forward to meeting them. I met them on the Roll Call board. Can't wait to go; we should have done the complete cruise!

Nancy

[sk8teacher]

After a few days of delightful smooth oceans with a sea state less than 1 we are halfway between Greenland and Iceland and the seas have caught up with us. Still not bad but are running 4-7 feet so we do feel some minor pitching and the occasional roll. Having been in the area many times during my Naval career I suspect they will calm down as we approach Iceland and and then pick up again on our way to the Shetland Islands.

 

Cheers!

[crazy4cruisn]

Thanks, Bill. Only 6 more days till we leave......finally!! I have started the packing game. Anything you need from home that I can cram in my bags?

See ya'll soon!

Nancy

[crazy4cruisn]

Bill, If you get a chance will you ask Liz if she needed umbrellas and Deet for herself for just for us.

Thanks,

Nancy

[Broon]

Really glad to see reports about this cruise. We did the same trip, Boston>Rotterdam in '05, and so it is interesting to revisit similar experiences from '08.

 

Also glad to see that the seas are calmer so far this year. In '05, during the leg from Nfld to Nuuk, the seas were in excess of 20 feet. The ship was MOVING that day, and I was not. I spent several hours in bed waiting for my body and the ocean to calm down, which they both eventually did.

 

I hope you have a most enjoyable cruise.

[sk8teacher]

Isafjordur Iceland, July 14, 2008

 

We arrived around 7:30am, to an overcast sky and a very light on and off drizzle. Sharon and I decided to hit the Thermal Spa first and see if it cleared up at all later in the morning. Went off the ship around 10am, and walked over to the Maritime Museum which was only a two minute walk from the ship. It consists of four different buildings but there really isn’t all that much to see. To get into the main building there is an 8 kr fee. I didn’t realize that and went up a set of very steep steps right inside the door and walked around the upstairs. There was a nice collection of old accordions, and in one corner a shore to ship communications setup resembling something from around the early 1900’s.

 

That was all I saw as I really didn’t want to pay the fee to see the rest. There were four young ladies in early 1900’s costumes that we took pictures of, and were able to give us some basic information about what was there.

 

From there, it was a short walk into the village (maybe five minutes). We walked along the main street, taking some pictures along the way. We walked past the New Church which was very modernistic looking, past the town park, and over to the Whale Bone Arch. We then walked back into the center of town and found the post office where we purchased some postcards and stamps for our grandson. We then went into a small bakery and Sharon got a rather large chocolate chip cookie for 195 kr. It was absolutely delicious. It’s a shame the US candy makers don’t know how to make good chocolate!! The conversion rate today was 75 kr to the dollar.

 

From there we headed back to the ship as the drizzle was starting to get heavier. By the time we got onboard the drizzle had turned into a light rain. We are hopeful that we can get some pictures going out of port this afternoon. What we can see of the mountains on each side of the bay where we are docked is absolutely beautiful but the clouds are very low and obscuring the tops.

 

Cheers,

[MightyQuinn]

Isafjordur Iceland, July 14, 2008

 

We arrived around 7:30am, to an overcast sky and a very light on and off drizzle........By the time we got onboard the drizzle had turned into a light rain. We are hopeful that we can get some pictures going out of port this afternoon. What we can see of the mountains on each side of the bay where we are docked is absolutely beautiful but the clouds are very low and obscuring the tops.

Bill & Sharon - Thanks for your continued reports. Really appreciate your insights & glad that you're having a good time. Sure hope that the North Atlantic drizzle clears away by the time you continue cruising the Iceland fjords & you're able to get some fab shots of the awesome scenery. Enjoy!

[MightyQuinn]

You probably know that when you're at sea off Reykjavik on Aug 1/08 you'll be in a good position to catch some of the solar eclipse. Thanks to some excellent posters on the Northern Europe/Baltics forum, here's a great site where you can check what you'll see. Scroll to "location" and click "local circumstances" and "animation" for a preview of when/what to expect. http://www.eclipse.org.uk/eclipse/0312008/

[sk8teacher]

Internet access was not the best yesterday so I didn't get a chance to post. Today you get two, yes two reports in one!! Enjoy!

 

Akureyri Iceland July 15

 

The day dawned overcast with a threat of rain. The run down the fjord was wonderful, but with all of the low lying clouds you could not see the mountain tops on either side. We were up around 4:30 as that was the time we were supposed to be entering the fjord, and went up to the crows nest to watch the scenery. We booked the Lake Myvatn tour through HAL which was an 8 hour bus tour with stops along the way. Ate breakfast in the Lido and off the ship we went to get on our bus.

 

While we later found out that the town itself never did get any rain, we did have some on and off during the tour. The wind however was another story. Very brisk which pushed the temperatures down into the 40’s. The tour was interesting and we stopped at an overlook where we could get a picture of the harbor and the ship at dock. Our first stop was at the Godafoss waterfalls. While small, they were quite beautiful. Other sites we saw including lava fields etc. A nice lunch was provided as well.

 

Overall we enjoyed the tour, but 8 hours on the bus is a bit much, and I most likely would not do a tour this long again.

 

Seydisfjordur, Iceland July 16, 2008

 

After such a long and tiring day yesterday, it was nice to know we didn’t have any tours scheduled for here. As we sailed down the fjord towards the village, the sun was shining and the temperatures were in the high 40’s and rising. With a blue sky above with a few scattered clouds, the sun shining off of the mountainsides was beautiful. After our morning routine of the Thermal Spa we were off the ship around 10am to take a walk around town as it’s very small with only about 750 people living there..

 

We spent about two hours walking around, and can recommend two things not to miss. First the Blue Church. You can’t miss it as you leave pier side, just look to your right and the steeple is quite visible. It’s about a 10 minute slow walk from the ship. A very small church, it’s painted a pretty Delft Blue color. What’s unique is the inside is the same way. Even the cross at the altar is blue. It’s quite pretty inside and well worth the visit.

 

After that, continue walking around the main road back to the general shopping area (which isn’t much), look up and to your right to the main waterfall. There is a path leading up to it, and you can even walk up the mountainside most of the way and get really close to it.

 

Tomorrow is a sea day and then we pull into Lerwick, Shetland Islands.

[sk8teacher]

Lerwick, Shetland Islands, July 18, 2008

 

The day dawned bright and sunny, with temperatures in the high 40’s and predicted into the middle to high 50’s. The sea was calm, and just a few clouds in the sky. We managed to get on the first tender going ashore, and were on the landing dock shortly after 8am.

 

As we had booked a private tour at 10am, we started out walking into the old section of Lerwick. Stopped into the tourist center and got a very detailed map of the immediate area with street names listed, and continued our walk. A lot of pictures were taken, and we finished up at Fort Charlotte. From there it was back to the landing dock area to meet up with a few others from the ship going on the same tour with us. And what tour is that you ask?? We had booked a boat trip with Seals and Sea Birds, going out to Noss rock.

 

All I can say is if you are ever in Lerwick and can get a booking with them, do it. It was absolutely fabulous. Passengers are limited to 12, and the best seats are the two up on the flying bridge. If you can claim them it’s the place to be.

 

Leaving the dock area we first paid a visit to the resident harbor seals. A curious bunch, they were always popping up from the water looking at us with their soulful eyes. The skipper kept up a wonderful narration along the way, ensuing that he explained in detail all of the birds and types of animals that were seen.

 

After about 20 minutes in the harbor area they made their way out of the channel and headed for Noss. Arriving there around 11am, we spent the next two hours looking at the wonder of thousands of birds nesting amongst the rocks. The consisted mostly of gannets and guillemot, we also saw some puffins, and other types of gulls. Around 12:30 they pulled into a cave in the rocks and anchored, then put out a remote controlled underwater camera and spent the next half hour showing us some of the coral, sponges, and various other creatures that habit the bottom of the cave.

 

From there back to the pier we went to end a delightful tour that I can happily recommend to anyone visiting this area. And the cost, in my opinion, was quite reasonable at $70 per person. Well worth every penny of it. As we docked at the pier, the sky had clouded over and it started to rain lightly. We wandered the old section once again, had late lunch and pint at a local restaurant, and boarded the tender back to the ship around 3:30. We couldn’t have asked for a better day weather wise especially as it had rained (heavily at times) for the last several days in Lerwick.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thanks for reporting in -- love reading about your excursions.

[sail7seas]

[B]Sounds like you're having a wonderrful time

Any chance you could make some comments about life aboard Maasdam?? I'd love to hear a little of that if you care to comment.

Thanks so much for your posts. Very enjoyable.

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[crazy4cruisn]

The ship must be full. I had a phone call this evening from the travel agency we booked our curise asking me if I would be willing to cancel it for an incentive as they had overbooked. I said no and asked what was the incentive. She said that I didn't want to know. I asked what it was, and she told me that it would be total refund and a free future cruise! Oh well...........I have planned too much to give it up!
See you soon,
Nancy

[sail7seas]

[B]You mean the Rotterdam to Boston leg?

I believe over 900 people are doing the whole 35 days.

[/B]

[crazy4cruisn]

Yes, the Rotterdam to Boston segment. I wish we had done the entire cruise! I will know better next time. It would be so nice not to have any long flights! I guess I will count myself lucky just to be onboard at all!

[sail7seas]

[B]Have a great time.
Travel safely.
[/B]

[crazy4cruisn]

Thanks, Sail!! I am counting down the hours...we leave tomorrow evening to spend one night in Rotterdam before we board. Nancy

[sk8teacher]

As we sail down the fjord towards Oslo the sky is overcast with a light rain. It does not bode well for a pleasant day unfortunately. But we will make the best of it and do what we can.

We love the Maasdam almost as much as S7S. She is a stately lady with a delightful crew. Are there hickups on occasion? Of course, no one is perfect. Some meals are what I would classify as satisfactory, most are very good to excellent. But this is only my personal opinion and I am not a fussy person about food.

I think the biggest problem onboard right now is they are still sorting out dining service with as you wish dining and fixed dining. But it seems like its getting better in the main dining room.

Although we haven't been there reports from others is the crows nest is almost deserted at night. And those that are there are primarily sitting in the forward chairs looking at the ocean. The piano bar seems to do a pretty nice crowd for a couple of hours when it opens. The ocean bar does well early also.

There are about 40 children on board ranging from a baby to late teens but you don't see them much. The thermal spa has been delightful for us, and very reasonable at $250 per couple for the first half. And we get first option to renew for the second half as well.

Take care all and I will post something about our time in Oslo tomorrow at sea.

Cheers!

[sk8teacher]

Oslo July 20, 2008

An overcast and wet day welcomed us to Oslo. As we sailed down the fjord towards our docking area a light drizzle met us. We had purchased hop-on hop-off bus tickets in advance so we were not too concerned about the rain, knowing that if nothing else we could at least see some of the sites of Oslo from the bus.

An easy walk into downtown was not to be had however, as there were three other cruise ships in port, all arriving before us. Thus we were docked at the container docks and had to take a shuttle to the center of town for a cost of $5 per person one way.

The first round on the hop-on hop-off bus was not bad at all with only a very light sprinkle so we were able to open the windows and get some pictures from the bus. We almost got off at Vigland Park then but decided to wait until the second time around. Unfortunately that wasn’t the right decision as by the time we got back around the rain had increased and was coming down fairly hard. But we had ponchos that we had brought so we got off and went into the park to try and get a few pictures anyway. I wish we had been able to see it without rain as it really looked like a beautiful park. But we did get a few pictures and caught the next bus back into town, where we got on the shuttle back to the ship.

It’s too bad also that we were there on a Sunday as other than a very few places to eat not much was open. The museums all closed at 4pm with the exception of the Noble Peace Prize museum which stayed open until 7pm. All in all an interesting city that I would love to visit again when it’s not raining.

Cheers.

[Krazy Kruizers]

[B]Thanks for checking in.

Wow -- that's a lot of ships in Oslo -- funny -- many times when we were there it was also raining.[/B]

[sail7seas]

[B]Sounds fabulous, Bill and Sharon. So happy you love the beautiful Maasdam the way we do.

Thanks for the remarks about shipboard life.
Sorry about the weather not being perfect but that happens. You seem to certainly being making the best of it. Your tours and sightseeing all sound great.

I don't want to rush away your cruise ;) but the sooner you get home, the sooner we board for our two weeks. :)

Really enjoying your thread. Thank you for your generosity in sharing your cruise with us.

Continue to enjoy.
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