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RevNeal - LIVE from the Ryndam & Amsterdam

RevNeal

By RevNeal,
in Holland America Line

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lindalans

lindalans

Posted
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:DHope you and your Mom have a wonderful cruise, I'll be with you in spirit.

 

In a little over 3 weeks I'll be boarding the Volendam on my first ever cruise to Alaska.

 

Roll on June 3, 2009:D:D

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innlady1

innlady1

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Thank you for the fabulous photos, Greg! They made me wish we could cruise this time of year and do Alaska! I hope you and your mom have a wonderful cruise, and look forward to your "live from."

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canadarocks

canadarocks

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RevNeal:

Please let us know how you and your Mother manage in the Lido without having the use of trays, which, presumeably, have now been discontinued, fleet-wide, since May 1st!

 

Again? Seriously? Seriously!:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

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RevNeal

RevNeal

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Greetings from the lovely ms Ryndam! Let's catch you up to speed regarding our embarkation "festivities" and our first evening and first day (up until when I quit to start getting dressed for dinner).

 

ryndamembark01.jpg

 

Yes ... the love Ryndam docked at Canada Place!

 

ryndamembark02.jpg

 

My mother, getting excited about boarding this lovely ship.

 

ryndamembark03.jpg

 

My mother and I being photographed by a Cruise Critic friend who showed up suddenly to say"hello" and meet "the Rev."

 

As Lisa correctly projected, about the time she was posting Mom and I were out taking a look at the lovely Ryndam and getting excited about boarding our "home away from home." The ship looked good, and as we walked along her length I praised God for the smaller ships of the Line ... one can walk her length and not be exhausted by the end of the trek ... unlike a Vista Class monster! Yes, I admit it, I adore the S and R class ships, and I'm so happy that this is what we're going to be aboard these next two weeks.

 

 

 

Embarkation:

 

What a gymkhana! And not due to HAL. Well, I suppose that HAL shore services had a small part to play in the mess, but about 95% of the problem was the inadequate preparations made by the other two cruise lines that were using the Canada Place pier that day: RCI and Norwegian. The place was a mad house; there was no (or very little and too small of) signage telling people where to go to pass through immigration and check in and for which ship. EVERYBODY -- and I mean EVERYbody -- was trying to get into the same line.

 

Luckily, I'd guessed that something like this might be the case today, what with this being the first big run on the facility this Alaska Season. I've been here when there have been 3 ships docked at Canada Place and it's not been a zoo ... so it wasn't due to the presence of three ships. It was just that shore services hadn't planned on how to direct people to their proper check-in lines.

 

HAL had a few staff people standing around in the middle of the insane crowd, holding up "Holland America" signs. I went up to the one closest to me, indicated I was sailing on the Ryndam, and asked where I was to go. This red coat pointed toward another set of HAL signs being held up in the distance, by a set of doors over near where I knew I needed to be going. There was a huge number of people between me and there, however. I pointed this out and he said "just push through them ... they're going on the Royal Caribbean and the Norwegian ships." So, that is what I did, navigating my way through with my mother to the next red coat with a HAL sign. She waved me through a door and into a nearly empty room where my mother and I went through US immigration Passport control and we were then waved on into the HAL check-in area. Here we were handed the Heal Certification form having to do with Noro-virus concerns. We checked "no" to everything and then proceeded into line for check-in. The computers were down so the check-in process was fairly simple, the reviewed all our information and then gave us our boarding cards. True, they told us to report to the front desk at our earliest convenience in order to have our pictures taken for our onboard accounts, but otherwise it was a breeze. In all, the check-in process took about 20 minutes, and that includes negotiating my way through the mad-house trying to board the other two ships.

 

The Ryndam is a lovely ship that clearly needs her up-coming Dry dock. Don't misunderstand me, she's in excellent shape considering her age and heavy use ... however, there's a great deal of work that needs to be done on the "little things," as well as on many of the not-so-little things. For instance, there is only ONE elevator functioning in the forward bank; the aft bank only has three operational, and then not always. There are many signs of wear and tear on furniture, on light fixtures, and on cabin elements (like the radio control on the headboard ... it's missing from my cabin). However, the crew can be seen working on many of these kinds of problems, and over-all these, and other similar/related issues, are not insurmountable. The crew is, of course, excellent. The staff is working very hard, and it shows; the service in the Main Dining Room on the first night was a little rough, but that's pretty much normal for a first night. On our first Formal Night (last night) the service was superb, fast, and pleasant. Likewise, our cabin stewards are doing an excellent job keeping our cabin clean. Over all, I'm very pleased with this critical aspect of any HAL cruise.

 

For those who have asked, I have photographed the menus from the last two nights and I'll have them processed for upload later today or tonight (Sunday Night) (assuming I have time). My mother and I are having a great time, and while it's taken her a little while to get used to being aboard ship, I think she's finally starting to settle in. The last 48 hours she's been a bit discombobulated and more confused than normal, but she's finally starting to relax and get into the swing of things. I've noticed that she has begun to relax more and the perpetual look of worry, fatigue, and dismay is lifting from her face more and more frequently.

 

I'll report more later today, I hope. We have a Dog Sled excursion planned for this afternoon, and then dinner in the Pinnacle Grill for tonight.

 

ryndamembark05.jpg

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RevNeal

RevNeal

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RevNeal:

Please let us know how you and your Mother manage in the Lido without having the use of trays, which, presumeably, have now been discontinued, fleet-wide, since May 1st!

 

The Lido on the Ryndam still has trays. Or, at least, it did when Mom and I ate there during the Embarkation Lunch. We haven't been back to the Lido since then, however, because both my mother and I enjoy eating in the Main Dining Room. We like being served, having table settings, and not having to rush from station to station, stand in line, or search for a place to sit down. :)

 

Now ... that question being answered ... might I ask that the issue of trays not be allowed to take over this thread? Thank you.

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RevNeal

RevNeal

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Thank you very much for the excellent pictures....hardly can stand to wait till we head that way...

 

By the way, what kind of camera are you using, Rev Neal???

 

Hello, David. I'm using my Olympus SP-560UZ. It's the camera I used on my South America/Antarctica Cruise in January 2008. It takes a passable photograph, if I do say so myself. :D

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RevNeal

RevNeal

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I am so enjoying your review . Our first cruise left from Canada Place ,how well I remember the excitment

 

Don't forget ,Alaska can be chilly,,,beware of grumpy ladies demanding blankets;)

 

:D :D :D If any "grumpy ladies" demand a blanket for me, I'll do what I did last time and fetch 'em one. :D

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RevNeal

RevNeal

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UPDATE - Sunday Morning -

 

The cruise through the inside passage toward Juneau has been lovely. The mountains around us are all covered with ice and snow, making me think of Antarctica. The air is frigid and the wind chill is quite bracing. Both Mom and I are excited ... this is what we were looking for! The sun has been out some and we do have good visibility (which is the only thing that really bothered us in Vancouver).

 

***

 

On our approach to Juneau, about 10 am, we were passed by the Zaandam! She is a lovely ship and I enjoyed capturing several photographs of her as she steamed past us! The backdrop of snow covered mountains made for lovely images.

 

***

 

A remark about Formal Night last night while it's on my mind. As I suspected, Tuxedos were only minimally present last night -- perhaps 20% of the men were attired in Tuxedos. Most of the rest of the gentlemen were in Suits, however, and they looked quite spiffy. A few were in slacks and jackets with ties ... and only a very few refused to dress up at all. They were rare, but they stuck out. For the most part, however, it was a lovely evening and most of my fellow passengers were participating in the evening festivities without being sour about it.

 

Mom and I enjoyed a lovely dinner, and then mother turned in (her feet were hurting her) while I went to the Explorer's Lounge for a brandy and a half hour of classical music. The string quartet performing here was excellent.

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RuthC

RuthC

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We have a Dog Sled excursion planned for this afternoon, and then dinner in the Pinnacle Grill for tonight.

I don't suppose you thought to bring dog biscuits, did you? It's fun to entice the dogs when you're getting the tour of the kennel. :D

 

I'm interested in what size table you and your (other) mother are sitting at. And if there are others, is Mom warming up to the company? I know she was a little apprehensive about looking out of place.

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Himself

Himself

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Rev. Neal: Did you get to the Alaskan Fudge Company and taste the Fudge of DEB an BLUE. When I am in that area I usually send some back home and people say it is the best Fudge they ever tasted. There is also a store in Skagway. Sorry to hear it is cold up there.

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geocruiser

geocruiser

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RevNeil,

I don't know if you are going to Skyway and plan to take the White Pass railroad. The train might not be able to do the whole route. My cousin is on a Celebrity cruise ( now -a 14 nite leaving from LA) in Alaska and call me last week. She said that they took the rail ride and was not able to the whole trip because of snow and were not able to take the bus down on the way back because of snow. They took the train both ways. But she said it was still worth the trip and was beautiful.

Maria

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