Yesterday—embarkation and sailing day—was very busy so I didn’t have time to post. But I shall make up for it today. I’ll try arranging things by topic so that you may skip around the page as you wish. I write the blog in my stateroom, where I can plug the computer into an electrical outlet and not use up the battery; then I can go on the web directly from my stateroom or verandah. As you might expect, the web out here in the middle of the ocean is rather slow and pictures take especially long to upload, so I will use them sparingly. But I will share all my photos on Kodak.com when I return home.
So first it’s back to Saturday: Ft Lauderdale and Embarkation
I spent the morning rearranging my suitcases while waiting for my cousin David and his partner Jeffrey to pick me up for lunch and then drive me to the cruiseport. It was especially generous of David to pick me up since he is a professional cruise travel agent and I didn’t use his services for this cruise (only because I like to attend to all the details myself). But I heartily recommend his service (I have used it on a previous cruise); if you are planning to cruise from/to anywhere you can book through him at the International Cruise Center 1-800-921-0458 (be sure to ask for David and tell him you’re my friend).
We took a leisurely drive through the scenic highlights of Ft Lauderdale Beach; I am always impressed by its cleanliness and sparkling waters. But, of course, my Arizona nose and lungs have become really sensitive to Florida air and humidity (did I tell you I woke up with a blazing sinus headache?). We stopped for lunch at a pub/restaurant in the center of Ft Lauderdale’s gay neighborhood—although ALL of Ft Lauderdale seems to be the center of the gay world. After lunch we fought beach traffic for about 30 minutes (another reason I prefer Tucson) and then arrived at the port (security means waving your driver’s license in the air; I feel safer already) and shipside where there were no lines and no waiting time and I was on the ship and in my stateroom before 2 pm.
On Board in Ft Lauderdale
The verandah is a wonderful lagniappe! We’ve had verandahs on our Mexico and Alaska cruises, but I would have been perfectly happy with the forward-looking oceanview stateroom I had booked (just as on the last cruise). All the verandahs on this part of deck 4—forward, port side—are larger than most of the other verandahs on the ship, extending out the side of the ship a good two feet farther than the verandah above. That allows me more deck space and more access to the sky and air.
There are seven ships at port here, including the new 6,000 passenger Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas (for comparison: the Eurodam carries 2100 passengers, but this cruise has about 100 fewer than capacity). Two pieces of good news already: you no longer have to bring or wear your life jacket to the mandatory drill before leaving port, and the Eurodam is one of only two completely disease-free ships currently sailing out of Ft Lauderdale—let’s hope it stays that way for the duration. The captain has called for three days of beautiful sailing weather and will give us updates on the later weather as we progress on our great circle route across the Sargasso Sea and the North Atlantic.
First Night’s Dinner
There was a bit of a kerfuffle regarding my dinner assignment, but I believe that it has been worked out. Just to be sure that everything has been resolved, I won’t give the details until after Sunday’s dinner. Dinner itself was excellent, with well-prepared food and leisurely service. I was seated a little after 8 pm and didn’t finish until just before 9:30. I began with a bottle of 2008 Danzante Pinot Grigio; I drank about half the bottle and will have the rest with dinner on Sunday. First course was an antipasto plate of European cured meats and paté; followed by Tomato Soup Florentine, served piping hot with a nice spicy kick, as well as fresh basil and pine nuts; roasted salmon with artichokes, fingerling potatoes, and broccoli; then tiramisu and decaf.
The two ladies seated at the table behind me were from Phoenix—I wonder if Holland America is segregating the Arizonans.
After dinner it was a quick flop into bed and a good night’s sleep.
Sunday Morning
I never knew there were seven different kinds of Eggs Benedict! Don’t ask me to list them now, but I will probably try them all before we get to Rome. Today I had just the traditional kind.
Beautiful sunshine all day, but the breeze is a little cool. I found the perfect place to lounge on Deck 10 aft (Observation Deck), where the chaises are backed against the heat exhaust from the smokestacks which provide a warm glow to mitigate the cool air.
Activities for the Day
Morning presentation about shore excursions by the travel staff and an afternoon presentation about the ports of call by Ian, the travel director—a familiar voice from last year’s cruise. Then an afternoon wine tasting by the Head Wine Steward. We sampled five wines (three whites, two reds), including several from the list of selections in my “sommelier package,” along with a plate of appropriate edibles. The steward was especially good about explaining the signs of a bad wine and why most red wines don’t need to breathe before pouring. Later in the day a GBLT mixer met in the Tamarind Bar at the top of the ship. I was glad to see that for the first time Holland America is using the term “GBLT” rather than the old-fashioned, secretive, and often-misleading “Friends of Dorothy.”
During a light lunch in the Terrace Café in the sunshine by the pool, there arose from the bowels of the ship a loud, long piercing whistle followed by a grinding that sounded like the engines were splitting into the ocean. But no one seemed to panic and I soon discovered that it was only the sound of the retractable roof over the swimming pool being fully opened. Funny, with all of my previous cruising, I had never heard that sound.
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