Tuesday 14 April 2025

The Final Day at Sea

Although I stil have three more days on the Nieuw Statendam, today is finally the last day at sea. Tomorrow we drop anchor off Falmouth, on Thursday we visit Portland, on Friday we will be in LeHavre, France, and early on Saturday morning I disembark at Dover for my week in London.

This morning the high seas have calmed down and the sun is shining. The air temperature is still quite cool, just above 51degrees Farenheit on the outside decks this morning. But this is the weather for which I am prepared.

I have my first (and probably only) room service breakfast this morning: orange juice, scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, fried potato patty, and coffee. I left the order outside my stateroom last night and it is delivered right on time. The portion is large but not quite hot enough and there is no salt or pepper on the tray. It's already 9:30am and I need to leave my stateroom so that the stewards can do their work. Arif and Angga work well together and they have been especially helpful in getting me whatever I need.

I occupy myself in a quiet space in a public lounge to catch up on all the news on my phone:  The NY Times, Apple News, and Youtube. Unfortunately it's all bad news, as it has been since the inauguration.

Today's big event in the Lido Marketplace is "Cake Me Away Day." This is a relatively new event on Holland America ships, which I first experienced on my one-week Koningsdam cruise this past November. I guess this is a cheaper substitute for the late-night chocolate extravaganza that was a highlight of every HAL cruise since time immemorial. The cakes are quite extraordinary:

I choose my one piece of cake and get a nice lunch of stir-fry beef and broccoli with Shanghai noodles. I also enjoy a large mixed salad with Italian dressing.

Before I leave for dinner I set out the last laundry bag of the cruise. Soon it's time for my martini at the Ocean Bar. For some reason, the bars are particularly crowded tonight and I cannot find a comfortable seat in the lounge. Instead I enjoy my cocktail seated at the bar where I exchange meaningless banter with a number of other passengers who pass on and off the chairs next to mine.

I return to the dining after having dinner in Tamarind last night; this is my first appearance since I complained about the service. I guess the message got through since my server is much friendlier and more gracious tonight. The menu choices are not very exciting, but I start with a heavy and spicy bean soup followed by a mild tomato and goat cheese bruschetta. I repeat the NY strip steak with French fries (from a previous dinner) for the main course; however, the steak comes out very medium rather than the medium-rare I ordered. But I don't make a peep. I have anther glass of Merlot and sparkling water. I skip dessert since I had a piece of chocolate layer cake at the extravaganza at lunch.

You might notice that my steak is served with a skinny green snake, just like the one Will and I saw in the jungles of Central America this past December.

I am happy that we don't lose another hour of sleep tonight because tomorrow will be a busy morning. All passengers, whether getting off for the day or staying on board, must meet with British immigration officials before any activities can begin. Everyone has been given a code letter for the meetings, but we won't be informed of the code times until morning. After approval by the officials passengers can get timed tender tickets for the 30-minute ride to shore. Because I am a 4-star Mariner, I have priority tender boarding and get to go as soon as I am ready.

I plan to explore the small town on my own and use public transportation or taxis to visit a little farther afield. Although heavy rain has been forecast all week for tomorrow, the latest forecast offers some hopeful news that there will be much lighter rain. I look forward to being on dry land again although I am not looking forward to having to organize and repack all my belongings. But I don't expect much sympathy from my readers.