Around the World Cruise Logs | ms Amsterdam | 2015

The final day (and I won shipboard credit)…

I’m using up my final minutes of internet time on this final day of the around the world cruise.  We had another cocktail party last night, and it included a recap of the ports of call we’ve visited over the past 114 days.  The captain and cruise director shared a funny video of the crew of the ship for the passengers to enjoy, too.  The crew has been outstanding. 

I got some great news last night.  If you signed up for a future cruise with HAL, you were entered into a drawing for prizes.  The grand prize for a nautical map that the ship’s navigators plotted our course with signatures.  Other prizes were handed out, too.  I won $250 of instant shipboard credit.  I never win anything so I skipped the drawing.  I was excited to get a flyer in my room announcing the prize I had won!

The ship is leaving Fort Lauderdale for the Bahamas and dry dock after we disembark tomorrow.  The ms Amsterdam is 15 years old, and they will be doing some preventive maintenance before it heads west and starts the Alaska tours in May.

 

I never win anything ... so I was shocked to get this last night before retiring for the evening.

Our location at 8am on 4/29.  We are to arrive before 7am in FLL on 4/30.  I can't wait to get home!

Almost home...

The gifts continue from HAL…

Last night was a great formal night with a Mariner Society (HAL’s loyalty program) recognition program.  I’m at the first level (100 days) and received a bronze medallion in my stateroom.  Of course everyone on the around the world cruise is at the Bronze Level.  There were, however, some platinum folks who have more than 2000 days at sea.  A few more gold members were recognized (I believe it at the 1000 day level), too.   I think these folks must live on HAL cruises, and have lots of discretionary money!

The gifts from HAL continued.  We received an expensive Steiff Teddy Bear last week, and last night we received a commemorative plate made by the Dutch ceramics company Royal Goedewaagen (which has been around since 1610).  I toured their factory on a tour I took to Amsterdam several years ago and saw them make the distinctive blue pottery (Delf?).

I do appreciate the gifts we’ve received, but I hope it has now ended … I need to pack!  At least one of the gifts was a suitcase.

Hey, I think bronze will be my highest level in the medallion program at HAL.

The Royal Goedewaagen commemorative plate contains our route around the world.

Executive Chef Daniel Hrgic’s Grand Buffet

I’ve walked a tremendous amount (see previous blog entry), but I refuse to get on scales in the Fitness Center.  The food is just too good on this cruise to pass on any meal! 

Last night one main item choice was the 22 ounce Porter House Steak.  I asked for a smaller portion because the last time I couldn’t eat the entire 22 ounces.

Today is a special day on the ms Amsterdam.  We have a cocktail party this evening with a final formal night meal.  However, the most beautiful meal of the day has to be the Grand Show Buffet at noon.

The dining staff opened the buffet for pictures only at 11am, and I’ve included a few below.  Chef Hrgic is truly amazing, and the buffet today is a feast for the eyes and the palate.  I can’t wait until noon.

Gobble, gobble ... Did anyone request turkey?

 

Just some of the bounty of the sea ... crab legs anyone?

Looks kind of like a shrimp Christmas tree!

Fowl made from squash advertise some of the meats and sausages.

I loved the birds made from squash.

It will be hard to decide which dessert to try.

... and even more desserts.  I wonder if any are sugar (and calorie) free?

A bouquet of vegetable flowers!

A few statistics from the voyage …

I love statistics and data.  I spent many hours looking at test scores in my job, and I miss it.  So, I’m presenting a few incomplete statistics from the cruise log we receive during each segment of the voyage.  I also used the data from my Fitbit to compute my total steps, flights of stairs climbed, and total miles walked during the earlier segments of the around the world voyage.

We will receive one more cruise log when we disembark on April 30.  I’ll update the figures when I get home.

The statistics are interesting, and now I know why my feet hurt!

 

The ms Amsterdam crew members are so talented…

The weather has been dreary and rainy during the past two days at sea.   Everyone is a little sad that the cruise is coming to an end.  It’s time to start packing.  To lift the spirits, the crew of the ship have put on two special mid-day shows for guests.

Yesterday (April 24) the Indonesian members of the crew, who are the largest staff group, were the first to perform.  They did a spectacular job.  Most of the Indonesian staff members work in housekeeping and dining services, so everyone knew someone on the stage performing.

Today (April 25) it was the turn of the staff from the Philippines to perform.  The Filipino staff did not disappoint.  Most of these folks work on the front desk, the beverage centers, and culinary areas, and we all know them.  It was a fantastic show, and everyone was dancing and clapping as they did the finale. 

We have two more upcoming performances that will be with the cruisers on the ship. 

Holland America is associated with Dancing with the Stars on ABC, and several cruisers are a part of the DWTS competition in which they will compete across the various grand/world voyages.  The original DWTS performance had to be postponed because of rough seas (safety first). 

We also have a guest talent show, too.  It will be held before we leave the ship next Thursday.  It will be tough for guests on the ship to outdo the talented staff of the ship!

 

Ponta Delgada, Azores

It’s my second day in Ponta Delgada, and I took time to wander around the town and take a few more photos of the city.  The black and white tile paving throughout the city is distinctly Portuguese with its geometric shapes.  The town is filled with wonderful squares and historic churches.  There’s a fortress on the harbor that now serves as a military museum.  There’s a war memorial to those killed in the Portuguese Army in World War I.  People moved to this island and have had to migrate to other locations (many to the US) during difficult times, and there’s a statue to commemorate those who have migrated. 

This is our final port of call on the around the world journey, and I took one final snapshot of the ship which begins the six day journey to cross the Atlantic this afternoon.  Now the packing must begin in my stateroom!

 

 

 

Ponta Delgada, Azores (Portugal)

(It was overcast and drizzly when we left Ponta Delgada to visit the Sete Cidades (Seven Cities Region) of this largest island in the Azores.  The goal was to see the volcanic crater and lakes.  There are the twin lakes with one being blue and one being green.  There are two additional volcanic crater lakes that are smaller.  The beautiful pastureland was filled with cows, and cheese and dairy products are extremely important industry in the Azores.  By the time we returned for a tasting of Azores food products at the hotel, the sun had come out for a beautiful afternoon.

(The Blogger Dashboard is still in Arabic, and I ask you forgive the strange placement of  final punctuation in paragraphs). Also, the photos in this posting are reversed from the usual posting (latest to earliest). 

The sun was out when we returned from the morning tour.  Here's a shot of the port in which we were docked.

Folks were swimming in the harbor.  Note the swimmer to the right of this photo.

Despite clearing weather, the seas were still rough.  Surfers would love the waves, but there were no sandy beaches here.

Another view of the port.  There's a highway and amphitheater on top and shops and restaurants below.

We (the tour groups) participated in a "taste of the Azores" in the hotel above (the building with arches).  We tasted the local wines and cheeses.  Everything was delicious.

Pastureland in the Azores.  Cows were grazing in the fields.  The temperature is very mild year-round.

Legend has it that the Azores were once part of the Lost Continent of Atlantis.  Of course, they are actually volcanic islands, and azaleas, flowering plants/shrubs, and trees were imported from across the globe.,

You can see one of the Twin Lakes from this shot on top of the mountain.  You'll note cows in the pasture along the road.

The Azores are truly beautiful.  I'm sad that we'll miss Horta tomorrow.

There are four crater lakes in the Sete Cidades region.  This one is a smaller lake high in the mountains.

Another view of the Twin Lakes as we climb up the side of the crater.

This is a shot of one of the two lakes as we left the village.

It may be a poor village (that's what our guide said), but the homes and gardens were extremely well maintained.

The road to this village was only recently paved (funds eventually came after Portugal joined the European Union for such projects).  The city was isolated from other parts of the island for this reason. 

I wandered around the village and took photos.  The people were extremely friendly as you passed by the homes.

The homes had beautifully maintained gardens.

The homes reflect the Portuguese style, and many are very colorful.

The guide referred to this village as being poor.  It didn't look impoverished to me.  One family, descended from the early families who immigrated from Portugal, own the land on which these folks live and work.

We visited the village beside the Twin Lakes, and here's the local church.

This bird landed right beside me as I was taking photos.  I got a few of him before he stopped posing for me.

Here I am at the Twin Lakes volcanic crater of the Sete Cidales region.



Sorry for the order of everything.  This is actually the first picture I wanted to display.  Here are the Twin Lakes of the crater.  The top lake is blue in color, and the bottom lake is green.  It is hard to see the color difference because of the overcast skies as we visited the lake.  The color of the lake is the reflection of the blue sky (blue lake) and the surrounding vegetation (green lake).