2008 SEPTEMBER 9 Tuesday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to Newfoundland
Another one of those great, lazy, hazy days of loitering about. We were up and raring to go, just in time for lunch! The menu at the dining room looked good, but surprisingly, today the offerings at the buffet not only looked better, but actually tasted good to Opal, the food critic. There were several interesting salads, Hungarian goulash, corned beef and cabbage, sea bass, spaghetti, and bread pudding…the soft custardy kind that she favors, served warm with vanilla sauce.
For most of the afternoon we were busy reading, trying to get picture files ready for uploading, getting the blog up to date, then reading some more, wandering the shops, looking at stuff in the library. Opal has been deeply engrossed in her book, curling up in a big overstuffed chair at every place we stopped. Although she had seen the series twice, this is her first reading of Shogun and she loves it.
Seemingly before we knew it, it was time to dress for Italian night and it’s formal, so ugh-ugh for me and yeah-yeah for Opal. We both had pretty decent dinners, in fact, quite good! I started with prosciutto and melon and this time it was cut thin, not the ‘clodish’ thick slices as I had a few nights ago. This was followed by very good minestrone soup and then a baby leaf spinach salad with cherry tomatoes and sun dried tomato vinaigrette -- ono dressing. Of course this was all accompanied by my usual Georgia dark wine, vintage 2008! And finally, fiery grilled, succulent (6 of em) fat shrimps….ringed by a bed of saffron rice…Ummm-mmm! I finished with coffee and a ss fruit tartlet. Opal started off with a baked eggplant appetizer, followed by minestrone, a green salad and then a roasted veal chop with linguini. For dessert, she had what was supposedly an Italian classic – baked peach stuffed with an almond soufflé. It was the first time either of us had encountered it, and it was a delicious ending to a surprisingly good meal.
For the first time ever, we had to set our watches back by 30 minutes; I didn’t know such a time adjustment existed……it’s been hurting my brain trying to figure out the “logistics” of this time “zone” inre how it would work on New Year’s eve with the rest of the world.
Anyway, in a mental fog, I drifted off to sleep …. As the heavy seas, rolling swells, and high winds howled away, I knew with full certainty that no matter what, I would wake up and go eat again. Tomorrow we arrive in St Johns, Newfoundland, the oldest city in North America, and I think, the furthest east.
2008 SEPTEMBER 10 Wednesday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
St Johns NF Canada
I was up early and looked out to various shades of gun metal grey, including the steel grey, icy looking 10m swells and near gale force winds whipping the crests all about, a roiling and frothy mess. The ship continually (and all last night) shuddered while taking hit after hit. At the moment we were hitting the swells head on and at the bow, there is lots of up and down and crashing wave noise. An aside-- we heard that on the east to west QM2 voyage, the one right
before our NY to England voyage, they had encountered gale force winds that push waves up and over the bow of the ship…..that brought back memories of my one experience in a typhoon while in the navy on a guided missile cruiser….there were times I was sure I would perish at sea before reaching the ripe old age of 21.
At the moment (933a) I’m on the Lido looking down at the roiling seas waiting for my walkie to chirp, telling me that Opal is awake and wondering where I am….. I have a vanilla latte to keep me company until she arrives.
We are due to arrive in St Johns about noon and then we’ll sail at 7p for NYC….. requiring 2 full sea days. This will be our first visit to THIS St Johns – there was another that we visited years ago on a New England-Canada cruise - the other St Johns, I think, is in New Brunswick, Canada.
It’s 1210 and the Lido is filled to the brim with passengers trying to eat before going ashore and even more are piling in, just as the Captain announced that the pilot has advised us to NOT try and enter the very narrow entry to the harbor, with a clearance of mere 30 meters on each side of our ship, because of rough sea and wind conditions. So, for the moment we are sort of idling/circling outside the port in 40mph winds and 5-10m waves . . . . hoping for the wind to abate so we can slip into the harbor.
Unfortunately for us, things didn’t get better….if anything the weather got worse, and the pilot boat must have been tired of waiting around with us, so at about 1p the Captain announced that we were aborting our port call as we could not go thru the narrows into St Johns in such conditions. We watched the pilot leave in his little boat – it looked like he nearly rolled over a few times as the waves were so rough – they were as high as the sides of his boat and violently rocked him left and right before we lost sight of him in the haze and spray as his boat chugged back towards shore.
The rest of the afternoon was reading and a nap. The weather continued to be lousy…more huge waves and hi winds and the banging of waves against the ship with some really serious listing from side to side. At about 5p we heard what sounded like the thruster engines being started up and running for about 3-4 minutes and then they stopped. It turns out we had taken a huge hit on the port side and we were in a steady and serious list to starboard. The engine noise was a pump used to move water in the hot water tanks…..in this case, moving hot water as fast as possible to the starboard tanks to make the ship UPRIGHT! Naturally this woke us up, wide awake, in an instant.
Well, before you know it we were vacating our cabin and sitting in the dining room ordering our dinner from Norman and Gilbert. Stella enjoyed one of her favorites – rack of lamb; I started with pineapple slices sprinkled with roasted pistachio nuts, followed by a less than average good salad and a main dish of beef filet tournedo with a baked potato and sugar snap peas ….. a tasty dessert of ss crepes ended the meal.
Stella is on the home stretch with Shogun and anxious to reach the back cover so we went back to the room where she read until finishing at some late hour as I slept away.
2008 SEPTEMBER 11 Thursday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to NYC
During the night when I got up I went out on the verandah and although the seas continued rough and the ship was bouncing and rolling along, I could see stars for the first time in two weeks. Sure enough, when we got up at 730 it looked like we would have a nice sunny day even if the ship continued on thru the rough seas.
We just had a decent breakfast in dining room instead of the buffet – I had a cheese omelet, bacon and a pancake. The coffee was good and along with a few bites of Opal’s honeydew melon, I was set til lunch. Opal had a Mexican omelet, carrot muffin, orange juice and hot tea.
There’s a special outlet sale this morning in the Traviata Dining Room where we usually have dinner. Of course, where there’s a sale, Stella has to go, especially with stuff at 50 - 75% off, of the ship’s merchandise and logo wear. This means they have dredged up all the junks that haven’t sold very well over the last few cruises, so they can reduce their inventory and add new inventory for the NE - Canada fall cruises and then the transition to the Caribbean cruises that will be coming up. But I’m not mentioning this to Stella…she’ll soon find out soon enough!
Today is 9-ll. At mid-morning, we all stopped for a moment of silence on the ship. It’s a sad anniversary for America.
Stella came out with a small bag. She found a couple of shirts for herself and her sisters. She said there wasn’t much in the way of guy things, so nothing for me. An aside, there is a very bright red logo golf shirt that I covet; Opal said if it is still there at the end of the cruise (tomorrow), it must mean that it was meant for me and I can buy it, otherwise it is too bright for her taste and she’d rather skip it. She also tells me that Liane won’t like it either. Anyways, she told me about 10 minutes ago that it is no longer there (in my size). The reason it’s no longer there is that I put it on hold…..hahahahaha.
Stella had a total blow out at dinner – from appetizer to dessert, it was a bust – the garlic soup was too salty, the halibut was overdone and dry, the NY cheesecake was “gritty” (I had to admit that the Royal brand out of the box mix would have been better) But lucky for me, I fared better…started with a fruit medley, salad, and then lobster tail with two giant grilled prawns that were almost as big as the lobster!
Stella seemed to be coming down with a cold…got the sneezies…so back to the room for a hot shower and a full night’s sleep. She thought maybe her unhappiness with tonight’s dinner had to do with the cold affecting her taste buds, but no, it was not her cold – I tasted her stuff and the food was not at all good!
2008 SEPTEMBER 12 Friday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to NYC
Today was a gloriously sunny day with calm seas. It is our last sea day, a packing day, as we arrive in NYC tomorrow morning. I was up early- I love NYC and I’m anxious for a couple of fun days to see old favorites and some new ones. I’m planning to take Opal to the Met (Metropolitan Art Museum which I’ve been a few times but will be first for her) and maybe we’ll go up to the top of the Rock (new for both of us) and we’ll explore some food places, maybe dim sum in Chinatown and Katz’s Deli and a place called Gray’s Papaya or something like that, and I’ll show her the inside of the NY Public Library – sounds boring, but it’s an awesome place.
It’s a beautiful day, the ocean was nearly glass smooth when I was up at 630 but by the time we had breakfast, it had some wee ripples and swells. Still, it was a smooth ride compared to our experience over the past few days. The Lido was jammed with breakfast people but I was able to find a table for two, first row at the front, amidships, so we won’t have to worry about people ‘horning’ in; if you have cruised and wanted to sit alone and the table is for more than 2, you know what I mean! I had a latte and I diddled til the queen arrived about 9 am. Breakfast was a ham and cheese omelet, minute steak, and English muffin for me; watermelon, sautéed mushrooms, stewed tomatoes, scalloped potatoes and a croissant for Stella.
After breakfast, we went back to our cabin so Stella could finish packing while I read. Our bags have to be set out tonight. About 1:00, we decided to try out the alternative Italian restaurant named Café Corniche. Antipasto and a ham and pineapple pizza for me; Caesar salad, veggie pizza, and a serving of lasagna for Stella. The crust on the pizzas were a little too thick for my taste, but other than that, it was a decent meal.
After lunch, we worked on the evaluation form that every cruise ends with. The staff gets high ratings, but the food does not. We will never sail on this ship again! We watched some television, I finished my book, Stella did more packing and before long, it was time to shower and get ready for our last dinner on the ship.
Our final menu looked good, and thank goodness for Stella, everything tasted all right, too!
Stella started off with a pastry shell stuffed with creamed chicken and mushroom, moved on to a Philadelphia pepper pot soup, salad of grilled veggies on hearts of romaine, and then roasted turkey with all the trimmings. I had an avocado boat filled with seafood (very good), chilled pear and ginger soup (delicious!), the grilled veggie salad, and prime rib with corn on the cob and baked potato.
As tonight is the final dinner, there was the traditional baked Alaska parade. I wouldn’t have believed it, but turns out their baked Alaska is among the top few that we’ve had. It consisted of 3 kinds of ice cream (spumoni, vanilla and chocolate) that were still cold and hard (instead of soft and melty, the meringue was nicely browned, and there was a bottom layer of cake.
As soon as dinner was over, we hurried back to our room to set our suitcases out into the hall for pickup. It’s early to bed for us, as tomorrow we sail into NYC to dock at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal and I’m anxious to watch us pass under the bridge and then past the statue of Liberty.
2008 SEPTEMBER 13 Saturday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
NYC disembarkation
I was up by 5:30 and out on the deck soon after. Dawn was breaking when we swung into the harbor. I got some shots of the grand Lady on the port side and the NY skyline….pretty neat views! It’s not often one gets a photo opportunity like this.
We had to vacate our cabin by 8. So we gathered our bags and went up to the Lido for our final breakfast. Unlike those chilly days at sea, it was nice and warm so we at an outside table and enjoyed the view along with our omelets. We were scheduled to disembark by 9:50 but it was 10:30 before our group was called. By that time, I was itching to get off.
Altho our disembarkation was delayed, the rest of it went pretty smoothly. We located all of our bags in the terminal quickly, whizzed thru immigration and customs, and were in a cab to our
Manhattan hotel in no time. Luckily, our room was ready so we were able to check in right away.
After Stella had a chance to set up house, we hit the streets and after walking a couple of blocks, we found that there was a street fair happening on 6th Ave…what great timing! There were blocks and blocks of vendors (about 30 blocks – Central Park to about 30th) in tents selling all manner of things and lots of different kinds of food (Thai, Indian, hot dogs and sausages, grilled corn on the cob – huge ears still in their husk, funnel cakes, crepes, etc)! The food smells were tempting, and we waffled but in the end, Stella decided she would rather sit in air conditioned comfort somewhere instead of standing in the street. Besides, she had a yen for noodles. I found a little ramen shop called Sapporo and have to admit that their special ramen bowl and gyoza really hit the spot! After lunch, we decided that the NY public library will always be there, but the street market will not…so we spent the next hour wandering from booth to booth. The variety was amazing…from made in China junks that will last a day if you’re lucky to Venetian Murano glassware!
Saturday night the Metropolitan Museum of Art is open late, so we thought that would be a good way to spend the evening. We looked at our maps and figured out how to get there on the subway. The Lexington Ave train was packed a! We were literally body to body like sardines. And it was hot! Stella would have suffocated if she didn’t look skywards on the ride.
It would have taken two days to see all the exhibits, so we just focused on the Egyptian, Asian and American art. Stella was particularly fascinated with the Egyptian stuff…mummies, coffins, tombs and even a Sphinx. After 3 hours of walking from floor to floor, our legs gave out and we headed back to our hotel. This time, we were smart enough to take the bus. It was air conditioned and there were plenty of seats. The thought of heading down into the subway station on a warm September evening and repeating the same sardine experience was NOT appealing. . . . . and, besides, there was more to see like the glamour big name shops as we rode along 5th Avenue.
2008 September 14 Sunday NYC
Today turned out to be more hot and humid than yesterday. We had breakfast downstairs in the hotel, and headed out to see what’s advertised as the biggest store in the world: Macy’s at Herald Square, which consisted of two buildings of nine stories each. We headed for the Starbucks on the balcony level and had Stella’s favorite drink, pumpkin spice latte, and watched the frenzied shoppers below. A total mess as it was Sunday AND all depts were having big fall sales….we did a bit of a walk around and then hit the road for Central Park and the nearby shops in the Time Warner building at Columbus Circle.
It was probably the hottest time of the day when we got to Central Park. It was very crowded with families, singles, skaters, bikers all over the place; almost every spot of grass and the big flat rocks that was in the shade, were filled with people. Hot and sweaty do not agree with Stella, so that means our walk ended up being short. We plopped on a large rock under a tree to people watch but even under the shade, we were perspiring heavily. We looked over a saw a couple of homeless guys sprawled on the ground napping in winter gear and felt even hotter! No joke…these guys were zipped up in thick hooded jackets and sleeping! Well, we assumed they were alive….maybe they weren’t?! At any rate, it was time for us to get up and go!
We sought refuge indoors at the Time Warner building around Columbus Circle. This place is top heavy ($$$) with a few shops of general interest for poor folks like us, e.g. Borders. There is a Whole Foods in the basement with 40, count em 40!!!! cash registers, all crowded with customers. The lines to get to these registers snaked a mile long thru the store. There were two…one express for 10 or less items, and the other line for carts. Of course, these lines had to be managed by staff whose sole job was to direct traffic. The two main lines then got broken down to 4 sub-lines before reaching the cashiers. It was utter madness – given the crowd, you would have thought there were some fantastic sales or bargains - but the prices were NOT cheap! I sat at a table in the eating area and left Stella to go exploring. A long time later, she finally found me with two bottles of “healthy” soda in her hands….I can’t believe she actually went thru the trouble of standing in that serpentine line, but she knew I was thirsty and besides, she said she had to get the NY experience….that’s what NY is all about….lots of people, lots of lines! Sadly tho, after going thru all that, the sodas tasted like “s---“…they were carbonated low sugar “healthy” fruit juice infused green teas that looked good in the bottle…but the taste left a lot to be desired… even Stella had to agree!
By then we figured we’d get out of that mess and go look for a place to eat. Frommers listed a Thai restaurant called Wondee …supposedly a ‘very’ local favorite in the ethnic setting of Hells Kitchen. It’s been more than a month since we had Thai cuisine and we enjoyed the spring rolls, red chicken curry and pad Thai very much, but objectively speaking, any number of Thai restaurants at home would have been just as good. In that sense, it was very “average.”
Strolling after a big meal seemed like the thing to do, and taking in the sights at Times Square…..as always, elbow to elbow, neon signs glittering, gooping at strangely dressed people, and stopping at little shops along the way was totally fun. In all, we ended up doing even more walking than we did yesterday and when we got to our hotel, I showered and was asleep before my head hit the pillow. Was a very busy weekend for this old fut!!
We check out tomorrow for our flight back home. It’s been 11 weeks on the road for me and a month for Stella. It will be nice to lie down in our own bed for awhile. Until the next time the road and the high seas beckon!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
PART 2 2008 SEA PRINCESS
2008 SEPTEMBER 2 Tuesday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Lerwick, Shetland Islands, Scotland UK (anchor)
When we awoke and peeked across the waters at the town of Lerwick (the small capitol town of the islands) from our balcony, we saw mostly gray stone buildings with steep roof lines and a few with turret-like structures like those seen on castles. The land next to the town was lush and green. Our ship was too big and the water too shallow for us to dock here, so we had to drop anchor and tender ashore. Although the weather forecast called for rain, it was beautiful and sunny albeit a bit windy and chilly this morning. By the time we finished breakfast at the Horizon Court, the line for the tenders had cleared and our ride over the calm waters was smooth and quick. Lerwick is a cute little town in the Shetland Islands, home of the Shetland pony and puffins, in the northern most territory of the United Kingdom. It took no more than 3 hours of leisurely ambling to see all the shops in the downtown area. The prices here were fairly reasonable and we had pounds leftover to spend, but as you would expect in a small town, the inventory was limited so we just ended up with a couple of small souvenirs. Near our tender station, we stopped in a small café and had tea and scone before getting back on board. They were out of their fruit scones so we shared a plain one that tasted like a soda biscuit. The hot tea was good tho!
Back on board, we went up to the Lido deck for lunch. Cheeseburger and fries for me; green salad and half of a knockwurst with sauerkraut for Stella. The buffet has kept us fed but there has been nothing memorable or worthy of mention thus far. We were back in our room for an afternoon of reading and napping….one that extended into the night. We were too tired/lazy to even get out for dinner, so it was lights out for us and early to bed.
But not so for the seas, they were on the verge of wild all night with much pitching and rolling in the fabled North Sea! From time to time we could see isolated lights from the drilling stations.
2008 SEPTEMBER 3 Wednesday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Thorshavn, Faroe Islands, Denmark
We like to try the different dining options on every cruise we go on. This morning we decided to have breakfast in the dining room. Usually that option would require us to set our alarm because of the limited hours, but given our early bedtime last night and the fact that we gained an hour overnight, it wasn’t too much of a strain to be ready by 8:30 a.m. It turned out to be an experience that we would not care to repeat. First of all, the menu offerings weren’t any better than those at the buffet, and secondly, it took a long time to get our order. It was only a ham and egg omelet with pancakes and half a papaya for me, and two soft boiled eggs with hash browns (small pasty lump of potatoes) and a ham “steak” (literally as thin as an average slice of Canadian bacon) and wheat toast for Stella. Our waiter was totally apologetic for the inordinately long wait and was particularly embarrassed by Stella’s overdone eggs which were more hard boiled than soft.
By the time we finished eating and had gone back to our room to gather our jackets and bags, it was 10:00 a.m. Our lucky streak with the weather ran out today….it was drizzly and overcast and to Stella, it was “freezing”…she bundled up in her down jacket, scarf and gloves. The terminal is a working terminal with trucks zigzagging about every which way, so we had to use shuttle buses that took us from the ship to edge of the terminal. The town was right next door. We wandered around town towards their SMS shopping mall, which turned out to be a 3 story center which in its entirety was probably smaller than Macy’s at Ala Moana. There was an interesting array of shops, including a supermarket on the ground floor, a little electronic store (digital cameras that sell for about $200 in the US were $600 here, DVDs were $40), clothing stores, stationery, and cafes. The most popular place appeared to be Burger King which was on the ground floor.
Lots of Toyotas and VWs here, in fact, besides the ever present Honda’s, another car we’ve seen in every port that we’ve visited this year (including Japan and China) is the RAV4. Amazing how far Toyota has marketed it and how popular it is worldwide.
After getting back to the ship about 2:30, we had a late lunch on the Lido deck. For dinner we again faced the horrendous task of near martyrdom by having to eat, for me, an uncharacteristic choice of cannelloni, which turned out to be pretty good; and for Stella, sautéed grouper – normally a favorite, but not done very good tonight. She has not been faring
well with her dining choices on this ship. Even her dessert – a dark chocolate peanut butter silk pie was a disappointment compared to my sugar free blueberry lemon cake. After dinner, we then wandered around the shops. Stella found a new nightie. As we were leaving port, we’d been warned that the harbor swells will be quite rough and, further, there was a chance of stormy weather when we fully enter the North Sea again. And the captain informed us that tomorrow late we will enter the arctic!
2008 SEPTEMBER 4 Thursday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to Iceland
Sea days always start with a sleep-in and today was no different. It was 10:00 before we stirred and peeked out at the day. Today Stella and I celebrated our anniversary…it’s been 14 years of adventure and discovery together! We decided to skip breakfast and check out our lunch options. We wandered over to the dining room and looked at the menu…nothing exciting there…perhaps the Lido deck would be more promising. They were putting on a special seafood and sushi buffet today, and it turned out to be surprisingly good. In fact, Stella thought it was the best meal we’ve had there since we boarded. I had about 2 dozen shrimps, sautéed sea bass and perch. Stella also had the sea bass and some bbq ribs that were tender and tasty.
After lunch, we indulged in another favorite sea day activity – reading and napping! Stella is engrossed in “Shogun” and is hell bent on finishing it before the cruise ends…so far she is only a third of the way thru. I’m nearing the end of my Clancy novel.
Dinner was also a surprise in more ways than one. We both had cream of artichoke soup and salad with sun dried tomato vinaigrette, then I had lobster tail and monk fish while Stella had beef tenderloin tournedos. All were good. For dessert, it was sans sucre key lime pie for me and nougat glace (two slices of vanilla ice cream with hazelnut brittle mixed in) for her. Somehow, Stella managed to let the ship know that we were celebrating our anniversary when she made our reservations and our waiters marked the occasion with a chocolate cake in the shape of a ship topped with a single lighted candy and embarrassed us by singing “Happy Anniversary” when they brought it to us! I guess it was a fitting end to a good day together.
2008 SEPTEMBER 5 Friday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Akureyri, Iceland
We arrived at the island known as the “Land of Fire and Ice” early this morning. Unlike the name implies, Iceland is not white with ice and snow….it is surprisingly green and while chilly in the mid 40s, not as cold as we had imagined. Apparently the ocean currents are responsible for the warm weather. The fire part is attributed to the volcanoes and thermal springs (there are lava fields and boiling mud) and of course the cold to the glaciers, snow topped mountains and icy rivers. We’ve been looking forward to these ports in the Arctic, the first of which is Akureyri (rhymes with “tipperary”) on the north side of the island and bought tickets for shore excursions. As we sat at the Lido deck having our breakfast, our first impression was that the terrain looked like Waianae out there! Our shore excursion met at 8:15 so it was an early rise for us. Thank goodness we gained back an hour overnight!
On the way to the Laufas museum, we stopped for a photo op on a hill over the city. In the background were mountains, and below them, hills and flat pastures, dotted with sheep, cattle and horses. The land was crossed with flowing rivers. There were a few high rises in town, but mostly houses with either steep roofs or boxy lines. At Laufas, we toured an old Icelandic turf house…it was actually a farmhouse made of wood and stone, and covered in a layer of spongy sod turf with grass growing all over it. Stella was fascinated as we went from room to room, checking out the kitchen, the weaving room with its old looms and antique sewing machine, the preparation room with its churns and jars and scale, the bedrooms upstairs accessible by a narrow winding staircase (more like a ladder with wedge steps) and their low, narrow beds.
Next to the house was a small church which featured a star studded ceiling….above us each tile was centered with a metal star.
The next stop was Godafoss waterfall, which was pretty, but not especially wide and only 50ft high but there was a tremendous volume of water. And finally, back into town to tour their botanical garden which took all of 10 minutes. After that, we did a walkabout of the town, stopping at their main souvenir shop…it was crowded with passengers and crew from the ship. Then a few doors down, we found a bakery for a taste of their Icelandic special…a pastry that looked like a big pretzel covered with slices of almonds. We ordered a piece and sat down to try it….delicious! It looked heavy but was light and delicately flavored. The walk back to the ship only took about 10 minutes….very pleasant end to a short day ashore……and now lunch was served!
Lunch was, in Stella’s terms, “mediocre”….she has been less than impressed with the quality and selections at the buffet. Yesterday was an exception. I was fine with a bratwurst w/ sauerkraut and fries.
Dinner was better. I had escargot, duck pate, French onion soup – all were excellent. I probably could have skipped the rest: salad, grilled sirloin steak, chocolate soufflé. Stella had corn and sweet potato chowder, crispy duck l’orange, raspberry crème brulee.
2008 SEPTEMBER 6 Saturday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Reykjavik, Iceland
We were scheduled to dock at the capital of Iceland at 10:00 this morning. Broken clouds, brisk with a bit of sun. After a light breakfast we went on the dock to wander thru a small souvenir shop and to get a card and stamp. Then it was back on the ship to join our excursion. The process was totally screwed up and we were 30 to 45 min late getting on our bus and away.
We took an interesting drive thru some of the newer Reykjavik suburbs. There was lots of new construction going on…even the roads look like they were newly laid. We finally arrived at a small town where a genuine Viking ship was on exhibit. The Vikings could sail from Iceland to Norway in 3 days with average speeds up to 20 mph in such a ship. The person who built the ship (almost single-handed) is a descendant of generations of Vikings and is the last one with such knowledge. He sailed it from Iceland to NY in 2003, where about 300,000 persons viewed it, and even around the world at least once. An old Icelandic house was also nearby – smaller than the one we saw yesterday, but also older. This one had dirt floors in some of the rooms. The construction was more “primitive”, external walls of stone and sod, interior walls all sod and a roof of sturdy branches and even large twigs holding up a sod roof with growing grass on top. The rooms were also smaller and the doorways narrower. There was an open hearth for cooking in one room, and the others were furnished with the implements and simple furniture of many 100s of years ago. I found similarities to the very old Irish houses that I visited in Ireland.
We then drove to a place called the Blue Lagoon. Several years ago the government drilled for thermal wells and, bottom line, they not only found their thermal steam (5000 deg) that they pump to the towns to converters that heat water and then distribute thru the houses, etc, (this is the norm for all of Iceland with no fossil fuels used for heat or electric) that are springing up, but also enough of it that they could built a hydroelectric plant AND a strange mix of water and silicates came out and filled up several large indentations in the lava that spreads out in all directions, creating lagoons of the milky blue water. One of which now has a fine restaurant, bathing facilities and a hotel. Of course, we all know the health of the Icelanders is legendary, and part of the reason is their access and use of these “magical” springs. The water really is blue!
We then went on a sort of ‘drive around’ thru some nearly fully unoccupied areas on the route back to Reykjavik. Imagine driving from Kailua Kona to the Waimea area on the Big Island, and then imagine all of that lava covered with lichen and moss…that will give you an idea of the landscape we saw. Stella was amazed that Iceland looked so much like Hawaii. People here even stack the lava rocks in piles like they do back home. But given that Iceland, like Hawaii, is volcanic in origin and still fairly “young” in geological age, it made sense. The tour guide told us that Iceland experiences 300 earthquakes a year! We know that the Big Island also has a lot of little ones, too, but not that many. The bus stopped at a tiny old one room church that was in the middle of nowhere, and the final stop was some boiling mud pots. Altho seemingly a big deal to the Icelanders, these types of pots would be ignored in Yellowstone, where there are many more and bigger ones. Stella had read about the hot spots in Iceland....supposedly featuring colorful mud from the minerals…but they were just brown and murky. The last part of the excursion was a bit of a drive thru of some parts of Reykjavik and although we didn’t stop we saw many new buildings, some very affluent senior housing, and the house where Reagan and Gorbachev had their pow-wow and decided the wall should go down, etc. We were back on the ship about 20 minutes AFTER the time to sail. A few other excursion groups were also late.
We showered and Stella treated my head where I had bumped it on the low sod roof, sort of like “a sod to sod” encounter...it was still bleeding and she was all hypers. Then it was off to dinner where she had a mixed fruit medley and roasted leg of lamb, followed by a piece of fudge chocolate cake, but it was hard and dry (she said it must have been 5 days old!) and only edible smothered with ice cream! I had a skewer of salmon, cod, scallop and shrimp….the scallop was ono but the others were bland. I then had chilled papaya soup with a kiwi float (excellent), followed by a garden salad garnished with apple shards and honey mustard dressing – again excellent. My entrée was the Icelandic cod but unlike the skewer, it was excellent. For dessert I had some emmental cheese and water crackers and grapes – again all very ono!
Back to the cabin where we intended to read and maybe watch Iron Man on the telly but after an afternoon on shore, we were soon fact asleep.
Some tidbits: we have decided never again on Princess – at least not on Sea Princess. We have a list longer then our arms of things gone wrong. At the laundry Stella met a Platinum member, who only sails Princess, and she said this ship is clearly terrible, it must be for training or the misfits and the food is totally bland and unimaginative, etc. Also, change topics, we were told that cod is disappearing from many of the fjords and does not bode well for the future of cod. There is abundant haddock tho. Lastly, I think a good many of the Icelandic women are about 5-9 or more….and like Norway, lots of blondes or raven haired, few in between.
2008 SEPTEMBER 7 Sunday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to Greenland
Trying to avoid the gale force storm
I opened our drapes and took a peek out to sea at about 630 and was greeted by 20’+ rolling waves and roiling white caps, whipped by a high wind. The clouds were ominously low and there was little distinction between the steel gray clouds and the cold gray waves. As the waves rolled the wind was so strong that it blew the crests into a white spume which rides the wind…..as far as one could see, such was the view.
It was a rough night. Last night the Captain had warned us that a gale was in our path and he would change our course to the north and try and avoid much of it, but still there was a lot of rocking and rolling and bouncing and thrashing about. I overheard many passengers complaining of not sleeping all night, etc. On the plus side, we got to set our clocks back an hour since we are headed back west now. With that additional time to sleep, we were up early. Stella went to finish some laundry and then we were off to breakfast on the Lido deck. It was fruits and cold cereal for Stella, and scrambled eggs and sausage for me.
We are now relaxing in one of the lounges, me with my latte, Stella with her book, and every so often kibitzing my blog. We can feel the constant collision of waves against the sides (toward the bow) of the ship….the awesome power of the ocean at work. One can’t help but wonder, what do we do if it turns over like the Poseidon. As I pause typing and look out, if anything, the sea’s fury is more closely matching the unsettled and thickening clouds. And, there is no easing of the rolling waves and roiling whitecaps blowing in the wind.
We thought it would be a good idea to sit down and be served lunch instead of weaving and swaying thru the buffet line, so we went to la Rigoletto dining room and were amply rewarded – Stella with Osso Bucco and cream of vegetable soup with an Austrian Linzer for dessert; I enjoyed fried shrimps, calamaris, scallops and cod, and for an appetizer I had roll mops – herring rolled in a horseradish and crème cheese with a potato salad….ono!!!!
During lunch we were told that we passed an iceberg on the starboard (our) side during the early morning, about 15 miles away. Also, the captain announced on the public address system that the Royal Princess was just ahead of us and they had already made the choice to cancel their eastern coast Greenland stop to the port of Nuuk because of the storm between us and Greenland. As for us there were three options: proceed as we are down the coast to the south point and wait for the storm to pass as we cannot “stick our nose out” while the storm is raging down there . . . it would be far too hazardous; or, we can hire a helicopter to “look ahead” for icebergs as we try and take a fjord shortcut across the south of Greenland; or, we can just slow down now and just diddle our way south and miss the port call in Greenland. The problem with the last choice is that going too slow in gale/semi-gale conditions could also be very hazardous. The choices will be updated later this afternoon pending developing weather information. As of right now the weather is slightly better, fewer white caps, smaller rolling waves, and a farther sightline to the horizon. Every cloud has a silver lining – the current one is that they have postponed the formal dinner for tonight…not having to wear a suit is always good news for me!
Stella finally had her good dinner…starting with a smoked duck appetizer and moving on to a surprisingly good won ton soup with tiny dumplings; then came an excellent Greek salad. For her entrée, she thoroughly enjoyed the poached Norwegian silver salmon filet….and finally, a Swiss meringue dessert with whipped cream inbetween. I had a crab salad with melon balls followed by the same won ton soup and Greek salad. My entrée was turf and surf…filet mignon and grilled skewered shrimp. . . . all very good. My finale was a san sucre strawberry shortcake that was actually pretty decent.
We then tried to upload pictures and the blog but the internet connection (supposedly operational now after being down for two days) was intolerably slow, so we wandered awhile and then to the cabin to read and watch some TV. As we fell asleep the weather had really calmed….what I’d call introductory rough weather.
2008 SEPTEMBER 8 Monday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Nanortalik, Greenland (anchor)
At 0630 the captain woke us with an announcement that there was a big iceberg about 1 ½ miles off the starboard quarter. I sprang out of bed and out onto our balcony…awesome! it seemed right next to our verandah! It was a stunningly brilliant white and roughly the size of the ship. Upon closer scrutiny I counted about 11 more floating ahead… most of them farther off. Stella managed to open one sleepy eye to get a peep at the first one, and then I would wake her each time we passed near one…..some very big! ... and all brilliant white! In fact, when you go to the Webshots site to view our pictures you will immediately notice how enamored I was of the icebergs and coast line. After waking Stella the fourth time as we passed one abut 2 mi away, she just stayed under the cover complaining about the cold and “if you’ve seen one you’ve see them all”. The temp was about 35f and with the 30-40mph wind, standing on the verandah was totally freezing and it was freaking Stella out with the cold sweeping in through the open balcony door. There were no clouds above and other than a haze along the shoreline, visibility was clear.
The shoreline here is dominated by tall pointed peaks with glaciers here and there. The overall impression is a similarity to the Alps or the Canadian Rockies…in some cases, even the Tetons in Wyoming. As we rounded the south tip the swells got huge and the ship started doing massive rolls and even more than ever before, pitching…..and wind got been stronger. There are icebergs to the port and starboard….hopefully there are none dead ahead. Most of the bergs are majestic, big, some with spires, others rounded and some jagged….and some are so small they ‘poke’ up only about 15-20 feet. But all of them are the unbelievably brilliant white.
We will anchor out today and it is supposedly a 20 min “tender” trip to the pier – Stella is already in denial about ever being interested in going ashore – hahahahaha. She finally came up at about 9:30 to join me for breakfast on the Lido deck. I have been enjoying breakfast here but Stella’s been saying that it’s boring. This morning tho, she said it was pretty good. She had poached eggs with stewed tomatoes and ranch potatoes. Either the food IS getting better or her standards are slipping!
Nanortalik has about 1500 people and there is one souvenir shop, two taxis, and no restaurants, per se. The literature said few people like the local food, mostly some form of whale or seal. There are small carts that some natives use to sell odds and ends and there is talk that perhaps the kids will be released from school early today in celebration of our noon-5pm visit. The geology of the town area is tall rounded mountains, no nearby craggy mountains . . . in fact, it is very reminiscent of the Makaha area . . . . with higher mountains and of course no sandy beaches.
While waiting for the tenders ‘open’ call, we were told it was about 44f which is warm for Nanortalik. The Captain informed us that when we turned from the open sea to enter the port we were ‘hit’ with harbor swells of 40’ and 50mph wind…..we did not know these numbers but those of us on the Lido deck certainly felt the ‘thwacking’ of the waves’ and howling winds were evident as they swept across the crests of the swells spewing white water for many yards in horizontal lines.
The little town of Nanortalik has many brightly colored houses and buildings, most of which are one or two stories – every color of the rainbow is represented, at least 3 times!
While on the Lido deck watching the scenery and the entrance to the harbor, a very slow, twisting and turning route, we talked with another couple, who nearly always sail on Princess, who also felt that the “Sea Princess is indeed a screwed up ship with poor organization and lackluster food for the most part.” They have been on the Grand Princess three times and said it was a total delight. So maybe we might try Princess again, tho never this ship.
We got our tender ticket at 1p and they said it would be about a 1 ½ hr wait til we would be called. Another nail in the Sea Princess coffin – it wasn’t until 3:30 p we were called for the 20m tender ride ashore . . . and it was a total mess getting down to the tender. Once ashore there was already a 400 person line waiting to return to the ship . . . the tenders hold about 100 and run about every 10 min and it is now about 345p and the last tender is at 5p.
Stella went into the local supermarket for a quick look around – one could describe it as a small Don Quiote. I left to take pictures of the houses, a museum and other local sites. The people are very friendly and although there are no other roads (other than within the tiny town), there are a surprising number of cars, one of which is a Rav 4, which Opal has observed, seems to be in every town around the world. Did I mention that it was about 40f and the wind was whipping about at more than 30mph? I don’t recall the quick and dirty way to calculate wind chill but lets say it was at least another 10-15f lower than the notes 40f (in the sun).
We then went across the street to the one souvenir store and it seems EVERYone from the ship was also there – it was warm and elbow to elbow in that tiny store, which was selling the usual t-shirts, postcards, magnets, books, and some local products made of reindeer horns, seal skins, etc. One couldn’t tell if one was in the line to see the few tshirts, etc, or in line to pay. It was chaos! I left Opal in line to pay for the postcards we managed to grab, and went back outside to get in the line for the return tenders. After standing in the cold for nearly 45 minutes we were aboard the tender at 515p. Our time on Greenland came and went in a flash!
Stella jumped in the shower to bring herself out of hypothermia the minute we got in the cabin. I followed shortly after. Then it was off to dinner after a short warm up nap. There was a promise of a great sunset as we headed south for Canada and St John.
We were warned, again, about the rough weather we will face leaving harbor. By now we are veterans and 10-15m (30’-45’) waves and 30-40kn winds …. Pfffft! It turns out he was NOT kidding and in fact might have been a bit low…..and it didn’t lessen, and at times got worse, during the night.
Dinner was ok: for me, spinach turnover appetizer, chilled blueberry soup, salad, sliced veal with ham and pate; for Stella, split pea soup, Yankee pot roast, followed by an apple cheesecake.
Lerwick, Shetland Islands, Scotland UK (anchor)
When we awoke and peeked across the waters at the town of Lerwick (the small capitol town of the islands) from our balcony, we saw mostly gray stone buildings with steep roof lines and a few with turret-like structures like those seen on castles. The land next to the town was lush and green. Our ship was too big and the water too shallow for us to dock here, so we had to drop anchor and tender ashore. Although the weather forecast called for rain, it was beautiful and sunny albeit a bit windy and chilly this morning. By the time we finished breakfast at the Horizon Court, the line for the tenders had cleared and our ride over the calm waters was smooth and quick. Lerwick is a cute little town in the Shetland Islands, home of the Shetland pony and puffins, in the northern most territory of the United Kingdom. It took no more than 3 hours of leisurely ambling to see all the shops in the downtown area. The prices here were fairly reasonable and we had pounds leftover to spend, but as you would expect in a small town, the inventory was limited so we just ended up with a couple of small souvenirs. Near our tender station, we stopped in a small café and had tea and scone before getting back on board. They were out of their fruit scones so we shared a plain one that tasted like a soda biscuit. The hot tea was good tho!
Back on board, we went up to the Lido deck for lunch. Cheeseburger and fries for me; green salad and half of a knockwurst with sauerkraut for Stella. The buffet has kept us fed but there has been nothing memorable or worthy of mention thus far. We were back in our room for an afternoon of reading and napping….one that extended into the night. We were too tired/lazy to even get out for dinner, so it was lights out for us and early to bed.
But not so for the seas, they were on the verge of wild all night with much pitching and rolling in the fabled North Sea! From time to time we could see isolated lights from the drilling stations.
2008 SEPTEMBER 3 Wednesday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Thorshavn, Faroe Islands, Denmark
We like to try the different dining options on every cruise we go on. This morning we decided to have breakfast in the dining room. Usually that option would require us to set our alarm because of the limited hours, but given our early bedtime last night and the fact that we gained an hour overnight, it wasn’t too much of a strain to be ready by 8:30 a.m. It turned out to be an experience that we would not care to repeat. First of all, the menu offerings weren’t any better than those at the buffet, and secondly, it took a long time to get our order. It was only a ham and egg omelet with pancakes and half a papaya for me, and two soft boiled eggs with hash browns (small pasty lump of potatoes) and a ham “steak” (literally as thin as an average slice of Canadian bacon) and wheat toast for Stella. Our waiter was totally apologetic for the inordinately long wait and was particularly embarrassed by Stella’s overdone eggs which were more hard boiled than soft.
By the time we finished eating and had gone back to our room to gather our jackets and bags, it was 10:00 a.m. Our lucky streak with the weather ran out today….it was drizzly and overcast and to Stella, it was “freezing”…she bundled up in her down jacket, scarf and gloves. The terminal is a working terminal with trucks zigzagging about every which way, so we had to use shuttle buses that took us from the ship to edge of the terminal. The town was right next door. We wandered around town towards their SMS shopping mall, which turned out to be a 3 story center which in its entirety was probably smaller than Macy’s at Ala Moana. There was an interesting array of shops, including a supermarket on the ground floor, a little electronic store (digital cameras that sell for about $200 in the US were $600 here, DVDs were $40), clothing stores, stationery, and cafes. The most popular place appeared to be Burger King which was on the ground floor.
Lots of Toyotas and VWs here, in fact, besides the ever present Honda’s, another car we’ve seen in every port that we’ve visited this year (including Japan and China) is the RAV4. Amazing how far Toyota has marketed it and how popular it is worldwide.
After getting back to the ship about 2:30, we had a late lunch on the Lido deck. For dinner we again faced the horrendous task of near martyrdom by having to eat, for me, an uncharacteristic choice of cannelloni, which turned out to be pretty good; and for Stella, sautéed grouper – normally a favorite, but not done very good tonight. She has not been faring
well with her dining choices on this ship. Even her dessert – a dark chocolate peanut butter silk pie was a disappointment compared to my sugar free blueberry lemon cake. After dinner, we then wandered around the shops. Stella found a new nightie. As we were leaving port, we’d been warned that the harbor swells will be quite rough and, further, there was a chance of stormy weather when we fully enter the North Sea again. And the captain informed us that tomorrow late we will enter the arctic!
2008 SEPTEMBER 4 Thursday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to Iceland
Sea days always start with a sleep-in and today was no different. It was 10:00 before we stirred and peeked out at the day. Today Stella and I celebrated our anniversary…it’s been 14 years of adventure and discovery together! We decided to skip breakfast and check out our lunch options. We wandered over to the dining room and looked at the menu…nothing exciting there…perhaps the Lido deck would be more promising. They were putting on a special seafood and sushi buffet today, and it turned out to be surprisingly good. In fact, Stella thought it was the best meal we’ve had there since we boarded. I had about 2 dozen shrimps, sautéed sea bass and perch. Stella also had the sea bass and some bbq ribs that were tender and tasty.
After lunch, we indulged in another favorite sea day activity – reading and napping! Stella is engrossed in “Shogun” and is hell bent on finishing it before the cruise ends…so far she is only a third of the way thru. I’m nearing the end of my Clancy novel.
Dinner was also a surprise in more ways than one. We both had cream of artichoke soup and salad with sun dried tomato vinaigrette, then I had lobster tail and monk fish while Stella had beef tenderloin tournedos. All were good. For dessert, it was sans sucre key lime pie for me and nougat glace (two slices of vanilla ice cream with hazelnut brittle mixed in) for her. Somehow, Stella managed to let the ship know that we were celebrating our anniversary when she made our reservations and our waiters marked the occasion with a chocolate cake in the shape of a ship topped with a single lighted candy and embarrassed us by singing “Happy Anniversary” when they brought it to us! I guess it was a fitting end to a good day together.
2008 SEPTEMBER 5 Friday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Akureyri, Iceland
We arrived at the island known as the “Land of Fire and Ice” early this morning. Unlike the name implies, Iceland is not white with ice and snow….it is surprisingly green and while chilly in the mid 40s, not as cold as we had imagined. Apparently the ocean currents are responsible for the warm weather. The fire part is attributed to the volcanoes and thermal springs (there are lava fields and boiling mud) and of course the cold to the glaciers, snow topped mountains and icy rivers. We’ve been looking forward to these ports in the Arctic, the first of which is Akureyri (rhymes with “tipperary”) on the north side of the island and bought tickets for shore excursions. As we sat at the Lido deck having our breakfast, our first impression was that the terrain looked like Waianae out there! Our shore excursion met at 8:15 so it was an early rise for us. Thank goodness we gained back an hour overnight!
On the way to the Laufas museum, we stopped for a photo op on a hill over the city. In the background were mountains, and below them, hills and flat pastures, dotted with sheep, cattle and horses. The land was crossed with flowing rivers. There were a few high rises in town, but mostly houses with either steep roofs or boxy lines. At Laufas, we toured an old Icelandic turf house…it was actually a farmhouse made of wood and stone, and covered in a layer of spongy sod turf with grass growing all over it. Stella was fascinated as we went from room to room, checking out the kitchen, the weaving room with its old looms and antique sewing machine, the preparation room with its churns and jars and scale, the bedrooms upstairs accessible by a narrow winding staircase (more like a ladder with wedge steps) and their low, narrow beds.
Next to the house was a small church which featured a star studded ceiling….above us each tile was centered with a metal star.
The next stop was Godafoss waterfall, which was pretty, but not especially wide and only 50ft high but there was a tremendous volume of water. And finally, back into town to tour their botanical garden which took all of 10 minutes. After that, we did a walkabout of the town, stopping at their main souvenir shop…it was crowded with passengers and crew from the ship. Then a few doors down, we found a bakery for a taste of their Icelandic special…a pastry that looked like a big pretzel covered with slices of almonds. We ordered a piece and sat down to try it….delicious! It looked heavy but was light and delicately flavored. The walk back to the ship only took about 10 minutes….very pleasant end to a short day ashore……and now lunch was served!
Lunch was, in Stella’s terms, “mediocre”….she has been less than impressed with the quality and selections at the buffet. Yesterday was an exception. I was fine with a bratwurst w/ sauerkraut and fries.
Dinner was better. I had escargot, duck pate, French onion soup – all were excellent. I probably could have skipped the rest: salad, grilled sirloin steak, chocolate soufflé. Stella had corn and sweet potato chowder, crispy duck l’orange, raspberry crème brulee.
2008 SEPTEMBER 6 Saturday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Reykjavik, Iceland
We were scheduled to dock at the capital of Iceland at 10:00 this morning. Broken clouds, brisk with a bit of sun. After a light breakfast we went on the dock to wander thru a small souvenir shop and to get a card and stamp. Then it was back on the ship to join our excursion. The process was totally screwed up and we were 30 to 45 min late getting on our bus and away.
We took an interesting drive thru some of the newer Reykjavik suburbs. There was lots of new construction going on…even the roads look like they were newly laid. We finally arrived at a small town where a genuine Viking ship was on exhibit. The Vikings could sail from Iceland to Norway in 3 days with average speeds up to 20 mph in such a ship. The person who built the ship (almost single-handed) is a descendant of generations of Vikings and is the last one with such knowledge. He sailed it from Iceland to NY in 2003, where about 300,000 persons viewed it, and even around the world at least once. An old Icelandic house was also nearby – smaller than the one we saw yesterday, but also older. This one had dirt floors in some of the rooms. The construction was more “primitive”, external walls of stone and sod, interior walls all sod and a roof of sturdy branches and even large twigs holding up a sod roof with growing grass on top. The rooms were also smaller and the doorways narrower. There was an open hearth for cooking in one room, and the others were furnished with the implements and simple furniture of many 100s of years ago. I found similarities to the very old Irish houses that I visited in Ireland.
We then drove to a place called the Blue Lagoon. Several years ago the government drilled for thermal wells and, bottom line, they not only found their thermal steam (5000 deg) that they pump to the towns to converters that heat water and then distribute thru the houses, etc, (this is the norm for all of Iceland with no fossil fuels used for heat or electric) that are springing up, but also enough of it that they could built a hydroelectric plant AND a strange mix of water and silicates came out and filled up several large indentations in the lava that spreads out in all directions, creating lagoons of the milky blue water. One of which now has a fine restaurant, bathing facilities and a hotel. Of course, we all know the health of the Icelanders is legendary, and part of the reason is their access and use of these “magical” springs. The water really is blue!
We then went on a sort of ‘drive around’ thru some nearly fully unoccupied areas on the route back to Reykjavik. Imagine driving from Kailua Kona to the Waimea area on the Big Island, and then imagine all of that lava covered with lichen and moss…that will give you an idea of the landscape we saw. Stella was amazed that Iceland looked so much like Hawaii. People here even stack the lava rocks in piles like they do back home. But given that Iceland, like Hawaii, is volcanic in origin and still fairly “young” in geological age, it made sense. The tour guide told us that Iceland experiences 300 earthquakes a year! We know that the Big Island also has a lot of little ones, too, but not that many. The bus stopped at a tiny old one room church that was in the middle of nowhere, and the final stop was some boiling mud pots. Altho seemingly a big deal to the Icelanders, these types of pots would be ignored in Yellowstone, where there are many more and bigger ones. Stella had read about the hot spots in Iceland....supposedly featuring colorful mud from the minerals…but they were just brown and murky. The last part of the excursion was a bit of a drive thru of some parts of Reykjavik and although we didn’t stop we saw many new buildings, some very affluent senior housing, and the house where Reagan and Gorbachev had their pow-wow and decided the wall should go down, etc. We were back on the ship about 20 minutes AFTER the time to sail. A few other excursion groups were also late.
We showered and Stella treated my head where I had bumped it on the low sod roof, sort of like “a sod to sod” encounter...it was still bleeding and she was all hypers. Then it was off to dinner where she had a mixed fruit medley and roasted leg of lamb, followed by a piece of fudge chocolate cake, but it was hard and dry (she said it must have been 5 days old!) and only edible smothered with ice cream! I had a skewer of salmon, cod, scallop and shrimp….the scallop was ono but the others were bland. I then had chilled papaya soup with a kiwi float (excellent), followed by a garden salad garnished with apple shards and honey mustard dressing – again excellent. My entrée was the Icelandic cod but unlike the skewer, it was excellent. For dessert I had some emmental cheese and water crackers and grapes – again all very ono!
Back to the cabin where we intended to read and maybe watch Iron Man on the telly but after an afternoon on shore, we were soon fact asleep.
Some tidbits: we have decided never again on Princess – at least not on Sea Princess. We have a list longer then our arms of things gone wrong. At the laundry Stella met a Platinum member, who only sails Princess, and she said this ship is clearly terrible, it must be for training or the misfits and the food is totally bland and unimaginative, etc. Also, change topics, we were told that cod is disappearing from many of the fjords and does not bode well for the future of cod. There is abundant haddock tho. Lastly, I think a good many of the Icelandic women are about 5-9 or more….and like Norway, lots of blondes or raven haired, few in between.
2008 SEPTEMBER 7 Sunday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to Greenland
Trying to avoid the gale force storm
I opened our drapes and took a peek out to sea at about 630 and was greeted by 20’+ rolling waves and roiling white caps, whipped by a high wind. The clouds were ominously low and there was little distinction between the steel gray clouds and the cold gray waves. As the waves rolled the wind was so strong that it blew the crests into a white spume which rides the wind…..as far as one could see, such was the view.
It was a rough night. Last night the Captain had warned us that a gale was in our path and he would change our course to the north and try and avoid much of it, but still there was a lot of rocking and rolling and bouncing and thrashing about. I overheard many passengers complaining of not sleeping all night, etc. On the plus side, we got to set our clocks back an hour since we are headed back west now. With that additional time to sleep, we were up early. Stella went to finish some laundry and then we were off to breakfast on the Lido deck. It was fruits and cold cereal for Stella, and scrambled eggs and sausage for me.
We are now relaxing in one of the lounges, me with my latte, Stella with her book, and every so often kibitzing my blog. We can feel the constant collision of waves against the sides (toward the bow) of the ship….the awesome power of the ocean at work. One can’t help but wonder, what do we do if it turns over like the Poseidon. As I pause typing and look out, if anything, the sea’s fury is more closely matching the unsettled and thickening clouds. And, there is no easing of the rolling waves and roiling whitecaps blowing in the wind.
We thought it would be a good idea to sit down and be served lunch instead of weaving and swaying thru the buffet line, so we went to la Rigoletto dining room and were amply rewarded – Stella with Osso Bucco and cream of vegetable soup with an Austrian Linzer for dessert; I enjoyed fried shrimps, calamaris, scallops and cod, and for an appetizer I had roll mops – herring rolled in a horseradish and crème cheese with a potato salad….ono!!!!
During lunch we were told that we passed an iceberg on the starboard (our) side during the early morning, about 15 miles away. Also, the captain announced on the public address system that the Royal Princess was just ahead of us and they had already made the choice to cancel their eastern coast Greenland stop to the port of Nuuk because of the storm between us and Greenland. As for us there were three options: proceed as we are down the coast to the south point and wait for the storm to pass as we cannot “stick our nose out” while the storm is raging down there . . . it would be far too hazardous; or, we can hire a helicopter to “look ahead” for icebergs as we try and take a fjord shortcut across the south of Greenland; or, we can just slow down now and just diddle our way south and miss the port call in Greenland. The problem with the last choice is that going too slow in gale/semi-gale conditions could also be very hazardous. The choices will be updated later this afternoon pending developing weather information. As of right now the weather is slightly better, fewer white caps, smaller rolling waves, and a farther sightline to the horizon. Every cloud has a silver lining – the current one is that they have postponed the formal dinner for tonight…not having to wear a suit is always good news for me!
Stella finally had her good dinner…starting with a smoked duck appetizer and moving on to a surprisingly good won ton soup with tiny dumplings; then came an excellent Greek salad. For her entrée, she thoroughly enjoyed the poached Norwegian silver salmon filet….and finally, a Swiss meringue dessert with whipped cream inbetween. I had a crab salad with melon balls followed by the same won ton soup and Greek salad. My entrée was turf and surf…filet mignon and grilled skewered shrimp. . . . all very good. My finale was a san sucre strawberry shortcake that was actually pretty decent.
We then tried to upload pictures and the blog but the internet connection (supposedly operational now after being down for two days) was intolerably slow, so we wandered awhile and then to the cabin to read and watch some TV. As we fell asleep the weather had really calmed….what I’d call introductory rough weather.
2008 SEPTEMBER 8 Monday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Nanortalik, Greenland (anchor)
At 0630 the captain woke us with an announcement that there was a big iceberg about 1 ½ miles off the starboard quarter. I sprang out of bed and out onto our balcony…awesome! it seemed right next to our verandah! It was a stunningly brilliant white and roughly the size of the ship. Upon closer scrutiny I counted about 11 more floating ahead… most of them farther off. Stella managed to open one sleepy eye to get a peep at the first one, and then I would wake her each time we passed near one…..some very big! ... and all brilliant white! In fact, when you go to the Webshots site to view our pictures you will immediately notice how enamored I was of the icebergs and coast line. After waking Stella the fourth time as we passed one abut 2 mi away, she just stayed under the cover complaining about the cold and “if you’ve seen one you’ve see them all”. The temp was about 35f and with the 30-40mph wind, standing on the verandah was totally freezing and it was freaking Stella out with the cold sweeping in through the open balcony door. There were no clouds above and other than a haze along the shoreline, visibility was clear.
The shoreline here is dominated by tall pointed peaks with glaciers here and there. The overall impression is a similarity to the Alps or the Canadian Rockies…in some cases, even the Tetons in Wyoming. As we rounded the south tip the swells got huge and the ship started doing massive rolls and even more than ever before, pitching…..and wind got been stronger. There are icebergs to the port and starboard….hopefully there are none dead ahead. Most of the bergs are majestic, big, some with spires, others rounded and some jagged….and some are so small they ‘poke’ up only about 15-20 feet. But all of them are the unbelievably brilliant white.
We will anchor out today and it is supposedly a 20 min “tender” trip to the pier – Stella is already in denial about ever being interested in going ashore – hahahahaha. She finally came up at about 9:30 to join me for breakfast on the Lido deck. I have been enjoying breakfast here but Stella’s been saying that it’s boring. This morning tho, she said it was pretty good. She had poached eggs with stewed tomatoes and ranch potatoes. Either the food IS getting better or her standards are slipping!
Nanortalik has about 1500 people and there is one souvenir shop, two taxis, and no restaurants, per se. The literature said few people like the local food, mostly some form of whale or seal. There are small carts that some natives use to sell odds and ends and there is talk that perhaps the kids will be released from school early today in celebration of our noon-5pm visit. The geology of the town area is tall rounded mountains, no nearby craggy mountains . . . in fact, it is very reminiscent of the Makaha area . . . . with higher mountains and of course no sandy beaches.
While waiting for the tenders ‘open’ call, we were told it was about 44f which is warm for Nanortalik. The Captain informed us that when we turned from the open sea to enter the port we were ‘hit’ with harbor swells of 40’ and 50mph wind…..we did not know these numbers but those of us on the Lido deck certainly felt the ‘thwacking’ of the waves’ and howling winds were evident as they swept across the crests of the swells spewing white water for many yards in horizontal lines.
The little town of Nanortalik has many brightly colored houses and buildings, most of which are one or two stories – every color of the rainbow is represented, at least 3 times!
While on the Lido deck watching the scenery and the entrance to the harbor, a very slow, twisting and turning route, we talked with another couple, who nearly always sail on Princess, who also felt that the “Sea Princess is indeed a screwed up ship with poor organization and lackluster food for the most part.” They have been on the Grand Princess three times and said it was a total delight. So maybe we might try Princess again, tho never this ship.
We got our tender ticket at 1p and they said it would be about a 1 ½ hr wait til we would be called. Another nail in the Sea Princess coffin – it wasn’t until 3:30 p we were called for the 20m tender ride ashore . . . and it was a total mess getting down to the tender. Once ashore there was already a 400 person line waiting to return to the ship . . . the tenders hold about 100 and run about every 10 min and it is now about 345p and the last tender is at 5p.
Stella went into the local supermarket for a quick look around – one could describe it as a small Don Quiote. I left to take pictures of the houses, a museum and other local sites. The people are very friendly and although there are no other roads (other than within the tiny town), there are a surprising number of cars, one of which is a Rav 4, which Opal has observed, seems to be in every town around the world. Did I mention that it was about 40f and the wind was whipping about at more than 30mph? I don’t recall the quick and dirty way to calculate wind chill but lets say it was at least another 10-15f lower than the notes 40f (in the sun).
We then went across the street to the one souvenir store and it seems EVERYone from the ship was also there – it was warm and elbow to elbow in that tiny store, which was selling the usual t-shirts, postcards, magnets, books, and some local products made of reindeer horns, seal skins, etc. One couldn’t tell if one was in the line to see the few tshirts, etc, or in line to pay. It was chaos! I left Opal in line to pay for the postcards we managed to grab, and went back outside to get in the line for the return tenders. After standing in the cold for nearly 45 minutes we were aboard the tender at 515p. Our time on Greenland came and went in a flash!
Stella jumped in the shower to bring herself out of hypothermia the minute we got in the cabin. I followed shortly after. Then it was off to dinner after a short warm up nap. There was a promise of a great sunset as we headed south for Canada and St John.
We were warned, again, about the rough weather we will face leaving harbor. By now we are veterans and 10-15m (30’-45’) waves and 30-40kn winds …. Pfffft! It turns out he was NOT kidding and in fact might have been a bit low…..and it didn’t lessen, and at times got worse, during the night.
Dinner was ok: for me, spinach turnover appetizer, chilled blueberry soup, salad, sliced veal with ham and pate; for Stella, split pea soup, Yankee pot roast, followed by an apple cheesecake.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
2008 AUGUST SEA PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
2008 AUGUST 30 Saturday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Southampton and Embarkation
We had a quick breakfast of cereal and juice at the hotel before getting a cab back to the Queen Elizabeth II Terminal to check in for our Princess cruise. There was a football match scheduled that day at the nearby St. Mary stadium so traffic was a bit heavy. We arrived about 11:45 and the line was at the door. I stayed on the side with our carry-on bags while Stella got into the queue. An hour and half later, she reached home stretch and we were on board a little before 1:30 pm. The Sea Princess is big, tho not as big as the Grand Princess which was also in dock for a Mediterranean cruise ending in Rome. We have an outside cabin with a balcony on the starboard side of this ship. Being able to see out is a big bonus, but the bathroom is tiny…the smallest we have encountered in 15 years of cruising!
Amazingly tho, our bags had already been delivered to our room. Most of the time, we have to wait awhile. We met our room steward Roger, then Stella went downstairs to check on our dinner table assignment. Our preference is the second (late) sitting at a table for 2. Some cruisers like sitting on large tables with strangers and meeting new people, but Opal and I are basically introverts and sometimes making small talk with strangers (some with accents that make it a strain to understand) can be exhausting. Besides, it’s more fun to bicker with each other! Our assigned table turned out to be a table for 4 and there were no more small tables available, but the maitre’d offered another alternative: how about a table for 6 for just the two of you? Sounded good to Stella…she took it! So every night, we’ll have a big round table to ourselves.
We walked around and acquainted ourselves with the ship. It is big and beautiful with a four-level atrium in the middle. The Lido deck at the top houses the Horizon Court that operates a buffet 24 hours a day on both sides of the ship, rotating from breakfast to lunch, to afternoon tea, to dinner, to late night snack round the clock. There’s no way anyone will go hungry at any time! We picked at a few things there and on the way out, stopped at the grill outside for a bratwurst with sauerkraut. Then we went back to our cabin so Stella could set up house, i.e., unpack our bags for the two-week stay onboard.
Besides the Grand and Sea Princess, the Oceana of P & O (sister line of Princess) was also in port. In fact, the Oceana used to be named the Ocean Princess and was a twin of the Sea. The Captain announced that the Oceana would leave first, followed by the Grand, and us last. We watched from our balcony as the procession began, the ships blaring their horns in greeting and passengers waving as they passed each other. That was fun!
While I laid back and relaxed, Stella went down the hall to check out the laundry facilities. She came back and announced that there were all of two washers and dryers for the entire deck! Then hurried off to get our loads in. Three hours and 10 trips up and down the hall later, she managed to get all of our laundry done.
Dinner was at 8:00. Remembering the excellent Caesar salads we enjoyed on our last Princess cruise, we both ordered some but alas, they were not of the same quality. Stella had spring rolls (she said they were rubbery), pasta shells with roasted chicken pieces and olives in a tomato sauce, while I had a chilled pina cola soup laced with rum that was served in a cocktail glass (really good), seafood turnover (also good). For dessert, I tried the sugar-free pistachio and chocolate mousse while Stella had the apple strudel with vanilla ice cream. Given our most recent experiences on the QM2 and the Maasdam, we were not overly impressed with this dinner. Hopefully, things will improve.
2008 AUGUST 31 Sunday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to Bergen Norway
I was up on the Lido deck watching Madagascar 2 on the big outside screen when Stella ambled up to join me for breakfast. We went inside to the buffet line. Oatmeal, watermelon and eggs Benedict for Stella; scrambled eggs, grits, bacon, sausage and potatoes for me. Sounds like a lot but we had small portions….in fact, the only thing Stella ate of her Benedict were the egg whites…the slice of Canadian bacon was dry and discolored, the muffin underneath wet…on her plate it was an unappetizing soggy mess. After we ate, we watched the rest of the movie, then ambled downstairs to check out the new merchandise in the shops. The shops onboard are small, so they rotate their inventory, periodically bringing out new stuff as the cruise progresses. Before long, it was time for lunch! So back into the buffet line we went – pasta, sautéed fish, eggplant gratin and mushrooms for Stella; pasta, fish, pork scallopini, and potatoes for me. Again, we opt for several option, each about a spoonful. It wasn’t a spectacular meal but adequate. We spent the rest of the afternoon reading and napping – activities that we love to indulge in on sea days.
Before long, it was time to get ready for our first formal dinner. The offerings on formal nights are usually a cut above average, and we weren’t disappointed. I had the crab quiche appetizer, lobster bisque, Caesar salad, beef tenderloin tournedos, and sugar-free banana shortcake and vanilla ice cream. Stella didn’t want to bulge out of her form–fitting gown…she had a green salad and halibut with mashed potatoes, followed by a hazelnut soufflé. All of my choices were very good, while Stella’s were OK.
2008 SEPTEMBER 1 Monday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Bergen, Norway
We went up to deck 14 for the breakfast buffet in Horizon Court. It’s a beautiful sunny day…one of only 65 rainless days as it’s said to rain about 300 days out of the year. Norway has hundreds of islands from large to small…..however only about 12 are inhabited. We were tied up at the dock by 1200 noon and got ready to go ashore. It was a short 15 minute walk to town. From the waterfront, the town slopes up a hill, and the scenery is dominated by rows of narrow colorful buildings with steep roofs abutting each other. We walked into some of the shops and like most of the American passengers, got a good dose of sticker shock-high prices and a lousy exchange rate of 5 to 1. A bottle of water or soda was local25 or $5! Most of the stores cater to tourists and accept credit cards as well as a variety of currency including American dollars, Euros, English pounds and even Japanese yen, so it wasn’t a matter of not having the appropriate money…it was a matter of how badly you were willing to be burnt! We found a couple of souvenirs, including a pen for me and as we ambled thru the waterfront open market, found a nice looking hat.
We were intending to return to our ship when we ran into a cute red and green shuttle bus that offered a city tour of Bergen. Stella got tickets for the last two seats and we climbed onboard
for a 50 minute ride that took us to the top of the harbor hill for a bird’s eye view of the city and the harbor below. Besides our ship, there was a MSC cruise ship docked in town as well. It was a fun way to finish our day on shore.
When we got back to the ship, we were just in time for afternoon tea, so off we went to the dining room. Ironically, it was head and shoulders above our experience on the QM2! Like the QM2, they served small raisin scones and a variety of finger sandwiches, little pastries, and cookies, only theirs was good and the service (which was non-existent on the Queen) was excellent. It was a delightful experience that we hope to repeat another day before this cruise is over.
What could be better than a nap after tea? So off to our cabin we went. But while I stretched out, Stella suddenly decided it was an opportune time to get some laundry done so off she went.
For dinner tonight, I picked some winners but Stella was not so lucky. I had fresh fruit cocktail, garbanzo soup, and veal marsala. All were very good. She had potato and leek turnover for appetizer, fish chowder, and lamb chops. She says they were all bland and without character. Oh well….can’t win them all.
After dinner we wandered the shops for new things and/or special sales items. Stella bought a couple of items but for the life of me I can’t remember what they were. Eventually we wandered back to the cabin to read, look out at the stormy North Atlantic and the many oil drilling platforms and watch some news on the telly.
Southampton and Embarkation
We had a quick breakfast of cereal and juice at the hotel before getting a cab back to the Queen Elizabeth II Terminal to check in for our Princess cruise. There was a football match scheduled that day at the nearby St. Mary stadium so traffic was a bit heavy. We arrived about 11:45 and the line was at the door. I stayed on the side with our carry-on bags while Stella got into the queue. An hour and half later, she reached home stretch and we were on board a little before 1:30 pm. The Sea Princess is big, tho not as big as the Grand Princess which was also in dock for a Mediterranean cruise ending in Rome. We have an outside cabin with a balcony on the starboard side of this ship. Being able to see out is a big bonus, but the bathroom is tiny…the smallest we have encountered in 15 years of cruising!
Amazingly tho, our bags had already been delivered to our room. Most of the time, we have to wait awhile. We met our room steward Roger, then Stella went downstairs to check on our dinner table assignment. Our preference is the second (late) sitting at a table for 2. Some cruisers like sitting on large tables with strangers and meeting new people, but Opal and I are basically introverts and sometimes making small talk with strangers (some with accents that make it a strain to understand) can be exhausting. Besides, it’s more fun to bicker with each other! Our assigned table turned out to be a table for 4 and there were no more small tables available, but the maitre’d offered another alternative: how about a table for 6 for just the two of you? Sounded good to Stella…she took it! So every night, we’ll have a big round table to ourselves.
We walked around and acquainted ourselves with the ship. It is big and beautiful with a four-level atrium in the middle. The Lido deck at the top houses the Horizon Court that operates a buffet 24 hours a day on both sides of the ship, rotating from breakfast to lunch, to afternoon tea, to dinner, to late night snack round the clock. There’s no way anyone will go hungry at any time! We picked at a few things there and on the way out, stopped at the grill outside for a bratwurst with sauerkraut. Then we went back to our cabin so Stella could set up house, i.e., unpack our bags for the two-week stay onboard.
Besides the Grand and Sea Princess, the Oceana of P & O (sister line of Princess) was also in port. In fact, the Oceana used to be named the Ocean Princess and was a twin of the Sea. The Captain announced that the Oceana would leave first, followed by the Grand, and us last. We watched from our balcony as the procession began, the ships blaring their horns in greeting and passengers waving as they passed each other. That was fun!
While I laid back and relaxed, Stella went down the hall to check out the laundry facilities. She came back and announced that there were all of two washers and dryers for the entire deck! Then hurried off to get our loads in. Three hours and 10 trips up and down the hall later, she managed to get all of our laundry done.
Dinner was at 8:00. Remembering the excellent Caesar salads we enjoyed on our last Princess cruise, we both ordered some but alas, they were not of the same quality. Stella had spring rolls (she said they were rubbery), pasta shells with roasted chicken pieces and olives in a tomato sauce, while I had a chilled pina cola soup laced with rum that was served in a cocktail glass (really good), seafood turnover (also good). For dessert, I tried the sugar-free pistachio and chocolate mousse while Stella had the apple strudel with vanilla ice cream. Given our most recent experiences on the QM2 and the Maasdam, we were not overly impressed with this dinner. Hopefully, things will improve.
2008 AUGUST 31 Sunday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Sea Day on the way to Bergen Norway
I was up on the Lido deck watching Madagascar 2 on the big outside screen when Stella ambled up to join me for breakfast. We went inside to the buffet line. Oatmeal, watermelon and eggs Benedict for Stella; scrambled eggs, grits, bacon, sausage and potatoes for me. Sounds like a lot but we had small portions….in fact, the only thing Stella ate of her Benedict were the egg whites…the slice of Canadian bacon was dry and discolored, the muffin underneath wet…on her plate it was an unappetizing soggy mess. After we ate, we watched the rest of the movie, then ambled downstairs to check out the new merchandise in the shops. The shops onboard are small, so they rotate their inventory, periodically bringing out new stuff as the cruise progresses. Before long, it was time for lunch! So back into the buffet line we went – pasta, sautéed fish, eggplant gratin and mushrooms for Stella; pasta, fish, pork scallopini, and potatoes for me. Again, we opt for several option, each about a spoonful. It wasn’t a spectacular meal but adequate. We spent the rest of the afternoon reading and napping – activities that we love to indulge in on sea days.
Before long, it was time to get ready for our first formal dinner. The offerings on formal nights are usually a cut above average, and we weren’t disappointed. I had the crab quiche appetizer, lobster bisque, Caesar salad, beef tenderloin tournedos, and sugar-free banana shortcake and vanilla ice cream. Stella didn’t want to bulge out of her form–fitting gown…she had a green salad and halibut with mashed potatoes, followed by a hazelnut soufflé. All of my choices were very good, while Stella’s were OK.
2008 SEPTEMBER 1 Monday PRINCESS TRANS ATLANTIC
Bergen, Norway
We went up to deck 14 for the breakfast buffet in Horizon Court. It’s a beautiful sunny day…one of only 65 rainless days as it’s said to rain about 300 days out of the year. Norway has hundreds of islands from large to small…..however only about 12 are inhabited. We were tied up at the dock by 1200 noon and got ready to go ashore. It was a short 15 minute walk to town. From the waterfront, the town slopes up a hill, and the scenery is dominated by rows of narrow colorful buildings with steep roofs abutting each other. We walked into some of the shops and like most of the American passengers, got a good dose of sticker shock-high prices and a lousy exchange rate of 5 to 1. A bottle of water or soda was local25 or $5! Most of the stores cater to tourists and accept credit cards as well as a variety of currency including American dollars, Euros, English pounds and even Japanese yen, so it wasn’t a matter of not having the appropriate money…it was a matter of how badly you were willing to be burnt! We found a couple of souvenirs, including a pen for me and as we ambled thru the waterfront open market, found a nice looking hat.
We were intending to return to our ship when we ran into a cute red and green shuttle bus that offered a city tour of Bergen. Stella got tickets for the last two seats and we climbed onboard
for a 50 minute ride that took us to the top of the harbor hill for a bird’s eye view of the city and the harbor below. Besides our ship, there was a MSC cruise ship docked in town as well. It was a fun way to finish our day on shore.
When we got back to the ship, we were just in time for afternoon tea, so off we went to the dining room. Ironically, it was head and shoulders above our experience on the QM2! Like the QM2, they served small raisin scones and a variety of finger sandwiches, little pastries, and cookies, only theirs was good and the service (which was non-existent on the Queen) was excellent. It was a delightful experience that we hope to repeat another day before this cruise is over.
What could be better than a nap after tea? So off to our cabin we went. But while I stretched out, Stella suddenly decided it was an opportune time to get some laundry done so off she went.
For dinner tonight, I picked some winners but Stella was not so lucky. I had fresh fruit cocktail, garbanzo soup, and veal marsala. All were very good. She had potato and leek turnover for appetizer, fish chowder, and lamb chops. She says they were all bland and without character. Oh well….can’t win them all.
After dinner we wandered the shops for new things and/or special sales items. Stella bought a couple of items but for the life of me I can’t remember what they were. Eventually we wandered back to the cabin to read, look out at the stormy North Atlantic and the many oil drilling platforms and watch some news on the telly.
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