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Tuesday 9 February 2016

2015 Asian Christmas Cruise - Ms Volendam

Ms Volendam Asian Cruise - Christmas 2015

Monday 21 December 2015

I was up early unpacking, unpacking and repacking again to get the weight correct for the main suitcase. After Brekkie I had to clean out the fridge to get rid of food that would go off over the next month.

My friend Graham called around to take me to the airport about 9.45. The check-in process went very smoothly and in no time I was up in the departure lounge. As this was the first time I was flying with SilkAir I had no access to the Qantas Club. OMG I had to pay $12 for a Vodka and Coke.

The flight was delayed by 45 minutes because of the late arrival of the aircraft.






I was taken out of the line and given priority boarding which was very nice. The service on this aircraft was excellent efficient and very friendly. The aircraft an older Boeing 737-800 was a bit tired and lacked modern entertainment equipment. 

The meal was very good and enjoyable and overall it was a good 6 hour flight and certainly much better than having to go down to Brisbane to get a connecting flight so Singapore.

 We only arrived in Singapore 30 minutes behind schedule.

This is where the fun begun, I got down to the Immigration area and noticed everyone has a pink form with their passports; I did wonder why I hadn’t been given one. I must have been asleep when they handed them out on the flight. Anyway in this huge line I finally got up to the check-in officer and he sent me back to get a form and fill it out. By now the lines were much bigger and I had to join one that I thought would be the quickest. Yep, like the supermarket I ended up in the slowest line.

When I finally got to the baggage collection area I could not find the carrousel for my flight which had been and gone and I was directed to an area to claim my luggage.

After that it was plain sailing to catch the shuttle bus to the hotel. I was very impressed with the check in service and the standard of the Grand Mercure Roxy Singapore Hotel. After a quick shower and freshen up I went down to the bistro to get a snack and a drink. 

I ordered Buffalo Chicken Wings which I thought would be a nice light snack. Well they were yummy but huge OMG I thing they must have been giant turkey wings. I ate the six of them and felt very full afterwards.

I called it a night at 10pm local time which was midnight back in Cairns.


Tuesday 22 December 2015

I awoke feeling very refreshed and was surprised to discover the sun did not rise until 6.50 am. I met up with Denis and Colleen about 8 am to go for a walk around the surrounding area before we came back to the hotel to have brekkie.









Late morning we took a cab to the cruise terminal to board the ship. The 5 Star check in service must have been the most efficient I have ever experienced and in no time we were on the ship. There  were a few hello Papaku greetings on the way.

At 1pm we attended the Mariners welcome on board drinks in the Crows Nest well this is where the fun begun and not knowing any of the bar staff from previous cruises didn’t help. The 2 bartenders were the most unfriendly and grumpiest I have ever experienced.
 Denis wanted a beer and anyone would have thought he had asked for a top shelf spirit. The guy was arguing that he had to drink only wine, bubbly, white or red. He begrudging gave Denis a beer. I knew by this time Papaku was not going to get any privileges so I had a red wine.

Then at 1.30pm he tosses everyone out of the Crows Nest as he had to get ready for a 2 pm function.  These guys are an exception to the rule however they need some training in public relations and friendliness as we felt most unwelcome.

I’m pleased to say we then went down to the Ocean Bar and it was exactly the opposite where we were greeted and made most welcome. I add I had never met either of these guys before. So we are now making the Ocean Bar our watering hole.

We had a beaut meal at the Canaletto for dinner where the service was excellent and the whole experience was most enjoyable.

We didn’t even have a nightcap after dinner as we were tired and I was in bed before 10 pm.


Wednesday 23 December 2015

Today is a see day as we sail towards Phuket Thailand.

I went up to brekkie at 8 am in Dining room and was a bit surprised to see a fairly long line waiting to get in. On most see days folk tend to sleep in and go later to brekkie. Well to cut a long story short I think about 95% of the passengers decided to go to the Dining room and not the Lido for their breakfast. The poor guys could not have expected this unusual large crowd.

The officers and the crew worked as a great team and even bought in extra waiters from the Lido to help out.

When I caught up with Denis and Colleen they told me they had the Lido just about to themselves as they were surprised how quiet it was.

After an easy morning we went to the Dining room for lunch and I had the yummiest slice of carrot cake I have ever tasted although it was very rich.

I decided to have a nanna nap before going up to the Happy Hour at the OB. This was a beaut session with heaps of laughs with the friendly staff.


We caught up with Marvin in the mix bar on the way through to dinner. We knew Marvin from previous cruises.

We sat at the Papaku table for the first time in the dining room which is beside the window. It is a perfect position and our waiters were excellent.

After dinner Denis and I decided we would go up to the Crows Nest to give them a second chance, well I’m sad to say we didn’t even stay for a drink because of the sour attitude of the barman.

So down to our friends at the OB who made us feel most welcome for our night cap before retiring for the night about 10.30 pm


Thursday 24 December 2015

I met up with Colleen and Denis for a relaxed brekkie in the dining room before getting the tender over to Patong Bay Phuket. It was a very warm sunny day so we decided we would get aa air-conditioned van with an English speaking  driver to have a bit of a tour around this tropical paradise.



















We went south along the coastline of the west coast and took advantage of some of the hill lookouts to take some photos of the beautiful beaches. We ended up at a fantastic mountainside restaurant offering great views and we were just below the large marble Buddha on the hill top.

After our lunch we continued the drive up the east coast and after an hour we headed in land to cut across to Patong Bay on the West coast. We stopped at a large shopping complex to do some shopping for toiletries. Of course we had to 
Do the mandatory stop at a high class jewellery store so the driver could get his fuel stamps so we had to look around for about 10 long minutes as we had no intention of buying the expensive goods.
We were back on the ship by 3.15 pm so heaps of time to have a shower and get ready for Happy hour.
The Christmas Eve dinner was excellent and our friendly waiters looked after us very well.
After the big day I adjourned early to bed and I guess I was asleep by 9.45pm.


Friday 25 December 2015   Christmas Day

I met up with Denis and Colleen for brekkie and we tried the Lido this morning. We sat in the Canaletto area and I was amazed at how quiet it was as it seemed everyone had gone down to the dining room again.  Anyway it was beaut to have a relaxed light brekkie on this Christmas morning and as it was a sea day we were in no hurry.







Later I set up my office at a table on the Lido deck to get the blog up to date and post photos on Facebook. We spent much of the morning ‘people watching’ and the families enjoying their Christmas morning around the pool. I also caught up with Colin and Wendy from Adelaide who I know from cruises on the Ms Amsterdam.

I had a light lunch from the Dive in on the Lido with Colleen and Denis. I finally met Twinkle the Beverage Manager who is a very pleasant Filipino lady. I took this opportunity to mention the Crows Nest saga to her and she thanked me for bringing it to her attention.

After a 2 hour nanna nap it was up to the OB for the Happy Hour.
It was a formal night again and they turned on a great Christmas dinner menu. I guess most folk had the roast turkey however I had the steak which was done to perfection.
For our night cap I introduced Denis to a Spanish coffee which we enjoyed.

At 11 pm I retired for the evening.


Saturday 26 December 2015

I had a very restful day as after brekkie we took the shuttle out of the port limits just for a drive and to stretch our legs. Of course there was nothing here as the Port of Thilawa as we are about 90 minutes away from the city of Rangoon.
We went out to the Sea View pool area on the aft Lido deck to have a Guinness where we met Jervy a barman I haven’t seen since the World Cruise 2011. It was beaut to catch up with him again.

We adjourned to the mid Lido deck to think about having lunch. Twinkle the Beverage Manager came along and we had a good chat. She was surprised I knew many of her colleagues on other ships. Actually I know her husband who is a member of the Station Band the very talented and popular Filipino band. 

Twinkle even bought us a pre-lunch drink so I had a Bloody Mary. After a light lunch I had a long nanna nap before happy hour.

As Denis and Colleen were doing a night tour I had dinner by myself and was amazed by the number of crew that came up to me as they had recognised me from previous cruises. So I was never alone for long.

I went up to the Seaview lido deck as they were having a function under the stars in the warm conditions. There I was nearly knocked over by being greeted by Gerry (with a G) who was one of the popular barmen on the Amsterdam’s Grand Asian cruise last year. After a night cap and a beaut catch up chat with Gerry I call it a night just after midnight.


Sunday 27 December 2015

We had an early brekkie in the Canaletto part of the Lido as we were going into Rangoon on tour for the day.

The drive into Ragon on the very bumpy roads took a shorter time than the average 90 minutes but we think this is because it is a Sunday.






We arrived at the park opposite the town hall which was the drop off point and pick up place for our transfer coach. We set off on a walking tour to the Scott Markets. Well it was very warm and when we asked directions after we thought we should have arrived at the markets we were told we had been heading off in the wrong direction.

We got a cab to take us there and the 20 minute drive only cost $2.50, we decided from then on we would save our legs and take cabs.

The Markets were crowded with Tourists but we had a good look around but didn’t buy anything. From the markets we went to the Shangri- La hotel to have lunch at this 5 star property.



The service was excellent and the prices were unbelievably cheap and a club sandwich with chips and salad with a large bottle of local beer only cost $17.
After a relaxing lunch the hotel got us a cab and we went for a drive out to the Shwedagon Pagoda to take some photos. There was not the time to go in so the driver took us to the four entrances for photo stops.










Then the fun begun as we got caught in a traffic jam for 15 minutes and we were starting to get concerned we wouldn’t be back at the pickup point for the coach back to the port.  OMG we just made it with 1 minute to spare and we were not booed as we were not the last to get on.

The trip back to the ship only took just on an hour so there was time to get changed and make it to happy hour on time.

We had dinner in the dining room and after a big day and no nanna nap I called it an early night and was in bed before 9.30pm.


Monday 28 December 2015

We had brekkie in the dining room and had a enjoyable time with the crew who are well and truly getting to know us by now.

I did some catching up on the blog and photos after brekkie and went up to the Lido to get ready for sail away at midday. We had a chat with Twinkle for a while and then had a Guinness before lunch. The DJ played some music so it was hard to hear each other talk until he turned it down. It was very tropical on the deck on this cloudless day. The temp reached 34C.

I had a chicken burger for lunch which was delicious and not too heavy. I then went down for a nanna nap before going up to Happy hour.

Happy Hour was the usual fun time with the staff and the regulars. It was beaut watching the land go by as we sailed out to the calm sea.

Dinner was great as veal schnitzel was on the menu and was made to perfection. 

So after a most enjoyable meal Denis and I adjourned to the OB for a night cap.
I must be getting old as I was in bed early again just after 10 pm. But I think I have mentioned before I sleep like a baby while I’m on ships.


Tuesday 29 December 2015

OMG I slept in and forgot to put my clock forward by 30 minutes because we have left the Burma time zone. Today is the first of 2 sea days as we cruise towards Porto Malai







I got up to the Lido to meet Denis and Colleen 20 minutes late for brekkie. I only had a light brekkie as we had the Mariners lunch today and I had the reception beforehand at 11.30pm.  

Guess what I stuffed up and missed the reception which was actually at 11 am and went straight to the Brunch and was able to sit with Denis & Colleen. It was an excellent lunch.
I then went up to the Seaview bar to catch up with Jurvey and Gerry for a pre nanna nap drink. All the deck chairs were taken and most folks were trying to improve their tans in the perfect sunny weather conditions.

After the nanna nap it was up to the OB Happy hour that was packed with laughter and fun as the regulars are now unwinding and relaxing. 




I briefly ran into Colin and Wendy but Wendy was not her usual self as she has a head cold.

Another beaut dinner with excellent service however I only had a main course as I was still a bit full from the Brunch

Denis and I had only one night cap and then it was off to bed before 10 pm.



Wednesday 30 December 2015

Today is our 2nd sea day as we cruise to Porto Malai, so another recharge the batteries day. I started off by joining Colleen and Denis for a leisurely hot brekkie in the dining room.


After catching up with emails and Facebook I made my way up to the Seaview bar to enjoy the perfect weather in the sunshine. Today seemed to be a little cooler with a slight breeze and all the beautiful and not so beautiful were taking advantage of the sun lounges to darken their tans.

I caught up with Gerry and Jervy at the bar for a while before going to the Lido to meet up with Denis for a Guinness before lunch. There was entertainment and most folk were enjoying the sun, the pool and a drink.

I only had a light lunch of sweet potato chips before going down for my well earnt nanna nap.

We had the usual fun time at happy hour with the regulars and the friendly bar staff.

Dinner was excellent and I enjoyed crumbed sweet and sour prawns.

I only had the one nightcap with Denis before calling it an early night just after 10.30 pm.


Thursday 31 December 2015

We had a leisurely brekkie before getting the tender to visit Langkawi for the day. We just got the shuttle bus into the first town where I purchased a Malaysian sim card for my old phone.

We went exploring and found the seafront where there were heaps of beach cafes but unfortunately they didn’t open until   mid-afternoon so we headed off to find a place to have lunch.

The Red SKY won us over as it was air conditioned, had cold Tiger beer and the meals looked great. The service was excellent and friendly. As most of you know Kurt and I spent a week in Malaysia 18 months ago for my birthday and I love coming here as I have a soft spot for this country with its excellent meals and friendly service.

Anyway after a few hours of having many courses and drinks we were very surprised to find our bill only came to just under $30 Aus for the 3 of us.














After another walk around it was back to the ship. I had a shower and then it was time to go up to happy hour

We had dinner in the Canaletto for NYE and we had heaps of fun with the staff and of course we were one of the last tables to leave. Actually I allowed PB to come with us for the celebrations.



The Lido pool area had been all decorated for the NYE party but as we had an hour to spare we went down to the OB to see the guys. Colleen and Denis only lasted about 30 minutes before going off to bed. Just before midnight everyone left the OB to go up to the Lido for the countdown. I stayed with Andy the barman and a couple from Austria so we had our own celebrations which were fun.









About 12.30 am I went up to the Lido to say G’Day to a few crew and guests and then went out to the Seaview bar to wish Gerry and the guys Happy New Year. 

So to cut a long story short I got down to bed just after 2am.  Happy New Year.



Friday 1 January 2016

I think you will understand if I said I slept in this morning and went up to the dining room for a late brekkie at 8.45 am.

It is another warm sunny day here in Penang so as I plan to go out later I went down to the cabin to sort out photos and update the travel blog. Denis and Colleen were doing a tour to see the Orangutans, so I was a free agent.

Gerry had arranged to meet me at 12.20 pm and we went out to explore Penang so I acted as the guide because it is his first visit and he was my bodyguard. We got a taxi from the pier to the large shopping mall where we had lunch and did some shopping. The lunch was fantastic and for the price a great bargain.










We came back to the ship in a peddle power tri-Shaw which was heaps of fun and it seemed to be faster than the taxi ride.

By the time I got back and sorted out my laundry it was time to go up to happy hour.

Dinner was a great meal and as usual we had heaps of fun with the waiters and the dining room supervisors.

About 9.45pm I headed down to the cabin to have an early night. Well that’s what I thought as I was hanging up my clothes in the wardrobe I felt drips of water falling on my head. OMG the air conditioner vent was leaking condensation water at a fairly fast rate and as I didn’t want to drown in my sleep I rang the front office.

The temporary solution was to put a towel on the floor to absorb the drips as I would have to wait until the morning for the correct guy to fix it up. It was like getting water torture so I played music to drown out the drip drip noise.
Other than that I got to sleep by 11 pm and had a good night’s sleep.


Saturday 2 January 2016

I survived the night and didn’t need snorkel and flippers to get to the bathroom in the morning however the floor and towel under the drip were very soggy.

When I got back from brekkie the room had been made up and a new towel placed under the drip. When I went down to the office to get some local money I mentioned it to the guy and next thing the young fellow that put the towel under the leak came out to advise me he was supervising the repairs personally and the repair man would be there soon.

Today we are in Port Klang and we planned just to go into the mall at Klang and not make the couple of hour’s trip into KL.

Boy oh boy it was hot and humid when we got off the ship and we were lined up for a cab. The cab was not in the best shape and was making all sorts of sick noises as we bounced into the town 25 minutes away. Mr HAL must be getting stingy these days as the last few times I have been here there was a free shuttle bus.








The shopping at this mall is excellent and I got some new earphones for my phones and Tab at a fraction of the price I would pay at home. Then this contraption caught my eye for holding your mobile phone and it clamps on to other objects like a table. Well I just had to have one and at great expense of about $5 Aus it was now mine.  NO No it was not another kind of selfie stick.
Colleen and Denis went off to do some clothes shopping so I stayed in a coffee shop and caught up on the Wi-Fi.

Our little taxi guy was waiting for us when we came out of the Mall to take us back to the ship. I went to the cabin to put my new purchases away and I was met with my new best friend Carlos from the office who was just checking the repairs to my water torture problem. He was pleased to report everything was fixed and even the carpet had been dried. So I thanked him for his good follow work.

 I had my Papaku masarap Chicken burger when we got back to the ship. After the late lunch it was time to go to the happy Hour in the OB.
My Malaysian sim card was working with good reception so I had a viber video phone with folk back in Australia. They enjoyed seeing the bar and the folk we have happy hour with.

We had dinner in the dining room and then Denis and I had a Wang Wang for our night cap and after a very interesting day I made it to bed by 11pm.


Sunday 3 January 2016

After a leisurely Brekkie in the Lido we met up to go ashore in Malacca by a yellow crash boat used as a tender by the local authorities.


























It was beaut to revisit this beautiful city so we hired a cab for an hour to tour the attractions such as Santiago Fort, the Dutch Square, the Sultans Palace, various temples and then concluded at the observation tower.

The tower allowed us to experience commanding views of the city and the surrounds and we could even see the Volendam at anchor in the Straits of Malacca.

It was very hot and humid as we then set of by foot to explore and experience life in this historic city. The brightly decorated rickshaws with their loud blasting music are a big attraction. After a few hours and as we were soaking wet with perspiration we decided to make our way back to the wharf to catch the big yellow tender back to the ship.

Even back on the decks of the ship it was very hot so after lunch I adjourned to the OB where I rigged up the phone in the window and was able to use wifi to viber friends back home. Well I still had heaps of data left on my Malaysian sim card.

I didn’t get a chance to have a nanna nap before Happy Hour.

We had a great dinner and the usual laughs with the waiters. We have arranged to go upstairs in the dining room for the next segment of the cruise as most of our waiters will be working up there for the next segment also.

I only had a quick night cap at the OB before calling it a night just before 11.00 pm.


Monday 4 January 2015

I was up early to get the travel news email out with the photos before going to the dining room for brekkie.

By mid-morning we were off the ship and going through the immigration procedures for Singapore. 




























We then took a cab up to Faber Peak to catch the cable car to Sentosa Island to see the attractions. What a fantastic way of taking in the city and harbour views and we went right over the Ms Volendam as we passed over the harbour.

When we arrived over on the island we took another cable car from one end of the island to the other. The little beach cafƩ looked great from the air so we went walked down to Siloso beach and had a Tiger beer.

OMG Singapore is so expensive compared with Malaysia as we had to pay $30 Singapore dollars for 2 beers. The Singapore dollar and the Aussie dollar are about the same value. In Malaysia we were only paying about the equivalent to $5 Aussie for the same beer.

When we came back we got off at the Harbour Station and then walked back to the Cruise Terminal.

I had a late lunch and at that time the heavens opened up and produced a tropical downpour which cooled things down. We were so lucky to get back to the ship just before the rain.
Happy hour was the usual fun time and the ship is running out of Coke Zero, some beers and Bundy Rum so the boys a hoping the new supplies will be loaded tomorrow. There is still heaps of Vegemite so that is one issue I don’t have to worry about.
Dinner was excellent and I really enjoyed the cream of mushroom soup.
Denis and went down to the OB for a night cap and we had to say goodbye to friends we had made who will be leaving tomorrow.
I called it an early night at 10.30 pm.


Tuesday 5 January 2016

We awoke to a fine and sunny Singapore morning and it was a little cooler than Monday before the rain. We did brekkie in the Lido and lots of the folk that were departing were all saying their goodbyes.












At 11am we met up to go out to the nearby shopping malls mainly to have some lunch. We went to the Crystal Jade Dining In situated on the Harbour front for Dim Sum. What a great meal and a perfect location to watch the passing crowds and water front activities.

When we got back to the ship we were invited up to the Crows Nest for the welcome aboard for the new passengers. You may remember we were not very happy by the unfriendly service we received when we joined the ship 2 weeks ago. Well the welcome was a 100% improvement and we were met by Twinkle the Beverage Manager taken the back way and given prime positions at the bar.

Since our last visit there had been some staff changes and our friend Jervy has been moved up to the Crows Nest as the head barman. I am pleased to say it was like going home to my Crows Nest and sitting in my Papaku chair. It was a very enjoyable experience and many thanks to the Beverage management team for fixing the situation so diplomatically.

Because today is the start of another segment and the ship has another 800 new folk on board we had to have the mandatory life boat drill before we could leave Singapore. 
There is no Happy Hour today however we had a drink in the OB.


Tonight we went to the Pinnacle Grill for an excellent meal and extremely good service.


After dinner I retired to my cabin about 10.30pm.


Wednesday 6 January 2015

Today is a sea day as we sail towards Indonesia. The seas are very calm and we are rewarded with clear blue skies and mild temp of 28C.

The dining room was very busy for brekkie, however we had a beaut window table aft looking out over the blue ocean.

I got all the laundry ready to send in and then went up to the Lido aft to catch a little sun and fresh air. With the perfect weather all the Dutch Germans and Poms were getting their winter tans. One thing about the Europeans is they are not body conscious and there were all shapes and sizes.

I met up with Denis and Colleen for lunch on the Lido and Denis suggested Guinness pie and I enjoyed his suggestion. I washed it down with a Bloody Mary with the complements of Niek the Corporate beverage Manager.

I think it was from all the sunshine combined with the beaut meal I was really ready for the nanna nap and ended up sleeping for over 2 hours.

The phone woke me and it was Denis letting me know I was late for Happy Hour. So a very quick freshen up I arrived at the OB 15 minutes late.

All the new folk crowded into the bar and lounge and the boys were busy and happy as there were no ice water brigade and the till was working overtime. We learnt the sad news that our friend Gerry’s father had passed away and he would be flying home tomorrow and would be on leave for 2 weeks.

We have now graduated to fixed seating on level 5 of the dining room so we have to break in new waiters. The meal was excellent and I enjoyed the new surroundings.

Denis and I went up to the Crows Nest for our night cap. It was great to be back in the Crows Nest.

I called it a night at 10.30 pm but as we had to turn the clock back an hour it was like going to bed at 9.30 pm.



Thursday 7 January 1016

The ship arrived early at Tanjung Proik the Port of Jakarta at 7 am. The weather was fine, sunny and warm and not too smoggy.

We had brekkie up at the Lido and planned our day. The plan was to go to the Artha Gading Mall in Jakarta on the free shuttle. We met at 8.30 am and were through security checks as well as having a dog sniff us out for drugs in no time and were on the shuttle.












The trip into the Mall only took about 20 minutes as the traffic was not too bad. On a bad traffic day the trip can take over an hour. As we arrived at 9am we had to sit around until 9.45 to 10 am for most of the shops to open.

I went to a phone shop to buy a Indonesian sim card which should have been a simple task. OMG in this non air conditioned small store with a guy that could speak less English than I can speak Indonesian and after he ruined 2 sim cards trying to install them I knew this was not doing to work. 

By now there were another 5 folk from the ship watching what was going on and trying to translate. After about 30 minutes the little shop was getting very hot and everyone was getting impatient I realised he was never going to get the sim card to work so I told him to forget it and I took sim card out and packed up the phone and to his surprise left the shop. I think he was yelling at me to pay for the sim cards he had mucked up. When I got outside I noted all the other folk were also leaving the shop without wasting any more time there.

I now couldn’t find Denis or Colleen in the large Mall so I waited at the entrance for a while and then decided to get the shuttle back to the ship.

I was just having a cooling off drink at the Seaview Bar when Rovil one of the bar staff asked me how I went with getting the sim card. After I told him my sad story he told me he was leaving now and would get one for me while he was out as he was getting a few for the crew and knew the best place to go.

I caught up with Denis and Colleen and had lunch with then as they got the next shuttle to mine back. I had a well earnt nanna nap before going up to Happy Hour.

During Happy Hour Rovil installed my new sim card for me and all I have to do is top it up tomorrow at a 7 Eleven store when we go into town.

Dinner was a bit of a mess up as they were short of waiters and we were in the dining room for just on 2 hours. I even suggested to Johnathan one of the Dutch European supervisors to help the overworked boys instead of walking around like lord muck. 

He told me that would not be appropriate for an officer like him. OMG, Presty and Mr K why is this clown not like you guys and most of the other supervisors I have met over the years that think nothing of helping out when required.

 It was just after 10pm by the time we got away and Denis and Colleen went to the show so I called in to the OB for a night cap and was in bed by 11pm.



Friday 8 January 2016

We arrived at Semarang at 9 am and it was great to watch the docking procedures as we were having our brekkie in the dining room. The ship had to do a heap of reversing to get us to the dock.

We met up at 10am to catch the shuttle bus into Simpang Lima Square near the Robinson Mall. I went to the phone card office to get a top up of data for my sim card. I had to take a ticket and I was in the shop for the total of an hour while Denis and Coleen went shopping. They decided to go back to the ship before I was called to the counter

When I came out I heard my Papaku name being called out and was pleased to find Robil and Mike from the bar team so I took them to lunch at a Chinese place in the food court. Edsel came along while we were eating and also wanted to top up his sim card so we took him down to the phone shop and they were served within 10 minutes.














When we got back to the meeting place for the shuttle we found out we had just missed it and would have to wait for 40 minutes on the hot humid footpath with no shade. Edsel was a bit worried about getting back to get ready for his shift so I got a cab for 15 Yankee bucks back to the ship. We arrived the same time as the bus we had just missed.

The new sim card worked very well even from my cabin so I was able to tether the phone to my laptop and have my own Wi-Fi and even use Viber to talk to my brother to check on things back home.

Happy hour was the usual fun time and the new folk have settled in well and seem to like the happy hours much more than the previous segment.
I got the breakdown of the mariners which are:- 5 Star..20,  4 Star..102,  3Star…280  and the rest are one or two star.

The Guests are from 49 nationalities and the breakdowns of the main nations are:-
Yanks 390, Dutch 206, Canada 161, Poms 147, Aussies 98, and the other nations with smaller numbers help make up the total of 1292 guests on board.

Well dinner tonight was a complete change from last night and with an additional friendly waiter assigned to our area the service was excellent and the meal most enjoyable. Even Johnathan tried to be pleasant and smile. Many thanks to the Culinary Management team that fixed the slow service problem we had last night. 

After dinner Colleen Denis and I went up to the Crows Nest for a night cap and had a fun time up there with Jervy the barman. Even Twinkle called in to have a chat with us for a while.

It was about 11.30 by the time I made it to bed and as tomorrow is a sea day I will be able to sleep in.


Saturday 9 January 2016

What a beautiful calm sunny day at sea we woke to as we cruise towards Probolinggo. We went up to the Lido for a light brekkie as we were invited to the special Rijsttafel (Indonesian lunch) to be held at 11.30 am.

After brekkie I filled in time by sending emails, downloading and sorting photos. I had a meeting with Twinkle in her office as she wanted to see photos of some of the BBQs I have held at my home for crew of the Volendam and Amsterdam in previous years.

I put on one of my batik shirts for the lunch and was surprised how many complementary comments I received from ladies and Indonesian crew.  As many of you have seen photos of this shirt on me in photos of past cruises as I have had it for 4 years and take it on most cruises. The folk were surprised to hear I bought it on the wharf in Bali for only $5 and it has lasted the test over all this time and survived the Holland America laundries on the ships and still looks a good as the day I purchased it.

Well what a treat we were given with the lunch as the upper dining room was decorated for the occasion and the background music was Balinese. I have attached a photo of the menu. We congratulated the officers and crew for the great job they had done with the excellent service and culinary delights they produced. All the crew and Indonesian officers were all wearing Batik shirts to add to the ambiance.

Yes you guessed correctly after this beaut feed and a few reds Papaku was off to have a nana nap in order to be ready for Happy Hour.

Happy Hour was a very busy time and folk were taking advantage of the sea day to call in to enjoy a drink.
Dinner was a formal night and the menu provided the usual favourites and I enjoyed the rack of lamb. After dinner we went to the OB for a night cap before calling it a night about 11pm.


Sunday 10 January 2016

We had a leisurely brekkie up in the Lido as today was a tender transfer to the port of Probolinggo so we agreed to do the transfer at 10 am.

The 20 minute tender ride was very smooth and the gentle breeze kept the temperature comfortable on what turned out to be a very hot and humid day. The shuttle bus took us from the port to the very basic shopping centre. Boy oh boy it was hot and the shops were not air conditioned so after buying some polo shirts (yes I know!) we had a walk around and decided to go back to the shuttle and escape the heat.

We were soaking wet with perspiration when we got back to the ship so had to change before going up to the Lido for a pizza lunch and 3 large glasses of lemonade to restore the fluid balance to the system

I had a most welcome nanna nap before going up to the OB for happy hour. After happy hour I took advantage of still being in phone range to do banking and other work on the computer before going up to dinner.

The lamb chops were to die for, a most enjoyable meal.

We went up to see Jervy in the Crows Nest for our night cap. I called into the OB on the way down to the cabin and had a few while I chatted with Edsel the barman. A very nice older Yankee lady came in and we had a great chat about Turkey and Greece.

I didn’t get to bed until just before midnight.


Monday 11 January 2016

Our late brekkie in the dining room was very entertaining as many of the Balinese waiters were going home for a visit to their families while we were in port. There was so much excitement as some would be meeting their babies that were born while they were away.

Our arrival was delayed until 1 pm as we had to wait for the tide in order to dock. As Colleen was not feeling well only Denis and I went ashore where we met Komang our driver while were in Bali.

Komang drove us to Jimbaran Bay where we had lunch at the Aroma Seafood Restaurant which was right on the beachfront. The location of this popular establishment is fantastic offering million dollar views of the beach and the bay.

















Boy oh boy it was so still not a breeze at all so we felt the very hot and humid conditions as we were on a covered deck outside the building. The meal was excellent, I had the deep fried squid while Denis and Komang had Balinese barbecued whole fish.

After lunch we went for a tour of Kuta and went past the Memorial. The streets were so crowded with motor bikes cars and pedestrians that it took us 20 minutes to drive 2 blocks.









We got back to the ship just in time for happy hour and to share our stories with the other regulars and the boys at the bar.

After dinner we went to the OB for a night cap and I called it an early night just on 10.30pm.


Tuesday 12 January 2016

I had to fill in the morning doing emails and Facebook as I was taking some of the bar staff out to lunch and as there were drills on we could not leave until 11.30 am.

Komang was waiting to take me and 5 of the boys to a Chinese restaurant about 20 minutes’ drive from the ship. What a popular place it was with the locals and the food was excellent. It is always a pleasure to see the boys enjoying a meal away from the ship.

As the boys had to be back on the ship by 2pm we only had time for a very quick drive around the local beach and it was back to the port. Today did not seem to be as hot as there was a slight breeze.

I had a short nanna nap before going up to the OB for Happy hour. It was a quiet time at the bar as most of the guests were still ashore so we had to provide our own entertainment.

Larry started playing his and singing after happy hour so we stayed and he sang a few Aussie songs as well as the old favourites so we stayed on. It was a rush to make it to dinner.

I had a night cap in the OB after dinner and was in bed by 11.30pm



Wednesday 13 January 2016

We had a nice hot brekkie in the dining room and enjoyed the views of Lombok as we arrived.
Today is a tender transfer so we decided to wait for the rush to die down before going ashore. Boy oh boy it was another hot and humid day. The 15 minute ride over was very calm on glassy smooth waters but with no breeze it was very hot in the tender.







When we got off the sun was just zapping the energy out of us and the perspiration was just pouring out of every pore of the body. Wed decided to just have a look around the small market stalls by the jetty. I came over without sunglasses so first purchase was a $5 pair of cheap sunglasses. A few stalls later I found a beaut Batik shirt and I got a bargain and only paid $5 for it.( Don’t worry folks so far on this cruise I have only bought 1 shirt and 2 polo shirts.)

After 30 minutes we were sopping wet, exhausted and struggled back to the tender to go back to the ship. Thank goodness there were not many on board and we sat near the door so we got a nice cool breeze that cooled down our very wet clothes.

Back on the ship a change of clothes was required and then up to the Lido for many huge glasses of water to replenish the fluid loss.







I had a nice white wine with pizza for lunch before going to have a well earnt nanna nap.

Happy hour was very busy and noisy. The LGBT guys decide to sit behind us at the bar and they were having a great time recovering from the heat with their high pitched voices and giggles.

Dinner was Gala which is a stupid word for Formal (I guess some idiot in Seattle dreamed it up.) Anyway I decided to wear my new Batik shirt (National Costume) as I had no intention of wearing a jacket.

The roast duck was to die for and a most enjoyable meal.
We called into the OB for only one night cap as I wanted an early night. I was in bed by 10.30pm.


Thursday 14 January 2016

We had brekkie in the Lido and the views across to Komodo Island were postcard perfect. What a great place to park the ship.

As I have been to see the dragons before I decided to have a rest day on board. I thought I would start on the packing but decided it was too hard, stressful and certainly not relaxing.













I went up to the Seaview bar late morning and enjoyed the warm weather before going in to lunch. The news broke about the Jakarta bombings which put shockwaves through the Indonesian crew and especially the guys from Jakarta.

I had the Guinness pie for lunch before going down to have a nanna nap.




Happy hour was another lively session with many tales being told about the dragons. Most of the folk that went over to the island seemed to enjoy the experience.


Dinner was a fun meal and I enjoyed the chilled strawberry soup and the roast chicken.

We went to the OB for a night cap and our peace was disturbed by the noisy mob on the pub crawl. They were having a great time and like grasshoppers they hopped off to the next bar on their list after they had some blue drink.

After a very restful day I called it a night about 11 pm.


Friday 15 January 2016

A beautiful calm sea day as we head towards Surabaya. Well that’s what we thought until during brekkie the Captain came on the PA and announced Seattle had decided it was too great a risk to take the ship there because of Surabaya’s close proximity to Jakarta after yesterday’s terrorist attack.

It looks like at this stage we will be having an extra in Singapore before the end of the cruise. As you know I always the Captains and the Company’s decision to skip ports for safety reasons.

Brekkie was a long drawn out chatty meal and I felt sorry for the crew who would now be searing their families in Surabaya.

When I got down to the cabin I started the packing.

Mid-morning we had the Mariner’s reception and then Brunch. I got hauled up to have a photo with the Captain and the Hotel Manager. This is the first time in the nearly 4 weeks on board I have met these unsociable officers. At least these tall guys squatted down for the photo as I only came up to their chests.

I then was escorted down to the dining room to be seated at the Captains table for the lunch. Big deal we were the last table to be served because we were waiting for him to arrive. Guess what he didn’t show and to think I could have sat with Colleen and Denis and had more fun. The folk at the table were very much up themselves about their cruises.

 Only the nice old lady beside me spoke to me.

Then it was down to bed for a nanna nap before going to Happy Hour.

Dinner was excellent with cold mango soup, Asian spare ribs and finished up with sticky date pudding .. yummy.

Twinkle joined me for a chat while I was having my night cap.

I called in to the show room to see a little of Annie Frances singing. I have seen her before on other ships.

It was about 11.30 pm by the time I got to bed.


Saturday 16 January 2016

Another calm very hot and humid sea day greeted us as we went up to the Lido for brekkie.

Today for brekkie I decided to make an egg toasted sandwich using a hardboiled egg. After adding the tomato sauce and salt it was perfect.






I did some more packing after brekkie and caught up with Facebook and emails before going up to the Seaview bar. OMG it was so hot even the bar stools were too hot to sit on. I didn’t even have a drink and left for the not so hot Lido bar. I drank 2 big glasses of water before I could face a G&T. It was so uncomfortable out in the heat I adjourned into the air conditioned Lido dining room.

After the usual nanna nap it was up to the Happy hour. Well great excitement as the women’s quilters group had got in early and taken over the area normally used by the LGBT so the LGBT had to find an area down the back of the lounge. OMG these girls after one or two wines were louder and gigglier than the gay guys.

We went up to the Crows Nest after dinner but as karaoke was on we took our drinks to the OB to enjoy some peace and quiet as we had our night cap.

I was in bed by 11 pm.


Sunday 17 January 2016

Today was another very calm and hot sea day however I never went outside all day so I didn’t experience the heat. After brekkie I got the final washing off to the laundry in order to have it back in time to pack tomorrow.







Mid-morning I went to the 5 Star cooking class which was heaps of fun. Our menu was Rice paper Prawn rolls, Wasabi and soy crusted beef tenderloin.  Chef Michael had to rescue my rice paper roll as it had a big air bubble in it. After the class we then went over to the Pinnacle Grill to sample the meal but cooked by Chef Michael.

I had a short nanna nap before Happy hour in the OB. It is so strange that on cruises folk seem to find the bars with happy hours on the last days of the cruise. Boy oh boy the place was crowded and noisy.

I then called in to the Mix bar to listen to Larry the guitar player and singer for a few songs before going to get ready for dinner.

Tonight was another ‘Gala’ dress night but as we were going to the Canaletto Denis and I wore jackets but no ties. As usual the Canaletto meal was excellent and we had a fun time there with the staff.




We had a lively time with our night caps as we were joined by our Pommie friends Paul and Rose.





 I think it was midnight by the time I got to bed.

Monday 18 January 2016

When I awoke we were already at the Marina Bay Cruise ship terminal in Singapore. I met up with Denis and Colleen for a late brekkie.

There was no rush to get off the ship as there were not enough Immigration officers scheduled on so there were long delays in getting off the ship. We decided to leave it until about 11.30 to disembark which worked out perfect as the Immigration process was now working very efficiently.

In no time at all after leaving the ship we were on the shuttle bus into the nearby shopping mall to find somewhere nice to eat lunch.








Would you believe we found a Down under Steak and Grill so we went in to try it out. I had the fried Kookaburra wings thank God they were Chicken wings as I would have been shot at dawn if I had eaten a protected native bird like the Kookaburra.

After a bit of a walk around the Mall we caught the shuttle back to the ship.
As my packing was well under control I had a short nanna nap and then up for our last happy hour.

Because we were in Port it was a bit quiet  for Happy hour and just before 5pm the LGBT mob arrived and that really livened things up for a while.

We did our last dinner in the dining room and it was sad to say goodbye to our waiters for their excellent service.

Would you believe Johnathan the arrogant officer called by to wish us well and apologise for the misunderstanding earlier in the cruise. I reminded him there was no misunderstanding as he could have like other officers got in and helped clear the backlog. This was the first time he came near our table since the incident as I guess he just wanted to be friendly so we would give him a good comment in the survey. From my survey even the bean counters in Seattle will get the message from me he is a wasted space and adds no value to the team.

We called into the OB for our final night cap and all those sad good byes. What a great team of guys were working in the OB

I was in bed by 11 pm and my luggage out in the hallway.


Tuesday 19 January 2015

I awoke early and was up in the Lido to join Colleen and Denis for brekkie at 7am, then it was just a matter of cleaning teeth etc. and leaving the ship.
The customs and Immigration process went very well and in no time I was with the group doing the tour on the way to the airport.

Boy oh boy it was a very hot and humid day and as I had done this tour 2 years ago when we got to the orchid gardens I decided I would just wait at the entrance and sit in the shade. Gordon and Dan from the ship joined me as they are from Alaska and the heat was killing them.







After that stop we stayed in the air conditioned coach at all the stops on the rest of the tour.
We arrived at the airport at 2 pm and I was lucky to get an early check in for Qantas. My flight did not board until 8.50 pm so I had heaps of time to kill.

By the time I got through security and Immigration it was 2.30pm so I was able to go direct to the Qantas Club as it opens at 2.30pm.

I have mentioned many times that the Qantas Club Singapore is the best run and managed Qantas Club I have ever visited.

Just as I was about to sit down at a table I heard someone calling in an excited voice ‘Papako Papako’, so I looked around to find my friend Ali the MaĆ®tre de coming over to great me. That’s when the VIP service began.


Ali prepared me a very nice lunch and some G&T’s to wash it down. With all this attention it was not hard to fill in the time.

I was given priority boarding for the flight. I had now noticed I had gained an annoying dry cough so I drugged myself up for the flight.

Mr Qantas you served me dry chicken with pasta for the evening meal which was not eatable so I tried the bread roll. Well it was frozen with a large dob of garlic butter inside which was also uneatable. No wonder Emirates is getting more of your former passengers.

I got in a bit of sleep before they served a dry old pastry for brekkie. Thank God I was able to get brekkie in the Qantas Club between flights.


Wednesday 20 January 2016

After freshening up at the Qantas Club it was time to board my flight to Cairns. I was given priority boarding and was very pleased with the friendly and helpful attitude of the crew. This crew was brilliant and were great ambassadors for the airline. Pity they were not on the International flight last night.









I arrived in Cairns just on midday and was net by my good friend Graham who drove me home via the shopping centre. We called into the food court and enjoyed some Spanish Mackerel for lunch.