PHOTOS
Great Britain
1996
Great Britain
and Finland
1998
TRAVELOGUE
HOME PAGE
RREINI.ORG
HOME PAGE
|
|
No-travel-ogue:
Hawaii and Pacific cruise, Spring 2020
By Roger W.
Reini
This would have been the story of my cruise to Hawaii, Bora
Bora, Tahiti and other French Polynesian islands in March and
April 2020. However, the Covid-19 pandemic drove me to cancel
the cruise a few days before the cruise was canceled outright,
so this is the story of what coulda/woulda/shoulda been..
Prologue
I had been planning this cruise since January 2019, when I put
down the deposit. I also bought the top-line cruise insurance
plan, which allowed for cancellations for any reason up to 72
hours before departure. Fast forward to February 2020, a month
before sailing, when I started hearing about cruise ships being
in quarantine and other cruise ships being turned away from
ports, all due to the Covid-19 disease outbreak. By March, it
had become a pandemic, and family members were urging me to
cancel the trip. I did just that, some 12 days before I was due
to set sail. That was 4 days before Holland America canceled the
cruise completely as part of a cruise industry shutdown. I would
have received more of a refund and more Future Cruise Credit had
I waited, but I did gain some peace of mind.
So now this is the story of a trip that wasn’t. This is what I
would have been doing on the cruise and on getting to the
cruise.
Top
Tuesday March 17
Today, I would have finished most of my packing and (hopefully)
gotten a good night’s sleep prior to departure tomorrow. Most of
my preparations were done.
Top
Wednesday March 18
I would have woken up very early in the morning to do
last-minute packing and perhaps have a little breakfast before
my cousin arrived at 5:30 AM to drive me to the train station. I
usually drive to the station myself, but with this trip being so
long (over a month), I didn’t want to park my car that long
there. I would likely have arrived between 6 and 6:30, in plenty
of time to catch the 6:51 train to Chicago. I would have sat in
business class today, with prime access to the Cafe Car.
The train would have rolled through Ann Arbor, Jackson, Battle
Creek, Kalamazoo and possibly one or two other towns before
arriving at Chicago’s Union Station at 10:32 in the morning,
assuming no delays en route. For Amtrak, that’s a very big and
almost unwarranted assumption, as it is regularly subjected to
delays from freight trains. I would have had a 4-hour layover.
Some of that time would have been spent in the Metropolitan
Lounge, the waiting area for first-class passengers (sleeper car
occupants). Would I have left the station to see some of
downtown? I doubt it, for the weather would be chilly.
Some time after 2, I would have heard the call to board the
Southwest Chief to Los Angeles. For parts of the next 3 days,
roomette 6 in sleeper 0330 would have been my home. The train
would have left at 2:50 in the afternoon heading to the
southwest. I would have made a dining car reservation for
dinner, and I’d have settled into a routine of reading, checking
e-mail and web surfing, looking at the scenery, and perhaps
taking some pictures. What would I have had for dinner? I don’t
know, but I’m sure it would have been good.
Top
Thursday March 19
The train would have gone through Kansas City overnight and
Dodge City early in the morning. The terrain would have changed
from the flat Midwest to rolling hills. Later, mountains would
be visible in the distance. There would have been a lengthy stop
in La Junta, Colorado where passengers could get off, walk
around, and stretch. I’ve done that when I’d ridden the
Southwest Chief previously. They could also smoke, if they
wished (I never have wished). Then the train would have
continued onward to New Mexico with another lengthy stop in
Albuquerque. There, Native Americans would sell jewelry and
artworks on the platform. After dark, the train would continued
on its way through New Mexico and Arizona, with stops including
Flagstaff and Needles.
I don’t think I would have had the world’s greatest sleep
overnight. That was true on most of my previous sleeper trips. I
would have gotten some sleep, to be sure, but there would have
been interruptions.
I would have had three good meals in the dining car. I’m not
sure what they would have been, but I know they would have been
good. Perhaps I would have had seafood or pasta for dinner. I
would have done more reading, more picture taking, and more
e-mail checking (when phone signals permitted).
Top
Friday March 20
The train would be entering the greater Los Angeles
area in the morning. If there had been no delays en route, the
train would have arrived at LA’s Union Station at 8 AM. I would
have had a layover of an hour and a half before boarding the
9:55 AM Pacific Surfliner to San Diego, which should have
arrived at 12:50 PM. This would have been a new route for me, as
I’ve never been to San Diego by train. How close would the train
have gone to the ocean? In some places, very close, I imagine.
I’m sure I would have enjoyed the trip.
Again, assuming no delays, the train would have pulled into
downtown San Diego at 12:50 PM. The train station was a classic
Santa Fe terminal with character, built well before Amtrak took
it over (the same can be said of LA’s Union Station). Upon
arrival, I would have claimed my luggage and walked one block or
so to the Wyndham San Diego Bayside, where I would stay
overnight. It would have been well before standard check-in
time; perhaps I would have had the hotel hold the luggage for me
while I went around the neighborhood. Or maybe I would have
gotten lucky and been able to check in early, which has happened
to me on a few trips.
At some point, I would have walked around the immediate
neighborhood. The cruise terminal was close by; that was one
reason I chose this hotel. The USS Midway Museum was also close
by, but I’d been there before and didn’t know if I’d want to go
again, not today at least. Other parks and sights were nearby, I
knew. I hope that the weather would have been good. It certainly
would have been warmer than Michigan!
Where would I have had supper? I don’t know. There was a Ruth’s
Chris Steak House nearby, but that is a very pricy
establishment. It has good food, as I could testify from the
time I visited their location in Troy, MI. But I didn’t pay for
my meal then; an automotive supplier did (this was while I was
still working), and while I could have afforded to pay for it
tonight, I wouldn’t have wanted to. Perhaps I’d have eaten in
the hotel restaurant.
Top
Saturday March 21
I’m sure I would have had breakfast in the hotel. I imagine
there would have been a breakfast buffet, which would have been
somewhat pricy, the way all downtown hotels tend to be. It would
have been good, I’m sure. Then I would have gone back to my room
for a while, perhaps packing what I had unpacked last night,
perhaps moving things from one suitcase to the other.
I would have been sailing on the Oosterdam, one of Holland
America’s “dam” ships (all of their ships end in “-dam”). I’d
sailed on her once before, back in 2015 in Alaska with my aunt,
uncle and cousin. I’d heard the ship had received an extensive
refit since then. How different would it have been? I wouldn’t
know unless I sail her in the future, so any descriptions of the
ship will be based of my memories of previous cruises.
The Oosterdam should have arrived at the dock and would now be
discharging its passengers from its just-concluded cruise.
Perhaps another ship would have been there as well. I imagine I
would have walked along the shore taking pictures of the ship at
dock. Then I would have gone to my hotel room to do a final
cleanup and check out. There would likely be a gap between the
time I had to check out of the hotel and the time I could board
the ship; I’d spend most of that in the hotel lobby. And then
I’d walk over to the cruise terminal.
Since the cruise terminal was more or less across the street
from the hotel, I figured I should be able to walk there, find
the proper place to check my luggage, enter the terminal, and
start the boarding process. There would be an airport-style
security line, of course. Then there would be another line or
lines for checking in, depending on whether or not you’d sailed
with HAL before. I’d have to fill out the health questionnaire
and possibly a customs declaration card for the Polynesian
islands, and then I’d check in. I’d receive my welcome packet
and my ship ID card, make my way to the gangplank, get logged in
via my card, and then I’d be on board my home for the next 28 or
29 days.
First, I’d want to find my cabin: room 4091, which was on the
Upper Promenade deck, starboard side, mid-ship, just aft of the
mid-ship elevators. I would have a view of the ocean, albeit a
partially obstructed one. Most of the view would be taken up by
one of the lifeboats, but I would be able to see between the bow
of the lifeboat and one of the elevator shafts. Based on my
previous experience, the bed would have been pointed 90 degrees
from the main axis of the ship. That means that when the ship
pitched up and down with the waves, I would perceive it in bed
as a side-to-side roll, and when the ship rolled with the waves,
I’d perceive it as the bed pitching up and down. I’d be one deck
above the Promenade deck (deck 3), so access to the outside was
not far away. The bag checked at the dock would arrive later on,
but I could unpack the bag I had with me now and put its
contents away. Perhaps I’d meet my room steward, or perhaps I’d
meet him or her later (all the ones I’d had to date had been
men).
With one bag unpacked, I’d start thinking about lunch. Most of
the food options were on deck 9, including the Lido Market
buffet, the Lido Deck taco bar, and the burger (Dive In) and
pizza (New York) options. I’m not sure if those last two would
have been open yet. The buffet would likely have been crowded
and would get more crowded as more passengers boarded.
At some point before departure, there would have been the
mandatory evacuation and lifeboat drill. When the time came, we
would hear the three warning signals, and on the third, we’d go
down to the Promenade deck and gather at our muster stations as
indicated on our ship ID’s. I suspect my muster station would be
right below my cabin, right below the lifeboat I’d be seeing
outside my window for the next month. I’d show my ID and have it
scanned to confirm my participation, and then we’d wait for
messages from the captain, demonstrations of how to use the
lifejackets in our rooms, etc., and then be dismissed. This was
not a drill to be missed! Failure to check in might lead to
being thrown off the ship! No refund for you!
Whenever the second bag was delivered, I’d unpack that and get
everything put away. The suitcases themselves would go into the
closets because there wouldn’t be much room for them elsewhere
in the cabin. I’d set up a power strip to reach the plug that
would be across the cabin from the bed; there, I could keep my
devices close to me in bed while still keeping them charged.
They’d be my clocks in the room.
Sailing time was 6 PM. I’d try to find a spot, most likely on
deck 10, the Observation deck, to watch our departure. There
would be great views of downtown San Diego as the ship pulled
out, sailed around the north end of Coronado Island (really a
peninsula), passed the Cabrillo Monument (I’d visited it in
2010) and then headed out into the Pacific. Hawaii, here we
come!
I’ve usually had the second seating in the Main Dining Room on
my previous voyages, so I would probably arranged for that here.
What table size would I be given? On previous cruises, i’ve been
at tables for 8, but on my last cruise (to Atlantic Canada), I
had a table all to myself. Let’s say I would have been seated
with other parties, none of whom I would know. On another night,
I’ll talk about the menu options.
What would I do after dinner? I’m not much of a person for
nightlife. On previous cruises, I’ve taken in the show in the
show on the MainStage or in one of the lounges. But tonight,
let’s assume that I was feeling tired and wanted to rest, so I’d
return to my cabin, read for a while, perhaps download pictures
and start identifying them, or even type up the memories of the
day for use in writing the travelogue later on. When I felt too
sleepy, then I knew it was time for bed. I’d make sure I had a
clear path to the restroom in case I had to get up in the middle
of the night, and then it would be lights out.
Top
Sunday March 22
Today would have been a sea day, the first of five consecutive
days at sea. I’ve never been on a cruise with so many sea days
in a row. There would have been plenty of onboard activities, I
know.
There wouldn’t have been early crowds in the Lido Market for
breakfast, as there was no pressure from early port calls and
shore excursions. It can be hard to find a seat under those
conditions, but today, I should have been able to find a table.
What would I have gotten? Some cereal, either Special K or
All-Bran Flakes; probably some salmon and some cheeses; some
bread or donuts; and some orange juice and V8. I’d also want to
have something to indicate that if/when I left the table to get
more food, the staff should NOT clear my table. That’s happened
to me several times in the past, and I was not happy about it.
There would have been hand sanitizer dispensers at the entrances
to the Lido Market and all of the other restaurants. This was
done primarily to protect against the norovirus, which can cause
gastrointestinal problems. It was standard practice well before
the onset of Covid-19 and, no doubt, would continue to be in the
future.
How do you keep track of what day it is onboard the ship? You’re
not working, you’re not watching your normal TV programs, so how
do you know? There are many ways, of course, such as your watch
(possibly) or your phone or tablet. But one clever way is to
look at the carpet in the elevators. Holland America changes the
carpet in its elevators every night as reminder to everyone of
what day it is. I don’t know if any other cruise lines do this.
I would have bought an Internet access package so that I could
stay in touch with friends and family via e-mail and social
media, as well as to keep up with the latest news. There would
have been mini-newspapers printed on board, but I’d use my iPad
or my laptop so I could use larger type as needed. It wouldn’t
have been cheap; the price would have been close to $10 a day,
on the order of what luxury hotels charge for premium access.
Perhaps I would have taken a walk on the Promenade deck. It was
one-third of a mile for a complete loop. I might have gone up to
the Observation Decks on decks 10 and 11 — not that there would
have been much to see except clouds and water. I’m sure I would
have visited the Explorations Central Cafe and Crow’s Nest, also
on deck 10, to get a bottle of Vitamin Water Zero and maybe a
chocolate chip cookie. In the Crow’s Nest, a trivia contest
might have been taking place. I don’t know if I would have
participated (maybe in my head).
Other shipboard activities will have to wait for another day.
Top
Monday March 23
Another day at sea today - what to do? Some of the same things I
did on the first sea day, for sure. I didn’t mention it before,
but I also would have read some e-books on my iPad or on my
Kindle device.
Tonight I would have been enjoying the first of three specialty
dining experiences onboard. The Oosterdam has two specialty
restaurants onboard: Canaletto and Pinnacle Grill, with a third
specialty restaurant, Rudi’s Sel de Mer, taking over Pinnacle
Grill for an evening. I had booked all three of them, starting
tonight with Canaletto. As the name suggests, it specializes in
Italian food. I’d been to Canaletto on a prior cruise; here’s
what I wrote then: “Olive Garden, it was not! I ordered two
courses of appetizers, an antipasto and a risotto, and for the
main course, I chose spaghetti in a butter sauce with shrimp and
clams in the shell. Everything was good. For dessert, I had the
selection of Italian cheeses. It was cheese and crackers along
with strawberries and some small nut clusters. This was not
something I would traditionally associate with dessert, but as a
change of pace, it was also good.” I will write about
Canaletto’s sample menu in the April 14 installment.
Perhaps I would have caught a show in the MainStage Lounge.
Maybe it would have been a comedian or a musical performance. On
one or more evenings, there would have been a performance of
Postmodern Jukebox, which takes fairly recent songs and plays
then in radically different arrangements from the past. I had
seen a performance on my cruise to Atlantic Canada, and I wasn’t
all that impressed at the time. However, after seeing some of
their videos on Facebook, the concept has grown on me, and I
think I would be more appreciative today.
Top
Tuesday March 24
Today would have been the third of five at-sea days in a row.
There were shops on deck 3. They would never be open while in
port, but in international waters, they’d be open. Some of the
stock they carried were what you’d find in duty-free shops:
alcohol, tobacco, and perfume. There were jewelry shops as well,
with scads of watches for sale. There would be regular watch
sales throughout the cruise. There would be at least one
clothing shop, which would also be the shop for sundries,
Holland America souvenirs, etc. I bought a swimsuit onboard
once; never got to use it, though, for some reason. I remember
getting a Nautica shirt on one cruise, as well. I’ve worn that
many times and would have taken it on this cruise. There would
also be an art gallery onboard with regular art auctions. I’ve
never attended one of those.
The spa would be a great attraction onboard, but I’ve never used
it on any of my cruises. I was considering getting a shave and
possibly a haircut, but it would have been a lot more than two
bits! More like 200 times that, if I recall the pricing
correctly. Still, I might have done it. It would have been my
first time being shaved by someone else; it would also have been
my first time being shaved with a blade. I’ve always used an
electric razor ever since I was old enough to shave; I might
have received my first electric razor as a Christmas present in
1978 — or was it a birthday present?
After yesterday’s dinner at Canaletto, I would have returned to
the Main Dining Room with my table mates. I imagine some of my
table mates would have a glass of wine, but I wouldn’t be (I
don’t drink). No, I’d have a can of Diet Coke to go along with
the water served at the table. Perhaps I’d have an appetizer
along with HAL’s signature French Onion Soup. Undoubtedly,
salmon would have been on the menu at some point during the
cruise, and I would have had some. Then I’d have one of the
crumbles (peach, blueberry, apple, etc.) for dessert.
Top
Wednesday March 25
Today would have been the fourth of five days at sea in a row.
Our first port of call would be two days away.
What would I have done for lunch today? Perhaps I would have
gone somewhere other than the Lido Market. By the Lido Pool,
there would have been a taco bar and the Dive In counter for
burgers, hot dogs and fries. Aft, near the Sea View Pool, would
have been New York Pizza. Unfortunately, pizza was only
available as a whole pie, not by the slice, and I’m not sure if
I’d want to order a whole pie. If it was small enough, maybe.
There would have been a number of musical performance venues on
board. One of them would be B. B. King’s Blues Club, sharing
space with America’s Test Kitchen. Named for the late great
blues guitarist, B. B. King’s would have showcased some great
blues and blues-rock performances, and I know I would have gone
there multiple times. I’d enjoyed it on previous cruises; I’m
certain I would enjoy it on this cruise, too. There was
Billboard Onboard, a piano bar featuring fifty years of pop
music. There was the Lincoln Center Stage, presenting programs
of chamber music most evenings and afternoon recitals during
days at sea like today. I would have attended some of those
performances; as I’ve gotten older, I’ve started developing more
of an appreciation for classical music.
There would have been a casino onboard, but as I’m not a
gambler, I wouldn’t have visited it. I probably wouldn’t have
visited America’s Test Kitchen, either
Top
Thursday March 26
Today would have been the fifth of five consecutive days at sea.
This would not have been the final at-sea day of the cruise; far
from it. But tomorrow would have been a day in port or mostly in
port.
There would have been opportunities for educational enrichment.
There would likely have been talks in the MainStage Lounge or
elsewhere about the culture of the places we’d be visiting. At
this stage of the cruise, they would have featured Hawaiian
culture. With Hilo on the Big Island being our port of call
tomorrow, there would have been talks about what to see and do
in Hilo, talks about where to shop, etc. Those would have been
aimed at those who weren’t going on a shore excursion. BBC Earth
Experiences would have been shown in the MainStage Lounge (David
Attenborough on the big screen!).
It you wanted to take classes in Windows-based technology, you
could do so at the Microsoft Studio. Would I have done so? I
don’t know, but I doubt it. I’m more of an Apple, Mac and iOS
person these days, but for a while, I was considering taking a
light 2-in-1 Windows laptop/tablet with me. abut I cancelled
that plan when I learned that the Windows Photos app does not
allow identification comments to be entered for uploaded
pictures. Neither does iOS’s Photos app — but macOS’s Photos app
does. I wanted to identify pictures I’d taken before I forgot
where and why I’d taken them, which is why I bought a MacBook
Air to use on the cruise.
Top
Friday March 27
Land ho! At last, the ship would have arrived in Hawaii and
docked at Hilo by 8 AM. Breakfast in the Lido Market would have
been very busy this morning because of everyone who had to leave
the ship early to catch shore excursions. I would have been part
of that crowd because my shore excursion today was scheduled to
leave at 8:30 AM.
Perhaps I would have requested room service for breakfast due to
the early shore expedition. I had done that before at least once
on a previous cruise. So let’s say I did. Then I would have made
my way to where the active gangway was, following the signs in
the corridors and the shipboard announcements, along with
hundreds of others. We’d get checked off of the ship, walk down
the gangway, and then we’d be on Hawaiian soil (well, concrete
at this point). And I would have achieved a travel milestone:
visiting all 50 states, not to mention the District of Columbia!
During heated political discussions, we might not want to
mention the District of Columbia, but I digress…
Somewhere nearby would be the gathering point for all of the
shore excursions, including the one I would be taking: the Land
of Frozen Fire. As the name suggests, it focused on the sights
associated with the Kilauea volcano, including the island’s
newest black sand beach. Our bus would take us to Hilo’s Rainbow
Falls and through downtown Hilo in addition to the volcanic
area. Perhaps some of the planned stops would have to be changed
because of volcanic activity. We’d want to be close, but not too
close. I remember the tragedy a few months back off the coast of
New Zealand, where cruise ship passengers on shore excursions
actually went into a volcano’s crater, only to get caught in an
eruption. Many were injured, many were killed.
The tour was scheduled to last 5 1/2 hours, which would put us
back at the dock at 2 PM. The ship would sail in 4 hours, at 6
PM. Would I go into town to see what was what? I’d be hungry and
would want lunch, either in town or back on board. And at some
point, I would have wanted to look for a true Hawaiian shirt or
two.
I’d strongly considered taking the Mauna Kea Summit Adventure
excursion, which would have gone to the top of the extinct
volcano. What a view it would have been, with clouds below! But
I didn’t because I was unsure how well I would handle going from
sea level up to 13,000 feet with no time to acclimate myself.
Yes, I’d been up to the top of Pike’s Peak before, and that was
1,000 feet higher. BUT — I was 12 years younger, and I’d already
been several days at, near or above 5,000 feet. And so I decided
to pass on that excursion and go on another one.
Eventually, I would have gone back on board, back to the cabin
to download all of the pictures I’d taken today with my DSLR and
with my iPhone. I could easily have taken hundreds of pictures
today, I imagine. And then when the ship set sail at 6, I’d
likely be taking a few more pictures as we got underway for Oahu
and Honolulu. I’m sure there would have been lots of stories
told at the dinner table tonight.
A question of time: from now until April 11 (perhaps longer),
the ship would be in the same time zone, some 6 hours behind
Eastern Daylight Time.
Top
SaturdayMarch 28
According to the itinerary, we would be in Honolulu for 16
hours, from 7 AM until 11 PM. There would be plenty of time to
be onshore, with many shore excursion possibilities. Maybe there
were too many; there were several things I would have liked to
have seen, but there wouldn’t be enough time to see them. Take
Pearl Harbor, for instance. Yes, that would have been a
wonderful and moving (in the case of the Arizona Memorial) thing
to see, but with so many other things to do, I decided to pass
on it this visit.
My two scheduled shore excursions were the Hop-On, Hop-Off
Trolley, which consisted of unlimited trolley rides to and from
various places in and around the city, and a Whale Watching
Lunch Cruise that departed at 11 AM. The vessel would have had
three decks for viewing the humpback whales as mothers and
children swam about. The top deck would have been the most
crowded, I’m sure, except if the weather turned bad. I’ve been
on a few whale-watching cruises in the past, but the whales
didn’t always oblige. It was nearing the end of the whales’
sojourn in Hawaii before they started migrating north towards
Alaska, so maybe the chances of seeing them would be lower, but
maybe we’d get lucky. And even if we didn’t see any whales, we
were certain to see dolphins accompany our boat, surfing our
wake.
The trolley (actually double-decker buses) consisted of five
lines going to landmarks and tourist attractions all over the
city. One line went out to Diamond Head Crater Lookout (a prime
photo opportunity) ; another went out to Pearl Harbor. They all
went to Waikiki. With so many destinations, I wouldn’t have been
able to visit them all, but I might have been able to see them
from afar.
On at least one night, and maybe more, surf and turf would have
been one of the menu options in the Main Dining Room. This
wasn’t just a steak and seafood combination; this was proper
surf and turf: filet mignon and lobster. It is very likely that
everyone at the table, unless they were vegetarians or had an
allergy to shellfish, would have ordered it. That happened on
one cruise of mine. For those who didn’t want it, pasta and
vegetarian options would have been available (maybe vegetarian
pasta!).
Top
Sunday March 29
Today would have been our third and final port of call in
Hawaii: Lahaina on the island of Maui. Readers from the Detroit
area or who spent time there in the 80’s will no doubt be
thinking of former WRIF DJ Arthur Penhallow promoting contests
with trips to Maui in his distinctive voice, “It’s Maui Time!”
Yes, for those of us on the ship, it was Maui Time, for nine
hours at least.
Unlike Hilo or Honolulu, the ship would not have been able to
dock at Lahaina. Instead, we’d have to use tenders to get from
the ship to the dock. Lifeboats from the ship would be used to
ferry passengers back and forth. In order to get to the tenders,
we’d have to go down two or three more decks from the official
“Deck 1”, decks normally dedicated for the use of the crew.
Seating on the tenders wouldn’t have been that comfortable, but
for the short distance to shore, it would have been OK.
One of the shore excursions was a deluxe whale watching
adventure, but having done that yesterday, I wouldn’t have
wanted to do it today. My shore excursion choice would have been
a visit to Haleakala Crater. I’d passed on the Mauna Kea
summit because of altitude, but the altitude here was 3000 feet
lower, plus this excursion was rated as Easy Activity versus the
Moderate Activity of the Mauna Kea one. The summit of the
volcano is 10, 032 feet above sea level, with a crater so wide
the whole island of Manhattan could fit in it. Having last
erupted in 1790, it was considered dormant (good). Views of and
from the crater would have been spectacular, if weather and
cloud cover permitted. I would certainly have seen some
wonderful plant and animal life on the way to the crater. I
would have brought a jacket with me, for it could have been cool
at the summit. It probably would have been my many-pocketed
Alaska jacket, so named because I received it as a gift in
anticipation of my Alaska cruise. Perhaps I would have brought
my Detroit Tigers warm-up jacket and worn that. But no, the
Alaska jacket was more flexible.
That excursion was scheduled to be 7 hours long, so I would have
had time to do little else. Perhaps I’d wanter around Lahaina
for a bit before getting in the line for the tender back to the
ship. Then I’d go back to my cabin and download today’s batch of
pictures to my laptop I’d do an e-mail check and maybe upload a
picture or two to social media. I’d record the events of the day
in the travelogue I’d be keeping, though I wouldn’t flesh them
out right away. Then it would be another dinner, perhaps another
show, and that would be it for another day. Aloha, Hawaii!
Top
Monday March 30
.Back at sea today. After three days of shore excursions in a
row, I think I would have wanted a break. What would I have done
today? Some of the same things I did during other days at sea,
such as read; walk around the Promenade Deck; get a chocolate
chip cookie and some Vitamin Water Zero; identify pictures, if
necessary; perhaps take some more; work on the travelogue; and
so on.
Now to give an overview of onboard television. That is clearly
not a big reason why one would go on a cruise; you could stay
home and have more and better choices. Well, on the Disney
ships, you would have quite a bit to choose from, given all of
their channels and their vast library of programming. On
Holland America, there weren’t that many TV channels devoted to
entertainment; two or three movie channels, perhaps, as well as
ESPN and ESPN2. There were four news and information channels:
CNBC, MSNBC, Fox and BBC (no CNN as I recall). I appreciated
having the BBC World News channel available because I have it at
home and watch it regularly. There were two channels that played
music, with one of then tending to play classical music; I’m not
sure what the other one would be playing. Given the demographics
of the passengers (older), it’s safe to say that it would be
playing current Top 40 music. There would be several channels
devoted to ship information, such as the bow and stern cameras,
programs on future ports of call, shopping tips at those ports
of call, etc. One of those channels was an information dashboard
showing the position of the ship, the date and time, the current
speed and bearing of the ship, the current wind speed and
temperature, the effective wind speed, and perhaps the ocean
depth. There would also be a graphic that showed the Earth as a
full globe and then zoomed in ever closer to our position.
Sometimes I would put it on in the background.
Top
Tuesday March 31
Today, and for the next two days, things would get a
little confusing from a calendar standpoint. During the day, the
Oosterdam would have crossed the International Date Line. The
ship wouldn’t have been anywhere near 180 degrees West (or East)
longitude, but back in the 1990’s, the government of Kiribati
decided to advance its time zone by a full day in order to be
the first land to see in the year 2000. And so the Date Line
makes a large eastward jog. And at some point today, we would be
crossing it, and it would instantly become April Fools Day.
Now I knew that there were special ceremonies for crossing the
equator (more on that later). Were there any ceremonies for
crossing the Date Line? Would a commemorative certificate be
available to recognize the event? It would have been nice if
there were. There probably would have been something on board to
mark the passage. Other than that, it would have been just
another day at sea. But there was something else to ponder:
would the carpets be changed to reflect the day change?
Top
Wednesday
April 1
Today, we would have been making a visit to Kiritimati Island in
the nation of Kiribati. The calendar would have said April
2, thanks to our crossing the Date Line, but it would be
confusing to have two entries for April 2.
Kiritimati Island is also known as Christmas Island. In fact,
Kiritimati is pronounced “Christmas”. Why the local language
uses “ti” to represent the “s” sound, I’ll never know. We were
due to arrive in port at 8 AM and set sail at 5 PM. There were
no formal shore excursions scheduled today; I wondered why that
was. Was the island too small to have much to see? Perhaps.
Given the name of the island, I wonder if they have
Christmas-themed shops. They certainly wouldn’t have had
anything on the scale of Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland in
Frankenmuth, Michigan. Now there is a Christmas decoration
superstore for you. I’m sure I would have left the ship and
walked around, seeing what there was to see.
At some point after the ship set sail at 5, it would have
crossed the Equator. I know that there have been ceremonies for
crossing the Equator for sailors over the years, and I imagine
there would have been one here for those crew members making
their first crossing. Now would the passengers be part of the
ceremony? Would we receive certificates saying that on this day,
we crossed the Equator? I would hope we did. I’ve received (or
bought) certificates saying that I had straddled the Prime
Meridian, 0 degrees longitude (1996 in Greenwich, England),
crossed the Arctic Circle (1998 in Rovaniemi, Finland) and
crossed the Equator by land (2009 in Uganda). It would have been
nice to have one from this ocean crossing.
So for the next 12 days or so, the ship and I and everyone else
would be in the Southern Hemisphere. It would no longer have
been spring; it would now be fall. Time to break out the heavier
clothing, ha ha! No, nobody would be doing that. It doesn’t get
cold in the tropics! Something else to note: from here on out
until we reached Tahiti, I would be going farther south than I’d
ever been before in my life.
Top
Thursday April 2
Today would have been another day at sea. But this day would
have been different, as the ship would cross the International
Date Line again, this time going “eastward”. We’d actually be
traveling southward, but once we crossed the Date Line, Friday
the 3rd would become Thursday the 2nd. I’d live through another
April 2.
What might I have done for breakfast today? I probably would
have gotten some cereal, either Special K or All Bran whole
wheat flakes. I think I would have gotten a muffin, preferably
blueberry. Perhaps I would have gone to the omelet bar and
requested an omelet; if not, then maybe I would have gotten some
scrambled eggs with sausage patties. Pancake or waffle? Perhaps
another day. And to drink, I would have gotten glasses of orange
juice and V8. Yum!
Growing up, I was conditioned to believe that every night on a
cruise ship was an elegant, formal affair, with the men in
tuxedos and the women in evening gowns (thank you, Love Boat).
That’s not the case anymore. However, there are still some
nights when passengers are encouraged to dress up. Proper formal
ware was not necessary; for men, jacket and tie would certainly
fit the mood. In several locations around the ship, professional
photographers would be available to take pictures of the guests
in their fancy clothing for later purchase in the photo gallery.
The dining rooms would be set up more elegantly, and the menu
would be upgraded from the usual fare (which was already
excellent).
Top
Friday April 3
It would have been another day at sea for the ship and its
passengers as we neared the islands of French Polynesia. I don’t
know what I would have been doing today — more walking around
the Promenade Deck, more reading, more working on the
travelogue, I suppose. There would have been presentations about
Polynesian culture in general and Bora Bora in particular. I
would have gone to some of those presentations.
Something to ponder: on my previous cruises on Holland America,
the bow would occasionally be open to passengers for seeing the
sights. On the Alaska cruise, it was open during our departure
from Vancouver and during part of our trip through the Inside
Passage. On the Panama Canal cruise, it was open for our passage
into the canal via the Gatun Locks. On the Atlantic Canada
cruise, it was open for our departure from Quebec. Would it have
been open at some point during this cruise? I don’t know. It
seems likely that it would have been at some point, although I
wouldn’t have known for sure unless I actually took the cruise.
It certainly wouldn’t have been open a sea day like today
(nothing to see). I know one thing that wouldn’t have been
offered: warm pea soup. It’s a great thing to drink when sailing
the Inside Passage, but sailing in the tropics?
Top
Saturday April 4
We would arrive in Bora Bora today, but not until 2 PM, so this
would have been a half-day at sea. There would have been no
urgency to get up early for breakfast in order not to be late
for shore excursions.
As it turned out, there weren’t any shore excursions today,
except for chances to reserve cabanas over the water for
overnight visits (the ship would remain docked overnight). There
had been some excursions originally scheduled, and I’d reserved
a spot on one, but at some point, they were removed from the
catalog. I ended up rescheduling for tomorrow. Now would I have
left the ship to check out what was on shore? Maybe. Or maybe I
would wait for tomorrow. Either way, I’d have to tender ashore;
except for Papeete, all of the ports for the rest of the cruise
would be tender ports.
Tonight would have been the second of my specialty dining
reservations for the cruise. This time, it was the Pinnacle
Grill at 8 PM. Here’s what I had when I ate there during the
cruise to Alaska in 2015: lobster bisque; 10-ounce filet mignon
with grilled asparagus, sautéed mushrooms and whipped potatoes;
and a big piece of chocolate cake (it had been my birthday). I
imagine the menu today would have been similar to what it was
back then. Let’s take a look at the sample menu posted on the
Holland America website.
For appetizers, we could choose from these small plates: jumbo
shrimp cocktail, steak tartare, sesame-crusted tuna tataki,
jumbo lump crab cakes, and for an additional $70, Ossetra
Malossol caviar; from soups: forest mushroom soup and lobster
bisque; from salads: heart of romaine Caesar salad, iceberg
wedge salad, or beefsteak tomato and burrata salad; and two
chef’s specials, pastrami salmon and clothesline candied bacon.
From steaks, we could choose the chef’s special, beef tenderloin
with lobster dumplings, or we could select from a petite filet
mignon, a regular filet mignon, New York strip, bone-in rib eye,
or porterhouse. We could add a 5-ounce lobster tail, for a $10
supplement, to make a surf and turf meal. If those choices
didn’t appeal to us, there was also a 16 oz. dry aged Delmonico
($15 supplement).
Want more options? Here are the chops and classics options:
double-cut 14 oz. Kurobuta pork chop; corn-fed chicken breast;
grilled lamb chops; heirloom tomato and eggplant tarts satin;
cavatappi mac and cheese; and the chef’s special, braised short
ribs with mushroom cavatappi. Then there were the side
dishes: creamed spinach, asparagus with Hollandaise, sautéed
mushrooms, mashed potatoes with truffle-blue cheese aioli,
French fries, baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, confit carrots,
roasted baby beets with blue cheese, and basmati rice pilaf. I’m
getting hungry typing all of this!
Of course, there were seafood entrees: Alaskan king salmon,
baked Alaskan halibut, seared jumbo scallops, Alaskan king crab
legs, seafood cioppino, and the chef’s special, broiled lobster
with corn and bacon crepes ($20 supplement). And for dessert, we
could choose from Jacques Torres chocolate souffle, tres leches
cake, not-so-classic baked Alaska, key lime pie, creme brûlée,
ice cream or sorbet, an assortment of international cheeses, and
the chef’s special, gourmet cheesecake lollipops. Wow! Maybe I
should have made more than one reservation.
Top
Sunday April 5
The ship would have stayed in Bora Bora overnight; it would not
leave until 11 PM. There would be many shore excursions
available today, including the one I selected, Bora Bora Island
Discovery.
The Bora Bora Island Discovery tour was scheduled to take 2 1/4
hours in an open-air truck with cushioned bucket seats (so said
the excursion catalog) with a panoramic drive around the island,
allowing us to see Mount Otemanum, the central mountain of the
island, the famous turquoise lagoon and a chain of coral
islands. We would get to see how pareo is made (I have no idea
what that is), see World War II relics left behind by US forces,
enjoy the tropical foliage and see the resorts on the east coast
of the island. No doubt there would have been lots of photo
opportunities; I’d be taking many now and downloading many
later.
After the tour ended, I probably would have wanted some lunch.
Would I have found something in town? Would I have been able to
get local currency, or would dollars have been accepted? Or
would I have wanted to have lunch onboard the ship? Maybe I
would have delayed lunch and looked for souvenirs in town or
potential gifts for relatives.
At dinner tonight, I would likely have selected the French Onion
soup and the Caesar salad, both of which were on the menu every
day. I don’t know what entree I would have chosen.
Top
Monday April 6
The ship’s next port of call would have been Raiatea in the
Society Islands, with arrival at 8 AM and departure at 5 PM.
There were many shore excursions available, but I wasn’t sure
that I wanted to do any of them. I didn’t book any here before
the cruise, perhaps becoming concerned at how much all of these
shore excursions were costing me. Perhaps I would have selected
something after all.
Here is what was available: A Taste of Vanilla and Tahaa Motu
Picnic; Anapa Pearl Farm & Snorkel; Faaroa River & Motu
Beach Break; Kayak the Faaroa River; Land & Sea of Taha’a;
Raiatea Coral Garden Drift Snorkeling; Raiatea Highlights;
Raiatea Safari Expedition; Raiatea: the Sacred Island by Le
Truck Island-Style Bus; Tales & Legends of Raiatea. The
catalog showed many of those as waitlisted, so I might not have
been able to go on one anyway.
Top
Tuesday April 7
Today, Tahiti! Island of magic and temptation (though certainly
not “Temptation Island”)! The ship would dock at 8 in the
morning and stay in port overnight. I had one shore excursion
scheduled today, Tahiti: Around the Island, departing at 9.
As the name suggests, Tahiti: Around the Island was a bus tour
that would go all over the island. We would stop at the local
Government Assembly building and view its private garden. We’d
make a panoramic drive up the east coast of the island, stopping
at the James Norman Hall house. We would continue further up the
coast to the Arahoraho Blowhole, where water would shoot up into
the sky when conditions were right. We’d stop at a local
restaurant for lunch and then continue Spring Garden of Vaipahi.
The final stop would be the Fern Grotto Caves of Maraa,
described in Captain Cook’s journals and a favorite swimming
location of the artist Paul Gauguin.
The tour was scheduled to last 7 hours, dropping us off at the
dock at 4 PM. There would have been time to do some looking
around the dock area before going back on board. Now the other
excursion I had considered was called Tahiti’s Natural
Treasures. It was a shorter tour (4 1/2 hours). It would have
visited Point Venus, the historic landing site for European
explorers and site of the only lighthouse on Tahiti. It would
have visited the Gauguin Restaurant, where we would have had
something to eat or drink, and then gone for a photo stop at
Papara surf beach (would the surf have been up?). Between stops,
we would have had a nice scenic drive.
What other shore excursions were there? There were several
opportunities to rent bungalows overnight in Moorea, where the
ship would dock tomorrow. There were opportunities for
catamaran escapades and sunset sails, as well as a walking
tour of Papeete and a lagoon discovery adventure. So many things
to see and do….
I’m sure I would have taken lots of pictures and downloaded them
to my laptop for identification. Wonderful discussions about our
experiences would have taken place at our table in the dining
room this evening.
Top
Wednesday April 8
The ship had overnighted in Papeete, but it would be setting
sail for Moorea at 5 AM. Three hours later, we’d be docked at
Moorea, which was only a short distance away. My shore excursion
of choice today: Island Drive and Belvedere, the 12:30 offering.
The Island Drive and Belvedere tour was a 3 1/2 bus tour around
the island, some 38 miles, filled with lookout points and
special landmarks (so said the catalog). We would have visited
the Belvedere Lookout Point, the Ia Ora viewpoint, where we’d be
able to see Tahiti from 10 miles away. The bus would pass some
pineapple fields and visit an ancient sacred site called a marae
to learn about Polynesian culture. We’d visit the Tiki Village
and a replica of Gauguin’s Maison du Jouir. From the catalog
description, it sounded like an interesting tour, which is why I
chose it.
Often, there are so many shore excursions at a port of call that
it’s hard to choose from among them. There might be multiple
excursions that are of interest but take place at the same time.
That was true not just of Moorea but Papeete, Honolulu, and Hilo
Maybe that’s the cruise line’s way of encouraging you to go on
another cruise there.
Perhaps I would have spent some time checking out the city, just
as long as I returned to the ship by 6, the scheduled departure
time. Actually, I would have to have been onboard before 6.
Since this was early spring, some important religious holidays
would be happening soon. The first night of Passover was
tonight, and Easter was this coming Sunday. From my previous
voyages, I knew that there were Jewish, Catholic and Protestant
services onboard; given the significance of these holy days, the
services might have been upgraded. Hm - I wonder if there would
have been a chaplain onboard?
Top
Thursday April 9
Today, the ship would have traveled to Fakarava, arriving at 9
and sailing at 6. I wouldn’t have gone on a shore excursion
today; there was only one on offer, a chance to snorkel the
coral garden. I wasn’t all that keen on the activity. I may well
have gone ashore just to say I’d been to Fakarava, but I don’t
know what I would have done there.
Earlier in this no-travel-ogue, I mentioned the spa and its
services for men (shave, haircut). In real life, I’d tried to
schedule those via the Holland America website, but I couldn’t
for some reason. Maybe they had to be scheduled closer to ship
departure, or perhaps they had to be scheduled onboard. But
let’s say that I had scheduled a shave earlier in the cruise and
that I would have scheduled a haircut for today.
Another thing to think about: would I have wanted to do
something different with my meals today — say, gone to the Main
Dining Room for lunch and the Lido Market for dinner, as opposed
to the usual other way around? I do not know.
Top
Fridqy April 10
Today, we would have been at sea again, heading toward our last
port of call of the cruise. I would have been doing some of the
same things that I’ve done during other sea days: read, walk the
deck, go up to the Crow’s Nest to watch the seascape and enjoy
some Vitamin Water Zero and a cookie; e-mail checks and keeping
up with the web and social media; and so on. I wonder if some of
the entertainment options would have been repeated during the
cruise — for example, would the comedian on board have had
multiple routines for different nights?
At some point during the cruise, I would have wanted to do some
stargazing. Southern Hemisphere skies are quite different from
those in the Northern Hemisphere. There are objects that are
never visible from Detroit, such as the Southern Cross, Alpha
Centauri, or the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, and I’d want
to see or attempt to see them. I had seen the Southern Cross and
Alpha Centauri before, when I was visiting Uganda in 2009. I’d
tried to see the Magellanic Clouds on the cruise to the Panama
Canal, but I wasn’t successful. I should have had more success
this time, being much farther south of the Equator. But would
the lights of the ship hinder me?
The stars and galaxies wouldn’t have been the only unusual
things in the sky. Even the Sun and Moon would have appeared in
strange places (strange to Northern Hemisphere residents,
anyway). Back home, the Sun and Moon normally appear in our
southern sky, and we’re accustomed to seeing the phases of the
Moon and the Man in the Moon in a certain way. In the Southern
Hemisphere, we’d see them in the northern sky (although in the
tropics, where the ship was, they’d be closer to being directly
overhead). The Moon phases would appear to be backward from
normal, and the Man in the Moon would be standing on his head.
Weird! But for those who live in the Southern Hemisphere, this
would all seem normal to them.
Top
Saturday April 11
Today would have been the final port of call in French Polynesia
as well as the final port of call of the cruise (not counting
the return to San Diego, that is): Taiohae on Nuku Hiva Island.
We would arrive at 8 AM and leave at 4. Today was also the 50th
anniversary of the launch of Apollo 13 launch. The media,
including NASA Television, would be full of stories and programs
documenting and commemorating the anniversary of what happened.
On the ship, we would miss a lot of it. That would have been one
regret of having been on the cruise.
There was only one formal shore excursion available, the
Taipivai Valley Scenic Drive. The description in the catalog
seemed interesting, but I had seen some poor reviews of it.
Also, I’d already bought several shore excursions, and this one
didn’t seem to have the right value for me, so I decided to pass
on it. I may still have left the ship to visit the port area.
Tonight would be my third specialty dining experience of the
cruise, an evening at Rudi’s Sel de Mer. It didn’t have a
location of its own (on some ships, it did); here, it would take
over the Pinnacle Grill for an evening. And what does the sample
menu say about the cuisine? Let’s find out. For appetizers,
diners could choose from the following: steak tartare; Rudi’s
Seafood Tower (crab, shrimp, octopus); escargots bourguignonne;
bouillabaisse Marseillaise; tuna salad niçoise; foie gras
torchon; and for a $25 supplement, fruits de mer, which serves
2.
The entrees would have included the following: broiled fresh
catch of the day; broiled Maine lobster; whole Dover sole
meuniere; rack of lamb persillade; salt crust baked branzino;
steak frites; duck cassoulet; and soufflé au forage. Side dishes
included French fries, cauliflower puree, wild rice, green
beans, truffle mashed potatoes, and ratatouille. Finally, the
desserts; profiteroles; crépes suzette; apple tart tatin; Rudi’s
soufflé; artisanal French cheese plate; petits fours; and French
press coffee or espresso.
Top
Sunday April 12
Today would be a day at sea, the first of six days at sea in a
row. The ship would be heading back to the USA. No more land
until the ship reached San Diego. It was also Easter Sunday.
There would likely have been Easter services onboard, most
likely Protestant and Catholic services. The evening meal might
have been a little fancier than usual, but then again, all of
the meals on board were pretty fancy.
Perhaps it would have been somebody’s birthday today. On my
previous HAL cruises, it would be common for the staff members,
many of whom would be Indonesian, to gather around the table of
the celebrant and sing a song while he or she received a slice
of cake. The song was not “Happy Birthday”, but I don’t know how
to describe it. But I don’t need to describe it, for I found a
clip on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZPO2erNbwM.
That happened to have been recorded on the Oosterdam, in fact.
Top
Monday April 13
Today would be the second of six sea days in a row.
Most cruise lines have a loyalty program. Disney has its
Castaway Club, and Holland America has its Mariners Society.
Earn credit for sailing days and onboard purchase days, and
watch your credits climb! I was a 2-Star Mariner at the start of
the cruise, and I would likely have qualified for 3-Star status
by the end of the cruise. The ship holds a luncheon for Mariner
Society members on board, or should I say “luncheons,” because
there are often so many repeat passengers that one luncheon
can’t handle them all. There would have been a champagne toast,
for those who drink. The food is excellent, of course. For the
Mariner Society luncheon on my previous cruise, I had duck
confit , baked cod with green beans and potatoes, and a lemon
tart. One more thing: everyone receives a tile of the ship. The
tile could also serve as a coaster for drinks.
Top
Tuesday April 14
Today would be the third of six sea days in a row. Sometime
today, the ship would cross the Equator again, this time going
north. In an instant, we would go from fall to spring, though
you’d be hard pressed to tell the difference. Would there have
been a second ceremony (assuming there had been a first one)?
Since it’s difficult to write about so many sea days, I’ve
decided to describe the sample menu at Canaletto, the Italian
specialty restaurant I dined at early in the cruise. Why didn’t
I put this information on that day? That entry was already
fairly long, whereas this one might just have been “another day
at sea.” So here goes.
There would be different specials for each day. Sunday would
feature chicken Parmigiana; Monday, osso bucco Milanese;
Tuesday, beef short rib brassato barolo; Wednesday, veal liver
Veneziana; Thursday, veal saltimbocca alla Romano; Friday,
chicken curry Cipriani style; and Saturday, grilled jumbo
shrimp. Here are the options for small plates: antipasto plate;
veal and sage meatballs; langoustine-tomato soup; minestrone
soup; Canaletto salad; mozzarella di Bufala; beef carpaccio; and
grilled calamari.
Large plates (the entrees) would be the following:
lasagne Bolognese; branzino alla Siciliana; spaghetti all
Vongole; scallopine alla Caprese; datterini tomato risotto;
grilled New York strip loin; lobster and shrimp ravioli; braised
beef short rib gnocchi; grilled lamp chops; and pasta Genovese.
Now for the dessert choices: tiramisu; orange blossom ricotta
tart; gelato; affogato; chocolate hazelnut tart; selection of
Italian cheeses; and Sicilian marzipan cassata torte.
Top
Wednesday April 15
Today would be yet another sea day, the fourth of six in a row.
At this point, it’s become very difficult to write about
something onboard this ship that I haven’t already written
about. But there is something I could write about: the Photo
Gallery.
The Photo Gallery was on deck 3, on the way to the upper Main
Dining Room. I would have gone though it every night that I went
for dinner. Here would be the pictures taken by the shipboard
photographers of the passengers throughout the cruise, starting
with the boarding and continuing through every big event on the
cruise — the gala nights, the ports of call, and so on. There
probably would have been some of me in there, all available to
be purchased in one form or another. Would I do so? I don’t
know, but probably not. I did get some as a birthday present
from my aunt during our Alaska cruise, and I have those framed.
I’ve thought of something else to write about: After nearly a
month of fabulous food at sea, would I be getting tired of it?
With so many dining options on the ship, it seems unlikely, but
it could have happened. Would I be craving a frozen dinner from
my freezer? Probably not. What about meals from some of my
favorite local restaurants, such as a cheese steak sandwich from
Gabriel’s Hoagies, a patty melt from Leo’s Coney Island, or some
guacamole fresca and a number 6 combination plate (enchilada,
hard shell taco, rice and beans) from Los Amigos? Yes to those,
and I’d have my opportunity in a week.
Top
Thursday April 16
Today would be the fifth of six sea days in a row. And at this
point, I’ve nearly run out of things to write about shipboard
life. 28 days onboard a ship is a very long time, and there are
only so many things that can be done. There are longer cruises
available, but after experiencing this one, would I have wanted
to? There would be no way to know for sure until I actually took
a cruise of this length.
Actually, there is something I can talk about today that I
haven’t talked about: towel animals. On all of the cruises I’ve
been on, the room stewards folded towels into various animals
every night of the cruise. I’ve seen stingrays, shrimp, lobster,
dragonflies, etc. I’ve also seen monkeys, usually on the last
nights of the cruises. Now this would have been a 28-day cruise;
would the stewards have been able to prepare different towel
animals every night? Would they have repeated some? I guess I’ll
just have to take that longer cruise some time and find out for
myself.
Top
Friday April 17
Near the end of the cruise — most likely on the last sea day,
which this would be — there would be a charity event, On Deck
For a Cause, where passengers could sign up to walk 9 times
around the Promenade deck (that would make it a 5k walk). Entry
fees would go to charity. I did that on the Alaska cruise;
perhaps I would have done so here.
Today would have been the day that we would have been given a
souvenir of the cruise, a record of our journey, showing our
route, the ports of call, and key facts about the ship,
including how many passengers had sailed. If I had qualified for
the upgrade to 3-Star Mariner, I would have received that pin
either today or tomorrow.
Dinner would have been a little more special than usual, as
there would have been a special presentation from the waitstaff.
Each table would say farewell to the servers that had been with
them for the whole cruise — almost a whole month, in this case.
Before going to bed, I would have to pack up, especially the one
suitcase that would be checked ashore. I’d have to make sure the
proper tag was on it and leave it outside my door before going
to bed. I’d pack up most of the other bag, too, leaving only the
bare minimum out.
Top
Saturday April 18
This was it: the cruise was ending today. It wouldn’t be
officially over until I was checked off the ship for the final
time. Arrival time was scheduled for 7 AM. Maybe I would have
been awake and gone out on deck to see our arrival. Coronado
Island and the naval base would be on the starboard side (the
side where my cabin was), while the Cabrillo Monument, the
airport and downtown would be on the port side. Hopefully, the
weather would have been nice for our arrival.
I’d have breakfast at some point, of course. I’d go back to the
room for final pack up, and then I’d leave and find someplace
else on the ship to wait until my departure group was called.
Perhaps I would use some of the time to catch up on iPhone and
iPad updates that I wasn’t able to install during the trip. When
my departure group was called, I’d head to the designated exit,
be checked out for one final time, and head down the gangplank.
The cruise would officially be over. I’d walk down more
gangplanks and corridors until I reached the area where checked
bags could be picked up. I’d find mine, and then I’d take
everything, including my Customs declaration form and passport,
to the immigration and customs area. Eventually, I’d be cleared,
and then I’d officially be back in the USA!
Once I left the cruise terminal, I’d make my way to the train
station. I was originally supposed to take the 1:35 train to LA,
arriving at 4:36. However, I’d learned before the trip that that
train had been cancelled due to scheduled track work. The only
service that weekend involved taking a bus from San Diego to
Irvine, then taking the train from Irvine into LA. I would have
updated my reservation, and I would have taken a bus and then
the train and arrived in LA, hopefully close to the original
4:36. I had a deadline to meet, as I would be catching the 6 PM
Southwest Chief back to Chicago.
LA’s Union Station is a classic. It’s been featured in moves, TV
shows and commercials. There was one whole wing of the station
waiting room that was closed off, reserved for filming. It was
in active use in the 40’s, I’m sure, but it’s not needed for
everyday usage anymore.
As 6 o’clock neared, the passengers would be called to board the
train. My home for the next 48 hours or so would be sleeper car
0431, roomette 6. Dinner would start up in the dining car, and
I’d make a reservation for it. It would be a fairly late seating
as the train traveled across greater LA and got ready to make
its climb into the high desert of the Mojave. The menu might
have been identical to the westbound trip, but perhaps not. I’m
sure the food would have been good either way. Then I would go
back to my sleeper car roomette to settle in for the evening.
Top
Sunday April 19
Sometime in the middle of the night, the train would have passed
through Needles, home to Spike, the skinny brother of Snoopy.
I’d have had breakfast somewhere between Winslow and Gallup;
lunch might have been between Albuquerque and Lamy; and dinner
might have been around La Junta.
What would I be doing today? Not that much. I’d be in my room,
for the most part, reading and maybe taking pictures. I don’t
know what side of the train I would have been on. Would I have
been on the same side as on the outbound journey? If so, then
I’d be less likely to be taking pictures. Of course, in the
observation car, there were views from both sides of the train.
If I weren’t taking pictures, I might have been continuing to
identify them or start putting together a presentation album
that I would show to family and friends after I returned.
Top
Monday April 20
If the train had stayed on schedule, it would be arriving in
Chicago’s Union Station at 2;50 PM, just as the westbound
Southwest Chief was pulling out (not on the same track, I
hope!). I’d have a 3-hour layover until the train to Dearborn.
Perhaps I’d get a bite to eat at the Pret-A-Manger sandwich shop
in the food court. If it had been earlier in the day, then I
might have gone to Lou Mitchell’s restaurant, which wasn’t far
away (they are open for breakfast and lunch only). Eventually, I
would have waited in the Metropolitan Lounge for the boarding
call.
At 5:50, the train to Dearborn would have pulled out, and
I’d have a business class seat once again. And when I wanted
supper, the cafe car was right next door. We’d roll through the
South Side of Chicago, into the industrial areas of northwest
Indiana, then into Michigan. Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Jackson,
Ann Arbor, and then Dearborn. Scheduled arrival was 11:26 PM;
I’d get my bags and get off the train. I would be nearly home.
Now if I’d driven here and left my car, I could have gone to the
car, loaded my bags, and headed home. But I didn’t want to leave
my car there for over a month, so I had my cousin drop me off. I
was not going to impose on her again, especially as the train
would likely be late. I could have called a taxi, but would they
be operating that late? As for Uber or Lyft, I’ve never used
those services. There was a Comfort Inn within walking distance;
perhaps I would have gone there for the night.
Top
Tuesday April 21
If I hadn’t made it home last night, I would have done so today.
Time to unpack; time to contemplate doing laundry; time to see
about merging my photo library into my main photo library; time
to rest up from my vacation!
And that is it. That’s the story of a cruise that could have
been, that should have been. Perhaps I will be able to take that
cruise for real in the future. At the time of this writing, in
the midst of a pandemic lockdown, that future seems very
uncertain. Would it be possible to rebook for, say, one year
from now? It’s certainly possible, but would it be wise? Will
the health risks still be too high? Will cruise lines still be
solvent? Only time will tell.
Top
THE END
Back to Travels page
© 2020.
W. Reini. All rights reserved.
Written by Roger
ReiniJune 21, 20209
|