Hello Everyone,
The cruise is over with and we are facing the real world at present.
We enjoyed our Holland America cruise and it featured many amenities ... the most important highlight was providing a daily mass for us. We also enjoyed the personal services, the nightly entertainment, the islands, all the dining experiences and meeting people from all walks of life....... most of them were more mature than us.
Our first memory was the Bahamas..... the swells were so high ....we were unable to load on to the tenders to hop ashore..... so to no avail ....we just had to wave the Bahamas good-bye. Therefore, we were unable to take our "Jetski" excursion.
We had an exhilarating time touring the entire Island of Grand Turks on our ATV's (All Terrain Vehicle). Traveling on these wheels certainly woke up our senses to the lustrous and untouched beauty of the island. It was a fun adventure being in a 15 ATV caravan driving around the entire island. The highlight was when ..... only my ATV got stuck in the mud. Before I knew it, one of our native macho leaders had lifted me up in the air, threw me over his shoulder (as heavy as I am) and then gently placed me on his ATV ....... while he got my ATV out of the mud. One of our many stops were on a beach where we were able to handle alive: Sea Turtle, Jelly Fish, White Sea Urchin and a Queen Conch (which looked like an Alien when it came out of it's shell). It was truly captivating.
Our next stop was Samana, Dominican Republic, where I presented a power-point session to about 40 prenatals, post Partums, nurses and a few Dr’s …. which was a success. Before-hand the concierge on the ship contacted the Ships Agent in Samana to coordinate everything for our pick-up etc. This island was one of the poorest and most deprived that we had seen. The hospital conditions were deplorable: no running water etc. and of course it was extremely hot, sticky and humid that day.
Since there were no other “Jet ski” excursions on the other island, we went on our own …. “walking tour”. While on Bonair we toured their WWII memorial where 50 or more Bonairians gave their lives. Steve wore his American Legion hat at the memorial: we said a prayer for their souls and then Steve saluted to them. It was a moving experience…. Everyone was watching. From there we visited St. Bernard’s Catholic Church: it was most impressive with all of the statues they had arranged in their church.
Not much was going on in Curacao; their Catholic church was being restored and we were unable to go inside. The other Catholic Church was 25 miles away. Curacao is noted for their Blue Curacao liquor which we did not try. The Iguanas were roaming all over the place showing off their illustrious colors. The movie theater was advertising Annie & The Hobbit for their upcoming presentations.
Aruba has got to be one of the most lucrative islands with all of the high-end shops and of course is noted for their gleaming white sandy beaches, scuba diving and their basaltic lava.
Our evening entertainment was a high energy musical journey with a steel drum band, Dancing with the Crew Stars at Sea, Comedy Night, Violin & Piano duo, Classical and Rock Shows. BB King Blues, Toni Warni (a finalist with THE VOICE, UK), etc Many activities to participate in: bingo, fitness, Spa treatments, Art Auctions etc
We were invited to two Wine Tastings and then to Meet the Crew Cocktail Party which was a intriguing time. We also took a Galley Tour of the kitchen operation: it was impeccably spotless. They cook 3500 LBS of rice/week …..just for the crew, as they are all Filipino & Indonesian.
There also was a Veteran’s Ceremony & then a Gathering which we attended: very mindful for our Veteran’s. Our second last day we received an invite to meet with the Hotel & the Cruise Director: there was one other couple there as well: they wanted some feedback.
We enjoyed attending mass daily, as the retired priest was a real Cracker Jack …. Sharing all of his stories ….. before and after mass.
We enjoyed ourselves on this cruise and yet preferred Celebrity. It seemed as if the Holland America catered more to the elderly …. And we aren’t at that elderly stage …… just yet.
It seemed as if most of the guests were not “live wires” and we were looking for a little more fun.
God bless.
Trezi A. Luty MS. RD. CDN. IBCLC. RLC.
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Originally Posted by STEPS
"Aarrrrr Type"
