Week 7

We have been at sea a lot lately – we missed the port of Stanley, Falkland Islands because the sea was rough and Stanley is a “tender” port so it was not safe enough to go ashore. Tendering is done in ports that don’t have a pier for us to dock at. We drop anchor in the harbor and get our lifeboats down from the side of the ship (sometimes there are larger, shore-side tenders offered) and people take those ashore.

So of the last 19 days, 3 have been port days, the rest sea days. Sea days are long days of work for me. I’m usually at my desk by 8:30am and often times, barely get lunch, then am back to work until 6 with no other breaks. If it is a formal night on the ship, I then get ready in formal wear to host a dinner table. I am seated with different guests each formal evening which gives me the opportunity to meet more people. Here on the World Voyage, I have gotten to know many of the people so oftentimes someone invites me to join their table. Of course they have figured out that if I’m at the table, I provide the wine! (Actually it’s Holland America Line paying the tab.) If it’s not an evening that I host and if I had a really busy day (which I do for about half the sea days), then I usually go back to work around 8pm and work until the work is done with is anywhere from 9:30 to 11 or 12 – it just depends on how many cruises I sold.

One thing that happens when you live out here – or even when someone is on a cruise – is you forget what day it is so in all of our elevators, the rug is changed each day so we might not know the date but we know the day of the week.


Tuesday night was Fat Tuesday so Mardi Gras was celebrated throughout the ship. It was amazing to see the decorations transform every room. These photos are of our dining room entrance with and without decorations.

Friends at Mardi Gras celebration:


This is my desk area here on the Amsterdam. Right next to me is Barbara, our Travel Guide. She is an expert on the ports that we visit. Her function is to give advice on what to do in each port if you want to see it on your own (not take a shore excursion). She’s a Jersey girl and loves to talk!



Also right in our area is Holland America Line’s version of Starbuck’s – The Exploration’s Café. Surrounding that is our library and internet area. And on the other side is our Explorer’s Lounge in which there are various small events or presentations. Today there is an art auction, yesterday there was a lecture about acupuncture, every morning our guest entertainers are interviewed about their careers and lifestyles as entertainers. If I’m not busy (which is rare) I listen in to whatever is going on.

Sailing around Cape Horn and through the Drake Passage was a beautiful trip as we headed south into Antarctica unlike the last time I was here and we ran into a storm which was hurricane strength with 70 ft waves. This time it was a sunny day with smooth seas. Antarctica is a beautifully remote place. Words can’t say enough so I will just include photos. When we were near the Palmer Research Station, we brought the 17 researchers onboard the ship (there’s nowhere to dock in Antarctica). They headed straight for the Amsterdam’s version of Starbucks and enjoyed some special coffees. Some took the opportunity to go for a swim in our outdoor pool, others enjoyed services in the spa, a beer at the bar, they all enjoyed the buffet in addition to giving presentations about what their life is like there and what types of research they are doing. On their departure, we loaded them up with “stores” (food) to take back to their homes and enjoy.

The following day, it snowed! I’ve been working onboard ships for 10 years now and this is the very first time I’ve had snow on a cruise ship.

After four days at sea in Antarctica we then headed north towards Stanley, Falkland Islands however there was a storm around the island so we had to skip it and head to Buenos Aires. This was a total of eight days at sea so we were pretty restless by the time we got to Buenos Aires.

Week 5

When we were in Valparaiso Chile, a ship friend of mine who was home on holiday came to the ship and then brought me to the area where she lives which is called Vina del Mar. It’s a beautiful seaside resort area.

Another stop in Chile was Puerto Montt. Here I took a tour out into the countryside that had beautiful mountains, lakes and waterfalls. There was a catamaran ride in a river area that reminded me very much of northern Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, with the exception of snow capped mountains in the area.

Our formal nights on the ship are only one per week but there are plenty of other activities going on . There is a show each evening and a movie which I sometimes attend if my work is caught up. Oftentimes there are cocktail parties for various reasons. As I have met many people on board, sometimes I am invited to dine with them in our main dining room. It can be a very active social life and some nights, like tonight, I am just staying “home” in my cabin to work on my blog! Last night we had 30 ft waves and I although I don’t get seasick, I didn’t sleep well so will catch up on that tonight.

Here I am in my cabin. I have my own room, on deck 1 on the ship. But deck 1 is not the bottom, it is the bottom deck above the water line. There are 3 decks under mine where most crew have their cabins, crew messes, crew offices, storage rooms, print shop, refrigerators, crew bars, engine rooms, and much much more.

We then visited Isla Robinson Crusoe – the island that the book was written about. A man actually lived there in caves such as the one shown for four years.