Thursday, August 27, 2009

Day 34 At Sea

Well ….things are winding down. This morning we were scheduled to go to St. Pierre & Miquelon but it was not to be. Due to weather conditions and lack of a pilot (boat broken) the Captain made the correct decision to keep the vessel and passengers safe and bypass the port. All was not lost however since the dense fog lifted and brought forth a spectacular day filled with sun. This was long overdue…. As we wind down it’s a good time to reflect on this Voyage of the Vikings… The Captain, Hotel Manager and crew should be very proud. They put on a great voyage. Were there bumps along the way? Sure there were but they didn’t take away from a fabulous adventure. I know HAL doesn’t like it when I make criticisms on the blog but they can’t say that I am dishonest about whatever the item is. If they look closely at why most of them get there in the first place it is generally because someone on the ship has waived off my issue or concern. I don’t deal well with getting blown off….. Most issues never see the light of day…. Again, the voyage has been excellent and the crew deserves congratulations. I strongly recommend this voyage to anyone who is looking for something out of the ordinary on a ship that provides great service. We visited some very interesting ports and Greenland was a definite highlight for me. I hope Holland America will add Narssarssuaq, Greenland as a port on one of their future sailings so I can get to the actual site of my birthplace. Yes, I would do this voyage again even though the weather is not exactly my cup on tea. But most people aren’t as ridiculous as me when it comes to sun worshiping…. Tomorrow is our last day at sea and I hope it’s a good one. Boston looks a little troublesome for flying out Saturday. Hurricane Danny, the President coming to town and Senator Kennedy’s funeral…. Could be a problem…….

8 comments:

Holly said...

Ridiculous? Not you Mr. Tan Man.

Unknown said...

Jeff you can be very proud of your blog. Thank you so much for the brilliant photo's and honesty. Talk soon Allan

Elsie said...

Jeff:

I followed you around the world this year and again on my dream cruise (Voyage of the Vikings) - your pix are beautiful and your blog is great. I'll follow you on the next cruise too.
-Elsie

Michelle and Rudy van der Goot said...

Could not agree with you more about how HAL deals with things that go wrong. Most things are taken care of and overall HAL does an excellent job and provides great value for money. The one area where they continuously fail is with shore excursions and especially with the staff in that office. We have had so many bad experiences in that area that is a real shame that HAL doesn't do better! Have a safe journey and here is hoping for some sun for the TAN MAN on his last day at sea. (at least on this part of the journey)

Sweets said...

Love the new "changing pictures " you've put at the top of the blog. Enjoy your last day... hope the sun is shining...I agree with Holly... ridiculous? Never!

HappyCruiser said...

In my opinion, you provide a valuable service to HAL and they would do well to heed what you say. No one likes to feel blown off. No cruise is ever perfect, but they should be striving to have a good experience for everyone.

Looking forward to your next journey! I would so love to do that itinerary, but can't this year. And HAL is not doing it next year. BOO! Hope they offer it again.

Jean said...

JEFF,

HAL should consider you their personal "trouble shooter" ... with you paying to be on board they don't need to hire someone to actually check up on their crews & ships!
Seeing you know what we as HAL clients expect & if they are falling behind in something they should get to cleaning up their act to keep us the paying public HAPPY! So we'll keep returning ... year after year!

So KEEP up the good work!

Seeing you soon!
Jean & Doug

June said...

Enjoyed your adventure and looking forward to your next one.

Thanks for sharing with us.
I was just on a short cruise to Cozumel and thought of you as I baked in the sun.
June