Cruise Stories

Double Ship Christening

Posted on April 30, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Wilderness Discoverer at Fishermen's Terminal, Seattle 2011

Crew of the Wilderness Discoverer awaiting the Christening

On a day most of the world spent enthralled with the royal wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton, InnerSea Discoveries hosted a royal event of their own. On a small pier at Fishermen’s Terminal in Seattle a crowd gathered. Nowhere near the size of the crowd in England waiting for a glimpse of the prince and his bride, but for a small-ship cruise line whose adventures in Alaska are geared to avoid crowds of any sort, this was a rather large gathering.

Wilderness Adventurer and Wilderness Discoverer

Sisters at the dock

The Wilderness Discoverer sat tied to the dock, her sister ship the Wilderness Adventurer tied to her side. Behind her sat the Safari Explorer, and across from her bow the Safari Spirit, both of American Safari Cruises, the parent company of InnerSea Discoveries.

The afternoon began with tours of the Wilderness Discoverer and the Safari Spirit. Meanwhile the Safari Explorer admitted passengers on board, bound for Alaska as soon as the festivities ended. Work continues on the renovation of the Wilderness Adventurer, soon to make her debut. The Wilderness Discoverer also had passengers loading for her “maiden” voyage, a weekend cruise to the nearby San Juan Islands.

American Safari cruises provides a more luxurious place to stay while exploring

Kayaks in Alaska

the wilds of Alaska, Hawaii, or Mexico, but InnerSea Discoveries is all about adventure. Large cruise ships travel port to port. These ships travel cove to cove, exploring all the wild places the big ships sail past. Guests touch, smell and sometimes even taste nature only seen in passing from major cruise lines.

I had the chance last September to experience the InnerSea Discoveries itinerary on a media cruise aboard the Safari Quest of American Safari Cruises. This was the adventure of a lifetime, one I would recommend to anyone who wants to see the real Alaska, away from cities, tourist shops, and crowded ports.

LaConte Fjord

On that cruise, we watched whales swim freely in their natural habitat, hiked on Forest Service boardwalk trails, and in one place bushwhacked our own trails. Passengers kayaked in waters inhabited only by fish and seals. While the rest of us went hiking one day, my husband caught a 60 lb halibut while out in a kayak by himself.

Kevin, the expedition leader, took us on a skiff tour through a fjord full of ice bergs. Everyone got to touch and even taste one. Walking on Baird Glacier, our group discovered that up close glaciers are not so white and pure as they look from a distance. Trusty Alaskan tennis shoes make the best footwear for walking through the squishy jello-like mud on the glacial moraine.

Wrangell offered a visit to Chief Shakes tribal house and a jet boat ride up the

Black Bears, Neets Bay Alaska

Stikine River. At Yes Bay we went salmon fishing with Yes Bay Lodge, saw black bears at the Neets Bay Fish Hatchery, and took a float plane ride over the Misty Fjords. All these activities took place on the Eastern coves trip from Juneau to Ketchikan.

Before we left for that trip, we saw the Wilderness Discoverer in dry dock in Ballard, undergoing the beginnings of a complete renovation. InnerSea Discoveries has taken two vessels once destined for the scrap yard and given them a rebirth as comfortable vessels bound for adventure. Each ship had an underwater camera installed so passengers can watch fish swim under the boat on the flat screen TV in each guest room when the boat anchors up.

passenger cabin

The rooms seem small at first glance, but on this sort of cruise the room is just a place to sleep. During the daytime, when not out hiking, kayaking or viewing the scenery from a skiff, guests will likely spend their time in the hot tub or watching the scenery go by. Not much time for sitting in a room, even though these rooms look much nicer than in their past life on these boats. Where once they had glorified camp cots, they now have real beds.

The newly renovated dining room had tables set up for a meal, and a buffet

counter just waiting for the addition of food. Self-serve espresso and coffee accompanied by hot chocolate and Tazo tea stood invitingly on a counter top under a rack of cups. The bartender at the well-stocked bar waited patiently to serve any guest desiring a drink. A large flat screen TV at the bow showed scenes of wild Alaska, with racks of books on either side and plenty of places to sit.

On the stern of the boat, they have a kayak launcher. Passengers get in the kayak on the back of the boat and it slides out on rollers into the water. Upon return to the ship, the kayak rolls right back up again. No need to climb in or out of the boat in the water.

Christening the Wilderness Adventurer

Time came near for the christening. I staked out a spot on the bow of the Safari Spirit where I had an unobstructed view of the bow of the Wilderness Discoverer, and just one pole to either work around or include in any photos of the Wilderness Adventurer.

Captain Dan Blanchard, owner of American Safari and InnerSea Discoveries climbed up on a podium on the dock. He mentioned that the green color of the hulls symbolizes both the green practices of the company and the Forest Service boats of Alaska. After a bit of history on the company, and how they came back with a bang after once nearly going under, he turned the microphone over to business partner Tim Voss. He had his say and then Captain Dan introduced the captains and some crew for both vessels, as well as the ladies doing the honors of breaking champagne bottles for the christening.

First each lady, Naomi Sture on the Wilderness Discoverer and Ral West on the

Christening the Wilderness Discoverer

Wilderness Adventurer, gave a little speech. Naomi, a long time at one point only office employee of American Safari, referred to herself as the godmother of that vessel, and asked for a divine hand to always keep it safe. Ral talked a bit about the history of how her and her husband acquired the two vessels when Glacier Bay Cruiseline went under and immediately thought of Captain Dan as the right person to lease them to.

Both christeners held up a green leaf (or at least a green cedar branch at any rate) which Dan said historically symbolized a safe return to dry land after a voyage. The captain of each ship is to keep that safe through this inaugural season, and throw it into the water of the Ballard Locks when they return to Seattle next fall. They broke the champagne bottles simultaneously, followed by loud horn blasts from all four ships.

Captain Dan called Captain Marce of the Wilderness Discoverer and Captain Jeff of the Wilderness Adventurer up to the podium with him. After hugs and handshakes, he officially handed power of control of each ship to its captain. For Marce this is somewhat of a homecoming, as she once captained the Wilderness Discoverer under Glacier Bay, and was the one to bring it in for its final docking under their ownership and hand over the keys.

Finally Captain Dan announced that the inaugural season has sold completely out. Plans of a one-ship with just over 40 passenger capacity expanded to two ships with 60-70 passenger capacity. It seems the time has come for this venture. Prospective guests may want to plan ahead and book for next summer now.

I wish them well in this project. While I haven’t sailed on these ships, I know their itinerary provides an excellent adventure. Its a wonderful and memorable vacation not available anywhere else that I am aware of.

Update 2014: InnerSea Discoveries has now combined with American Safari Cruises under the name Un-Cruise Adventures. They have added more ships as well as other destinations, with more new places to visit in the works for future voyages.

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Posted in Alaska, Randoms, Un-Cruise Adventures, Washington, Wilderness Adventurer | Tagged adventure, Alaska, ceremony, InnerSeaDiscoveries, ship christening, travel | 2 Comments

Westerdam Dessert Buffet

Posted on April 28, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Cake Bear oversees the Dessert Buffet

ice sea horse

All the major cruise lines I’ve sailed with have a late-night buffet. What they serve, or how many people attend most nights, I have no clue. One night out of each cruise though, they always have a dessert buffet. That one multitudes of people attend. Why wouldn’t they? Rows and rows of tables covered in cakes, pies, cookies, and all manner of tasty sweet treats. All those pounds people put on on a cruise? Yeah, this one event alone could probably double it. Well for people who don’t exercise control at any rate.

On the Holland America Westerdam, they opened the doors to the buffet a bit early for photography. A far smaller crowd than the one soon to descend on the food like a flock of hungry vultures burst through the door armed with as many different kinds of cameras as there were people. All with just one goal in mind, that perfect picture representing the wonderfully tasty and beautifully displayed bounty of deliciousness.

What to photograph first? The flowing milk fountain, numerous ice sculptures, or

milk fountain

the creative arrays of the desserts themselves? I found a deserted place to start snapping shots of the goodies and worked my way around the room from there. I’m not an assertive photographer, so I work much better away from the crowd.

When photography time ended and the crew released hungry hordes upon the waiting treats, we found ourselves in the perfect position to slide right into the front of the line. First crack at all that wonderful stuff. What to eat? Decisions, decisions, it all looked so good. We didn’t make it past the first table before we had more dessert than we needed on our plates and went to find a place to sit down and eat it.

: ice sailfish

: other people ate more

: dessert

: too much dessert

: yum

: all you can eat and then some

: cream puff swan

: veggie boquet

: cake bear

: read it or eat it?

: so many choices

: mmmmm

: more goodies

Posted in Cruise Food, Holland America, Shipboard Life, Westerdam | Tagged cruise food, dessert buffet, dessert display, food, Holland America, Westerdam | 4 Comments

Parasailing Saves the Day

Posted on April 22, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Parasailing by the Holland America Westerdam

Parasailing at Half Moon Cay

We reported at the assigned meeting place for our parasailing adventure on Holland America‘s private island, Half Moon Cay, at the scheduled time. Just the two of us and one other guy. We waited in the sun for a bit, sometimes seeking shade in a nearby planter. Finally someone from the boat crew showed up. We walked down to the dock, and there, attached to the back of the boat, sat the pale yellow and white sail.

the fantastic parasail boat crew

“They guaranteed us the bright yellow and red sail at this time slot,” John said. “I scheduled this excursion for the pictures I can take, that one just won’t do.”

Turned out the boat with the red sail was already out with other people. Luckily the other guy was very patient. He didn’t care what color sail we had, he just wanted to parasail. And he wasn’t in too big of a hurry to mind them catering to our whims.

The boat crew were all fantastic. The rest of the island workers should take lessons on customer relations from them. They decided to take us out on that boat, and meet the other one on its way back so we could transfer to the one we wanted. It made it to shore before that happened so we turned back and changed boats at the dock. All the while the crew smiled. Whatever they may have actually felt, they acted like they wanted nothing more than to make us happy.

We had the last parasail excursion for the day, so the crew had no need to hurry

landing on the ship?

back for another group. They asked who wanted to go first. We both looked at the other guy and he happily strapped on the parasail gear. We watched him have his go, and snapped a few photos.

Next John went up. I had my camera, he had his. He took aerial shots, I took shots of the parasail, the crew operating it, whatever looked photo-worthy.

Then my turn came. I had parasailed once before, in Cabo San Lucus on a poker cruise to Mexico. They also had the boats like the ones at Half Moon Cay where the crew sends you up and winches you down from the back of the boat. You never have to get wet or try and land on the water like the old style boats some other places have.

Half Moon Cay from above

I brought my trusty lumix underwater/shock proof camera up and had a great time getting a variety of aerial shots. Sometimes I even remembered to put the camera down and just enjoy the ride for a few minutes. John said he never did that on his turn. But his idea of fun on any excursion is more to take pictures of other people enjoying themselves than to have any fun of his own.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to me, the boat crew worked willingly with John, placing me where he wanted for his photos. I got some great close-ups of the Westerdam while he had them making it look as if I would land on it for his photos. They brought me down to where my feet nearly touched the water behind the boat, and then sent me back up again. Something not normally included in that ride, but again

my feet parasailing

they worked with him on whatever he wanted for a picture. No objections from me, I got an extra long ride!

We loved the parasailing. It saved the day for us at Half Moon Cay. None of our other plans there had worked out the way we wanted. After the parasail adventure, we left with a good feeling about the island instead of the letdown we felt after the horses didn’t swim and the snorkel gear rental didn’t go well either. I would definitely recommend parasailing for anyone who visits Half Moon Cay, unless they are afraid of heights.

parasail boat

When our parasail trip ended, we caught the next tender back to the Westerdam. We joined the never-leave-the-ship folks for some uncrowded time on board. Having skipped lunch, we enjoyed some veggie burgers for “linner” at the Lido Grill. It stays open at odd hours when most other restaurants on board close.

Posted in Caribbean, Holland America, Shore Excursions, Westerdam | Tagged adventure, Caribbean cruise, fun, Half Moon Cay, Holland America, parasail, travel | 3 Comments

Half Moon Cay

Posted on April 15, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Westerdam at Half Moon Cay

Following our disastrous horse “swimming” experience, we decided to make some use of our time at Half Moon Cay. On our way back to the tender dock, we watched two boats with parasails in the air. One had a bright red and yellow sail, the other pale yellow and white. As we walked past the delicious aroma of the barbecue, John decided he wanted to go parasailing. Like just about everyone else on the island, I would have liked a bite of lunch. He did not want to take time to stop for it, and since I have a major aversion to waiting in any line I can avoid, I agreed.

We stopped at the welcome booth to book the parasailing. John insisted we must get the boat with the brightly colored sail. The other one just won’t due for photos, he explained to the exasperated person behind the desk. The only time they could give us where they guaranteed the right boat split our remaining time on the island into about half before and half after.

random people on the island tender

We caught the tender back to the Holland America Westerdam. First thing ditch the long pants and shoes required for the horse ride and get shorts and sandals. We already had swimsuits on since the horses were supposed to swim. Or at least that is what the blurb on shore excursions said. We grabbed a small bag of fishing jigs and headed back to the island to rent some snorkel gear.

Gear rented, we headed to a deserted stretch of beach in between the roped-off swimming area and the part where the horses go in the water. No we didn’t plan on fishing. We wanted to take some underwater videos of the action of each jig to post on the websites where I sell them so people would know for sure which one they wanted. I brought one each of the same size and color of the Point Wilson Dart candlefish, anchovy, and herring, and also a Deep Stinger.

Underwater video camera and jigs in hand, we headed out to the water, slyly

stingray and bonefish

keeping the jigs from view of any passing lifeguard just in case they weren’t allowed. Under the water we went, only to find it much too murky for any good video footage. Strike two (strike one was the horse ride). Back on the beach we ditched the jigs in our beach bag and decided we might as well at least make use of the snorkel gear. We swam out a ways, though the water never got deep. Finally we spotted something other than sand. A stingray and its companion bonefish. (Attracted no doubt by the jigs….)

snorkeling at Half Moon Cay

I turned on my trusty underwater camera and started snapping a few shots when suddenly a lifeguard in a rowboat appeared. He seemed sure we were in some sort of immediate danger and must head back to shore immediately. Where that danger came from I haven’t a clue. No sharks in the vicinity, no boats anywhere near, and if we wanted to stand up and walk back to shore rather than swimming, we could. Well there was that one lone stingray, but since they have a swim with the stingrays adventure on the other side of the island I don’t think the remote possibility of meeting Steve Irwin’s fate was the problem. We returned the snorkel gear, figuring it was useless if we couldn’t go out far enough to see anything but sand. Strike three. Much later I did find a map of Half Moon Cay showing a designated snorkel area on the other side of the swimming beach past the kid’s playground. Perhaps we’d have found something to see had we gone there.

Most people probably have more fun on Half Moon Cay than we did. It does have beautiful beaches and plenty of activities to do. Some probably just hang out in the bars. It just seemed that none of our plans worked out. Usually I’m easily amused. Now that it’s all over, the whole safety gone awry thing with the horse guides and life guards overreacting to every little thing does seem a bit funny. It didn’t at the time though. We felt pretty down until parasailing saved the day.

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Posted in Caribbean, Holland America, Ports of Call, Westerdam | Tagged beach, Caribbean, cruise, Half Moon Cay, Holland America, tropical island | 4 Comments

Half Moon Cay Horse Ride

Posted on April 2, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Horse Ride at Half Moon Cay

Finally, the Holland America Westerdam made it to Half Moon Cay, Bahamas. About 6 months before we booked this trip, I read in the Mariner Magazine (which Holland America sends to past guests) about the “sea” horses swimming on the ride at Half Moon Cay. I wanted to take a Caribbean cruise anyway, and on Holland America specifically after I read that article. I looked forward to the horse ride by land and sea more than anything else ever since we booked this cruise. I couldn’t believe my luck when the cheap cruise we stumbled on just happened to be the one I most wanted to take.

Why, someone might wonder, would a person who has horses of their own want to pay good money to ride rental horses? It’s all about the long warm ocean swim. That Mariner Magazine article made it sound so wonderful. I’ve had horses most of my life, but rarely had opportunities to swim them. Never for long distances and only in cold water.

When my kids were young, we discovered a small lake several miles down a trail we could ride to from our house. We rode a couple miles down the road to get to the trail. Considering the distance, we didn’t go there often, but when we did we had a great time. One side of the lake dropped off rather steeply, but the other had a nice gentle slope perfect for wading horses into the water. As we reached the middle it was just deep enough to swim a few strides before their hooves touched bottom on the other side. Then one summer we rode all the way there to find the lake surrounded in houses and completely inaccessible.

Maria invents “cliff diving”

We didn’t get to swim our horses again until a 4-H trip to Nehalem Bay State Park on the Oregon Coast. Most people carefully avoided the large potholes. Easy to spot by their dark blue color, we all carefully rode around them until Maria, one of the 4-H girls, trotted her horse off the edge and splashed down in one. Any other 4-H leader probably would have come unglued and scolded her mercilessly, but I thought it looked like fun. So I tried it myself. Everyone in our group tried it. We dubbed it “cliff diving” and from then on it was our favorite thing to do whenever we went to Nehalem Bay. The water usually wasn’t quite deep enough for swimming in the potholes. Once on an incoming tide my rather tall quarter horse, Taylor, splashed down into a hole deep enough he actually swam a few strides.

The next chance I had to swim a horse was on another 4-H camping trip when we

Nehalem Bay, Oregon

found a gently flowing sandy bottomed river to ride down. Every now and then we hit a spot deep enough that the horses had to swim a few yards before touching bottom again. Except Sera, my Arabian mare who could not swim. She’d sink down under water and jump up for a breath of air. So we sent her rider, Johanna, a 4-H member without a horse of her own, to the riverbank. She had to follow on shore while the rest of us stayed in the water.

I haven’t had a chance to swim a horse since, and never in warm water or for more than a few strides. This long warm ocean swim at Half Moon Cay was to be the highlight of my cruise. I anxiously looked forward to that moment. We booked the first ride of the day within days of booking the cruise. I did not want to run the risk of missing out because the ride filled up before we got signed up for it.

If you look up this ride on Holland America’s website, this is what they say about it:

Horseback Riding by Land & Sea

Saddle up for the experience of a lifetime! After a short tram ride to the corral you’ll receive an orientation before setting out on a ride along winding trails up to the highest point on the island for a panoramic view of Half Moon Cay and the surrounding islands before you continue along the bay, back to the corral. Enjoy a refreshment as your horse is “dressed” for swimming in a special saddle pad and a rope halter (no saddle), then you’ll venture into the ocean for the sensation of riding a horse while it’s swimming! Ride the tram for the trip back to the Welcome Center.

Notes:
Wear your swimsuit under jeans or long pants. Bring tennis shoes, sunscreen, towel and camera. Sandals not permitted. Minimum age is 10 years. Maximum weight is 250 lbs.

Island Tender

We gathered on the stairs with all the other folks awaiting the first tender of the day. They don’t have to take down any boats off the ship, the island has its own large tenders. Our scheduled ride time came and went and finally we boarded the tender to Half Moon Cay. We caught the tram out to the stable with the other passengers on our excursion. Our small group included several people from Holland America who wanted to experience the excursion for themselves.

First we put our things in the cubbyholes provided near the bathrooms. Then they

John on the trail ride

paired people up with horses the guides felt were a suitable mount for each person. Once mounted, we rode around an arena to get used to the horse while the rest of the group mounted up. Finally we set out for the trail. We followed a nice sandy trail past the pastures of the stable area, where chickens ran free and goats grazed on a hillside. As long as everyone stayed about 4 feet from the horse ahead of them and kept both hands on the reins all was well. Stray a few inches one way or the other or try to lift a camera up to take a picture, and one of the many guides (who probably have far less riding experience than me) was sure to snap.

Riding English normally involves using both hands on the reins, but these horses wore western saddles. People traditionally ride western one-handed. After all, the cowboys need a free hand for their lasso, their gun, or to hold the leadrope to the first horse or mule in a pack string. I’m not sure why they thought western riders should keep both hands on the reins at all times on a trail where the horses had nowhere to go other than straight ahead.

me taking a picture of the Westerdam

An instance of safety gone awry I think. Luckily these are tame rental horses, because 4 feet is probably the least safe distance should one be inclined to kick. Not that they would because rental strings don’t use kickers. Up close a kick may land, but has no power, and farther away they can’t reach the next horse. A horse length or about 6-7 feet is the true safe following distance. Perhaps 4 feet is the distance they best keep the horses bunched together and following one another. There really isn’t anywhere else for them to go with trees along both sides of the trail. Maybe they are afraid the horses will stop and munch the foliage and inexperienced riders won’t get them to move again.

getting ready for the swim

I ignored their scoldings and took pictures anyway. Why would they list a camera among the things to bring if they don’t want us to actually use it? Once while taking a picture, my horse walked around the opposite side of a tree from where the others went. Oh the horror! Runaway horse out of control, the guides came unglued. Honestly had I not had the camera up at that moment I would have purposely ridden on the other side of the tree from the rest just to do something different. At one point one of the Holland America people snapped at the guide to shut up and let her relax and enjoy the ride. This coming from someone who had never ridden before. I hope she reported this to Holland America and that they have asked these guides to back off a bit so people can enjoy their ride.

One of the guides kept trying to insist that I give him my camera and he would take

riding in the water

pictures for me. As if. My brand-new camera that I just bought for this trip. He wouldn’t have any idea what photos I wanted, nor did I have a clue if he was any sort of decent photographer at all. Not that I’m a pro or anything, but at least they are my photos, not some random person’s. Finally a different guide who realized by then that I actually did know how to ride told him to leave me alone.

Perhaps Holland America has had a chance to give these guides some training in customer relations by now if their people complained enough. I certainly hope so. Safety is important, but nobody did anything that warranted their constant correction and without it this would have been quite a pleasant trail ride.

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas

After our loop around the trail we came back to the stable area. Everyone dismounted and while we stripped down to our swimsuits the guides exchanged the saddled horses for a new batch wearing their bareback pads. Before we mounted, they gave everyone a flotation device and instructed us to put them around our middles. I’m not sure who makes up these safety rules, but I can state with certainty that I would far prefer to stay firmly put on a swimming horse’s back than to float up off of it while it swims. (Okay I was wrong about that. Years later when actually swimming with horses we saw what that float is used for, and floating off the horse is quite fun – see the video at the end of this post for a real horse swim.)

They got everyone mounted up, and in a line we trotted out into the ocean. One person strayed slightly and immediately the lead guide snapped a leadrope on their horse and led them the rest of the way. The water got deeper as we trotted. Time for that long anticipated swim. The line of trotting horses made a wide turn and headed back to the beach. Wait a minute, where was the swim? Their feet never left the ground. I mentioned this to one of the guides. With a surprised expression on his face that somebody realized they hadn’t swam when most people think they had, he said “They don’t swim.”

What? Where is this sensation of a horse swimming I was supposed to feel? Shame

Wait, we never swam

on you Holland America. If they aren’t going to swim you should promote this as a ride in the sea, not a swim. Honesty as they say, is always the best policy. If people get what they pay for you avoid bitter, bitter disappointment. I went on this ride solely for the swim. I looked forward to it for months. Not the highlight of the cruise I expected, or even anywhere near. Just an extremely huge letdown. I would not have booked this excursion had I known they did not actually swim.

People who don’t know what swimming a horse feels like may enjoy this excursion, but you can’t fool someone who does. I felt pretty much the way someone who bought a lottery ticket actually expecting to win would feel when they found out that they didn’t.

Several years later we finally got to swim with horses for real. On a trip to Montego Bay, Jamaica we set up a private excursion at Half Moon Equestrian Center. Though the name sounds similar, this is nowhere near Half Moon Cay, which is in the Bahamas. If you want to see what it looks like when a horse actually swims watch this video from Jamaica which even has some underwater footage.

Swimming with horses for real in Montego Bay, Jamaica

Posted in Caribbean, Holland America, Shore Excursions, Westerdam | Tagged Bahamas, Half Moon Cay, Holland America, horse swimming video, Horseback Ride, Nehalem Bay, ocean rides, Oregon, shore excursions, Westerdam | 21 Comments

Coconut Lime Muffins, sugarless version

Posted on March 26, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Kayaking near the Safari Quest in Misty Fjord National Monument

Awhile ago I wrote a post about the extraordinarily delicious coconut lime muffins served on the Safari Quest when we went on our amazing Alaskan wilderness adventure. On that trip we walked on a glacier, flew over the Misty Fjords, took a jet boat up the Stikine River and visited a fjord full of ice bergs. Every morning our breakfast options included a different kind of fresh-baked muffins. One morning we had the most wonderful muffins I had ever tasted, the now-famous coconut lime. I neglected to ask the chef for his recipe, but figured out one of my own that I published in a previous blog post.

mmmm muffin

Then my daughter came to visit. I wanted to share these wonderful muffins with her, but she has to adhere to her special diet. Of course many other people either watch their weight, diet, have blood sugar problems, or just want to eat healthier things. So I thought perhaps someone else might appreciate the new recipe for the low GI (glycemic index) no sugar added version of these muffins. Like the original, this recipe is also dairy free.

I substituted whole wheat flour for half the white flour, and added crushed almonds and flaxseed meal to help keep these muffins from raising the glycemic index of people who eat them. I replaced the sugar with stevia to sweeten the muffins without adding either sugar or chemical sweeteners. These muffins come out sort of a light brownish color rather than the white of the originals, but they still make a good-tasting breakfast. This time one that some people on special diets can enjoy if the coconut itself is not too sugary for them.

coconut lime muffin recipe, sugarless version

sugarless coconut lime muffins

No Sugar Added Coconut Lime Muffins

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup white flour

2 Tablespoons flaxseed meal

1 Tablespoon ground almonds

1/3 cup stevia extract in the raw

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup shredded coconut

zest of one lime

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 beaten egg

1/3 cup lime juice

1 cup coconut milk

1/3 cup canola oil

Mix together first 9 ingredients. Add remaining ingredients, stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. As with all muffins, do not overmix as they will not rise properly if overstirred. Spoon into muffin pan lined with cupcake papers. If toasted coconut tops are desired, top each muffin with coconut before baking. Bake at 400 degrees fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes.

sugar free coconut lime muffin

Posted in Cruise Food, recipes | Tagged coconut lime muffins, dairy free, lactose free, recipe, sugarfree muffin recipe | 1 Comment

Sailing to Tintamarre

Posted on March 11, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Sailboat Snorkel Excursion to Tintamarre

my pink sandals

When our Holland America cruise stopped in Saint Martin, we had a snorkel adventure scheduled through the ship’s shore excursions. We met up with the group gathering for the trip on the dock near the Westerdam. On an excursion titled Golden Eagle Catamaran Sail and Snorkel, everyone followed a guide to a nearby dock where a sailboat called Too Rhum Punch waited. We had to remove our shoes before boarding. I knew I would have no trouble finding mine later as my hot pink sandals stood out in a basket of mostly brown and black shoes. They made a good show of getting a group of people to raise the sail, but once we got underway that sail seemed to have an awful lot of engine noise…… I don’t know of anyone who minded though. We all went on that trip for the snorkeling, the sailboat was just transportation. People who actually wanted to sail probably chose the Americas cup sailing race excursion instead. The boat never would have made it to Tintamarre and back in the time allowed if it sailed the whole way.

I sat up front on the net draped between the pontoons on the

net on the catamaran

catamaran. Once we really got going, whenever the boat hit a wave water splashed up through the net and I got soaked. So did the girl at the front of the net on the other side. The rest of the people sitting on the net didn’t get quite so wet. I had a good time taking pictures with my new underwater camera until I remembered I still had my watch on. Oops, it’s not waterproof. So I crawled up the net back to the hatch that goes inside and found my beach bag to put the watch in.

Tintamarre Beach

The boat crew served juice and pointed out vacation homes of famous people on the shore. When we reached Tintamarre, they dropped anchor. All the guests donned snorkel gear and jumped overboard. Well actually we used the steps on the back of the boat, but jumping off sounds so much more dramatic. The best thing about snorkeling off a boat rather than a beach is no sand in the flippers. At first I headed toward the beautiful sandy beach on the island, but found nothing to see but sand there. So I changed direction toward the rocky point and found a coral reef with lots of colorful fish. Also some spiny black sea urchins. I had lots of time to play with the new camera. Taking pictures of fish is not as easy as it sounds. Floating along, the current does not necessarily go the same direction as the fish. Just when the camera gets focused, the ground drops or rises and everything becomes a blur. And the bigger the fish, the faster it swims out of the screen. The coral didn’t all grow at the same height either, but at least it stayed still. Self portraits are pretty fun to take while snorkeling too. Can’t see what is in the picture while taking it, but take enough and some turn out.

After awhile, I realized I had no clue where John went and could not

fish seen snorkeling

find him anywhere. Until the inflatable dingy showed up nearby. He has more fun taking pictures of other people having fun than he does actually doing something fun. So he went back to the boat and got one of the crew to take him out in the dingy with his big fancy (probably not waterproof) camera. I like pocket-sized cameras, he practically lugs around a suitcase of camera gear.

John in the inflatable boat

Eventually I swam to the beach. Quite a few people from the boat went there. The strength of the surf caught me off guard a bit on the approach to the beach where it had a sudden drop off of a foot or better, but I got to the higher level and on to the beach. Of course then going back I got sand in the flippers. Walking in them until the water is deep enough for swimming presents a bit of a challenge too.

spiny sea urchins

Our time at Tintamarre ended and the crew called us back to the boat. This time they put up two sails and actually did sail for real for a stretch before turning the engines back on. They served sandwiches and drinks on the way back. I had more juice, but a lot of people enjoyed the rum punch and other alcoholic beverages that were not offered on the way there.

I sat back out on the net again for awhile, but closer to the back than the front where much less water splashed through. We had quite a fun time on our sailing and snorkeling excursion. Another option for something unique and interesting to do when visiting Saint Martin is a visit to the beach where airplanes fly just overhead.

fish photo from underwater camera

coral reef

self portrait

snorkeling at Tintamarre

Posted in Caribbean, Holland America, Shore Excursions, Westerdam | Tagged Caribbean cruise, Golden Eagle Catamaran Sail and Snorkel, Holland America, sail, Saint Martin, shore excursion, snorkel, tropical fish, underwater photos | 5 Comments

Saint Martin

Posted on March 5, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Westerdam in Saint Martin

On bright blue water under clear blue sky, the Holland America

near the cruise ship dock, St Martin

Westerdam docked in Phillipsburg, Sint Maarten, on the Dutch side of the smallest island in the world shared by two countries. Saint Martin, the French side, covers about 2/3 of the land, but the Dutch side has more people, an international airport, and a cruise ship dock. At Maho Beach, across the street from Princess Juliana Airport, tourists take close-up photos and videos of the underside of 747’s as they land.

We booked a sail and snorkel excursion to the nearby island of

Phillipsburg Sint Maarten

Tintamarre, which took most of our time on the island. The boat docked about half an hour before we had to meet the group for the excursion so we hurried ashore to look around. We found a cute little street leading to a row of shops near the dock. All operated on island time, which means they don’t open early when ships are in port. We docked next to a Celebrity cruises ship, so they lost the opportunity to sell to two boatloads of people. We did find one shop open right by the dock, but it only sold sundries, candy, pop and cheesy souvenirs, nothing we found interesting. We took a few photos and went back to meet our group for the snorkel trip.

Celebrity ship looks bigger

Sailing around the cruise ship dock,

now Westerdam looks bigger

first the celebrity ship appeared bigger, then the Westerdam looked far larger. It all seemed to depend on the angle we saw them from. I still don’t know which one actually was biggest, but odds are they were close to the same size.

The Saint Martin we sailed past, full of homes of all sorts and sizes, looked nothing like the island Columbus discovered in 1493 on the holy day of Saint Martin of Tours. He called it Isla de San Martin, claiming it for Spain. The island has a long and bloody history both before and after his discovery.

watertaxi

The sailboat returned with just enough time for us to run and catch the water taxi for a quick look around the main shopping area of Phillipsburg. We didn’t have time to visit the casino or enjoy the beautiful white sand beach, but we did wander through town a bit and scope out a few of the numerous jewelry stores.

We didn’t get a chance to see the French side, famous for nude

Phillipsburg

beaches, fine dining, and designer shops. The story of how the French got the lion’s share of the island says that back in 1648 a Frenchman and a Dutchman each walked opposite directions around the island and drew the dividing line from where they started to where they met. The subsequent treaty still stands, though between then and now the island changed hands many times before reinstatement of the treaty in 1816.

Phillipsburg from water taxi

Current visitors to the island have nothing to fear from the pirates and warring nations of the past, but I do know someone who was there when a hurricane hit the island. Though he would not like to repeat that experience,it did not stop him and his family from returning to the island they love nearly every year. We would like to return for a longer visit someday and see a lot more of Saint Martin. It has activities of all kinds and much to see. Another advantage of cruising, besides the fun of the cruise itself, people get a chance to sample a variety of places so they know which merit a longer visit.

hat and bag lady

Posted in Caribbean, Holland America, Port Cities, Ports of Call, Westerdam | Tagged Caribbean, cruise, Holland America, Phillipsburg, Saint Martin, Sint Maarten, water taxi | 2 Comments

The Lido Barbecue

Posted on February 27, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Westerdam docked in San Juan

We returned from our visit to Puerto Rico on a hot afternoon and thought a swim would feel quite nice. We changed into swimsuits, gathered up our towels and things and headed for the lido deck aft pool on the Holland America Westerdam.

sculpture at the adult pool

They have a required shower next to the pool to insure people don’t drag dirt, sweat or any other bad things into the pool. We had a nice refreshing swim, sat in the hot tub for awhile, and laughed at the cartoony pool sculpture in the adult pool. (What can I say, I’m easily amused.) John went back to our room to find a book, and I sat at one of the poolside tables to read the one I brought with me.

vegetable bouquet

Meanwhile, the crew seemed busy setting up barbecue grills, tables and things at the back end of the boat. Interesting. Are they planning to barbecue? We knew of no such thing.

John took forever to come back and I started to get thirsty. When the waiter came by for about the 10th time asking if I wanted

carved watermelon

anything from the bar I finally said pineapple juice. He showed back up and asked for my sign & sail card. What’s this? I thought they didn’t charge extra for juice. Everything from the bar has a charge, he said. Who knew? Oh well, lesson learned. I guess they have to pay the guy to serve people who are too lazy to wander back to the juice station to get their own juice. Probably didn’t have pineapple in the juice machine anyway.

lido barbecue

John finally came back, and by then the crew at the back of the boat had set out vegetable flower arrangements and carved watermelons. Soon an array of side dishes followed. Might as well eat dinner here, we decided. Soon some ladies we met in the dining room the first night showed up. We invited them to join us at our table. They appreciated that as they had not found a vacant one. We all had a nice chat and caught up on what each other had done so far that cruise. While we enjoyed our walk through town and visits to the old forts in Puerto Rico that day, they took a bargain random bus tour of the sort often found when wandering off a cruise ship with no plans for what to do or where to go. We’ve always enjoyed the ones we’ve taken, but they didn’t like theirs much. Perhaps we are just easier to please, or it may be they just had bad luck.

dinner

I thought the barbecue was something special for that night we just happened to wander in on. Our new friends said they had eaten out there just about every night. A food option we hadn’t even known about. Soon the barbecue opened and we all found a choice selection of tasty things to eat. They had a variety of meats and seafood and even some grilled vegetables. Side dishes included pasta, salads and breads.

can’t eat this lobster

We lingered over our table, a nice chat with a nice meal. Another pleasant day aboard the Westerdam. Of course days on a cruise ship don’t end with dinner. Evenings have plenty of entertainment options including the nightly show in the theater, dancing in the nightclub, or visits to one of the many bars or the casino. We even saw people dancing in a piano bar one night as we wandered by on a photo safari.

The end of the evening comes upon returning to the cabin to find the night’s towel animal.

Posted in Cruise Food, Holland America, Westerdam | Tagged Caribbean cruise, carved watermelon, cruise food, cruise ship barbecue, towel animal, vegetable flowers | Leave a comment

The Pinnacle of Dining

Posted on February 21, 2011 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Holland America Westerdam

I have always thought of a pinnacle as a tall skinny underwater

Halibut caught in Kayak

spire where my husband likes to fish for halibut. Once, when we went on an American Safari yacht cruise he took a kayak out by himself to where the charts showed pinnacles underwater. He caught a 60-pound halibut on a 3 1/2 oz green pearl Point Wilson Dart. He turned it over to the ship’s chef and we all ate well. So in a way that was a pinnacle of dining, but not what this story is about.

On Holland America cruise line, the word pinnacle takes on a whole different meaning with the Pinnacle Grill. I think of it as the top of the spire of abundant and delicious dining choices. I’ll call room service the foundation of the spire. Choices are limited, but it is available 24 hours a day, and delivered at no charge. (Although it is always a good idea to tip.) We found the breakfast service especially convenient. You just leave the provided form on the cabin door before bed and have breakfast delivered at your specified time. That came in quite useful on shore excursion days where we really didn’t want to take the time to go to breakfast.

I’ll put the lido deck as the next tier on the spire. Many different little restaurant areas offer a variety of food choices served buffet style for those who don’t wish to take the time for a multi-course meal. Sometimes a line forms causing a short wait, but you can get a fairly quick meal unless you want something like waffles or omelettes that they cook while you wait. At dinner time, the Lido also has the reservations-only Canaletto for Italian food in a sit-down style restaurant with waiter service.

lobster in the Vista Dining Room

Moving up the spire, we find the Vista Dining Room. Delicious multi-course meals served on a European time-table (in other words plan to linger over the meal and not rush it like Americans are accustomed to.) Eggs Benedict for breakfast, lobster for dinner, what’s not to like? Any time one is not in a hurry for a meal on the ship it is a great place to go. Menus change daily, the food tastes wonderful, and again there is no extra charge to eat there. We met a lot of nice people just getting randomly seated with them in the dining room. It’s a great way to meet people you would probably never talk to otherwise. Some of them we ran into again other times and places on the ship, a chance for additional conversations with a new-found friend. Holland America offers the as-you-wish dining like we had where you can just wander down to the dining room any time during the meal service, or for more traditional folks specific dinner times where you have the same table with the same people each day.

At the tip of the shipboard dining pinnacle, we find the Pinnacle

lunch at the Pinnacle Grill

Grill. For a small fee and with a reservation, passengers dine in style for lunch or dinner. (Smaller fee for lunch than dinner.) Well on Le Cirque night the fee is not so small. Before this trip I had never eaten at a pay-extra place on any cruise. I never felt the need to pay more for food when I could get perfectly good food at no extra charge. This time though we decided to give it a try. We had lunch there one day and my husband really wanted to try the Le Cirque night, so we did that too. They replicate everything from the service to the china to the menu from the Le Cirque restaurant.

fancy soup

I had a pasta for lunch there, which tasted quite good. Lunch began with a tantalizing appetizer and ended with a rich chocolaty dessert. The LeCirque meal began with foie gras. I would not make a good rich person when it comes to dining choices, because I find organ meats, fish eggs, snails, and all that sort of thing quite disgusting and would never eat any of them. Or anything that requires the sort of conditions some calves and geese are subjected to. Needless to say, I did not try the foie gras. John did though, and he said it tasted awful, more so the rhubarb base than the foie gras itself. Looking around at the guests at other tables, most of them seemed to have the same reaction.

Luckily, the rest of the meal tasted quite good. They served lobster

halibut at the Pinnacle Grill

salad, something I had only read about before, but never actually tasted. It had asparagus spears and lobster of course, and some other veggies. Anything containing lobster just can’t go wrong. Next we ate sort of chef”s special soup where the waiter poured the liquid part into our bowls over top of the chunky bits right at the table. We had thick portions of halibut cooked to flaky perfection. Halibut and pinnacles, they just seem to go together. For dessert we had a scrumptious creme brulee.

Most passengers consider dining an important part of their cruise ship vacation. The atmosphere and the service play a big part in the Pinnacle Grill dining experience. Everything from the decor to the china says upscale, and each table practically seemed to have its own waiter.

Halibut on a pinnacle or halibut in a pinnacle (grill), either way it makes good eating.

dessert, the end of a good meal

the nasty foie gras

Posted in Cruise Food, Holland America, Westerdam | Tagged cruise food, cruise ship dining, halibut, Le Cirque, Pinnacle Grill, pinnacles | 1 Comment

Cruise Stories

Double Ship Christening

Westerdam Dessert Buffet

Parasailing Saves the Day

Half Moon Cay

Half Moon Cay Horse Ride

Swimming with horses for real in Montego Bay, Jamaica

Coconut Lime Muffins, sugarless version

Sailing to Tintamarre

Saint Martin

The Lido Barbecue

The Pinnacle of Dining

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