She proceeded to recount to her listener that she was tired of this and sick of that and on and on.
By contrast, yesterday the ship provided a very nice brunch for Mariners (people who have sailed on Holland American Ships more than once). I had a pleasant conversation with people at my table who enjoyed this voyage and shared others they had taken, providing tips on getting a good price and which ones to take. During the program, the Captain thanked us for our continuing patronage.
One woman was introduced who had sailed 2,750 days with HAL! Think of it—that’s a little over 7 1/2 years!! AND, she is getting off this cruise in Ft. Lauderdale to begin a 113 day circumnavigation of the world cruise.
I saw her at the New Year’s Eve party, and she was having a great time. She looks a little like Queen Elizabeth. (She’s probably as rich as the Queen, too, to be able to afford all of those cruises.)
Anyway…I thought…what a difference between these two women. The one who was pissed off had a scowl on her face and a sharp tone. She and her husband were also trying to find out about renting a car in Ft. Lauderdale on their electronic pad.
They weren’t able to figure out how to do that, so they decided the would just wait until they got there and pick up a car. “There are lots of agencies,” she pronounced.
I have no idea how many agencies or cars are available at the Ft. Lauderdale airport, but I do know a lot of people may have already booked one awhile ago (like me). If this couple doesn’t happen to get a car or the size car they want, I bet she’ll launch into a harangue and have a hissy fit.
On the other hand, the 7-year Mariner will be sailing off to yet another adventure smiling all the way. I’d go with her if I had the money to do it.
*** *** *** ***
This cruise has been great, in my opinion, despite the fact that we did have a gastro-intestinal infection incident. The captain and the crew went into immediate action to control the spread of the infection.
The library locked up the books, removed magazines, and puzzles…anything that would be handled by people.
The crew wiped down all of the railings, inside and out, with disinfectant every two hours--even while were going through the Panama Canal.
That’s a lot of railing---all of the hallways on all of the decks, the elevators, the common rooms, and on and on.
Self-service in the buffet was discontinued. Salads, breads, everything was served so people would not handle utensils. Even the salt and pepper shakers were replaced by little packaged ones, and the eating utensils wrapped in napkins were not placed on tables, but were given out individually.
Of course, hand-sanitizing machines are around everywhere anyway, and most passengers use them constantly when getting off an elevator, entering a restaurant, or any place where you touch something public.
The sick passengers were confined to their staterooms and were provided room service and medical attention as needed.
This great effort paid off, and, after a few days, the restrictions were lifted. I wish our hospitals were as efficient.
We also experienced some rough seas because of high winds—up to 50 knots at times. Again, the crew took immediate action…pools were drained because their contents were spilling out onto deck, outside decks were closed, extra in-door activities and sea sick medicine were provided for those who needed it.
I was fine. Never even felt sick either from the GI infection or from sea-sickness. I was really impressed with the Captain and the crew in every situation.
So today, I joined with most of the other passengers to say thank you to the chefs, the servers, the house keepers, the cabin stewards, the entertainers, the technicians, the hundreds of people it takes to provide a vacation for me and over a 1,000 other people.
I’ll be back Holland America!
Attitude is everything!
ReplyDeleteWelcome home, Gail!