The Northern Isles Day 16
The Northern Isles
Day 16 - Friday, July 25, 2003 - ms Rotterdam - At Sea
What a night! We had gone to bed with winds in GALE force and waves between 12-18 feet. The boat rocked a bit during the night but both Gennie and I slept well.
We got up at 7 AM, looked out our verandah door and all we saw was a heavy fog and a steady rain. We showered, had our breakfast and then waited for Bob and Susan for our expected takeoff at 8:30.
Just after 8, Susan called and Gennie suggested we wait a bit as the rain was still heavy. They agreed. Then the captain came on over the ship’s communication and informed everyone that he was changing plans due to the severe weather.
The ship could not safely launch its tenders so there was no way the guests could get on shore. The captain then told us that he was pulling anchor and sailing to Le Havre.
The ship hoisted its anchor and then turned 180 degrees and left St. Peter Port. About 10 miles out, the pilot boat came alongside and removed the pilot and another person from the ship.
With the sea as turbulent as it was, the pilot boat had to gingerly maneuver alongside and the pilot had to lower himself down a rope ladder and step off and on to the pilot boat. Then the other person had to do the same thing. It was done expertly and we were on our way.
I took some pictures of our area, edited a little video and worked around the computer all morning. Gennie read, placed another load of clothes to wash (for $12) and did some other things around the ship.
By noon the sky had cleared and the sun shined on us all afternoon. It really became a beautiful day. We went to lunch and this morning they were serving iced jumbo shrimp for lunch.
They also served stir-fry and all the other usual buffet lunch. We decided to see the first showing of Agent Cody Banks. It was a juvenile movie and for all the old timers watching this showing was surprising.
As soon as the film was over we went to the Queen’s Lounge to see the Cruise Director Rick tell us the procedure for leaving our suitcases outside our room and how to disembark and get to shore when we get to Rotterdam. As soon as this was done Gennie and I went back to our room, changed our clothes and went for our power walk around the Promenade Deck.
We did 10 laps, just about 3 miles at a fast pace. We returned to our room, began to write the journal and planned for our day in France tomorrow. Bob, Susan, Gennie and I will go into Le Havre, rent another vehicle and on our own, travel to Normandy to see the beaches, memorials and cemetery for the D-Day invasion of Europe during W. W. II. All afternoon, we have seen ships go by us.
This must be a major shipping channel as anytime we look on either side of the ship we can see three or four ships at a time. This is the first time we have seen them. In the past, we must have been out of the shipping lanes.
We just learned today that the Rotterdam desalinates the fresh water we use. The ship uses over150,000 gallons of water per day, so turning salt water into fresh water is critical for a good trip.
At 7:15 we went to the Crow’s Nest for our libation. We took many pictures up there and on the way to dinner. We were wearing our formal clothes as it is a formal night, the Captain’s Black and White Dinner. Filet Mignon, and 2 lobster tails, baked Alaska, etc!
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