Joanandjoe

Click here to view the cruise review

Click here to view the cruise review

Click here to view the cruise review

That's not much of a lift, just a peek under the tent. No beer or booze, wine limited to two bottles at the beginning of a cruise (and those two bottles will cost your $25 each in corkage), no wine purchased in a port, presumably even if bought at a X excursion that includes a visit to a winery. Still a very harsh policy that makes no sense in Europe. Imagine being at a port in Ireland or Germany without being able to bring beer onboard, or a port in Italy, France or Spain without being able to bring wine onboard? Ludicrous!

Actulally, the rating, on a scale from 1* to 5*plus, was Joe 4* (very good), Joan 5* (excellent). We'll go with Joan's rating. Jason, please change the rating from "poor" to "excellent". Merry Christmas, everyone, and enmjoy the (corrected) review.

Thanks, everyone. The fact that the weather was too hot for us did not spoil the vacation; indeed, the fact that we were unliely to return added extra interest, We had no "every island is just like another" feeling. Instead, each of the islands had a distinctive flavor. As for the ship, it's too bad suites are normally so expensive, since having one is a great experience. Kudos to our TA for finding a great deal. It appears that we will have the first CC review of the new Noordam IV. Our first cruise, other than an overnight on the M.S. Freeport, was a cruise to Alaska on the Noordam III in 1998.

With the crazy ovetime I've been working (even tonight, my office closed at 3, I left at 6:35), it's taken a while to write our review of the Noordam, which we were on from 11/25 to 12/6. I'll post the review as soon as I finish this posting. Watch for it in the reviews section of the board! Both of us participated in the writing, about 50% each. The first person singular writer is Joan. Ratings are on a scale of 1* to 5*+, as used on another board. Since the review is six pages single spaced, I'll just post the beginning and ending portions here. We may be among a tiny minority of CC members who find the Caribbean too hot for our tastes, but chacun a son gout. Overall, we had a fantastic time, even though we did not like the Caribbean. The only real downer was (no surprise) my office. I had to check my office emails at least twice a day via internet, and I called in for messages each day we were on land. Ugh! That certainly detracted from the trip! Overview Rating: 4* (Joe) 5* (Joan) What’s not to like about a full suite, with the Neptune Lounge, Concierge Service, and breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill? With that, and our membership in the thermal suite and hydrotherapy pool, we were surrounded by luxury. The ship itself was rather large for our taste, but there were some nice touches, such as the Explorations Café. The dining room was quite good, but not up to the standard of Regent or Windstar. The Lido dining area had some areas that were well laid out, and the food (other than the excellent Asian food) was fairly good for a buffet and stem table type of meal. Entertainment and the ports are described below. Conclusion I’d go back to the Noordam in a suite in a minute …but maybe not to this area again. With the exception of San Juan, I feel we’ve seen most of what these islands have to offer. We’re not drinkers, gamblers, heat lovers, sun worshipers, “shop till you drop†people, or beach people. We research the area we travel to thoroughly. Almost any temperate zone place we can think of holds more interest to us than the Caribbean, which simply isn’t for us.

Thanks for the good wishes, everyone! We're starting to get back in the swimg of things. I worked most of yesterday, so that I was able to see my son (the one in the group home) today. Hopefully my company will complete a big project this week, and I'll have time to think about writing a review.

We came back from our wonderful Noordam cruise on Wednesday morning, and had a great time. The ship is very large by our standards, but what's not to like about a suite? We would still prefer a smaller ship; but we would sail on the Noordam again if we find the right itinerary. That will not be the Caribbean, We even loved the Caribbean, despite being uncomfortably hot most of the trip. (So after this, our second Caribbean cruise, we're unlikely to have a third one.) The six islands seemed different from each other, and were quite intersting. Both of us, however, had trouble dealing with the tropical sun. Our next cruise, probably in 2008, will be to some place where its cool or warm, but not hot. I (Joe) may be the only person you can think of who was uncomfortable at 85 degrees and sunny in the Caribbean, but comfortable this morning walking before daybreak in New Jersey in 15 degree, 15 mile wind, weather. Chacun a son gout! My office still is very busy. I was in contact by internet twice a day during the cruise, and I was back at work from my home by Wednesday afternoon. I expect to work Sunday, and possibly Saturday as well, this weekend; so my review will have to wait awhile.

Mebert, I assume you mean St. Maartin when you refer to "both sides of the island".

Thanks everyone. We intend to enjoy the cruise to the max! Cheryl, we wish we could forget about the office, but we can't. My office is supposed to close for the weekend at 1 p.m., leaving me free until after the cruise. Instead, I expect to be here most of the day, and I'll have to be in touch tomorrow and Friday. My office has made it a condition of my going that I sign up for the ship's email, and check it (and my cell phone when I'm on land) at least once a day. Yuck! That's why I've virtually disappeared from these boards. Joe

We're sorry that your flight home was messed up by "Air Chance". We've learned a few things over the years, including the following: absolutely essential medicine goes into Joan's purse. medicine that is important, but not essential, is carried in a toiletries kit that can be pulled from a carryon if necessary. To that we'd add that absolutely essential liquids should, if possible, be put into containers that are small enough to be allowed in carry on bags, even if that means having a coopy of the prescription handy. We're glad you made it home safely even without being able to take your meds.

Ah, the Temple of the Magicians. Gorgeous, although we preferred the glyphs and decoration on the Nunnery. A look at an Uxmal web site reminded me that we also went to Kabah. What a trip! It compares with Copenhagen and the Canadian Rockies as the best "land" trips we ever had.

If you teach about Maya sites, why not do a real trip to the main Maya cities, instead of a shore excursion? The trip to Chichen Itza from Cozumel os too long via ferry and bus, too scary by plane. Both of us were Maya buffs in grade school, long before we met each other. In 1979 we took a dream trip to Mexican archaeological sites. We spent three days in Mexico City (archaeological museum and Teotihuacan), then eight days in the Yucatan (3 Chichen Itza, 3 Uxmal, 2 Merida). In addition to the two main Mayan cities, we took side trips from Uxmal to Labna, Sayil, and Xlapak. You really need to stay at the sites to get some perspective. At Chichen, we did our exploring in the early morning and late afternoon. In mid-day we ate lunch, napped, and sat around the pool while the day trippers took over. When they were gone, we went back to the ruins. We even got lost in the jungle while visiting Old Chichen, while turquoise colored vultures started to gather near us. We had to climb to the top of a pyramid to find our way back to civilization. Scary, but quite a long and interesting story with a happy ending.

Bon voyage, everyone. Have a fantastic time!<]

Our roll call on the huge cruising board got into a discussion today of packing lists, so I posted the Crazies list. I did that a while ago, and bet that it would be removed. It wasn't. This time, however, instead of http://www.cruisecrazies.com/packing_list.php , the board immediately came up as http://www.*************.com/packing_list.php. Pretty lame, eh! (Ah, my Canadian heritage shines through, eh!) I've just looked at the original post, which had the correct URL from June 8 to a few weeks ago (the last time I looked). Now that one, too, has been starred out. Small wonder Joey and others have switched to this smaller, friendlier board or, like us, spend time on both.

We saw that on another board, and it's great news. Hopefully Windstar, Silversea, and Regent will soon follow suit. 450 PAX is about the same size as the Regent Seven Seas Navigator, the nicest ship on which we've sailed. The Seabourn ships will be just the right size for us: 200 to 450 PAX. If we like the Caribbean on our Noordam cruise (which, for a heat and sun hater like me is by no means a sure thing!), we'll look into the Seabourn Pride Cruise on 11/10/07, Barbados to Barbados (Tobago, Margarita Island, Granada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Grenadines). The small ships go to places where the big ones can't go.

Omajahn, welcome to this Crazy board. We're not the biggest cruise board, but we're the friendliest. Post often, and soon your inside stateroom will be upgraded to an outside, then a veranda, etc. Have fun here--we do!

Joey, please clarify your comments. I assume that there will be no second try tonight, and that the chat will occur only after Jason says we're good to go. Is that correct? For us, the itinerary is more important than whether the cruise is 7 days or 10 days. On our 30th anniversary cruise in 1998 (2008 would be for our 40th anniversary cruise) we went from Vancouver to Hubbard Glacier, Ketchikan, Haines, Sitka, Juneau, and Seward. We'd like some different places, such as Prince Rupert, Skagway, Glacier Bay, Icy Strait Point, etc. While we're not quite ready for the tiny, 100 PAX ships (cabins are too small and prices too high), we feel that the bigger the ship, the more removed you are from the true Alaska expeience. You aren't likely to see a Brown Bear from the deck of a 3,000 PAX ship! We suggest a medium size ship, such as the Ryndam, Statendam, or Zaandam, rather than a megaship. I think the biggest problem for a group cruise will be timing. As empty nesters whose work schedule makes July through September impossible, we'd like May or June. CCers who want to bring their kids would need dates in July or August, both of which are (as noted) not doable for us. I also wonder whether the group would be able to agree on a cruise line. We have no interest in Carnival or RCCL, but they're probably the majority choices here. Are schedules out yet? Joe

psbcap, welcome to this Crazy board. We're not the biggest cruise board, but we're the friendliest. Post often, and soon your inside stateroom will be upgraded to an outside, then a veranda, etc. Have fun here--we do!

Cruiserwanabees, welcome to this Crazy board. We're not the biggest cruise board, but we're the friendliest. Post often, and soon your inside stateroom will be upgraded to an outside, then a veranda, etc. Have fun here--we do!

mrshoot1, welcome to this Crazy board. We're not the biggest cruise board, but we're the friendliest. Post often, and soon your inside stateroom will be upgraded to an outside, then a veranda, etc. Have fun here--we do!

Try # 4. I heard "welcome" and got a dead screen. No history, no list of people online, no ability to type in anything. It's getting late. One more try and I'll quit. Please let the board members know what happened.