Welcome to the first installment of The Cruise Diaries! Follow my journey from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to the Caribbean Islands, through the Panama Canal, up through the countries of Central America, and finishing in San Diego, California. New installments coming every few days so make sure to stay tuned on the blog and Twitter @CiarasCountry - on with the trip!
Florida is a beautiful place to spend Christmas. I say this having spent less than 24 hours in the state so far, but if you're looking to escape the cold winter weather back home, this might just be the place for you. We arrived in Fort Lauderdale in the early afternoon, and after breezing through immigration (rare for the states, but one of the benefits of travelling to a smaller airport) were shuttled to the DoubleTree Hilton for the night.
Upon arrival, we were gifted warm chocolate chip cookies as is custom at the DoubleTree Hotels, dropped off our bags and headed out to explore the local area. Our local area pretty much consisted of an outlet mall and not much more, and yet wandering around the shops was a pretty decent way to pass the time, even if we were too tired to buy anything.
We stopped for dinner in one of the food courts at Charley's Philly Cheesesteaks for a titular sandwich and sweet tea - the latter being one of my favourite things about the Southern United States. Then it was a case of returning to the hotel to watch a crappy/cringey Hallmark Christmas movie to stave off jetlag for another few hours before turning in for the night.
Day 1
Time differences meant waking up super early the next morning so we went to the only place open at that time for breakfast, a Venezuelan bakery called Don Pan. Empanadas offered a unique breakfast option and were small enough to make sure we weren't already overeating as was sure to be the case once we got on the ship.
At 11am, we were ferried down to the Port, dropped off our bags and went through security before boarding the Holland America line MS Volendam. Having opted for one of the cheaper rooms, I was down in the bowels of the ship, but honestly my room was pretty decent with a small living room as you walk in and a bed towards the 'sea-end' of the ship with a small window above it.
What better way to start our cruise than how we meant to go on - eating. We headed to one of the restaurants onboard, the Lido Market, for a buffet style meal which offered everything from full main courses to pasta, salads and sushi. Plenty of choice and a nice surprise in the fact that servers went around offering free water, ice tea or lemonade, as we'd thought we would have to pay for all drinks during our trip.
Nicely full, it was time to go exploring. Armed with my handy map of the ship (which is a small one in comparison to many, housing just 1,500 guests) we started on the top deck, which has a kids club, two sports courts and a Crows Nest bar. Moving down you find two small pools, a few restaurants, the Greenhouse Spa, Salon and Fitness Center looking out to sea. Two floors of staterooms sit atop the main two floors which hold the impressive looking dining room where our gala dinners will take place, a casino, shops, a cafe and bar, a cinema, and the Mainstage where much of the entertainment will take place.
At 2pm, we made our way to the Mainstage where Cruise Director Justin told us a bit more about what to expect, including the ships intranet where you can message fellow cruisers via the internal wifi, and the various partnerships the Cruise is involved with including with BBC Earth, Windows Operating System, and Oprah Winfrey - an interesting bunch.
After unpacking my bags given that this would be my home for the next few weeks, we headed up to the Greenhouse Spa & Salon for a raffle drawing. We never win anything, but this time we did - a $150 voucher for their signature treatments, not bad! The Spa manager had a great way of drawing the raffle too - she would reel off the room number, quickly count to three and if no one claimed the prize, it was on to the next one. Fair!
The next few hours were spent at the ships stern watching as we pulled out of the port and began cruising down the coast of Florida. The sunset was so beautiful I felt like crying at the fact that some people get to see this every day, if only... As the sky darkened, the skyscrapers of Miami lit up with lights on the horizon which gradually became smaller as we sailed into the dark void.
At 7:45 we headed to the Dining Room, the fancy complimentary dining option for dinner. The place was packed meaning service was quite slow, although you'd have thought the staff would be used to this kind of rush by now, but the food was really quite delicious. We had intended to go to the first show of the cruise to 'Meet the Entertainers of the Volendam' but jetlag meant that I didn't think I'd enjoy it even if I went.
Day 2
For those who know me, or have read my travel blogs before, you'll know that I'm no good at relaxing, so the thought of days at sea filled me with a certain kind of dread. What was I supposed to do to pass the time? I'd brought George R. R. Martin's latest 700-page Game of Thrones novel, but would that be enough?! The ships clocks jumped forward an hour, which was actually better for us given the time difference back home, but it was still a too-early start for me.
However, this had its benefits as we took a stroll around the third floor deck - the only deck to have a promenade round the outside - with the orange sun lighting up the sea ahead of us. Breakfast was too much choice in the Lido Market, I opted for a healthy option of hash browns, French toast and a sticky bun. It was a quick change into gym gear for our 9:30am class of Stretch and Release to loosen up all those muscles, and then back to the Mainstage for a talk on What to See and Do in Our Ports. This was organised by the ships excursions team and was effectively a sales pitch of the excursions you could take, and whilst we'd decided not to do many of them, it was still interesting to see what options were available for each of the countries we would be visiting.
As you can probably tell by now, there appeared to be plenty to do, and I ducked out for a Kitchen Tour which, albeit short and lasting little more than five minutes as we wound our way through the kitchens, was really interesting with tonnes of stainless steel surfaces and the different areas that we passed through. I'd say it gets a lot more hectic around mealtimes!
At 11, I had my first engagement with Oprah, or her book club as the case may be, where we picked up a copy of Tayari Jones' 'An American Marriage' which we were set to read throughout the cruise for discussion at the end. I then went to America's Test Kitchen, based on the TV show of the same name, for a tutorial on Flavours of the Mediterranean where the TV chef showed us three recipes using olive oil. I'd never attended a cooking show before so found this really interesting, particularly given that we were on a ship currently passing Cuba at the time - stranger things have happened.
Lunch was another healthy affair of chips and cheesecake courtesy of the ships burger bar The Dive-In before spending the next few hours back in the Mainstage for talks on Making the Most of Your Visit to Curaçao & Aruba, and Welcome to the Rainforest.
The first was held by the same excursions team as earlier, but was not a sales pitch but more an informative talk on all the things to see and do in our first two destinations. This was quite useful to help us decide what non-organised things we might want to do as well as show off some stunning pictures of Willemstad and Oranjestad.
The latter was really interesting in that it was basically a lecture on the neotropical regions, their different ecozones and how different species have evolved over time due to migration barriers. It brought me back to my university days and I was glad that we had something so educational on the ship - I really feel like I learnt a lot (for instance, why I no longer want to eat figs...) and I'm sure the other attendees did as well.
Days at sea also involved a Classic Afternoon Tea in the Dining Room. I had pretty low expectations based on our experiences aboard the Nile Cruise in Egypt but was pleasantly surprised when it literally was an afternoon tea - three tiers of sandwiches, scones and cakes. I said I had started the trip as I meant to go on, eating!
Given I'd already had three meals during the day, I felt it was time to work off some of those calories by doing a few laps around the promenade which was pleasantly warm. I found it less boring than walking on a treadmill in a gym would have been, as the view was quite spectacular, sea on two sides, the boats trail behind us, and the faint glimpse of land in the distance.
That night was the first of our Gala Dinners, so we dressed up in our finery and headed to the Dining Room. We'd expected to have to share a table with other guests but were seated on our own again. I was a bit disappointed as felt this made us quite insular, so hoped we'd have the chance to eat with others later in the trip, at least just to see what it was like. Dinner was delicious, including cream of artichoke and carrot soup, ricotta stuffed shells, and chocolate soufflé. Always better enjoyed when dressed to the nines.
We headed on down to the Mainstage for a welcoming toast with the Captain which was all going fine until he accidentally spilled a tray of Champagne on the server (happens to the best of us...) This was followed by the World of Dance performance where ten performers executed different dance styles ranging from salsa to breakdancing, with some musical theatre type singing thrown in throughout for good measure. I was enraptured. It was just as good IMHO as a professional West End Show and totally worth seeing - I hope that the rest of the performances will be just as enjoyable.
Day 3
I woke up to choppier weather outside my window which made walking down the long hallways fun as you swayed from side to side. We started the day with a few promenades round the deck to get our daily exercise in before heading to breakfast to eat off all that hard work. The cruise staff were super friendly, with a number of the breakfast staff making an effort to learn my name and find out more about me - a lovely bunch of people.
After breakfast we were back for another session of Stretch & Release, again made more challenging as touching your toes is notably more difficult when the ship is trying to make you lose your balance, something not usually an issue in a normal gym! Next up was Meatless Monday Meals with America's Test Kitchen chef Maria where she taught us how to make a tofu rice bowl and bean burgers. I loved watching ATK as Maria was a great host, full of personality and not wasting a moment of 'airtime', chatting us through the process the whole time.
At 11, it was time for part two of 'Make the Most of Your Visit' with an informative chat on Costa Rica and its rich flora and fauna, and Nicaragua and what to do in Corinto. Lunch was taken at the Dive In with their flavoursome burgers and some more fries (of course) and then we were back to ATK for breakfast time, learning how to make fluffy omelettes and blueberry pancakes. In spite of only having eaten a half hour earlier, I was already salivating.
Much of the rest of the afternoon was spent in the Mainstage as we started a follow up to Welcome to the Rainforest to learn about neotropical mammals including monkeys, bats and sloths; followed by a talk on The Real Pirates of the Caribbean aka the Flying Gang, Blackbeard's hearty crew of pirates.
We took a few more laps around the deck before heading down for another absolutely delicious dinner of warming soup (necessary due to the ships freezing air con), beet farro, and sticky toffee and date pudding, quite unlike its British equivalent. One of my travel companions commented that his favourite part of the cruise so far was the food, and I'd have to say that I don't disagree, even if it's at the expense of my waistline.
We headed to the onboard atrium at 7pm for the lighting of the Christmas Tree where we were offered complimentary apple cider or hot chocolate and Christmas cookies. Carols were sung and the little tree in the centre was lit. Definitely a benefit of travelling over the holidays in that we get to experience special events other cruises throughout the year wouldn't have.
The night ended with entertainment on the Mainstage in the form of comedian Brian Bradley. He promised a 'playful blend of stand up & improvisation' - I'm hard to amuse, and have to say I didn't crack a smile throughout the performance, but perhaps this is due to the fact that I'm not quite his demographic, as a fair few of the jokes revolved around aching joints and little blue pills... But alas, there were a fair few hearty laughs around the room so I'd say he was a good choice for this cruise.
Florida is a beautiful place to spend Christmas. I say this having spent less than 24 hours in the state so far, but if you're looking to escape the cold winter weather back home, this might just be the place for you. We arrived in Fort Lauderdale in the early afternoon, and after breezing through immigration (rare for the states, but one of the benefits of travelling to a smaller airport) were shuttled to the DoubleTree Hilton for the night.
Upon arrival, we were gifted warm chocolate chip cookies as is custom at the DoubleTree Hotels, dropped off our bags and headed out to explore the local area. Our local area pretty much consisted of an outlet mall and not much more, and yet wandering around the shops was a pretty decent way to pass the time, even if we were too tired to buy anything.
We stopped for dinner in one of the food courts at Charley's Philly Cheesesteaks for a titular sandwich and sweet tea - the latter being one of my favourite things about the Southern United States. Then it was a case of returning to the hotel to watch a crappy/cringey Hallmark Christmas movie to stave off jetlag for another few hours before turning in for the night.
Day 1
Time differences meant waking up super early the next morning so we went to the only place open at that time for breakfast, a Venezuelan bakery called Don Pan. Empanadas offered a unique breakfast option and were small enough to make sure we weren't already overeating as was sure to be the case once we got on the ship.
At 11am, we were ferried down to the Port, dropped off our bags and went through security before boarding the Holland America line MS Volendam. Having opted for one of the cheaper rooms, I was down in the bowels of the ship, but honestly my room was pretty decent with a small living room as you walk in and a bed towards the 'sea-end' of the ship with a small window above it.
What better way to start our cruise than how we meant to go on - eating. We headed to one of the restaurants onboard, the Lido Market, for a buffet style meal which offered everything from full main courses to pasta, salads and sushi. Plenty of choice and a nice surprise in the fact that servers went around offering free water, ice tea or lemonade, as we'd thought we would have to pay for all drinks during our trip.
Nicely full, it was time to go exploring. Armed with my handy map of the ship (which is a small one in comparison to many, housing just 1,500 guests) we started on the top deck, which has a kids club, two sports courts and a Crows Nest bar. Moving down you find two small pools, a few restaurants, the Greenhouse Spa, Salon and Fitness Center looking out to sea. Two floors of staterooms sit atop the main two floors which hold the impressive looking dining room where our gala dinners will take place, a casino, shops, a cafe and bar, a cinema, and the Mainstage where much of the entertainment will take place.
At 2pm, we made our way to the Mainstage where Cruise Director Justin told us a bit more about what to expect, including the ships intranet where you can message fellow cruisers via the internal wifi, and the various partnerships the Cruise is involved with including with BBC Earth, Windows Operating System, and Oprah Winfrey - an interesting bunch.
After unpacking my bags given that this would be my home for the next few weeks, we headed up to the Greenhouse Spa & Salon for a raffle drawing. We never win anything, but this time we did - a $150 voucher for their signature treatments, not bad! The Spa manager had a great way of drawing the raffle too - she would reel off the room number, quickly count to three and if no one claimed the prize, it was on to the next one. Fair!
The next few hours were spent at the ships stern watching as we pulled out of the port and began cruising down the coast of Florida. The sunset was so beautiful I felt like crying at the fact that some people get to see this every day, if only... As the sky darkened, the skyscrapers of Miami lit up with lights on the horizon which gradually became smaller as we sailed into the dark void.
At 7:45 we headed to the Dining Room, the fancy complimentary dining option for dinner. The place was packed meaning service was quite slow, although you'd have thought the staff would be used to this kind of rush by now, but the food was really quite delicious. We had intended to go to the first show of the cruise to 'Meet the Entertainers of the Volendam' but jetlag meant that I didn't think I'd enjoy it even if I went.
Day 2
For those who know me, or have read my travel blogs before, you'll know that I'm no good at relaxing, so the thought of days at sea filled me with a certain kind of dread. What was I supposed to do to pass the time? I'd brought George R. R. Martin's latest 700-page Game of Thrones novel, but would that be enough?! The ships clocks jumped forward an hour, which was actually better for us given the time difference back home, but it was still a too-early start for me.
However, this had its benefits as we took a stroll around the third floor deck - the only deck to have a promenade round the outside - with the orange sun lighting up the sea ahead of us. Breakfast was too much choice in the Lido Market, I opted for a healthy option of hash browns, French toast and a sticky bun. It was a quick change into gym gear for our 9:30am class of Stretch and Release to loosen up all those muscles, and then back to the Mainstage for a talk on What to See and Do in Our Ports. This was organised by the ships excursions team and was effectively a sales pitch of the excursions you could take, and whilst we'd decided not to do many of them, it was still interesting to see what options were available for each of the countries we would be visiting.
As you can probably tell by now, there appeared to be plenty to do, and I ducked out for a Kitchen Tour which, albeit short and lasting little more than five minutes as we wound our way through the kitchens, was really interesting with tonnes of stainless steel surfaces and the different areas that we passed through. I'd say it gets a lot more hectic around mealtimes!
At 11, I had my first engagement with Oprah, or her book club as the case may be, where we picked up a copy of Tayari Jones' 'An American Marriage' which we were set to read throughout the cruise for discussion at the end. I then went to America's Test Kitchen, based on the TV show of the same name, for a tutorial on Flavours of the Mediterranean where the TV chef showed us three recipes using olive oil. I'd never attended a cooking show before so found this really interesting, particularly given that we were on a ship currently passing Cuba at the time - stranger things have happened.
Lunch was another healthy affair of chips and cheesecake courtesy of the ships burger bar The Dive-In before spending the next few hours back in the Mainstage for talks on Making the Most of Your Visit to Curaçao & Aruba, and Welcome to the Rainforest.
The first was held by the same excursions team as earlier, but was not a sales pitch but more an informative talk on all the things to see and do in our first two destinations. This was quite useful to help us decide what non-organised things we might want to do as well as show off some stunning pictures of Willemstad and Oranjestad.
The latter was really interesting in that it was basically a lecture on the neotropical regions, their different ecozones and how different species have evolved over time due to migration barriers. It brought me back to my university days and I was glad that we had something so educational on the ship - I really feel like I learnt a lot (for instance, why I no longer want to eat figs...) and I'm sure the other attendees did as well.
Days at sea also involved a Classic Afternoon Tea in the Dining Room. I had pretty low expectations based on our experiences aboard the Nile Cruise in Egypt but was pleasantly surprised when it literally was an afternoon tea - three tiers of sandwiches, scones and cakes. I said I had started the trip as I meant to go on, eating!
Given I'd already had three meals during the day, I felt it was time to work off some of those calories by doing a few laps around the promenade which was pleasantly warm. I found it less boring than walking on a treadmill in a gym would have been, as the view was quite spectacular, sea on two sides, the boats trail behind us, and the faint glimpse of land in the distance.
That night was the first of our Gala Dinners, so we dressed up in our finery and headed to the Dining Room. We'd expected to have to share a table with other guests but were seated on our own again. I was a bit disappointed as felt this made us quite insular, so hoped we'd have the chance to eat with others later in the trip, at least just to see what it was like. Dinner was delicious, including cream of artichoke and carrot soup, ricotta stuffed shells, and chocolate soufflé. Always better enjoyed when dressed to the nines.
We headed on down to the Mainstage for a welcoming toast with the Captain which was all going fine until he accidentally spilled a tray of Champagne on the server (happens to the best of us...) This was followed by the World of Dance performance where ten performers executed different dance styles ranging from salsa to breakdancing, with some musical theatre type singing thrown in throughout for good measure. I was enraptured. It was just as good IMHO as a professional West End Show and totally worth seeing - I hope that the rest of the performances will be just as enjoyable.
Day 3
I woke up to choppier weather outside my window which made walking down the long hallways fun as you swayed from side to side. We started the day with a few promenades round the deck to get our daily exercise in before heading to breakfast to eat off all that hard work. The cruise staff were super friendly, with a number of the breakfast staff making an effort to learn my name and find out more about me - a lovely bunch of people.
After breakfast we were back for another session of Stretch & Release, again made more challenging as touching your toes is notably more difficult when the ship is trying to make you lose your balance, something not usually an issue in a normal gym! Next up was Meatless Monday Meals with America's Test Kitchen chef Maria where she taught us how to make a tofu rice bowl and bean burgers. I loved watching ATK as Maria was a great host, full of personality and not wasting a moment of 'airtime', chatting us through the process the whole time.
At 11, it was time for part two of 'Make the Most of Your Visit' with an informative chat on Costa Rica and its rich flora and fauna, and Nicaragua and what to do in Corinto. Lunch was taken at the Dive In with their flavoursome burgers and some more fries (of course) and then we were back to ATK for breakfast time, learning how to make fluffy omelettes and blueberry pancakes. In spite of only having eaten a half hour earlier, I was already salivating.
Much of the rest of the afternoon was spent in the Mainstage as we started a follow up to Welcome to the Rainforest to learn about neotropical mammals including monkeys, bats and sloths; followed by a talk on The Real Pirates of the Caribbean aka the Flying Gang, Blackbeard's hearty crew of pirates.
We took a few more laps around the deck before heading down for another absolutely delicious dinner of warming soup (necessary due to the ships freezing air con), beet farro, and sticky toffee and date pudding, quite unlike its British equivalent. One of my travel companions commented that his favourite part of the cruise so far was the food, and I'd have to say that I don't disagree, even if it's at the expense of my waistline.
We headed to the onboard atrium at 7pm for the lighting of the Christmas Tree where we were offered complimentary apple cider or hot chocolate and Christmas cookies. Carols were sung and the little tree in the centre was lit. Definitely a benefit of travelling over the holidays in that we get to experience special events other cruises throughout the year wouldn't have.
The night ended with entertainment on the Mainstage in the form of comedian Brian Bradley. He promised a 'playful blend of stand up & improvisation' - I'm hard to amuse, and have to say I didn't crack a smile throughout the performance, but perhaps this is due to the fact that I'm not quite his demographic, as a fair few of the jokes revolved around aching joints and little blue pills... But alas, there were a fair few hearty laughs around the room so I'd say he was a good choice for this cruise.
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