We have found the Rotterdam to be a beautiful ship. The crew members work very hard to keep her neat and clean and she responds like a fine wine, aging gracefully, with purpose.
We left San Diego around 6:30 PM Monday, approximately 1:00 hour late due to the fact that they had to strip down and reload most of the supplies. The rumor on board was that they had a slight bout with the Norovirus or intestinal flu while in South America. They replaced most of their food handling equipment and supplies and wiped down all public contact surfaces. For the first 48 hours, there were no buffets or open food service areas and before we enter the dining room, you must sanitize your hands. by day three, all was back to normal.
The storm that was hanging off San Diego’s coast Monday, proved to be quit a nuisance. We rocked and rolled for two days and experienced 40 mile per hour winds and 7 to 12.6 foot rollers. The back and knees surgery got a royal work out. Last night, the water calmed and has started to warm up a bit. This morning the ship is running smooth and true at an average speed of 20 knots with 4 to 7 foot rollers.
Day one at sea, the Cruise Critic group, of which I’m part, held a champagne, “meet & greet” which gave us the opportunity to meet Captain Krombeen and a few members of his staff. Being that this cruise was oversold, we sure don’t see very many people walking around. The dining rooms, however, are full at meal times.
The food is wonderful, as are the choices. Lunch and dinner are 4 courses and there are always as many as 6 entrée to choose from, not to mention the pizza grill. Breakfast is a free for all. There will be no dieting on this puppy. Last night was our first formal and Captains welcome aboard champagne party. The Captain introduced his staff and mingled for photo-ops. Dinner was equal to the occasion.
To day we toured the main galley today and met the Executive Chef. They have 102 people working in food services, from the executive Chef to the General purpose Attendants. They prepare nearly 170000 pounds of beef poultry and fish daily, let alone over 18000 eggs. They have a second galley for employees. Since 90% of the staff or either Indonesian or Pilipino, they have a 2 Indonesian chefs and 1 Filipino chef to prepare their food.
The closer we get to Hawaii, the warmer it getting, not that we’re in a hurry to get there, but every time the Captain comes on the horn with a log report, it does get your juices flowing. The temperature is 64 degrees and the water temperature is 74 degrees. We saw flying fish this morning, which is always a good indication that we are in tropical waters.
Well its nap time, so I will close here but will send more later.
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