HERE IS WHAT'S NEXT
starting Dec 21, 2018




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Monday, November 20 – Valletta, Sorta Free at last! Free at last!  Following the shortest quarantine in the ship’s history – less than 24 hours – D was able to have breakfast in the MDR and to go anywhere he wanted.  Of course, he was advised to take it easy the first day, so breakfast was soft-boiled eggs and toast.  It was reminiscent of watching his father eat the same thing every day for eternity.  The only difference was that there was no springer spaniel to catch buttered toast.  [Are you reading this, Linda?] As for Malta, we saw the major archeological sites as well as some of the historical ones in 2009 and had decided before the noro episode to stay aboard today.  Several of the MDR staff expressed curiosity about Valletta and Cuba, so D tried to connect the laptop to the printer in the “library” to print out our journals, but to no avail.  Our journals may would probably have bored or confused the waiters anyway. So today is “bi...
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Sunday, October 29 – Wasted Efforts Another sea day started in fog, according to the captain, but the sky was only a bit cloudy and the sun was bright enough that the MDR curtains were still drawn on our side of the ship when we went for breakfast.  The Atlantic was so smooth that the only motion we could detect was the Veendam’s wake.  It was as if we were standing still. When we returned to the cabin after breakfast, we found that the stewards had not cleaned it for the day, so we took our tablets and the NYT puzzle in search of a place to work.  After several false starts, we ended up in the Explorer’s Lounge, a space frequently used for concerts by a piano-violin duo.  This morning, it was empty when we got there but became busier when a group traveling with Cruise Specialists used it for a meet-and-mingle.  MA didn’t even notice their presence, and we worked on our respective copies of the puzzle until we were bleary-eyed.  Once again, the roo...
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Monday, November 27 – Casablanca The Casablanca port is strictly commercial.  There is no cruise terminal and the only way out is on a ship’s tour, a private tour or a shuttle bus.  The walk to the assorted buses seemed to be a half-mile or so although that may be an exaggeration.  It was long enough that the walkers and wheel chairs were moving very slowly by the time they returned from their tours. We have been here several times, starting in 2001.  On that first visit, and on the advice of Jon and Briton, we took the ship’s tour to Marakkech.  Jon had told us that Casa, as it is known was just a big, dirty European city.  He was right. Further visits have taken us to Rabat and, last year, on a Jewish heritage tour of the city which included a visit to, and tour of, the Hassan II mosque.  So, we’ve “done” Casablanca and did not even consider the 5 euro shuttle to the UN Plaza.  We’ve seen it, too, and did not want to do any shopping...
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