Tag: Embarkation

Embarkation Day

Saturday, August 1, 2026

I had a restless night. I didn’t hear any noise from planes or the concert, but I couldn’t get the temperature right. I was either too hot or too cold. I also got a leg cramp. Frustrating. I got on up at 6:00 am.

The hotel free breakfast had some very nice options and the lobby was crowded with people taking advantage of it. We found a couple of seats with a view of the concert venue across the street.

UBER was there within 10 minutes of selecting it and it was only a 5-minute drive to the port drop-off area. We were told you could walk the route in about 20-25 minutes, but it would have been a struggle for us with the luggage.

Security at the Boston port is tougher than the airports. Laptops out, belts off, hats off, pockets completely emptied, etc. It’s best if you get all that done and stored in a backpack/purse/bag before you enter the security line as they really hassle you to get finish up and get moving.

It was 11:15 and priority boarding had already started. One worker with a bullhorn was going through the rooms telling people to be sure to complete the Canadian Declaration Form, found on tables in the waiting area, prior to boarding. She was very loud. Typically, the forms are waiting in the cabin to be completed but I guess they were trying something new. I didn’t care for it.

Once we were finally on the ship, we relaxed on the Sea View area to wait for the announcement that the cabins were ready. That announcement came at noon and once we got to our cabin, we found that 2 of the 3 pieces of luggage had been delivered.

Chuck went back to the Sea View area while I had to go to the Internet help desk area to find out why I was not getting the Internet I had already paid for pre-boarding. They gave me the dreaded words “You’ll have to go to guest services.” Damn. The guest services line on embarkation day is always long and filled with frustrated passengers. As we stood there, a HAL rep came down the line asking what our issue was to see if she could help. Most of the time, she would say “they will have to help you at the desk.” Sigh.

When I finally got the desk, their solution was for me to pay for Internet again and they would figure out what happened and then take the charge off. Wow. Now I would have to monitor the account to be sure they took off the charge.

I then went to the Dining Reservations desk and was able to make our two complementary meals for this week. I already had a Pinnacle dinner reservation through the Have It All Package so I made a Canaletto dinner reservation and a Pinnacle Grill lunch reservation for this week. I would have to wait until we reached Montreal to make our complementary reservations for next week.

We were finally ready to eat some lunch so we had sandwiches from the Lido. I prefer getting sandwiches from the NY Pizza and Deli station on the larger ships but these were okay.

Came back to the room to find our final piece of luggage delivered and was able to get everything stored with space to spare before time for the muster drill.

Yes, we had to participate in a full muster drill instead of just being able to be scanned at the lifeboat site.😒 Every ship has to have a full drill periodically and today was our lucky day. We all lined up at our lifeboat station and listened to the instructions. At least we didn’t have to wear life jackets. We also had to listen to the safety information on the cabin television which we had done earlier in the day.

Afterwards, we had the sail-away party which is always fun. It was also fun to watch the planes landing and taking off so close to us.

Eventually, the Casino opened so we spent some time there before going to the Mariners Welcome Reception at the Lido pool. I recognized the Captain as the one who was in charge of the Oosterdam when we went to South America/Antarctica in 2023 (my favorite cruise). I didn’t recognize any of the other officers. We did recognize two servers from previous cruises which is always fun. They called us by name. I don’t know how they remember.

We ate dinner in the Lido and then went to the Ocean Bar hoping for some dance music. Nope. The band was off tonight and in their place was two singers from the group Breton Thunder who performed some bluegrass and folk music. I always enjoy the Breton Thunder shows and planned to go to the ones this week but I was not really in the mood to sit and listen to the music tonight.

Chuck went back to the Casino to play some cards. I got some hot tea from the Lido and called it an early night.

Up next: Portland, Maine

Embarkation Days

February – I actually slept well the night before embarkation which rarely happens. The complimentary breakfast was fine. The day was overcast. We took an Uber to Port Everglades at 11:00 a.m. We arrived just as they were allowing boarding. We got in line, went quickly through security, got our faces and passports scanned and never stopped walking until we got to our room.

They hadn’t finished servicing the room so we dropped off our backpacks and got our keys. We were eating pizza from the New York Pizza on the Sea View level deck by noon. One of the easiest embarkations ever.

We checked into our muster station, watched the safety video, received all the luggage, got all our stuff stored, and met our room stewards – all before sailaway.

Our balcony room was a disappointment. Because this cruise was a casino offer, we had a guaranteed balcony room (we didn’t get to choose which one we wanted). This room was almost as far forward as you can get on the ship on Deck 5. The balcony had a metal panel instead of a plexiglass panel because of the wind force it would have to endure. Sitting, you could see in the distance but you couldn’t see what was happening close by.

I also had a notification that we had a Pinnacle Grill reservation that evening at 5:30. Nope. I didn’t make that reservation. I had to go get it cancelled.

The sailaway party was fun. We ate in the Lido for dinner. We skipped the Mariners welcome reception and the Welcome Aboard show on the Main Stage. We did attend all three sets of the Rolling Stone Band.

With such a full day, I was looking forward to a restful night. Being so far forward there was a lot of up and down motion but not enough to keep me awake. So, it was restful until about 1:00 a.m. when the balcony door blew open with a bang from the force of the wind. Sat straight up. The neighbors probably did too. Chuck got up and pushed it closed and locked it. It didn’t happen again. (The next day our room steward said “Oh, be sure to always lock your balcony door so it won’t blow open. Oh, okay. Wouldn’t want that to happen.)

February Sailaway

April – I had a terrible night’s sleep. Kept waking up and never going right back to sleep. I was glad when it was finally morning. The breakfast was fine. The day was sunny and breezy.

We got an Uber at 11:00 and walked right into the terminal building after dropping off our luggage with the porters. We were almost to the security line when we noticed that all the people who were already past security were not moving onto the ship. Security was not allowing anyone else to go through the scanners. So we stood. And we stood. More and more people were filling in behind us. Nobody seemed to know what was happening.

I told Chuck that it was either a computer problem or a problem with Customs clearing the ship. And we continued to stand. We soon saw the police come in and tell the port authorities that people were lined up in the street outside and they needed to move more people inside. HAL personnel started coming out with cans of water to give people. Not a great sign that we were getting on the ship any time soon.

Finally, the line started slowly moving. We got through Security. The problem – computer malfunction. The facial recognition system was not working properly and there were not enough people who knew how to check-in people with a manual process.

Chuck and I both went to a scanner. It would not recognize him. I was recognized and I was told to go on and board the ship. I said I was not going to board until Chuck could also board. They told me to just go to the waiting room which I did and sat where I could see him. I could see that it was hit or miss whether the system recognized people or not. Chuck was finally recognized at a different scanner. We stepped onto the ship at 1:00 p.m. – two hours after we left the hotel.

We had also gotten the bad news that our ship was selected to have a full muster drill which meant that we would have to line up at our life rafts for the Captain announcements, life jacket demonstration, etc. I didn’t see how the ship was going to get all the people on board and lined up for muster before our time to sail at 5:00.

Our room was ready. It was another guaranteed balcony room. It was on the fourth deck and the view was partially obstructed with life boats lined up slightly below the site line. Not great but the panel was plexiglass, so our view was okay.

We ate sandwiches at the New York Pizza and Deli on the 10th deck. As we were eating, the Captain announced that the full muster drill was cancelled and that we could do the expedited drill. Hallelujah! As soon as we finished, we checked in at our station. We had already watched the safety video.

I checked our room. Only 3 of our 4 bags had arrived. My biggest piece of luggage was not there. Not great.

Instead of attending the sailaway, we went to the Casino party. Every now and then we get invited to cruises that have extra casino comps. This was one of those cruises. They served free drinks and appetizers at the party. They had some free gifts for Chuck. They would also have some drawings throughout the cruise open only to the invited guests to win some free play money.

After the party, I checked our room again and my large bag had arrived. Thank goodness.

That evening we went to see the comedian who we both thought was “meh.” Went back to the New York Deli and Pizza and ordered pizza for dinner. We then went to the Casino which, not surprisingly, was very busy.

The last event of the day was attending the final set of the BB King Band. I slept soundly throughout the night.

Next up – Sea Day activities

Embarkation Day

Wednesday, August 6, 2025

So I slept better than I did the night before. I was up before 6:30. About 7:30, Chuck went across the street to a Dunkin Donuts. He brought back their excellent coffees and some breakfast sandwiches. After breakfast, I got all the bags repacked and tagged for the ship.

While Chuck was out and about this morning, he saw a man in a ballgown enjoying a leisurely morning stroll and a man in only his underwear singing and dancing down the sidewalk. Life in the big city. When we went out a little later just to kill some time before we had to checkout, we sat in the hotel swing and only saw some joggers and dog walkers.

At 10:45 we went to the lobby to meet with the HAL representative. The bus was supposed to be there at 11:00. At 11:15, the rep said “The bus is on its way. It’s just around the corner.” At 11:25, the rep said, “Oh, the bus just got hit by a car. Another bus is coming.” At 11:45, we were finally on a bus with the luggage. We pulled away from the curb, went one block, and were stuck in a huge traffic jam. It was stop and go all the way to the port. I knew it wouldn’t get any better once we were at the terminal. Serenity Now!

I enjoy sailing out of Boston because it is scenic and not usually too hot. I do not like Boston embarkations. The lines are typically long and slow. Today was no different. Not as bad as last year (see photo below) but long. The security screening is the worse. You would think they would at least follow the airports, but it is way stricter. I can’t think of another embarkation port that we have encountered that is worse.

September 2024 embarkation line in Boston

We had been notified that each person would also have to complete a Canadian declaration form while in the terminal. But, I guess the lines were slow enough, so they decided to put them in our stateroom instead. Thankful for small favors.

Once we finally made it out of the terminal, I thought we were home free. Nope. Not today. Once we got up the ramp, we were stopped on the promenade deck to do the final check-in to the ship. Typically, they do the final check-in once you are inside the ship.

There were two lines but one line was held up with a couple who had a small service dog. The couple was looking for all their paperwork while the HAL officer left to find someone higher up in rank to help. I wondered if they would end up getting on the ship or not.

I thought our line was moving okay until two people had to show their passports. They were waved on but then another HAL official saw something on the screen and pointed while saying “Passport Denied!” and took off after the people. The other HAL person seemed shook up. I thought she was going to stop the line, but she scanned our boarding passes and just let us keep going. Finally, we were onboard the Volendam.

We found our cabin easily and almost immediately one piece of luggage showed up. We went to brave the Lido for a lite lunch. It wasn’t too crowded. Afterwards, I went to the dining kiosk and made our specialty dining reservations.

We went back to the room and found our 2nd piece of luggage had arrived. We were able to get everything put away before the sailaway at 3:00. I met our room steward and inquired about the small refrigerator I had requested to rent for our room. He said it would be delivered before the end of the evening.

On some of the ships, like the Volendam, only refrigerators are available in verandas and above. On some of the newer ships, refrigerators are available in all of the rooms. I was glad to be able to rent one. We like to keep water and soft drinks in there.

I dropped off the Canadian Declaration form to Guest Services and then met up with Chuck at the sailaway party. It was a lot of fun as usual.

The Cruise Director and his team were very energetic. I left at 4:00 to go attend the Cruise Director’s port talk about Portland. I found out during the talk that all his talks would be recorded, and we could watch them in our cabin. Good to know.

Soon the Casino opened. It was very small but had some of our favorite machines. Chuck made sure that his free play was loaded on his card. We met the Casino host who remembered Chuck from one of the sailings on the Zuiderdam.

For dinner, we went to the Lido for their steak dinner.

We then went to the show in the World Stage – Ventriloquist Mike Robinson. He was very funny.

Once the show was over, we went to the last two sets of the Ocean Bar band. They were okay but I missed the Rolling Stone Rock bands on the larger ships.

We were ready to call it a night.

Tomorrow: Portland, Maine

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Saturday, April 5, 2025

Today was disembarkation for some, embarkation for others. For us, it was an in-transit day.

It was a bright sunny day but still chilly. We had no plans to leave the ship today so after a Lido breakfast, we made our way to the world stage so that all in-transit guests would be taken off the ship in a group – have our passports verified, and then you could either leave the ship or go back to the ship.

Once I was back on the ship, I took the time to go to the Specialty Dining Reservation booth to make a couple of reservations. I also had to go to Guest Services to show them that we were charged for our dinner last night at the Tamarind when we should have had it comped. I had tried taking care of it using the HAL Navigator app but the charge stayed on, so I had to go in person.

We had a pleasant afternoon chatting with new guests on the Sea View and enjoying the sun. We had to go to our muster station at 2:00, but we only had to have our cards scanned.

The sail-away party was at 3:30.

The Casino party was at 4:00. We received another Casino gift.

We were surprised to see that they had changed the times of the world stage performances from 7:30 and 9:30 to 6:00 and 8:00. We don’t know if this is a permanent change or just for tonight.

The comedian Jose Sarduy was performing his same show from last week, so we skipped it. We ate dinner in the Lido.

We went to the BB King Lounge to listen to the band. They started with a moment of silence for their friend. We stayed for the entire first set. I know it must have been hard for them to muster the energy to play.

We then went to the Rolling Stone Lounge to listen to their last two sets.

We decided not to wait up for the Casino to open and called it a night. When I hung up my jacket, I found that I managed to lose one of my gloves. Glad we are headed to Hawaii instead of Alaska. Will try lost and found at Guest Services tomorrow.

Also, Nathan the gnat is still with us. He has managed to elude our room stewards so far. I admire his spunk.

Tomorrow – Sea Days

Embarkation

Saturday, March 29, 2025

According to my Apple watch, I slept nine hours. I knew I was exhausted. I also woke up with a headache but luckily it went away after coffee.

The shower flow was terrible. Felt more like a rinse than a shower. At least the water was hot.

This hotel only offers a Grab-and-Go breakfast. They used to have a restaurant but the pandemic put an end to it. There were three choices of your to-go bag: an egg and sausage biscuit bag, a fruit and yogurt bag, and an egg and cheese wrap bag. They all came with water and juice and two granola bars. We both chose the biscuit bag. We heated them up in the room’s microwave.

While we were eating, I received a text from HAL letting us know that the ship was late coming into port due to wind and high sea swells. Our embarkation was pushed back to 1:30. This was a problem since our check-out was 11:00. The hotel graciously extended our check-out to 12:30 with no cost.

We checked out at 12:00 and got an Uber. We decided if it was chaos at the port, we’d drop our luggage with the porters and find a restaurant along the waterfront for lunch. We arrived at the port at 12:20. We were directed into the port building, went through security and were in our room by 1:00. No chaos whatsoever.

In our room, we found a gift from the Casino, an invitation to a Casino meet and greet party, and an itinerary for the weeks Casino drawings, etc.

As I mentioned in a previous post, even though we had never sailed the Koningsdam, we knew the layout because of our trips on its sister ship the Rotterdam. Because of this knowledge, we knew exactly where we want to go for lunch – The New York Deli and Pizza. I had the Manhattan Treat – a turkey, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing on rye bread. Chuck had the Reuben Rye – a hot corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing on rye bread. Each order came with potato chips. Sadly, we scarfed them down before I thought to get a photo.

I checked on our luggage and two of the suitcases had arrived in our room.

We went to the Sea View area on the back of the ship and immediately met a staff member who recognized us from our South Pacific cruise in 2022. He told us about two other staff members who were on that same cruise so that we could find them. Looking forward to seeing them.

We soon had to attend a full muster drill instead of just having our cards scanned and watching the video. At least we were able to go to the dining room (our muster station) for the information instead of standing out by the lifeboats.

After the muster drill, we went back to the Sea View for the sailaway party. It was fun with music, dancing, drinks, and appetizers. Thus begins our first leg of our B2B cruise – seven days up the Pacific Coast.

On the way to the Casino meet and greet, we stopped by the room again and our third piece of luggage had arrived. At the party, we talked to several people and met the casino hosts. The casino activities on this cruise are not as elaborate as the last one we attended but it was advertised as an “Ultra” Casino cruise and this one was advertised as a “VIP” Casino cruise.

We came back to the room and got all the luggage unpacked and stored under the bed. I never think we are going to find space for everything but somehow we do.

We decided to eat the steak dinner in the Lido. So did a lot of people. It was hard to find a spot to sit. A couple from Nevada invited us to eat at their table. We had a pleasant conversation. It wasn’t long before the casino opened.

Wow! The casino was so crowded. Being a Casino VIP cruise, I shouldn’t have been so surprised. I guess people had staked out their favorite machines early. I think it is going to be the tone for the next seven days.

Chuck made sure he had been credited with his promised “free play” money, and he had. We ended up playing an unfamiliar machine. We just “weren’t feeling it” so we headed to the BB King Lounge to listen to the Band.

I think the two singers are pretty good, but the backup band just overpowered their voices. The band also dragged out each song with unnecessary riffs. We stayed for the whole set but moved on to the Rolling Stone Lounge to listen to the Band’s last set.

They were good and played so you could hear the singers. They also didn’t talk a lot between songs like the last Rolling Stone band we had on the Rotterdam.

Once the set was over, it was after 11:00 pm and I was fading fast. Back to the room we went. It had been a good embarkation day.

There is a tiny gnat flitting about in our room. I have named him Nathan.

Tomorrow – Sea Day

Sailing Away

Sunday, February 2, 2025

So Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning. If you believe in the groundhog weather prognosticator, we have six more weeks of Winter. I really don’t think South Floridians care what the rodent predicted – it’s 80 degrees this morning in Ft Lauderdale.

Didn’t sleep great last night but I usually don’t in hotels. The free hotel breakfast was decent – serving both hot and cold food choices. I was very pleased with the taste of the all-important coffee. There were a number of guests taking advantage of the meal and seemed happy with it (except the one toddler who showed his distaste for the fruit loops by dumping his bowl on the floor). There’s always a food critic in every crowd.

At 10:45 we went to the lobby to get an Uber to the port. There were six cruise ships in port today. It took about 15 minutes for our Uber to arrive. I knew the traffic to the port would be heavy. It was. Once we got within a mile of the port, we crawled along at a snail’s pace.

However, by the time we reached the gate, we were ready with our passports to show and to answer “No” to their inevitable question “Are you carrying any firearms?”

There are several gated entrances into the port and the informational signage is good, but it never ceases to amaze me to look over at cars at the gates where people are obviously searching for their passports and holding up the queue. Read the signs people, Read.

I also wondered what would happen if someone in the car answered “Yes, I am fully armed.” Nothing good I imagine.

As soon as the Uber driver let us out at our terminal, porters were out in force ready to take our luggage and the tips. Once they had our luggage loaded on the carts, I looked in dismay at the embarkation line that stretched down the sidewalk and around the corner. Started walking toward it when I finally spotted the priority line. It was much shorter. Yay for being a long-time HAL cruiser!

Everything was going smoothly until I reached the point where they scan your passport and match it with your photo in their file. Chuck’s scanner immediately dinged success! My scanner stayed silent and flashed red. My passport and file photo didn’t match. ??? It matched in October but not now? What? – I have a few more wrinkles and I’m now unrecognizable? Rude. They took another photo of me and the passport scanner gave its ding of approval.

Finally on the ship but people were crowding the middle set of elevators that you see when you step onto the ship from the gangway. We walked down the hallway to the back of the ship and took those elevators. No waiting. There is also a bank of elevators in the front of the ship. I bet there wasn’t waiting for those elevators either.

We were assigned cabin 6158. It was not the one we chose. This one had a connecting door to the cabin next door. I’m not a fan of this type of cabin unless I know the person in the other cabin.

If you have a very noisy person in the cabin next door, the conversations, music, TV, etc. will seep through the door area as you lose that part of an insulated wall.

On one Carnival cruise, we heard a guy fight with his girlfriend back home every night over the phone. Each night, he would end the conversation with “It’s over! Go to Hell!” Next night – same thing. Always wondered what happened to them when he got back home.

The cabin that we chose could sleep 3 and the fine print in the ship contract does say that HAL has the right to move you to a comparable or better cabin if you don’t have the maximum number of people in the cabin and they need it for some family that does. We were moved to the same category cabin just down the hall from the one we chose. I could argue until I was blue in the face that getting a connecting room is not comparable, but I would just end up blue in the face and still be in the connecting cabin. I’m just hoping for the best.

We are primarily on this cruise because Chuck got invited to be a participant in this “Ultimate Gaming Cruise.” Since the cruise also coincided with my birthday, we decided to go for it. We were greeted in our room with a bottle of champagne, special lanyards, an invitation to the opening party, and a list of the special activities the casino would be hosting for the 12 days. We were also happy to note that two people we met on an earlier cruise would also be on this cruise.

I was very glad to hear that we were not going to have the traditional muster drill of standing shoulder to shoulder at the lifeboats – especially in the heat and humidity. Every ship has to do one of those types of drills periodically but today was not the day.

After we had our key cards scanned at our muster station and watched the safety video, we decided to avoid the Lido for lunch and just go to the NY Deli and Pizza area one deck above the Lido deck. Good choice. Neither the bar nor the deli area was busy, and we had our sandwiches and beverages quickly. Chuck was even recognized by one of the bar staff who remembered him from an earlier cruise.

After we ate, I went to the dining kiosk and made our specialty restaurant reservations. We then went back to the cabin to see if the luggage had arrived. Nope. No worries – we unpacked the carry-on and the backpacks.

At 3:00, we went to the sailaway party. It was fun with music, food, and beverages. Afterwards, we went back to the cabin to see if the luggage had arrived. Nope. Hmmm. We’ve usually gotten our luggage by sailaway. But I know the ship is sailing full so trying not to worry.

At 4:00, we went to the Casino party with our friends from the previous cruise. It was fun with food, beverages, introductions to the casino staff, and giveaways (our name was not called). Afterwards, we trekked back to the cabin to see if the luggage had arrived. Yay! – my piece of luggage had arrived. Boo! Chuck’s luggage was still missing in action. We got my bag unpacked and stored under the bed.

We played some slots before the Casino became very crowded. Once it did become packed with players (I did mention that this was an Ultimate Gaming Cruise – we weren’t the only ones invited. 😊), we went to the Lido for their “Welcome Aboard” steak dinner.

We typically choose the Lido on the first night as the main dining room always seems disorganized on the first night. I was happy to see the Lido was offering mussels along with the steaks. Chuck also got a steak but did a “hard pass” on the mussels. Just more for me.

We then went to the first set of the band in the Rolling Stone Rock Lounge. They are very good musicians but are more of a show band than a dance band. Maybe we will have better luck with the BB King band.

Once the set was over, Chuck was eager to play cards. I stopped by the Grand Dutch Cafe and got a piece of Dutch apple pie for me and a Bossche Bol (giant chocolate creme puff) for Chuck. I took them both back to the cabin. Yay! His suitcase had arrived. Whew! Once I got it unpacked, I was ready to listen to the waves from the balcony, eat my dessert, and call it a night.

Tomorrow – Half Moon Cay.

B2B: Embarkation Day

Saturday, August 24, 2024

Ended up getting up at 5:30 again. The air conditioner was loud and woke me up every time it kicked on, but it did have cold air. Our bathroom walk-in shower had a rain shower type of shower head. I am not a fan. I just can’t get the water pressure strong enough. It also did not have a safety bar or bathmat. Have to be cautious.

We had our luggage tagged with the cruise tags and the color dots given to us at the hotel and ready to be picked up. We were instructed to keep the luggage just inside the room. Not wanting a huge breakfast buffet at the hotel (or the big bill), I found a Chik-fil-A that was just a few minutes from the hotel (in the opposite direction of where we walked yesterday).

It was a cool morning but sunny. We ordered at the counter and had planned to eat in their upstairs dining room, but it was closed for cleaning. We could have taken our coffees and chicken biscuits back to the hotel but just decided to eat at the outdoor tables. It was a busy place with people in and out with their orders.

Our luggage was being picked up as we returned to the room. Our instructions said to come down to the lobby area at 10:30 to ensure that our luggage had arrived in the Ballroom. Okay. At 10:30, I did that and found our 3 pieces in the Blue section as promised.

We had already been told that embarkation would be delayed today because of a mandatory Coast Guard inspection of the ship so we knew our arrival was going to be later than usual. All of us assembled in the Ballroom at 11:15 to wait for our busses. One bus came (not ours), and the rest were stuck in traffic (of course).

Once our bus came and the luggage started to be rolled out on carts and loaded, I could see that one of our bags was not with the others. Chuck brought it to the attention of the representative who assured him that all were on. My Apple airtag said otherwise. We insisted it was not and he said he would double-check the hotel ballroom. A few minutes later my airtag locator said the last bag was with me. Wonder if the other people who also had luggage on that last cart knew how close we came to leaving without it.

We got to the terminal about 1:00 and were faced with a very long line. We also had to wait for porters to get our luggage off the bus. (Tip – flash some cash and your luggage will get grabbed by the porters first). Obviously, the inspection was taking far longer than expected. It took another hour for us to get on the ship and there were many people behind us. Not a great start and we weren’t going to be leaving at 3:00.

We are in the turn of the line – people with their backs to us are in front of us – people facing us are behind us.

We had a very small inside cabin for these two trips. Since these cruises were casino-comped, we would make do. We could have taken some upsell offers but because the cruise was full, the offers were not worth the money they wanted (in our opinion).

We left our backpacks in the room, and we went to our muster station to be checked in. Very quick. Just don’t know why people wait until the last minute to get it done. I would be embarrassed if my name had to be called over the loudspeaker.

We went to the Sea View area. None of the sailaway activities had started so I went to the Dining Reservation desk to make our complimentary Pinnacle Grill and Canaletto dinner reservations. I met back up with Chuck and we went back to the room to check on luggage arrival. The bags had been delivered so we got those unpacked while watching the safety video on the TV (your TV won’t work unless you watch the video first). Also got to meet our room stewards – Raja and Joshem – and complete the Canadian customs form.

By the time we got back to the Sea View area, the sailaway activities had started.

Because we had such an early breakfast and didn’t really eat lunch due to the crowded Lido Buffet (HAL has stopped the sit-down embarkation Mariner lunch which is a big disappointment to me), we were ready for an early dinner. We opted for the steak dinner in the Lido. We got there early enough that they would grill your steak to your specifications. Later in the evening, you would have to choose among the ones that were ready. Both of our steaks were excellent.

By the time we finished, the Casino was open. Chuck was supposed to get some free casino play money on this first leg of the cruise but, according to their paperwork, “he wasn’t on the list.” However, according to my paperwork, he most definitely was supposed to be on the list. He got his free play money.

We had some slot fun playing old favorites “Wonder Woman” and “Devil’s Lock” and some new ones “Dancing Drums” and “Fortune Harmony.”

After listening and dancing to three sets of the Rolling Stone Lounge Band, we called it a night.

Tomorrow – Bar Harbor