May 3-8, 2012: Crossing the Atlantic | |
May 2, 2012: The Noordam Sails | |
Return to the Index for Our Cruise to Europe |
Before we cross the Atlantic, it would probably be a good idea to familiarize you with the ship we are on. I'll do this by including on this page the pictures that we took in our stateroom, on the various outside decks, and inside in the various public areas. For example, we were in and out of our stateroom all the time, and we took pictures there on lots of different days. It just makes sense to bring them all together in one place (and eliminate repetition). The same is true for the various outside decks and the various public areas. Some of the public areas, such as the dining areas, will be shown on pages a bit later on.
For now, let's begin with some information about the Noordam itself. Then I can show you our stateroom, we can move to the various decks, and I can show you some of the public areas.
Holland America's MS Noordam
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We didn't partake of all of its features, but there was a free Digital Workshop; a Culinary Arts Center a demonstration kitchen offering interactive gourmet cooking lessons; the Greenhouse Spa & Salon; the Pinnacle Grill, a small, reservations-only venue offering premium beef and seafood; the Canaletto Restaurant (where we ate three times) that offeed premium Italian fare in the evenings; the Explorations Café, which was a library and coffee house environment; the Crow's Nest, offering sweeping 270° views; and, of course the Vista Lounge- the large showroom where we saw shows almost every evening. You'll see some of the pictures we took of these areas a bit later on.
The Layout of the MS Noordam: Deck Schematics
Deck 6: Upper Promenade Deck
At left is a scrolling window that holds the deck plan for our deck. If you use the scroll bar at the bottom of the window, you can scroll left and right across the plan of this deck. As with all the deck plans, we will put the bow ("front" or "forward") of the ship at the left and, of course the stern ("back" or "aft") of the ship at the right. Obviously, this means that the right ("starboard") side of the ship is at the top and the left ("port") side of the ship is at the bottom. Our suite is marked; it was Suite 6052 which is forward and on the port side, right at the point where there is a jog in the interior layout and the staterooms along the side of the ship become a little smaller.
Getting from our stateroom to anyplace else on the ship simply depended on whether our destination was forward or aft. If it was aft, like the dining room, we simply left our stateroom, turned right, walked to the end of the corridor and out into the elevator/stair lobby. Then we either walked up a couple of flights to the buffet, or down a few flights to the dining room. Forward locations, such as the gym, were most conveniently reached by turning left outside our door, jogging around the bend in the hallway and going to the forward elevator/stair lobby. Then we could go up a few flights and be right outside the gym, or down a few flights and be right outside the Vista Lounge.
Of course, we could walk forward and aft on any deck, but the public decks are harder to navigate, as they are more crowded and because you have to go through or around things like the casino or the shops. So to get quickly from one end of the ship to the other, we either used our own deck or one of the upper, open decks.
Deck 9: The Lido Deck
Also on this deck, we spent a good deal of time at the stern, looking out the way we had come. On either side of the ship near the stern were outside stairs that led up to Deck 10, which we'll look at in a moment. The aft stairways ended at the Lido Deck, so if we wanted to get to Deck 10 from our stateroom, we'd either have to use the elevators or the forward or midship stairs.
Forward of the Lido Restaurant is the main swimming pool, and around it there are tables and chairs where you can eat lunch or breakfast (or dinner, if you want to carry food a longer distance). I've marked the spot where we usually met for breakfast. I've also marked the location of the grill that's open all day; it serves hamburgers and hot dogs and French fries all day long. (There was also a taco bar that was open until six or seven in the evening.) After shore excursions, we would usually come up here for a snack by the pool, before heading to the gym or doing something else.
At the forward starboard corner of the pool area is an enclosed spiral staircase that is the best way to get up to Deck 10 from this area. Inside, and forward of the pool is the forward elevator/stair lobby, and when we went to the gym we typically came up these stairs from the Rotterdam Deck. That way, we didn't have to go through public areas with our gym clothes on. The Fitness Center itself was a really good one, although the recumbent bikes didn't have their own TVs and earpieces. Most times, we were here late enough that the gym was pretty much empty; if it was an aerobic day, there'd be a recumbent bike available, and I either read the daily newspaper or one of my magazines or played a game on my iPhone. On weight-training days, I did just a short aerobic stint and then used the freeweights or machines for an hour or so.
Deck 10: The Observation Deck
Along the sides of this deck, which people used mainly for strolling or getting some sun, there are good opportunities for taking pictures- but not all the way along the deck. The deck area on either side of the stacks has a high plexiglas wall- and I am not sure why. There were shuffleboard alleys in this area, but I can't imagine anyone lofting a puck high enough to make it over a rail (seeing as how from the rail down to the deck is closed). The glass walls did shield the area from the wind, though, and maybe that was the intent. What that meant, though, was that while we walked through these areas on either side frequently, from the stairs up from the Lido deck aft to the baffles forward, we didn't take any pictures from this area. An area stretching thirty or forty feet from the aft stairs, and the area alongside the pool cover were open though, with just chest-high wood rails and enclosures below, and so when we wanted to take pictures coming into a port or something like that, we could do so from here.
All the way forward on this deck was the Crow's Nest Lounge. Here, in addition to the normal accoutrements of a bar/lounge, there were banquettes all along the arc at the windows forward, and this was a great place to get a view ahead. For my own part, I often like to be outside and looking ahead (like in the movie "Titanic"). On our first cruise, the Royal Caribbean "Jewel of the Seas," the bow was easy to get to and almost always open. On our second, on the Celebrity Century, the bow was never open. On our Panama Canal cruise on the Oosterdam, the bow was only opened twice- once when we went through the canal. But I did learn the way to it on that ship, which stood me in good stead here. On the Noordam it was, apparently, the practice to leave the door to bow unlocked, so if you knew how to get to it (via the starboard hallway down on deck 4) you could get out there at will. Sometimes, it was opened "offically," as when we passed Stromboli on our second cruise, and at those times there were signs in the forward stairs/elevators directing passengers to it. But this cruise was more like our first one in that I could usually get to the bow when I felt like it.
Usually, late at night, there were solo performers here in the Crow's Nest Lounge, and Fred and I would come up sometimes to have a listen. Also on this deck, in the starboard Oak Room, the LGBT Meetings were held during the cruise, and there were usually ten to fifteen guys there. This is where we met David and Frank, a very nice couple who alternated between homes in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico, and Marbella, Spain. They were a pleasure to talk to, and we have invitations to come visit them in Mexico some winter when they are there.
Deck 3: The Promenade Deck
We totally skipped the "shopping opportunities" presented by the Arcade, but walked through it frequently. Aft of it where the midship elevators and stairs. Here, there were also two pairs of outside glass elevators on either side of the ship. We took these most of the time, since in addition to the ride up or down you got a view as well. You could also take these elevators down to the debarkation station for the shore excursions. Further aft was the three‑storey Atrium. On this level, there were winding stairs down to Deck 2 and the Atrium itself was surrounded by bars. In the evening, there was usually live music somewhere around the atrium on this level. You can see the stairs down both to Deck 2 and to Deck 1 here.
Finally, all the way aft on this level was the upper level for the Vista Dining Room. The dining room itself was open in the center to the deck below, and there were winding stairs up and down. I supposed that out of the nineteen nights we were on the cruise, we ate here twelve of them. When we did, most of those were with all six of us, although there were a couple of times when the other guys were doing their own thing and it was just Fred and I.
Deck 2: The Lower Promenade Deck
Further aft was a smaller showroom that we patronized a couple of times, as it was here that the movies were shown. This venue used to be a dedicated movie theatre, but I suppose that the cruise line realized that it was underused just for movies. So it was converted to the Culinary Arts Center- where cooking demonstrations and classes alternated with movies and various small shows. Crossing the midship elevator lobby (on this deck and below the glass elevators are totally enclosed) we come again to the Atrium. On this level portside was the Pinnacle Grill. Most cruise ships have these specialty restaurants that charge a fixed additional fee but serve more upscale food in a more intimate setting. We ate in this restaurant twice on the Oosterdam, but on this cruise we didn't; we went to Canaletto when we wanted to avoid the Main Dining Room.
Further aft starboard was the Explorer's Lounge. This area served coffee, pastries and drinks, and there was usually some live music, mostly subdued strings, and so it was a good place to just sit and relax. Finally, all the way aft was the main floor of the Vista Dining Room. As I said, we ate here quite a few times. Sometimes we were seated upstairs, sometimes down. Unlike our first two cruises, dinner seating was variable; you could make a reservation for any time you wished, or just show up and wait for a table. The first night we allowed the maitre d' to assign us to a large table; that's how we met Jim and MaryEllen. Other nights, we came with friends we had met, or just the three of us, or just Fred and I. On the second night of the cruise, when we learned that the maitre d' was "family" and what his name was, we introduced ourselves and from then on were seated quickly and at just the type of table we wanted.
Deck 1: The Main Deck
This was about the only time we were on Deck 1. Other than the bottom of the Vista Lounge, the customer desks amidships and some crew areas aft, this deck was also mostly staterooms. (No balconies here, just windows.) When we went on a shore excursion (of which we signed up for three), our tickets always had us meeting here in the Vista Lounge. When it was time for our group to board the tender or take the gangway to the dock, our tour guide would lead us out the starboard lower exit from the lounge, down the starboard stateroom hall and to the midship stairs and elevators. The bottom of the Atrium was on this deck as well.
Deck A: Shore Debarkation/Embarkation
Our Stateroom: Upper Verandah Deck Suite 6052
In a moment, I'll show you some still pictures of the suite, but a bit of description is in order. The entrance to the large bath was just on the left as you entered, and on the right was a large bank of closets and drawers. Each of us got our own closet and a couple of drawers there. Entering the room, the big bed was on the left, flanked by two nighttables. On the right was a large desk and mirror with a little stool chair. Further in, the sofabed was on the right. At the end of the suite, beyond the big bed on the left, there was another desk, a flat-screen television (the picture from Holland America at left must be an old one). This is where I set up the laptop, and there was a nice window looking out. This desk also contained the mini-fridge. Further back was the extra space we got for the upgraded suite, and the chairs and coffee table you see in the picture here were actually back in that area, opening up the room a great deal. Outside the deck window on the verandah was a circular table and two chairs, and on the right outside the door were two chaise lounges with footstools and a small table between them. All in all, the suite was perfectly suited to the three of us, and we never felt cramped.
If you will click on the small pictures below, you can see some of the pictures we took of our actual suite:
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Those pictures give a pretty good idea of what the suite was like, but perhaps a movie would be even better.
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Since we first got a room with a balcony on our second cruise, we've gotten used to having it, and now probably wouldn't cruise unless we had that type of room. It is just a pleasure to be able to go outside, have a seat, and watch the ocean (or the land) go by. And we did a lot of that on this cruise.
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Fred took a number of good pictures from the verandah during the cruise; click on the thumbnails below to see some of them:
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Here are some other pictures that Fred took from the verandah during our cruises (click on the thumbnails to view):
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Outside on Deck Aboard the MS Noordam
Deck 11: The Sports Deck
On either side of the tower there is a stairway up from Deck 10, and these stairways are the only way (other than a crew elevator) to reach this deck. We didn't take many pictures from here; the smoked glass gets in the way. That's a shame, because this would be an excellent observation point to look forward at the sea ahead, and it would be an excellent place to observe the activities as the ship comes into a port.
We really didn't have occasion to use Deck 11, although we wandered up to the lounging area once or twice. And we didn't get any interesting pictures from the deck.
Deck 10: The Observation Deck
The Observation Deck is really the only totally open deck from bow to stern. Actually, the open part of the deck begins at the stairs down from the forward part of Deck 11. The area on this deck forward of the Lido Pool cover was a prime viewing area. On the starboard side, there is an enclosure for a spiral stairway leading down to the Lido Pool area. We used this stairway frequently, usually to get from the restaurant up to the open deck after breakfast or lunch. You can see this enclosure in a shot that Fred took one evening of me on deck 10. Since we'd taken lots of pictures of this deck when we were on the Oosterdam, we didn't think that more photos of essentially an identical deck were needed. However, I did get one very good picture of Fred on this deck midway through the cruise. It was taken just aft of the sport aft corner of the movable cover over the main pool on the Lido deck below, looking forward. You can see it here
Behind Fred in the previous picture is the Lido Pool's retractable roof (more in a bit when we go down to Deck 9). It is a huge mechanical affair, and it allows use of the pool area during cool or rainy weather, and this ship does do quite a few itineraries that take it into cooler, rainier climes. The open deck runs along either side of the cover, and these lengths are the longest unobstructed viewing areas on the ship. From the starboard open deck above the Lido Pool, you can see the pool, its retracted cover and the port side walkway here. On either side of the ship, just aft of the Lido Pool cover, the deck comes to a set of baffles that you have to navigate through to continue aft. Again, we presume that these baffles, which force you to execute a tight "S" curve, are to shelter the area beyond from the wind. On the port side of the ship, just aft of the first set of baffles, a door leads in to a Deck 10 area that is above the forward portion of the Lido Restaurant; it is the "Kid's Club" for the Noordam's younger passengers. (I doubt that I saw two kids on this particular cruise.)
As you walk aft after the forward set of baffles, you pass long rows of and then you come to and pass through the aft baffles. Past these, the glass wall ends the rail opens up. There are more deck chairs here, and there is also good viewing from this area. At the furthest aft portion of Deck 10, you find yourself on a balcony that overlooks the Sea View Pool that is at the stern of the ship on Deck 9. The balcony belongs to a larger suite, but I wouldn't like the idea of people looking down on me. At the aft end of this deck you can look out over the Sea View Pool to the view astern. The railing here is a good place to take pictures when leaving a port.
This as far astern as you can go on this deck. To continue aft, you have to descend a set of stairs down to the Lido Deck.
Deck 9: The Lido Deck
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Mostly, passengers used the stern deck either as a seating area for the Lido Restaurant (just forward inside), or as an area to get some sun, or to attend special functions held out here occasionally. I believe this was the tail-end of a wine tasting that was held one afternoon.
At the stern of the ship, you can't actually look directly down at the water, though. There are staterooms at the stern of the ship; most of these being large suites for groups and families, and if you look directly down from the rail at the stern, you are looking at the verandahs of the stern staterooms on Deck 8- the Navigation Deck.
There is one other open area on the Lido Deck, but not many people knew about it as it is a bit tricky to get to. If you head along the port side of the ship and go by the Lido Pool, you'll enter the spa/fitness area. Crossing over to the starboard side of the ship through the elevator lobby, you can turn left (forward) and head down the hall to the gym. But instead of going into the gym, you can continue down the hall, through a doorway to the outside and onto a crescent-shaped observation area that wraps around the front of the gym. If the bow is not open, this is the best place to be for the view ahead. We took pictures from here, but they were when we were entering a port, and so you'll see some of them on the daily cruise pages.
Deck 4: The Upper Promenade Deck
Deck 4 is almost entirely staterooms, but if you take the forward elevator or stairs down to that deck, then go over to the starboard side of the ship and follow the residential hallway that leads forward, you'll find, at the forward end of the hall, a watertight door. Sometimes it is locked, but most times it is not. Pull down on the handle and step through the door and you'll be in a small anteroom, with another watertight door ahead of you. Open that one, step over the bottom of the doorway and you will be on the open bow of the ship.
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We also came out here when the bow was "offically opened," as when we past one of the Italian volcanoes. At those times, the captain would make an announcement that they would put up directional signs in the forward elevator lobby directing people to the bow. (They'd also have crewmen positioned at both watertight doors to make sure people didn't trip on the raised doorframes, and sometimes even serve cocktails outside.)
Below are some thumbnail images for some of the other pictures we took out here on the bow; just click on them to view the full-size images:
Deck 3: The Promenade Deck
Decking is represented by the areas covered by narrow parallel lines, and so you can see that on the Promenade Deck, you can walk all around the periphery of the ship.
Walking the Promenade Deck |
You can use the player at left to walk along with us.
You can see a picture of Fred, just before we went inside, here. We'd walked totally around the Promenade Deck on our second day at sea; the walk is continuous and you just have to dodge the joggers. Forward, the walkway actually goes in front of the Vista Lounge. But it is like a tunnel- there are staterooms above you and crew facilities in front, so while you are crossing from one side of the ship to the other you can't see much. At the stern, it is a little different. The outside walkway goes around behind the upper level of the Vista Dining Room and you can actually look out at the ocean behind. But along the sides of the ship, you are walking a deck that is open to the outside. While there no deck directly above you, once again you can't see much because the lifeboats are hanging above you on their davits.
Main Public Areas Aboard the MS Noordam
Explorations Cafe and Library (Promenade Deck, Deck 3, Starboard Midship Forward)
We didn't spend a great deal of time here (although we were frequently in the card rooms across the main walkway). I did come down with some computer access questions occasionally, or to pick up a daily newspaper. On our day docked at Civitavecchia between cruises, though Fred and I wandered through and took some photos. You can click on the thumbnail images below to have a look at them:
The Crow's Nest (Deck 10, Forward)
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The Fitness Center (Lido Deck, Deck 9, Forward)
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Use the player below to watch a movie I made in the gym on the morning we arrived in Lisbon:
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The Lido Pool (Lido Deck, Deck 9, Midship)
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The pool was surrounded by lounge chairs and then by small round tables and chairs; this was a popular place for folks to eat at lunchtime, and we had breakfast in this area frequently. Just near the doors to the midship elevator lobby on the port side was the Lido Bar.
The Lido Restaurant (Lido Deck, Deck 9, Midship)
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At night, one area of the restaurant was sectioned off and became the Canaletto Restaurant serving upscale Italian cuisine. Unlike the Pinnacle Grill, this "restaurant" didn't charge an additional fee, but you did need reservations. We ate there three times. Also at night, the buffet is more limited, as most people seemed to eat in the Vista Dining Room.
The Atrium (Decks 3, 2 & 1, Midship)
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While we were in Civitavecchia between cruises, I had an opportunity to film the atrium (while the string quarted rehearsed). You can watch that movie with the player below:
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The Vista Dining Room (Decks 3 & 2, Aft)
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The "As You Like" passengers entered the dining room on Deck 2, where the maitre d' would take your seating requests and then either seat you immediately or have you wait just a few minutes just inside the entrance until your table was ready or the rest of your group arrived.
The food was great most of the time, although there was the occasional overdone steak or dry fish. Sometimes we got tired of sitting through five courses, and we just went to the Lido, but it was nice being served in some semblance of style.
The only complaint we really ever had was that the Vista Dining Room was oriented more to folks who liked to stretch out their dining experience, and perhaps make a lot of conversation between courses. That's OK, I guess, if you are eating with a large group of people you know nothing about as yet, but when it was just Fred and I, or just the three of us, it was often hard to fill the time with chit-chat. I didn't mind not eating in the Dining Room all the time, for the same items usually showed up at the Lido Buffet either the same day or the next day. On cruises, I have become particularly fond of lamb with mint jelly, and tend to order it whenever it is available. (It may just be that I am fond of mint jelly, as I tend to use a lot of it.)
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The Hudson Card Room (Promenade Deck, Deck 3, Port Midship)
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I enjoyed being the observer/advisor/teacher at our morning games; except for one morning when I'd been taking pictures up on deck before our game, none of us brought our cameras, so the only picture I have is the one of Fred lost in thought that you can see at left.
The Vista Lounge (Promenade/Lower Promenade Decks, Decks 3 & 2, Forward)
For now, I just want to introduce you to the Vista Lounge. Each of the showrooms on our cruises has been an opulent space, and the Vista Lounge was no exception. It takes up three decks. The balcony is entered from Deck 3, while the main floor is entered from Deck 2. Two interior staircases connect the two. The main floor slopes down from the Deck 2 entrance so that by the time you get to the banquettes right in front of the stage, you are actually on Deck 1.
On either side of the main room there were aisle stairs, and bordering them some really neat Art Deco lighting fixtures. We sometimes sat in the first row behind the banquettes- where the cross-theatre aisle was- but mostly we sat either in the balcony or halfway up the main seating section on one side or the other. It didn't matter much; unless you were right behind one of the six columns along the side, the view was excellent.
While we took lots of pictures here in the Vista Lounge, almost all of them were during shows, so we'll save those for later in this album.
The Piano Bar (Lower Promenade Deck, Deck 2, Starboard Forward)
But we did enjoy dropping by the piano bar just to listen, and both of the players were pretty good. As you can see in the picture, there is a counter that surrounds the piano. In front of the piano, behind the stools that were under that bar, there was a wall with a long bench seat along it. This is where we usually sat to listen.
Conclusion: Aboard the Noordam
The MS Noordam: Ship Decoration
Fred and I took a number of pictures during both our cruises on the Noordam, and I have gathered them all together here in a series of galleries. I want to begin with the aft stairs, which, from level to level, showcased a great deal of nautically-themed, Holland-themed, and/or Dutch artworks.
Aft Stairs Artwork
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"Some History of Navigation I" by Leentje Linders (The Netherlands, 2005) |
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Named Artworks
Rudderhead "Reclining Lion" (from MS Noordam III)
Rudder Sculpture "Fish with Twisted Tail" (Netherlands, 19th Century)
"King William I" (Netherlands, unknown date/artist)
"Early Morning at Scheveningen Beach" (Netherlands, 20th Century)
Other Ship Decoration
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Of course, with so many pictures, giving you a few score thumbnails to have to click on individually seems to me to be way too much of a burden for you if you want to see these pictures. So I have decided to put all these pictures into a slideshow, so all you will have to do is click to go from picture to picture. The pictures will be randomly arranged, except that the pictures we took of the ceiling of the Vista Dining Room (which was decorated with Chihuly-like art glass) will be grouped together.
To view the slideshow, just click on the image at left and I will open the slideshow in a new window. In the slideshow, you can use the little arrows in the lower corners of each image to move from one to the next, and the index numbers in the upper left of each image will tell you where you are in the show. When you are finished looking at the pictures, just close the popup window.
Now that you're familiar with the ship, let's begin the cruise!
You can use the links below to continue to another album page for the cruise.
May 3-8, 2012: Crossing the Atlantic | |
May 2, 2012: The Noordam Sails | |
Return to the Index for Our Cruise to Europe |