Our new Itinerary

This is our new reservation. 114 days from Ft Lauderdale and back going west.

Itinerary

January 5 – Fort Lauderdale, Florida

January 6-8 – at sea

January 9 – Santa Marta, Colombia

January 10 – San Blas Islands, Panama

January 11 – Cruising Panama Canal

January 12 – Crossing the Equator

January 13 – Manta, Ecuador

January 14 – 21 at sea

January 22 – Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Islands

January 23 – at sea

January 24-25 – Papeete, Tahiti

January 26– Bora Bora, French Polynesia

January 27 – at sea

January 28 – Rarotonga, Cook Islands

January 29 – at sea

January 30 – Alofi, Niue

January 31 – Cross International Dateline

February 2 – Nuku Alofa, Kingdom of Tonga

February 3 - 4 – at sea

February 5 - 6 – Auckland, New Zealand

February 7 – Waitaingi , New Zealand

February 8 – 9 - at sea

February 10 - 11 – Sydney, Australia

February 12 – at sea

February 13 – Melbourne, Australia

February 14 – at sea

February 15-16 – Adelaide, Australia

February 17 – 18 - at sea

February 19 - Albany, Australia

February 20 - at sea

February 21 – 22 - Perth (Fremantle), Australia

February 23 - Geraldton, Australia

February 24 – 25 - at sea

February 26- 27 – Benoa, Bali, Indonesia

February 28 - at sea

March 1 – Semarang, Java, Indonesia

March 2 – Tanjung Priok, Jakarta

March 3 – Crossing the Equator

March 4 - 5– Singapore

March 6 – Pt. Klang/Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

March 7 – Penang, Malaysia

March 8 – Phuket, Thailand

March 9 – at sea

March 10 - 11 – Thilawa (Rangoon), Myanmar

March 12 – 14 – at sea

March 15 – Colombo, Sri Lanka

March 16 – at sea

March 17 – Cochin, India

March 18 – at sea

March 19- 20 – Mumbai, India

March 21 - 22– at sea

March 23 - 24 – Dubai, United Arab Emirates

March 25 – at sea

March 26 – Muscat, Oman

March 27 – at sea

March 28 – Salalah, Oman

March 29 – April 1– at sea

April 2 – Safaga, Egypt

April 3 – Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt

April 4 – Aqaba (Petra), Jordan

April 5 – at sea

April 6 - Cruising Suez Canal

April 7 – Alexandria (Cairo), Egypt

April 8 – at sea

April 9 - Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey

April 10 – 11 - Piraeus (Athens), Greece

April 12 - Katakolon, Greece

April 13 - at sea

April 14 - Naples, Italy

April 15 - Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy

April 16 - at sea

April 17 - Cartagena, Spain

April 18 - Málaga, Spain

April 19 - Cádiz, Spain

April 20 – 21 - at sea

April 22 - Ponta Delgada, Azores

April 23 - Horta, Azores

April 24 – 29 - at sea

April 30 - Fort Lauderdale, Florida

4

UPDATE REASON FOR LATE POST

It’s not the end of the world — but it sure felt like it. Our suitcases were packed when we got the announcement: engine room damage on Oceania Cruises’ Insignia will require nine weeks to repair, forcing the cruise line to change the start date and location of its upcoming world cruise.

An engine room fire occurred on December 11, while the ship was docked at St. Lucia in the Caribbean. Three crew members died in the fire. Passengers and remaining crew were evacuated, and the ship was towed to dry dock in San Juan for repairs.

The truncated world cruise will start in Singapore March 22, and the ship will sail the remainder of the original itinerary.

Of course we were disappointed. We were heavily invested in the world cruise, emotionally as well as financially. Half-Way Around the World in 109 days is not as glamourous as Around the World in 180 Days, but we need to count our blessings. Our loss is nothing compared to that of the family and friends of the three crew who were killed in the fire.  We were able to jump onto our favorite line and ship.  Holland American ms Amsterdam traveling west for 114 days returning back to Ft. Lauderdale.

From our Travel Agent.

Important Itinerary Update On Upcoming Insignia Voyages

Dear Valued Guests and Travel Professionals,

 

As you may be aware, on December 11^th we experienced a tragic incident aboard Insignia while docked in St. Lucia.  We currently have a technical team on board the vessel working with the ship's officers and authorities to assess the situation. Once the authorities have completed their work, we expect Insignia to enter dry dock and undergo necessary repairs. 

 

We are in the process of evaluating how long those repairs will take to complete and whether there will be any effect to scheduled January sailings, including the start of the Around the World cruise.  We will have a better assessment on when the vessel will re-enter service by the middle of next week. We expect to have an update for you at that time.

 

Sincerely,

Crane Gladding

Senior Vice President, Passenger Services

Oceania Cruises

 

Ok so if you go onto vessel finder you can see the Isignia being towed to San Juan P.R. This will take a few days to get there.  Do stay tuned.....

Insignia gets towed today

The cruise vessel, Insignia, which has been docked at Port Castries for close to six days, after a fire broke out in the engine room and as a result took three lives, will be leaving St. Lucia tomorrow.
Reports are that the vessel will be towed to Puerto Rico tomorrow, to facilitate repairs. Two South Korean contractors and a Filipino crew member were those that died in the inferno.
Post mortem examinations are scheduled to be done sometime this week, after which the bodies will be flow back home.
An investigation is being led by the Marshall Islands, where the ship is registered, and the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board has sent officials there to help.
The Insignia was on a 10-day cruise through the Caribbean that had been scheduled to end in Miami on Dec. 17.
Some 656 passengers and 400 crew members were aboard the Insignia, when the fire broke out. The passengers were evacuated safely and flown to Miami. The remainder of the cruise was cancelled.
The ship was built in 1998 and underwent a multimillionaire-dollar refurbishing earlier this year. The Insignia has 400 crew members, and its officers and staff are European. So stay tuned.....

Another article on our ship

Many cruise passengers began asking us when the Insignia will sail again, even before the ship's burned-out engine room stopped smoldering.  

Of course we don't know. The investigation into the fire is just beginning. Investigators from the Marshall Islands (the flag of the Oceania cruise ship) has just started. The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) flew from Miami to St. Lucia to accompany the Marshall Islands investigators.

The ship will undoubtedly sail long before the official investigations are concluded. I doubt that the official reports will be ready for publication by the end of next year. It remains to be seen whether the Marshall Islands will release the reports to the U.S. public, notwithstanding the involvement of the USCG and the NTSB. Pursuant to the flags-of-convenience scheme, the Marshall Islands has jurisdiction over the investigation and decides if the reports are published. This means that the reports won't be published if the owners and operators of the Insignia (Oceania, Prestige and now new parent company Norwegian Cruise Line) don't want the information released.  Trust me, the Miami-based Oceania/Prestige/ NCL people will keep the accident info secret. 

This morning, I read two articles about the aftermath of the fire. 

The first article was in the St. Lucia News Online, which first covered the story, explaining that the last passengers out of St. Lucia spent "12 hours in the port terminal with very little food or water," and then another couple of hours in a bus and five and one-half hours stuck on an airplane before they finally headed to Miami without their luggage.

Another newspaper reported that a Canadian complained that the passengers were herded through the ship during the fire and into a warehouse at the port where they remained without water for nine hours in high heat and without any information about the fire. The passenger first learned of the plans to send them to Miami and the crew/contractor deaths via Google. All of this belied Oceania's press statement that "our top priority is ensuring all 656 guests return home as quickly and comfortably as possible." 

Amongst the death and destruction, the cruise line quickly announced that it will give the passengers their cruise fares back and a 50% credit toward a future cruise - a calculated and inexpensive way to hook them into another cruise.

But no one is saying anything about the crew members who just lost their jobs and won't be able to support their families in the foreseeable future. No, the cruise line doesn't pay salaries to the crew who are considered to be expendable. Many crew member work primarily on tips and without paying passengers there are no tips.  Yes, some of the lucky ones will be shuffled to other Oceania ships, but the majority will return to the Philippines, Indonesia, India, etc., unemployed and with no benefits and certainly no Christmas bonus. A bleak Holiday Season no doubt. 

But nowhere as bleak as what the families of the dead crew and contractors will face.

Maritime wrongful death claims are subject to the archaic Death on the High Seas Act (1920). "DOHSA" excludes emotional distress, sadness, bereavement, pain & suffering and other emotional damages suffering by the widows and children of the dead. Plus, Oceania will move to dismiss any claims asserted by the family members and seek to send them to "arbitration" in London, subject to the laws of the Marshall Islands. This is a strategy to make the crew claims more difficult and expensive to pursue while limiting the available damages to the suffering families. 

But no one seems to thinking about the crew members or their families. They just want to know when their cruise ship is ready to sail for their vacation.

Update.....this was on their site

We are deeply saddened by the tragic events that occurred this morning on Insignia. We have extended our heartfelt condolences to the families of those involved and are offering them our full support. This is truly an emotional time for all of us at Oceania Cruises.

Our top priority is ensuring all 656 guests return home as quickly and comfortably as possible. We’ve arranged for charter flights this evening to return all guests to Miami, as well as transfers and hotel accommodations in Miami until flights to their city of origin can be arranged tomorrow. All guests will receive a 100 percent refund, and a 50 percent credit towards a future Oceania Cruises voyage.

Oceania Cruises President and Chief Operating Officer Jason Montague, along with a team of guest and crew support and technical personnel, are in St. Lucia. This team is leading the effort to ensure guests and crew are well cared for, as well as working with the ship’s team and authorities to assess the situation. We will make additional details available as they become known.

Fire onboard the Insignia........

Update, 2:35 p.m. EST: One crewmember and two contractors were killed after an engine room fire onboard Oceania Cruises' Insignia, the line confirmed to Cruise Critic. The remainder of the cruise has been canceled. 

"Three crewmembers and two contractors who were working onboard were transferred to a local medical facility. We are deeply saddened to learn that two contractors and one crewmember did not survive. We extend our deepest condolences to their families during this very difficult time." 

Also according to Oceania, the fire was contained to the engine room and all passengers are safe and have disembarked. 

"Arrangements are being made for guests and crew to be accommodated at local hotels until transportation to Miami is arranged," the line said.

A Guest and Crew Support team, along with a technical team, is en route from Miami to St. Lucia. 

Insignia was on a 10-night cruise, which departed San Juan on December 7 and was scheduled to arrive in Miami on December 17. 

(12:09 p.m. EST) – An engine fire onboard Oceania Cruises' Insignia has been brought under control, though the ship remains in St. Lucia while authorities investigate the incident. The fire broke out while the ship was docked at Port Castries.

Cruise Critic member buggins0402 was onboard the ship at the time of the fire and has been waiting in a port restaurant for more than an hour after being evacuated. 

"Happened about 9:30 am. Lost power. We left the ship for a while, then went back on. Shortly afterward they decided to get all the passengers off the ship - actually did the muster."

According to St. Lucia News Online, fire officials in Port Castries received a call at 9:25 a.m. that a fire had broken out in the ship's engine room. The St. Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority and the St. Lucia Fire Service told the news site the situation is under control, and confirmed that three people have been hospitalized, one for smoke inhalation and mild respiratory distress. Fire officials said the incident was contained within Berth 5 at Port Castries.

Counting the sleeps now

Our highly anticipated Around the World in 180 Days voyage is drawing nearer and nearer – now almost 30  days away from the departure date. We found a interview  with Captain Dimitrios Flokos, who will be at the helm for this fantastic journey. 

This is him.  He said this will be his first time around the world.  Should be interesting.  He also said that there are 500 out of the 700 that are doing the complete voyage.  The Captain's  recommendation is to go with go with the intention of having the cruise of a lifetime.  Relax and take this experience as it comes.  Have a sense of adventure, stay flexible and most importantly embrace the opportunity to form friendships that can last a lifetime.  

So with our passport and visas all complete and sent back to us earlier this week, we now play the waiting game....Stayed tuned

Still doing some planning

And so the planning is in the last stages as we prepare to circumnavigate the globe in 180 days beginning early in January 10th 2015

Our journey includes 5 Continents, 48 counties, 45 Islands, 89 Ports, 17 National Capitals, 24 Time Zones crossed, and 46,753 Nautical Miles Sailed.

We have over night stays in Walvis Bay, Namibia; Mahe, Seychelles; Bangkok, Thailand; Saigon, Vietnam; Hanoi, Vietnam; Hong Kong, China; Xiamen, China; Beijing, China; Bali, Indonesia; Cairns, Australia; and Tahiti, French Polynesia. Its gonna be hard the sleeping patterns for awhile. Since Bob does'nt sleep much this won't effect him much.  

The planning for this 6 month adventure is huge and we invite you to share in our excitement by following our blog.

Yes it will be hard to travel with another company but life brings you adventure.  Who knows this might even change our line of Travel although Holland American is defiantly like family to us.  So we shall see what this line brings us.

Remember the quote. 

 "Life is not measured by the number of Breaths we take,

       But by the moments that take our Breath Away"

 

So stay tuned....

Ebola out break and what happens to us

This is what we have been following on Cruise Critic Everyday.....

---Quote
Another cruise line has cancelled all West Africa ports.  Ocean Princess sailing from Cape Town to Dover in May 2015 today cancelled Benin, Togo, Ghana and Senegal.  Fortunately for their passengers it is well before final payment (90 days prior).
I guess all we can do is sit and wait for an announcement from Oceania but I am feeling less and less confident we will see Benin and Togo as it looks like every other line has cancelled ports anywhere near areas with Ebola.
---End Quote---
Let´s keep reasonably confident. Point 4.d of the Ticket Contract between Oceania and the Passengers says quite reasonably "If the United States Department of State publishes a Public Announcement regarding a specific country or location included in the scheduled itinerary, We reserve the right to operate the Cruise or CruiseTour as scheduled or to change the itinerary, at Our discretion with no further liability for refund, payment, compensation or credit of any kind". Or there are not at the moment no current restrictions applicable to travellers in both countries in the US Department of State site. More, because Nigeria announced this Monday the end of its outbreak of EVD, there is about 1000 km of distance between the ports of scale of Insignia, World Cruise, January-July 2015, and the three only countries suffering the outbreak, Guiney-Conakry, Liberia and Sierra Leone (the USA and Spain cases look sporadic and controlled). Addionally all the flights between Togo and Ben
in and the three outbreak´s countries where suspended. In these circumstances an alteration of the itinerary of the cruise looks a break of the Ticket Contract, unless it appears some reported case on one of the those countries (or São Tomé and Principe) causing a a drastic alteration in the Public Announcements of US Department of Sate. Let´s wait then and see

************

So there you have it....wait and see.....

Our Needles are all up to date.

We have received all our shots.  In September we received our yellow fever shot, finally got that little yellow certificate.  Hep A and B and the second follow up was done in October. Our flu shot will be done at the end of October when they get them in.  Shingle shot and a whopping cough shot were all done as well this summer. Our Passports are in the hands of the visas company CIBT.  They are doing all our visas and all the running around for us.  So now we are playing the waiting game.  We are planning on leaving to head south on November 02.  So if we do not have our passports in our hand we will be crossing the border with our Birth Certificates.  I really don't like the unknown....we have no control with out our passports.  Funny a simple document that can over power you.  Oh yea forgot to tell you that in early June I sent away to RENEW my immigration card and still have not received that either.  They are up to end of May no go figure.  Another money grabber that's all that is.  I have renewed this card every 5 years and seems like the Canadian Government get worst at doing there job.  My card expired on Sept 29 2014.  Not worrying about this .....till next summer.

Our boat is all snuggled in for the winter and everything at the cottage is put away.  Water drained, leaves raked, gardens all cleaned up.  So now we are playing the "Hurray up and wait" game. 

to be continued....

Our Final thoughts on our 35 Day Voyage of the Vikings

Viking's who were they? Where did they explore? Why? Well to answer all those questions you must go on a HAL Voyage of the Vikings Cruise.

Well Vikings warriors are explorers, merchants, and of coarse they were pirates.  Very powerful people with clear idea's and solutions.  People who broke boundaries and took the north by storm.

We saw Rock Sea and Ice on this trip.  1 Voyage, 1 time only, 1 ship. What a wonderful journey.  The weather couldn't of been any better on this journey.  Sure it was a colder cruise than what Bob and I like to do, but how can you not enjoy looking at all of this

OR THIS

                                              This just calved as we were eating lunch

Than we had our fun moments

 

 

                                                                 

Reindeer meat, Whale meat and Moose meat

 

 

 

 

This was the priceless place that charged us for 3

Cappicino's 1 hot chocolate and 4 Biscotties

67.00USD  Priceless....

 

 

Blue Lagoon with Bob Carol Ann and Storm

Bob under the waterfall

 

 

 

 

All the beautiful colors in the flowers

 

Our Captains dinner in his Room.  I will always remember

this evening.  So relaxed and so much in common.

Thank Captain Eric

 

could post a lot more but I am sure you are bored by now.  So that raps up our 35 day Viking Trip

Thanks for coming along on our Journey...

 

Stay tuned .......