The Final Full Day of Our Cruise

The last night we were entertained by previous entertainers such as this tenor singer.

On the last day the Seaquest Game got pretty interesting.

Bust of Queen Julianna

All the waiters had fun during their parade of desserts.

The cast and crew say Good-bye.

The crew thanks us for being a delightful audience.

The Captain bids adieu.

Our Cruise Director Trevor kept us in stitches.

Celebrating Josephine's birthday was fun!

Stuart entertained us with his pipes.

Nancyanne and Stuart.

A retired school teacher, Carla.

Alan being silly during our final night together.


Day 11

This is the last day of our cruise. The time has gone by fast but it’s been a wonderful relaxing cruise. It actually seems like we’ve been on vacation longer than 11 days, which is a good thing! I was wide-awake by 4am so I decided to make good use of my time and decided to start packing. Alan woke up early so we went and had breakfast before finishing the packing. We had a good hearty breakfast of eggs, bacon, hash browns, muffins and juice. Afterwards, we went back to the cabin and were completely packed by 10am! We actually ended up with more room than I thought we would have and didn’t even need to use the tote we had bought on St. Maarten.

We went to the Thermal Spa to enjoy one last day of relaxing in the mineral pool and the warmth of the heated lounge. We never did sit out by the pool as we were busy doing other things and whenever we wanted to sit out at the pool there weren’t any places to sit. We figured we got enough sun anyway during our excursions and with me being so sensitive to the sun and heat it was best I stay away from it.

The activities offered on the last day were: the morning stretch, Fab Abs fitness, Interdenominational service, Team Trivia Challenge, Privacy on the Internet seminar, Seaquest Game, Crib Players Meet, Champagne Crew Farewell and Disembarkation Briefing, Spa Secret to a flatter stomach, BINGO, Pictionary Game, Spa Secrets to beautiful hands and nails, Captain Hans Mateboer signing books, The Legend of Hemmingway speech, Photo Works with techspert, Spa Secret 5 minute makeover, Bridge and Card Players Meet, Whatever Floats Your Boat Contest (see the future of cruise and naval design as fellow guests have constructed ships out of everyday items), Line Dancing, Grand Finale Art Auction, Close-Up Magic show with Drew and Angela, afternoon tea, craft class makeup, towel folding, Noordam Superstar Singing Competition Finale, Yoga, and Hanukkah. The talk on Hemmingway told of how the famous storyteller found the Caribbean Sea to make him feel truly at home.

We headed down to the Vista Lounge and watched the Seaquest Game show and it was hilarious! At one point they had asked for a pair of trousers and it was surprising how many men offered their pants, at least they all were wearing boxers. Another time they asked for a lady’s bra and there were a lot of them. Surprising how risqué older folks can be. We stayed for the disembarkation talk and the farewell from the whole crew. They put on a nice show and filled the stage. I wonder what they think every time they do the show, probably is a nice break from their regular routines. Alan and I decided to play BINGO like we always do on the last day and we almost won a cruise, was only 1 space away! Oh well, like I was telling Alan we wouldn’t have time to take another cruise anyway since we had already booked a Hawaiian one for May. By then it was time for lunch so we headed to the Lido Deck for our usual sandwiches. We pondered about all the fun we’d had over the past 11 days. We kept busy but we also allowed time to just kick back and relax. Alan enjoyed having time to just sit in a nice comfortable easy chair and read his book.

After lunch I went to get the books that the captain had written. I’d originally just bought his one book and decided to go ahead and buy a copy of the children’s book he’d written. I thought the kids would enjoy it. After getting them signed I went to the area near the craft room and took a little nap. Alan decided to go back to the cabin.


With it being the last day I went to the jewelry shop on board the ship and decided to go ahead and purchase 2 dolphin necklaces. I had hoped that the necklace had matching earrings as I was still on my quest to find my special dolphin jumping through hoop earrings. Well these dolphins were extremely beautiful and made from the Pua Shells found in Australia. The necklaces were $28 each so it ended up being a lot more than I had wanted to pay just to turn them into earrings. Well, Alan told me to go ahead and get them as he knows how long and hard I’ve looked for them.
I did find the earring hoops that I needed to turn them into earrings and it was a bit challenging as I had to make sure the dolphins were pointed the right way to show off the pretty aqua blue shell on them. I cherish these earrings a lot and take special care not to lose them. During this trip I have acquired some pieces of jewelry like my Jackie Kennedy Collection earrings, and necklaces to go with the sundresses I bought. I also found a nice jade an amethyst ring that I got to wear until Alan was able to get my diamond ring done at a jeweler’s. Alan also bought me a lovely pair of green earrings to match the ring. When it comes to jewelry he loves buying it for me. I bought him a nice watch to wear so he would know what time it was and not have an excuse when we were to meet each other at a certain time. The watch came with a nice wallet so we ended up giving it to our son for Christmas filled with some money. The box the watch came in was very nice so I found a nice bottle of men’s cologne and put it in the box along with the wallet.

Gloria was the lady who showed us how to do all these wonderful things in the craft classes. She shared with me how she went to this doctor in Florida for her knee and had injections in them and how it really did work. Apparently this doctor is the only one in the country that does this. It’s some kind of growth hormone and it really works! Attending the craft classes has been fun, not only to learn how to do jewelry and iris folding but also all the socializing with the other ladies there. One lady I met was a real estate agent. Nancy went to them often and would help some of the ladies also. Gloria’s husband also teaches the class and he was interesting to talk to. He told of some of the cruises he and Gloria have been able to take and a lot of them free since they would exchange their craft classes for the cruise. They’ve been around the world. It must be nice to have a gig like that. He use to be a Boy Scout leader and that’s how he learned about all kinds of crafts. Gloria was a Girl Scout leader. When they first got on board this cruise they were surprised how awful the craft storage room was as far as not being organized at all. They were told to use whatever supplies were there. They had to first organize the room to even see what all was available and then figure out what crafts to do and prepare the materials that would be needed. Nancy helped out a lot with putting materials together for some of the craft classes.

After the class I returned to the cabin. Alan was out on the deck reading. Sometimes Alan gets upset about me buying something at first but later realizes how silly it was for him to act that way. After all, I thought the book would make for a nice present for the grandkids, especially little Ryan as he loves boats, cars and trains. I read the story and it was so adorable. We watched a movie on the TV before going to dinner.

For dinner I had my regular Caesar salad, watermelon gazpacho (this was really bad tasting like it was spoiled) grilled chicken with red potatoes and veggies, and Crème Brule. Nancy and I had a Beam Me Up Scotty drink to finish off our dinner and cappuccinos. She enjoyed the cappuccino as much as we did.

The Showtime for the last evening was a Farewell Variety Show. John Smitherman and Justin Miller entertained us with their musical talents. After the show Alan and I went to the Lido Deck and played some Yahtzee and Cribbage since we hadn’t played them during the entire cruise. We had a blast playing. Alan beat me at Cribbage but I beat him at Yahtzee.


It’s amazing how you can find a United Nations right here on the Noordam. Nowhere else is the term United Nations better served than on board one of the Holland America Line’s ships. Here on the Noordam, it’s proven that people of many nations, religions, and beliefs can work and live together, not only adequately, but also very well indeed. Ask any ship employee of Holland America Line what his or her fondest memory of life at sea is and they will tell you it is the joy of meeting such diverse people. On board ship they celebrate the national holidays of the Netherlands, England, the Philippines, Indonesia, the United States and Canada. Each celebration is different and accorded all respect.


Religion also plays a large part in the lives of many shipboard personnel. The staff includes the Catholic, Muslim, Protestant, Hindu, and Jewish faiths, to name just a few. All religions are respected and time and room is set aside for all to worship as he or she sees fit and proper. You will notice the word respect crops up several times in this article. It is probably the key to the harmony that is evident to all who sail Holland America Line ships, as crew and guests. It was nice getting to go to church services while on board. I not only attended the Interdenominational service but the Jewish one as well. I think everyone should go to a church service while on a cruise and thank the Lord for a safe trip and being able to visit exotic places and meet new people.

The last evening on the ship wasn’t as sad as I thought it would be as we had many happy memories and being on a longer cruise made it feel like we’d taken a real vacation. The shorter, seven-day cruises we’ve taken in the past made it seem like we had just started our cruise when it was already time to go home. We definitely like the longer cruises better. I took lots of pictures and whenever I look at them I will reflect on all the fun times. The weather was perfect for us, warm but not humid. I made a lot of jewelry at the craft classes on the ship and I learned how to do Iris Folding. I made a couple of cards for the girls at work with Iris Folding on them. I went to a Flower Arrangement Seminar and learned all kinds of tricks for elegant arrangements. Alan got to do a lot of reading in quiet places on the ship. And of course there was the famous Chocolate Buffet with gorgeous ice sculptures that we watched transformed from a block of ice. All in all we had a great time!

Today we will be sailing in the North Atlantic Ocean towards New York Bay, finally altering onto a Westerly course into New York harbor in the early hours of tomorrow. Whilst sailing in the North Atlantic we will be utilizing the Gulf Stream current. The Gulf Stream is a powerful warm current flowing from the straits of Florida to the Grand Banks, the current runs at around 3.9 knots.

The Noordam deck department thanks you for sailing with us and wishes you a pleasant onwards journey.