The wind did not die down until very late this evening but as it kept coming from the same direction, full on the bow, it did not hamper the guests in enjoying a very nice day at sea. I only had to keep the forward observation deck closed. The last sea day always reminds me of the fact that a seven day cruise is so short. Too short in my personal opinion. Although enjoyable, it most of the time over before your realize it has even started. For our on board scheduling it also means that we have to cram a lot of activities into that last sea day. Activities that guests want to partake in while at the same time some of them are already worrying about packing. Trying to visualize how to get the contents of three suitcases in two due to too much shopping and that can pre occupy the mind.

When guests ask me that would be the best cruise to do if there is limited time I always suggest the 10 day one, if they guest has 10 days available. The longer the cruise the better it is of course and if you are already cruising then you know the routine of a seven day cruise but if you are new or almost new to these sort of vacations 10 days are great. It gives you a day to get over your flight and it gives you a last day to pack and get mentally ready to face the real world again. Then it leaves a full seven days, to just enjoy the product without having anything on you mind apart from making an in depth study of the dinner menu and the daily program.

The same goes for European cruises, or cruises down under. If you have decided to take a cruise in one of these areas, do not spoil it by making it too short. The long flight makes it not worth it. Take a 10 day cruise, or two 7 days back-to-back so you get the best value out of your flight. Also come in a few days early to get over your jet lag. Even if it is only 8 hours from New York to Venice, the waiting everywhere and the airport hassle all adds to that jet leg. If you then board the ship straight away, the tiredness is catching up with you on the second day and it will spoil your first port visit. You do not appreciate Dubrovnik very much if the only thing on your mind is to go back to the ship for a nap. So come in two or three days earlier. Each cruise company offers pre and post cruise packages. They are normally very good value and they take the fuss out of the planning. But even if you do not want to book that way; with the internet it is as easy to book a hotel 2000 miles away as it is to call your local pizza man for a delivery.

As you will have read, on one of the pages on this blog site, my wife and I like to cruise as well and a year ago we did Southampton to New York. My wife wanted to see the shows on Broadway so I said lets go by ship. When we started shopping around, what clinched our booking was the very good deal we could get in the combination of ship, hotel at Broadway and flights home. The total package made it very worthwhile. So we enjoyed the crossing, had three days in an hotel on Broadway, about 5 minutes away from Times Square and an a flight home with VERY good seats, all for the price of a normal business class flight. So my wife was happy with the musicals and I was happy with the cost and enjoyed the crossing as well. As there are not that many cruise ships that do regular transatlantic crossings from Southampton, I think you will know which ship I am talking about. I was really impressed with the quality of the on-board-lecturers, all from Oxford University and attended a lecture on life on the ocean floor for three days in a row. The lecturer had this rare gift of making complicated science understandable and interesting for the layman without lowering standards. Every day the crowd got bigger until on the last day there was standing room only. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food and the service in such a big dining room. Being into collecting books, the big library on board of course made me really happy.

As said, what made the cruise really valuable for me was the complete package, ship, hotel and flight that all together made for a very good cruise experience and for a very pleasant price.

Tomorrow we are back in Tampa, end of a sunny cruise and we will be getting ready for the next one. Fourteen days going clockwise island hopping through the whole Caribbean.

And then the fire alarm went off. For no apparent reason several smoke detectors in the ship went off at 9 am. in the morning. Thus as per company policy I raised the fire alarm and assembled all the teams. Within 3 minutes we knew that there was nothing wrong so the question was; what is going on? Answer: Moisture in the air. With the warm weather outside it does not take much extra moisture to reach a saturation level in the air that triggers a smoke detector. It is the principle they are working on. A smoke detector does not sense smoke it senses a change of particles in the air. Regardless of whether it are water or smoke particles. In this case it was caused by an engineer doing some maintenance work on a water distribution line. Smoke detectors are set for the average conditions of the ship. If you have a smoke detector in your cabin and you shower with the bathroom door open; the smoke detector will go off and a friendly bridge officer will call you to ask if you are oke. We have the same thing sometimes on the Amazon cruise, with the suite cabins, if the guests decide to sleep with the balcony doors open.

So I made my announcements to advise all the guests about what was going on but it was rather annoying that it happened because a maintenance man was doing his utmost to repair something quickly and then set off a number of smoke detectors as an unexpected side effect.

An issue that each captain struggles with is how to make effective announcements. How to reach everybody and how to make everybody understand what is happening. All senior officers on board HAL ships have gone through Crisis Management and Crowd Control training. There we learn something about the background of human behavior in times of crises and it gives some interesting facts. When something happens, 70% does not react at all. Approx. 20% wants to do something, 5% is going to do something and 5% panics. These are rough figures and vary a bit depending on the sort of research that has been done but the averages do work out in these big differences.

Now with making announcements, repeat announcements, you reduce that 70% and encourage the 20% and the 5%. The panicking 5% is then normally reduced as well as they will take a lead from that 25% that is now following the orders that are given……. but not always.

The biggest problem is to get the correct message across to non-ship people even if they have sailed on multiple cruises. Rule one, is to provide good and timely information in small doses so people have time to digest it and project it to their personal situation. In such a way that if they hear the word smoke detector; their eyes will go to the ceiling and they will recognize the white disk with the little red light on it and understand what it does. As a lot of people do ignore announcements or talk straight through it, multiple announcements are needed.

However if you make too many announcements it looses effect. Hearing the same message repeated all the time results in complacency which is dangerous because then they might miss something important. To get it exactly right is something that we struggle with all the time and we never get it completely right. There is always somebody who will lift a phrase out of context and runs with it. If that results in a complaint that is fine, we can deal with it.
By explaining the bigger picture on a one to one basis always clears up the misunderstanding. However if this particular person is among that 5% who is the panic group, then the announcements might have the opposite effect of what was intended.

As every politician can tell you, you never get it right for everybody and you can only do your best. So I made my announcements and only one complaint came in about how we dare to sail with a faulty detection system. The opposite of reality.

Reality was also Cozumel; docking with 25 knots of wind and 3 knots of current. These are docking maneuvers that give captains grey hairs. I have lost most of my hair already so I can probably avoid the grey bit but it was not easy today. However the sun was shining and the guests had a good time and that is the only thing that counts. What was difficult on arrival was easy on departure. By using the blow-a-way maneuver, we were off the dock and on the way to Tampa within five minutes. As the USA goes to winter time this weekend, we only have one hour forward on the clocks and that should please everybody as well. Tomorrow we are at sea and hopefully that strong wind will finally die down.

And yes indeed we had a windy arrival, a very windy arrival. When turning into the narrow channel leading to the dock we had 30 knots of wind on the beam. As expected the pilot did not volunteer to sail the ship in with this wind and just left me to it. Luckily there was more room for docking than last cruise which made it possible to drift to the dock a bit faster and we were alongside at the bright and early time of 05.15. Given the full day tour ample time to get to the airport by sunrise and off in the plane to Tikal and Copan.

Last week I wrote about the ship donating matrasses to local charity. Due to that contact, our chief housekeeper is now instigating a program to sponsor a local school for the whole season that we are coming to the port. Also the guests on board are getting into gear as well. One of our long time repeat guests brought two computers with screens and keyboards and two other guests suitcases with clothing and toys. Great initiatives for which the locals are really grateful. Luckily I heard about it just in time so I could alert the purser and have it all manifested for the authorities. Taking it ashore is no problem, as long as the paperwork reflects what is going on. With no landing form, donating suddenly becomes smuggling and then I have some of my guests stuck in the local customs office because of their good intentions. So we filled out the forms and all was well.

Guatemala is working hard to make tourism a mainstay of the economy. Eco tourism shows great promise and Guatemala has a lot of un-spoiled natural rain forest and jungle to offer, right on the door step of most cities. Thus their environmental rules are also getting very strict. An un-expected side effect of these rules it that is hampers us from doing our regular maintenance on the outside of the ship. Normally the sailors are out there in each port to touch up the hull and the superstructure of the ship but that is not allowed anymore. Neither in Santo Tomas, nor in most of the other Caribbean ports. The idea behind the restrictions is of course to prevent paint and other chemicals from getting into the water. Holland America line has very strict protocols in dealing with work outside the ship and how to avoid spills but the rules are the same for everybody. My Chief Officer is greatly displeased with this as he has a hard time keeping rust streaks of the hull and to keep the paint work gleaming with regular fresh water wash downs.

When departing Santo Tomas we are in a great hurry to make Cozumel on schedule and it is really irritating that the port is located in a very shallow lagoon. The shallow water prevents us from speeding up due to squat and not having enough water under the keel to get a good flow around the hull. In the approach channel we have about 12 to 16 feet under the keel. Putting more engine power on beyond what is needed for 12 knots has no use as the ship simply does not go faster. The squat effect increases the ships draft by another 4 feet and the water has not enough room anymore to flow fast enough under and around the hull, builds up at the bow and slows the ship down.

Squat is a natural phenomenon that affects all ships, the bigger you are and the faster you go the more effect it has. When you put power on the propellers these dug themselves in, into the water, to do their job. As a result the stern goes down. Because the rest of the ship is connected to the stern it goes down as well. It is clearly visible with speed boats that leave the dock and increase speed. You see the bow coming out of the water and the stern sinking in. The bigger the ship, the deeper it squats. On a 32 feet draft, 12 feet or more squat at 20 knots is very well possible.

So when we leave Santo Tomas, the first 30 minutes in the channel it is no more than 12 knots. Once past the sea buoy we can up to 15 knots for the next 30 minutes and so only an hour after leaving the port we can come up to sea speed as the depth of the water has then increased to 60 feet. By midnight we are out in the open Caribbean and finally the water depth increases to over 1000 feet. Cozumel tomorrow is much different. Here deep water starts about 500 feet away from the dock. So when we leave the dock there, losing only 5 minutes to disembark the pilot, we can come up to full sea speed almost at once.

Sometimes the weather forecasters do live up to their reputation by getting it really wrong. The forecast for Belize was 16 knots from the NE and when we arrived it was blowing 30 knots from the North West. It did not matter that much for our call at Belize as the anchorage is safe even if it blows a lot harder. However it makes the tender ride a bit bumpier. Later during the day,the wind fell away completely, only to return just before departure and that meant that the guests coming back had a smooth ride. The wind blew also the clouds away and the sun shone all day long with a very pleasant temperature.

We were the only ship in port today but it will be the last time. In three weeks, when we are back again, there will be two other ships each time at the anchorage at the same time. But today the guests had Belize City all to themselves. No cruise ships but there were cargo ships for a change. Apart from being a cruise port, Belize City is also the main cargo port for Belize. Containerships, tankers and general cargo ships call here at a regular basis. This morning we had a cargo ship going for the pilot at the same time. As a cruise ship is running on a tight schedule, we asked this cargo ship to slow down a little bit while we sped up so we could take the pilot 5 minutes before them. I always wonder what the officers on those ships think when once again there is a cruise ship racing by to slip into port just before them. When I was a cadet on a containership, I already dreamed about joining Holland America after getting my license and each time I saw a cruise ship the urge got stronger. I wonder whether they think the same when they see a cruise ship all lit up coming by……………..

Ralph Grizzle the editor from the Avid Cruiser magazine, who makes this blog possible, has upgraded my blogsite to a normal domain name of www.Captainalbert.com and that means that during my coming leave period (starting 9 Dec.) I will start expanding the blog with more items. I am thinking about a Hal history section and more photos of us on board, so if you decide to make a cruise on the Veendam you will already know who is who on board.

In regards to who is who; it means for the ships staff basically two groups of people. The Captain’s, Chief Officers, Chief Engineers and Environmental officers are all on a cycle of three months on and three months off. Only the Hotel managers are still on four on, two off. The 3 month period fluctuates a little bit as we move the days around make it work for Christmas and New Year. I have a cycle with my British Colleague James Russell-Dunford of having two holidays on and two off. That means I will be off for this Christmas again and then two years in a row on board. As I can set the dates for this 3 on 3 off cycle far in advance, it makes it possible to plan my vacations far into the future. In the past when we did four month periods and hopped from ship to ship, you could never plan and thus could never take advantage from cheap holiday deals that are out there. Deals only available if you can book way ahead of time.

As my wife and I like to make cruises with the competition to see what they are all about; we can now get those good deals by booking early. We are doing a booze cruise on new P&O Ventura next year (three day channel hop) and my wife is looking into a cruise with Fred Olsen because we do not know anything about that product. As their clientele demographics are similar to Holland America, with British guests instead of American, it would be interesting to see how those ships operate. Fred Olsen is expanding so they must be doing something good.

As we were alone today, there were no delays in the tours coming back, so we could leave the anchorage exactly on time and aim for an early arrival in Santo Tomas de Castillo. Here the weather forecast calls for light winds but experience has learned that if it blows 30 knots North West in Belize it does something similar in the approaches to Santo Tomas.

Today we were at sea, sailing between Key West and Belize through the Yucatan channel. The weather was a bit wobbly, even with the stabelizers going at full speed. This was caused by winds from the North East blowing against the North going current. It creates a sort of washing machine effect, albeit on slow spin and it is nearly impossible for the stabilizers to fully cope with that short of motion. We are not really rolling or pitching, no the ship is just wobbling as the short swell created by wind against current has not really resulted in a sustained and regular movement by itself.

We are keeping a close eye on Tropical Storm Noel although the predictions are good for the West Caribbean. Noel is currently moving inland over Cuba and is not likely to bounce back as soon as it is overland. It remains to be seen what it is going to do when it is leaving Cuba. It should follow the curve of the Gulf Stream and follow the Florida Strait in the general direction of the Bahamas but storms do not always do what is predicted. For our cruise we are in good shape at least until we head back towards Florida.

Well, let’s write something about Medivacs as requested.The procedure with a medical evacuation is as follows: The ships doctor decides that he has an issue that is either beyond his competence and/or the technical abilities of the on board hospital. Not each doctor that we have on board is a full blown heart surgeon or specialized in a particular field that might be needed at that moment for a certain patient. Thus if the patient can not be stabilized then a MEDIcal EVACuation might be necessary. When the captain is convinced that it is practically possible and can be safely done then he will follow up on the doctor’s advice. If the ship is close to a port, we can divert to that port or we can have a boat come out to transfer the patient. Sometimes we use a commercial boat but most of the time it is a unit from a local Search And Rescue station and near the coast of the USA that is the US Coastguard. In Canadian waters it is the Canadian Coastguard and if we sail off the coast of The Netherlands it would be the Dutch coastguard.

If we need the Coastguard, then the captain together with the ships doctor calls the nearest SAR station, for the area around Florida that is Miami. Now the ships doctor has to convince the Coastguard doctor that help is needed. The USCG has many responsibilities and their resources are limited, so the USCG doctor makes an evaluation of the situation based on the facts presented by the ships doctor. If the doctors are in agreement then the coastguard will follow up. Either by boat or by helicopter. The captain now talks to the dispatcher of the SAR unit and together they figure out a rendezvous point and time. Sometimes the ship has to turn around or change course, sometimes just wait and sometimes just continue, what ever works out best.

By boat is the easiest. We open the door and there the stretcher goes. By helicopter takes a bit more doing. The ship has to prepare for it and about 80 crew are involved. We alert the fire fighting teams, the evacuation teams, cruise staff and house keeping for crowd control and the sailors. All are put on standby. The latter to remove rigging (flaglines and dressing lights) so the helicopter can hover above the deck. Bridge and engine department are put on high alert and the watch keeping system goes from the sea watch to maneuvering watch cycle. If possible we try to avoid helicopter evacuations as it can be very traumatic for the patient. But when needed, then it is done.

USCG helicopter hoisting a basket with patient.jpg

When the helicopter arrives above the ship, the pilot looks at how the wind blowing around the ship and asks for a certain course, so he has the least turbulence. Then a swimmer is lowered down to the deck. (This is a paramedic that accompanies the stretcher) He talks to the doctor, transfers the patient into his own stretcher and up the patient goes. The whole evolution does not take more then 15 minutes.

Swimmer with medicines.JPG

In case something goes wrong, we have fire team’s standby to protect the ship and a lifeboat, most of the time a fast rescue boat, to pick up the helicopter team from the water. This as the pilot will try to ditch his helicopter into the water instead of crashing onto the deck. Luckily both the helicopter crew and cruise ship crew are so highly trained in this sort of thing so that accidents have never occurred.

Veendam firefighting team practise.JPG

Also on cruise ships nowadays we use the bow area of the ship, so the helicopter can not get entangled in wires and other obstructions. It also has the advantage that everything can be coordinated directly from the bridge as both the captain (command and navigation) and the chief officer (communication and direction of the ships crew) can see with their own eyes what is going on.

The bunker barge delayed our departure by an hour in Tampa as for some unknown reason they pumped slower then normal. We loaded a 1000 tons of fuel and in the end we sailed 1 hour late. When we rounded the Dry Tortugas the wind picked up, blowing straight against us and for awhile I thought that we would have to cancel Key West. Due to the above, we arrived 90 minutes late at the pilot station. However when the pilot advised that there was about 20 knots of wind at the dock, I was willing to give it a try.
In the end it all worked out, although it was an interesting docking. 20 to 25 knots of wind blowing over the dock trying to push the ship away from the dock, a flood current trying to push the ship past the dock and a dock that is really too small to park at. On top of that we had to sail by the Enchantment of the Seas, who was docked at Pier B 150 feet behind us.

We were at Mallory Pier, which is the downtown dock. Walk off the gangway and there you are. Sloppy Joe no more than 10 minutes away. This is a lot better than being docked at the Navy pier, where the shuttle service, although fast still costs time. As most guests were back on board by 5 pm. anyway, I do not think that there was much inconvenience caused because of the delayed arrival. Although I extended the all on board time by 30 minutes, only one couple took advantage of it, and hopped back on board 30 seconds before the deadline. Being docked at Mallory Square has one disadvantage; you have to be away from the dock about 30 minutes before sunset. In the evening Mallory Square becomes an open air Vaudeville stage with cats jumping through hoops, jugglers, singers, dancers, little shops that sell alternative trinkets, it is a whole Flower-power revival. The tradition is that you gather on Mallory square to see the sunset. With a clear sky, the sun setting over the Keys is indeed spectacular and the viewers do not like a cruise ship blocking the sun. Even if it is the Veendam………………

So we get away from the pier at least 30 minutes before sunset and so avoid the evil eye of the holiday makers gathering on the square. We blew out of port, as fast as we came in the port, with even more wind this time and by 7 pm. we were back in the Straits of Florida.

Another thing that we have to contend with is the Florida Tax zone. The State of Florida has instigated a tax ruling that apart from that ships casino’s are not allowed to be open within the 3 miles zone around the State, also Florida taxes have to be paid on the drinks sold on board. For that we receive an official Florida Liquor license and the purser calculates the proper amount of taxes to be paid. To make sure that this works correctly, the officer of the watch phones the purser and the casino manager when we approach the tax zone limit, when going in and coming out. So that we do not forget it ourselves, we have made a line on the electronic chart that shows up on the Radar display. When we do our daily Navigator meeting for the next port, the tax zone limit is part of the discussion.
So apart from navigating the ship, preventing collisions, avoiding whales, keeping the ship upright due to shifting winds and checking fire alarms, the Officer of the Watch now also makes sure that the State of Florida gets its taxes. Who said that a navigator’s job was dull????

Tomorrow we have a sea day and tonight we have go one hour back. We have following winds and tropical storm Noel is faraway to the East creating havoc in the Dominican Republic so of no concern to us (yet).

We docked nicely on schedule with a bit of a breezy arrival. It blew over 30 knots when going under the Sunshine Skyway bridge but as it was a North Easterly wind, the turning basin near the dock was sufficiently in the lee for the wind not to be an issue. The lights of the Sunshine Skyway bridge are still out as there is maintenance going on. Which is a pity as it is always nice for the guests to see the bridge while sailing out.

It was a relatively quiet day today for the ship as we had “light loading”; which means that we only load the day to day necessities for the next cruise. Next week we have “heavy loading” again when all the non food items come on board and everything else what can be stored long-term.

Today the ship also received a new AMVER award certificate. AMVER stands for Automated Mutual assistance VEssel Rescue system. It was started in 1958 and is sponsored by the USCG. Every deep sea vessel can participate and all Holland America Line vessels do. The AMVER system is basically a computer database. Before a ship departs on a voyage it files a sailing plan in a prescribed format. Then while on the way, the ship submits an update every 48 hours with any changes to the sailing plan. If a distress call comes in at a local Search And Rescue station anywhere in the world, this distress call is shared with other SAR stations and with AMVER. The operator at AMVER can look up which participating ships are in the area from where distress call came and these ships can then be contacted and asked for help. Because the computer also has all the ships characteristics on file it can also advise which ship would be the best qualified to give help if more are in the area. Cruise ships, which are highly maneuverable, which have extensive medical facilities on board and all other necessary equipment are of course prime participants in such cases.

Over 17000 ships are enrolled in the AMVER system and at any given time there are over 3000 ships at sea and tracked by the system. In 2006 the AMVER system helped direct ships in such a way that 333 lives could be saved at sea.

The Veendam has been participating since the ship came into service. Each year we receive a certificate if we participate for more then 128 days. We are in the system all year around. Thus we got our certificate yesterday. In the past the Veendam has been involved in rescue operations but in the last few years it has been fairly quiet. We have been sailing close to the coast of various countries for our cruises and then a helicopter of a local SAR station can do much more and much quicker than a cruise ship.

The last time I was involved in an SAR operation was in the summer 2004 when in command of the Maasdam and on the way to Hubbard Glacier. A fishing boat reported having engine trouble and because of following seas started to take on water. An USCG helicopter was coming out with a portable pump but as the boat location was on the edge of the helicopters radius, the Maasdam was directed to be on standby near the fishing boat incase the helicopter could not cope. So we waited until the pump was lowered into the boat and a local USCG cutter was able to reach the scene with the fishing boat still afloat. Unfortunately this waiting cost us so much time that I had to cancel the call at Hubbard Glacier one of the highlights of the cruise. But our presence might have been necessary and thus we stood by until the fishing boat with two men on board was safe.

Tomorrow we are in Key West and the weather does not look nice, a lot of wind has been predicted.

After a very speedy departure we spent the night sailing through the Yucatan channel, heading for the Gulf of Mexico. The strong wind suddenly fell away during the night as the cold front decided to tip even deeper into the Caribbean and we entered the rainy sector. During the day the wind shifted and rose to a strong Breeze from the north east. Weather we kept all the way to Tampa.

A few blogs ago I wrote about recognizing crewmembers who do something out of the ordinary. Well we have another program that give crew the chance to stand out. It is called the HESS program. Health, Environmental, Safety and Sanitation program. We have several interdepartmental committees on board who deal with issues pertaining to the above. As the rules are constantly changing it is a lot of work to keep the crew up-to-date and the ship in compliance. The company instigated the HESS award recently to encourage crewmembers to come forward with idea’s to improve operating practices on board, and if found useful, to implement them fleet wide. There is a monthly prize of a $ 100 to win and it does not have to be a “big idea” but it has to be useful. We get about 10 to 15 idea’s each month. All the ideas are voted upon and the best one selected for the prize of the month. The other idea’s do not fall by the wayside but get a chance to win the next month. All idea’s that pass scrutiny are forwarded to the Head office and evaluated there for implementation fleet wide.

This month the Foreman engine department was the winner. He was concerned about people smoking above or near the oil fuel barge when the ship was taking on fuel in the home port. He suggested roping off the open deck (lower promenade deck) that runs above and along the hull where the barge is positioned and to put temporary signs on the balcony’s overlooking the barge during the time of the fuel transfer. This would indeed be a good thing to do. We have not had any problems yet, or ever before, but there is always the first time. The idea was forwarded to the office and if approved will be fleet wide implemented with company designed signs and standard procedures. The person with the idea then also has the chance to win a bigger prize of $ 1000,–.

Mr. Achmand Royyan Foreman engine receiving his HESS award.
During our gathering of the Mariners Society we had a more unusual recipient of an award. Namely a Chef de Partie (section chief in the kitchen) who had sailed 30 years with Holland America. He had started out in 1977 on the previous Veendam and now celebrated this milestone with the company on board the current Veendam. It is difficult to think of something to properly recognize such a longtime dedication to the company, so I like to hand out the company ring (30 year milestone) during the Mariners party. It always gives a bit more cachet to the ceremony. Our cook got a standing ovation from the 600 Mariners present and of course later had to be congratulated by everybody passing through the Lido line for lunch.

Tomorrow is Tampa and the end of the first Caribbean cruise of the season. The weather was not really “Caribbean like” but no doubt it will improve.

Things worked out quite well in the end. The wind and adverse current pushed us behind schedule during the night but in the morning the current turned around and started to flow with us. By the time we passed the South point of Cozumel Island we were flying with nearly five knots of current with us. The only explanation I have for such a strong current is that the NW wind must have increased the down current on the East side of the island and that flow must have curved right back into Cozumel channel. Cozumel channel is the body of water between the island and the Mexican Mainland.

Docking in Cozumel is always an interesting affair. The piers are located quite close to the shallows and are at the same time at the edge of the Northerly current. Currently there are two piers operational. The Lagosta pier in down town and the International pier a few miles to the south. The Maya pier, that is the most southerly one, is still under repair and the completion date is set for sometime next year summer. After that the authorities are planning to build two more piers, for a total of 5 extra docking spaces. They have already extended the International pier to accommodate the Freedom class ships of RCI. We docked today inside the International pier with the Mariner of the Seas already docked on the outside.

With 15 to 20 knots of wind from the North West and more than four miles of current coming from the south, the trick is to find the balance between the two and then slowly inch the ship backwards into the basin of the dock. Backing up, or going astern, in nautical terms is here the best option as at all times you keep the nose in the wind. At the same time the Mariner of the Seas was acting as a wind catcher, so I could get the aft ship with our big funnel out of the wind very quickly. Sometimes it is handy to be a “small” ship, our bridge does not reach any higher than deck 9 of the Mariner. The sun shone all day, so also the sun worshippers had a good day, while those who do not like the heat could still be happy as the NW breeze kept things relatively cool.

Today was a late evening stay with the departure time set for 2100 hrs. This would give everybody the chance to sample some of the Cozumel night life. I did not get any reports but with the mega liners departing at 6 pm., things can not have been that rowdy in the town. Most of our guests are not known for dancing in the streets or on the table, although exceptions have occured and I have them seen coming back in a wheelbarrow………………. One of the reasons that we stay past 6 pm. is the return of the tours from the May ruins on the Mainland near Tulum. Our guests return by ferry boat across Cozumel channel and are normally back on board around 9 pm. In the past we used to stop first at Playa del Carmen with the ship to disembark the tour and then proceed to Cozumel but we found out that that sometimes we could get the tour off, but it was too rough for the ferry to come back. So you might as well go directly to Cozumel and use the ferry twice. It either can go, or it can’t.

I do like departures after dark, somehow with the shore side all lit up, is looks more festive or cruise like. Although Cozumel departure is not much of a happening, it is mainly: let go lines and full ahead. The Pilot goes off as soon as the ship is past the pier and then it is warp speed to Tampa for an early arrival. Especially later in the season when the foggy season starts, it is important to be as early as possible. Rule of thumb has it, that if you manage to get under the sunshine skyway bridge by 02.30 in the morning then you make it to the dock before the fog comes down. We will know by the end of the season if it worked for this season.

This was a very early arrival. We run a full day tour from Santo Tomas by airplane to Copan and Tikal for the Mayan ruins. The local airport has no runway lights and that means that the plane has to take off directly at sunrise so that the full length tour can be done and the plane can be back on the ground in Santo Tomas before sunset. That meant for me a 3 am wake up call for a 4 am. pilot boarding. Taking into account the sailing in time, the docking time and the time needed for the clearing of the ship, I had to be early. Santo Tomas is reached through a 6 mile long and very narrow channel. It is also very shallow and that means that you can not go any faster than about 10 knots. The water can simply not flow away any faster under the hull and more power on the propellers does not gain a significant increase in speed. What was unusual today was that it was very windy on arrival. Nearly 20 knots blowing along the dock. Wind is always the biggest enemy of a cruise ship captain and the only way to deal with it is to turn it into your friend and use it to your advantage. Thus I lined the ship up with the dock while still in the middle of the harbour and with the wind a little bit on the sb bow giving us a gentle push toward the dock, we came slowly alongside. I had to go slowly as I had only 30 feet clearance to a docked ship behind me and about 50 feet clearance to the mud flats ahead of me. However we were docked timely and the tours made it on time to the airplane(s).

I had something else to organize that morning, a donation of 150 matrasses to an orphanage. We have on board a mattress exchange program for the crew whereby on a cycle of two to three years all the matrasses in the cabins get renewed. Instead of trashing them in Tampa, we found out last year that we could donate them to an orphanage in Santo Tomas. The local navy takes care of the transport and we make a few people happy. My presence is not really needed for the off loading but I found out last year that it helps. The navy ratings are very much impressed by all the gold on display so they do not dally around but get the off loading done quickly and efficiently. The faster the better, as the Housekeeping crew has to do it in between cleaning the guest cabins so the least time lost the better it is for all. Three weeks from now we have a second donation of another 100 and that will complete this year’s exchange program.

What is also very nice here is the send off that the ship receives from the taxi drivers and the tour operators. The moment we pull the gangway, they all line up with their cars in front of the ship and start a claxon concert. I always answer extensively with the ships whistle and they always try, by combined effort, to be louder than the Veendam. Today we had also two children’s groups dancing for us, one with traditional dancing and the other group giving a samba display. For the guests it was a nice sail-away after a nice port day. The weather remained over cast with a little breeze and that meant that it was not that hot in the port. Normally the sun shines and there is not any wind at all in the whole port area. Temperatures can easily reach 95 to a 100oF with a very high humidity.

I tried to get out of port as quickly as possible as it is a very tight run to Cozumel. The schedule for this cruise is based on a Costa Maya call. However thanks to Hurricane Dean the piers at Costa Maya have been destroyed and now we have to go to Cozumel which is 90 miles more to the North. Thus I have to absorb 90 miles in my sailing schedule and that is without taking into account the wind and current that will be against me as we still have this North Westerly wind blowing since Belize. Costa Maya is supposed to be back in operation by the end of 2008. Let’s hope so.