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Nawiliwili, Kaua’i

2023 Vancouver-Hawai’i Cruise

Oct 14, 2023 – a day in Nawiliwili, Kaua’i, Hawai’i, USA

Nawiliwili is the first port of call for Koningsdam in Hawai’i, however the ship is delayed a bit by another ship leaving the harbour this morning. Once we are tied up, passengers are soon ashore and off on their excursions, despite some having to be cancelled due to our later arrival. I have nothing planned, so I have a leisurely breakfast aboard ship at the Grand Dutch Cafe: muffin, fruit parfait, cappuccino.

Joe wearing his new Aloha shirt featuring Frangipangi flowers on a dark red background.
Joe wearing his new Aloha shirt featuring Frangipangi flowers on a dark red background.

I then go ashore, walking 10 minutes to the two resorts and shops on the nearby shores of Nawiliwili Bay. I find a shop selling 100% cotton Aloha shirts, so I buy a nice-looking one with Frangipani flowers on a deep red background. It looks quite classy, and I think it will match the Ultra Red on my new Tesla Model S! After taking a few photos along the beautiful beach, I walk back to the ship, and have a Tribeca pizza and Heineken beer for lunch outside.

Le Boreal, a Ponant premium cruise ship docks in the harbour midday. It is quite small with a 264 passenger capacity, and a very sleek design.

After our departure from Nawiliwili Harbour around 4PM there is a spectacular sunset as the ship sails overnight to dock in Hilo on the Big Island of Hawai’i tomorrow. I have dinner in the Main Dining Room, but order a light entree, since the pizza at lunch filled me up.

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Astoria to Kaua’i – Day 4 at sea

2023 Vancouver-Hawai’i Cruise

Oct 12, 2023 – Day 4 at sea – Astoria, Oregon to Nawiliwili, Kaua’i

I have Lox and bagel with a passion fruit parfait for breakfast in the Main Dining room this morning.

Bagel, lox and creme cheese for breakfast

EXC Talk: Aloha Baby – The True Story of Iconic Hawaiian Symbols

  • History of the ukulele – 3 Portuguese immigrants made furniture and musical instruments, King David Kalākaua the Merrie Monarch popularized the instrument.
  • The Aloha Shirt – not a Hawaiian shirt.
Joe in a tie and jacket for Dressy Night. Flowers in the Ocean Bar aboard Koningsdam.
Joe in a tie and jacket for Dressy Night. Flowers in the Ocean Bar aboard Koningsdam.

Noon Captain’s Report

  • We have sailed 1,157 miles from Astoria, with 770 miles to go for arrival in Kauai
  • Wind is 20 kts from the North, Force 5, 8′ swells
  • Our arrival in Nawiliwili will be delayed due to a cruise ship already being docked. New estimated arrival is 8:30AM, depending on when the other ship departs and releases the pilot.

It is Dressy night, so I put on a tie and jacket and go to the Main Dining Room for dinner. I then catch the The Runaround Kids – Prom Dance music in Main Stage.

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Astoria to Kaua’i – Day 3 at sea

2023 Vancouver-Hawai’i Cruise

Oct 11, 2023 – Day 3 at sea – Astoria, Oregon to Nawiliwili, Kaua’i

Noon Captain’s Report

  • Wind currently 15kts SW force 4 with 2m swells (gentle)
  • Wind was 20kts overnight 1.5m swells

Five wines with cheese, fruit and bread

James Suckling's Regional Wine Tasting in the Main Dining room with a Sommelier.
Aboard Koningsdam, , , North Pacific Ocean
2023-10-11, 1:57:05 PM
James Suckling’s Regional Wine Tasting in the Main Dining room with a Sommelier. Aboard Koningsdam, , , North Pacific Ocean 2023-10-11, 1:57:05 PM

I attend a complimentary Mariners’ James Suckling’s Regional Wine Tasting at 2PM in the Main Dining Room. The sommelier leads us through tasting a sparkling, two whites and two reds, accompanied with some cheese, fruit, bread and chutney. Since I’m not much of a wine drinker, it’s nice that my 4-star Mariner status with Holland America gives me these opportunities to try something different.

I skip lunch today in anticipation of my reservation for dinner in Canaletto, since I want to fully appreciate their amazing Osso Buco (Braised cross-cut veal shanks, mascarpone, saffron arborio risotto, carrots). I start with Burrata, a lovely fresh-tasting salad featuring the cheese with plum tomatoes, pistachio-garlic gremolata and extra virgin olive oil (see above banner image). The Osso Buco is fork tender and oh so richly flavoured! I finish with Affogato for dessert (malaga gelato, espresso, lemon zest). A glass of Chianti goes well with the veal.

Osso Buco – amazing flavour and fork tender!

Braised cross-cut veal shanks, mascarpone, saffron arborio risotto, roasted carrots. My entree for dinner in the Canaletto restaurant.
Aboard Koningsdam, , , North Pacific Ocean
2023-10-11, 6:03:47 PM
Braised cross-cut veal shanks, mascarpone, saffron arborio risotto, roasted carrots. My entree for dinner in the Canaletto restaurant. Aboard Koningsdam, , , North Pacific Ocean 2023-10-11, 6:03:47 PM
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Astoria to Kaua’i – Day 2 at sea

2023 Vancouver-Hawai’i Cruise

Oct 10, 2023 – Day 2 at sea – Astoria, Oregon to Nawiliwili, Kaua’i

The ship was pitching a lot again last night, so there were strange noises, however I got to sleep. The ship’s clocks turned back an hour last night, so we have an extra hour of sleep. It looks like it will take us another day to sail clear of the huge storm north of us. It continues to cause the ship to pitch, so the outside decks are closed.

9am Captain’s Report: A large low pressure area is 600 miles to the north of us, with winds of 40 kts and 15’ swells.

Noon Captain’s Report: NW winds at 35kts – Force 8 with 15′ swells, reducing to 15kts by this evening.

Just before lunch, our Cruise Director Stephanie takes the World Stage to deliver an EXC Talk: The Kingdom of Hawai’i – Native Hawaiian Spirit. She confesses to being seasick from the ship’s motion, but does a great job of delivering the presentation. Continuing on with the cultural theme, a Hawaiian Brunch is served in the Main Dining Room today. I have the Hawaiian Plate – teriyaki pork and chicken, rice, macaroni salad. My table mates are a couple from Oliver, formerly from White Rock, and a couple from Pennsylvania, all well-travelled who offer interesting conversation.

Aloha Sunset Music Hour in the Crow’s Nest

There is Hula at the Aloha Sunset Music Hour in the Crow’s Nest at 6PM, performed by our three Hawaiian ambassadors: Jay, Jamie and Keoni. After having a prime rib dinner in the Main Dining room this evening, I go to Main Stage to enjoy a performance by Ryan Ahern, a talented pianist from Las Vegas.

Ryan Ahern, a pianist from Las Vegas
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Vancouver Departure

2023 Vancouver-Hawai’i Cruise

I have a coffee and a cereal bar in my hotel room before checking out and rolling my bag the few blocks down to Canada Place, stopping for a quick selfie before going inside. I am through the check-in at the cruise terminal shortly after my10:20AM boarding time, however it takes about an hour for the ship to start accepting passengers aboard. Since I roll my own bag aboard, I’m soon settled into my stateroom #5023.

I then head to the Grand Dutch Cafe for lunch: Beenam’s ham sandwich and a bowl of Dutch pea soup. The couple ordering ahead of me insist on loading up with two giant sized chocolate-covered cream puffs and two slices of Dutch apple pie each! The server and I have a chuckle about their greed. I take a cappuccino and a Perrier bottled water back to my stateroom.

Dutch apple pie, Chocolate vanilla cake, bran, chocolate and blueberry muffins, giant-sized chocolate covered cream puff. Dutch pea soup, Beenam’s ham sandwich. Grand Dutch Cafe aboard Koningsdam
Dutch apple pie, Chocolate vanilla cake, bran, chocolate and blueberry muffins, giant-sized chocolate covered cream puff. Dutch pea soup, Beenam’s ham sandwich. Grand Dutch Cafe aboard Koningsdam

It’s a lovely sunny day in Vancouver as the ship pulls away from the dock at about 4:45pm, which is a bit late due to a passenger having to be taken off the ship at the last minute for medical reasons. I never get tired of being aboard a ship at it sails under Lion’s Gate Bridge, passing Stanley Park and the North Shore heading out into the Strait of Georgia. It is dark by the time we pass my home city of Victoria, so rather than spend time on deck, I have my first Martini on this voyage and enjoy the jazz, blues and rock on the Music Walk venues this evening.

Harbour Air seaplane taxiing to the dock in Coal Harbour with pleasure craft and Chevron fuel dock, Brockton Point, Stanley Park, Lion's Gate bridge and the North Shore mountains
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San Diego to Victoria – sea day 2

April 28, 2023 – Friday – Sailing from San Diego, California to Victoria, British Columbia – day 2 off the Oregon coast

2023 Panama Canal Cruise

We are sailing north offshore from the Oregon coast today. Bird watchers are setup on the Promenade Deck with their spotting scopes, binoculars and some have cameras. Apparently they are spotting seabirds, but I only see a few that are close to the ship.

I go up to the Explorations Cafe just after 7am for cappuccino and relax for awhile in one of the chairs facing forward. It’s quiet up here at this time of day – too early for the trivia or game players. I have breakfast in the Main Dining room, sharing a table with a couple from Surrey, who mainly go to Mexico all-inclusive resorts, but are trying cruising. They are finding Holland America doesn’t offer enough onboard activities, but they are otherwise enjoying their time aboard, especially the Panama Canal transit.

Ship's position off the Oregon coast at 5:30pm
Ship’s position off the Oregon coast at 5:30pm

I drop off my Canada Border Services declaration to the staff who are setup mid-ship on my floor this morning. I declared the Halley Hansen jacket and a Holland America 150th Anniversary 2-mug set. I didn’t buy anything while I was ashore on this trip! I give a gratuity to my room stewards this morning, after getting a couple of envelopes from Customer Service.

I watch a movie this afternoon: A Man Called Otto with Tom Hanks in the lead as a grumpy old man with a heart of gold. I enjoyed it, since he always brings so much subtle emotion to his roles. Mariana Treviño knocks it out of the park as his fiery new neighbour.

It continues to be cold, foggy and some rain is falling today as we sail up the coast of Oregon on our way to Victoria. As can be seen by the ship’s position map, there is lots of shipping traffic along this coast!

I go to the Main Dining Room this evening, and have some Prosecco with my Rack of Lamb. Later, there is a lovely sunset over the ocean, which I watch and photograph from Deck 10. I surprise myself with the good quality photo I take of the 9 day old Waxing Gibbous Moon directly overhead. Canon’s image stabilization works amazingly well, even from the deck of a cruise ship!

Sunset over the ocean
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Cabo San Lucas

April 24, 2023 – Monday – Cabo San Lucas and San Jose de Cabo, Mexico

2023 Panama Canal Cruise

We arrive in Cabo early at 6:30am. Nieuw Amsterdam is the only cruise ship anchored in the bay, so we get the nearest slot to the harbour, which means the tender trip to shore doesn’t take too long.

I booked the Cabo Land & Sea excursion a couple of days ago, since I wanted to see more of the area than last time I was here, when I just walked around the marina area. Our group is on the first tender off the ship before 7am, but end up waiting for awhile to fill the large catamaran with perhaps a hundred people on this excursion. We then cruise along the shoreline where the famous beaches are located, and the hole in the rock (Cabo San Lucas Arch or El Arco). We go around the rocky point and a bit further into open water to see the beaches and resorts on this side before returning to the bay. There are included refreshments while on the excursion boat.

After returning from the boat trip, we board a tour bus, driving out of town and around the bay. We stop at a deluxe resort at Cabo Bello with a great view back to Cabo San Lucas, the beaches, resorts and of course our ship anchored in the bay. We only have 15 minutes, since our excursion is about an hour shorter than normal due to our ship leaving at 1pm, but we have time for some refreshment and of course photo ops to take in the spectacular view.

We next head to San Jose de Cabo, seeing hundreds of spectacular resorts along the way. We have a half hour in this lovely town, which I find to be much nicer than Cabo San Lucas. If I return to Cabo, this is the area I would prefer to stay in. I’m astounded at the wealth and development. Of course, this stop is to give people time to shop before we return to Cabo San Lucas for our final stop at a glass factory for a demo of glass blowing. We are then driven back to the marina, taking the tender back to the ship.

I have pasta for lunch in the Lido ahead of the ship leaving, and setup my GoPro action camera on my balcony rail to take a time lapse video of the departure, since I’m facing the shore. There are some great views of the beaches and rocks from our ship as we sail away out into the open Pacific. Speaking of which, when we round the point at El Arco, the ship is hit with very strong headwinds and there are whitecaps on the ocean!

I make a reservation for dinner in Canaletto for 6pm, since I’m still trying to spend my shipboard credit. I have the Osso Bucco again for my main course since it is the Monday special. The beef is absolutely wonderful, and the minestrone soup for my starter and chocolate torte for dessert are also very good. I’m stuffed by the time I leave to return to my stateroom, so I grab my fleece jacket (since it is quite cool and windy) to walk around the Promenade deck a couple of times to work off my meal.

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Puerto Vallarta to Cabo San Lucas – sea day

April 23, 2023 – Sunday – Sailing across the Gulf of California from Puerto Vallarta to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

2023 Panama Canal Cruise

A Brown booby perched on a Sea turtle

The ship slowly sails across the mouth of the Sea of Cortez from Puerto Vallarta to Cabo San Lucas today. I spot a Brown booby perched on a Sea turtle this morning, and manage to take a photo of this unusual sight. A few minutes later the booby flies off after his brief rest.

Chocolate extravaganza in the Lido

The chefs knock it out of the park today with some amazing cakes, confections, desserts and sculptures, all made out of baked goods and sugar, and on display at noon in the Lido! Apparently there will be a chocolate extravaganza parade through the ship this evening, which is a Dressy Night at sea before we arrive in Cabo San Lucas tomorrow.

I have what will probably be my last swim this afternoon in the Sea View pool, since once we leave Cabo San Lucas, the North Pacific will cool the air temperatures on our way to San Diego and northward from there.

Since it is Dressy Night, I make a reservation at Tamarind for this evening, in order to work on spending my onboard balance. I have yet another wonderful meal with great service!

Exotic fruits with mandarin sorbet
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Costa Rica to Mexico – Sea Day 1

April 19, 2023 – Wednesday – Costa Rica to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – day 1 at sea

2023 Panama Canal Cruise

I go to the Explorations Cafe in the Crow’s Nest to pick up a cappuccino and a small bottle of Perrier sparkling water this morning, which I take back to my stateroom. Later, I have breakfast in the Main Dining Room sharing a table with all Canadians this morning, who are from: Victoria, Sunshine Coast, and Ontario.

I attend the Ask the Captain event in the Main Stage at 10am this morning hosted by Cruise Director Kimberly. Thankfully, no stupid or embarrassing questions are asked of Captain Jeroen van Donselaar. I always find these sessions interesting, since the Captains almost always reveal little snippets of behind-the-scenes information on how the ship works and the issues they deal with.

Nazca Booby in flight

I see flying fish this morning and Nazca Boobys are swooping down into the water near the bow of the ship catching them. I take more photos, despite already having many of the similar Caribbean Booby Gulls from past sightings on the Atlantic side and Brown Boobys on this coast. There is one mostly white Booby and another with mottled white, brown and black plumage among the rest.

Barramundi Red Curry

I have a Martini in the Tamarind bar this evening before going into the Tamarind restaurant for dinner. I start with lobster and shrimp potstickers served with smoked shoyu and pickled ginger. My main course is Barramundi Red Curry with Crab rice and bok choy – all very tasty. I finish the meal with a selection of House-made Sorbets: lemon-basil, yuzu, and lychee.

People watching – Two young male crew members (South Asian and Eastern European) are seated next to me with two old American biddies. It’s a pretty awkward “date” for the young men, but the two women lap it up and carry the conversation. A young couple in their twenties are seated next to my table on the other side. They really stick out since they don’t fit the demographic for this cruise, and don’t seem to socialize with other passengers. However, they appear to be enjoying themselves, so perhaps it’s an opportunity for them to get away…

Trumpter Nathan Samuelson performing on Main Stage

Trumpeter Nathan Samuelson gives an energetic performance in Main Stage at 9pm this evening, however 45 minutes of solo trumpet playing is a bit much. The house band is backing him up, which improves the experience greatly. He has a very good singing voice in the Michael Buble style, which I would have liked to hear more of. Nathan Samuelson Music

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Aruba

April 13, 2023 – Thursday – Oranjestad, Aruba

2023 Panama Canal Cruise

I ordered room service breakfast for this morning at 6:45am, since I’m signed up for a Sail and Snorkel excursion that leaves at 8am. I enjoy my favourite bagel and lox, along with a continental breakfast and coffee. I’m at the appointed check-in spot outside the cruise terminal by 7:45am, and we walk to the catamaran tied up just down the dock from the Nieuw Amsterdam.

Although I forget to bring the floating handle for my GoPro, I manage to hang onto it, not dropping it to the bottom as I snorkel today! I take 4k video underwater of the fish at the first snorkel stop at Boca Cathalina, and of the ship wreck at the second stop. The Antilla shipwreck site is a challenge, since the wind is up so the water is rougher, there are crowds of people swarming all over, and some of the excursion boats are literally right over the wreck! Despite all these odds, I manage to shoot some video and survive the experience, however I’m glad to be back safely onboard the excursion boat. There is unlimited Rum punch and other beverages on the return to town.

I had thought I would wander around Oranjestad town, but it is already too hot for me, so I return to the ship. After dropping my snorkel stuff in my stateroom, I first grab a table in the shade beside the Lido pool and have a beer, a Dive In Impossible burger and some fries for a late lunch. I then return to my stateroom to get cleaned up and relax while transferring my photos and video to my MacBook Pro.

My dinner this evening is in the Main Dining Room at the same big table as two nights ago, where I join a mix of Americans and Canadians. We enjoy back and forth banter, recollections of past travels, and even some more serious subjects. I have shrimp crostini as a starter, and roast chicken with stuffing for my main – both very tasty with a glass of Pinot Grigio wine. I finish with a chocolate torte for dessert and a cappuccino. After dinner, I go to the B.B. King’s Blues Club to enjoy some great performances by the troupe of musicians and singers.