26 May 2017; Quebec, Canada.

As planned the ms Maasdam sailed around the corner and approached the port of Quebec just after 06.00 hrs. and by 07.00 hrs. we were happily docked. Although Quebec is far inland it is still under the influence of the Ocean Tide. One of the reasons that the river has such strong currents. At the moment the water level is extremely high due to extensive rains falls in the whole area through which the ST. Lawrence flows. If the river would just flow downstream it would probably not be much of a problem, but with the flood coming in, the downhill freshwater gets stopped by the uphill salt water and today the river banks almost overflowed. One section of the road just outside the cruise terminal was flooded and traffic had to be diverted. If I was a car driver here, I would for once be very happy with a diversion as driving through salt water is not good for your car.

The ms Ryndam sailing past Chateau Frontinac on the way to to Montreal.

Holland America has been coming here for a long long time. Especially just after the 2^nd world war we had two ships, the Ryndam and the Maasdam who had a regular liner service here in the summer months. On occasion also our pure emigrant ship the Groote Beer would show up. Not all Emigrants going to Canada would leave the ship in Halifax, although this was most usual, but some stayed on until Quebec and Montreal and took the train from there to their final destination.  Because this area is sort of French, quite a few of those emigrants were not Dutch but French and they embarked in Le Havre.

And now we do the same route in the form of a cruise. I bumped into a couple a few days ago, who had emigrated this way and were now retracing their previous route. Visiting Pier 21 in Halifax was a highlight for them as it had all the emigration records and a very nice display about emigrants entered Canada.

The only major hurdle to get to Montreal is the bridge height just upriver pass Quebec. The Maasdam / S Class fit under it, the Vista and Signature Class do not. Thus those ships do two overnights in Quebec with a turnover in between before sailing down river again. Guess which option the crew prefers…………

Captain Bas van Dreumel addressing the newly married couple.

We had something quite unusual going on today. Our first officer was getting married on board. Wouter Koolhaas married his beloved Eline in the Crows nest of the ship.  For that purpose we had a government representative come on board as on Dutch ships Captains are not allowed to marry anybody. We can almost do anything else but the Dutch Law, logical as it is, sees no reason or argument to allow marriage. Marrying is not an emergency according to the Law and thus it should be planned properly at a shore side venue. But getting a shore side licensed civil servant or a member of the clergy on board that is allowed. Marriage then takes place under special license and that license can then be converted to a normal approved contract.

The happy couple surrounded by the officers of the ms Maasdam.

This did of course not stop the Captain to do his little bit of supporting the marriage. We all do if we get the chance. If you go back in the archives of this blog and look at March 2010 when the Prinsendam was in the Falklands I did something similar by getting the Deputy Governor on board to do the official part. Thus the Crows nest was reserved for the happy occasion with the official vows, followed by the Master with a 2^nd dedication, followed by toasts, best man speech and cake.  Those officers who could get away from work were there. I could only manage after the first half hour as I was sitting in a lifeboat with my school class. Hence no picture of the Official, officiating, but I caught the 2^nd part.

This evening we will sail up river, change pilots at Trios Rivieres, about half way up and then dock in Montreal tomorrow morning around 06.00 so the luggage unloading can start on time. Due to the dock configuration that is always quite a happening. We are supposed to dock at a different location than normal so it will be interesting to see where we are going. Of great interest to me as I am only used to docking at the Cruise terminal.

It is supposed to be a nice day; 22 oC / 71 oF, no wind and partly cloudy skies. A great day for a change over.