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Ocean Liner History and Stories from the Sea, Past and Present. With an In Depth focus on Holland America Line

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16 March 2017; Puerto Limon, Costa Rica.

March 16, 2017 / / 4 Comments

Indeed the weather was with us today. Yesterday in the Canal the wind was already getting less and less and when we arrived this morning at the pilot station, there was no white cap to be seen. Just a little ripple indicating a wind force 1 to 2. That meant that during the night the waves had lost a lot of their height and strength and that made for a good day. Last cruise the swell had made it impossible for the ship to dock alongside the pier, this time there were no worries.

And thus the good ship Zuiderdam met a smiling pilot at 06.00 hrs. with only good news to bring and the ship sailed in at once. Puerto Limon is one of the more simpler ports to dock in (if there is no swell of course) it is just  matter of sailing in and then deciding if you want to go portside alongside or starboard side. Starboard side is preferable as A. it takes less time to leave and B. if there is swell, the bow of the ship is better in dealing with it than the stern. The bow can ride on the waves and also cut them apart, but the stern being square, gets the wave every time under the square end. Then there is the danger that the swell will lift the ship up and start riding along the dock. Not good for the ropes and even worse for the gangway and the guests.

The approach according to the electronic chart. The black shape to the right the Celebrity Equinox approaching the container berth.

The approach according to the electronic chart. The black shape to the right is the Celebrity Equinox approaching the container berth.

Thus we swung on arrival and went astern alongside. Later on the Celebrity Equinox arrived and she went nose in. I think because she was on the late side. But today it did not really matter for her, what side was chosen.

Puerto Limon as seen from starboard bridge wing. The country is low and flat, except for the middle part where there are high mountains.

Puerto Limon as seen from starboard bridge wing. The country is low and flat, except for the middle part where there are high mountains.

Puerto Limon is a tour call for us as with the beautiful hinterland it is a great place for seeing wild life and the tropical rain forest.  It is a country which is really trying to preserve nature and there are extensive nature reserves both on the Atlantic and the Pacific side. If you cruise on the Pacific Side then Holland America takes you to Golfo Dulce and Puerto Caldera /Punta Arenas where things are similar. Guests came back today with stories about having seen monkeys and “lots of noisy birds” so I assume the tours were a success.

With modern projection you can now simulate near real fires.

With modern projection you can now simulate near real fires.

I threw one of my specials today. Set the show lounge on fire and then have 30 or so casualties for Medical to try and save. We have an official disaster plan for this called the Mass Casualty Response Plan which provides guide lines of how too few doctors should try to save too many injured people. With a majority of entertainers as casualties (Natural Actors / and Actresses) there was enough mayhem created for the Medical Staff to be really focused and involved.  A major part of the evolution is the transport away from the disaster area to a safe location where a second triage can take place and from where the the final disposition is organized. (Either back to the cabin, stay in the hospital or be medivac-ed ashore.

Doctor, Nurse, On Scene Commander, Stretcher Team and a Scribe for keeping track, all part of the machinery needed to make it possible.

Doctor, Nurse, On Scene Commander, Stretcher Team and a Scribe for keeping track, all part of the machinery needed to make it possible.

My challenge is that I can only train on the flow of the drill and point out pitfalls to avoid. For the rest it all depends on the focus and organizational skills of the participating officers and crew. Today we had about a 100 crew involved varying from Fire teams, to wheel chair pushers and the very important stretcher carriers and casualties.  Hardly any of the crew had ever done a drill like this, so the focus was there and so as long as you have that, then the drill is already a 50% success. Plus you do not always get the chance to run a drill in the main show lounge, which is the largest public room on board.

The Gents and Ladies from Housekeeping had a heavy job today, carrying stretchers up the stairs and then to the medical centers. But they did very well.

The Gents and Ladies from Housekeeping had a heavy job today, carrying stretchers up the stairs and then to the medical centers. But they did very well.

Tomorrow we have our first of two days at sea and then we are back in Fort Lauderdale. If things go according to the last plan, then I will remain a few more days on the Zuiderdam before transferring to the Westerdam. If the cabin situation works out I will train 6 new navigators for 14 days while the Westerdam sails to Europe.

Weather for tomorrow: wobbly but not too bad.

Note: Under the Current Captains section, the Biography of Zuiderdam captain Bart Vaartjes has now been uploaded and also the sailing schedules of the Captains has been updated.

 

15 March 2017; Panama Canal and Colon 2000.

March 15, 2017 / / 0 Comments

Today went sort of on schedule although we were not able to repeat the performance from last cruise when were docked by 15.00 hrs. in Colon. Now it was just before 17.00 hrs. and nothing we could do about it. It all depends on when we fit into the slot for the traffic going through the Gatun Locks. That is the traffic coming from the Pacific side. This time there was no early gap and thus the ms Zuiderdam had to wait until a gap became available. The PTA (Panama Canal Authority) cannot “hold” a gap for us as they do not know when we will be ready to return. Running a tender service is not clock work and getting 1100 guests off does take a bit of time.  Going out through the new locks is also not an option, even if there would be a gap there, as the PTA tries to limit the water loss by sending only the real big boys through.

This is supposed to change next year when they will take reservations for cruise ships who want to go in one way and out the other way. But there will be a price tag attached to it, first because of the extra water loss and secondly because that ship now has to be planned into the double system. All this makes the tariff system for the Canal very complicated. At the moment the basic charge per passenger berth for a cruise ship is which can use the old locks $ 138 a berth. For a cruise ship which has to use the new locks it is $148 a berth. (So if we have empty beds, the company still has to pay for it) Then there is a plethora of other costs, including a charge for the crew and for a ship of the Zuiderdam size it comes to a transit fee of about $ 348,000.

For some reason it did not look that busy today in the locks; ships were coming and going but there was a very lower number at the anchorage on the Cristobal side. Maybe it will be different again tomorrow. Although not all the ships at the anchorages are there to go through the Canal. Both the Pacific and Atlantic side have extensive fuel bunker facilities and ships stop at the Panama Canal roads just for loading fuel. Then there is the reason of not having paid the transit fee. The PTA charges upfront which is understandable as there would be operators who would conveniently forget to settle the bill. A number of years ago it was so bad that payment in cash was required for those ships that did not have a long standing agent in Panama who had the monies available in an escrow account.  Holland America has had the same agent (Fernie & CO) for as long as any of us remember and thus far we have never been delayed because of a non-timely transfer of funds. It had better not happen as the ship does carry a corporate credit card but I think it does not run to $ 350,000 —

The tender chart for all drivers. It is a pity the ship has not been drawn in on scale, then it would been easier to understand that there is not much space.

The tender chart for all drivers. It is a pity the ship has not been drawn in on scale, then it would been easier to understand that there is not much space.

The ship was sitting today or better said floating exactly in between the approaches to both locks. And we have to make sure it stays there. There is not much room at either side. Not only that, we also have to ensure that the tenders stay very close to “mother goose” as straying more than 300 feet away could cause them to enter the traffic lane for the Gatun Locks.  Next to where the Zuiderdam is drifting is the exact location where the tugboats catch the cargo ships approaching the Gatun Locks. Thus a little tender getting in between would cause havoc in the routine. Plus the tenders are made out of aluminum and fiberglass and those tugboats are pure steel.  So better stay well clear.

kkkkk

Our tender location in relation to the locks. The tenders go ashore exactly where the a of the word Gatun (Lake) is on the chartlet.

Tonight we will sail at 19.00 hrs. if everybody is on board that is coming back from the tour, and then it is a nights sailing to Puerto Limon in Costa Rica. Because that country lays a little bit further west than Panama, we will be going an hour back tonight. The only problem is we have to go forward again after we leave that port.  We will be at the entrance at 06.00 hrs. and should be docked about 20 minutes later as Puerto Limon is an open bay port (hence the reason we had to cancel last cruise because of the incoming swell) and the ship just can charge in swing around and throw the lines ashore.

Weather for tomorrow:  Partly Cloudy with a chance of showers. Warm with a temperature of 85oF / 209C and very little wind. And very little wind, means very little swell and thus we can make the port call.

14 March 2017; Cartagena, Colombia.

March 14, 2017 / / 1 Comment

As was expected the wind disappeared the moment we curved southwards and followed the Colombian coast down to the Boca Chica pilot station. But because the cooler North Easterly wind had already been reducing itself in strength, it brought also less cool air to the area of Cartagena and thus the warm tropical air could re-establish itself. Also the clouds decided to disappear and we had a sunny day. Together with the warm tropical air and the sun beating down, it was not only sunny, it was positively warm. For those on tours, the half size busses were sort of air-conditioned so the guests could survive and for those on board it was a good reason to find the shade wherever it was available. But before departure it was distinctively quieter on the outside decks than was the case in Willemstad and Oranjestad.

My day started early as I was on the aft mooring deck at 05.30 to follow proceedings there.  Safe Working is Holland America’s main priority and those who are to enforce that, Captain and Staff Captain can never go there as their place is on the bridge during arrival. Standbys are also something you cannot learn from a book; it is pure hands on skills. Observing, learning lessons from the Bo ‘sun and at the same time applying common sense as the Bo ‘sun might also make mistakes. Some of our newer officers come from other companies where the  ships make less port calls, when they do they use fewer deck hands and some of them do not observe the standard safety practices that we take for granted.

Thus arrival Cartagena I was present on the aft deck.  Although handing out ropes does not look very difficult; “as in just roll them off the mooring drum and bring them tight again”; it can be a very dangerous affair. Sailors might be obscured by one of the winches, the winchman might “pull instead of push”, you have to keep an eye on the linesmen ashore and you have to make sure the ropes do not get sucked into the propellers/Azipods.  A good deck officer has eyes in the front, in the back and in the side of his/her head.  The biggest secret to a safe operation is =====taking your time. Slow the process down until every move can be anticipated and then indeed it goes as it was anticipated.

A photo of the good old ms Statendam seen here in 2012 at the same dock. Only the Zuiderdam when starboard side alongside, nose in.

A photo of the good old ms Statendam seen here in 2012 at the same dock. Only the Zuiderdam went starboard side alongside, nose in. Note the dolphins.

Docking at Cartagena means that the stern of the ship is sticking out, causing long spring lines to go forward to a dolphin and the stern lines to run aft to another dolphin. To get the ropes there, we use a mooring boat provided by the port. In this case it is not a particularly specialized boat but more of a small ferry which is used for the purpose. It works but the working platform for the line handler is not as good as it could be. Each time we lower two lines into the water which are then being pulled to the dock with the boat. Sometimes in quite a complicated way as the Azipod wash makes it difficult to maneuver. The Deck officer now has to watch this boat, watch the ropes in the water, watch the sailors paying out the rope and talk to the bridge to let them know what is going on as from there you cannot see very much.

Our lines boat pulling ropes 3 and 4 from the ship to the dolphin.

Our lines boat pulling ropes 3 and 4 from the ship to the dolphin.

Quite often the linesmen can be problematic, as they have their own ideas about ropes and what to do with them. (Very little if they get the chance)All this is being watched over by an officer who is often the youngest of everybody involved in the whole operation. Today we had a Lady 3rd Officer aft and she did a very good job. When she joined Holland America, she missed my school class as the cabins were cancelled, but somehow she had figured out that “slow – slow” is safer and often faster than just throwing all the lines over the side at the same time in order to save time.  Today we docked with six mooring lines and 2 spring lines as the weather forecast was good and every rope was given out and handled exactly according to safe and best practices. Always good to see something like that.

We left at 13.00 hrs.  and put the pedal to the metal to make it on time to the Panama Canal. Because we land the tour while in Gatun Lake, we need to be in the Locks as early as possible. Thus our ETA will be 05.30 at the pilot station and then we ………………………..hope……………… for…… the following:

Pilot on board                    05:30hrs

Gatun Locks (East Lane) SB Passage

Arriving                              07:30hrs

Departing                           09:15hrs

Anchoring                          09:40hrs

Reassuming NB Passage11:00hrs

Gatun Locks (West Lane) NB Passage

Arriving                               11:35hrs

Departing                            14:00hrs

ETB Colon 2000                 15:30hrs (Terminal # 2)

This is by no means certain. Last cruise was the first time in a year that the Zuiderdam and the Panama Canal Authority was able to stick to the schedule because there was a gap in the convoy coming from the Pacific. Maybe we can repeat that feat again tomorrow.

Weather for tomorrow:  You need a Hat, you need sunblock 50, and you need at least a pint of water every hour………….. Need to say more???  I will hide inside until it starts to cloud over or the daily rain shower.

13 March 2017; At Sea.

March 13, 2017 / / 6 Comments

It is still very windy out there but we now have following wind; which means the relative wind on the deck is the real wind minus the ships speed. The ship is doing 12 knots; the apparent or relative wind is 18 knots, so it is still blowing 30 knots out at sea. And 30 knots is a big 6 or a small 7 on the Beaufort scale. Very windy. Sailors call that a Very Strong Breeze or a Near Gale. All caused by the regular Trade Wind being super charged by large weather systems North of Puerto Rico.  I think the word Near Gale comes from the observation of it being very windy but not yet that windy that it feels stormy. Still there is a lot more wind than there should be in this area.  Most of the Zuiderdam’s open deck spaces are screened off by large glass partitions so the guests can still sit out of the wind if they want to. Only the aft deck around the pool is open on three sides and that brings the danger that the cooler sea air does not make you feel that hot; and then you forget that you are baking in the Caribbean sun. Some guests forgot it today but will remember it tomorrow and the days after.

A bit more engine stuff today. Now outside the engine room, with the fascinating question, what happens if all the engines stop? Do all the lights go out?  The answer is no. In the unlikely case of a full black out, when all the engines have stopped or the two Main switchboards have a major hic-up, we still keep the lights on.

The Eme

The Emergency Diesel Generator, with next to it a small diesel engine in case we run out of starting air for the EDG.

When all the power would stop, the Emergency Diesel Generator (EDG) would come on line and provide sufficient power for the ship to stay in minimal operation. That happens by itself. The electric setup is so that when the main power goes down, within a maximum of 10 seconds the EDG has to come on line. In reality it goes much faster. But the 10 seconds are a requirement and when we have USCG inspection or Lloyd’s renewal of our certificates the EDG is always tested. Although we then do not make a real black out, we simulate by pulling fuses.  The EDG powers all the emergency lighting, all the bridge and Engine Control Room equipment, lights in the corridors etc.etc. It does not power air conditioning and toilets. For that we have another auxiliary engine. The EDG powers what is legally required. It does include elevators, one in every staircase. On every cruise ship you can recognize those as there are small green signs on every deck indicating which one it is.

The Emergency Switchboard. Two sides so it can bring power down to the Two main switchboards we have in the engine room.

The Emergency Switchboard. Two sides so it can bring power down to each of the Two main switchboards we have in the engine room. In the back the EDG.

The EDG is located near the top of the ship on deck 10, so if the ship would be sinking it could keep happily running until everybody had left the ship.

Now what would happen if the EDG would not start? It normally starts as a regular Diesel Engine with air which comes from an Air pressure vessel. If that tank or drum would be empty, then we have another smaller air compressor standing next to the EDG which would then fill up the Air tank again until it would have sufficient pressure to start the EDG again. The EDG has sufficient Gas oil to run for at least 24 hours. Ours can do at least 36 hours and if we can get more gas oil there (or mgo) then it can run indefinitely.

Now what if we would eventually run out of MGO or the EDG would break down? Then we still have batteries. A whole room full and they are capable of providing power for all the emergency lighting in the ship for at least 4 hours. Thus making it possible for everybody to safely disembark also during the night time. (Remember lifeboats do not need power to go down in the Davits as they are gravity operated)

All the

All the Elevators are connected to the EDG so the Ch. Engineer can decide which ones should run during an emergency, or if the power is sufficient keep even more of them on line.

Most guests only notice the existence of the EDG when they hear the announcement that we carry out the weekly test and we ask them to refrain from using the Elevators while this is going on. This is because we bring the EDG on line (Engineers called that “under full load”) and thus only four elevators need to continue to work. So the other ones might stop and then descend by themselves to deck 3 (lifeboat deck) and the open the doors. Not dangerous but a bit startling for a guest who was convinced that he or she was on the way to deck 9 for an early lunch.

Tomorrow we are in Cartagena and we expect to be at the pilot station around 05.30 am and to be docked an hour later.  Weather forecast:  Mainly overcast with a chance of showers. 31oC or 88oF. but very little wind inside the port.  Overcast is not a bad thing as most of our guests will be on tour. Hopefully we get our chance of showers after the early afternoon departure.

 

12 March 2017; Willemstad Curacao.

March 12, 2017 / / 1 Comment

Holland America tries to build in at least one evening call in a cruise of more than seven days. If it is a seven day cruise, we also try it, but that does not always work out due to the distance between the various ports. With the A.B.C islands in such close proximity it is a no brainer to organize such a schedule as the distance between Oranjestad (on A = Aruba) and Willemstad (C = Curacao) is about 80 miles and that is pushing it. Thus we can do a late night departure and still arrive on time, while we almost sail backwards while getting there. The evening is mostly given over to a deck party or the chance to have an evening ashore. Although the option is there not that many of our guests go for it, apart from a few adventurers who go for a dinner ashore or who want to see another variation of slot machine in the local casino.

It is almost a straight line to Curacao and because we docked outside we hardly had to chance course at all. It was more a matter of stopping the ship on time and putting the lines ashore. No course changes needed as we were docking at the Mega Pier which runs in line with the general axis of the island. What is more important it also runs in line with the general axis of the wind. Done on purpose so the large ships do not have to contend with the wind which causes drift; no here the wind is full on the bow and thus it only slows the ship down a little bit.  Today we were quite happy to be at the Mega Pier as the wind was very strong, breezing up to 30 knots at times.

Long spring lines with the ship sticking out. The same goes for the stern.

Long spring lines with the ship sticking out. The same goes for the stern.

The Mega pier is called the Mega Pier as it can accommodate Mega size cruise ships. But it is not really a mega-pier. It is quite a small T pier which requires long lines to be run. For the spring lines to the corner of the dock and for the head and breast lines to a one single mooring bollard on a dolphin. They certainly did not overspend on making captains happy with a plethora of docking options. There is now a plan to build a 2nd mega pier and I have no idea if it is going to be a small T pier again or a mega T pier. I hope for the latter. They are already moving sand just behind this pier so it will not be long before we get an idea of what it is going to be.

Bow and stern lines go to a single dolphin. The green covers behind the bollards are little winches to pull the ropes up from the water.

Bow and stern lines go to a single dolphin. The green covers behind the bollards are little winches to pull the ropes up from the water.

In the meantime life goes on onboard with the regular routine of trainings. While I am still making everybody’s life miserable by going through their operations with a fine toothcomb, the trainers we have onboard are busy with training on the job. Holland America has a contract with a company who supplies specialist safety trainers (all ex-navy petty officers) who go around the fleet for general but also specific safety and related training. When I left the Eurodam I met one of them who was joining to provide training in a new system of chemical management which the company is introducing.

The trainers we have onboard now are more for the general items. I have asked them to spend this cruise a bit of time with the various hotel groups here in First Response training. This means training crew in the first actions to take when something occurs. If the initial actions are correct, then the occurrence is most likely not turning into a problem. Thus they focus on Cooks, Shops, Dining room, Casino and even on the two man band of the Club Hal kiddies place.

All the shops staff gathered on location in the shop and listening attentively to the trainers.

All the shops staff gathered on location in the shop and listening attentively to the trainers.

What we try to achieve is that a shop lady or anybody else will take affirmative action when something happens and will not run away or is not too scared to do something. Call the bridge, use a fire extinguisher, move all guests to a safe area, close Fire screen doors to secure an area. Etc. etc.  All these things are not difficult to do but it needs to be trained and crew needs to be encouraged. Remember your first time of driving without a teacher or a parent to support and guide you? That apprehension is exactly the same onboard, we know they can do it, they know they can do it: we just have to offer them the routine and the skills to be confident to do it.

The results can be quite spectacular. A numbers of years ago, we had a small fire in the sauna on my ship. By the time the fire squad arrived the Spa Manager had evacuated the area, rigged up a fire hose and had three ladies on the hose (high heels and all) pouring water into the sauna. The fire was well and truly out before the “professionals” could do anything. I made sure she received an official letter of commendation from me and for all of them a free dinner in the Pinnacle as a thank you.  Nobody had expected them to do something with a hose, but they thought it was safe to do so, and so they did. It was very impressive.

Tomorrow we are at sea, sailing North of Venezuela and Colombia on our way to Cartagena. We will have following wind, so the guests should have a pleasant situation on deck.

11 March 2017; Oranjestad, Aruba.

March 11, 2017 / / 0 Comments

It was very windy. Almost on the edge. Although the Zuiderdam is very powerful almost all the power was needed to bring the ship alongside and to keep her there while the ropes were going out.  Definitely not a day for a good peace of mind situation for the captain. So when going into port, there is always the discussion and the planning for the “what if situation”. What can we do when plan A does not work? For entering the port of Oranjestad (called the Paardenbaai or Bay of Horses) we have three distinctive situations.

A. Going in or not going in. This would have been decided today by the wind or by the late departure of the Coral Princess who occupied our dock. If her guests were late, the Zuiderdam would have aborted the approach outside and made a neat circle until the coast would have been clear, or better said the dock. If the wind would have been too strong, it would have been here, 1.5 miles from the port where the captain would have said “bye bye Aruba”.

B. What if when going in, the Coral Princess suddenly stopped sailing out? Then plan B is docking at the container terminal. The crane there is broken so the container terminal is not in use at the moment but it has a very nice dock. Once there you review the situation and then you can always stay there or continue to the cruise terminal.

C. What if we come to the dock and the wind is too strong? We let ourselves blow away from the dock until clear of the Celebrity Equinox and then just continue back to open sea via the eastern exit. Once out, then you can review the situation and your options.

D. Then ensure that the pilot has a tugboat on short notice to help us to stay at point C   at the next time in.

the various options in case Plan C does not work. By the time we sail out, we can call a tugboat to help us for the enxt attempt.

The various options in case Plan C does not work. By the time we sail out, we can call a tugboat to help us with the next attempt.

Well we kept all of that in mind, and of course we docked without much issue although the wind was strong. For that we put extra lines out, 7 headlines instead of the normal 5 and that will keep us alongside until dusk, when the wind will die down considerably and then there is no issue anymore.

To continue with our engine room exploration: Most interest always goes to the stabilizers. Main engines are fine but our guests are normally happy when they know that they are big, powerful and there are enough of them to get everybody home on time. Water in the shower is also taken for granted and also were the water goes after the shower; but what really is a constant focus are the ship stabilizers. As soon as the ship starts to roll (or wobble or whatever phrase comes to mind) the first question is, are they working? And the second question is how do they work and where are they?

 

Yesterday when I mentioned the crystal clear water and the shallow depth: they were visible, about 20 feet below water and sticking out about 15 feet.

images (7)They work like an airplane wing, creating a lift under the flat of the stabilizer and directing it with the flap. If you use that lift opposite the movement of the vessel then it reduces about 90% of the rolling. It will never achieve a full 100% because the gyroscope needs the ‘push’ of the roll to react and thus there is always that little bit of movement left. Most of the time too little to be felt by the guests. The stabilizers are located in the AC or air conditioning room, which is as close to the amidships as is possible.

 

Most ships only have one set of stabilizers but some ships have two sets such as the Queen Mary 2. The logic behind it is that with the sheer bulk of this ship it might need a second set. I have spoken to officers who sailed on that ship and the combined wisdom was, nice to have two sets, always handy, but one set normally suffices.

The Zuiderdam sb stabilizer as seen during the newbuilt in 2001

The Zuiderdam sb stabilizer as seen during the newbuild in 2001

We are staying here in Aruba until 23.00 hrs. and then sail a short hop towards Willemstad Curacao. We are scheduled for the Mega Pier which is the outside cruise dock. A longer walk for the guests into town; but still better than not getting there at all as the wind is supposed to be even stronger than today. But with the Mega pier we can dock with the wind on the nose, so we will not drift.

 

An this is what it looks like inside. Nothing more than a hydraulic ram with a hydraulic power pack attached to it.

An this is what it looks like inside. Nothing more than a hydraulic ram with a hydraulic power pack attached to it.

 

10 March 2017: At sea.

March 10, 2017 / / 7 Comments

And for those who paid attention you could feel (and see) us sailing through the various wind systems. After departing Half Moon Cay the ship had a bumpy ride as the North Atlantic waves found their way between the islands. Once clear and entering the end of Old Bahama channel this became even more pronounced.  I could feel it very well as I have a bow cabin this cruise. Nice view forward but also the weather on my door step.

Then early morning we entered the Windward Passage and a serene peace came over the ship as the island of Hispaniola now protected us from wind and swell. It takes about 12 hours to sail the whole stretch of sea which is protected by the Haitian mountains and around lunch time it was almost calm of wind. The last part of the Windward Passage near the Jamaican Channel is very shallow and as the sea had only its waves and no white caps you could see the white sandy bottom about 45 feet below us. In the distance were various fishing craft as the fish likes to  be at the edge of shallow and deep water due to the cold water welling up from the dee[, bringing all sorts of nutrients.

Cape Tiburon in the far distance. Most southwesterly point of Haiti on the island of Hispaniola.

Cape Tiburon in the far distance. Most southwesterly point of Haiti on the island of Hispaniola.

That lasted to just after 2 pm. and then we cleared the island and portside came full into the “view” of the Caribbean Trade Wind.  It came as quite a shock to all the guests sitting, relaxing or being “not there” in the deck chairs when the wind suddenly blew around Cape Tiburon, the southwest point of Haiti.

My travels through the ship took me today back in the Engine Room. We have two trainers on board who make a regular circle around the fleet giving basic trainings and do catch up work and thus can I concentrate myself on my ships review. Looking for the trees in the forest because when you work too long in the same environment you do not see the Forest for the trees anymore. (Or something like that)

The Engine room on the Vista Class runs the whole length of the ship on D deck and gets slowly smaller in size on the higher decks. On C, B &  A deck it is down to about 40% and then there is only the uptake to the funnel left which takes up about 10% of the ships space per deck.  The 5 engines of the ship (and a Gas turbine generator = which is not used anymore as it is too expensive with the current fuel prices) are divided over two separate engines rooms. 3 engines in the aft part and 2 engines (with the gas turbine) in the forward part. The idea is, if we would have a fire in one part, the other one would be able to take over and run un-affected.

For the rest the engines spaces are divided for dedicated purposes, all separated, section by section by watertight doors. Most of the engine room is under water and thus compartmentalization is required to ensure that when water would come in, it would stay in one location and not endanger the ship. We can have two of the largest engine compartments full of water and the ship will still stay afloat.

The Main engine rooms

The main engine rooms. To the aft left and right are the Purifier rooms for cleaning the fuel oil and forward in a separate space the evaporators for making potable water.

The Layout from stern to bow:

  1. Aft compressor Room with the cooling installation for all the Provision Rooms
  2. Auxiliary room. Here the Engine crew have some of their workshops
  3. Aft main engine room. Runs all the way to deck 13
  4. Forward engine room. Runs all the way to deck 13
  5. Evaporator Room, here we make fresh water from sea water using excess engine heat
  6. AC Room, where we have four big compressors to cool the whole ship down.
  7. Potable Water Room
  8. Treatment Room
  9. Pump Room
  10. Forward Sewage Room. (the aft one is combined with the aft compressor room)

More about tis tomorrow.

For the remainder of the day and night we will sail through the Caribbean Sea until we come to the Pilot station of Oranjestad Aruba. That should be around noon time or shortly after. We do not know exactly as we are hot berthing with the Coral Princess. And if she has a load of eager shoppers ashore then the Coral might not sail on time. And then we have to wait as Aruba has no anchoring option near downtown. The other part of the dock is taken up by the Celebrity Eclipse who was on an overnight stay.

Weather expected, almost overcast with a windy day and temperatures of 28oC / 82oF.

09 March 2017; Half Moon Cay, Bahamas.

March 9, 2017 / / 1 Comment

When we arrived we thought for a moment, what is the weather going to do to us now………………….. As it rained and it looked grey and it looked murky. Not in the planning and not in the weather forecast. But the weather front edge had dipped down a little bit and had turned the prediction of ‘partly cloudy skies” into overcast with rain showers.  Luckily it was only a little dip and the murky arrival turned into a beautiful beach day. However the un-expected dip had put the captain on the alert and he decided not to anchor but to drift. If there one un-expected dip then their might be another one; and if the wind suddenly changes then you are pushed very quickly towards the beach. And as Holland America is not planning to open a permanent Hotel here at Half Moon Cay, the captain’s efforts in this direction would not have been appreciated.

And thus we had a wonderful – beachy day- in Half Moon Cay. We were the only ship and that made the island seem almost empty. Every guest had at least 5 beach chairs to him or herself plus one of the nicest beaches of the Caribbean at their feet. I did not see much of it as I was in the dungeons in the morning, reviewing engine room operations, followed by Communicator Training in the afternoon as we had a crew change of the entertainers yesterday. A bigger difference is hardly possible between an organized and highly methodical & technical procedures and High Drama and Hype which goes with acting and performing.

Thus the question arises what are communicators and why is entertainment involved.  With all the bad things of the Costa Concordia there were also a few good things — lessons learned —  Although there have been a lot of passenger liner sinking, foundering’s, stranding’s and other fatal or near fatal happenings, both in peace and war, there was never any reliable evidence about what went on in a lifeboat. But the Concordia did use her lifeboats and this was in the age of the Selfie and the Mobile phone with Video capabilities. And thus footage galore arrived on You Tube. And now we got an amazing insight in what went on in those lifeboats.

Cutting through all the drama and the embellishments, it boiled down to a few lessons learned:

  1. People follow orders as long as somebody gives them clearly and that somebody is recognizable.
  2. People only start to panic if something happens which they do not expect and do not understand
  3. People have a strong confidence in the routines explained and the equipment used.

Thus the decision was to add another crewmember to the lifeboat complement. A communicator.  A person who will narrate what is going to happen, when it will happen, how it will happen and explain if there is anything un-expected involved with it.  As an example: people do not expect a lifeboat to wobble when it moves away from the ships side before it is lowered. But it does. It is hooked into the lifeboat falls (those black wires) by two hooks which hold a ring. Thus the hooks can move a little in the ring.  But people do not know that as they do not know the lifesaving systems and thus expect the boat to move like a bus or a lift.  It does not and every lurch or wobble can set somebody off in panic or …….

150 people in a lifeboat calls for organization and with it the challenge to keep them calm.

150 people in a lifeboat calls for organization and with it the challenge to keep them calm. This was a test with crew only who know what to do and what to expect , so smiling faces…. they do not need a communicator.

If we now have a person in the lifeboat who will explain what can be expected and narrate everything throughout the evolution then people will not panic as they can mentally prepare for it. Why is entertainment involved? Because they are used to having an audience (that is the reason they stand on the stage, they want an audience) and they can give a performance.  They are not afraid to break the ice in a lifeboat and will simply start talking.  Once the boat is in the water they are then asked to try to help with keeping the moral up ven if it includes performing; singing, juggling, lecturing or whatever will help to pass the time.  Meet your neighbor, Grand Dads war stories, anything goes as long as everybody stays away from politics, because then we suddenly have a lifeboat split in two halves and a fight over who sits on the right or on the left side. We need and we hope for their creativity as this is very hard to train for or simulate.

Thus the day the entertainers join, the indoctrination starts to get them up to speed as quickly as possible and to reach the Holland America level which goes way beyond the legal requirements.

Tomorrow we are at sea, sailing full speed down to Aruba. For the remainder of the day we will sail between the Bahamian islands and then in the early morning hours cross the Old Bahama Channel and sail into the Caribbean Sea via the Wind ward passage. The weather looks good, although more wind is expected late tomorrow.

08 March 2017; Fort Lauderdale, USA.

March 8, 2017 / / 0 Comments

The wind died down during the night and there was only a gentle breeze left. So I hope we are on a good three day cycle again which will give us a gentle to moderate North Easterly Breeze tomorrow so we have a perfect day in Half Moon Cay.

Today was a big day for the Zuiderdam as it had its six monthly USCG inspection. Twice a year the USCG carries out an inspection of each cruise ship which visits an USA port. Even if you only visit once a year, you will get an inspection.  The Annual inspection consists of an in depth inspection of the ship including multiple tests of the safety equipment and checking everything a ship might need in an emergency. 5 to 10 Safety Inspectors (depending the size of the ship) will take a whole day to accomplish it. The following six month inspection is limited to a walk through, a fire and boat drill and an observation of the passenger safety drill. That normally takes half a day. The challenge is that it happens most of the time in the home port which is normally the changeover port. Then on top of the controlled mayhem, we also have the situation that all crew are pulled out of this change over cycle for the drills.

But it is, what it is, and with good planning we are always able to minimize the disturbance to the guests on board and also the USCG is keen to plan the drills as soon as most guests are off the ship and well ahead of the new guests coming on board. And that happened today as well. By 09.30 the last groups were being called to disembark and behind them the alarms started indicating that the engine room was on fire and that the USCG would like to see how we were going to put it out. Once that had been observed, it was time to lower the lifeboats to see if they worked and if the crew knew how to handle them. Today the Harbormaster threw a spanner in the wheel as at that moment a container ship was entering the port and had to sail past us, to go to a dock higher up the Intracoastal. So we could not do the 15 minute lifeboat  sail around that is part of the drill to ensure the engines are not only working, but continue to work as well. Thus the boats went down and the boats came up again. Something none of the crew inside the lifeboats had any problems with.

At the end they observed the passenger boat drill and all was well in the world. They made some very complimentary remarks about it all to the captain and that concluded the inspection. Sometimes they find issues on board and if things are bad, they can even detain the ship and that still happens on occasion. Often it concerns issues of where the ship is quite helpless in doing anything about, either structural issues or “waiting for equipment to repair” issues, but sometimes they are not happy with the knowledge of the crew or the way they go about their business and then they can re-order the complete drill sequence. That can set back the embarkation time of the new guests or their lunch. (I do not know which one gives more complaints). But today we had a happy ship, a happy USCG as everything went very well. Kudos to the Zuiderdam crew.

Two big black hulled yachts on arrival. The portside one is just being lowered by the ships heavy cranes.

Two big black hulled yachts on arrival. The portside one is just being lowered by the ships heavy cranes. In the background the Coral Princess.

While this was going on, and interesting thing was happening at Pier 21. Normally there is a cruise ship parked there, often a HAL ship but today there were plenty docks empty and they had now scheduled a cargo ship there. It was its cargo which was of interest. Yachts and big ones. There are two Dutch companies who run a regular liner service between Florida and Europe carrying sailing and motor yachts of owners who want to play around in Europe. Most owners think their yachts too small to sail them across, or do not have the knowledge and experience or do not have the time. However these big ones, were different. They are normally manned by capable crew and are sea worthy enough not to be afraid of a few North Atlantic waves. Maybe this is cheaper than crewing a long crossing, it is certainly better for the boats maintenance than running for two weeks or so in a hostile and salty environment.

Tomorrow we are in Half Moon Cay, our private island. Weather forecast: Partly cloudy with winds from the North East at 12 knots and temperatures of 27 oC or 80 oF.  We might have caught our perfect 3 day weather cycle. And we will be gone before the next weather front is coming through.

07 March 2017; At Sea, Rounding Cuba.

March 7, 2017 / / 2 Comments

A few guests thought today that I could predict the future as yesterday I explained to them when they could expect the ship to quiet down.  I was right within about 30 minutes and that was considered amazing. It was of course not amazing at all, you just need a ruler. You lay that ruler on the chart in the general direction on the swell and move it towards the south side of Cuba. When the ships track comes north (or above) the line of the ruler after the ruler has hit the coast, then you have the probable moment when the swell will disappear. The swell is mostly a bit diffuse as well so you cannot pin it down to the minute but within the hour is possible.  Nothing complicated but I will take the credit gladly.

This is an example of a compressed Gulf Stream Chart from the NOAA. the deeper the red the stronger the current.

This is an example of a compressed Gulf Stream Chart from the NOAA. The deeper the red the stronger the current.

Early this morning we passed the west point of Cuba and then turned into the Straits of Florida and the Gulf Stream. To attain maximum advantage the navigator will first plot a course which is the shortest between Cabo San Antonio (Cuba’s West point) and the Miami area. That is where the Florida Coast & keys really curve, so the ship has to bend with the coast line. Then the course is adapted to where we think the axis of the Gulf Stream is so we can catch an extra push in the back of anything between 1 to 4 knots.  The NOAA makes charts available on the internet with the average axis of the Gulf Stream but these charts are past observations and the Gulf Stream can move very quickly. Sometimes closer to Florida, sometimes closer to Cuba.

Thus we tend to aim and for the average axial line until we get there with the ship. Then we observe of how much more speed we are getting, compared to what we normally get from the engines. And then we try to get the best by steering a bit more one way or the other. If you have to maintain 18 knots and if you can find 4 knots free of charge then a bit of experimenting is worthwhile.  Under water the Straits of Florida are in deep part quite a bit smaller then what it looks like on the surface. Water gets squeezed in a bit. So the closer we come to the South point of Florida, the more pronounced the current becomes. Especially if we are in the right location.

The Gulf Stream goes North East and later North following the curve of Florida and the Bahamas. But as water will flow back where it has been pushed away, there are also counter currents. Smaller, but still of interest.  One runs along the Florida Keys to the South West, the other one north of the Cuban coast. The Florida Key one is the strongest as it can flow freely into the Gulf of Mexico. The one north of Cuba is less pronounced as it has to push (or try to push) its water around Cabo San Antonio. Still if you have to go that way then you might as well use it. Thus it made sense this morning when we saw a Celebrity Cruise Ship going towards the Caribbean sailing as close as possible to the Cuban coast. Taking advantage of this counter current or at least avoiding going against the edges of the Gulf Stream Looking at its speed it looked like she was nicely picking up a knot of so of this counter current.

This morning the good ship Zuiderdam had the benefit of 1.5 knots and by the evening it had increased to almost 3 knots. the 1.5 knots did not add much to the ships speed but it counteracted nicely to the strong East North Easterly wind that is blowing. For most of the day we had about 45 knots of it in relative speed. Take off 16 knots of the ship’s speed and that leaves around 30 knots of true – opposing – wind. Good enough to slow you down by a knot or so. Thus the Gulf Stream is nicely compensating.  This wind is caused by a strong Weather front similar to the one which made us cancel Puerto Limon.

Tomorrow we are back in our home port Ft. Lauderdale but it is scheduled to be a quiet day as far as cruise ships are concerned. First ship in at 04.00 hrs will the small coastal passenger ship Pearl Mist followed by the Costa Deliziosa and the Coral Princess. The ms Zuiderdam will be the last in the line up, coming in at 06.15 to be docked at 06.50 at Pier 26. Ready for another turn over day at 07.00 hrs.

Weather for tomorrow: The wind is supposed to die down to about 12 knots  and we are expecting partly sunny skies with temperatures just short of 80oF or 26oC.

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