As you can tell by the picture of the ms Noordam on the banner of this page, she is beautiful! She carries 1,918 passengers is served by a crew of 620, and is a heavyweight at 81,769 tons. She is the length of 3 football fields and when your stateroom is all the way forward, it is a long hike to the Vista Dining room all the way aft, in fact our table sits just inside the rear windows. Depending on where you are on any deck, you have a choice of 14 elevators or if your knees can take the stress, a like number of stairways (ladders to you traditional sailors). So, with the Dining room aft and the Show room all the way forward, cruisers get plenty of evening exercise. Another thing we learned last evening after the show was, unless we wanted to wait forever for a forward elevator or“wind” ourselves using the stairs, we chose to walk aft to the mid-ships glass elevators, which were virtually empty, shoot up to deck 7 and walk forward to our cabin. Barbara liked that routine.
Just outside our verandah and forward just a bit is the ships bridge – pictured above. When docking, this gives the Captain, Navigator, and Harbor Pilot a tremendous vantage point, and is completely enclosed, with a glass deck.
From time to time during the cruise your “’door mail” might just have an invitation to a special event. Last evening we received the following:
Hotel Manager Mark Pells
CORDIALLY INVITES YOU TO A SPECIAL
Indonesian Rijsttafel Lunch
FOR COLLECOR VOYAGE GUESTS
IN THE VISTA DINING ROOM, UPPER PROMENADE DECK 3
SUNDAY MAY 1, 2011
AT 13.00 pm
Barbara, who is all knowing in these things, is thrilled at this invitation as we get to sample multiple Dutch and Indonesians dishes. Hopefully the following pictures will be a good representation of the event. However before you think this is an exclusive event, “Collector Voyage Guests” are those guests staying board beyond 14 May.
Below are some pictures I took during the Rijsttafel Luncheon:
The young man pictured above is our dining room steward; Suteyama “Sute”. We want for nothing when he and his “son” “Putras” are serving us.
He and many other young men from Indonesia were wearing traditional shirts. It was difficult to get any good photos of the food because the lighting was poor and the buffet was crowded with starving passengers.
Cummings Family Adventures 
Jack —
When I was aboard Noordam in January, my Main Dining Room assignment was to Table #134….right against the rear winows, lower level. Any chance you are in the same vicinity? I was a most enjoyable location!
Nick
Jack, This is Jeff Foro. I am Nancy Foro’s, (Wendydog), husband. She is traveling with Barbara Hayes, (zipperoni). Unfortunately I got to stay home and work. As I am sure Nancy has mentioned we were with you on the “Top of the World” cruise last summer and also went to Antarctica last December/January with HAL. While I am still working I have been gone on cruises 70 days since last July so I didn’t have the nerve to tell my boss I was going to be gone another month 🙂
Anyway, I really am enjoying following your cruise on line – thanks for doing this. If possible could you mention the temperatures you have encountered as well as the weather? Say hi to Nancy if you see her, tell her everything is fine here but we miss her. Thanks.
Jack and Barbara, Thanks for the pictures that are graceing the stairwells and other walls on the Noordam. It is wonderful that you are including the photos. This way we get to go with you. (sort of)
I’m sure you heard of the shooting of Osama bid Ladin. Was there much of a reaction from the people on the ship? I think everyone knows that it won’t stop the horror that he has instigated world wide, but it is bound to make it less. I am very happy that those Navy Seals did the job, and with NO damage to any of our guys. Saturday and Sunday were beautiful days, but got up to rain today. I wouldn’t have enjoyed the storm you went thru. I’m so glad Barbara has become quite a sailor. She’s a good kid!!!!! Well, keep up with the photos and forward them on when you can. Take care, and enjoy that exercise. Love, June