July 27, 2023 Sea Day #2
Today was Sea Day #2, the first of two days travelling from Corner Brook, Newfoundland to Paamiut, Greenland. There was no stop at Red Bay, Newfoundland, which was removed from the itinerary about three weeks ago.
At 7:30 a.m. Zuiderdam was cruising at 16 knots on a course of 81.112° east in the Strait of Belle Isle headed into the Labrador Sea in fog with visibility less than one kilometre. The temperature was 11° C. Even on Deck 10, in the Crow’s Nest lounge, the fog was dense. We had breakfast in the dining room with Ellen and David. We talked, among many things, about our activities of the previous day.
After breakfast we climbed the stairs to the Crow’s Nest lounge, where the Shore Excursions desk is located. There were about half a dozen people in line, most reading a book as they waited. The waitlisted Stornoway excursion had another time added, of which we were advised by email before we left on this trip and Claire was booked on it since Larry will be golfing. Claire’s tour had already been added to our reserved tours list before we embarked, but we were not removed from the waitlist as requested. Two days ago, based on the waitlist, this excursion was added for both of us and charged to our account, before a note was placed in our room mail rack in the evening advising us of the booking. Today the staff cancelled the extra tours and credited the account, but left Claire’s first reservation in place.
For the past few days the centre staircase has had replacement carpeting installed,
It is the same pattern as the existing carpet, but looks much brighter. It is the first time we have this type of maintenance take place during a cruise.
In the World Stage, Mike West’s lecture was part 2 of The Wonder of Ships.
In the daily noon announcement, Captain Kramer gezegd Freher announced that the fog will be around all day. There are icebergs in the area, although not visible to passengers in the fog, but clearly seen on radar. Zuiderdam is already north of the 52° North parallel passing Belle Island. The captain informed us that tomorrow there will be rain, stronger winds and larger waves, which are only moving in one meter swells today. The ship is cruising at 16 or 17 knots today and as we get closer to Greenland tomorrow the speed will be reduced because of more icebergs calving from the Greenland glaciers. The captain also mentioned that the scheduled 8 a.m. arrival in Nanortalik in three days is pushed back to noon, due to the ice conditions in the ice field between it and Paamiut.
After a quick salad lunch in Lido, we attended the Tech for Travellers presentation in Billboard Onboard on Deck 2. It covered how to use the camera app on a smart phone. It was an informative 30 minutes. We climbed to the Crow’s Nest on Deck 10 for cappuccinos and Larry’s meeting with the Stornoway golf group.
Claire went down to the World Stage theatre on Deck 2 for a presentation by the Terrells about Paamiut, Greenland and Greenland’s discovery by a Norseman Erik, the Red, Asvaldson and the settlement of eastern Greenland in 987, near Qaqortoq, and western Greenland, near the capital, Nuuk. His son Lief Eriksson discovered Vineland, current day Newfoundland. There were already Inuit people farming in the area. Some of the Greenland settlements were abandoned between 1450 to 1500, but archeologists are not sure why and the Norse sagas give no clues.
I found a map of Vikings voyages sailed 1,000 years ago. The Norse men of Scandinavia who ventured out to sea to pillage other lands were given the name Vikings. Besides Britain, they journeyed along the west coast of Europe into the Mediterranean Sea and even overland in eastern Europe.
The Norse people established settlements in Iceland and Greenland. They were not Vikings, but peasants and fishermen. Lief Erikson established an outpost near St. Anthony in the late 900s, which was abandoned in less than a decade.
The afternoon continued with pianist Elliot Finkel’s 45 minute classical piano works, with no other instruments, to a packed World Stage theatre. Then there was a mid afternoon recital in the Explorer’s Lounge on Deck 2, by the classical duo (cellist & pianist) featuring 40 minutes of Chopin’s music.
Dinner was shared in the main dining room with Cee Kaye and Brad. The 7:30 p.m.show in the World Stage Theatre was the dance company’s “Musicology” performance which we saw in the spring on Westerdam. The fog was still thick in the evening and just gentle swells along the water. At 9 p.m.this evening, in the Rolling Stone Lounge, there was an hour of ballroom dance music.
In the news today, the United Nations Secretary General made a plea for countries to take climate change seriously. July 2023 is set to be the hottest month in world history. The era of global warming is over, it is now the era of “global boiling”. The use of fossil fuels must be reduced. Sea temperatures, too, are higher than normal adding to environmental damage. Forest fires are starting in Greece and other countries due to 40° C plus temperatures.
Steps 9,378
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