Thursday – December 13, 2018
The M.S. Amsterdam sailed away from Pago Pago, American Samoa as the sun set over the mountains. I watched as the assisting tugboat tooted a few farewell blasts on its horn and then returned to the safety of the harbor. Our cruise ship continued out into the open waters of the South Pacific Ocean. In five days we would reach our next port of Honolulu, Hawaii. So we hunkered down and kept busy and relaxed and were entertained for five whole days and nights at sea.
A team of Hawaiian cultural ambassadors were on board to teach us about Hawaiian traditions. We had lessons on how to tie a pareo/sarong for men and women:
They’re very popular and worn everywhere. Also a pareo is quite practical.
Captain Fred Eversen gave an interesting and informative talk about the ship and what makes it work safely and efficiently. He’s been captain of the Amsterdam since 2008.
There were lectures about the history of the South Pacific and where and how the people arrived on the islands. We also heard about the English explorer Captain Cook and the other European voyagers who claimed the islands for their respective countries.
We had a Hawaiian language class. This is “Merry Christmas.” Mele Kalikimaka!!
And there’s the ever-present Pacific Ocean:
King Neptune came on board when we crossed the Equator and presided over the ceremony of the first crossing of the “pollywogs.” The “pollywogs” had to ‘kiss the fish’ and be “slimed” before being pushed into the “drink.”
Later that day, King Neptune, aka Jorge Alvarez – Cruise Director, led our Trivia Game:
We kept track of the days with the daily changing carpet in the elevators:
One day the kitchen staff poured out bags of fresh coconuts. Two strong young men chopped off the top of the coconuts with big machetes. Another man put in a straw and we drank cool refreshing coconut milk. What fun!
There were different movies every day and many activities which we weren’t interested in (games, arts & crafts, etc) and good entertainment every night.
I took this photo from our 6th floor balcony on a particularly rough day as the ship rolled onto a wave:
There were also calm mornings to enjoy a leisurely breakfast:
