Jessi Howard

Age: 15
Occupation: student
Number of Cruises: one
Cruise Line: Holland America
Ship: Volendam
Sailing Date: July  22nd, 2002
Itinerary: 7 Alaska

Dear Fellow Cruisers,
Just this past summer I enjoyed my first cruise. It was spectacular and a dream come true! My Grandma decided that I was old enough to go on a cruise with her. My mom, dad, sister, grandma, aunt and baby cousin went with me. We boarded the Volendam on the 22nd of July, beginning our trip in Vancouver, Canada. Our journey would take us on a round trip through Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, and back to Vancouver.

The first couple of days on the cruise, I was feeling quite ill from the rocking of the ship, but it slowed up within a couple of days. We stayed in a delightful suite located on the Navigation Deck. It had space to fit five with a large couch, queen size bed, baby crib, T.V., powder room, bathroom, and a mini-fridge. How cute! Oh, and a deck. Our fabulous room steward was Mohammad. He did a wonderful job opening up the hide-a-bed, and keeping it clean.

Now for the food (my favorite part)! For breakfast we would eat in the Lido, which was a buffet type restaurant. You could choose from bacon, cereal, french toast, sausage, pancakes, and plenty of other yummy foods. You could also choose from tons of things to drink like milk, orange, grape, cranberry and other kinds of juices. Next is lunch. For lunch, we ate either at the Lido or by the pool. In the Lido, they had different kinds of lunch foods every day. One day, they treated us with an Indonesian lunch. And another day, it was a salmon bake. Also in the Lido, they had a salad bar, soup, and an ice cream bar. Then comes the most extravagant meal of all:

Dinner. We ate dinner in the Rotterdam Dining Room. On one menu there were foods such as: Prawn Cocktail, Lobster Bisque, Original Senor Pico Caesar Salad, Pan Roasted Pacific Rock Fish Fillet, and Filet Mignon. And on the dessert menu was: Running of the Mousse Cake, Tiramisu Cake, and Raspberry Sorbet. And last but not least, the late snack in the Lido. Every night was a different theme. The best night was the Dessert Extravaganza! The chefs worked all week on this event, perfecting every detail. It had every dessert you could imagine.

The crew was another great feature. They worked long, hard hours, but never slowed down. They were always cheerful and willing. Some of the crew members I remember most are Ketut, Sutarwo, Barly, Ibnu, Yono, Jeffrey, Dean, David, Jimmy,Lucky, and Muhammad Ali:the Yummi-Yummi Man. And wherever we were eating, they always had a highchair ready and waiting for my cousin. And the crew show they presented was amazing. I will never forget it. The shore excursions were also an amazing experience! We saw whales, ancient totem poles, and much more.

I look forward to going on my next cruise. It will definitely be with the Holland America Cruise Line. I encourage everyone to go on a cruise with Holland America because they are an experienced team and I have gained many memories that I will cherish forever!
Love and many thanks,

Jessi and Nicole Howard

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