A session on disembarkation turned out to be a begging bowl. We had already received more than enough. So why the meeting? It turned out to be how our tips/gratuities would be shared and a great deal of information/advice on how to complete a satisfaction survey which had been distributed the previous evening. We were told that HAL's HQ in Seattle would be reviewing the surveys, that the "Signature of Excellence" is what the Ryndam strives to achieve, that anything less than a score of 9 meant that the Ryndam had failed, that careers were dependent on our score ratings, etc, etc. This culminated in the crew filling the stage to sing about how much they loved us, after which they clapped their hands in appreciation of us all and when we left the theatre other crew members lined the corridor to clap their hands and voice their appreciation. It was very moving but as far as we were concerned, the staff deserved a 9 and in some instances, a 10. However, in other areas the Ryndam fell short of the much vaunted"Signature of Excellence".

Embarkation:

We arrived at the cruise terminal after 1pm expecting to board without too much delay. The car parking operation and porters dealt with our car and luggage quickly and efficiently. However, we had to wait untill after 3 pm to board the Ryndam. When we did, we were directed to our stateroom where our luggage was waiting. Read more