Thanks to Irene Lui, our colleague at Seabourn, for sending in these photos of Rotterdam departing Funchal, Madeira, on her last European crossing.

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Here is a photo from an incredible day of crew soccer in Stockholm. For the first game we played against a different ship and won 3-1 and then had a friendly Rotterdam scrimmage.

Julie Seidel is Rotterdam’s human resources manager.

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Culinary Council Member Johnnie Boer recently hosted a special luncheon on Rotterdam with Master Chef and Culinary Council Chairman Rudi Sodamin to celebrate ‘A Taste of de Librije’ in the Pinnacle Grill.

The lunch consisted of items from the “Taste of De Librije” menu, a five-course dinner served once each cruise exclusively aboard Rotterdam. De Librije is Boer’s Michelin-rated restaurant in Zwolle, Netherlands. As part of the alternative dining option on Rotterdam, the Pinnacle Grill is transformed — service staff wear the uniform livery from De Librije, the restaurant’s table setup is replicated and the wine list highlights a selection of labels from the Lady De Librije collection. Sodamin and Traveling Corporate Executive Chef John Mulvaney helped orchestrate the event.

The four-course menu prepared consisted of “Oysters on the Beach” (foie gras, oyster and micro greens); seared North Sea cod with speck ham (served with coconut foam and lemon grass); duo of lamb loin and crusted lamb neck (served with lentil sprouts, watercress, carrot coulis and lamb jus reduction), and deconstructed apple pie (served with vanilla gelato and Chantilly-style cream).

From left: Hotel Director Mike Mahn, HAL’s Senior Director of Sales North & Central Europe Nico Bleichrodt, Thérèse Boer, Master Chef Rudi Sodamin and Chef Jonnie Boer.

Oysters on the Beach.

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Here are a few pictures from our Service Award ceremony and New Hire Chat.

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April 30 was Queen’s Day in the Netherlands, and Queen Beatrix abdicated the throne after 33 years as the Dutch monarch. Thanks to Cruise Director Glen Coenen for sharing photos of Queen’s Day celebrations aboard Rotterdam.

The Abdication was shown all day in the Crow’s Nest and the crew organized an afternoon party with the onboard band. Club HAL set up a face painting station and the crew did some line dancing to warm up the crowd. We sang the national anthem, blew the ship’s horn and went straight into a “polonaise,” or Dutch Conga Line. At 9 p.m. the party continued in the Crow’s Nest with DJ Rene.

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Celebrating the 140th anniversary of Holland America Line, we dedicated several events to this special occasion. First, a Dutch-themed dinner in the dining room, then a birthday party by the pool, and finally a special dessert extravaganza presented to our guests, showcasing the talent of our galley team, led by Executive Chef Daniel Hrgic and Pastry Chef Alex Latayan, who was mainly responsible for those sweet creations.

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On the last day of our Passage to the Far East voyage, we said goodbye to our guests with a beautiful display of authentic Indonesian art, a rickshaw we brought from Bali and an Indonesian buffet presented by the lido team.

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Celebrating Holland America Line’s 140th anniversary, our dining room team presented a Dutch themed night to our guests. Dining Room staff worked diligently to create flags and banners and decorate the dining room. Mr. Lelono Fnu was responsible for making the banner with 140th anniversary logo and other decorative items.

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