Thanks to guest Clarissa for sending in these incredible pictures from her Alaska cruise.

We had a wonderful time a board of the Westerdam cruising to Alaska this past month. As a photographer enthusiast I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty and diversity of Alaska but mostly the high quality cruise experience my husband and I had. Please enjoy some of my best shots….from Juneau and
Sitka.

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Guest Lynda Gavigan Halttunen and her husband Don sent us several great posts from their 30-day South Pacific cruise on Westerdam. Enjoy “cruising” with them!

We arrived in Papeete, Tahiti, at 9:00 p.m. We sat on the top deck and watched the “sail-in.” We over-nighted on the dock, but didn’t go into town until the following morning. I bought a few souvenirs/gifts at the open-air market. The vanilla beans were $42! I loved that everyone spoke French and that the town/island had a very French sea-side feel. We returned to the ship for an early sailaway.

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Thanks to guest Nancy Goforth for sending in these photos from Glacier Bay, Alaska.

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Guest Lynda Gavigan Halttunen and her husband Don sent us several great posts from their 30-day South Pacific cruise on Westerdam. Enjoy “cruising” with them!

On Moorea we rented an Avis car. We had a map and since Peter is a taxi driver in Australia, he drove us all around the island, including up to Belvedere which made the bays look like Norwegian Fjords. We saw the Sofitel hotel where Don had stayed for a week the last time he was here. We had a nice lunch on the golf course which played Latin dance music.

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With the Alaska Season starting up again, the crew can play soccer in Juneau. The Zuiderdam is in Juneau, together with our sister ship the Westerdam and also the Star Princess.

This makes for some good games. The Zuiderdam players beat both the Westerdam & Star Princess Team! We hope they are up for a rematch in two weeks.

Great job, Zuiderdam Soccer Team!! Keep it up and celebrate your victory!

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Guest Lynda Gavigan Halttunen and her husband Don sent us several great posts from their 30-day South Pacific cruise on Westerdam. Enjoy “cruising” with them!

Today we stopped in Bora Bora for two days! The morning sun rising over the mountain was spectacular. The first day we took the local $5 shuttle bus to the beach and had lunch at Bloody Mary’s restaurant. A man on the ship from Seattle — Joe — chatted with us and told us that he had participated in building the restaurant with sand floors. His wife is from Moorea.

The moon over the sea in the early mooning was beautiful. This is where they filmed an episode of “Amazing Race.” The hut shaped hotels over the water cost over $1000/night. The second day we somewhat successfully were able to check e-mail at the Aloha Café.

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Guest Lynda Gavigan Halttunen and her husband Don sent us several great posts from their 30-day South Pacific cruise on Westerdam. Enjoy “cruising” with them!

After another day at sea, we docked at Raiatea, Society Island — a French speaking port of French Polynesia that uses francs for currency. We skipped exercise in order to go on deck and take beautiful photos of the “sail in.” It was very hot and muggy, but in the post office we were able to buy internet minutes and clear our e-mail.

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On the May 26, 2013, a special party was held in honor of Chief Engineer Peter Pals who is celebrating his 40 Year Anniversary with Holland America Line. All departments — Nautical, Technical and Hotel staff members — were in attendance to assist in celebrating this momentous occasion. In his speech Chief Engineer Pals shared his experiences onboard Rotterdam III (the venue for the recent Senior Management Conference) among other stories. The occasion was enjoyed by all that attended and highlighted the dedicated service that Peter has tirelessly given over the last 40 years.

Captain Scott, left, congratulates Chief Engineer Pals.

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