World Travel with Bob: Transatlantic (Part 2)

I'm finally getting back to my blog after several months away. With six weeks of travel, there are many photos and lots of possible content to share. I'll try to be succinct. This cruise, roundtrip from Boston to Europe, included stops in both directions while crossing the North Atlantic.

In case you're wondering how I'm recalling port details almost three months after returning home, I maintain a daily journal during our trips. This journal is essential as it is too easy for me to forget travel details.

Source: Holland America

Boston and Portland

We embarked and disembarked on this cruise on Holland America's Zuiderdam in Boston. We arrived in Boston at the beginning of our trip two days before embarkation. We stayed at the Seaport Hyatt Place, located about a ten minute walk from the hotel to Flynn Cruiseport. Other than location, the hotel amenities were limited and rooms adequate - nothing fancy. Recent news about the port include criminal arrests of 87 crew members for child exploitation and continuing disruptive renovations.

This is an older cruise terminal and, for our sailing, was not very organized. The confusion was more apparent when we disembarked at the end of our cruise. Taxis were in short supply and terminal staff gave conflicting instructions on the location of taxi lines. Adding to the confusion, some terminal baggage handlers simply ignored the taxi lines and allowed some departing guests to jump the line. We ended up walking two blocks away from the cruise terminal and arranged for an Uber pickup to Logan Airport. This was not our favorite cruise port.

We had dinner at Moxie's on our first night in Boston and Ocean Prime for our second-night dinner. The Lobster Bisque was delicious at Ocean Prime.

Our only port stop before leaving the US was in Portland, Maine. We took a ship excursion that took us through downtown Portland and to Kennebunk. We stopped at HolyDonuts in Portland and tried a maple donut and maple-bacon donut. Both were made with potato flour, which resulted in a rather dense donut.

In Kennebunk, we drove by the Bush compound and stopped for lunch at the Crab Shack. We shared a lobster roll, stuffed with lobster, and served with fries for $45. After lunch, we had time to stroll the downtown area and visit the many small shops.

Cape Elizabeth, Maine

Kennebunk Crab Shack

Our port stops in Canada included Sydney, Corner Brook, St.Johns and St.Anthony and Halifax. With the exception of St.Anthony, we've visited these ports during previous cruises.

Sydney: We enjoyed an independent walk at this port. We stopped to visit several homes and a church from the late 1700s, The Cosset House, Jost House and St.Patrick's Church.

Corner Brook: We walked from the port to Glynmill Inn. From the Inn, there is a nice walk along ponds, marsh and brooks. The property is owned and maintained by the local paper and pulp mill and open to the public.

St.Anthony: From the pier, we walked to the Grenfell House Museum (note - cash only entry). This is the residence of Sir Winston Grenfell, a physician that served the local community in the early 1900s. He worked to improve life in St.Anthony and was a philanthropist. From the Museum, we walked two miles to Lighthouse Point. In addition to the terrific views, the former house of the light keeper is now a cafe. We stopped for lunch and the seafood chowder was excellent (the fish and chips were ok).

St.Johns: We enjoyed a ship arranged residential walking tour that provided views and information about the "rainbow colored" houses, Government House, Colonial House, and Bannerman Park. We also learned about the 1842 fire that destroyed much of the downtown area and left 11,000 residents homeless.

Halifax: This was our last port stop on the six-week itinerary. The Immigration Museum, located near the cruise terminal, was a highlight for us. The excellent displays and images provided an understanding of immigration issues, displacement of indigenous people, racial discrimination, travel challenges and immigrant success stories.

We were told that Nova Scotia has wonderful blueberries. We missed having blueberries with breakfast, as our Holland America ship had run out at this point of our trip. In the afternoon, we walked 1.5 miles in very warm sunny weather to a local organic food store that offered the feresh berries. We decided to Uber back to avoid the walk back to the cruise terminal. It was a long walk and a pint of berries was more than needed to last two breakfasts.

Corner Brook Walk

Sydney Fiddle

Grenfell House, St.Anthony

St.Anthony Lighthouse

St.Anthony Cemetery Overlooking the Sea

Walk from Grenfell House to Lighthouse

Government House, St.Johns

Colorful Houses, St.Johns

Bannerman Park Bench

Final Canadian Port Stop in Halifax

Greenland

This trip provided a return visit to Greenland. A few years ago, we explored Greenland's Scoresbysund, a 200 mile long fjord, on an expedition ship. The itinerary on this trip included stops at Paamiut, Nanortalik, and Qaqortoq. As these were small villages, we needed to tender from the ship to shore.

The population of each village ranged from 1,000 to 2,500 inhabitants. We participated in ship arranged walking tours, led by a local resident. In my perspective, Greenland villages are not tourist destinations but rather a way to learn about Greenland culture, history, communities and life. Each of our walks passed through small houses, churches, markets, community centers and recreational areas.

As our ship sailed to each stop and through Prince Christian Sound, we were rewarded with spectacular views of towering mountains, waterfalls, small icebergs and glaciers. Observing these views from a 1,900 guest cruise ship was a rare opportunity but I couldn't help wondering about the environmental issues raised by such cruises. Greenland's government has recently asked for voluntary compliance by cruise operators to avoid sailing through sensitive fjords and narrow waterways to protect wildlife and local communities.

Our ship made a brief stop in the middle of Prince Christian Sound. Tenders were loaded with 2 tons of fresh produce and food to share with a small village of 80. This was certainly a feel-good moment for all.