Cruising to Halifax: Our September 2024 Adventure

Sunday 9/22/2024

Embarkation Day is finally here.

Up at 5:30 to catch the Cruise Express bus at Kingston Plaza at 8:00. It wasn’t as full as previous trips.

The bus took us from Kingston Plaza to Pier 88 at Manhattan Ship Terminal; we arrived at 10:00am.

The terminal was very quiet compared to previous trips. The security screening and check-in took about 10 minutes. I’m not sure why, but they always take Lynn’s picture at check-in, even though we upload a photo online. We were on board by 11:30. First snack/beer at O’Sheehan’s as we wait for the staterooms to open; this has become somewhat of a tradition for us.

Great news! The Eagles at Saints game is on the big screen at Spice H2O! Go Birds! We squeezed out the win. Eagles 15, Saints 12. 

This trip we are traveling with our Sister-in-Law, Elaine, and her friend Karen. It’s Elaine’s first cruise. I hope she enjoys it.

After the game we all met up for dinner in The Manhattan Room. I didn’t realize it was a nightclub! Dinner was pretty good. I had the French Onion Soup, NY Strip, and a crime brûlée. Lynn went with the lobster tails for just a $25 up charge from Cagney’s. 

Early to bed.

A word about The Norwegian Breakaway

We have sailed her before, to The Caribbean. 

This has been our third cruise this year, and our second time on the Norwegian Breakaway, plus her sister ship The Getaway once. The ship is big and beautiful, with all the amenities one would expect: a casino, restaurants, pools and hot tubs, and of course bars for days. The food is outstanding at most places, the specialty dining rooms are amazing, and the buffet is really good. We don’t mind cruising on these big floating hotels.

Here are some details about the Norwegian Breakaway cruise ship: 

• Size: The Norwegian Breakaway is 1,068.3 ft long and 169.7 ft wide, with a gross tonnage of 145,655. 
• Capacity: The ship can accommodate 3,963 passengers in double occupancy. 
• Features: The ship has a spa, casino, two outdoor pools, a comedy club, and a restaurant by Geoffrey Zakarian. 
• Activities: The ship offers a variety of activities, including a card room, game arcade, miniature golf, rock-climbing wall, and water park. 
• Staterooms: The ship has 1,604 staterooms and 350 suites, including Haven suites and villas, which are only available to suite and villa passengers. 
• Destinations: The ship offers cruises to the Caribbean, Mediterranean, and Northern Europe. 
• Hull art: The ship’s hull art was designed by Peter Max, a New York icon. 
• Homeport: The ship is homeported in New York City. 

The crew on the Breakaway is great! They all present a positive attitude and “service with a smile”. You can’t pass one without getting a “Good Morning” or “Hello”. They sing at breakfast to get you going, offer coffee, or just to make you smile.

Monday 9/23/2024 Newport, RI, USA

I woke up to the sound of the anchor chains dropping in Newport Harbor. 

Today should be fun, we are meeting friends for lunch in Newport, Rhode Island.

Newport is a tender port, which means the ship can not get all the way in to the docks so we have to take a small boat to ferry or “tender” us in. As you might imagine, 3000+ people waiting to get on small boats takes a bit of time, especially with the mandatory safety briefing. It took over an hour to get through it all and finally ashore.

Newport is very nice. We didn’t get on any excursions, but we do plan to come back. I’d really like to see Fort Adams. 

The line for the tender back was another 45 minutes. That’s a lot of shoppers not shopping. Newport should do something.

We head to Boston tomorrow.

Tuesday 9/24/2024 Boston, MA, USA

Happy 35th Anniversary to us!

As we were leaving Newport some weather rolled in. The seas overnight were pretty rough. I spotted the little white rescue bags placed around the ship- just in case, you know!

In Boston today. We went to the Boston Tea Party museum and ships. The presentation was somewhat interactive and very informative. Instead of a blah-blah tour guide, the gentleman took about 30 of us on an historical midnight ride that started in the South Meeting Hose, then onto the Eleanor (one of the ships involved with the tea party). There a different guide discussed how the ships were used for cargo to and from England. As the tour ended we saw a brief video of the battles of Lexington and Concord. 

We ended up in Abigail’s Tea Room, where we could sample the five different teas that were destroyed that night. If in Boston, and if you’re interested in history of the American Revolution, do check out The Boston Tea Party Museum and Ships.

As it was our anniversary, I ordered a cake and decorations to surprise Lynn.  we also had reservations at Moderno, the Brazilian steakhouse. Moderno let us bring the anniversary cake as dessert. They even put it in the fridge for us while we ate. When they brought it out after dinner, the staff sang “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” to us! The best salad bar on the ship even has fejoada (Brazilian bean and meat stew)!

Wednesday 9/25/2024 (already‽) Portland, ME, USA

This was a bit of a down say. We hung out on the ship until noon, then did a bit of souvenir shopping just near the dock. I picked up a hoodie in preparation for the more northern stops later this week.

Portland is one of those small cities with their own history, attitude, and sense of self. They’re not Portland Oregon, and don’t want to be. They’re about trees, moose, and good beer. The dock area had a lot of boutique shops and craft item merchants; the kind where you want to by something just to ease their struggle a bit.

Thursday 9/26/2024 Saint John New Brunswick, Canada

We took an excursion that was a bus ride around Saint John. we were told it’s not St. John’s, that’s in Newfoundland and Labrador, Saint John is in New Brunswick! I’m not sure if it was the scenery or the guide, but it left me feeling wanting more. There isn’t much there to begin with, and a main attraction was under repair and not accessible. The Carlton Martello Tower presentation was interesting, but we were rather rushed through the (very) tiny museum. We saw the Reversing Rapids, which is a tight squeeze of water on the Saint John River. The reversal of direction coms from the tides pushing the bay against the river, much like how our Hudson River flows both ways. The history here is that of protecting the river from “unwanted” guests, such as the French and Americans around 1812. It seems to that a lot of that history was ignored in favor of paper mills and breweries. 

As we sailed out of Saint John, the weather turned a bit wet. Not a heavy rain, but one of mist and breezes. It made me think of those old films of the tramp steamer with the rugged crew and mysterious man in the white suit discussing philosophy with the young couple at dinner. 

On to Halifax!

Friday 9/27/2024 Halifax  Canada

“Oh I wish I was in Sherbrooke now!”

Halifax is in the Canadian Maritime province of Nova Scotia. Like Saint John, its port is quite industrial. We took a bus excursion around the “Iconic Towns of Nova Scotia.” The province is a beautiful collection of small towns separated by deep woods of pine and oak. We went to Mahone Bay, with its many shops and pubs. We only stayed a moment, but did see some of where The Legend of Oak Island is filmed. Oak Island is one of the 365 islands in the bay.

The most beautiful area is by far Pegg’s Cove on St. Margaret’s Bay. There the rocks abut the sea and a lighthouse watches over the cove with a diligent eye.

Saturday 9/28/2024 A day at sea (a well needed day off!)

Tomorrow we disembark.

We say goodbye to the Maritimes as we point the ship South and steam for New York City.

We are ready looking to book our next outing, but can’t decide whether Northern Europe or the Mediterranean will be the destination.

Until next time, Cheers and bon voyage!

(Washy-washy!)

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