Trip Report: September 22 to October 19, 2003
by Ted & Sylvia Blishak
Fall Colors Coast to Coast - by Land and Sea
SIX-STAR SERVICE DISCOVERED
ABOARD THE CRYSTAL SYMPHONY
September 29 October 5.
The delectable days begin to blend together. We make our next port stop at Boston, docked next to the Royal Caribbean Line's "Splendor of the Seas", a newer ship with many veranda cabins, some of them at the back of the ship.
FROM HOT TO COOL.
On a clear, sunny day with the first hint of cooler weather, we find ourselves off Bar Harbor, Maine, where we are anchored in a channel among many rocky islands and surrounded by fishing boats, sailboats, and excursion boats. The small village is a good place to walk (if you avoid the main street crowded with tourists, although it is quaint and appealing if you're a shopper). There is a graveled trail along the shoreline winding past spacious gardens of the inns and private residences with ocean views.
Outdoor restaurants serving fresh lobster abound, and a local fiddler plays a Celtic-sounding sea shanty.
FIFTIES FUN.
A Fabulous Fifties night is in store for us back on board. I jury-rig an authentic outfit jeans rolled to just under the knees, bobby sox, white tennis shoes, and a borrowed dress shirt from Ted, rolled up at the sleeves. A scarf tied over my hair, and hoop earrings, along with lipstick that's way too red, make me feel like I'm a schoolgirl again.
After a "blue plate special" dinner of meat loaf and mashed potatoes, there's dancing to live music in the Starlight Lounge. The combo is dressed in James Dean style, wearing white T-shirts with the sleeves rolled up. The music and vocals are strictly Elvis. It takes awhile before we realize, with somewhat of a surprise, that our talented musicians have Filipino faces! They are having as much fun as we are.
Of course, there is a contest to determine which couple can "do the twist" best. Two of the most authentic twisters are from Tokyo and Sydney, Australia.
SAILING INTO CANADIAN WATERS.
Halifax, Nova Scotia is next. The VIA Rail Canada station is visible from our verandah and just a short walk away from the dock. The Westin Halifax adjoins the station building so one can walk into the hotel without going outside. The station serves both VIA Rail's overnight "Ocean" from Montreal and the seasonal tourist train "Bras 'd Or" which makes an all-daylight run east to Sydney once a week. (Frequency of this train may expand next spring, so stay tuned.)
Now the Crystal Symphony enters a remote part of the North Atlantic; northeast of Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island and west of Newfoundland. We're in the rather lonesome Atlantic time zone here, one hour ahead of Eastern time. Then the ship curves westward around through the Cabot Strait into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, sailing north of Prince Edward Island, then through the Gaspe Passage into the St. Lawrence River. If you look at your map, you will see that the St. Lawrence is very wide here. It still seems as if we are in the middle of the ocean.
SHIPBOARD LIFE.
With computer classes, walks around the deck, and lazing with library books, the time passes very pleasantly. Ted has finished a book on the Age of Dirigibles and is now reading about the Lusitania the the Titanic. A special "Mozart Tea" in the Palm Court, with live classical music and our Eastern European waiters decked out in 18th Century shirts with lace at the throat, brocade jackets, and knee breeches, is a high point. The generous variety of pastries all contain wheat, which Sylvia is allergic to. She looks over at the hostess, who arrives within seconds. After a short consultation, a bowl of cashews is provided. Special requests like this are consistently handled with courtesy and the crew really seems to enjoy fulfilling them!
We are becoming accustomed to phrases such as "Certainly, Madame," and "My pleasure, sir," delivered with smiles and sincerity. Even though one may be served by several different waitpersons during tea, all of them know, by some subtle communication system, if you're having decaffinated coffee or tea. And if you need something, they seem to read your mind, or your body language, and are there within seconds. On the rare occasion when we didn't care for the taste of a main dish (red snapper) a requested substitute ("T-bone steak, medium well? Of course, Madame!") arrived with no fuss within a few moments.
The dress aboard the Crystal Symphony is more formal than what we've observed on shorter Holland America cruises on the west coast. Ted drew the line when renting a taxedo was suggested, and although many men do wear them on the three formal nights, he gets by with a more comfortable navy blazer and dress slacks. It is rather fun to see people dressed so elegantly; many of the Japanese ladies wear colorful kimonos for the formal dinners.
After sailing some distance up the St Lawrence River, we turn north into the narrower Saguenay River channel, with red and yellow fall colors along the very steep, fjord-like shoreline, and with only two or three tiny French-Canadian villages, with red roofs and steepled churches, to break the miles of forested wilderness. We are in French Catholic territory now, and as we pass the 27-foot high painted figure of the Virgin Mary, located high on a cliff overlooking the river, the ship's public address system is playing Schubert's "Ave Maria". Several pilgrims have hiked the trail to the remote figure, and the Captain signals with three blasts of the ship's whistle.
Eating in the Crystal Dining Room is a peak experience. The service is the best we've experienced on the many cruise we've enjoyed. The Eastern European waiters are very pleasant and well spoken; many of them are highly educated several hold Bachelor's Degrees, and a few hold Master's Degrees, from various Eastern European universities.
A trio of strolling musicians entertains at dinner, and at other meals the background music is usually low-key and pleasant. However, one morning a reedy soprano saxophone began whining non tuneless elevator music. Ted asked to see the Maitre'd, a tall, vigorous Polish gentleman.
"This kind of saxophone music is played in every second-rate restaurant in the U.S. so that people won't linger and they can achieve a higher turnover rate," Ted suggested. The Maitre d was galvanized into action, and the music was changed quickly. A few days later, the saxophone re-appeared, but was squelched immediately.
Chilled soups, all wonderfully flavored, are a specialty. The beef is of exceptional quality, as are fresh berries and a variety of vegetables. We like steamed spinach for breakfast, and while this wasn't on the breakfast menu, the chefs prepared it for us whenever we wished. This gourmet cuisine is recorded in a cookbook which is for sale on board. Although I'm not a gourmet cook, I have two good friends, Carla and Teresa, who are. I purchase the cookbooks as gifts for both of them with the hope that we'll get invited to dinner more often!
One of the alternate dining venues is the Lido Café on the top deck. Breakfast and lunch buffets are served here daily. You can get everything that is available on the Crystal Dining room menus, plus more. For example, at the Lido, they served freshly-baked traditional Eastern European nut bread and poppyseed bread, and it took a bit of doing to persuade Ted, (who remembers these delicacies from his youthful years growing up in Western Pennsylvania) to enjoy the elegant table service for breakfast in the Crystal Dining Room. To offset the lack of these baked specialties, freshly squeezed orange juice was served in the Crystal Dining Room daily.
Other alternate dining venues are the Prego, and Italian restaurant, and the Jade Garden, an Asian restaurant, both by reservation only. Open daily on the Lido Deck was the Trident Café, serving hot dogs, hamburgers, and wraps. This is also where the ice cream bar is located! Several flavors of gourmet ice cream are available daily from 11am to 6pm, along with self- serve toppings including a selections of liqueurs. The Bistro, just off the shopping area, is open for late Continental breakfasts and mid-afternoon snacks, and is the place to get your expresso and other specialty coffee beverages. Unlike on some other cruise lines, there is no extra charge for this.
Plays, concerts, and lectures by Caspar Weinberger about foreign policy in North Korea and the Mideast, and another about the rescue of the Apollo 13 astronauts, are some of various diversions as the cruise continues.
Quebec City is a stop we've been looking forward to. We've heard about how European it looks, and even though the weather has turned cold and overcast, the many colorful sidewalk cafes bear witness to the opportunities warmer days may still offer. Ancient stone buildings, interesting shops, and a funicular railway up to the Citadel, a double-walled fort with what appears to be an empty moat under reconstruction, are reminders of the French and Indian Wars. We walk up the steep series of stairs to Le Chateau Frontenac, a Fairmont (formerly CP) Hotel built like a castle overlooking the river.
French is widely spoken here, and signs are in French sometimes with English translations provided, but more often not.
The Crystal Symphony now turns her rakish, streamlined bow towards Montreal, which is her final destination.
As you can probably tell from our trip reports, we are more interested in small cities and wide-open spaces than in group shore excursions and big cities such as New York and Montreal. Not all our clients share our views, however, and we do our best to match the ship or train to the personality of the traveler.
TRAVEL TIP: This New York to Montreal itinerary has something for everyone and offers a great variety of scenery and different experiences at each unique port stop. Although several other cruise lines make the trip, the Northeast destinations are far less crowded and touristy than Alaska. We never encountered more than one other cruise ship in port; in Alaska there can be as many as six ships in port on one way. However Alaska does have its own advantages such as rides on the state's two railroads.
Monday evening we retrieve our passports and start packing before our farewell dinner. Business cards and hugs are exchanged. We all hope that we will see each other on another cruise some day soon.
Continue to Next Page
