This Magic Carpet Journal takes you on a cruise to Bermuda aboard the Norwegian Majesty with Susan
Randles and Dave Stephens
Our children had no idea they were going back to
Bermuda, let alone on a beautiful cruise ship. As
we enjoyed the summer warmth near Quincy
Market in downtown Boston, they were surprised
and delighted when we told them we were
heading for the Norwegian Majesty, which was
preparing to depart Black Falcon Cruise Ship
Terminal at 4 p.m.. We had flown from Halifax
on Air Canada the day before and they were
under the assumption that we were going to visit
the Boston region for a week. This was to be a
new and exciting experience for them both. Norwegian Majesty
Quickly unpacking and settling into our
stateroom, we were soon enjoying a lunch buffet
before the mandatory emergency drill. As the
1,462-passenger ship pulled away from the dock, many gathered for the send-off party. Soon the
open ocean replaced the harbour and the sea became almost glass-like. Lauren, our 8 year old,
immediately made new friends as she engaged in the Youth Program which features games,
activities and parties. Evan, 14, began to explore the ship
on his own, discovering the two swimming pools, hot
tubs, pizzeria, table tennis area and other teenagers.
Booked for an early dinner sitting, we were duly amazed
with the quality and variety of the five-course dinner
served in the Seven Seas Dining Room. We soon became
like old friends with our wine steward (he always did
paper folding for Lauren), table server and bus boy,
chatting about each other's countries and families. After
dinner was show time in the 600-seat Palace Theatre with
singer, Joni Butler (other nights featured stage shows and
comedy acts). A stroll around the moon-lit deck and it
was off to our cabin.
Morning brought sunshine as we sat on the open deck to
enjoy our buffet breakfast after a few laps on the
jogging-walking track on Deck 7. Relaxing on the sun
deck, eating, reading, eating, attending one of the many
organized activities, eating, duty-free shopping, and more
eating soon filled the day. We saw the children here and
there as they scurried off to do their own things.
Dinner the second night was more formal, giving us all a
chance to dress up a bit. Each night featured a new menu
that might highlight the flavours of the Caribbean or the
favourite dishes of American presidents. And if
all the gourmet food didn't fill you, there was
always the midnight buffet or the 24-hour room
service.
On Tuesday morning magnificent Bermuda grew
larger along the horizon. Passengers gathered on
the bow to watch the pilot boat come alongside in
preparation for entering St. George Harbour. As
the 207 metre white ship seemed to effortlessly
glide through the narrow "Cut", a cannon fired
from the headland, the town crier called a
welcome and dozens of locals and visitors waved
greetings. At last, we were back in Bermuda, our
favourite destination in the world. The white
roofs glistened in the morning sun, the pastel
walls blended with the swaying palm trees and the gentle hills rolled down to the dock along the
waterfront in the tiny town of St. George. We were "home".
Within
minutes passengers were cleared to go
ashore and we walked down the gang plank in time
to see the town crier dunk the "wench" into the
harbour waters in a re-enactment of days gone by.
The truck from Wheels Cycle was waiting near
the cruise ship for those of us who had reserved
scooters in advance. Within minutes we each had
a scooter (and a child) and we were free to
re-aquatint ourselves with paradise. We directed
our scooters along the narrow roadways,
rounding
unbelievably
beautiful
vistas of
ocean and bays, zipping through limestone rock cuts and
constantly breathing in the rich fragrance of tropical
flowers that line the roadways.
John
Smith's Bay beach has always been a favourite of
ours - uncrowded, pink sand, and not too far from St.
George's - and soon we were all splashing in the
turquoise water, snorkeling through an array of colourful
fish and just relaxing on the sand.
That evening, we returned to the ship - our floating resort
that was hotel, restaurant and entertainment centre all
rolled into one.
Morning soon came and we were enjoying breakfast on
deck, basking in the tropical sunlight that reflects off the
white roofs throughout the town of St. George. Another
day in paradise had begun.
We were soon buzzing along the narrow, winding
roadways on our scooters with our two children headed
for Hamilton, the capital of Bermuda. Remembering to keep left upon entering the round-abouts,
we parked our scooters on Albouy's Point near the ferry terminal as the 40-foot ketch Alibi pulled
up to the dock. Captain Bobby Zuil of Sail Bermuda Yacht Charters welcomed aboard his guests
as we set sail through the small islands that make up the Great Sound. We tied up to a buoy near
a coral reef to enjoy some snorkeling before the gentle breeze filled the sails again returning us to
the dock in Hamilton.
After
some mandatory shopping along Front Street we were
soon headed back towards St. George's Parish. Just past
Clearwater Beach, not far from the end of the airport
runway, we discovered Turtle Bay, one of the few places in
Bermuda we have never visited. We relaxed on the sand,
swam in the bath-tub warm water for hours, spied on
fluorescent blue fish while snorkeling, and enjoyed a quiet
family afternoon.
Back to the Norwegian Majesty for another gourmet
five-course dinner, great live entertainment in the theatre and
off to bed, exhausted after a day of adventure.
Our last morning. More sunshine and great food to start the
day. We hopped on our scooters and we were off to Spittal
Pond, the largest wildlife preserve in Bermuda. We joined
our good Bermudan friend Margaret, her dogs Ginny and
Bob, and Margaret's friend Keren, as we all wandered
through the rough trails that meander along a bog, through a
forest, over tide-worn rocks and back to our cycles. After
farewell hugs, we returned to St. George where the truck
from Wheels was awaiting us beside the ship. Having
relinquished our scooters we boarded the Norwegian
Majesty just before it slipped away from its Ordinance Island
dock. As we squeezed back through "The Cut", residents waved from balconies and others
wished us a safe voyage from the old fort walls as the ship left the harbour and headed into the
open Atlantic. Tears welled up in our eyes as "home" slowly decreased in size, the turquoise
water turned dark green then deep blue and we were left with only the memories of another
perfect visit to Bermuda.
Although this wasn't the last night, the dinner was
special with the chefs being introduced to the
dining room guests, the table servers carried
flaming Baked Alaska and even the wine stewards
got into the swing of things by balancing wine
bottles on their heads as they paraded throughout
the Seven Seas Dining Room. It was great
entertainment.
Saturday. Our last day at sea. We started the day
with a few laps around Deck 7. Then breakfast in
the dining room, followed by a bit of sun on the
top deck, a rest in the shade on a lower deck,
lunch, more relaxing time chatting together,
another gorgeous dinner, more entertainment in
the theatre and snooze time. Our children spent
the day with their new-found friends, playing, swimming, eating, hanging-out, exploring, enjoying.
Sunday morning. The Norwegian Majesty inched
its way into the Boston cruise ship terminal. US
Immigration and Customs officials cleared us on
board the vessel before we went down to the
dock to retrieve our luggage. Within minutes we
were in our taxi headed for the Wyndham Boston
Hotel, our next destination.
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children had no idea they were going back to
Bermuda, let alone on a beautiful cruise ship. As
we enjoyed the summer warmth near Quincy
Market in downtown Boston, they were surprised
and delighted when we told them we were
heading for the Norwegian Majesty, which was
preparing to depart Black Falcon Cruise Ship
Terminal at 4 p.m.. We had flown from Halifax
on Air Canada the day before and they were
under the assumption that we were going to visit
the Boston region for a week. This was to be a
new and exciting experience for them both. Norwegian Majesty
Booked for an early dinner sitting, we were duly amazed
with the quality and variety of the five-course dinner
served in the Seven Seas Dining Room. We soon became
like old friends with our wine steward (he always did
paper folding for Lauren), table server and bus boy,
chatting about each other's countries and families. After
dinner was show time in the 600-seat Palace Theatre with
singer, Joni Butler (other nights featured stage shows and
comedy acts). A stroll around the moon-lit deck and it
was off to our cabin.
favourite dishes of American presidents. And if
all the gourmet food didn't fill you, there was
always the midnight buffet or the 24-hour room
service.
minutes passengers were cleared to go
ashore and we walked down the gang plank in time
to see the town crier dunk the "wench" into the
harbour waters in a re-enactment of days gone by.
The truck from Wheels Cycle was waiting near
the cruise ship for those of us who had reserved
scooters in advance. Within minutes we each had
a scooter (and a child) and we were free to
re-aquatint ourselves with paradise. We directed
our scooters along the narrow roadways,
rounding
unbelievably
beautiful
vistas of
ocean and bays, zipping through limestone rock cuts and
constantly breathing in the rich fragrance of tropical
flowers that line the roadways.
Smith's Bay beach has always been a favourite of
ours - uncrowded, pink sand, and not too far from St.
George's - and soon we were all splashing in the
turquoise water, snorkeling through an array of colourful
fish and just relaxing on the sand.
some mandatory shopping along Front Street we were
soon headed back towards St. George's Parish. Just past
Clearwater Beach, not far from the end of the airport
runway, we discovered Turtle Bay, one of the few places in
Bermuda we have never visited. We relaxed on the sand,
swam in the bath-tub warm water for hours, spied on
fluorescent blue fish while snorkeling, and enjoyed a quiet
family afternoon.
this wasn't the last night, the dinner was
special with the chefs being introduced to the
dining room guests, the table servers carried
flaming Baked Alaska and even the wine stewards
got into the swing of things by balancing wine
bottles on their heads as they paraded throughout
the Seven Seas Dining Room. It was great
entertainment.
Sunday morning. The Norwegian Majesty inched
its way into the Boston cruise ship terminal. US
Immigration and Customs officials cleared us on
board the vessel before we went down to the
dock to retrieve our luggage. Within minutes we
were in our taxi headed for the Wyndham Boston
Hotel, our next destination.