On Friday we took a short cab ride from our Copenhagen hotel to our ship for embarkation procedures. The Rotterdam, Holland America’s flagship was launched in 1997, has a gross tonnage of 59,000 and holds 1600 passengers. That means it’s not one of the mega-cruise ships plying the seas. In November, 2009 the ship is due to go to Freeport in the Bahamas for a lot of refurbishing.

The passengers tend to be middle-aged and older, with a sprinkling of canes, walkers and wheelchairs. The crew does very well catering to the needs of this older bunch so it’s a pleasant experience.

Read the rest of this entry »