At Sea – November 13, 2026

A Little Fun, a Few Stars and a Visit from King Neptune

The ship continues to come up with a seemingly endless supply of activities to keep everyone entertained. Perhaps Holland America is doing its best to distract us from the fact that we have eight sea days to enjoy before reaching home. Not that we’re complaining, lol!

A few nights ago, we were treated to a fun fair festival, complete with some good old-fashioned midway games. There was the bottle toss, bean bag toss and several other familiar favourites. The idea was simple: play the games, do well and collect tickets or coupons, which were then entered into a prize draw. Of course, everyone had their eyes on the coveted Luis teddy bears. There were seven or eight of these little treasures in the prize pool, and they certainly seemed to be the most popular prizes of the evening.

Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to take one home, but it was a lot of fun and a great way to spend an evening.

Then, last night, Mother Nature provided us with a beautiful, clear sky for something a little different. Two amateur astronomers took over the area around the aft pool, had the lights switched off and treated more than 200 guests to a late-night viewing of the heavens. It was like having our very own outdoor planetarium. They even had a massive laser pointer that seemed almost capable of reaching out and touching the stars. Quite an impressive sight, and certainly not something you experience every evening at sea!

And then there was yesterday’s main event, a time-honoured maritime tradition: the King Neptune Ceremony.

For those unfamiliar with this nautical custom, the ceremony dates back centuries, when sailors crossing the Equator for the first time were subjected to an elaborate initiation. The ritual, often referred to as Crossing the Line, was intended to introduce inexperienced sailors to the realm of King Neptune, the mythical ruler of the seas. In the days of sailing ships, crossing the Equator was a significant milestone, and the ceremony became a way of marking the occasion, testing the newcomers and, no doubt, providing plenty of entertainment for the seasoned crew.

Today, it has evolved into a much friendlier shipboard celebration, although the theatrical traditions remain. King Neptune and his royal court make an appearance, and those crossing the invisible line around the middle of our planet are officially welcomed into his maritime kingdom.

So, not wanting to tempt fate or leave anything to chance with the travel gods, Holland America certainly pulls out all the stops to ensure that King Neptune is properly honoured and grants us safe passage as we cruise across this imaginary line that divides our planet into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

After all, a little goodwill from the ruler of the oceans can’t hurt!

It’s another wonderful example of how Holland America keeps things interesting, even when we’re surrounded by nothing but the vast Pacific Ocean. Between the games, the stars and the royal visit, there certainly hasn’t been much opportunity to get bored.

Here are a few pictures from the last several days as we continue our seaward trek home. The days are slipping by, and our journey is slowly drawing to a close.

At Sea – November 11, 2026

A Day to Remember, Relax and Recharge

Before getting into today’s activities, we should take a moment to recognize that today is November 11, Remembrance Day in Canada and Veterans Day in the United States. It is a day to pause and remember those who served, those who made the ultimate sacrifice, and the many men and women who continue to serve in uniform. Their dedication and sacrifices help protect the freedoms we enjoy, often at a cost that we can never fully appreciate. To all those who have served, and those who continue to serve, we offer our sincere thanks. We will remember them.

After all those back-to-back port calls, with just one sea day before Nuku Hiva, and a little 30-minute time change thrown in for good measure, there was really only one thing to do today: treat ourselves to a 75-minute couples massage and make good use of our 5-star day passes at the Thermal Spa.

So, after breakfast, we headed up to the Thermal Suite for about 45 minutes of relaxation before our massage therapists arrived to get us started. Ah, nice! Perfect temperature, perfect pressure, and just the right attention to those areas that tend to tighten up after seven days of carrying backpacks around. Nothing like a little onboard pampering to put things right again!

Following our treatments, it was back to the Thermal Spa, which we enjoyed on and off for the remainder of the day. No lectures, no commitments, no particular schedule to follow. Just a little relaxation and a small lunch, as tonight we had another date with one of the ship’s specialty restaurants, the Pinnacle Grill.

Now, the Lido did have something new on offer for us today, and that was a Food Cart Night. We’ve never encountered this before on HAL, and what a great idea and alternative to the usual buffet! There were several food carts featuring a variety of ethnic cuisines, with all sorts of interesting offerings. A little something for everyone. We were quite happy to browse and take pictures, but for us it was pictures only, as we were saving our appetites for our specialty dining experience this evening. (You’ll have to take a look at the pictures to see what was on offer.)

There was another little milestone this morning at approximately 7:00 am. We crossed that imaginary line that circles the entire planet, dividing it into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres: the Equator!

For those who enjoy a little geography and history, the Equator is an imaginary line located at zero degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South Poles. Its position is based on the Earth’s axis of rotation, and it has been used for centuries as a reference point for navigation, geography and mapping.

Early Greek astronomers and geographers, including Eratosthenes around 240 BC, understood the concept of dividing the Earth into northern and southern halves. He also made a remarkably accurate calculation of the Earth’s circumference using observations of the Sun at different locations. As navigation and mapmaking developed, the Equator became an important reference line for sailors and explorers. Today, modern GPS and satellite technology allow us to establish its position with extraordinary precision.

Of course, crossing the Equator aboard a ship also brings with it a little maritime tradition. It looks as though King Neptune will be paying us a visit tomorrow to ensure our continued safe passage and welcome those who have not yet crossed into the realm of the Shellbacks. More on that tomorrow!

In the meantime, it was a wonderful day to slow down, recharge the batteries (ours, not the ship’s!) and enjoy a little of what sea days are all about.

A few pictures from our relaxing day at sea. Hope you enjoy!

The Great Gatsby - November 10, 2026

A few pics of our Great Gatsby Evening…