September 9, 2018 – Embarkation

September 9, 2018 – Embarkation  Oosterdam
I slept late this morning waking at 3:30am. The rocking ship will help me sleep like a baby tonight.
After breakfast at the hotel, I took a nap and made sure everything was packed. I took a taxi to the ship. As we entered the port I saw the blue hull of my ship and I immediately smiled. My HAL friends will know how special it is. There were two mega ships in port which made the Oosterdam look very small. Hopefully we don’t meet up with them in too many ports.
Due to my frequent cruiser status with Holland America, I was allowed to wait in the VIP lounge until boarding started and then we were first to board. The ship has changed quite a bit since I last sailed on her. The new Gallery Bar has walls filled with art work. The piano bar is open to the casino and is called the Billboard Onboard. The Explorers Lounge is half the original size.
I had my usual embarkation lunch – a Dive-in hot dog with sauerkraut, fries, and an IPA. I wandered around the ship until 2pm when I went to a cocktail party for 4- and 5- star mariners. While wandering, I signed up for a Wine package and 2 wine tastings.
4pm we had the safety drill so we all will know what to do in case the ship goes down. This was immediately followed by a meeting of all of us who used Cruise Critic to get to know each other before the cruise and to set up private tours. It is always fun to put faces to the names.
I am dining at 8pm at a table for 6. We had one empty seat tonight so we will find out tomorrow if anyone shows up. The 2 couples are really fun and we talked and laughed through dinner.
It is now 11:45pm and I’ll stop writing for today. So far the music has been great. Shows start tomorrow night.
We are in Marseille tomorrow. I plan to go into town and take the HOHO bus.