NOROVIRUS STRIKES AGAIN!

The cruise ship, Crown Princess will end its current cruise two days early due to the large number of gastrointestinal illness cases for the second week in a row. The 3,080-passenger ship will return to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Thursday instead of Saturday. There it will undergo two days of sanitization in consultation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It was reported that 114 passengers and 59 crew members were diagnosed with a gastrointestinal virus believed to be norovirus. Those passengers affected will receive full refunds, flights home and coverage of change fees for airlines. They will also receive hotel accommodations if necessary and a 25% credit for a future cruise.

Last weeks cruise totaled 364 passengers and 30 crew members infected with norovirus. The ship underwent rigorous sanitation procedures under the supervision of the CDC, but apparently it wasn’t enough.

Norovirus is the second most common illness next to the common cold, and is highly contagious, spreading easily in confined spaces such as hospitals, hotels, dormitories and cruise ships. Symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea.

                                                                           -Marion Ambrose



10 Ways to Stay Healthy on a Cruise (CRUISE CRITIC) http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?id=1061)

Wash your hands. The number-one way to avoid getting Norovirus or other illnesses on a cruise is to thoroughly wash your hands -- more than you ordinarily would -- before and after you eat, after you use the restroom, when returning to the cruise ship after a day in port and every time you touch a stranger or an oft-touched item like a stairway railing or a slot machine. In this way, you'll kill any germs before they can infect you. In addition to ramping up hand-washing, also take advantage of the hand sanitizers strategically placed around cruise ships in the dining areas, by the gangway and even in various lounges and public spaces. But note that using a hand sanitizer is not a replacement for basic hand-washing.

COSTA CONCORDIA

At approximately 9:30 pm local time on Friday, January 13, the Costa Concordia struck an underwater rock formation off the west coast of Italy, tearing a 160-foot-long hole in the ship's hull. The vessel began taking on water and power outages spread throughout the ship.

Almost immediately, the vessel began to list, sending plates, glasses and other objects in the full dining rooms crashing to the floor. Alarms sounded and passengers were informed that there was an electrical problem that crew members were working to fix. It quickly became apparent to passengers and crew members that this was not merely an electrical problem, and those onboard began a frantic evacuation of the ship.

Some lifeboats were launched, but due to the severity of the ship's listing, it soon became impossible to launch more. Some passengers jumped from the ship into the cold water and swam to shore, while others clung to railings or other objects on the ship until the arrival of fishing boats and ferries that responded to the emergency. Some passengers were trapped in more precarious or isolated positions and were eventually hoisted aboard helicopters.

The ship continued to lean until it finally came to rest on its side, about half submerged, approximately 200 feet off the coast of the small island of Giglio, Italy.

There were more than 4200 passengers and crew onboard the Concordia and as of this writing, six are known to have lost their lives, dozens are confirmed injured and there is confusion as to the number still missing, with reports ranging from 16 to 29.

Firefighters and scuba divers began search and rescue operations early Saturday morning, and on Sunday morning -- more than 24 hours after the ship first hit the rocks -- two young South Koreans on their honeymoon were rescued from their cabin and a senior member of the ship's staff (see below) was rescued from the third deck.

The treacherous search-and-rescue operation has been suspended at least once due to worsening weather and concern that the ship could slip into much deeper water nearby, trapping rescuers onboard.

The Costa Concordia was built in 2006 at a cost of about 450 million euros (USD $569 million at current exchange rates). With 13 decks, the vessel towered 100 feet above the water and is nearly 1,000 feet long. It carried the very latest navigation and safety equipment, and the obvious question is, "How could this tragedy have happened?"

There are conflicting stories as to exactly what happened and why, but statements from both the cruise line and Italian government officials point to human error. An early Costa Cruises statement reports that "there may have been significant human error on the part of the ship's master, Captain Francesco Schettino, which resulted in these grave consequences."

The captain has been arrested and charged with manslaughter, shipwreck and abandoning ship.

Fortunately, the ship's black boxes contain the technical data and conversations from the bridge that should allow the facts to come out. It may take months to conduct the investigation but I will cover the findings in this newsletter as soon as they are released.

In the weeks ahead, news media will carry the personal accounts of fear and chaos from passengers and crew as they struggled to abandon ship. We will hear of the kindness of the people of Giglio, who opened their homes and schools and churches in the middle of the night to provide food and clothing and shelter to strangers dropped abruptly on their doorsteps.

There will be stories of heroism, including that of the ship's chief purser, Manrico Gianpetroni, who reportedly aided the escape of dozens of people before breaking his leg in a fall. He was found and rescued from deep inside the vessel nearly 36 hours after the ordeal began.

Cruise lines carried more than 15 million passengers in 2011. The industry is highly regulated and passenger safety is the number one concern of all cruise lines. Hopefully, as the cause of this tragedy becomes clear, new systems and procedures can be put into place to prevent an accident of this kind from ever happening again.

Our hearts and prayers go out to the dead and missing and injured, and to their families.

This letter I received from Vacations to Go....

CRUSIN' PART II

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

We sailed into Nassau just at sunrise. I was so excited; I sat up looking out my porthole. I snapped pictures of the horizon, another cruise ship following us, and even the Mail Boat as it passed us going in to the dock. It was beautiful watching the sun come up over the bright pastel buildings as the shops and markets slowly came to life. Vendors set up tents with jewelry, straw goods, clothing and more. A man in a huge straw hat lined the sea wall with colorful conch shells and starfish. I couldn’t wait to disembark!

After another breakfast buffet, we decided to take a water taxi over to Atlantis. We passed the homes of  the rich and famous (Nicholas Cage, Oprah, and others who channel American made money into Bahamian accounts and real estate to save on taxes). One of the Atlantis resorts boasts a suite that was often booked by Michael Jackson. It cost $100,000 a night with a three night minimum stay. Sorry if you wanted to run right out and book it for yourself, it’s booked up for the next 5 years!

Atlantis was truly amazing. The theme was carried through in architecture, art and furnishings. Even the light fixtures were works of Marine inspired art! Fountains, shops, aquariums, a dolphin area where of course, you can swim and interact, a sting ray pool, paddle boats and every form of entertainment you could wish for were available. The casino was huge, but I was disappointed when I found it ran totally on vouchers – no cling , cling, cling, of quarters if you win in the slots!(Yes, I’m like a 5 year old! I need the bells and whistles.)

Crusin' - Wickedly Good Fun!

Marion Pellicano Ambrose

There’s only one word to describe a cruise to the Bahamas – luxurious, sumptuous, opulent! Oops! That was three words! Well, it can’t be helped because it truly was all those things!

We started out from Port Canaveral on a Monday at noon. When I drove up A1A and rounded the bend right before the Port, the ship suddenly came into view. Amazing! The Monarch of the Seas is the smallest ship in Royal Caribbean’s fleet but it looked tremendous to me! What an awesome sight to behold!  It seemed to glisten in the sun and my tummy had that excited flutter as we drove closer.

Checking in was a breeze and we went right up to the “Windjammer” to meet two other friends for the fabulous lunch buffet. There was so much food: hamburgers, hot dogs, salads, cold cuts, hot entrees, a festival of fruits and an exquisite exhibit of desserts! I gained a pound just looking at it!

After enjoying the buffet, we went in search of our cabins. I had booked both rooms and explained to the travel agent that we wanted to be together both in location and in the dining room. Well, we had a problem! (Not Royal Caribbean’s fault at all!) My friend and I were on the 6^th floor in the absolute bow of the ship. Our other friends were on the 4^th floor center ship. I’m handicapped and since all 4 handicapped rooms were booked before I booked ours, I hoped to be at least near the elevator. The travel agent assured me that the room would be set up to accommodate me and my scooter and that all would be well. We wound up in the ONLY room whose doorway stuck out halfway into the hall because it was so far up in the bow. Needless to say, the scooter couldn’t get at an angle to get in the room. When we opened the door, there was one double bed made up and the room, while very nice, was miniscule to say the least! We also found that the 6^th floor is the most inaccessible deck on the ship. To get to certain places we had to go down or up a deck, across the ship to another elevator and down or up even further.

ALASKAN PIPE DREAMS

Marion Pellicano Ambrose


Alaska: America’s rugged frontier! Whether it’s because of a cruise, the energy crisis, or
Sarah Palin, everyone is talking about Alaska these days. I’m no exception. Something
about this far off place intrigues me. I’m in love with what I’ve seen of the rugged
beauty, the abundant wildlife and the unique native cultures.

Dawn Boyle


Today's Lunch Time Poll is, if you won a million tax free dollars, what would you do first?