Half Moon Cay

 Thursday, February 20, 2025

The morning started with a little confusion. We checked with Jon and Michelle and made plans to meet at "the elevator" to go to breakfast. Jon needed to take a business call so we went to the assigned spot to wait for Michelle...who never came. We went on ahead to the buffet and as we were finishing our breakfast Jon came by our table and said Michelle was sitting on the same side of the buffet, just a little more forward. She had looked for us and we for her and still hadn't connected. Turns out she had gone to the midship elevator bank while we had waited at the forward elevators closer to our cabins. We decided from now on midship would our designated meeting spot.

I had been looking forward to poached eggs and ordered some with spinach and ham on an English muffin. They were OK, but I ate them without any salt or pepper. Due to the health precautions being taken on the ship, all of the salt and pepper shakers have been removed from the tables. I could have asked for some, but I felt pity on the crew already trying to hustle and serve all of the food and drinks. There was no self service of ANYTHING.

The Eurodam arrived at Half Moon Cay while we were still eating. Tender tickets were being handed out in the Rolling Stone Lounge so we headed down there after gathering all of the stuff AND after Jon went to guest services to replace his ship card which he managed to somehow lose going from the buffet to his cabin! We were given #11 tickets.

It seems there is a new system for checking on and off the ship. Rather than scanning the ship card, crew members use a tablet device to take your photo. The process is just as quick as having the card scanned but I need to remember to remove my glasses before the photo. 

Tendering to Half Moon Cay

Construction of a new dock at Half Moon Cay.
I read where the larger Carnival ships will be using that end of the beach when it is finished.

We sat on the upper level of the tender.

On the island I wanted to be at the far end of the beach where there is a small amount of shade. BUT...I didn't want to walk that far. A shore excursions staff member working at the entrance of the beach told me to check with a couple of guys in a golf cart near by. They were happy enough to drive us and drop us off just where I wanted to be. They even said they would come get us to take us to lunch if we could find someone with a radio to call them. Just ask for Mario they said!

Lots and lots of empty chairs.

Half Moon Cay is one of my favorite ports and it didn't take me long to get into that beautiful aqua colored water. It was a little chilly at first and the waves made it hard to keep from getting a face full of water, but it was wonderful! I had ordered an inflatable hammock from Amazon that I used for the first time. The waves were too big for me to feel comfortable laying on it, but I used it as a sling chair and had fun bobbing up and down in the surf.

Half Moon Cay...my happy place.

Bob and Jon have scuba dives booked in a few days so they spent the time at the beach practicing with their snorkel equipment. Because of the pandemic, neither of them had dove since 2019!

Around 11:30 we decided to head to the island BBQ. It was a little ways down the road but we lucked out and a guy in a truck came by and offered to drive us! Jon and Michelle had made reservations at the "lobster shack" so we parted ways. Bob and I both had hotdogs and shared our picnic table with two different couples. Visiting with fellow passengers is one of my favorite aspects of cruising.

Our luck ran out going back and we had to walk. Jon and Michelle had already returned and Jon was snoozing in one of the chairs. Michelle and I went into the water for awhile and then relaxed in the lounge chairs trying to dry off before it was time to leave. There were dozens and dozens of chairs on the far end of the beach where we were located but we were the only ones there. A few people walked by but we had our little chunk of ocean to ourselves.

Zzzzzzz

On the way back to catch the tender we got lucky once more and a large truck with benches in the back drove by and stopped for us. He took the "long way" back to the tender dock which gave us a small tour of the island.

The guys remembered going from this area on jet skis on a previous cruise.

The tenders hold around 400 people so we had some time to wait while they got a full load. Once back on the ship I showered and took a short nap while Bob went up to play pickleball. It was hard for me to hear (and understand) the captain's announcement while I was in the cabin but it sounded like the ship would remain in full precautionary mode against the norovirus. Valerie, the cruise director, also made an announcement that the show originally scheduled in the main theater, Song & Dance, was being switched to another show, Class Act.

It was dressy night in the dining room and Bob had called earlier in the morning and made a 5:30 pm reservation for the four of us. That time worked out well and we were done eating early enough to get to the theater to get good seats for the show. 

The "Captain's Welcome" was held before the show and he introduced the heads of the main departments on the ship. As each one of them walked onto the stage they stopped by a hand sanitizer dispenser and disinfected their hands. The whole thing was handled with humor, but the message was clear. Keep your hands clean and don't spread germs!

The captain sanitizing his hands on stage.

Captain Joost Eldering

The shows on our recent Holland America cruises were performances by the Step One Dance Company where the dancers performed in front of elaborate video screens. Although the shows were interesting the first time we saw them, after a few cruises we were tired of the repeats. We were excited to see that Holland America has gone back to the production shows featuring singers and dancers. The video technology is still being used to provide interesting backdrops for the musical numbers.

On our last cruise with Jon and Michelle we usually ended the day in the empty buffet where we could play cards and have a cup of tea. With the health precautions in place I didn't think they would appreciate us being in there. Chances are they wouldn't have even allowed us to be there. Instead we went to the Crow's Nest at the very front of the ship on the Observation Deck. Only a few people were there and the game room had nice tables for our card game. We played a game called "Alaska" which has seven different rounds, each one with totally different rules. Bob loves playing cards, but me...not so much. I don't want to be the party pooper though so I "try". For the record, I did end up losing.

Tomorrow...still no sea day. The Eurodam will be stopping at the port of Grand Turk.