Thursday, January 23, 2014

Day 20 At Sea



It was a beautiful day aboard the ms Amsterdam…..  Everything is great except the internet is a train wreck.  It is adversely affecting the quality of my voyage and I am not one bit pleased by that.  The problems are many and ever changing…..  I have lost hope totally that they will ever get this internet up and working at a reasonable performance level….  Tomorrow we visit Pitcairn Island (from a distance).  We plan on having some inhabitants on board to sell their wares and have a scenic sail around the island.  I will take photos but whether or not you see them is up to Holland America Line and Harris Corporation…  I wouldn’t hold my breath.  BTW, this little post took forever to publish...  the days of photos may be gone.

9 comments:

  1. Too bad that what was supposed to be a better solution turned out to be such a disaster. I enjoy your wonderful photos almost every day - I will miss your blog if it is gone. And to think of the good marketing you are doing for HAL with this blog! I'm sure it is not only me who has the world cruise with HAL on their bucket list because of your photo-blog. Seems like somebody has made the totally wrong decicion about the ships internet solution.
    I cross my fingers that it will turn out better soon...

    Kirsti
    Norway

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  2. On Jan 24, 2014, at 8:16 AM, John Gettler wrote:

    This Jeff Farshman is in your President's Club, travels with you on every World Cruise, and has thousands of people who read his photo blog. He adores the Amsterdam but is having massive troubles with internet service aboard the Amsterdam now. Seriously, you need to get that ship some help with their internet or it is going to just be more and more bad PR for Holland America.

    http://amazingvoyages2.blogspot.com/2014/01/day-20-at-sea.html
    via Byline

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  3. Hi Jeff....
    Sorry to hear about your continuing frustrations with HAL MS Amsterdam's continuing internet problems. Let's hope that this problem will continue to cause CCL to drop below 40. No need for CCL to be a high flyer when their best-paying world cruisers can't even post a measly email, short of spending 92 minutes of paid computer time. Suspect someone should be reprimanded and hopefully the Harris written contract has a firm $22,000 per day penalty clause that will help refund all you cruisers computer access fees. Jeff, for what it's worth I'd suggest you write a letter of dissatisfaction to CCL. Your pleasure aboard ship has been drastically altered, and you are sadly returning your HAL 'double-platinum-silvery-gold' 10,000 day aboard pin. Have fun the best you can. Post in detail your on-going time wasted on computer. You may as well make a few more enemies. They may take away your personalized gold-threaded embroidered pool towels, and downgrade you to an interior stateroom above the grinding engine drone. Fun, huh?
    Love your pictures. BTW, how many thousands of photos have you taken so far on this multi-month voyage.
    If it's any consolidation, if I were a seasoned photo blogger as you, I would seriously consider not choose the MS Amsterdam's technologically challenged service. Suspect the ships navigational technology might be tied in with your screwed up internet access, too.
    Doubt my rant will ever see the light of day.
    T&C

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  4. I believe Harris does a lot of Navy shipboard satellite communications. I would think they will eventually get this fixed. Of course eventually doesn't help today.

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    Replies
    1. Yeah.... probably the Navy contract communications equipment is oftentimes just as screwed up. When technology works, it's a dream, but that's not always the case.
      So..... to keep you cruisers from wasting allot of time staring at a non-responding computer screen, suggest that Harris (or whoever kinda knows what's going on) adds a symbolic "figure of merit" percentage number (1-100) on the computer screen that gives the internet user a real-time indication of how good the overall communications system is working. 0% = really %$#*-up system; 100% = working perfectly as designed; 50%= so-so; good luck!
      In this way, all your platinum cruisers can log in, see the big 'goose-egg' 0%, and head to the bar for a stiff shooter.... instead of wasting 22 minutes trying to log in when the system is tits-up, all the time cussing HAL.
      I know.... such a real-time communication system figure of merit indicator is not in the Harris contract specifications; probably for their on protection. .
      Good luck. At least we're not talking about the assumed real-time reliability of a shipboard phalanx weapons system. But who knows, maybe this same defunct Harris communications system is used by the Chef to order in more caviar in Papeete. Maybe ask the radio officer is he can ring-up corporate headquarters at any moment.
      T&C

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  5. What a pity, Jeff! I was told when on the Noordam in November, that the new internet company would be much better..... Better load on some pigeons next voyage!!
    Hope you ate enjoying the rest of it, though! Give my regards to Aart and Ellen!
    LOL, Benny

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  7. I altered guest relations at Holland America. So maybe they will care.

    John Gettler johngettler@gmail.com
    8:16 AM (5 hours ago)

    to guestrelations
    This Jeff Frashman is in your President's Club, travels with you on every World Cruise, and has thousands of people who read his photo blog (link below edited out). He adores the Amsterdam but is having massive troubles with internet service aboard the Amsterdam now. Seriously, you need to get that ship some help with their internet or it is going to just be more and more bad PR for Holland America.

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  8. We were on the cruise with you two years ago through easter island and on to Sydney. I always had the best luck on the internet about 10 PM at night and up on the lido deck, inside the buffet. Just a thought. thanks for the blog.

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