Watch Eurodam Arrive at Saguenay Monday, Sept. 29

While it won’t be Eurodam’s first call at Saguenay, Quebec, Monday, Sept. 29, it will be the first time the ship — or any ship, for that matter — will be alongside at the port.

The Port of Saguenay built a new pier, and Eurodam will be the first ship to use it. While it may not look finished today, port officials assured Captain van Donselaar that it will be ready on Monday morning when the ship arrives.

Eurodam is scheduled to arrive at Saguenay around 7:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Monday, so if you’re up and online that early, click on this link to watch the ship arrive live.

More Postcards from Peggy’s Cove

Eurodam called at Halifax yesterday, and here are more of Pam’s beautiful photos from Peggy’s Cove.

Peggy’s Point Lighthouse at Peggy’s Cove.

While no doubt the most well-known lighthouse in Canada and one of the most photographed lighthouses in the world, the history of the light at Peggy’s Cove is little known. Various versions account for the name. Peggy is the nickname for Margaret and the community may have acquired the name from nearby Saint Margaret’s Bay. Other accounts suggest Peggy was an early settler. A popular romantic version says a woman named Peggy was the only survivor of a shipwreck, and there are American families that even claim to be descents from the shipwrecked Peggy.

Captain van Donselaar in front of Peggy’s Point Lighthouse.

The lighthouse was erected in 1868 to mark the eastern entrance to St. Margaret’s Bay. While best known as the Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse, it remains officially know as the Peggy’s Point Lighthouse, as its purpose is to mark the point, not the cove. The first lighthouse was a wooden tower, built atop a keeper’s dwelling at the point. This structure was replaced by the present tower in 1915. The lighthouse was manned until 1958 when it became automated.

Had Captain van Donselaar been at the helm, we’re sure this boat would not have run aground!

Postcards from Boston

Eurodam called at Boston yesterday, and Pam went ashore to do some more exploring.

The Massachusetts State House was completed January 11, 1798, after state leaders decided they wanted a larger and more elegant venue for the state house. The dome, originally made out of wood shingles, is now sheathed in copper and covered by 23 karat gold.

This marker can be found on a post on the fence in front of the Massachusetts State House. The land originally had served as a cow pasture for Governor John Hancock; his home was built in 1737 but destroyed in 1863.

Postcard from Quebec

Guest Linda Riggin sent us this photo from her recent Eurodam cruise.

I just recently returned from a cruise aboard the ms Eurodam (Sept. 1-11). In the last Daily Program we were encouraged to send in photos of ports we had visited. I am enclosing a picture I took of the Eurodam in port at Quebec. Thank you Holland America for a wonderful cruise and many happy memories!

With warmest regards,

Linda Riggin

The Sun Sets Over Newport

Pam sent us these photos of the sun setting over Newport.

Postcards from Newport, Rhode Island

Pam went ashore in Newport, Rhode Island, during Eurodam’s call, and she took some beautiful photos. Many people say that Newport is one of the country’s most picturesque ports.

Newport was founded in 1639. In the 17th and early 18th centuries it was a major center of pirate activity. Today it is better known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport mansions.

Trinity Church is the oldest Episcopal parish in Rhode Island. This bell, perhaps the first that rang in a church in New England, is on display near the entrance to Trinity Church.

The Colony House, the fourth-oldest statehouse still standing in the United States, was built between 1736 and 1739 by Benjamin Wyatt. It served as the primary state house of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations from its completion in 1739 until 1901, when the new state house in Providence was completed.

Touro Synagogue is the oldest surviving synagogue in North America and the only surviving synagogue building in the United States that dates to the Colonial era. It was built from 1759 to 1763 and was designated a National Historic Site in 1946.

Aerials of Eurodam in New York City

Well-known cruise photographer Michel Verdue snapped some impressive photos of Eurodam arriving at New York. Verdue was in a helicopter to capture these aerials.

Surf’s Up — Catch a Bulb!

That’s our correspondent Pam hangin’ ten on Eurodam’s bulbous bow, thus fulfilling a dream she has harbored for years. For Pam, this was the apogee of her correspondenthood. She has been talking about “surfing the bulb” since way back in June, and we figured it was just so much hoo-hah, but Pam proved us wrong.

So, what does the bulbous bow do?

The bulbous bow, a standard feature of most large modern ships with displacement hulls, is a protruding bulb at the bow (or front, pointy end) below the waterline. The bulb modifies how water flows around the hull, reducing drag and increasing speed, range, fuel efficiency and stability. Ships with bulbous bows generally have 12 to 15 percent better fuel efficiency than similar vessels without them.

Bulbous bows have been most effective when used on hulls of at least 45 degrees and especially to those greater than 60 degrees. They have been used to greatest effect on large ships with long, narrow hulls such as freighters, navy vessels and various passenger ships. They are less commonly used on short, wide hulls and recreational boats designed for wide speed ranges and planing.

Postcards from Bar Harbor, Maine

During yesterday’s call at Bar Harbor, Maine, Pam biked approximately 20 miles in Acadia National Park. In 1919, President Woodrow Wilson signed the act establishing Lafayette National Park, the first national park east of the Mississippi. In 1929, the park name changed to Acadia. Today the park protects more than 47,000 acres.

These are some of the most picturesque photos we’ve seen from Eurodam’s travels.

Pam biked around Eagle Lake and Jordon Pond.

How ta get theyuh from heyah (Mainers are infamous for their accents!) … To see Pam’s route around Eagle Lake and Jordon Pond, click heyah and then click on “view map.”

A Visit to the Swiss Air Flight 111 Memorial

Yesterday I went to the Whalesback Memorial for Swiss Air 111 at Peggy’s Cove to pay my respects to those who perished. I was guest relations manager on board Veendam, which was en route to Halifax on the evening of Sept. 2, 1998, when Swiss Air 111 crashed approximately five miles off the coast of Peggy’s Cove. The Veendam diverted from Halifax to the crash site to participate in the rescue and recovery efforts, so the site holds a special meaning for me.

This memorial is dedicated to the 229 passengers who lost their lives in the crash. The site faces out toward the offshore crash site and another memorial at Bayswater.