Archive for December, 2009
The cruising industry is the fasted growing segment in the travel industry. It provides meals, activities and multiple travel locations. Cruising has become popular with all age groups.
Peter Greenberg is an authority on cruising. Tonight on CNBC he narrated “Cruise Inc., Big Money on the High Seas”. The focus was on the Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL) owned by the parent company Star Line.
Here are some interesting safety facts brought to light, along with my comments:
- NCL has 11,000 cameras on their ships, sharing every public space. Recently, it caught footage of a woman who fell overboard into the Gulf of Mexico. Since she was alone in her cabin, the footage showed there was no foul play. Great to hear!
- Cruise lines are not requested to report all crimes. Personally I think this is appalling!
- Lifeboats are lowered weekly. Fantastic preventative measure.
- Fire drills are held regularly with the staff and are taken very seriously; it’s the number one threat of a large vessel; the Norwegian purl, weighs 93,000 times and holds 2200 passengers.
- Another big threat is the norovirus. When one is reported on board, the ship is sterilized three times a week. This is really reassuring!
Mr. Greenberg ended the segment by highlighting a great benefit to the budget traveler: due to the economic crisis cruise lines are slashing their prices. For more authoritative information on cruising, visit Peter Greenberg’s site: http://www.petergreenberg.com/
Filed under: Serving Our Seas | Cruise Inc. Big Money on the High Seas, cruise line safety, cruising industry, Norwegian Cruise lines, Norwegian Pearl, Peter Greenberg|No Comments
I’m grateful for all my readers on every corner of the globe. I celebrate with you another beautiful, safe holiday.
Buone Feste- Italian Frohe Weinachten! (German) = Merry Christmas Boas Festas!- Portuguese Feliz Navidad – Spanish Mele Kalikimaka- Hawaiian Wesołych Świąt – Polish Mandarin-Jia Jie U Kwai Arabic-Eid Sa’eed! Fijne feestdagen or Prettige feestdagen – Dutch Boldog Ünnepeket – Hungarian Bonnes Fêtes de fin d’année! Sarbatori Fericite! – romania
www.pierettesimpson.com
Filed under: Serving Our Seas | pierette simpson|No Comments
As reported in The Times.com, a British couple taken hostage on their yacht a couple of months ago are praying for the British government to have them released by Christmas time.
The Times.com explained: “Somali pirates do not normally harm their hostages but this case appears to be more complicated. In commercial piracy, the gangs deal with insurance firms or shipping companies which would eventually pay a ransom.
However, the Chandlers, who are both retired, had sold their house in Britain to go sailing and have no money.”
The situation appears dismal; the Chandlers do not have wealthy insurance companies to pay millions in ransom. It also appears that the British government is not willing to compromise with pirates.
As cold-hearted as it might seem, perhaps the only solution is to make it illegal for insurance companies to spend clients’ premiums on huge ransoms to thugs.
It’s a bold act on the part of the British government. I just pray that the Chandlers are not sacrificed in the process.
www.PieretteSimpson.com
Filed under: Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | hijacked yacht, Somali pirates, the Chandlers|No Comments
Someone has to do it! It might as well be a country gifted with a maritime past, including Amerigo Vespucci, Marco Polo, Christopher Columbus, and masterful shipbuilding.
On December 14, a simple ceremony off Djibouti waters, established that an Italian Navy Admiral will lead the Multinational Antipiracy Maritime Force. Admiral Giovanni Gumiero will be in charge of the EU NAVFOR Operation ATALANTA. His ship, ETNA, is equipped with a hospital and the capacity to provide electrical power and fresh water.
Optimistic and proud to command the new flagship ETNA, Admiral Gumiero stated “I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for the enthusiastic and determined support to the anti piracy mission, accomplishing the assigned tasks, showing their high level of readiness and flexibility. The Task Force has achieved remarkable results so far and I am confident that with their motivation and dedication we can further enhance our effectiveness, thus granting continuity to EU efforts in establishing freedom and security at sea in this region of the world”.
As a proud Italian and a proponent of safety at sea, I wish the Admiral much good fortune in bringing in restoring safety on our seas.
www.PieretteSimpson.com
Filed under: Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | Admiral Gumiero, ETNA, EU NAVFOR Operation ATALANTA, Italian Navy, Multinational Antipiracy Maritime Force.|No Comments
www.TandLnews.com.au reports that the Australian government has come out with new guidelines outlining measures shipping operators and seafarers should take in order to detect, deter and prevent piracy and robbery at sea.
The guidelines recommend:
Masters should prepare anti-piracy training practices and procedures that ensure that the ship’s crew have a good working knowledge and understanding of the basic security measures and requirements for preventing or delaying unauthorized access to the ship whilst at sea, at anchor or alongside a port berth.
Masters should prepare an emergency communication plan, to include all essential emergency contact numbers and pre-prepared messages. Such communication plans should be readily at hand or permanently displayed near the communications console on the ships bridge for instant reference in any piracy or robbery at sea related incident.
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It would behoove other governments to come up with guidelines and training for their captains. These are simple, economical, logical, and sensible recommendations. I am anxious to see more of the like by every nation who participates in maritime global trade. Afterall, piracy is a nasty plight affecting our global economy.
Filed under: Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | Australian government, counter-piracy guidelines, Piracy|No Comments
Last night on PBS I saw the promotion for a new upcoming television series. It’s called “Changing Seas”. I Googled it and this is what I found:
WPBT2 to launch Changing Seas, a new Science Series about the Oceans
Premiering January 27 at 7:30 p.m. on 2HD
Miami, Florida, January 5, 2009: WPBT2 announces the premiere of a new twelve-part documentary series called Changing Seas. Narrated by Peter Thomas, and produced by Emmy Award-winning Producer Alexa Elliott, this series takes viewers on an exciting adventure to the heart of our liquid planet, following explorers and scientists as they uncover new information that could lead to scientific breakthroughs. Changing Seas offers viewers an unprecedented look at how oceanographers and other experts study earth’s last frontier, and it sheds light on how human activities are threatening ocean resources.
In my opinion, there can’t be enough information about our seas. This series is going to be a drop in a cistern which must continually accumulate information about our liquid world. Nevertheless, it’ll be the first of many drops which could change the quality of our lives.
Filed under: Serving Our Seas | Changing Seas, PBS, TV series on our seas, WPBT2 of Florida|No Comments
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