It’s now been a full week I’ve been onboard Holland America’s Rotterdam and there are two more to go. The 7th day of this 21-day Panama Canal Sunfarer Cruise saw us spending a small portion of the day docked in Cartagena, Colombia. The ship docked around 6:30 am and we were clear to start going ashore a little before 7:00 am. The weather, unfortunately, was not the best with light drizzle the entire time we were in port.
Now, you may be wondering… “What do you do in Colombia.” The answer pretty much is, “nothing.” While there are shore excursions you can purchase, venturing outside the port on your own is definitely not recommended. In fact, a letter delivered to everyone’s stateroom overnight warned about crime, tourists getting robbed, and the advice, “if you’re stuck up, give them what they want.”
So what do you do in Colombia?
Well, first things first. The Cartagena Cruise Port is a cargo port and cruise ships dock alongside cargo ships unloading their containers. While you can see what looks like a beautiful skyline across the bay, getting there would involve subjecting yourself to VERY (can’t emphasize that enough) pushy locals looking for money, trying to sell your stuff, not to mention a risky ride in a taxi.
If you’re daring and want to go check out the Pablo Escobar historical site and museum, go for it.
No, there isn’t such a place.
Sniff. Sniff.
So what do you do in Colombia?
If you want to kill an hour, the port does have an aviary, a duty-free, and a coffee/snack bar you can visit. Walking through this area you can see dozens of peacocks, macaws, parrots, koi, along with monkeys and a sloth or two if you’re lucky to be able to spot them. I think the rain kept them away during this visit.
Along with photo ops with the wildlife, there is a fake emerald mine you could walk thru although it wasn’t accessible today.
There is no charge to walk around, take pictures, and chat with the birds – one of which speaks both English and Spanish. Several staffers are around to answer questions, but English is not their first language.
Why do cruise lines even stop here, I don’t know, but we didn’t spend much time here as all aboard was at 1:30 pm. It is cool to see the skyline, the various small fishing and sailboats out in the bay, and if there are cargo ships in port, see how they load and offload containers. But you’re best staying put in the port area unless you have an excursion booked through the cruise line. I don’t recommend self-guided, or 3rd party tours at this port.
The evening’s entertainment on the World Stage was a steel drum band from Trinidad and Tobago called Island Magic. They have been entertaining on Holland America Line ships for a long time and now have 2 separate bands on every sailing of the Rotterdam and Eurodam out of Fort Lauderdale for the 2023/2024 season.
The 7:30 pm show was standing room only and while the majority of us were expecting to hear Caribbean-style steel drum music, we were stunned that they were playing classical pieces along with Broadway hits from Andrew Lloyd Weber. The group consists of a drummer, and four others who play steel instruments – one set made from 55-gallon oil drums. Their 45-minute set ended with a standing ovation and the cruise director calling them back out for an encore – Glenn Miller’s In the Mood.
For dinner, I went to the main dining room, for the Gala night menu. Quick note before I get into the food – there is no “formal” night on Holland America. They simply call it “dressy” and most people dress in business casual every day as there is no special dress code for these “dressy” nights. But if you do want to glam it up, you can and ship photogs are around for those dressy night photos, but you’ll find very few people in suits, cocktail dresses, or tuxedos.
I started off with the Veal Tataki, which was cold, thin sliced veal with yuzu sauce and some greens. The veal was cooked a medium rare and was exceptionally tender and full of flavor.
For my entree, I went with the Filet with Green Peppercorn Sauce which was about a 4oz portion of filet cooked a medium rare. No complaints, but it wasn’t a true “steakhouse” filet.
I also went with the Shrimp Andouille & Grits which had several large shrimp and some not-so-spicy sausage served on a bed of grits. It was a well-seasoned dish with good flavor, but damn it, why can’t restaurants take the tails off shrimp?
For dessert, I went with the sugar-free Linzer Torte, which was a bit on the dry side but did not taste like it was sugar-free.
Returning to my stateroom, I got some sweets from the casino staff.
I wonder what winners get?
Links to Rotterdam Restaurant Menus
Restaurant menus for October 28, 2023, on Holland America Rotterdam:
- Lido Market – Breakfast Menu
- Lido Market – Lunch Menu
- Lido Market – Dinner Menu
- Main Dining Room – Breakfast Menu
- Main Dining Room – Lunch Menu
- Main Dining Room – Dinner Menu (Gala Menu)
- Club Orange – Breakfast Menu
- Club Orange – Dinner Menu
- Pinnacle Grill – Lunch Menu
- Pinnacle Grill – Dinner Menu
- Canaletto – Dinner Menu
- Nami Sushi – Dinner Menu
- Tamarind – Dinner Menu
- Tamarind Bar – Lite Bites Menu
- Rudi’s Sel de Mer – Dinner Menu
- Rotterdam Room Service Menu – All Day Menu
- New York Deli & Pizza – All Day Menu
- Dive In Burgers & Hot Dogs – All Day Menu
Daily Planner for Day 7:
