After 6 relaxing days at sea, crossing the Atlantic Ocean, we are arriving in Portugal. Ships time is 7:18 am (which is 3:18 am in Ontario). Hard to believe I’m even up at this time! I left Rudy in bed and he likely thinks I’m sleep walking.

The Captain, a young lanky fellow, makes announcements every morning letting us know what the sea conditions are. But right now he’s all hands on deck as he moves the behemoth Zuiderdam into a sheltered harbour. We have arrived at Praia de Vitoria, Terciera, Azores Portugal.

The Birds Eye front and centre view is from the Crows Nest on the ship. It’s located on the tenth floor and has full, unobstructed views of the bow of the ship and beyond. Inside the room are a selection of seating including comfortable leather recliners, sectionals, occasional chairs and plenty of tables for board games, puzzles and whatever suits your mood. There’s books, games, coffee, bar drinks and other libations and snacks available. I’m sipping on an Americano (freshly brewed by the friendly baristas) with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

The ship has manoeuvred into a harbour adjacent to a quaint town (which we will explore later on bikes – a tour we arranged through Viator). After slowly pulling into the bay which is protected by a huge cement break wall, we are now backing up to pull into the dock. Parallel parking is daunting any day, but in this mammoth sea beast I can’t fathom it. We are moving painstakingly slowly at the moment. The level of patience in this process is beyond my ability!!

The weather is mostly overcast with small glimpses of blue sky peeking through. The temperature is 62 F. This is an abrupt change from the sunny warm conditions we experienced in the crossing. Hopefully as the day progresses we will see better conditions. Nonetheless, we have arrived. And it’s rather nice to see land. Although we did get a look at some whales yesterday. Apparently it’s mating season; lucky us.

It’s a marvel to watch the landing first hand along with (surprisingly) a lot of others. Some are outside getting the full immersive experience. I draw the line.

Stay tuned for regular updates as we make our way to our final destination in Amsterdam.