NBC has announced The Celebrity Apprentice contestants for the upcoming Spring season:
former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich,
model Selita Ebanks,
actor and former wrestler
Bill Goldberg,
Olympian Michael Johnson,
wrestler and model Maria Kanellis,
pop star Cyndi Lauper
rock star Bret Michaels,
comedian and writer Carol Leifer,
Sharon Osbourne,
actress Holly Robinson-Peete,
TV host Summer Sanders,
comedian Sinbad,
celebrity chef Curtis Stone,
and former baseball player Darryl Strawberry.
Celebrity Apprentice will return in the Sunday 9-11 p.m. block
Monday, November 2, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Ahoy the shore from Hawaii (part 3 in a series)
Day three: Sunday October 11, 2009
During the early hours of the morning NCL’s Pride of America continued charting courses from the Port of Honolulu on the island of O’hua to the Port of Hilo on the Big Island. We awoke early in the morning before we had docked and ascended to the decks to observe our approach. We fetched breakfast items from the buffet on the Aloha café and found seats at an outdoor table in the aft section of the ship, where we listened to the port specialist describe the port. Hilo is located on the East (windward) side of the Big island, which usually gets a lot of rainfall. However, the skies were clear when we arrived. The Big Island is double the size of the other 7 Hawaiian islands combined and is increasing in size courtesy active volcanoes spewing lava into the seas.
Following breakfast we made our way down to the 3rd level mid-ship, which is where the gangway is located to debark in all ports (the area is designated by stars and stripes carpeting). We wanted to ensure that we would be among the first group to debark the ship to ensure we were placed on the first mini-bus shuttle to retrieve our rental car at the Thrifty car rental location at the International Airport. We did in fact make the first mini-bus and were soon on our way to Volcano National Park in our yellow Jeep Wrangler (which we nick-named The Beast on account of its license plate bearing the numbers 666). The Jeep was a great choice for the trip however it was a tight fit for the third passenger to enter exit the 2nd row seat. Enroute to the park we stopped to buy flashlights at WalMart (which we knew from advance research we would need to navigate the lower unlighted lava tubes in the park). We took the soft-top down in the WalMart parking lot and were able to leave it down for most of the day. The drive to Hilo takes approximately 45 minutes. Admission to the park is $10 per car.
The Big Island of Hawaii is situated atop a “hot spot” that releases magma from the planet’s core through weak spots in the planet’s outer mantle. Kilauea volcano is 4000 feet high and ranks as the world’s largest currently active volcano. While in the park we drove around Crater rim drive and along the Chain of Craters Rd down to sea level by the Holei Sea Arch where the road was closed by lava flow. It was amazing to see the stream vents, craters and to hike into the huge lava tubes, guided by our flashlights. We spent the full day in the park. Rain began to threaten toward the end of our visit so we reassembled the soft top on our jeep to begin the return trip back to the ship.
In evening we had dinner reservations at 7 in the Lazy J Texas Restaurant. Prior to dinner we went to the Napa Wine Bar for happy hour (a selection of wine available at half price). Dinner in the Lazy J Texas Restaurant was well worth the upgrade fee. They offer a fine selection of choice beef cuts, including NY strip, t-bone and fillet mignon. For appetizers, we ordered HUGE jumbo shrimps, oysters Rockefeller (served in a bowl of coarse sea salt) and crabcakes, which were all excellent. The one miscue was the lobster bisque, which was a bit too thick and not very flavourful. The steaks came with a choices of sauces—we ordered poivre and béarnaise and both were excellent. We concluded our meal with cheesecake for dessert and cappuccinos. Service was uniformly excellent. Still not having acclimated fully to the time shift and having missed the performance in the Hollywood theatre we decided to retire early to prepare for our drive on the Road to Hana the next day in Maui
During the early hours of the morning NCL’s Pride of America continued charting courses from the Port of Honolulu on the island of O’hua to the Port of Hilo on the Big Island. We awoke early in the morning before we had docked and ascended to the decks to observe our approach. We fetched breakfast items from the buffet on the Aloha café and found seats at an outdoor table in the aft section of the ship, where we listened to the port specialist describe the port. Hilo is located on the East (windward) side of the Big island, which usually gets a lot of rainfall. However, the skies were clear when we arrived. The Big Island is double the size of the other 7 Hawaiian islands combined and is increasing in size courtesy active volcanoes spewing lava into the seas.
Following breakfast we made our way down to the 3rd level mid-ship, which is where the gangway is located to debark in all ports (the area is designated by stars and stripes carpeting). We wanted to ensure that we would be among the first group to debark the ship to ensure we were placed on the first mini-bus shuttle to retrieve our rental car at the Thrifty car rental location at the International Airport. We did in fact make the first mini-bus and were soon on our way to Volcano National Park in our yellow Jeep Wrangler (which we nick-named The Beast on account of its license plate bearing the numbers 666). The Jeep was a great choice for the trip however it was a tight fit for the third passenger to enter exit the 2nd row seat. Enroute to the park we stopped to buy flashlights at WalMart (which we knew from advance research we would need to navigate the lower unlighted lava tubes in the park). We took the soft-top down in the WalMart parking lot and were able to leave it down for most of the day. The drive to Hilo takes approximately 45 minutes. Admission to the park is $10 per car.
The Big Island of Hawaii is situated atop a “hot spot” that releases magma from the planet’s core through weak spots in the planet’s outer mantle. Kilauea volcano is 4000 feet high and ranks as the world’s largest currently active volcano. While in the park we drove around Crater rim drive and along the Chain of Craters Rd down to sea level by the Holei Sea Arch where the road was closed by lava flow. It was amazing to see the stream vents, craters and to hike into the huge lava tubes, guided by our flashlights. We spent the full day in the park. Rain began to threaten toward the end of our visit so we reassembled the soft top on our jeep to begin the return trip back to the ship.
In evening we had dinner reservations at 7 in the Lazy J Texas Restaurant. Prior to dinner we went to the Napa Wine Bar for happy hour (a selection of wine available at half price). Dinner in the Lazy J Texas Restaurant was well worth the upgrade fee. They offer a fine selection of choice beef cuts, including NY strip, t-bone and fillet mignon. For appetizers, we ordered HUGE jumbo shrimps, oysters Rockefeller (served in a bowl of coarse sea salt) and crabcakes, which were all excellent. The one miscue was the lobster bisque, which was a bit too thick and not very flavourful. The steaks came with a choices of sauces—we ordered poivre and béarnaise and both were excellent. We concluded our meal with cheesecake for dessert and cappuccinos. Service was uniformly excellent. Still not having acclimated fully to the time shift and having missed the performance in the Hollywood theatre we decided to retire early to prepare for our drive on the Road to Hana the next day in Maui
Ahoy the shore from Hawaii (part 2 in a series)
Day 2 Saturday October 10:
Because of the 6 hour time change between Honolulu and Toronto and despite retiring after 24 sleepless hours, we were up bright and early on Saturday morning. We made our way to the Best Western Coconut lobby for breakfast, which was surprising good. Following breakfast we had the desk attendant on duty call us a taxi-cab to make the trip out to Diamond Head. No one noticed that the taxi driver had “forgotten” to switch the metre on, but his charge ($12) seemed within a reasonable range. Diamond Head is the crater of a long extinct volcano and hiking up to its summit is the number one tourist attraction in Honolulu. We wanted to arrive early, not only to beat the crowd but also to beat the heat. We began our ascent around 7:30, purchasing bottled water from the truck at the parking lot, to ensure we stayed hydrated. The hike took approximately three hours round trip, allowing for photo opportunities along the way. Parts of the lower trail are paved, others parts are rubble and dirt and parts of the upper trail require climbing up a flight of 74 concrete stairs, spiral staircases and a 225 long lighted tunnel. The vertical ascent spans 560 feet over a 1.4 km length trail with many switchbacks. The trail was constructed in 1908 as part of the US Army Coastal Artillery defense system.
Once we returned to the bottom of the path we purchased smoothies and shaved fruit ice to cool off. We had to wait 10 minutes for a taxi at the gate to make our return trip to the hotel. When one arrived it already had two passengers in the back seat so two of us had to overcrowd into the front of the vehicle (without seatbelts)! The driver, Lee, quoted a fare of $5 per passenger on top of what he charged his first pair of drop-offs (over $12 on the metre). Lee, upon hearing we would be boarding a cruise ship later in the day, also arranged to return to the hotel to pick us up and drive us to the cruise-ship terminal at 1 PM. It was after 11 PM when we got back to the Coconut. One of us was exhausted from our climb and decided to stay in the room and rest while we other two were intent on setting out to explore Waikiki beach.
After securing directions from our concierge, we set out on foot toward the beach, passing along the Kalakaua Ave exclusive shopping district enroute. We spurned stores like Cartier to shop for parrotwear at Jimmy Buffet’s Margarittaville. We were able to find some good quality t-shirts on the sale racks, ranging in price for $9.99 to $14.99 (plus 4.5% sales tax) and to also receive a third shirt free for every two purchased. Thereafter we cut thru to the beach beside the famous pink-bricked Royal Hawaiian beach resort. The pre noon-time beach was already packed with sun worshippers, bathers and surfers. We removed our footwear to walk barefoot thru the sand for a stretch then made our way up to a table on a beachfront terrace at the Westin Surfrider hotel and ordered refreshing Hawaiian punch cocktails before retracing our steps back along the sand to Kalakaua Ave. Outside the Royal Hawaiian shopping centre galleria on Kalakaua Ave. we paused to purchase some fresh-flowered leis from a kiosk vendor, before heading back to the hotel to rejoin the missing link in our travel party in time to go for a quick and refreshing dip in the hotel pool before Lee (or driver’s) arrival.
We checked out at the lobby just before 1 PM (having previously been granted a 1 hour extension beyond the normal check out time) and met Lee out front. Lee explained he was suffering from a bad back and required assistance loading our luggage in his town car trunk. The ride to the ferry terminal took around 15 minutes and we were promptly met by a bell hop upon alighting from our taxi. As we paid Lee the agreed on $20 fare the bellhop assisted with unloading our bags from Lee’s car and then escorted us to the initial security screening. Unfortunately the bellhop rushed on ahead with bags we intended to carry on (including on that contained a laptop) and one passenger’s boarding e-docs! Fortunately we were able to retrieve the latter in the nick of time (and the former wound up arriving at our stateroom undamaged sometime later). Once inside the terminal building we discovered tow lines-- one reserved for suites and latitude gold members and the second for general boarding. We joined the first inadvertently, not realizing we were Latitudes bronze and not gold members, but were allowed to pass through nevertheless. After the security screening, the next set of lines also separated into three forks-- one for the suites, one for general boarding and one for latitude members. We joined the third and although it was shorter, discovered it moved much more slowly because it only fed to two CSR positions. Nevertheless we were through all stages of the check-in process with half an hour and on our way aboard.
The gangway from the terminal building enters onto the 5th level grand atrium from the terminal building. We were handed our complimentary champagne as we entered and proceeded over to the dinner reservations desk immediately to make table reservations for the Lazy J Texas Steakhouse and Teppanyaki specialty restaurants (for which a $25 upgrade fee applies). Thereafter we proceeded to the elevators where we were informed that the staterooms would not be available until after 2 PM. So we were diverted onto an elevator heading up to the Aloha (buffet style) café on the pool deck to have lunch. It was after 2 PM when we finished our meal so we proceeded to our assigned stateroom (an interior cabin on the 7th floor aft). Thereafter, we conducted a self-directed tour of the ship (she made a “pleasantly surprised’ first impression) and attended part of the “shopping in ports” talk by the shopping consultant cum Latitudes hostess cum future cruise sales director (she wears many hats) in the Hollywood theatre before reporting to our assigned muster station (two levels directly below in the Skyline restaurant) for the mandatory safety drill (which was very painless but which did require passengers to fasten their safety jacket (which you have to drag to/from your room with you). We returned from the safety drill to our stateroom to find our luggage had arrived safely and proceeded to unpack. Closet and drawer space in the stateroom was ample.
After dinner we headed to the Liberty main restaurant for dinner at around 6 PM. We were seated without delay in a section near the aft window. Service was polite and pleasant but with long delays in food arrival between courses. Nevertheless the food temperature and quality was good. Among the entrees our party selected were jerk chicken with plantains and dirty rice, Mahi mahi and salmon from the everyday menu. Dessert selections included a banana soufflé and a Bavarian cream. We passed on coffee in order to make it upstairs to the upper decks to enjoy the “lights of Honolulu” sailaway. Thereafter, still acclimating to the time shift, we adjourned to our staterooms to retire for our first evening.
Still to come: Our day in Hilo at Volcano National Park
Because of the 6 hour time change between Honolulu and Toronto and despite retiring after 24 sleepless hours, we were up bright and early on Saturday morning. We made our way to the Best Western Coconut lobby for breakfast, which was surprising good. Following breakfast we had the desk attendant on duty call us a taxi-cab to make the trip out to Diamond Head. No one noticed that the taxi driver had “forgotten” to switch the metre on, but his charge ($12) seemed within a reasonable range. Diamond Head is the crater of a long extinct volcano and hiking up to its summit is the number one tourist attraction in Honolulu. We wanted to arrive early, not only to beat the crowd but also to beat the heat. We began our ascent around 7:30, purchasing bottled water from the truck at the parking lot, to ensure we stayed hydrated. The hike took approximately three hours round trip, allowing for photo opportunities along the way. Parts of the lower trail are paved, others parts are rubble and dirt and parts of the upper trail require climbing up a flight of 74 concrete stairs, spiral staircases and a 225 long lighted tunnel. The vertical ascent spans 560 feet over a 1.4 km length trail with many switchbacks. The trail was constructed in 1908 as part of the US Army Coastal Artillery defense system.
Once we returned to the bottom of the path we purchased smoothies and shaved fruit ice to cool off. We had to wait 10 minutes for a taxi at the gate to make our return trip to the hotel. When one arrived it already had two passengers in the back seat so two of us had to overcrowd into the front of the vehicle (without seatbelts)! The driver, Lee, quoted a fare of $5 per passenger on top of what he charged his first pair of drop-offs (over $12 on the metre). Lee, upon hearing we would be boarding a cruise ship later in the day, also arranged to return to the hotel to pick us up and drive us to the cruise-ship terminal at 1 PM. It was after 11 PM when we got back to the Coconut. One of us was exhausted from our climb and decided to stay in the room and rest while we other two were intent on setting out to explore Waikiki beach.
After securing directions from our concierge, we set out on foot toward the beach, passing along the Kalakaua Ave exclusive shopping district enroute. We spurned stores like Cartier to shop for parrotwear at Jimmy Buffet’s Margarittaville. We were able to find some good quality t-shirts on the sale racks, ranging in price for $9.99 to $14.99 (plus 4.5% sales tax) and to also receive a third shirt free for every two purchased. Thereafter we cut thru to the beach beside the famous pink-bricked Royal Hawaiian beach resort. The pre noon-time beach was already packed with sun worshippers, bathers and surfers. We removed our footwear to walk barefoot thru the sand for a stretch then made our way up to a table on a beachfront terrace at the Westin Surfrider hotel and ordered refreshing Hawaiian punch cocktails before retracing our steps back along the sand to Kalakaua Ave. Outside the Royal Hawaiian shopping centre galleria on Kalakaua Ave. we paused to purchase some fresh-flowered leis from a kiosk vendor, before heading back to the hotel to rejoin the missing link in our travel party in time to go for a quick and refreshing dip in the hotel pool before Lee (or driver’s) arrival.
We checked out at the lobby just before 1 PM (having previously been granted a 1 hour extension beyond the normal check out time) and met Lee out front. Lee explained he was suffering from a bad back and required assistance loading our luggage in his town car trunk. The ride to the ferry terminal took around 15 minutes and we were promptly met by a bell hop upon alighting from our taxi. As we paid Lee the agreed on $20 fare the bellhop assisted with unloading our bags from Lee’s car and then escorted us to the initial security screening. Unfortunately the bellhop rushed on ahead with bags we intended to carry on (including on that contained a laptop) and one passenger’s boarding e-docs! Fortunately we were able to retrieve the latter in the nick of time (and the former wound up arriving at our stateroom undamaged sometime later). Once inside the terminal building we discovered tow lines-- one reserved for suites and latitude gold members and the second for general boarding. We joined the first inadvertently, not realizing we were Latitudes bronze and not gold members, but were allowed to pass through nevertheless. After the security screening, the next set of lines also separated into three forks-- one for the suites, one for general boarding and one for latitude members. We joined the third and although it was shorter, discovered it moved much more slowly because it only fed to two CSR positions. Nevertheless we were through all stages of the check-in process with half an hour and on our way aboard.
The gangway from the terminal building enters onto the 5th level grand atrium from the terminal building. We were handed our complimentary champagne as we entered and proceeded over to the dinner reservations desk immediately to make table reservations for the Lazy J Texas Steakhouse and Teppanyaki specialty restaurants (for which a $25 upgrade fee applies). Thereafter we proceeded to the elevators where we were informed that the staterooms would not be available until after 2 PM. So we were diverted onto an elevator heading up to the Aloha (buffet style) café on the pool deck to have lunch. It was after 2 PM when we finished our meal so we proceeded to our assigned stateroom (an interior cabin on the 7th floor aft). Thereafter, we conducted a self-directed tour of the ship (she made a “pleasantly surprised’ first impression) and attended part of the “shopping in ports” talk by the shopping consultant cum Latitudes hostess cum future cruise sales director (she wears many hats) in the Hollywood theatre before reporting to our assigned muster station (two levels directly below in the Skyline restaurant) for the mandatory safety drill (which was very painless but which did require passengers to fasten their safety jacket (which you have to drag to/from your room with you). We returned from the safety drill to our stateroom to find our luggage had arrived safely and proceeded to unpack. Closet and drawer space in the stateroom was ample.
After dinner we headed to the Liberty main restaurant for dinner at around 6 PM. We were seated without delay in a section near the aft window. Service was polite and pleasant but with long delays in food arrival between courses. Nevertheless the food temperature and quality was good. Among the entrees our party selected were jerk chicken with plantains and dirty rice, Mahi mahi and salmon from the everyday menu. Dessert selections included a banana soufflé and a Bavarian cream. We passed on coffee in order to make it upstairs to the upper decks to enjoy the “lights of Honolulu” sailaway. Thereafter, still acclimating to the time shift, we adjourned to our staterooms to retire for our first evening.
Still to come: Our day in Hilo at Volcano National Park
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Imprisoned at sea!
This very annoying (from my perspective) interruption to my Hawaiian cruise series blog is brought to you by the NCL America line's Pride of America medical department acting under the auspices of the US Centre for Disease Control (“CDC”).
I boarded a Hawaiian island-hopper cruise aboard the NCL Pride of America at the port in Honolulu on Saturday October 10th. I am traveling in a group with two others. At embarkation, we were presented with the standard issue medical questionnaire and since all of us were feeling well, we answered all of the questions honestly, disclosing no known symptoms of nausea or upper respiratory infections. However, several days later, on Tuesday October 13th, after several days of suffering with cold/flu like symptoms (of increasing severity), one member of our travel party reported to the medical centre sick bay around 9:00 AM for treatment by the on duty attending physician—Dr. Ali Yasser.
The other two of us in our travel party reported with her to lend our support and waited for her in the medical centre reception area. About half an hour after arrival there and following an examination, the two of us waiting in the reception were ushered in to join the patient in an examination room. We were advised that our patient had tested positive for Influenza A and would be confined to her stateroom under quarantine for 5 days (until Saturday morning). We were also advised that, even though we had not been sharing a common stateroom with her (our cabins were separated by three decks, hers forward, ours aft), because we had been in contact with her (within 6 ft), enroute to the ship, at the dinner table and on our port excursions that we were also under suspicion of being of being infected with the Influenza A virus and would have to undergo testing. We submitted to the testing voluntarily. It took about 12 minutes to get the test results. Our two tests came back negative.
Despite receiving the negative test results for two of us, after checking with head office by phone, Dr. Yasser returned to advise us that we would also have to submit to quarantine and be confined to our cabin for at least three days (until Friday morning). We were further advised that we would also have to submit to re-testing for fever / the virus on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday mornings (nurse visits) before being released from quarantine. If we test positive on these subsequent occasions, our stateroom quarantine could be extended until Saturday as well.
As an alternative to stateroom quarantine we were offered the opportunity to debark the ship and to fly home or to make independent arrangements for accommodations on shore and flight arrangements to re-join the ship in port on Friday morning. Because of the incremental costs making that choice would entail, that was really not a viable alternative for us, so we quickly rejected it. After that, we were given respiratory filter masks to place over our noses and mouths, which we were told to don. We were then told to return to our cabins. We made our way unescorted from medical to our staterooms through the general passenger hallways and elevators. Of course, there were many questions to answer from inquiring passengers and crew that we met along our path from the 3rd deck to the 7th.
Once we were back in our staterooms we were contacted by Charles, the head room steward, who made arrangements to relocate us from the staterooms that had originally occupied (inside cabin on a the 7th deck) to balcony staterooms on the 10th deck (presumably on the assumption that having access to an open air balcony and sunlight would make a 72 hour in-cabin “house arrest” more tolerable). We also had to make arrangements for crew members to return a rental car that we had parked near the ship in port parking that we were required to return to Thrifty by 3:30.
Dr. Yasser made a subsequent visit to our staterooms to conduct a quick routine ear nose and throat examination. We then packed our clothes and moved up to our new staterooms. Since then, we have not left our room. We have had to call in all our meal orders for room service delivery. The room service menu is much more limited than dining room menus, however we have been supplied with dining room menus to order dinner from between 5:30 PM and 10:00 PM. Our stateroom attendant has come by to exchange linens and provide us with ice but to date has not entered our stateroom to clean.
As for activities to occupy ourselves in our room, the options are very limited. Other than staring out at the ports (wonder what fun we are missing out on a shore) there is a small TV set (with a snowy picture) and we have our laptops along. We have been using our laptops to review digital photos we took from our first few days on freedom on the cruise and to browse the internet. We have requested a credit to defray the high costs of web surfing at sea and were advised that our request would be forwarded to a senior passenger service crew member but so far no one has contacted us to follow up on our open request, 18 hours later.
In short, this is an experience I would not wish on my worst enemy… a heartbreaking way to have a dream vacation suddenly unravel. While I understand there is a need for the ship to be cautious and follow CDC protocols to protect the health of other crew and passengers and prevent a mass flu outbreak on board, particularly when H1N1 is expected to return with a vengeance this flu season, I do take exception to how our situation has been handled so far. No one has asked us what crew and/or passengers we may have had interaction with in the ships restaurants, lounges or excursion buses to contact them for testing. Also passenger services has not been especially pro-active in contacting us to ensure we are comfortable while suffering under “house arrest”. No one has offered to run to the library to check out books for us to read or to run to the games room to get us board-games to play to while our hours of incarceration away. No one offered us an on-board credit to defray the cost of purchasing internet packages (or even responded back to our inquiry with respect to that (quite reasonable) request- we had to call passenger services back later). Likewise, our outstanding requests to replace a broken coffee-maker and a room service menu have gone unresolved for a prolonged period.
I also now understand why the balcony stateroom that is our jailhouse went un-booked earlier. It is located directly under the pool-deck, which creates two problems: first, the edge of the deck protrudes to overhang the balcony—while this enhances shade, shelter and privacy, it limits the amount of sun you get and also creates noise problems as deck furniture is re-shuffled for events at dawn and dusk.
I will post further updates as our quarantine progresses, presuming my “condition” doesn’t suddenly deteriorate such that I am unable to sit up and write…
For now I am signing off from the MS Prison of Aloha
I boarded a Hawaiian island-hopper cruise aboard the NCL Pride of America at the port in Honolulu on Saturday October 10th. I am traveling in a group with two others. At embarkation, we were presented with the standard issue medical questionnaire and since all of us were feeling well, we answered all of the questions honestly, disclosing no known symptoms of nausea or upper respiratory infections. However, several days later, on Tuesday October 13th, after several days of suffering with cold/flu like symptoms (of increasing severity), one member of our travel party reported to the medical centre sick bay around 9:00 AM for treatment by the on duty attending physician—Dr. Ali Yasser.
The other two of us in our travel party reported with her to lend our support and waited for her in the medical centre reception area. About half an hour after arrival there and following an examination, the two of us waiting in the reception were ushered in to join the patient in an examination room. We were advised that our patient had tested positive for Influenza A and would be confined to her stateroom under quarantine for 5 days (until Saturday morning). We were also advised that, even though we had not been sharing a common stateroom with her (our cabins were separated by three decks, hers forward, ours aft), because we had been in contact with her (within 6 ft), enroute to the ship, at the dinner table and on our port excursions that we were also under suspicion of being of being infected with the Influenza A virus and would have to undergo testing. We submitted to the testing voluntarily. It took about 12 minutes to get the test results. Our two tests came back negative.
Despite receiving the negative test results for two of us, after checking with head office by phone, Dr. Yasser returned to advise us that we would also have to submit to quarantine and be confined to our cabin for at least three days (until Friday morning). We were further advised that we would also have to submit to re-testing for fever / the virus on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday mornings (nurse visits) before being released from quarantine. If we test positive on these subsequent occasions, our stateroom quarantine could be extended until Saturday as well.
As an alternative to stateroom quarantine we were offered the opportunity to debark the ship and to fly home or to make independent arrangements for accommodations on shore and flight arrangements to re-join the ship in port on Friday morning. Because of the incremental costs making that choice would entail, that was really not a viable alternative for us, so we quickly rejected it. After that, we were given respiratory filter masks to place over our noses and mouths, which we were told to don. We were then told to return to our cabins. We made our way unescorted from medical to our staterooms through the general passenger hallways and elevators. Of course, there were many questions to answer from inquiring passengers and crew that we met along our path from the 3rd deck to the 7th.
Once we were back in our staterooms we were contacted by Charles, the head room steward, who made arrangements to relocate us from the staterooms that had originally occupied (inside cabin on a the 7th deck) to balcony staterooms on the 10th deck (presumably on the assumption that having access to an open air balcony and sunlight would make a 72 hour in-cabin “house arrest” more tolerable). We also had to make arrangements for crew members to return a rental car that we had parked near the ship in port parking that we were required to return to Thrifty by 3:30.
Dr. Yasser made a subsequent visit to our staterooms to conduct a quick routine ear nose and throat examination. We then packed our clothes and moved up to our new staterooms. Since then, we have not left our room. We have had to call in all our meal orders for room service delivery. The room service menu is much more limited than dining room menus, however we have been supplied with dining room menus to order dinner from between 5:30 PM and 10:00 PM. Our stateroom attendant has come by to exchange linens and provide us with ice but to date has not entered our stateroom to clean.
As for activities to occupy ourselves in our room, the options are very limited. Other than staring out at the ports (wonder what fun we are missing out on a shore) there is a small TV set (with a snowy picture) and we have our laptops along. We have been using our laptops to review digital photos we took from our first few days on freedom on the cruise and to browse the internet. We have requested a credit to defray the high costs of web surfing at sea and were advised that our request would be forwarded to a senior passenger service crew member but so far no one has contacted us to follow up on our open request, 18 hours later.
In short, this is an experience I would not wish on my worst enemy… a heartbreaking way to have a dream vacation suddenly unravel. While I understand there is a need for the ship to be cautious and follow CDC protocols to protect the health of other crew and passengers and prevent a mass flu outbreak on board, particularly when H1N1 is expected to return with a vengeance this flu season, I do take exception to how our situation has been handled so far. No one has asked us what crew and/or passengers we may have had interaction with in the ships restaurants, lounges or excursion buses to contact them for testing. Also passenger services has not been especially pro-active in contacting us to ensure we are comfortable while suffering under “house arrest”. No one has offered to run to the library to check out books for us to read or to run to the games room to get us board-games to play to while our hours of incarceration away. No one offered us an on-board credit to defray the cost of purchasing internet packages (or even responded back to our inquiry with respect to that (quite reasonable) request- we had to call passenger services back later). Likewise, our outstanding requests to replace a broken coffee-maker and a room service menu have gone unresolved for a prolonged period.
I also now understand why the balcony stateroom that is our jailhouse went un-booked earlier. It is located directly under the pool-deck, which creates two problems: first, the edge of the deck protrudes to overhang the balcony—while this enhances shade, shelter and privacy, it limits the amount of sun you get and also creates noise problems as deck furniture is re-shuffled for events at dawn and dusk.
I will post further updates as our quarantine progresses, presuming my “condition” doesn’t suddenly deteriorate such that I am unable to sit up and write…
For now I am signing off from the MS Prison of Aloha
Ahoy the shore from Hawaii (part 1 in a series)
Day one: Friday October 9
I am currently traveling with a group of three (along with Gary and his sister Cathy), making my first trip to the Hawaiian island group. We are on a 7 night cruise of the Hawaiian islands aboard the NCL cruise line’s Pride of America. We left our Toronto apartment at the crack of dawn on Friday October 9th in order to make our 7 AM flight to Vancouver’s YVR airport, aboard Air Canada. Check-in at Pearson went without a hitch. The 767 was fully loaded but boarding went smoothly and our flight remained on time. The seatbacks were equipped with a VOD system and I watched “My Sisters Keeper” (featuring Cameron Diaz)—a real tear jerker and the intense Iraq war drama “The Hurt Locker” (excellent).
We had arranged our travel plans so we had an 8 hour stopover in Vancouver to tour and stretch our legs before begin the second leg of our flight to Honolulu. We picked up our rental car—a Toyota Corolla sedan from Thrifty—at the airport and were soon on our way. Unfortunately, enroute from YVR airport to the city, a wide load truck carrying a heavy load of stone sideswiped us on the drivers’ side knocking off the back of the rear view mirror. The driver—a 22 year old kid--- didn’t even realize that he had hit us and continued along. I was in the passenger seat and so jumped at the next red light intersection to confront him. He pulled over to the side, admitted he was at fault and we were able to get his name, company name and vitals to lay a claim for damages.
Thereafter we proceeded on to Stanley Park. We stopped in the park at a few points--- the aquarium, the prospect point look-out near the Lions Gate Bridge (where we had lunch), near the totem poles / sea wall / lighthouse and finally at the tea house (where we enjoyed afternoon tea). Lunch ot the Stanley point deck was delicious. Gary ordered a cheeseburger with a smokey and peameal bacon and fries. Cathy ordered a club sandwich and I had haddock fish & chips. At the teahouse Cathy had a cup of Earl Gray tea, Gary had a chocolate mouse and I ordered a poma-tini (a cosmopolitan type martini with pomegranate juice substituted for cranberry). Before we knew it, it was time to head back to YVR to catch our flight! We reported the damage to the rear-view mirror when we turned the rental car in, passed on the information we had collected from the at fault driver and were advised that a claims agent would be in later touch.
The second leg of our flight from YVR to HNL was also aboard a 767 and was similarly crowded. On this leg of the journey, I used the seatback VOD system, I watched the comedy The Hangover (about a bachelor party in Vegas gone wrong) and an interesting feature documentary (Art and Copy) about the advertising business.
By the time we arrived at HNL we had been awake for over 20 hours and were feeling quite groggy. After collecting our luggage from the carousel (it all arrived in one piece) we caught our cab to the hotel—the Best Western Coconut-- we had booked for a single night pre-cruise to catch some shut eye. The hotel was surprisingly clean and tastefully decorated for a Best Western, although the mattresses were a bit on the soft and lumpy side. We retired around 10 PM, exhausted, to ensure we would rise in time to get out to Diamond Head around dawn to begin our hike to the summit.
Still to come—Diamond Head, Waikiki Beach stroll, Embarking the NCL Pride of America
I am currently traveling with a group of three (along with Gary and his sister Cathy), making my first trip to the Hawaiian island group. We are on a 7 night cruise of the Hawaiian islands aboard the NCL cruise line’s Pride of America. We left our Toronto apartment at the crack of dawn on Friday October 9th in order to make our 7 AM flight to Vancouver’s YVR airport, aboard Air Canada. Check-in at Pearson went without a hitch. The 767 was fully loaded but boarding went smoothly and our flight remained on time. The seatbacks were equipped with a VOD system and I watched “My Sisters Keeper” (featuring Cameron Diaz)—a real tear jerker and the intense Iraq war drama “The Hurt Locker” (excellent).
We had arranged our travel plans so we had an 8 hour stopover in Vancouver to tour and stretch our legs before begin the second leg of our flight to Honolulu. We picked up our rental car—a Toyota Corolla sedan from Thrifty—at the airport and were soon on our way. Unfortunately, enroute from YVR airport to the city, a wide load truck carrying a heavy load of stone sideswiped us on the drivers’ side knocking off the back of the rear view mirror. The driver—a 22 year old kid--- didn’t even realize that he had hit us and continued along. I was in the passenger seat and so jumped at the next red light intersection to confront him. He pulled over to the side, admitted he was at fault and we were able to get his name, company name and vitals to lay a claim for damages.
Thereafter we proceeded on to Stanley Park. We stopped in the park at a few points--- the aquarium, the prospect point look-out near the Lions Gate Bridge (where we had lunch), near the totem poles / sea wall / lighthouse and finally at the tea house (where we enjoyed afternoon tea). Lunch ot the Stanley point deck was delicious. Gary ordered a cheeseburger with a smokey and peameal bacon and fries. Cathy ordered a club sandwich and I had haddock fish & chips. At the teahouse Cathy had a cup of Earl Gray tea, Gary had a chocolate mouse and I ordered a poma-tini (a cosmopolitan type martini with pomegranate juice substituted for cranberry). Before we knew it, it was time to head back to YVR to catch our flight! We reported the damage to the rear-view mirror when we turned the rental car in, passed on the information we had collected from the at fault driver and were advised that a claims agent would be in later touch.
The second leg of our flight from YVR to HNL was also aboard a 767 and was similarly crowded. On this leg of the journey, I used the seatback VOD system, I watched the comedy The Hangover (about a bachelor party in Vegas gone wrong) and an interesting feature documentary (Art and Copy) about the advertising business.
By the time we arrived at HNL we had been awake for over 20 hours and were feeling quite groggy. After collecting our luggage from the carousel (it all arrived in one piece) we caught our cab to the hotel—the Best Western Coconut-- we had booked for a single night pre-cruise to catch some shut eye. The hotel was surprisingly clean and tastefully decorated for a Best Western, although the mattresses were a bit on the soft and lumpy side. We retired around 10 PM, exhausted, to ensure we would rise in time to get out to Diamond Head around dawn to begin our hike to the summit.
Still to come—Diamond Head, Waikiki Beach stroll, Embarking the NCL Pride of America
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Premiere week TV series ratings
Set out below are the ratings for the prime time series broadcast in the major US network Fall season premiere week. The first set of ratings are for the key age demographic (that advertisers target) and the second set is for overall viewership levels for all viewers.
Adults 18-49 viewing for the week ending September 27, 2009:
Rank Shows.... Net.... 18-49 Rating.... 18-49 Viewers (000)
1 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL..... NBC..... 6.8..... 8,901
2 HOUSE P.....FOX.....6.7.....8,862
3 GREY’S ANATOMY-THU 9PM P.....ABC.....6.7.....8,848
4 FAMILY GUY P.....FOX.....5.2.....6,900
5 THE CLEVELAND SHOW P.....FOX.....4.9.....6,485
6 SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK.....NBC.....4.9.....6,460
7 NCIS P.....CBS.....4.8.....6,351
8 DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES P.....ABC.....4.7.....6,185
9 BIG BANG THEORY, THE P.....CBS.....4.7.....6,149
10TWO AND A HALF MEN P.....CBS.....4.5.....5,879
11NCIS: LOS ANGELES P......CBS......4.4.....5,835
12COUGAR TOWN P.....ABC.....4.4.....5,767
13CRIMINAL MINDS P.....CBS.....4.4.....5,738
14CSI: MIAMI P.....CBS.....4.3.....5,705
15SIMPSONS P.....FOX.....4.3.....5,602
16MODERN FAMILY P.....ABC....4.2.....5,568
17 CSI P.....CBS.....4.1.....5,381
18DANCING WITH THE STARS P.....ABC.....4.1.....5,360
19CSI: NY P.....CBS.....4.0.....5,328
20FLASHFORWARD.....ABC.....4.0.....5,328
21OFFICE.....NBC.....3.9.....5,153
22FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 3.....NBC.....3.7.....4,883
23SURVIVOR: SAMOA P.....CBS.....3.7.....4,830
24 HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER P.....CBS.....3.6.....4,793
25AMERICAN DAD P.....FOX.....3.6.....4,787
Overall viewing (all ages 2+) for the week ending September 27, 2009:
Rank Shows.....Net.....# Viewers (LIVE+SD) (000).....HH RATING .....HH SHARE
1 NCIS.....CBS.....20,600.....12.4.....20
2 NCIS: LOS ANGELES.....CBS.....18,730.....11.3.....17
3 DANCING WITH THE STARS.....ABC.....17,794.....11.3.....17
4 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL.....NBC.....17,469.....10.7.....17
5 HOUSE.....FOX.....17,156.....9.8....15
6 GREY’S ANATOMY-THU 9PM.....ABC....17,034.....10.9.....18
7 CSI.....CBS.....16,009.....9.7.....15
8CRIMINAL MINDS.....CBS.....15,841.....9.6.....15
9DANCING W/ THE STARS-9/22(S).....ABC.....15,367.....10.1.....16
10 DANCING W/STARS RESULT SP(S)....ABC....15,356.....10.0.....17
11 MENTALIST, THE.....CBS......15,067.....9.5.....16
12CSI: NY.....CBS.....15,062.....9.2.....16
1360 MINUTES.....CBS.....14,884.....9.6.....17
14CSI: MIAMI.....CBS.....14,195.....9.0.....15
15GOOD WIFE, THE.....CBS.....13,714.....9.2.....16
16DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES.....ABC.....13,643....8.6.....13
17TWO AND A HALF MEN.....CBS.....13,629.....8.5.....12
18SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK.....NBC.....13,347.....8.2.....14
19BIG BANG THEORY, THE.....CBS.....12,956....7.9....11
20MODERN FAMILY.....ABC.....12,605.....7.8.....13
21FLASHFORWARD.....ABC.....12,467.....7.7.....13
22SURVIVOR: SAMOA.....CBS.....11,664.....6.7.....11
23COUGAR TOWN.....ABC.....11,280.....7.1.....11
24EXTREME MAKEOVER:HM ED-8P.....ABC.....10,419.....6.4.....10
25 AMAZING RACE 15.....CBS.....10,404.....6.2....10
Nielsen TV Ratings: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
KEY
Rating: Estimated percentage of the universe of TV households (or other specified group) tuned to a program in the average minute. Ratings are expressed as a percent.
Share (of Audience): The percent of households (or persons) using television who are tuned to a specific program, station or network in a specific area at a specific time.
Time Shifted Viewing – Program ratings for national sources are produced in three streams of data – Live, Live+Same Day (Live+SD) and Live+7 Day. Time shifted figures account for incremental viewing that takes place with DVRs which are currently in approximately 24.4% of all U.S. TV households. Live+Same Day (Live+SD) include viewing during the same broadcast day as the original telecast, with a cut-off of 3:00AM local time when meters transmit daily viewing to Nielsen for processing.
Adults 18-49 viewing for the week ending September 27, 2009:
Rank Shows.... Net.... 18-49 Rating.... 18-49 Viewers (000)
1 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL..... NBC..... 6.8..... 8,901
2 HOUSE P.....FOX.....6.7.....8,862
3 GREY’S ANATOMY-THU 9PM P.....ABC.....6.7.....8,848
4 FAMILY GUY P.....FOX.....5.2.....6,900
5 THE CLEVELAND SHOW P.....FOX.....4.9.....6,485
6 SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK.....NBC.....4.9.....6,460
7 NCIS P.....CBS.....4.8.....6,351
8 DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES P.....ABC.....4.7.....6,185
9 BIG BANG THEORY, THE P.....CBS.....4.7.....6,149
10TWO AND A HALF MEN P.....CBS.....4.5.....5,879
11NCIS: LOS ANGELES P......CBS......4.4.....5,835
12COUGAR TOWN P.....ABC.....4.4.....5,767
13CRIMINAL MINDS P.....CBS.....4.4.....5,738
14CSI: MIAMI P.....CBS.....4.3.....5,705
15SIMPSONS P.....FOX.....4.3.....5,602
16MODERN FAMILY P.....ABC....4.2.....5,568
17 CSI P.....CBS.....4.1.....5,381
18DANCING WITH THE STARS P.....ABC.....4.1.....5,360
19CSI: NY P.....CBS.....4.0.....5,328
20FLASHFORWARD.....ABC.....4.0.....5,328
21OFFICE.....NBC.....3.9.....5,153
22FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 3.....NBC.....3.7.....4,883
23SURVIVOR: SAMOA P.....CBS.....3.7.....4,830
24 HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER P.....CBS.....3.6.....4,793
25AMERICAN DAD P.....FOX.....3.6.....4,787
Overall viewing (all ages 2+) for the week ending September 27, 2009:
Rank Shows.....Net.....# Viewers (LIVE+SD) (000).....HH RATING .....HH SHARE
1 NCIS.....CBS.....20,600.....12.4.....20
2 NCIS: LOS ANGELES.....CBS.....18,730.....11.3.....17
3 DANCING WITH THE STARS.....ABC.....17,794.....11.3.....17
4 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL.....NBC.....17,469.....10.7.....17
5 HOUSE.....FOX.....17,156.....9.8....15
6 GREY’S ANATOMY-THU 9PM.....ABC....17,034.....10.9.....18
7 CSI.....CBS.....16,009.....9.7.....15
8CRIMINAL MINDS.....CBS.....15,841.....9.6.....15
9DANCING W/ THE STARS-9/22(S).....ABC.....15,367.....10.1.....16
10 DANCING W/STARS RESULT SP(S)....ABC....15,356.....10.0.....17
11 MENTALIST, THE.....CBS......15,067.....9.5.....16
12CSI: NY.....CBS.....15,062.....9.2.....16
1360 MINUTES.....CBS.....14,884.....9.6.....17
14CSI: MIAMI.....CBS.....14,195.....9.0.....15
15GOOD WIFE, THE.....CBS.....13,714.....9.2.....16
16DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES.....ABC.....13,643....8.6.....13
17TWO AND A HALF MEN.....CBS.....13,629.....8.5.....12
18SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK.....NBC.....13,347.....8.2.....14
19BIG BANG THEORY, THE.....CBS.....12,956....7.9....11
20MODERN FAMILY.....ABC.....12,605.....7.8.....13
21FLASHFORWARD.....ABC.....12,467.....7.7.....13
22SURVIVOR: SAMOA.....CBS.....11,664.....6.7.....11
23COUGAR TOWN.....ABC.....11,280.....7.1.....11
24EXTREME MAKEOVER:HM ED-8P.....ABC.....10,419.....6.4.....10
25 AMAZING RACE 15.....CBS.....10,404.....6.2....10
Nielsen TV Ratings: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
KEY
Rating: Estimated percentage of the universe of TV households (or other specified group) tuned to a program in the average minute. Ratings are expressed as a percent.
Share (of Audience): The percent of households (or persons) using television who are tuned to a specific program, station or network in a specific area at a specific time.
Time Shifted Viewing – Program ratings for national sources are produced in three streams of data – Live, Live+Same Day (Live+SD) and Live+7 Day. Time shifted figures account for incremental viewing that takes place with DVRs which are currently in approximately 24.4% of all U.S. TV households. Live+Same Day (Live+SD) include viewing during the same broadcast day as the original telecast, with a cut-off of 3:00AM local time when meters transmit daily viewing to Nielsen for processing.
ABC wins the week 1 new fall season network derby
For the 5th season in a row ABC has claimed top spot in key demographic viewership levels for the Fall TV season premiere week:
WEEK NO. 1: ADULTS 18-49 TOTAL VIEWERS
No.1 ABC 3.3 No.1 CBS 11,770,000
No.2 CBS 3.2 No.2 ABC 11,040,000
No.3 FOX 3.1 No.3 NBC 7,560,000
No.4 NBC 2.7 No.4 FOX 7,350,000
No.5 CW 1.0 No.5 CW 2,170,000
Source: Nielsen Media Research (National Live+Same Day Program Ratings), week of 9/21/09,
WEEK NO. 1: ADULTS 18-49 TOTAL VIEWERS
No.1 ABC 3.3 No.1 CBS 11,770,000
No.2 CBS 3.2 No.2 ABC 11,040,000
No.3 FOX 3.1 No.3 NBC 7,560,000
No.4 NBC 2.7 No.4 FOX 7,350,000
No.5 CW 1.0 No.5 CW 2,170,000
Source: Nielsen Media Research (National Live+Same Day Program Ratings), week of 9/21/09,
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Ahoy the shore from Alaska (last in a series)
I have been home from our family cruise vacation for almost a week now... how time flies! I have been too busy (until now) to wrap up my travel journal entries. In prior installments of this series, I had outlined our experiences on the Norwegian Pearl cruiseship, our adventures in our departure port of Seattle and in the Alaskan cruise port towns of Juneau and Skagway. In this final report in the series, I will outline our visits to our final Alaskan port of Ketchikan, our final port in Victoria British Columbia, share my final impressions on the NCL Pearl and comment on the debarkation process.
Glacial Bay (Thursday September 3rd):
In between porting at Skagway and Ketchikan we enjoyed a second day at sea that included scenic cruising through Glacial Bay National Park. We entered Glacial Bay at Bartlett point early in the morning. Glacier Bay is a US National Park (and UNESCO World Heritage Site) comprised of 3.3 million acres of mountains, glaciers and forests. A park ranger boarding the ship at 7 AM to offer live commentary in the Spinnaker lounge for broadcast over the PA system throughout the balance of the day. We were late rising and we were already well into the Bay by the time we surfaced to the pool deck for breakfast. We were able to find a breakfast table at the Great Outdoors cafe at the rear of the ship to watch the glaciers. There was one particularly large tidewater glacier that towered high above the ships' upper decks and the rails were crowded with groups seeking pictures against this stunning backdrop. We managed to insinuate ourselves along the railing long enough to get a few good camera shots. You could actually feel the air temperature drop as we drew in closer, drawing within 100 yards of the glacier. The ranger commentary continued until about NOON, by which time we were already heading back along the fjords to more open seas to chart our course for Ketchikan.
In the evening we attended a pre-dinner theatre show starring Shark Bait-- two former Barnum and Bailey circus clowns-- a dou that entertain with a highly imaginative comic juggling / balancing act that features extended audience participation segments. It was far and away the best show of the cruise. Thereafter, we headed to the promenade deck in time to make our dinner reservations at the Teppanyaki area of the Lotus Garden Asian themed restaurant. There are four cooking tables in the Teppanyaki area, two of which are active at every dinner seating (with reservations taken for every half hour.) A total of 8 persons fit around each grilling table. We shared our table with an Asian family of four from Long Island, NY. For appetizers we were served Miso soup, salted sugar snap peas and seaweed salad with a ginger dressing. Available entrees included Chicken Yakosoba, Seafood Diablo (Lobster, Calamari and Sea Scallops) , Fillet Mignon and combos like Samarai (Chicken and Jumbo Shrimp), Land 'n Sea (Steak and Jumbo Shrimp), Shogun (Steak and Chicken Breast) and Shinto (Scallops and Jumbo Shrimp). All of the entrees were expertly grillde for our entertainment by our chef and were served with garlic rice and teppanyaki veggies. Our chef juggled knives and caught eggs in his chef's hat for our amusement. For dessert we chose of a mocchi ice cream duo or fresh fruit sashimi.
Immediately after dinner, we headed to the Spinnaker lounge to watch the "Dancing with the Stars" gameshow. Hosted by cruise director Julie, the show featured a judging panel that included the assistant cruise director and two second city members. Meanwhile, backstage "elimination" interviews were conducted by another SS troupe member. The competing pairs featured cruise staff "stars" partnered with fellow passengers. Every round featured a different dance step and the elimination of one pair, until only three couples were left standing for the finals. Ironically, the dance captain of the Jean Ann Ryan dancers was the lead of the first eliminated pair. Overall, this gameshow was easily the most thoroughly entertaining of the entire cruise.
Glacial Bay (Thursday September 3rd):
In between porting at Skagway and Ketchikan we enjoyed a second day at sea that included scenic cruising through Glacial Bay National Park. We entered Glacial Bay at Bartlett point early in the morning. Glacier Bay is a US National Park (and UNESCO World Heritage Site) comprised of 3.3 million acres of mountains, glaciers and forests. A park ranger boarding the ship at 7 AM to offer live commentary in the Spinnaker lounge for broadcast over the PA system throughout the balance of the day. We were late rising and we were already well into the Bay by the time we surfaced to the pool deck for breakfast. We were able to find a breakfast table at the Great Outdoors cafe at the rear of the ship to watch the glaciers. There was one particularly large tidewater glacier that towered high above the ships' upper decks and the rails were crowded with groups seeking pictures against this stunning backdrop. We managed to insinuate ourselves along the railing long enough to get a few good camera shots. You could actually feel the air temperature drop as we drew in closer, drawing within 100 yards of the glacier. The ranger commentary continued until about NOON, by which time we were already heading back along the fjords to more open seas to chart our course for Ketchikan.
In the evening we attended a pre-dinner theatre show starring Shark Bait-- two former Barnum and Bailey circus clowns-- a dou that entertain with a highly imaginative comic juggling / balancing act that features extended audience participation segments. It was far and away the best show of the cruise. Thereafter, we headed to the promenade deck in time to make our dinner reservations at the Teppanyaki area of the Lotus Garden Asian themed restaurant. There are four cooking tables in the Teppanyaki area, two of which are active at every dinner seating (with reservations taken for every half hour.) A total of 8 persons fit around each grilling table. We shared our table with an Asian family of four from Long Island, NY. For appetizers we were served Miso soup, salted sugar snap peas and seaweed salad with a ginger dressing. Available entrees included Chicken Yakosoba, Seafood Diablo (Lobster, Calamari and Sea Scallops) , Fillet Mignon and combos like Samarai (Chicken and Jumbo Shrimp), Land 'n Sea (Steak and Jumbo Shrimp), Shogun (Steak and Chicken Breast) and Shinto (Scallops and Jumbo Shrimp). All of the entrees were expertly grillde for our entertainment by our chef and were served with garlic rice and teppanyaki veggies. Our chef juggled knives and caught eggs in his chef's hat for our amusement. For dessert we chose of a mocchi ice cream duo or fresh fruit sashimi.
Immediately after dinner, we headed to the Spinnaker lounge to watch the "Dancing with the Stars" gameshow. Hosted by cruise director Julie, the show featured a judging panel that included the assistant cruise director and two second city members. Meanwhile, backstage "elimination" interviews were conducted by another SS troupe member. The competing pairs featured cruise staff "stars" partnered with fellow passengers. Every round featured a different dance step and the elimination of one pair, until only three couples were left standing for the finals. Ironically, the dance captain of the Jean Ann Ryan dancers was the lead of the first eliminated pair. Overall, this gameshow was easily the most thoroughly entertaining of the entire cruise.
Ketchikan (Friday September 4th)
We awoke very early in Ketchikan because we wanted to see the town and do some shopping at the "end of season" sales before reporting dockside for our "Driver's Seat" motorized inflatable boat tour excursion. We walked up into town in a light morning rain and then up an incline to see the salmon run up the river at a lookout and the native totems displays. Another popular attraction in Ketchikan is the lumberjack show, but we passed on that. Thereafter, we weaved our way back through the town to the shore to meet our shore excursion director. Unfortunately, he had some bad news to share with us-- our excursion had been cancelled on account of high winds. Fortunately, he referred us to another tour promoter who was able to arrange a 90 minute flight for us on a Beaver floatplane for a reasonable discounted rate of $179 pp. The Beaver floatplane (built in Toronto at Downsview in 1955) was owned by Southeast Aviation and piloted by Captain Mark (its former owner, who makes his Winter home in Seattle). The flight took us over the saltwater "misty fjord" outside of Kitchikan. We flew up over soaring cliffs, glaciers and millions of trees, setting down mid-flight in the water at a floating platform. The views were breathtaking, although we encountered some turbulence on the way out that left at least one passenger onboard motion sick. We were all equipped with headphones and mikes to allow us to stay in contact with Captain Mark, who was happy to answer questions and provide commentary. Overall, the excursion offered excellent value, as a last minute substitute!
We re-boarded the ship in time for a buffet lunch at the Garden Cafe and then enjoyed a leisurely afternoon before sailaway. Again, we went to a pre-dinner show this time featuring the Jean Ann Ryan company in a performance of "Garden of the Geisha"-- a Japanese period / costume performance that made excellent use of a Polish acrobatic duo. Thereafter, we had dinner in the Mambo's latin restaurant on the 8th deck (above the Cyrstal Atrium, across from the 24 hour Blue Lagoon cafe). This specialty restaurant was advertised as offering both tex-mex and tapas dishes, but the emphasis was definitely on the former. There were tortilla chips already on the table when we arrived and everyone received a complimentary first margarita (lime, available in an either a frozen or "on the rocks" variation and without alcohol for the children) We had grande nachos as a table appetizer while many in our group opted for chicken quesadillas for their personal apps. For my personal app I ordered taquitos, which is pulled pork with refried beans, jack cheese and ranchero sauce. For the main course, the most popular choice was fajitas but I ordered BBQ pork ribs. Invariably, most menu items came served with a trio of guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo. There were some temperature issues with the food served at Mambos (more warm than piping hot). However, the ambience was enhanced by the music of the Wildfire duo (featuring a male guitarist and female fiddler) performing in the Crystal Atrium below. Following dinner we attend the Lairs Club gameshow in Spinakers, where a panel of ship celebrities (including comedian Tim Kaminski, Cruise Director Julie and the Skarkbait duo) offered alternate comic definitions of obscure words, challenging the audience to identify who was telling the truth. The Pearl version of this show was passably entertaining but not the best I have seen at sea. Before retiring for the evening, the kids surprised me with birthday balloons and gifts, catching me off guard, since it was already my birthday (the clock having ticked over to midnight)!
Victoria, BC (Saturday September 5th)
Most of this day was spent at sea, although we did have a late-day port in Victoria at 6 PM (until midnight). After rising, two of us attended the captain's talk in the Stardust theatre, where Julie and the Captain presented a formal presentation on the Pearl and the life of her crew / staff at sea and then took Q&A. We then grabbed a quick bite in the Garden Cafe, taking our plates to La Cucina, which functions as buffet overflow seating at breakfast and dinner, to consume. We found time to pack our bags mid-day (although they didn't have to be set out for collection until between 10 Pm and 2 AM) before heading to the Stardust Theatre for the International Talent Show-- a showcase for the talents of the show's crew. The show opened with a performance of "Proud Mary" by a Filipino rock band. It also featured two male Filipino solo vocalists (one who was outstanding performing "This is the Moment", from the Broadway show Jeckyl and Hyde), a sound technician performing a guitar solo, four women performing a Polynesian folk dance and a deck hand preforming a female impersonator lip sync routine to "Its Raining Men". The performance concluded with the expected (and always hilarious (not to mention wet)) performance of "Fountains" by the cruise director's crew!
Immediately after the show, we headed to the Summer Garden for our final dinner of the cruise. English style prime rib dinner was the popular entree choice, while I had the catch of the day again. At dessert (in addition to the souffle I ordered) I was served a very large birthday cake to share as some of the dining room staff serenaded me with the "Happy Birthday" chorus. We were already sailing into Victoria Harbour by the time our dinner concluded. We debarked in Victoria alongside the Star Princess. There were several options for making the commute into town from the pier, including shuttle buses, water taxis and pedicabs. We elected to share a taxi, which was a very reasonable fixed fare of $7 each way. It was already twilight when we reached town. We spent about 90 minutes strolling around the grounds of the provincial legislature building (Victoria is the capital of the province of British Columbia), the old Fairmount Empress hotel (linked to the Convention Centre) and the inner harbour. There was a jazz festival and folk arts market happening at the inner harbour. Following that self-directed tour, we walked up Governmnt St., past the Bay department store, stopping to purchase some delicious gellato in ChinaTown, a jade "inikshuk" native sculpture and a book at Monroe's bookstore. Then we walked back through Bastion Square to the inner harbor along Wharf St. We re-boarded the ship around 10 PM in time to set out our bags for collection and to head to the Spinnakers lounge for the "Open Mike" Joker's Wild Night (hosted again by the ubiquitous Tim Kaminski), followed by the (uneven) Second City improv demonstration. Thereafter, we retired to our stateroom for our final night onboard the Pearl.
Debarkation and flight home (Sunday September 7th):
Not wanting to be laden down with luggage and with our flight not departing SEA airport until 12:30, we decided to opt out of the "easy walk off" self-debarkation option. Instead, we set out bags out for collection the night before. The pattern of debarkation was from the top decks down so we were in the lime colour group (designated for "independent guests" in staterooms on levels 4/5) with an approximate debarkation time of 9:30. Before debarkation and breakfast, we had time to complete a final "video tour" of the ship and finally made it to the bridge observation deck on 11 (in time to see Julie making the PA call for an early colour group). Then we enjoyed our final meal of the cruise in La Cucina, selecting our breakfast items from the Great Outdoors grille with our carry on lugagge table side. We sailed through Customs, easily found our bags in the terminal and were able to get a standard sized taxi without wait (the cabbie was initially reluctant to stow 4 passengers with luggage but capitulated when he realized it was a big fare to the airport). We had no incidents with security or boarding our plane at Seattle airport. I was able to find a lounge seat adjacent to an AC outlet to download some JPG files to my laptop. Although the plane was jammed packed, the flight was comfortable. Most of us watched "The Proposal" (a comedy starring Sandra Bullock, ironically set in an Alaskan town) on the seat-back VOD service enroute back home. Once home we also sailed through the Canada Customs declaration and lugage claim process. The limo service did not send the same car and driver for or return trip home but the van was spacious and we arrived swiftly and safely. All in all, it was a great family vacation!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
TIFF 09 Schedule
The 2009 (34th annual) Toronto International Film Festival Starts tomorrow. I have finalized my screening schedule and have my tickets in hand. My personal film list is set out below. I will try to post mini-reviews at this blog after the screenings.
TIFF 09 schedule
Antichrist................................................ Thursday Sept 10....09:00 PM.................... Ryerson
Last Ride................................................. Friday Sept 11..........06:45 PM.................... Scotiabank 1
Fish Tank................................................ Saturday Sept12..... 12:30 PM..................... Winter Garden The Men Who Stare at Goats............... Sunday Sept 13....... 11:30 AM......................Ryerson
Leaves of Grass...................................... Monday Sept 14...... 9:00 PM........................Ryerson
Youth In Revolt...................................... Tuesday Sept 15..... 8:30 PM........................Winter Garden Love and other Impossible Pursuits....Thursday Sept 17.....9:00 PM....................... AMC #6
TIFF 09 schedule
Antichrist................................................ Thursday Sept 10....09:00 PM.................... Ryerson
Last Ride................................................. Friday Sept 11..........06:45 PM.................... Scotiabank 1
Fish Tank................................................ Saturday Sept12..... 12:30 PM..................... Winter Garden The Men Who Stare at Goats............... Sunday Sept 13....... 11:30 AM......................Ryerson
Leaves of Grass...................................... Monday Sept 14...... 9:00 PM........................Ryerson
Youth In Revolt...................................... Tuesday Sept 15..... 8:30 PM........................Winter Garden Love and other Impossible Pursuits....Thursday Sept 17.....9:00 PM....................... AMC #6
Friday, September 4, 2009
Ahoy the shore from Alaska (5th in a series)
Day 4 Skagway:
Our second Alaskan port of call was Skagway—a town made famous by the Gold Rush. We had a busy day arranged in Skagway having booked two excursions through NCL. Our first tour departed one half hour after we reached port at 7:00. So we rose early at 6:00 AM, ate an express breakfast at the (24 hour) Blue Lagoon Café and were on shore in time to meet Jen-- our main guide for our morning glacial point wilderness safari.
We boarded a bus at the port which took us out to The Spirit—a high speed catamaran. After boarding, it was expertly guided (by Captain John Smith) down river (past Haines) on a 40 minute cruise along a deep wide fjord to our beach destination. There we boarded “off road safari vehicles” (aka re-purposed school buses) to reach a river-side dressing area where we were outfitted in boots, extra layers of outer wear and life vests. Thereafter, riverside, we were assigned to one of four 31 foot canoes, each holding 8 to 11 persons. Our canoe, captained by a guide named Teresa and nicknamed Team Brown Bear, had 4 other paddlers in addition to us. After paddling leisurely (albeit against the river current) for 15 or 20 minutes and reaching a certain point cut-over point, Teresa ripped the cord on the outboard motor to power us through the ice flows for a closer look at the Glacier Point ice formations. She even scooped up a small ice flow from the river to pass around the canoe. After a few minutes maneuvering us in front of the glacier, we reversed course and headed back downstream. On the return catamaran trip we were served a tasty box lunch consisting of a turkey mini-sub, sun chips, some carrot sticks, a massive chocolate chip cookies and bottled water.
We arrived back in town around 1 PM and spent about an hour watching salmon running upstream and shopping in the town shops. The Skagway streets are laid out in a logical grid pattern with Broadway being the main arterial road running from our port at the southern end of town and intersected by numbered avenues. At 2:30 new headed back to the ship for two hours of down time before setting out on our 2nd excursion of the day.
At 4:30 PM in the afternoon we boarded a White Pass and Yukon railway car for our round trip 21 mile evening summit ride to at an elevation of 2,865 ft. The hi-lights along the route included a gold rush cemetery, rocky point, bridal veil falls and inspiration point. We also passed through two tunnels and passed an old steel cantilever bridge (now de-commissioned) built in 1901. Most of the best views were on the left hand side of the car (both coming and going, as the seats simply reverse when you reach the summit and the engine re-hooks to the other end of the car to begin the descent leg. You are permitted to go outside the cars to snap photos on the platforms between the cars during the trip but are not permitted to walk between them.
Two advantages of the evening summit over the rides earlier in the day are that the cars tend to be less crowded and that the later afternoon lighting conditions are more camera-friendly. Following our return to the Skagway station we returned immediately to the ship.
Rather than dining immediately upon our return, our group (minus one—moi) decided to take in the 8:45 Second City scripted comedy show in the Stardust theatre. That pushed our dinner out to 9:45. As the Summer Garden closes at 9:30, that left us no anytime dining option other than to return to Indigo for a second night. The advantage of late dining there was that there was no wait time. The disadvantage was that by the end of the meal we were one of only 3 remaining parties dining and we felt like we were in the way as staff scurried all around us re-setting the room for an art auction event that was to take place in the venue later in the evening.
Despite this, both the meal and the service were better than one night earlier. The popular app was the onion soup, while the entrée selections included a Thai noodle dish, roast turkey and tilapia. Our dessert entrees included a mocha flavoured cream filled layer cake and blueberry crumble (a little too sweet for my palate).
Following dinner and changing into our all-white party outfits we joined the White Hot Night party already in progress in the Spinnaker Lounge. By the time we arrived at 11:00 PM the party was already petering out and most of those on the dance floor were from the ship’s dance troupe and cruise staff. Moreover, the staff again started stripping the room of its white décor accents before midnight. Having enjoyed the White Hot Party immensely on our last NCL cruise we were sorely disappointed by this weak facsimile. However we were thoroughly tired at midnight and were more than happy to adjourn for the evening.
Still to come… Glacier Bay
Our second Alaskan port of call was Skagway—a town made famous by the Gold Rush. We had a busy day arranged in Skagway having booked two excursions through NCL. Our first tour departed one half hour after we reached port at 7:00. So we rose early at 6:00 AM, ate an express breakfast at the (24 hour) Blue Lagoon Café and were on shore in time to meet Jen-- our main guide for our morning glacial point wilderness safari.
We boarded a bus at the port which took us out to The Spirit—a high speed catamaran. After boarding, it was expertly guided (by Captain John Smith) down river (past Haines) on a 40 minute cruise along a deep wide fjord to our beach destination. There we boarded “off road safari vehicles” (aka re-purposed school buses) to reach a river-side dressing area where we were outfitted in boots, extra layers of outer wear and life vests. Thereafter, riverside, we were assigned to one of four 31 foot canoes, each holding 8 to 11 persons. Our canoe, captained by a guide named Teresa and nicknamed Team Brown Bear, had 4 other paddlers in addition to us. After paddling leisurely (albeit against the river current) for 15 or 20 minutes and reaching a certain point cut-over point, Teresa ripped the cord on the outboard motor to power us through the ice flows for a closer look at the Glacier Point ice formations. She even scooped up a small ice flow from the river to pass around the canoe. After a few minutes maneuvering us in front of the glacier, we reversed course and headed back downstream. On the return catamaran trip we were served a tasty box lunch consisting of a turkey mini-sub, sun chips, some carrot sticks, a massive chocolate chip cookies and bottled water.
We arrived back in town around 1 PM and spent about an hour watching salmon running upstream and shopping in the town shops. The Skagway streets are laid out in a logical grid pattern with Broadway being the main arterial road running from our port at the southern end of town and intersected by numbered avenues. At 2:30 new headed back to the ship for two hours of down time before setting out on our 2nd excursion of the day.
At 4:30 PM in the afternoon we boarded a White Pass and Yukon railway car for our round trip 21 mile evening summit ride to at an elevation of 2,865 ft. The hi-lights along the route included a gold rush cemetery, rocky point, bridal veil falls and inspiration point. We also passed through two tunnels and passed an old steel cantilever bridge (now de-commissioned) built in 1901. Most of the best views were on the left hand side of the car (both coming and going, as the seats simply reverse when you reach the summit and the engine re-hooks to the other end of the car to begin the descent leg. You are permitted to go outside the cars to snap photos on the platforms between the cars during the trip but are not permitted to walk between them.
Two advantages of the evening summit over the rides earlier in the day are that the cars tend to be less crowded and that the later afternoon lighting conditions are more camera-friendly. Following our return to the Skagway station we returned immediately to the ship.
Rather than dining immediately upon our return, our group (minus one—moi) decided to take in the 8:45 Second City scripted comedy show in the Stardust theatre. That pushed our dinner out to 9:45. As the Summer Garden closes at 9:30, that left us no anytime dining option other than to return to Indigo for a second night. The advantage of late dining there was that there was no wait time. The disadvantage was that by the end of the meal we were one of only 3 remaining parties dining and we felt like we were in the way as staff scurried all around us re-setting the room for an art auction event that was to take place in the venue later in the evening.
Despite this, both the meal and the service were better than one night earlier. The popular app was the onion soup, while the entrée selections included a Thai noodle dish, roast turkey and tilapia. Our dessert entrees included a mocha flavoured cream filled layer cake and blueberry crumble (a little too sweet for my palate).
Following dinner and changing into our all-white party outfits we joined the White Hot Night party already in progress in the Spinnaker Lounge. By the time we arrived at 11:00 PM the party was already petering out and most of those on the dance floor were from the ship’s dance troupe and cruise staff. Moreover, the staff again started stripping the room of its white décor accents before midnight. Having enjoyed the White Hot Party immensely on our last NCL cruise we were sorely disappointed by this weak facsimile. However we were thoroughly tired at midnight and were more than happy to adjourn for the evening.
Still to come… Glacier Bay
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Ahoy the shore from Alaska (4th in a series)
sea pics:
http://www.facebook.com/editphoto.php?aid=118258#/album.php?aid=118258&id=526885372
Day 3
We were excited to reach our first “day” in port— although technically we didn’t arrive until 2:00 in the afternoon—in Juneau, Alaska. We awoke in time to make the breakfast seating in the Summer Palace and received another excellent (window side) table assignment. Service was again exemplary. Following breakfast, we returned to the spa to find it much busier than on the prior day. Thereafter, our lunch was enjoyed back in the Summer Palace (another window-side seat assignment) as we pulled into port, relieving the Norwegian Star in her berth. The Diamond Princess, RCL Splendour of the Seas and the Celebrity Infinity were also in port that day.
We had booked an NCL shore excursion entitled “Sky to Sea”-- a 9.5 mile cycling tour. We were the first of our excursion group to meet our guide Nancy at the pier. Nancy, a retired person, was not a native Alaskan (born in the lower 48) but had spent the better part of her last 20 years in the State, originally in Anchorage and more recently in Juneau. There were six other people in our bike excursion—a retired couple and a group of four (quite eccentric and overdressed) USC students from Los Angeles. We took a mini-bus--- driven by a grumpy retired mechanic—up the hill to the Eaglecrest ski chalet that served as base camp We were assigned helmets and 21 speed bikes to start the 5.2 bike downward leg of our trek back down to the sea. Nancy told us that she rarely exceeded 20 mph and that 80% of the ride would be downhill. She definitely exceeded 20 mph and the inclines (while infrequent) were rough climbs for riders who don’t bike regularly, even after gearing down.
Our first stop along the route was at a bog to view the local flora. The fireweed grows every where and had already started to turn to seed. Nancy explained that the local people say that when the firewood turns, it is time to stop fishing and start hunting. Our next stop was at a mountain stream. We made our final downhill stop at a hanging glacier she called the Thomas. We turned left at the bottom of the hill and began 4.3 mile flat section of our ride along the coast. Sometime between this point and our next stop one member of our group (who shall remain nameless, but does not have the last name McGuinness) decided to wimp out and ride in the trailing van. She was e eirof thwaiting for us at the next stop which was at Fritz Cove overlooking the Mendenhall Glacier and Juneau airport (the city is only accessible by air and water--- there are no arterial roads in!)
From Fritz Cove forward, Nancy provided no further narration. Our driver was waiting for us at the end of the route with coffee, tea, hot chocolate and trail mix/energy bars. From there we reboarded the van for the ride back to town. Overall the excursion was a good workout and offered pleasant enough scenery for the price. We got off the minibus in town (our ship was moored about 1 mile away, while the Celebrity and Princess ships were closer) to spend some more time before our 9:30 sailaway. In town, we checked out the Red Dog Saloon—with its sawdust floors, did some shopping (picking up two reversible hooded fleece lined jackets (which unzip into vests) in a season end sale and visited the Juneau library to take advantage of their free internet connections.
Thereafter, around 6:30 we rode up the Mt. Roberts tramway (adult fare $27.00) to reach the lookouts that offer a spectacular sky high view of the city and the port before the sun set. The tramway and the shops / eateries and nature centres at the top are operated by native Americans. We began our descent just as the ships lights began switching on. By this time the RCL had already departed and the Celebrity ship was departing. The Diamond Princess sailed away just after us.
We were too late reboarding the ship to make the show song and dance revue performance in the Stardust theatre so proceeded almost directly to Indigo-- the casual dining room-- for dinner and were informed that there would be a half hour wait for a table of 4. We were given a flashing/vibrating handheld signaling device to carry with us to summon us back when the table freed up. We were just settling in at the martini bar in a nearby lounge, when a mere minutes later the device started to flash and vibrate. Returning to the podium, we were seated by the hostess about 5 minutes later in an annex to the main the hall around the corner. In contrast to the Summer Palace, the décor in Indigo is dark (the room is windowless) and garish. There are illuminated abstract Andy Warhol-esque art pieces on the wall depicting famous American landmarks (Statue of Liberty, Capitol building, White House, St Louis Arch) and currency.
The service in Indigo was unfriendly and indifferent. Our table was set without salt and paper shakers. The food was also not of high quality. Several of my table-mates selected a steak (with frites) from the everyday menu that were thin, dried out and tasteless—a pale imitation of the meats we enjoyed at Cagneys one night earlier. The desserts were also uninspired. Knowing we had an early excursion the following morning in Skagway, we headed almost immediately to bed following dinner
Still to come…. Skagway
http://www.facebook.com/editphoto.php?aid=118258#/album.php?aid=118258&id=526885372
Day 3
We were excited to reach our first “day” in port— although technically we didn’t arrive until 2:00 in the afternoon—in Juneau, Alaska. We awoke in time to make the breakfast seating in the Summer Palace and received another excellent (window side) table assignment. Service was again exemplary. Following breakfast, we returned to the spa to find it much busier than on the prior day. Thereafter, our lunch was enjoyed back in the Summer Palace (another window-side seat assignment) as we pulled into port, relieving the Norwegian Star in her berth. The Diamond Princess, RCL Splendour of the Seas and the Celebrity Infinity were also in port that day.
We had booked an NCL shore excursion entitled “Sky to Sea”-- a 9.5 mile cycling tour. We were the first of our excursion group to meet our guide Nancy at the pier. Nancy, a retired person, was not a native Alaskan (born in the lower 48) but had spent the better part of her last 20 years in the State, originally in Anchorage and more recently in Juneau. There were six other people in our bike excursion—a retired couple and a group of four (quite eccentric and overdressed) USC students from Los Angeles. We took a mini-bus--- driven by a grumpy retired mechanic—up the hill to the Eaglecrest ski chalet that served as base camp We were assigned helmets and 21 speed bikes to start the 5.2 bike downward leg of our trek back down to the sea. Nancy told us that she rarely exceeded 20 mph and that 80% of the ride would be downhill. She definitely exceeded 20 mph and the inclines (while infrequent) were rough climbs for riders who don’t bike regularly, even after gearing down.
Our first stop along the route was at a bog to view the local flora. The fireweed grows every where and had already started to turn to seed. Nancy explained that the local people say that when the firewood turns, it is time to stop fishing and start hunting. Our next stop was at a mountain stream. We made our final downhill stop at a hanging glacier she called the Thomas. We turned left at the bottom of the hill and began 4.3 mile flat section of our ride along the coast. Sometime between this point and our next stop one member of our group (who shall remain nameless, but does not have the last name McGuinness) decided to wimp out and ride in the trailing van. She was e eirof thwaiting for us at the next stop which was at Fritz Cove overlooking the Mendenhall Glacier and Juneau airport (the city is only accessible by air and water--- there are no arterial roads in!)
From Fritz Cove forward, Nancy provided no further narration. Our driver was waiting for us at the end of the route with coffee, tea, hot chocolate and trail mix/energy bars. From there we reboarded the van for the ride back to town. Overall the excursion was a good workout and offered pleasant enough scenery for the price. We got off the minibus in town (our ship was moored about 1 mile away, while the Celebrity and Princess ships were closer) to spend some more time before our 9:30 sailaway. In town, we checked out the Red Dog Saloon—with its sawdust floors, did some shopping (picking up two reversible hooded fleece lined jackets (which unzip into vests) in a season end sale and visited the Juneau library to take advantage of their free internet connections.
Thereafter, around 6:30 we rode up the Mt. Roberts tramway (adult fare $27.00) to reach the lookouts that offer a spectacular sky high view of the city and the port before the sun set. The tramway and the shops / eateries and nature centres at the top are operated by native Americans. We began our descent just as the ships lights began switching on. By this time the RCL had already departed and the Celebrity ship was departing. The Diamond Princess sailed away just after us.
We were too late reboarding the ship to make the show song and dance revue performance in the Stardust theatre so proceeded almost directly to Indigo-- the casual dining room-- for dinner and were informed that there would be a half hour wait for a table of 4. We were given a flashing/vibrating handheld signaling device to carry with us to summon us back when the table freed up. We were just settling in at the martini bar in a nearby lounge, when a mere minutes later the device started to flash and vibrate. Returning to the podium, we were seated by the hostess about 5 minutes later in an annex to the main the hall around the corner. In contrast to the Summer Palace, the décor in Indigo is dark (the room is windowless) and garish. There are illuminated abstract Andy Warhol-esque art pieces on the wall depicting famous American landmarks (Statue of Liberty, Capitol building, White House, St Louis Arch) and currency.
The service in Indigo was unfriendly and indifferent. Our table was set without salt and paper shakers. The food was also not of high quality. Several of my table-mates selected a steak (with frites) from the everyday menu that were thin, dried out and tasteless—a pale imitation of the meats we enjoyed at Cagneys one night earlier. The desserts were also uninspired. Knowing we had an early excursion the following morning in Skagway, we headed almost immediately to bed following dinner
Still to come…. Skagway
Ahoy the shore from Alaska (3rd in a series)
Seattle pics now available
:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/album.php?aid=118078&id=526885372
Day 2 Our group awoke fairly late (after 8:00 AM) considering how early we had retired the evening before. By the time we were showered and dressed it was too late to make breakfast in the Summer Palace (table service) dining room so we headed up to check out the buffet. We found the buffet extremely crowded so made our way aft to the Great Outdoors dining terrace. We were able to find a nice table in the sun there and the weather was still warm enough to make dining el fresco comfortable. The service station offered made to order omelets, waffle/French toast and other standard breakfast meats (sausage bacon) and homefried potatoes; additionally, lighter options like melon and other fruits, yogurt and cereals were amply stocked along with a beverage station with apple/orange juice and coffee (including decaf) and tea. Following breakfast we attended an excursions talk in the Stardust theatre that was sparsely attended but very informative. E discovered that places had opened up on the Coastal adventure seacraft excursion that we had originally tried to reserve online but discovered full. A quick trip to the excursions desk and we were all re-booked very painless.
We did make it to the Summer Palace for lunch just after NOON and received an excellent table assignment to the rear of the dining hall by the wake-view picture windows. The décor in the Summer Palace is quite restrained relative to other common areas. Inspired by a French court in the age of Louis XIV it features white wood trim furniture with goal leaf accents, red regal crested seat backs, green seat cushions and marble columns, cascading crystal chandelier lighting fixtures, a gold etched mirrored ceiling and large scale oil paintings—featuring period families at play-- on the wall. Service was excellent at lunch. Several of us chose the seafood (lobster crab) bisque for our appetizers. For our entrees the popular choices (for two of us) were the sweet and sour grouper served on fried rice while the meatloaf and gnocchi were also selected by our tablemates. With he exception of the gnochi, all were well received. Dessert selections included bread pudding and pear gellate.
By 2:30 we were already into the inside passage and started to spy beautiful fog drenched panoramic mountain scenery rising on both sides of the ship. We adjourned to the spa shortly thereafter to enjoy the thermal suite. The general unisex area features a large heated pool with thermal therapy air jets and a rolling back massage wall rack, heated stone lounges that gently curve to take pressure off your spine, several comfortable teak lounges (including couples lounges) with well stuffed seat cushions positioned with full views of the picture window panoramas. In the gender segregated areas off the unisex suite there are individual hot tubs, a sauna ((which also offers excellent views), a steam room, a chilling tub as well as large shower stalls.
We had dinner reservations at Cagneys Steak House for 6:00 PM. We were a bit late arriving and were seated in an annex that was entered through a lounge. Again we were seated window side. Dinner apps we sampled included Oysters Rockefeller, jumbo shrimp cocktail and crab cakes. For dinner the table selected rib eye, new york and two t-bones. All were excellent and came with a wide assortment of sides, including baked potatoes, mushrooms, vegetables and onion rings. We finished up a very satisfying meal with apple crisp, cheesecake and raspberry crème brule for dessert. I also had a decafé cappuccino, which was excellent.
Following dinner we posed for formal portraits (which were organized in a circuit passing by every available backdrop), watched the not so newlywed game (hosted by Julie)--- one of the weaker versions of this (normally uproarious) game show classics I have seen at sea-- and then attended a comedy show. The comedy show featuring comic Tim Kaminski was centred around an extended audience participation skit based on the film classic The Wizard of Oz, featuring audience members portraying Dorothy, the tin woodman (a Chinese gentleman that spoke no English), the cowardly lion (a bearded dentist that stole the show), the Scarecrow and an unfortunate young man selected to portray Toto who spent the entire segment on his knees nudging up against Dorothy’s leg on cue! Tired after the show, we adjourned to our stateroom and retired.
:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/album.php?aid=118078&id=526885372
Day 2 Our group awoke fairly late (after 8:00 AM) considering how early we had retired the evening before. By the time we were showered and dressed it was too late to make breakfast in the Summer Palace (table service) dining room so we headed up to check out the buffet. We found the buffet extremely crowded so made our way aft to the Great Outdoors dining terrace. We were able to find a nice table in the sun there and the weather was still warm enough to make dining el fresco comfortable. The service station offered made to order omelets, waffle/French toast and other standard breakfast meats (sausage bacon) and homefried potatoes; additionally, lighter options like melon and other fruits, yogurt and cereals were amply stocked along with a beverage station with apple/orange juice and coffee (including decaf) and tea. Following breakfast we attended an excursions talk in the Stardust theatre that was sparsely attended but very informative. E discovered that places had opened up on the Coastal adventure seacraft excursion that we had originally tried to reserve online but discovered full. A quick trip to the excursions desk and we were all re-booked very painless.
We did make it to the Summer Palace for lunch just after NOON and received an excellent table assignment to the rear of the dining hall by the wake-view picture windows. The décor in the Summer Palace is quite restrained relative to other common areas. Inspired by a French court in the age of Louis XIV it features white wood trim furniture with goal leaf accents, red regal crested seat backs, green seat cushions and marble columns, cascading crystal chandelier lighting fixtures, a gold etched mirrored ceiling and large scale oil paintings—featuring period families at play-- on the wall. Service was excellent at lunch. Several of us chose the seafood (lobster crab) bisque for our appetizers. For our entrees the popular choices (for two of us) were the sweet and sour grouper served on fried rice while the meatloaf and gnocchi were also selected by our tablemates. With he exception of the gnochi, all were well received. Dessert selections included bread pudding and pear gellate.
By 2:30 we were already into the inside passage and started to spy beautiful fog drenched panoramic mountain scenery rising on both sides of the ship. We adjourned to the spa shortly thereafter to enjoy the thermal suite. The general unisex area features a large heated pool with thermal therapy air jets and a rolling back massage wall rack, heated stone lounges that gently curve to take pressure off your spine, several comfortable teak lounges (including couples lounges) with well stuffed seat cushions positioned with full views of the picture window panoramas. In the gender segregated areas off the unisex suite there are individual hot tubs, a sauna ((which also offers excellent views), a steam room, a chilling tub as well as large shower stalls.
We had dinner reservations at Cagneys Steak House for 6:00 PM. We were a bit late arriving and were seated in an annex that was entered through a lounge. Again we were seated window side. Dinner apps we sampled included Oysters Rockefeller, jumbo shrimp cocktail and crab cakes. For dinner the table selected rib eye, new york and two t-bones. All were excellent and came with a wide assortment of sides, including baked potatoes, mushrooms, vegetables and onion rings. We finished up a very satisfying meal with apple crisp, cheesecake and raspberry crème brule for dessert. I also had a decafé cappuccino, which was excellent.
Following dinner we posed for formal portraits (which were organized in a circuit passing by every available backdrop), watched the not so newlywed game (hosted by Julie)--- one of the weaker versions of this (normally uproarious) game show classics I have seen at sea-- and then attended a comedy show. The comedy show featuring comic Tim Kaminski was centred around an extended audience participation skit based on the film classic The Wizard of Oz, featuring audience members portraying Dorothy, the tin woodman (a Chinese gentleman that spoke no English), the cowardly lion (a bearded dentist that stole the show), the Scarecrow and an unfortunate young man selected to portray Toto who spent the entire segment on his knees nudging up against Dorothy’s leg on cue! Tired after the show, we adjourned to our stateroom and retired.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Ahoy the shore from Alaska (2nd in a series)
We departed the Grand Hyatt at approximately 11:00 AM on Sunday August 30th. No van taxis were available but the skilled hotel porter was able to cram most of our bags into the trunk of a standard sized taxi and we jammed three passengers in the rear and myself up front with the driver—some of us carry-ons in our lap. Not exactly roomy and comfortable but the taxi ride to the pier 66 cruise-ship terminal was relatively short, inexpensive and uneventful as was the check-in process. We were on board by NOON. We entered off the gangplank onto level 7 at the two level crystal atrium (featuring a massive floor to roof video screen). To be honest, the
We were informed that our staterooms wouldn’t be available until 2 PM so we had some time to kill. We immediately made our dinner reservations for the first two nights (you can make a reservation as early as 8 AM the day prior) as we knew we would be at sea those evenings. We chose La Cucina (Italian) and Cagneys Steak House for Sunday and Monday night dinners, respectively. The former has a $10 surcharge while the latter had a $25 surcharge pp. Then we proceeded upstairs to the poolside buffet. It was already relatively busy so we ate in the great outdoors table seating area which is aft on level 12 (the pool level). There you can dine el fresco on a selection of grille food like (burgers, hot dogs and fries) and soups, as well as made to order pasta. spent some time visiting the kidszone (to sign the waivers for the teen activities), touring the spa (we signed up for the $99 week long thermal suite “members only” club (the limit entry to 180 people to avoid overcrowding)) and canvassing the poolside expo exhibits (a quick orientation to all the different resources and activities available on board). Finally, we attended the “Who Wants to be a Gazillionaire” gameshow in the Spinnaker lounge.
We proceeded to our stateroom precisely at 2:00 to make a few disturbing discoveries. First, none of our luggage had yet arrived and second the room appeared to contain only two twin beds plus an upper
The muster drill was scheduled at 3:30. Our assigned muster station (2E) was inside the Le Bistro French restaurant. It was brief, comfortable (all arriving parties were assigned to tables to be seated) and well organized (cabin numbers were stenciled on life jackets for easy check-in to confirm attendance). The ship began to move out of dock almost immediately after the drill ended. When we return to our stateroom to re-stow our life jackets, our luggage had arrived so we did a quick unpack and then headed back up to the pooldeck in our bathing suites for the sailaway party. Both pools (the adult only and the general pool (into which the waterslide falls) were open and were busy (taking advantage of perhaps the warmest temps we would get throughout the duration of the ship.) Three of us tried the waterslide—two successfully—Ryan was unable o generate any downward momentum and basically had to push himself down using his arms on the handrail. The water was warm when you were in the pool but there was a chilly cross-wind when you stepped out onto the deck.
Following the swim/sailaway, we returned to our stateroom to dress for dinner. Still being on eastern time, we had made our dinner reservation early (5:30) at La Cucina. Service was good. The olive tray arrived first followed by the antipasto trolley (featuring salami, proscuitto, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatos and several cheeses). For the next course Ceasar salad was freshly prepared table side. For a second plate we ordered a custom pizza for the table (featuring ham, meatballs and sausage). I also ordered a pasta item (Fetticune Alfredo). Both the pasta and the pizza were delicious. For our entrees I ordered salmon sallopini while my table-mates went with pollo
Following dinner we headed to the opening show in the Stardust theatre… a massive three level showroom with stadium style seating. The show opened with the ship’s showband and then Julie, our cruise director, made her entrance. Julie is a fellow Canadian, from
More to come: day 2 and the inside passage
Monday, August 31, 2009
Ahoy the shore from Alaska (1st in a series)
We are on the first full day of a 7 night Alaskan cruise aboard NCL’s Norwegian Pearl. We are currently on our first full day at sea (Monday August 31) having embarked yesterday (Sunday August 20th at NOON). We are charting a course North along the Pacific shore toward British Columbia and the inside passage enroute to our first port of Juneau.
Our flight to our embarkation port of Seattle departed from Pearson at 9:30 AM on Saturday. Morning. We used a large airport limo van (Cadillac Esplanade) to get from downtown out to YYZ because there are four of us traveling together (myself, my son Ryan (17), my daughter Claire (14) and my sister Donna (age withheld)) and we had packed six check-in bags and four carry-ons between us. We were met by our limo driver at 7:00 AM promptly, traffic was light and we were at Pearson a full two hours before departure. There were fairly long lines at Air Canada check-in and US customs but we were thru to our gate in reasonable time (none of us set off the alarm or were selected for secondary security inspection). The flight boarded and departed .on time. It was an Embraer jet with two seats on either side of the aisle and we were all seated in a single row. The flight was over 2/3rd full so there was plenty of room for our carry-ons in the overhead storage compartments. . We had no turbulence enroute and touch down on the runway was smooth. We actually arrived early. Overall a near perfect flight.
We had to wait a fair time in a separate queue for a van taxi to get from Seattle airport to our downtown hotel (the Grand Hyatt, downtown at 7th St between Pine aand Pike near the Conference Centre). We arrived at our hotel around 1:30 and upon checking in at the registration desk discovered our room was not yet ready so we checked our bags with the bell hop and set out to explore the city. We walked down to the waterfront to explore the famous Pike Public Market. At the fish-mongers booth we saw the handlers throwing flying fish thru the air at a volunteer tourist victim who was charged with the task of trying to catch the slippery scaly airborne objects. She succeeded on her third attempt! We were also impressed by some of the flower market stalls. .As we were walking back up along Pine St, the reception desk called to say our room had been assigned. We returned to the hotel and were given keys to room 2202. It was a very comfortable room with a very large marble bath featuring a large soaker tub and corner glass shower stall.
After our bags were brought up to our room, we set out on the town again. By this time it was mid afternoon and we heading out to the Cheesecake caught the monorail from the shopping second a few blocks from our hotel out along a 1.5 mile stretch of track to Settle Centre, which is the home of many museums and the Spoace Needle. The monorail, the Space Needle and much of the exhibit space were originally built for the 1962 World Fair that Seattle hosted. We purchased “day/night” two visit passes and went up for our initial visit around 5:00 PM. The tower is a little over 600 feet tall and offers exceptional panoramic views of the city and Puget Sound. After returning down the outside bug elevator, we headed over (at around 6:00) to cross the street to catch our Duck tour, which was departing at 6:30 PM.
The Duck is a surplus WWII amphibious craft (similar to those used to storm the beaches of Normandy) that has been retrofitted.for tour purposes. The tour is 90 minutes long--- approximately 60 minutes on land and 30 minutes on water. We were assigned to Duck A (#5) which was piloted by Captain Stupendous—a balding man fond of donning wld hats! The land tour took us through most of the “must see” sites of Seattle, including the waterfront, Pioneer Square and the city centre. Then we headed out across a span bridge to Freemont, which was our entry point into Lake Union for the section of our tour. We happened to hit the water just around sunset. Lake Union is a deep fresh water with many house boats, house barges and floating homes on it, including the one made famous by the Tom Hanks – Meg Ryan movie Sleepless in Seattle .From the lake you can also see gasworks park—a greenspace built around the site of a former gas factory that no longer operates.
Following our duck tour we went back up the Seattle Needle after nightfall and caught the return trip on the monorail back to the Hyatt to turn in for the night. The following morning we went out on a morning walk back to Pike Market—this time descending the hill down to the aquarium.
More to come…embarkation… stateroom
Our flight to our embarkation port of Seattle departed from Pearson at 9:30 AM on Saturday. Morning. We used a large airport limo van (Cadillac Esplanade) to get from downtown out to YYZ because there are four of us traveling together (myself, my son Ryan (17), my daughter Claire (14) and my sister Donna (age withheld)) and we had packed six check-in bags and four carry-ons between us. We were met by our limo driver at 7:00 AM promptly, traffic was light and we were at Pearson a full two hours before departure. There were fairly long lines at Air Canada check-in and US customs but we were thru to our gate in reasonable time (none of us set off the alarm or were selected for secondary security inspection). The flight boarded and departed .on time. It was an Embraer jet with two seats on either side of the aisle and we were all seated in a single row. The flight was over 2/3rd full so there was plenty of room for our carry-ons in the overhead storage compartments. . We had no turbulence enroute and touch down on the runway was smooth. We actually arrived early. Overall a near perfect flight.
We had to wait a fair time in a separate queue for a van taxi to get from Seattle airport to our downtown hotel (the Grand Hyatt, downtown at 7th St between Pine aand Pike near the Conference Centre). We arrived at our hotel around 1:30 and upon checking in at the registration desk discovered our room was not yet ready so we checked our bags with the bell hop and set out to explore the city. We walked down to the waterfront to explore the famous Pike Public Market. At the fish-mongers booth we saw the handlers throwing flying fish thru the air at a volunteer tourist victim who was charged with the task of trying to catch the slippery scaly airborne objects. She succeeded on her third attempt! We were also impressed by some of the flower market stalls. .As we were walking back up along Pine St, the reception desk called to say our room had been assigned. We returned to the hotel and were given keys to room 2202. It was a very comfortable room with a very large marble bath featuring a large soaker tub and corner glass shower stall.
After our bags were brought up to our room, we set out on the town again. By this time it was mid afternoon and we heading out to the Cheesecake caught the monorail from the shopping second a few blocks from our hotel out along a 1.5 mile stretch of track to Settle Centre, which is the home of many museums and the Spoace Needle. The monorail, the Space Needle and much of the exhibit space were originally built for the 1962 World Fair that Seattle hosted. We purchased “day/night” two visit passes and went up for our initial visit around 5:00 PM. The tower is a little over 600 feet tall and offers exceptional panoramic views of the city and Puget Sound. After returning down the outside bug elevator, we headed over (at around 6:00) to cross the street to catch our Duck tour, which was departing at 6:30 PM.
The Duck is a surplus WWII amphibious craft (similar to those used to storm the beaches of Normandy) that has been retrofitted.for tour purposes. The tour is 90 minutes long--- approximately 60 minutes on land and 30 minutes on water. We were assigned to Duck A (#5) which was piloted by Captain Stupendous—a balding man fond of donning wld hats! The land tour took us through most of the “must see” sites of Seattle, including the waterfront, Pioneer Square and the city centre. Then we headed out across a span bridge to Freemont, which was our entry point into Lake Union for the section of our tour. We happened to hit the water just around sunset. Lake Union is a deep fresh water with many house boats, house barges and floating homes on it, including the one made famous by the Tom Hanks – Meg Ryan movie Sleepless in Seattle .From the lake you can also see gasworks park—a greenspace built around the site of a former gas factory that no longer operates.
Following our duck tour we went back up the Seattle Needle after nightfall and caught the return trip on the monorail back to the Hyatt to turn in for the night. The following morning we went out on a morning walk back to Pike Market—this time descending the hill down to the aquarium.
More to come…embarkation… stateroom
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Summer Reality TV series update
Summer is peak period for the major US networks to introduce original non-fiction series to replace re-runs of their usual Fall-Winter fictional series lineups. Here is how the Summer reality series that are currently airing fared last week (ending Aug 15th) with audiences (ranked on viewership levels based on the Nielson ratings). The viewership figures are in thousands. The final number is the rating which is the estimated percentage of the universe of TV households tuned to a program in the average minute. The first number indicates the rating of the show among all 85 prime time series (including fictional series) airing on the 5 major networks last week. For comparison, the average series rating as just over five million (5,020 or 1.75). The second set of rating figures indicates how the series fared in the key ratings demographic breakout (adults 18 to 40)-- the viewers that advertisers target the most.
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 12.88 million (#1), A18-49: 3.6/11 (#1)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 11.79 million (#3), A18-49: 3.0/ 9 (#3)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Sunday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.64 million (#7t), A18-49: 2.6/ 8 (#5t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Thursday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.48 million (#9), A18-49: 2.6/ 9 (#5t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) - Monday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.27 million (#10), A18-49: 1.6/ 5 (#21t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Thursday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.24 million (#11), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#28t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Sunday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.02 million (#13), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#34t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.78 million (#16), A18-49: 2.5/ 7 (#7t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 6.52 million (#18), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#28t)
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.18 million (#21), A18-49: 2.2/ 7 (#14)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Tuesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 6.07 million (#23), A18-49: 1.3/ 4 (#40t)
Shark Tank (ABC) – Sunday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 5.59 million (#27), A18-49: 1.8/ 5 (#16t)
Dating in the Dark (ABC) – Monday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 4.43 million (#43), A18-49: 1.7/ 5 (#18t)
There Goes the Neighborhood (CBS) – Sunday 9:30 p.m. (delayed)
Viewers: 4.41 million (#44), A18-49: 1.3/ 3 (#40t)
The Great American Road Trip (NBC) – Monday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 3.70 million (#56), A18-49: 1.1/ 4 (#51t)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 12.88 million (#1), A18-49: 3.6/11 (#1)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 11.79 million (#3), A18-49: 3.0/ 9 (#3)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Sunday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.64 million (#7t), A18-49: 2.6/ 8 (#5t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Thursday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.48 million (#9), A18-49: 2.6/ 9 (#5t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) - Monday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.27 million (#10), A18-49: 1.6/ 5 (#21t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Thursday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.24 million (#11), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#28t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Sunday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.02 million (#13), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#34t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.78 million (#16), A18-49: 2.5/ 7 (#7t)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 6.52 million (#18), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#28t)
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.18 million (#21), A18-49: 2.2/ 7 (#14)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC) Tuesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 6.07 million (#23), A18-49: 1.3/ 4 (#40t)
Shark Tank (ABC) – Sunday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 5.59 million (#27), A18-49: 1.8/ 5 (#16t)
Dating in the Dark (ABC) – Monday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 4.43 million (#43), A18-49: 1.7/ 5 (#18t)
There Goes the Neighborhood (CBS) – Sunday 9:30 p.m. (delayed)
Viewers: 4.41 million (#44), A18-49: 1.3/ 3 (#40t)
The Great American Road Trip (NBC) – Monday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 3.70 million (#56), A18-49: 1.1/ 4 (#51t)
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Summer reality TV series ratings update
Summer is peak period for the major US networks to introduce original non-fiction series to replace re-runs of their usual Fall-Winter fictional series lineups. Here is how the Summer reality series that are currently airing fared last week (ending Aug 8th) with audiences (ranked on viewership levels based on the Nielson ratings). The viewership figures are in thousands. The final number is the rating which is the estimated percentage of the universe of TV households tuned to a program in the average minute. The first number indicates the rating of the show among all 83 prime time series (including fictional series) airing on the 5 major networks last week. For comparison, the average series rating as just over five million (5,210 or 1.8). There are several new series entering the list this week including the return of prime-time Millionaire and the debut of Shark Tank on ABC.
1 AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-TUE 12960 4.5
2 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P 10670 3.7
4 SO YOU THINK CAN DANCE-THU 9570 3.3
8 WIPEOUT 8020 2.8
12 SO YOU THINK CAN DANCE-WED 7780 2.7
14 BIG BROTHER 11-SUN 7150 2.5
17 MILLIONAIRE-8/9 7000 2.4
18 AMERICA GOT TALENT-TUE 8P 6910 2.4
19 HELL'S KITCHEN 6740 2.3
20 BIG BROTHER 11-THU 6440 2.2
21 BIG BROTHER 11-TUE 6400 2.2
32 THERE GOES NEIGHBORHOOD 4840 1.7
38 GREAT AMERICAN ROAD TRIP 4500 1.6
39 SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER 4380 1.5
45 SHARK TANK 4150 1.4
50 MORE TO LOVE 3840 1.3
55 DATING IN THE DARK 3670 1.3
56 I SURVIVED-JAPANESE GM SHOW 3590 1.2
71 SUPERSTARS, THE 2590 .9
1 AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-TUE 12960 4.5
2 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P 10670 3.7
4 SO YOU THINK CAN DANCE-THU 9570 3.3
8 WIPEOUT 8020 2.8
12 SO YOU THINK CAN DANCE-WED 7780 2.7
14 BIG BROTHER 11-SUN 7150 2.5
17 MILLIONAIRE-8/9 7000 2.4
18 AMERICA GOT TALENT-TUE 8P 6910 2.4
19 HELL'S KITCHEN 6740 2.3
20 BIG BROTHER 11-THU 6440 2.2
21 BIG BROTHER 11-TUE 6400 2.2
32 THERE GOES NEIGHBORHOOD 4840 1.7
38 GREAT AMERICAN ROAD TRIP 4500 1.6
39 SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER 4380 1.5
45 SHARK TANK 4150 1.4
50 MORE TO LOVE 3840 1.3
55 DATING IN THE DARK 3670 1.3
56 I SURVIVED-JAPANESE GM SHOW 3590 1.2
71 SUPERSTARS, THE 2590 .9
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Summer reality TV series ratings update
Summer is peak period for the major US networks to introduce original non-fiction series to replace re-runs of their usual Fall-Winter fictional series lineups. Here is how the Summer reality series that have debuted so far fared last week (ending July 26) with audiences (ranked on viewership levels based on the Nielson ratings). The viewership figures are in thousands. By comparison the average series rating as just over five million (5,070).
1 AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-TUE 13750
2 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P 11260
8 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-THU 8420
9 AMERICA GOT TALENT-TUE 8P 8270
10 BACHELORETTE, THE 8040
13 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED 7360
16 HELL'S KITCHEN SP-7/21 9P 6950
18 WIPEOUT 6430
19 BIG BROTHER 11-THU 6390
20 DATING IN THE DARK 6150
21 HELL'S KITCHEN 6090
22 BIG BROTHER 11-SUN 6080
24 BIG BROTHER 11-TUE 5720
36 SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER 4780
49 I SURVED-JAPANESE GM SHOW 3760
53 WIPEOUT-SAT 8PM 3500
54 GREAT AMERICAN ROAD TRIP 3460
59 SUPERSTARS, THE 3150
1 AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-TUE 13750
2 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P 11260
8 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-THU 8420
9 AMERICA GOT TALENT-TUE 8P 8270
10 BACHELORETTE, THE 8040
13 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED 7360
16 HELL'S KITCHEN SP-7/21 9P 6950
18 WIPEOUT 6430
19 BIG BROTHER 11-THU 6390
20 DATING IN THE DARK 6150
21 HELL'S KITCHEN 6090
22 BIG BROTHER 11-SUN 6080
24 BIG BROTHER 11-TUE 5720
36 SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER 4780
49 I SURVED-JAPANESE GM SHOW 3760
53 WIPEOUT-SAT 8PM 3500
54 GREAT AMERICAN ROAD TRIP 3460
59 SUPERSTARS, THE 3150
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Summer reality TV series ratings update
Summer is peak period for the major US networks to introduce original non-fiction series to replace re-runs of their usual Fall-Winter fictional series lineups. Here is how the Summer reality series that have debuted so far, fared last week (ending July 19) with audiences (ranked on viewership levels based on the Nielson ratings).
Summer Series Scorecard (In Order of Total Viewers):
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 13.51 million (#2), A18-49: 3.7/11 (#2)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 11.64 million (#3), A18-49: 3.0/ 9 (#4)
The Bachelorette (ABC) – Monday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 8.01 million (#9), A18-49: 2.7/ 8 (#5t)
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.69 million (#12), A18-49: 2.6/10 (#8t)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Thursday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 7.20 million (#17), A18-49: 2.6/ 8 (#8t)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 6.95 million (#19), A18-49: 2.6/ 9 (#8t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.16 million (#22t), A18-49: 2.1/ 6 (#11t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Thursday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 5.63 million (#26t), A18-49: 1.9/ 7 (#15t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Sunday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 5.57 million (#28), A18-49: 1.9/ 6 (#15t)
Here Come the Newlyweds (ABC) – Monday 10 p.m.
Viewers: 4.70 million (#43), A18-49: 1.9/ 5 (#15t)
I Survived a Japanese Game Show (ABC) – Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 3.79 million (#58), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#34t)
The Superstars (ABC) – Tuesday 8 p.m. (90 minutes)
Viewers: 3.62 million (#59), A18-49: 1.1/ 4 (#48t)
The Great American Road Trip (NBC) – Monday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 3.32 million (#63), A18-49: 0.9/ 3 (#68t)
Summer Series Scorecard (In Order of Total Viewers):
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 13.51 million (#2), A18-49: 3.7/11 (#2)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 11.64 million (#3), A18-49: 3.0/ 9 (#4)
The Bachelorette (ABC) – Monday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 8.01 million (#9), A18-49: 2.7/ 8 (#5t)
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.69 million (#12), A18-49: 2.6/10 (#8t)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Thursday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 7.20 million (#17), A18-49: 2.6/ 8 (#8t)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 6.95 million (#19), A18-49: 2.6/ 9 (#8t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.16 million (#22t), A18-49: 2.1/ 6 (#11t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Thursday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 5.63 million (#26t), A18-49: 1.9/ 7 (#15t)
Big Brother – (CBS) – Sunday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 5.57 million (#28), A18-49: 1.9/ 6 (#15t)
Here Come the Newlyweds (ABC) – Monday 10 p.m.
Viewers: 4.70 million (#43), A18-49: 1.9/ 5 (#15t)
I Survived a Japanese Game Show (ABC) – Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 3.79 million (#58), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#34t)
The Superstars (ABC) – Tuesday 8 p.m. (90 minutes)
Viewers: 3.62 million (#59), A18-49: 1.1/ 4 (#48t)
The Great American Road Trip (NBC) – Monday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 3.32 million (#63), A18-49: 0.9/ 3 (#68t)
Thursday, July 16, 2009
61st Annual Primetime Emmy Award nominations:
The 61st Annual Primetime Emmy Award nominations were announced today.
Set out below are interesting stats and nominations in selected categories:
Most nominated networks
HBO 99
NBC 67
ABC 55
CBS 49
Fox 42
Showtime 29
PBS 26
AMC 23
Comedy Central 13
Bravo 11
FX 11
TNT 10
Most nominated series
30 Rock 22
Mad Men 16
Saturday Night Live 13
List of Selected 2009 Emmy Nominations
Outstanding Comedy Series
Entourage • HBO
Family Guy • FOX
Flight Of The Conchords • HBO
How I Met Your Mother • CBS
The Office • NBC
30 Rock • NBC
Weeds • Showtime
Outstanding Drama Series
Big Love • HBO
Breaking Bad • AMC
Damages • FX
Dexter • Showtime
House • FOX
Lost • ABC
Mad Men • AMC
Outstanding Miniseries
Generation Kill • HBO
Little Dorrit • PBS
Outstanding Made For Television Movie
Coco Chanel • Lifetime
Grey Gardens • HBO
Into The Storm • HBO
Prayers For Bobby • Lifetime
Taking Chance • HBO
Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Series
The Colbert Report • Comedy Central
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart • Comedy Central
Late Show With David Letterman • CBS
Real Time With Bill Maher • HBO
Saturday Night Live • NBC
Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Special
Chris Rock - Kill The Messenger • HBO
Kathy Griffin: She’ll Cut A Bitch • Bravo
The Kennedy Center Honors • CBS
Ricky Gervais: Out Of England – The Stand-Up Special • HBO
Will Ferrell: You’re Welcome America. A Final Night With George W. Bush • HBO
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Comedy Series
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory • CBS
Jemaine Clement, Flight Of The Conchords • HBO
Tony Shalhoub, Monk • USA
Steve Carell, The Office • NBC
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock • NBC
Charlie Sheen, Two And A Half Men • CBS
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad • AMC
Michael C. Hall, Dexter • Showtime
Hugh Laurie, House • FOX
Gabriel Byrne, In Treatment • HBO
Jon Hamm, Mad Men • AMC
Simon Baker, The Mentalist • CBS
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Kevin Kline, Cyrano de Bergerac (Great Performances) • PBS
Brendan Gleeson, Into The Storm • HBO
Sir Ian McKellen, King Lear (Great Performances) • PBS
Kevin Bacon, Taking Chance • HBO
Kiefer Sutherland, 24: Redemption • FOX
Kenneth Branagh, Wallander: One Step Behind • PBS
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures Of Old Christine • CBS
Christina Applegate, Samantha Who? • ABC
Sarah Silverman, The Sarah Silverman Program • Comedy Central
Tina Fey, 30 Rock • NBC
Toni Collette, United States Of Tara • Showtime
Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds • Showtime
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series
Sally Field, Brothers & Sisters • ABC
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer • TNT
Glenn Close, Damages • FX
Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men • AMC
Holly Hunter, Saving Grace • TNT
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Chandra Wilson, Accidental Friendship • Hallmark Channel
Shirley MacLaine, Coco Chanel • Lifetime
Drew Barrymore, Grey Gardens • HBO
Jessica Lange, Grey Gardens • HBO
Sigourney Weaver, Prayers For Bobby • Lifetime
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series
Kevin Dillon, Entourage • HBO
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother • CBS
Rainn Wilson, The Office • NBC
Tracy Morgan, 30 Rock • NBC
Jack McBrayer, 30 Rock • NBC
Jon Cryer, Two And A Half Men • CBS
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama Series
William Shatner, Boston Legal • ABC
Christian Clemenson, Boston Legal • ABC
Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad • AMC
William Hurt, Damages • FX
Michael Emerson, Lost • ABC
John Slattery, Mad Men • AMC
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Ken Howard, Grey Gardens • HBO
Len Cariou, Into The Storm • HBO
Bob Newhart, The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice • TNT
Tom Courtenay, Little Dorrit • PBS
Andy Serkis, Little Dorrit • PBS
Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series
Kristin Chenoweth, Pushing Daisies • ABC
Amy Poehler, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Kristin Wiig, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Jane Krakowski, 30 Rock • NBC
Vanessa Williams, Ugly Betty • ABC
Elizabeth Perkins, Weeds • Showtime
Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama Series
Rose Byrne, Damages • FX
Sandra Oh, Grey’s Anatomy • ABC
Chandra Wilson, Grey’s Anatomy • ABC •
Dianne Wiest, In Treatment • HBO
Hope Davis, In Treatment • HBO
Cherry Jones, 24 • FOX
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
Marcia Gay Harden, The Courageous Heart Of Irena Sendler (Hallmark Hall Of Fame Presentation) • CBS
Jeanne Tripplehorn, Grey Gardens • HBO
Shohreh Aghdashloo, House Of Saddam • HBO
Janet McTeer, Into The Storm • HBO
Cicely Tyson, Relative Stranger • Hallmark Channel
Outstanding Guest Actor In A Comedy Series
Beau Bridges, Desperate Housewives • ABC
Justin Timberlake, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Steve Martin, 30 Rock • Gavin Volure • NBC
Jon Hamm, 30 Rock • NBC
Alan Alda, 30 Rock • NBC
Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series
Edward Asner, CSI: NY • CBS
Ted Danson, Damages • FX
Jimmy Smits, Dexter • Showtime
Ernest Borgnine, ER • NBC
Michael J. Fox, Rescue Me • FX
Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series
Christine Baranski, The Big Bang Theory • CBS
Gena Rowlands, Monk • USA
Betty White, My Name Is Earl • NBC
Tina Fey, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Jennifer Aniston, 30 Rock • NBC
Elaine Stritch, 30 Rock • NBC
Outstanding Guest Actress In A Drama Series
Sharon Lawrence, Grey’s Anatomy • ABC
Ellen Burstyn, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
Brenda Blethyn, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
Carol Burnett, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
CCH Pounder, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency • HBO
Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Reality-Competition Program
Phil Keoghan, The Amazing Race • CBS
Ryan Seacrest, American Idol • FOX
Tom Bergeron, Dancing With The Stars • ABC
Heidi Klum, Project Runway • Bravo
Jeff Probst, Survivor • CBS
Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio, Top Chef • Bravo
Outstanding Special Class Programs
81st Annual Academy Awards • ABC
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony • NBC
Carnegie Hall Opening Night 2008: A Celebration of Leonard Bernstein (Great Performances) • PBS
George Carlin: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize • PBS
The 62nd Annual Tony Awards • CBS
Outstanding Children’s Program
Hannah Montana • Disney Channel
iCarly • Nickelodeon
Wizards Of Waverly Place • Disney Channel
Outstanding Children’s Nonfiction ProgramGrandpa, Do You Know Who I Am? With Maria Shriver • HBO
Nick News With Linda Ellerbee Coming Home: When Parents Return from War • Nickelodeon
Outstanding Nonfiction Special
The Alzheimer’s Project: Momentum In Science (Parts 1 & 2) • HBO
Farrah’s Story • NBC
Michael J. Fox: Adventures Of An Incurable Optimist • ABC
102 Minutes That Changed America • HISTORY
Roman Polanski: Wanted And Desired • HBO
Outstanding Nonfiction Series
American Experience • PBS
American Masters • PBS
Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations • Travel Channel
Biography • BIO
Deadliest Catch • Discovery Channel
This American Life • Showtime
Outstanding Reality Program
Antiques Roadshow • PBS
Dirty Jobs • Discovery Channel
Dog Whisperer • NGC
Intervention • A&E
Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List • Bravo
MythBusters • Discovery Channel
Outstanding Reality – Competition Program
The Amazing Race • CBS
American Idol • FOX
Dancing With The Stars • ABC
Project Runway • Bravo
Top Chef • Bravo
Set out below are interesting stats and nominations in selected categories:
Most nominated networks
HBO 99
NBC 67
ABC 55
CBS 49
Fox 42
Showtime 29
PBS 26
AMC 23
Comedy Central 13
Bravo 11
FX 11
TNT 10
Most nominated series
30 Rock 22
Mad Men 16
Saturday Night Live 13
List of Selected 2009 Emmy Nominations
Outstanding Comedy Series
Entourage • HBO
Family Guy • FOX
Flight Of The Conchords • HBO
How I Met Your Mother • CBS
The Office • NBC
30 Rock • NBC
Weeds • Showtime
Outstanding Drama Series
Big Love • HBO
Breaking Bad • AMC
Damages • FX
Dexter • Showtime
House • FOX
Lost • ABC
Mad Men • AMC
Outstanding Miniseries
Generation Kill • HBO
Little Dorrit • PBS
Outstanding Made For Television Movie
Coco Chanel • Lifetime
Grey Gardens • HBO
Into The Storm • HBO
Prayers For Bobby • Lifetime
Taking Chance • HBO
Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Series
The Colbert Report • Comedy Central
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart • Comedy Central
Late Show With David Letterman • CBS
Real Time With Bill Maher • HBO
Saturday Night Live • NBC
Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Special
Chris Rock - Kill The Messenger • HBO
Kathy Griffin: She’ll Cut A Bitch • Bravo
The Kennedy Center Honors • CBS
Ricky Gervais: Out Of England – The Stand-Up Special • HBO
Will Ferrell: You’re Welcome America. A Final Night With George W. Bush • HBO
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Comedy Series
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory • CBS
Jemaine Clement, Flight Of The Conchords • HBO
Tony Shalhoub, Monk • USA
Steve Carell, The Office • NBC
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock • NBC
Charlie Sheen, Two And A Half Men • CBS
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad • AMC
Michael C. Hall, Dexter • Showtime
Hugh Laurie, House • FOX
Gabriel Byrne, In Treatment • HBO
Jon Hamm, Mad Men • AMC
Simon Baker, The Mentalist • CBS
Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Kevin Kline, Cyrano de Bergerac (Great Performances) • PBS
Brendan Gleeson, Into The Storm • HBO
Sir Ian McKellen, King Lear (Great Performances) • PBS
Kevin Bacon, Taking Chance • HBO
Kiefer Sutherland, 24: Redemption • FOX
Kenneth Branagh, Wallander: One Step Behind • PBS
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures Of Old Christine • CBS
Christina Applegate, Samantha Who? • ABC
Sarah Silverman, The Sarah Silverman Program • Comedy Central
Tina Fey, 30 Rock • NBC
Toni Collette, United States Of Tara • Showtime
Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds • Showtime
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series
Sally Field, Brothers & Sisters • ABC
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer • TNT
Glenn Close, Damages • FX
Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men • AMC
Holly Hunter, Saving Grace • TNT
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Chandra Wilson, Accidental Friendship • Hallmark Channel
Shirley MacLaine, Coco Chanel • Lifetime
Drew Barrymore, Grey Gardens • HBO
Jessica Lange, Grey Gardens • HBO
Sigourney Weaver, Prayers For Bobby • Lifetime
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series
Kevin Dillon, Entourage • HBO
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother • CBS
Rainn Wilson, The Office • NBC
Tracy Morgan, 30 Rock • NBC
Jack McBrayer, 30 Rock • NBC
Jon Cryer, Two And A Half Men • CBS
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama Series
William Shatner, Boston Legal • ABC
Christian Clemenson, Boston Legal • ABC
Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad • AMC
William Hurt, Damages • FX
Michael Emerson, Lost • ABC
John Slattery, Mad Men • AMC
Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Ken Howard, Grey Gardens • HBO
Len Cariou, Into The Storm • HBO
Bob Newhart, The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice • TNT
Tom Courtenay, Little Dorrit • PBS
Andy Serkis, Little Dorrit • PBS
Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series
Kristin Chenoweth, Pushing Daisies • ABC
Amy Poehler, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Kristin Wiig, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Jane Krakowski, 30 Rock • NBC
Vanessa Williams, Ugly Betty • ABC
Elizabeth Perkins, Weeds • Showtime
Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama Series
Rose Byrne, Damages • FX
Sandra Oh, Grey’s Anatomy • ABC
Chandra Wilson, Grey’s Anatomy • ABC •
Dianne Wiest, In Treatment • HBO
Hope Davis, In Treatment • HBO
Cherry Jones, 24 • FOX
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
Marcia Gay Harden, The Courageous Heart Of Irena Sendler (Hallmark Hall Of Fame Presentation) • CBS
Jeanne Tripplehorn, Grey Gardens • HBO
Shohreh Aghdashloo, House Of Saddam • HBO
Janet McTeer, Into The Storm • HBO
Cicely Tyson, Relative Stranger • Hallmark Channel
Outstanding Guest Actor In A Comedy Series
Beau Bridges, Desperate Housewives • ABC
Justin Timberlake, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Steve Martin, 30 Rock • Gavin Volure • NBC
Jon Hamm, 30 Rock • NBC
Alan Alda, 30 Rock • NBC
Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series
Edward Asner, CSI: NY • CBS
Ted Danson, Damages • FX
Jimmy Smits, Dexter • Showtime
Ernest Borgnine, ER • NBC
Michael J. Fox, Rescue Me • FX
Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series
Christine Baranski, The Big Bang Theory • CBS
Gena Rowlands, Monk • USA
Betty White, My Name Is Earl • NBC
Tina Fey, Saturday Night Live • NBC
Jennifer Aniston, 30 Rock • NBC
Elaine Stritch, 30 Rock • NBC
Outstanding Guest Actress In A Drama Series
Sharon Lawrence, Grey’s Anatomy • ABC
Ellen Burstyn, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
Brenda Blethyn, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
Carol Burnett, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit • NBC
CCH Pounder, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency • HBO
Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Reality-Competition Program
Phil Keoghan, The Amazing Race • CBS
Ryan Seacrest, American Idol • FOX
Tom Bergeron, Dancing With The Stars • ABC
Heidi Klum, Project Runway • Bravo
Jeff Probst, Survivor • CBS
Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio, Top Chef • Bravo
Outstanding Special Class Programs
81st Annual Academy Awards • ABC
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony • NBC
Carnegie Hall Opening Night 2008: A Celebration of Leonard Bernstein (Great Performances) • PBS
George Carlin: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize • PBS
The 62nd Annual Tony Awards • CBS
Outstanding Children’s Program
Hannah Montana • Disney Channel
iCarly • Nickelodeon
Wizards Of Waverly Place • Disney Channel
Outstanding Children’s Nonfiction ProgramGrandpa, Do You Know Who I Am? With Maria Shriver • HBO
Nick News With Linda Ellerbee Coming Home: When Parents Return from War • Nickelodeon
Outstanding Nonfiction Special
The Alzheimer’s Project: Momentum In Science (Parts 1 & 2) • HBO
Farrah’s Story • NBC
Michael J. Fox: Adventures Of An Incurable Optimist • ABC
102 Minutes That Changed America • HISTORY
Roman Polanski: Wanted And Desired • HBO
Outstanding Nonfiction Series
American Experience • PBS
American Masters • PBS
Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations • Travel Channel
Biography • BIO
Deadliest Catch • Discovery Channel
This American Life • Showtime
Outstanding Reality Program
Antiques Roadshow • PBS
Dirty Jobs • Discovery Channel
Dog Whisperer • NGC
Intervention • A&E
Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List • Bravo
MythBusters • Discovery Channel
Outstanding Reality – Competition Program
The Amazing Race • CBS
American Idol • FOX
Dancing With The Stars • ABC
Project Runway • Bravo
Top Chef • Bravo
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Summer reality TV series ratings update
Summer is peak period for the major US networks to introduce original non-fiction series to replace re-runs of their usual Fall-Winter fictional series lineups. Here is how the Summer reality series that have debuted so far, fared last week (ending July 12) with audiences (ranked on viewership levels based on the Nielson ratings).
Summer Series Scorecard (In Order of Total Viewers):
1 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P 11910 4.1
3 AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-TUE 10570 3.6
11 WIPEOUT 8190 2.8
12 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-THU 7890 2.7
13 BACHELORETTE, THE 7710 2.7
15 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED 7590 2.6
18 BIG BROTHER 11-THU 6590 2.3
19 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 8P 6320 2.2
21 BIG BROTHER 11-SUN 6290 2.2
26 SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER 5700 2.0
39 GREAT AMERICAN ROAD TRIP 4630 1.6
43 JUST FOR LAUGHS 4380 1.5
44 HERE COME THE NEWLYWEDS 4360 1.5
48 SUPERSTARS, THE 4120 1.4
52 I SURVED-JAPANESE GM SHOW 3900 1.3
Summer Series Scorecard (In Order of Total Viewers):
1 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P 11910 4.1
3 AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-TUE 10570 3.6
11 WIPEOUT 8190 2.8
12 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-THU 7890 2.7
13 BACHELORETTE, THE 7710 2.7
15 SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED 7590 2.6
18 BIG BROTHER 11-THU 6590 2.3
19 AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 8P 6320 2.2
21 BIG BROTHER 11-SUN 6290 2.2
26 SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER 5700 2.0
39 GREAT AMERICAN ROAD TRIP 4630 1.6
43 JUST FOR LAUGHS 4380 1.5
44 HERE COME THE NEWLYWEDS 4360 1.5
48 SUPERSTARS, THE 4120 1.4
52 I SURVED-JAPANESE GM SHOW 3900 1.3
Friday, July 10, 2009
Summer reality TV series ratings update
Summer is peak period for the major US networks to introduce original non-fiction series to replace re-runs of their usual Fall-Winter fictional series lineups. Here is how the Summer reality series that have debuted so far, fared last week (ending July 5) with audiences (ranked on viewership levels based on the Nielson ratings). The first set of ratings data is for all viewers and the second is for the key demo.Summer Series Scorecard (In Order of Total Viewers):
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 13.15 million (#1), A18-49: 3.7/11 (#1)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 11.44 million (#2), A18-49: 2.9/ 9 (#3)
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 8.00 million (#14), A18-49: 2.7/10 (#5t)
The Bachelorette (ABC) – Monday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 7.94 million (#16), A18-49: 2.7/ 8 (#5t)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 7.73 million (#17), A18-49: 3.0/10 (#2)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Thursday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 7.23 million (#19), A18-49: 2.3/ 8 (#8t)
Here Come the Newlyweds (ABC) – Monday 10 p.m.
Viewers: 4.70 million (#35), A18-49: 1.7/ 5 (#21t)
The Superstars (ABC) – Tuesday 8 p.m. (90 minutes)
Viewers: 3.97 million (#53), A18-49: 1.3/ 4 (#31t)
I Survived a Japanese Game Show (ABC) – Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 3.54 million (57#), A18-49: 1.3/ 4 (#31t)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Tuesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 13.15 million (#1), A18-49: 3.7/11 (#1)
America’s Got Talent (NBC) - Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 11.44 million (#2), A18-49: 2.9/ 9 (#3)
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 8.00 million (#14), A18-49: 2.7/10 (#5t)
The Bachelorette (ABC) – Monday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 7.94 million (#16), A18-49: 2.7/ 8 (#5t)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 7.73 million (#17), A18-49: 3.0/10 (#2)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Thursday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 7.23 million (#19), A18-49: 2.3/ 8 (#8t)
Here Come the Newlyweds (ABC) – Monday 10 p.m.
Viewers: 4.70 million (#35), A18-49: 1.7/ 5 (#21t)
The Superstars (ABC) – Tuesday 8 p.m. (90 minutes)
Viewers: 3.97 million (#53), A18-49: 1.3/ 4 (#31t)
I Survived a Japanese Game Show (ABC) – Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 3.54 million (57#), A18-49: 1.3/ 4 (#31t)
Thursday, July 2, 2009
2009 Dora Winners
The Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) presented the 30th Annual Dora Mavor Moore Awards on Monday, June 29 at the Winter Garden Theatre. While long running big budget musicals "The Sound of Music" (Mirvish Productions) and "Jersey Boys" (Dancap Productions) received nods, the biggest winner was Agokwe, a small production mounted at Buddies in Bad Times theatre. It won a leading six awards, including outstanding production of a play and best new play. Agokwe was written by and stars by Ojibwa First Nations artist Waawaate Fobister. It is a tale of star-crossed love between two teenage boys on neighbouring reserves.
2009 Winners
GENERAL THEATRE PRODUCTION DIVISION
Outstanding New Play
Waawaate Fobister, Agokwe
Outstanding New Musical/Opera
Abigail Richardson (Composer) & Marjorie Chan (Librettist), Sanctuary Song
Outstanding Production of a Play
Agokwe, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre
Outstanding Production of a Musical
The Sound of Music, Andrew Lloyd Webber, David Ian, David Mirvish
Outstanding Direction of a Play
Ed Roy, Agokwe
Outstanding Direction of a Musical
Des McAnuff, The Jersey Boys
Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Principal Role – Play
Waawaate Fobister, Agokwe
Outstanding Performance by a Female in a Principal Role – Play
Alison Sealy-Smith, A Raisin in the Sun
Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Principal Role – Musical
Jeff Madden, Jersey Boys
Outstanding Performance by a Female in a Principal Role – Musical
Elicia MacKenzie, The Sound of Music
Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role in a Play or Musical
Raven Dauda, Miss Julie: Freedom Summer
Outstanding Set Design
Robert Jones, The Sound of Music
Outstanding Costume Design
Erika Iserhoff, Agokwe
Outstanding Lighting Design
Kimberly Purtell, Agokwe
Outstanding Sound Design/Composition
John Gzowski, It’s a Wonderful Life
Outstanding Musical Direction
Anne Manson, A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Outstanding Choreography in a Play or Musical
Denise Clarke/Peggy Baker, Radio Play
Outstanding Touring Production
Black Watch, Luminato presents The National Theatre of Scotland
INDEPENDENT THEATRE PRODUCTION DIVISION
Outstanding New Play or New Musical
Anton Piatigorsky, Eternal Hydra
Outstanding Production
Eternal Hydra, Crow’s Theatre
Outstanding Direction
Chris Abraham, Eternal Hydra
Outstanding Performance by a Male
David Ferry, Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me
Outstanding Performance by a Female
Maja Ardal, You Fancy Yourself
Outstanding Set Design
Gillian Gallow, Appetite
Outstanding Costume Design
Gillian Gallow, Appetite
Outstanding Lighting Design
John Thompson, Eternal Hydra
Outstanding Sound Design/Composition
Waylen Miki, An Inconvenient Musical
2009 Winners
GENERAL THEATRE PRODUCTION DIVISION
Outstanding New Play
Waawaate Fobister, Agokwe
Outstanding New Musical/Opera
Abigail Richardson (Composer) & Marjorie Chan (Librettist), Sanctuary Song
Outstanding Production of a Play
Agokwe, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre
Outstanding Production of a Musical
The Sound of Music, Andrew Lloyd Webber, David Ian, David Mirvish
Outstanding Direction of a Play
Ed Roy, Agokwe
Outstanding Direction of a Musical
Des McAnuff, The Jersey Boys
Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Principal Role – Play
Waawaate Fobister, Agokwe
Outstanding Performance by a Female in a Principal Role – Play
Alison Sealy-Smith, A Raisin in the Sun
Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Principal Role – Musical
Jeff Madden, Jersey Boys
Outstanding Performance by a Female in a Principal Role – Musical
Elicia MacKenzie, The Sound of Music
Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role in a Play or Musical
Raven Dauda, Miss Julie: Freedom Summer
Outstanding Set Design
Robert Jones, The Sound of Music
Outstanding Costume Design
Erika Iserhoff, Agokwe
Outstanding Lighting Design
Kimberly Purtell, Agokwe
Outstanding Sound Design/Composition
John Gzowski, It’s a Wonderful Life
Outstanding Musical Direction
Anne Manson, A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Outstanding Choreography in a Play or Musical
Denise Clarke/Peggy Baker, Radio Play
Outstanding Touring Production
Black Watch, Luminato presents The National Theatre of Scotland
INDEPENDENT THEATRE PRODUCTION DIVISION
Outstanding New Play or New Musical
Anton Piatigorsky, Eternal Hydra
Outstanding Production
Eternal Hydra, Crow’s Theatre
Outstanding Direction
Chris Abraham, Eternal Hydra
Outstanding Performance by a Male
David Ferry, Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me
Outstanding Performance by a Female
Maja Ardal, You Fancy Yourself
Outstanding Set Design
Gillian Gallow, Appetite
Outstanding Costume Design
Gillian Gallow, Appetite
Outstanding Lighting Design
John Thompson, Eternal Hydra
Outstanding Sound Design/Composition
Waylen Miki, An Inconvenient Musical
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Big Brother 11
CBS has announced plans for the 11th season of Big Brother, premiering on Thursday, July 9 at 8PM ET.
The season will feature a "kickin' it old school" format as the 12 houseguests are sectioned into four familiar high school cliques -- "popular, athletes, brainiacs and off beats". These four teams will battle in food, luxury and eviction competitions. The 12 houseguests will also be joined by a thirteenth "mystery houseguest" whose identity won't be revealed until the premiere.
Following its premiere, Big Brother 11 will settle into a regular thrice-weekly broadcast schedule, with Sunday night episodes airing at 8PM ET beginning July 12 and Tuesday night episodes airing at 9PM ET beginning July 14. As in previous Big Brother seasons, the Thursday episodes will serve as the eleventh season's live eviction shows.
The Big Brother house has been modified into a green eco-friendly structure where waste will be monitored and the HOH room has been designed to resemble the seaside in Big Sur, CA.
The identities of the 12 announced Big Brother 11 houseguests are:
- Braden Bacha, a single 28-year-old surfer from Santa Monica, CA
- Casey Turner, a married 41-year-old father, fifth-grade teacher and DJ from Lakeland, FL
- Chima Simone, a single 32-year-old freelance journalist from West Hollywood, CA
- Jeff Schroeder, a single 30-year-old advertising salesman from Norridge, IL
- Jordan Lloyd, a single 22-year-old waitress from Matthews, NC
- Kevin Campbell, a single 29-year-old graphic designer from Chula Vista, CA
- Lauren Crosby, a single 21-year-old bikini model from Atlanta, GA
- Lydia Tavera, a single 24-year-old special effects make-up artist from Torrance, CA
- Michele Noonan, a married 27-year-old neuroscientist from Pasadena, CA
- Natalie Martinez, a single 24-year-old Tae Kwon Do champion from Gilbert, AZ
- Ronnie Talbott, a married 30-year-old gamer from Belpre, OH
- Russell Kairouz, a single 24-year-old mixed martial arts fighter from Walnut Creek, CA
The season will feature a "kickin' it old school" format as the 12 houseguests are sectioned into four familiar high school cliques -- "popular, athletes, brainiacs and off beats". These four teams will battle in food, luxury and eviction competitions. The 12 houseguests will also be joined by a thirteenth "mystery houseguest" whose identity won't be revealed until the premiere.
Following its premiere, Big Brother 11 will settle into a regular thrice-weekly broadcast schedule, with Sunday night episodes airing at 8PM ET beginning July 12 and Tuesday night episodes airing at 9PM ET beginning July 14. As in previous Big Brother seasons, the Thursday episodes will serve as the eleventh season's live eviction shows.
The Big Brother house has been modified into a green eco-friendly structure where waste will be monitored and the HOH room has been designed to resemble the seaside in Big Sur, CA.
The identities of the 12 announced Big Brother 11 houseguests are:
- Braden Bacha, a single 28-year-old surfer from Santa Monica, CA
- Casey Turner, a married 41-year-old father, fifth-grade teacher and DJ from Lakeland, FL
- Chima Simone, a single 32-year-old freelance journalist from West Hollywood, CA
- Jeff Schroeder, a single 30-year-old advertising salesman from Norridge, IL
- Jordan Lloyd, a single 22-year-old waitress from Matthews, NC
- Kevin Campbell, a single 29-year-old graphic designer from Chula Vista, CA
- Lauren Crosby, a single 21-year-old bikini model from Atlanta, GA
- Lydia Tavera, a single 24-year-old special effects make-up artist from Torrance, CA
- Michele Noonan, a married 27-year-old neuroscientist from Pasadena, CA
- Natalie Martinez, a single 24-year-old Tae Kwon Do champion from Gilbert, AZ
- Ronnie Talbott, a married 30-year-old gamer from Belpre, OH
- Russell Kairouz, a single 24-year-old mixed martial arts fighter from Walnut Creek, CA
Summer reality TV series ratings update
Summer is peak period for the major US networks to introduce original non-fiction series to replace re-runs of their usual Fall-Winter fictional series lineups. Here is how the Summer reality series that have debuted so far fared last week (ending June 28) with audiences (ranked on viewership levels based on the Nielson ratings). The first set of ratings data is for all viewers and the second is for the key demo.
Summer Series Scorecard (In Order of Total Viewers):
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.80 million (#10), A18-49: 2.8/ 9 (#4)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 7.62 million (#11), A18-49: 2.9/ 9 (#3)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Thursday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.89 million (#18), A18-49: 2.5/ 8 (#5t)
The Bachelorette (ABC) – Monday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 6.76 million (#19), A18-49: 2.3/ 7 (#7t)
I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (NBC) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (season finale)
Viewers: 4.33 million (#45t), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#35t)
I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (NBC) – Tuesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 4.33 million (#45t), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#25t)
The Superstars (ABC) – Tuesday 8 p.m. (premiere, 90 minutes)
Viewers: 4.27 million (#48), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#25t)
I Survived a Japanese Game Show (ABC) – Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 3.99 million (#56), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#25t)
Here Come the Newlyweds (ABC) – Monday 10 p.m.
Viewers: 3.89 million (#57), A18-49: 1.4/ 4 (#35t)
Summer Series Scorecard (In Order of Total Viewers):
Wipeout (ABC) - Wednesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 7.80 million (#10), A18-49: 2.8/ 9 (#4)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 7.62 million (#11), A18-49: 2.9/ 9 (#3)
So You Think You Can Dance (Fox) – Thursday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 6.89 million (#18), A18-49: 2.5/ 8 (#5t)
The Bachelorette (ABC) – Monday 8 p.m. (two hours)
Viewers: 6.76 million (#19), A18-49: 2.3/ 7 (#7t)
I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (NBC) – Wednesday 8 p.m. (season finale)
Viewers: 4.33 million (#45t), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#35t)
I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (NBC) – Tuesday 8 p.m.
Viewers: 4.33 million (#45t), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#25t)
The Superstars (ABC) – Tuesday 8 p.m. (premiere, 90 minutes)
Viewers: 4.27 million (#48), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#25t)
I Survived a Japanese Game Show (ABC) – Wednesday 9 p.m.
Viewers: 3.99 million (#56), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#25t)
Here Come the Newlyweds (ABC) – Monday 10 p.m.
Viewers: 3.89 million (#57), A18-49: 1.4/ 4 (#35t)
CHCH Sold
CanWest Global announced today that it is selling two major market TV stations to Channel Zero (operator of cable specialty stations Movieola and Silver Screen Classics). The stations, in Montreal and Hamilton, were scheduled to close in the Fall, if not sold. Channel Zero apparently paid minimal consideration.
Channel Zero, said it plans to change the format of Hamilton's CHCH Channel station to an all-news format throughout the day while running movies in the evening. (The Montreal station operates as a multicultural channel.) The new format heralds a return to CH’s historical roots when it was known for airing North American TV premieres of box office hit movies and as the home of news personalities like Norm Marshall, Tom Cherington and weatherman Bill Lawrence (later of CBC Toronto).
Channel Zero, said it plans to change the format of Hamilton's CHCH Channel station to an all-news format throughout the day while running movies in the evening. (The Montreal station operates as a multicultural channel.) The new format heralds a return to CH’s historical roots when it was known for airing North American TV premieres of box office hit movies and as the home of news personalities like Norm Marshall, Tom Cherington and weatherman Bill Lawrence (later of CBC Toronto).
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
CITY-tv Toronto finally on the move?
Rogers Media have confirmed that the renovations of its new studio space adjacent to Yonge-Dundas Square are finally substantially complete and that CITY-tv and OMNI 1/2 will be moving to take up occupancy sometime in July. The move was originally announced back in October 2007. CITY has resided at 299 Queen St W for the better part of the last 20 years. I'm sure CTV will be glad to gain the reclaim the space CITY vacates back at Yonge & Richmond for its cable specialty networks (like MuchMusic, Bravo! and GTA news outlet CP24! The new space at Yonge-Victoria is approximately 43,000 square feet
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