Kevin Dixon examines the evidence

Pandemic Parking

Life Aboard the Volendam

e gracious cruise ships that have taken up residence in the sheltered waters of Tor Bay have become one of the most enduring symbols of pandemic life. Anita Newcombe wonders what life is like aboard.

Since the arrival of cruise ships in Tor Bay, there has during this worldwide crisis they have been operating with been a fascination for these luxurious ladies now a skeleton crew and kept in ‘warm storage’ until they are lingering elegantly in our waters. We’ve seen Cunard’s able to resume operations. We asked the crew of Holland Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth America’s Volendam to give us an insight into the strange bobbing gently at anchor o Babbacombe and ships world of ‘pandemic parking’. of the Holland America Line including the fabulous e ‘Master’ is Captain Friso Kramer gezegd Freher. Volendam, the Eurodam and the Oosterdam all bring a He tells us, “It is great to feel so welcome in the beautiful touch of glamour to Tor Bay. location of Torbay. My main objective is to keep the

Kayakers, ship in good and safe paddleboarders and other small craft have paddled out to see these sophisticated “ We take care of each other and enjoy the fantastic support of the local community. It truly helps brighten each and every day. condition and well preserved, for when the time comes to receive our guests back on oating havens of recreation and fun. Pleasure boats board. We hope that this will happen later this year. In have plied a trade transporting passengers to admire their the meantime we take care of each other and enjoy the size and classic lines. Locals are often delighted by these fantastic support of the local community. It truly helps wonderful cruise ships and fascinated by the life of the brighten each and every day.” crews aboard. More used to cruising the Mediterranean, Captain Friso was born in Wellington New Zealand as the Caribbean or further a eld they are now anchored the only son of a Dutch shipping executive. Friso’s rst o shore in Tor Bay – who knows for how much longer? word was “boat” and when growing up he always had a ere are not enough ports to accommodate all these fascination for water. Back in Holland, at the age of seven, vessels that would normally be at sea much of the time, so he started sailing an Optimist (a small one-sail training

Above: The Volendam lying in Tor Bay Below left to right: Captain Friso with his partner Chantal; Sta Captain Laurens Wolvekamp on the bridge; Chief Engineer, Bart Rodenrijs manning the engine control room

boat for beginners). His sailing hobby then really took o and he crewed a variety of sailing boats competitively, nationally and internationally, going as far as races in Hobart, Tasmania. is continued until the age of 24 when he joined Holland America Line (having meanwhile studied at a maritime college, spent a year sailing the high seas as a cadet o cer, and then completed a Bachelor Degree in Maritime Operations).

Sta Captain Laurens Wolvekamp has been with the company for 16 years and has sailed on numerous Holland America Line ships all over the world, though never to Tor Bay. He says, “Although it can be windy once in a while, it’s a beautiful bay to be in and we appreciate all the good support from the agent, pilots and local community.”

Chief Engineer, Bart Rodenrijs lives in Ireland and felt at home straight away in the Torbay area. He tells us that although the cli s are not as high as in Ireland, our local landscape reminds him from the scenery in his home country. His role in the technical department helps to keeps the ship and its machinery running.

Environmental O cer, Diana Mihalache is responsible for verifying compliance of all environmental aspects of Volendam. With the spring approaching, Diana is looking forward to the beautiful light days in the Bay. She loves writing blogs and has a website green-ships.com that raises awareness on the work the maritime industry is doing on sustainability and protection of the environment.

Hotel Director, Ruben Kooiman greatly approves of the strong 4G signal on board the ship so he can stream his

from navigating through the busy waterways of South East Asia, to crossing vast oceans.” Josh started as a cadet with Holland America in 2010 and has been with the Volendam for the last six years. Safety O cer Maarten Janse is in charge of managing a team of two o cers, two lifesaving equipment attendants, a locksmith and a re safety attendant. His team take care of the 14 lifeboats, 34 rafts and their cranes, the watertight, shell Environmental O cer, Diana Mihalache; Hotel Director, Ruben Kooiman and re doors, the re hoses, the sprinkler and CO2 extinguishing favourite football team, Feyenoord Rotterdam. He loves system and the re detection equipment. He says, “I the local scenery and hopes to return to this area one day really enjoy sailing in this beautiful location and hope to to enjoy a holiday. be coming back here again when the ships are back in full

Second O cer Josh Banyard was born and raised in service” Plymouth. He says, “I’ve been fortunate during my career e crew certainly look forward to sailing with guests to visit many remote and beautiful parts of the world, again in the near future but meanwhile are happy to be Above: Safety O cer Maarten Janse; Right: Plymouth-born Second O cer Josh Banyard

I really enjoy sailing in this beautiful location and hope to be coming back here again when the ships are back in full service

here telling us, “Every day we spend in the bay is a great day - our team members on board are thankful for the beautiful views, experiencing four seasons in a day, and enjoying our monthly sailings to Portland. Our team members have really bonded with each other both on the job and during free time, which is so important when you spend 4-8 months aboard a ship.” e Volendam is currently on ‘Minimum Nonoperational Manning’ and has a complement of 89 crewmembers whereas during normal operations there would be approximately 650. Currently there are 29 in the Nautical Department, which includes sailors, navigational o cers and security personnel all led by the Sta Captain. e Chief Engineer leads 32 crewmembers in the Technical Department, which includes a waste disposal operator plus engine crew. e Medical Department consists of a doctor and a nurse. ere are 26 crew in the Hotel Department led by the Hotel Director including the housekeeping team and chefs plus restaurant, beverage, storekeeper and administration sta . Additionally, there is a Human Resources Manager and Environmental O cer.

During normal operations, the technical team numbers 70 members. e engine and control rooms are manned 24/7 by a team of three members. Tasks include keeping watch and maintaining systems like water makers, boilers, compressors and so on. e 1st engineer is responsible for maintaining chillers, fuel, cooling and propulsion systems and there is one engineer designated for engine maintenance together with an engine mechanic. Lastly, maintaining the technical part of safety systems on board such as lifeboat engines and re pumps is essential.

Currently the safety team consists of six crewmembers who have a great working relationship with their counterparts from the technical department. e bridge is manned 24/7, and there are six watches. e Sta Captain and Safety O cer also step in as watch keeping o cers when the vessel is sailing. Aside from watch keeping duties the o cers also work on voyage planning as well as giving training and instructions on handling emergency situations i.e. re, man overboard and abandon ship drills. e Volendam has designated one speci c engine to run during the pause operation, but they do swap engines

I’ve been fortunate during my career to visit many remote and beautiful parts of the world, rom navigating through the busy waterways of South East Asia, to crossing vast oceans

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occasionally, as planned maintenance has to be carried the fully equipped tness area while some prefer to walk or out. ey have ve engines in total - all are V12 type run on the open deck. ere is access to the internet and the engines rated at 8.6MW each. In addition they run an use of platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp mean that Emergency and Additional Diesel Generator weekly for they are able to stay in close contact with their families. 30 minutes. ese engines have to be tested weekly so e Volendam crew really enjoy the lovely views on a they know they are ready to go if an emergency occurs. clear weather day and you may spot them watching the

When the workday is over the crew keeps itself skyline or the sunrise and sunset from the verandahs. entertained with a weekly karaoke session, an occasional Some of the crew have developed a connection with local movie night and keeping t at the gym. ey eat well of Torbay residents via Facebook groups. ey tell us, ” e course. e Executive Chef Darren has been at sea for thing that struck our hearts the most since we’ve been in many years. He customizes the bay were the Christmas the menu to meet the requirements of the eleven di erent nationalities from the various continents for breakfast, lunch and “ Every day we spend in the bay is a great day - our team members on board are thankful for the beautiful views, experiencing four seasons in hampers organized by local resident Louise Sta ord. ese gifts included beautiful handmade cards by the children – we will dinner. A few times a week, a day, and enjoying our monthly never forget this. It really he will include a dinner sailings to Portland reminded us of our families special, which is always back home that we all popular. With a galley brigade of four further cooks, he miss so much. e generosity and warmth shown by the also prepares a bi-weekly theme dinner that is beautifully community has been really humbling, and we are truly executed and thoroughly enjoyed by the team onboard. grateful for their e orts to spread the festive cheer.”

O -duty leisure pursuits include movies, interactive One thing is certain and that when the pandemic recedes TV programs, games like pool, table tennis, darts, and the Volendam, along with its sister ships, sail o into and a number of the latest PS4 games. ey organize the wild blue yonder, their crews will remember Tor Bay tournaments and the teams get together regularly to enjoy with a ection and Torbay residents will certainly have fond a drink and catch up on the day. Everyone has access to memories of the ‘Year the Cruise Ships Came’. 

Did You Know?

Art has always been important to the Holland America Line eet, and traditionally the ships have always been lled with notable works. This includes many museum-quality antiques as well as contemporary art, both by recognized artists and, in particular on our newer ships, many aspiring artists. As the caretakers of these pieces, Holland America is rightly proud that its art collection ranks among the largest at sea and is worth many millions of dollars.