My parents got the cruise fever later in life, but I’m not sure I can convince them to ship to Australia; maybe too close to my father’s family who, while not poor enough to get shipped to the colony, were poor enough to get sent to Wales.

And then there’s that food safety thing.

Cruise Critic reports that cinnamon sticks stored next to a baited roach trap, blocks of nonpotable carving ice in contact with containers of ice cream and more than a dozen live flies were recently discovered on Veendam by health inspectors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Those and over 100 other infractions earned the Holland America ship a failing score of 77 out of 100 on its August 19 vessel sanitation inspection.

The CDC’s surprise cruise ship cleanliness exam is conducted twice a year, with an 86 considered passing. 

In a detailed report, inspectors documented finding live flies in a pastry dry stores locker, a provisions room, a prep room and numerous galleys throughout the ship. The report recommended that crew effectively control the presence of insects, rodents and other pests to minimize their presence in the food storage, preparation and service areas. 

Inspectors also found a number of washing and food storage devices, including refrigerators and dishwashing machines, were in need of repair. A leak in a water line directly above one dishwashing machine resulted in water dripping into the machine and contaminating clean dishes after they were sanitized. According to the report, workers were then observed taking contaminated dishes and putting them into clean storage racks.