So by now you may be asking who was the Captain of this dam (as in Volendam) ship anyway...
well, we heard him over the loudspeaker a couple of times during the cruise..."This is your Captain Pieieieter Visser (just pronounce it like the Chef on Sesame Street), but we never did get to meet him. Oh, we were cordially invited to the Captain's Champagne Reception alright, but being as we don't do lines -- and this one stretched from practically one end of the ship to the other (OK, I'm exagerrating, but you get the picture) so we thought we'd pass; besides, the timing collided (perhaps not a good work for an Alaskan cruise, but whatever) collided with our customary pre-dinner almost always Champagne cocktail hour and besides we couldn't be late as our reservation, and as it turned out, Ferenz Gabor awaited us in the "elegant dining alternative" Pinnacle Grill.