Astoria -"Tervetuloa" (Finnish Welcome)

The Oceania Insignia arrived at the Port of Astoria, for the first time. This always means a port and ship plaque exchange. There were local dignitaries waiting when we arrived in Astoria and they were escorted to the Martinis Lounge for the ceremony. We just happened to be sitting in the spot when they were about to begin and became the defacto audience for this exchange.

Captain Zuzic, General Manager Barasse and Social Hostess Battel were there to greet them. The Port Commisioner, Board Members of the Port, Cruise Hosts, Chamber of Commerce, and Port Manager were all there for the cocktail and hors d’oeuvres reception and exchange. Short speeches were given and a bag full of local goodies were presented to the Captain. In exchange, the Captain provided the local dignitaries with a model of our ship (we ran out of plaques since we have been to so many new ports on this trip). The Captain was eloquent (of course he just joined our ship too) and said that although Insignia has been around the world 8 times, this was the first time we were here ... and we saved the best (port) for last.

We were introduced and got to meet the head of the Cruise Hosts in Astoria. These volunteers make up a team of 150 individuals that greet visitors from cruise ships every day since in their words … “We are the friendliest Port in the West.”Read more