On the Nieuw Amsterdam, you'll get a chance to see the talented crew members demonstrate their expertise in everything from creating the adorable towel animals you find in your cabin every evening to the carving of those massive and intricate ice scuptures and those beatiful fruit and vegetable carvings you see every day at the buffets. You'll also find the opportunity to learn and exercise such skills as origami, brush lettering, acrylic painting, and knitting.
Here are many of those Arts and Crafts activities.
Some afternoons, you'll be able to watch a Cooking
Demonstration in the Rolling Stone Lounge (midships Deck 2 - Lower Promenade Deck). You'll
receive a printed copy of the recipe
for the dish being presented, and overhead mirrors will allow you to see exactly what the chef is doing.
One of the favorite things for a great many cruisers are the
Towel Animals left in their cabins by their room steward upon returning after dinner. Generally, on most cruises, one
or two of the room stewards will show you how they make these fantasy creations in a demonstration, generally in the
Explorer's Lounge. To
see a whole menagerie of towel animals, click HERE.
Like many cruise ships and higher-end hotels, you'll find many buffets
enhanced with beautiful and elaborate Ice Carvings. These are done right on the ship by superb craftspeople from the HAL kitchen
staff. You can expect that at least once during your cruise, you'll be able to watch the of one of these stunning creations created in front of you from
start to finish. To see more photos of a shipboard ice carving demonstration, click HERE.
While you probably won't be whipping up your own ice
carvings when you get back home, you might very well try out some of the techniques you'll see in the Fruit and Vegetable Carving
demonstration. They'll show you some simple things you can easily do as well as some of the expert-level creations they regularly create to decorate
the ship's buffets. What these master chefs can do with a watermelon is nothing short of amazing. To see some examples, click
HERE.
Once each cruise, a cruise-staff member will probably offer a class
in Napkin Folding something you can use to decorate the tables at your own dinner parties.
The cruise staff will offer a class in Origami where you can
craft unique, playful paper sculptures using precise simple folding techniques.
Lately, Coloring for Adults has become extremely
popular, allowing one to calm the mind and express inner artistry with intricate patterns waiting to be brought to brilliant life.
Modern Brush Lettering combines the beauty of
traditional calligraphy with a fresh, expressive twist.
Knitting meet-ups let you choose your favorite yarn and
pattern and learn how simple methods can produce big results.