Mariella in Helsinki, 16 October 2012

The photographs in this entry are my last ship photos from 2012 (well, to date, but due to the poor lighting conditions in this part of the world for the rest of the year, it's very unlikely I will have a cance to take more). This is actually something of an accident. As I wrote in the previous entry, I was hoping to get some photos from my two-weeks-ago cruise to Stockholm on the Silja Symphony. Additionally, yesterday was supposed to be the date of last cruise call in Helsinki for 2012, with Fred. Olsen's Black Watch making a call during her Baltic Christmas Markets cruise. This was not to be, as the call was cancelled due to heavy winds (which have since developed into a still-continuing blizzard). For next entries after this one, we will probably move on to my archives. But now onwards to the point:

Mariella

IMO 8320573
Built 1985, Wärtsilä Turku New Shipyard, Finland
Tonnage 37 860 GT
Length 175,70 m
Width 28,40 m
Draugth 6,78 m
Ice class 1A Super
2 500 passengers
2 500 berths
400 cars
4 Wärtsilä diesels, combined 23 008 kW
2 propellers
2 bow thrusters
Speed 22 knots

Very little to say about the Mariella, really. She is the faithful servant, having sailed on between Helsinki and Stockholm almost with interruption since 1985. The photographs below show her sailing through the Kustaanmiekka strait after departing Helsinki on the afternoon of 16 October 201. Click on the images to see them in larger size.

The lighting might not be very good, but just look at the sky!

More of the sexy sky...

The sun did clearly still shine a bit, judging by the reflections on the windows.

Entering the narrowest part of the strait.

Also notice the wee bit of autumn foliage on the left.

Silja Symphony in Helsinki, 16 October 2012

Silja Symphony

IMO 8803769
Built 1991, Kvaerner Masa-Yards Turku New Shipyard, Finland
Tonnage 58 377 GT
Length 203,03 m
Width 31,93 m
Draught 7,12 m
Ice class 1A Super
2 852 passengers
3 001 berths
410 cars
1 600 lane metres
4 Wärtsilä-Vasa diesels, combined 32 580 kW
2 propellers
2 bow thrusters
1 stern thruster
Speed 21 knots

The Silja Symphony seems to be in fashion these days (so to say) . The previous entry was about her, this entry is about her, and yesterday I returned from a two-night ferry cruise to Stockholm with her. I had hoped that the said trip would have yielded some interesting photographs (as we are nearing the end of my photos taken during this year), but alas the weather was quite bad during the entire trip and hence very few photos worth of posting were taken.

But regardless of that, do enjoy thesephotos, which show the Silja Symphony in and departing from Helsinki on the afternoon of 16 October 2012. Click on the imaes to see them in larger size.

Hiding behind firey trees.

Pictoresque fishermen's huts right outside the harbour.

Some time later at the Kustaanmiekka strait, with impressively lit clouds in the background. Unfortunately the impressive lighting didn't really extended to the ship itself.

Dark cloud formations in a somewhat atypical Finnish autumn weather. Usually there's just a mat of completely even light grey which makes photographing predominantly white ships extremely difficult.

I admit to cheating with this one: the ship and the rest of the image were treated separately, as that was only way to light up the ship without losing the dramatic dark clouds in the background.

Out of the strait, with even a little bit of setting sun reflecting from the windows.

Stockholm awaits.

Next time: Mariella

Silja Symphony in Helsinki, 17 September 2012

Silja Symphony

IMO 8803769
Built 1991, Kvaerner Masa-Yards Turku New Shipyard, Finland
Tonnage 58 377 GT
Length 203,03 m
Width 31,93 m
Draught 7,12 m
Ice class 1A Super
2 852 passengers
3 001 berths
410 cars
1 600 lane metres
4 Wärtsilä-Vasa diesels, combined 32 580 kW
2 propellers
2 bow thrusters
1 stern thruster
Speed 21 knots

Nothing much new to say about the Silja Symphony. Still a fine ship. The photographs below show her after passing through the Kustaanmiekka strait on the afternoon of 17 September 2012, sailing outbound from Helsinki. Click on the images to see in larger size.

I presume the smoke is from firing up an additional engine after passing through the Kustaanmiekka strait out to the open sea.

The autumn wind created some very dramatic waves...

...and the ship's passing created some additional dramatic waves ashore.

Next time: probably some more Silja Symphony from later in the autumn.

Delphin in Helsinki, 17 September 2012

Delphin

IMO 7347536
Name history: Belorussiya, Kazakhstan II, Delphin
Built 1975, Wärtsilä Turku, Finland
Tonnage 16 214 GT
Length 156,27 m
Width 21,90 m
Draugth 6,20 m
556 passengers
2 Pielstick-Wärtsilä diesels, combined 13 240 kW
2 propellers
1 bow thruster
Speed 21 knots

The Delphin, or "my favourite cruise ship that I've never been on". She's been featured on this blog three times before, but it seems I can't get enough of the ship. Asssembling this entry I noticed that the ship's current operator, Passat Kreuzfahrten, have also issued an English-language catalogue - which means one could probably get by onboard even if one doesn't speak German terribly well. So perhaps the Delphin will have the chance to have the "that I've never been on" dropped from it's description.

My travel plans aside, the photographs below show the Delphin in Helsinki South Harbour and departing the city via the Kustaanmiekka strait on the afternoon of 17 September 2012 in beautiful autumn evening light. Click on the images to see them in larger size.

A former soviet ferryand the Uspensky Cathedral, that was often used to represent Leningrad or Moscow in Cold War -era Hollywood films.

Look at that light! Right now it's cold, wet and dark outside here, and it's a bit hard to believe this photo was taken less than two months ago.

I just think this ship looks superb. Right down to the little nautical details like the double stripe on the hull.

Kustaanmiekka strait, part 1...

...part 2...

...and part 3, with added panoramic effect.

Through the strait and that superb light!

It was actually quite windy and the sea was a bit choppy, as the spray from the ship's bow proves.

Onwards and outwards, to enjoy the Delphin's first winter programme with Passat Kreuzfahrten, that will take the ship to the Caribbean and Antarctica.

Next time: Silja Symphony.

Saga Sapphire in Helsinki, 27 July 2012

Before we proceed to today's entry with the Saga Sapphire, it is time to do the same advertisement we do every two months: the latest issue of the Finnish-language Ulkomatala web magazine is out again. This time it includes two articles by yours truly, one detailing the 50 years of ferry traffic between Finland and Germany and the other dealing with past ships named Finlandia in honour of Eckerö Line's upcoming ship with that name. You may access the latest issue of the magazine here.

Also, in case you have missed it, I have recently also been active as MaritimeMatters' Helsinki correspondent with a trip report from Eckerö Line's Nordlandia. You can read that piece here. Now, onwards to the point.

Saga Sapphire

IMO 7822457
Name history: Europa, SuperStar Europe, SuperStar Aries, Holiday Dream, Bleu de France
Built 1981, Bremer Vulkan, Germany
Tonnage 37 301 GT
Length 199,63 m
Width 28,55 m
Draught 8,30 m
706 passengers
2 MAN-Bremer Vulkan diesels, combined 21 270 kW
2 propellers
1 bow thruster
Speed 21 knots

The Saga Sapphire started life as Hapag-Lloyd Cruises' Europa of 1981. According to Philip Dawson's delightful book The Liner, the ship was designed to be usable in liner traffic in addition to cruise service, though she has never been used as a liner. The Europa sailed with Hapag-Lloyd until the late 1990s, when the company decided to build a new, much more luxurious Europa. In preparation for the delivery of the new Europa, the old Europa was sold to Star Cruises in 1998, but chartered back to Hapag-Lloyd until the delivery of the new Europa in 1999.

In 1999 the Europa became Star Cruises' SuperStar Europe, with the name modified to SuperStar Aries the following year. In 2004 the ship changed owners and reappeared as Pullmantur Cruises' Holiday Dream. Four years later Pullmantur's new owners Royal Caribbean Cruises International decided to refit the Holiday Dream for the French cruise market under the banner of RCCL's new CdF Croisieres de France brand as the Bleu de France. CdF became a success and it was soon clear a larger ship would be needed. In 2010 the Bleu de France was sold to Saga Cruises for delivery in 2012. Saga Cruises decided to rename the ship Saga Sapphire and she entered service following a refit in 2012.

The photographs below show the Saga Sapphire departing from Helsinki on the afternoon of 27 July 2012, photographed from Kustaanmiekka. Click on the images to see them in larger size.

With the new ship Saga Cruises decided to alter their funnel colours from the very traditional yellow and black... and the new ones look terrible. The other side, with a "Saga" text looks slightly better.

Due to having just one bow thruster, the Saga Sapphire needed tug assistance to depart and she was trailed by the tugs out of Kustaanmiekka. The first tug is the Artemis and the second probably the Hector (I didn't write their names down so not 100% certain about the identification of the latter).

Nice summer lighting and even a little sailboat in the background. And the ship doesn't look too shabby either.

When they cut out the new balconies below the boat deck, they might have done something to the previously added protruding balconies below the bridge as well. The ship would look much better without those.

Traditional crowd of on-lookers.

A little bit of tree and fortifications in the foreground.

Next time: Delphin