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REMBRANDT: The Outer tour
Save Our Ship Of State: REMBRANDT Tour Page 1
SS REMBRANDT, 6 Feburary, 2000. Photo by and copyright Peter Knego
Published in August 2000.
Externally, little visible change has taken place aboard REMBRANDT. Her wood decking is quite beautifully maintained, and all the cherished nooks and crannies remain intact: the sheltered Bridge Deck and Sun Deck sports areas; the little used Boat Deck promenades; the Upper Promenade forward observation area; and the beautifully terraced after decks.
Off limits areas such as the aft Sun Deck are looking a bit tired, but then crew areas are often not as well tended. There also appears to be a minor soot problem aft of the uptakes, so be cautioned if you are dressed in your best whites.
The upper view on this page is facing forward along the open expanse of REMBRANDT's starboard Upper Promenade Deck. Unlike many newer ships, this level provides a fully encircling passage (enclosed up front for inclement weather) that is popular for strollers and exercisers alike. Few ships today devote precious space to this traditional configuration, much to the detriment of the voyage experience.
The image below is looking forward toward the uptakes from aft Promenade Deck. The inviting Lido Terrace and pool are in the foreground. One minor recent change is the broadening of the black band at the top of the uptakes.
Photo by and copyright Peter Knego
REMBRANDT: The Inner tour
SS REMBRANDT, 6 February, 2000. Photo by and copyright Peter Knego
The REMBRANDT's public rooms begin way up on Navigation Bridge Deck level with the Sky Room, which is situated in the base of the dummy funnel structure, just aft of the former first class sports deck (complete with netted in mini-tennis court). The V-shaped Sky Room is one of the ship's more modest spaces and boasts an interesting painted mural of a blazing, ringed "sun" within a stylized canoe in a rather "cosmic" sea. The large dance floor was used primarily as the ROTTERDAM's disco in her final years, but now the Sky Room is largely utilized by children as REMBRANDT's alternate playroom. A nice terrace just aft overlooks the former tourist class games deck on Sun Deck level, where shuffleboard remains a favorite shipboard pastime.
Sun Deck houses the chief officers, continuing aft with passenger accommodation. The former radio office is midships, sporting two counters, each of which catered to first and tourist class. The "transatlantic" mural is still intact across from the former office, and remains a favorite nook for postcard and letter writing. The passage continues aft to a wonderful u-shaped staircase on the starboard side that leads down to Boat Deck. Its walls were once lined with ROTTERDAM's port plaques, which were auctioned off for charity on the ship's final HAL cruise. Just aft, the gym space has been carved out of the former Sun Room/Children's Playroom. It contains some less than effective "air" machines in addition to a few cardio stations. It looks out onto the shuffleboard area via an an arc of aft-situated windows.
Boat Deck contains passenger cabins and the upper level of the stunning double stair case inspired by that of the Chateau Chambord. When the ship was two classes, the stairs could be divided, keeping both classes apart but allowing each full horizontal access to their portion of the ship (unlike most ships of the era where first class was forward and the lower classes aft).
Photo by and copyright Peter Knego
Premier dispelled HAL's claim that the 1997 SOLAS requirements would destroy the ambiance of these stairs by installing discreet bulkheads that can seal them off from the rest of the ship in the event of a large fire.
Aft, we find the upper level of the Ritz Carlton room, possibly the most elegant space afloat, certainly the most elegant "old world" room on the seven seas. The view at the top of this page is facing starboard from the Boat Deck level, capturing the Aegean mural (which was hand-painted on lacquered teak by Cuno van den Steene), the elliptical bronze ("swirling sands") dance floor, and plush, velvet-trimmed period furnishings. The view above is facing port from the balcony capturing the grand staircase and another portion of the mural.
Photo by and copyright Peter Knego
Upper Promenade Deck was once devoted entirely to the ROTTERDAM's first class public rooms. All of these spaces are richly adorned with commissioned art work, lustrous paneling, and plush furnishings. The outer promenade makes a complete circle around this lovely level, serving as a favorite jogging and strolling area (the forward portion of which is protected with a wind screen and a line of tall windows). Magnificent two deck high spaces sandwich a series of handsome public rooms, beginning forward with the 618 capacity Theater, the upper portion of which provided seating for 163. Although the stage area has been remodeled, it retains much the same feel as it did in 1959. This view is facing starboard from the Promenade Deck level, once devoted to tourist class.
Photo by and copyright Peter Knego
Upper Promenade Deck continues aft of the Theater with the lovely 142 seat Ambassador Room. Curved bay windows extend on either side around a magnificent compass-patterned inlaid wooden dance floor. The ceiling is slightly recessed in concentric patterns that "invert" the appearance of the dance floor. The rich mahogany bulkheads and plaster ceiling boast hand-blown glass lighting fixtures, while an abstract mural of birds by H. Hierck complements one of fish on the fore and aft center bulkheads, respectively. The room is partitioned by metallic screens with glass inlays, and contains a small bandstand on the aft port quarter of the dance floor and a leather-trimmed bar on the forward/starboard quarter. Premier has lightened up the room by opening the blinds on the bay windows, providing an overall pleasing effect. The above image is facing forward/port, while the image below is facing aft from the starboard side of the room.
Photo by and copyright Peter Knego
Click here for REMBRANDT tour page 2
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