The MS Artania makes its maiden port call on Saipan, Monday morning.
Acting Gov. David M. Apatang welcomes MS Artania Captain Burkhard Mueller and his officers. With Apatang is Commonwealth Ports Authority ports manager Jerra Cing who exchanged souvenirs with the visitors.
THE MS Artania, a Phoenix Reisen cruise ship, visited Saipan for the first time Monday morning.
“We’re happy — the first port call is always…exciting,” Captain Burkhard Mueller told reporters.
He said the ship was originally named Royal Princess in 1984 by Princess Diana in Hampshire, England.
“After 40 years we are still in the business, and the ship is well maintained,” he added. “We are, year by year, collecting new ports…and today is one of those first times — our first time here on Saipan.”
The ship’s current world cruise started in December in Hamburg, Germany.
“From there, we went west, crossed the Atlantic, entered the Caribbean Sea, and passed the Panama Canal,” Mueller said. “Then on the second leg of the world cruise, we started in Colon, Panama and headed to San Francisco. We visited many ports on the West Coast of the United States. From San Francisco we are now on the third leg of this world cruise, which will end on March 3 in Yokohama, Japan. From there, we’ll go to Hong Kong, and we may end the cruise in Dubai, but that’s not final yet.”
He said they will try to avoid the Red Sea where “it’s dangerous right now.”
MS Artania can accommodate a total of 1,260 passengers and 537 crew members.
Mueller noted, in jest, that the cruise ship’s approach to the port of Saipan was like “passing through a needle.”
“But today the conditions are favorable, so we don’t expect any challenge on the way out at 6 p.m.,” the captain said.
Regarding the narrow Saipan channel, Mueller said, “This is our business, so we knew what we had to expect. We also had a phone call with a local pilot, and we made arrangements, that’s why there was no surprise to us — this was all planned.”
He added, “It was so nice when we approached the pier this morning. We saw the nice welcome ceremony with local dancers…but I have to admit that they started to play very loud music, which made it very complicated in the bridge. I… had to ask the pilot, ‘Can you please ask them to stop the music for the next 10 or 15 minutes until we are alongside the harbor?’ ”
Acting Gov. David M. Apatang welcomed Mueller and his crew.
“This is their first time here in the Marianas… and we want to also see if they can promote the Commonwealth…when they’re back in Germany so we can get more [visitors]…. We need more friends from Germany to come and visit us. Our brothers and sisters from Europe are always welcome here in the Commonwealth,” Apatang said.
He added, “We also have a plan to improve our channel and ports. Hopefully, the next time they visit, the channel will be bigger, and the ports are already expanded.”
