CAPTAIN REIDULF MAALEN

After bringing Crystal’s newest ship, Crystal Serenity out in 2003, and in to operations, Captain Maalen returned to Crystal Symphony as Master in June 2005. Captain Maalen has spent his whole life on ships ranging from small vessels in his home country of Norway, to large modern cruise ships all over the world.

More recently, Captain Maalen was in command of Cruise West's Spirit of Oceanus as it follow the route of Leif Eriksson from Norway to Vinland.

Biography

My love for the sea can be traced back to my early childhood when I grew up on the small island of Tustna on the west coast of Norway.

Tustna is near one of the busiest shipping lanes on the Norwegian west coast. My family's farm overlooked this area and the ships sailing up and down the coast of Norway would pass right in front of my house. As a small boy I would sit and watch and wait and wonder ... I was mesmerized by the lights on the ships, when they passed by at night, and I often thought, "What was going on behind them?" "Where were they sailing too?" and what types of people were sailing on them?
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History of the "sail away" song

If you have ever sailed on board a Crystal ship, you experienced a special tradition. As the ship casts its lines off and begins its move away from the dock, two very beautiful songs are played.

The first one is Louis Armstrong's “What a Wonderful World”. The name says it all and is a perfect choice of music to play when departing an exotic destination - destinations that leave us with so many memories, sights and sounds. It reminds us that there is so much beauty to behold throughout our world. Beauty even in countries that are so poor the most precious thing they can give is a smile!
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Captain Maalen's Gallery


Captain Maalen commanding Crystal Harmony	Captain Maalen with the Big Chief of Christmas Island

Who said Captains cannot cook?	Captain Maalen yachting in Monte Carlo onboard the W2

Captain Maalen's Farewell to Spirit of Oceanus	With the Crystal Symphony at Milford Sound

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Captain's Announcements

For every passenger ever to sail with Captain Maalen the noon announcements were always one of the highlights of their crusing experience. Here you can listen to a selection of some of the most memorable announcements.

St. Petersburg, Russia	Day At Sea
Another Day at Sea	Yet Another Sea Day
Arriving in Belfast	Arriving in Dublin