We’re getting pretty lousy weather for Memorial Day weekend—the kick-off of “summer” here in New England. It’s currently 43 degrees F and raining. My heat is running. (They’re saying it’s a slow moving Nor’easter.) Last weekend wasn’t much better.

I was in Portland (Maine) last Friday and Saturday. We saw some sun on Friday, but by Saturday the downtown was misty and chilly.

By Friday evening, the chilly mist had rolled in. It almost looked like part of the ship was on fire in the dark. There was a darker eerier blue/black mist coming from one section of it.

My friend Gail and I like to investigate mysteries we encounter on vacation. Here’s what we learned (but feel free to skip this part and go right to the food photos at the end):

The dark, smoky mist being emitted from the ships exhaust stacks was due to the ship’s use of exhaust gas cleaning systems, commonly known as “scrubbers,” during maintenance operations. The MSC Meraviglia was docked in Portland for emergency repairs, specifically to replace damaged propeller blades. Since the ship couldn’t return to a dry dock, dive teams conducted underwater repairs, utilizing hydraulic grinders to remove and replace the faulty blades. During this period, the ship operated its engines to power onboard systems, leading to the activation of its scrubbers. These systems are designed to reduce air pollutants by “washing” exhaust gases, but they can produce visible emissions, especially when the ship is stationary and undergoing maintenance. The emissions sparked concerns among local residents and environmental groups. While scrubbers reduce airborne pollutants, they can transfer contaminants to the water, potentially harming marine ecosystems. In response to over 50 complaints, city officials engaged with the ship’s captain, resulting in a switch to cleaner-burning fuel to mitigate the environmental impact. (It didn’t look much cleaner to me, but I didn’t see the smoke earlier in the week.)

This blog explains what was happening with the MSC Meraviglia and how some states (like California) ban scrubbers near the coastline.

Honestly, the cruise ship industry seems so environmentally harmful and disease-prone, I’m not quite sure why cruises are so popular.

We saw the MSC Meraviglia leave the harbor on Saturday, but another huge ship had pulled in. (At first, we thought the Meraviglia had just moved to a different spot, but then we saw it was the MS Zuiderdam.)

The MS Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, was docked in Portland, Maine, as part of its 15-night “Atlantic Seaboard & Colonial New England cruise,” which began in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and ended in Quebec City, Canada.

PORTLAND FOOD

Given that the weather was bad, we abandoned plans to take the ferry to Peaks Island and decided to try as many of Portland’s popular eateries as possible. We ate our way through the Maine mist.

Not pictured, but highly recommended: Gelato Fiasco on Fore Street. The gelato is delicious and they also have great coffee and tea. They’ll even make you an affogato—a single or double espresso shot poured over gelato.

Portland is less than two hours from Boston, so it’s not a bucket list destination for me. I’d been there before and I’m sure I’ll go there again at some point. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Portland in warm sunny weather though. It’s always misty and grey for me.

But hey, it’s Maine.

One final note: the city gives liberal/hipster vibes. I saw not one MAGA hat, shirt or sign, which is a major plus for me. In the 2024 U.S. presidential election, Kamala Harris won Portland with approximately 80.5% of the vote, while Donald Trump received about 15.6%. Good job Portland. I’ll be back.