Oh the Places I'll Go

 Some readers of my blogs may remember my tale of anguish in February of 2020 as the Covid pandemic was rampaging across Asia, and I was sailing around the South China Sea onboard the beautiful Crystal Symphony hoping that one day a port would agree to let us dock.  We eventually disembarked safely in Singapore.  I had been so enamored with the ship I was on, that I booked additional cruises, including a World Cruise planned for 2022.  While I returned home to wait out the pandemic in isolation, the cruise industry (along with other tourist-intense businesses) suffered significant losses.  Crystal declared bankruptcy, and my anticipated future cruise deposits were lost.  I recovered some of my money through one of my credit cards, some through the bankruptcy court, and some as future cruise credits issued by the company that ultimately purchased Crystal’s two ocean ships, in an attempt to lure back Crystal’s former passengers. In September of 2025, I was ...

Seven years ago I took my first cruise, reluctantly, but all it took was that one experience to whet my appetite for more.  Since that first adventure on the seas, I have taken fifteen more ocean cruises and two river ones, for a total of over three hundred days now spent on ships.  And, we already have another five booked to sail within the next fifteen months!  Several friends have asked recently for suggestions of which ships and itineraries they might think about booking.  So, I am writing this post to provide my responses to that question.  I will begin with a caveat:   I have not sailed on the popular, big cruise ships like Norwegian or Royal Caribbean.   These may be great options for those with a limited budget or children, but I have no interest in trying them.   I have not sailed on ships that cater to families with children, like Disney, although I have heard good things about them.   I have also heard positive things from friend...

This was shaping up to be my winter of Asian adventures.  Scott and I were invited to the wedding of a Vietnamese friend just a few days before Christmas, so we planned a vacation to include time in the ancient imperial city of Hue where the wedding would take place.  Nearly a year before, a friend had talked me into joining her on a cruise from San Diego to Hong Kong that would include ports in Hawaii, the Philippines, and Vietnam; thirty-two days from mid-January to mid-February.  And then another friend suggested a China tour that sounded great, so I booked a third trip to Asia for mid-March. And then things started to go wrong.  In the words of Robert Burns, “the best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft agley.”  First, Ruth notified me that she was cancelling the cruise.  Oh well.  I had paid my money and would lose a large portion of it if I also cancelled, so fine, I’d go alone.  Then, on a beautiful early November Saturday, I suggest...