Tragedy at Sea

I would be totally remiss if I didn't comment on the still unfolding tragedy of the cruise ship in Italy. Problem is I don't know what to say! How do you begin to capture the horror of what that experience must have been like for the passengers? And how do you wrap your head around the totally unnecessary actions of the captain that caused the accident? Of course, we can't even get started on his response to all of it! I feel for all of the families of those still missing. It's just so terribly wrong to be taking a vacation, a break from how hard life can be, and then experience something far worse.

Last night on the news they posed the question of how this will impact people's decisions to cruise or not cruise in the future. For anyone who had fear before, I'm sure this seals the deal. Other people made the valid point that there are car accidents all the time that don't scare us too much to ever drive again. And even though plane crashes are rare, they are more common that what we are seeing happen with this cruise ship but people still fly, albeit most of us with a healthy dose of anxiety. On the flip side of the coin, I'm already noticing deals on cruises popping up in response.

As someone who has cruised multiple times in the past, I know I will cruise again. I feel safe on board. Maybe too safe, to be honest. I recently heard of a sexual assault that allegedly happened onboard a cruise line and was flabbergasted that I had not even thought of such a thing happening, even though in my daily life and work I think about those things all the time. I believe this horrible incident is the result of one person or a small number of people in positions of power using terrible judgement. Therefore, I put faith and hope in the fact that it would be unlikely. And so I could cruise again.

I'd love to hear other people's opinions. I don't know how to overstate the deep sadness and empathy for the fear and loss involved in this, first and foremost. But it's a normal human experience to think of how this will impact us or the travel experience, in general. In the meantime, let's all pray that some of the missing are tucked snugly in emergency blankets on a beautiful coastline without phone access.

To Cruise or Not to Cruise?

I read a number of other blogs and often stumble on things other people have written that, instead of putting my own spin on it, I feel compelled to share with my blog in their original form. I have shied away from doing this much in the past but because I can't really say why, I am going to begin passing along the gems that either I really relate to or ones that make me think differently.

Today I read a blog by George Hobica, founder of Airfarewatchdog.com.
In it, he talks about the benefits of cruising. I have cruised four times, including my most recent trip from Boston to Bermuda. While cruising is not for everyone, I think there are a lot of misconceptions out there about cruising and more people might try it if they understood more. Last night I met with some women from church who were asking my mother, a first time cruiser, about her experience and was surprised that it wasn't widely known what a great value cruising is; you can often find fares under $500 for a week, which includes food, lodging, and entertainment. Many people fear the motion of the boat but I assure you that you are rarely aware of any rocking. Finally, this article makes a good distinction: the cruise industry has created some specialization so you can choose the cruise line that suites your personality or interests in a more predictable way than you can select just-the-right airline for you or just-the-right hotel for you.

Check out  this post. Have you ever cruised? Would you consider it? What holds you back?

Beautiful Bermuda

This is Jobsom's Cove. If you go to Bermuda and want to go to the southern beaches, famous for their pink sand, I highly recommend this spot. The rest of the beaches had crazy waves and super strong undertow; I was running for my life, clutching my bathing suit bottoms, more than once at Horseshoe Bay, the most popular beach in that region. Jobsom's Cove, however, has this cropping of rocks that create a calm swimming hole. (It's easily accessible by public bus, too, although you should hold on tight if you ride the bus. And don't expect friendly service)

Many of the beaches felt like a scene out of the opening of Grease, where Sandy and Danny were on the beach frolicking.

This was our ship, the Norwegian Dawn. I will have a whole separate post about my thoughts comparing and contrasting NCL to Carnival but the sneak peak morale of the story is that one is clearly superior to the other. I think you might be surprised by the answer...

What would a post about a cruise be without showcasing one of the towel animals the cabin steward leaves while you eat dinner? Cruises boast lots of perks and cheesy additives but towels folded into shapes and given eyes are a topic of conversation every time!

This guy is rocking the Bermuda look: All the guys wear their Bermuda shorts with hiked up socks. I don't get it. Doesn't that negate the purpose of the shorts??

I love the colorful architecture, although this shot is from Hamilton, the capitol city. I have to say that I was not wowed by this city. If I had to do it again, I would skip Hamilton altogether and instead head to the more historic St. George and/or the Crystal Caves.

I took a whole series of photographs of the sun setting. This is the last one where the sun is still visible. It's really overwhelming in the most positive sense of the word, to be on the vast open water and see nature at it's finest.

Home Sweet Home!

The sign from landing in Boston was going to be the last photo but I thought I should personalize this one. This is officially the first photo of myself on this blog. This is me and my mom, on her first trip out of the country. It kind of felt like roles were reversed as I was so happy to see her joy at experiencing everything for the first time. Our group of 8 all agreed that no one on the ship had a better time than my mother:)