Time to rest. Time for family. Time to take a breath. I’m happily home for the summer. We absolutely love our travel life, but we also love our summer’s back in Washington State in our tiny Villa de Verano.
We have just completed our seventh year of nearly full-time travel – a life we began as we retired. When we started we didn’t know if we would be traveling for six months or six years. Well apparently we have made it work and other than a year at home during Covid, we have been on the move.
Three years into our travels we purchased a small villa back in our home state of Washington. A place to call home when we needed or wanted to be there. We were grateful for it during Covid, and continue to be grateful for it each summer.
We arrived Washington April 30th and plan to launch year eight on September 10th. Those plans are still in the works. But meanwhile it’s just about home. A word that feels so satisfying to say. Home. I’ll still be blogging but also will be taking a bit of a break, so don’t worry if I am absent. Thanks for all your wonderful love for this blog. I am grateful to you all.
My second Abbi Waxman book, I really loved The Garden of Small Beginnings by Abbi Waxman which I read a couple of summers ago. This new book, was also fun with some recurring characters from the last book. Here is my book review Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman.
Laura Costello arrives in Los Angeles looking to get away from her overbearing mother and to start anew. After surviving a terrible car accident, she is longing for a new beginning.
But her first week in LA her apartment catches on fire and she is forced into a living situation with a new group in a communal house. And thus her adventures begins. Her new friends include a rogue bookseller and trivia lover, a friendly land lady carrying a sad weight, an energetic women hiding a secret and a gorgeous man with a love of gardening and baseball. Laura finds friendship and healing among this eccentric group.
Laura will make peace with her tragedy, her family, her past and build a new future in this sweet story of friendship, love and breaking free.
****Four stars for Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman. Thanks for reading my Book Review Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman.
In 1992 & 1993 we lived in Reston Virginian, a suburb of Washington DC. I loved Reston and loved our 20 months in the DC area. There were endless things to do and we did them all. If you are an American history buff even a tiny bit, this region will make you swoon. But despite how much we loved our time here, we had never been back, except for passing through Dulles Airport now and then. So on our road trip from Atlanta to Boston, we planned five days in Washington DC. I wanted to revisit a few of my favorites, but I also wanted to see all of the things that have changed in thirty years. So we set out to explore Washington DC – Old, New, Red, White & Blue.
1992
Today
Day One
Arriving by car, as we crossed into the district from Virginia we were greeted by the familiar and beautiful sight of The Capitol Building and the Washington Monument. Iconic images for any American. We drove down Independence Avenue and I was so happy to see these “old” friends.
The Capitol
Something “new” for us was arriving in the neighborhood of Capitol Hill to our Airbnb. When we lived here we spent almost no time in the area East of the Capitol building. So I was excited to explore and enjoy this beautiful neighborhood of historic homes, parks and small shops. Over the next few days we walked and ran all over this area, visited the wonderful Eastern Market (a favorite local attraction for food, flowers, produce and meat), and admired the architecture. I highly recommend the Airbnb we stayed in. Check it out.
Day Two
We hit the ground running on day two. First, on this sunny and cool morning, we walked from our Airbnb to the White House, which took us about one hour. I am very lucky to say this was my seventh visit to the White House. When we lived here we went twice with out of town guests, twice to see the Christmas decorations and twice for the White House Easter Egg Roll. What is “new” however is how you visit. Back in the day you could arrive and wait in a long line and then walk through the White House with lots of other visitors. Today, things have changed. You can only visit the White House with a timed entry ticket that you obtain through your Congressional representative or Senator. Luckily we knew this in advance, and thanks to our Congressman we had a 9:30am tour. It was everything I remembered and more. Truly something everyone should try to do at least once in their lifetime at least once…if not seven times!
Green Room looked much the same
Several new portraits
Looking presidential
I love this room – The East Room
Next we headed to the National Gallery of Art. This falls into the “old” category as we had visited it many times but it remains a favorite. Did you know all the Smithsonian and Public Buildings in Washington DC are free? Well, when planning a visit to DC take that into account. Compared to what you pay to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York or the Natural History Museum in New York you will definitely save money visiting DC.
Da Vinci
Rodin
Next was something “new” – the National Museum of the American Indian. Opened in 2016, this beautiful building houses a wonderful collection of artifacts and tells the remarkable story of the American Indian. Chronological history of the treaties, slaughter and oppression of the Native Americans as well as wonderful handcraft, carvings, beadwork and much more. I highly recommend you visit this wonderful museum.
Artifacts in National Museum of American Indian
Artifact National Museum of the American Indian
Back up to Capitol Hill we headed to have a one-on-one with our Congressional representative Derek Kilmer. This was a “new” experience for us. Although we have known Representative Kilmer since before he was in office, it was a great privilege to visit with him in his office in the Longworth Building. We can’t thank him enough for taking the time to meet with us.
Visiting with our Congressman Derek Kilmer
Back to the Airbnb for a quick freshen up and then on to something else “new”. Nationals Park, opened in 2008, began a revitalization of the Navy Yard area. Formerly a working class and somewhat rough area, today the stadium and the Washington Nationals team (World Champions in 2019) have breathed new life into this part of the city. Restaurants, bars, shops, apartments, hotels and condominiums fill the neighborhood. We had a great time watching the Nationals play the Orioles.
Nationals Park
Washington Nationals
Day Three
We had a little more time in the morning so I enjoyed a run in Capitol Hill before walking back down into the heart of the city. We could not wait for this “new” adventure today, visiting the highly acclaimed Museum of African American History and Culture. Absolutely amazing. We spent about 2 hours and twenty minutes and we could easily have spent two more hours. It’s a vast look at the story of African Americans and it is not to be missed. We see a lot of museums in our travels…this was one of the best.
Museum of African American History and Culture
Museum of African American History and Culture
Important things to know; because of its popularity you will need a timed-entry ticket. Tickets are free and you can get them online. If I had planned better, we would have done two hours on the first day and come back and done two hours the next day. Get your tickets as far in advance as you can.
Museum of African American History and Culture
We spent most of our time in the “C” sections (starting on the bottom floor), which chronologically covers everything from the start of the slave trade to civil rights to the election of Barack Obama. The upper floors include wonderful sections on music, entertainment, sports, and other cultural subjects.
We tore ourselves away from this museum and headed back up the hill for our tour of the Capitol Building. Although we had toured the building thirty years ago, we really wanted to do it again. Once again our Congressman’s staff made sure we had an exceptional experience, giving us a personal tour. What a treat to not be in a group of thirty people, but instead have a personal guide. Our guide Hayden explained so many things to us about the history, art, architecture and events that have occurred in this building from when the British burned the Capitol in 1814 to the Insurrection on January 6th 2021. And through it all, the beautiful building stands, our democracy stands and we the people stand.
The former Senate Chambers
Looking up at the dome
By this time we were pretty tired, but the weather was incredible so we decided to do one more “new” thing at the end of this day. We took an Uber to The Wharf, another newly revitalized area on the Potomac River. I remember this area from thirty years ago. Kinda decrepit and somewhat unsafe. We came here to buy blue crabs from the fisherman on the pier. Well you would not even recognize it today. Another gathering place of restaurants and shops as well as The Anthem performing arts center. A boardwalk goes along the river, kids were playing in a water feature, people were kayaking…it was wonderful. We had oysters and seafood at Hank’s Oyster Bar. A perfect end to a great day.
Muscles at Hanks
The Wharf
Day Four
Something else “new” (like in many cities) is the ability to grab a bike (conventional or e-bike) or razr-style scooter all over DC. So on Day four that’s what we did. First we walked to the National Archives. We have been here before but we wanted to see it again. We made a brief visit because it was jam packed with school kids, but it’s always inspiring to gaze upon the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution of the United States.
The National Archives
On our bikes we set out to the far end of the mall to visit some old and some new. The Lincoln Memorial, Reflecting Pool and the Vietnam Memorial are some of our favorites from the past and they never get old so we spent some time there saying hello once again.
The Vietnam Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial
“New” since we were here are the WWII Memorial, the Korean War Memorial and the Martin Luther King Memorial. We loved all of these. In honor of my dad we spent a lot of time at the Korean War Memorial looking for family names. We found one person with my birth name of Haydock and four with my married name of Lund.
MLK Memorial
WWII Memorial
We continued on the bikes along the Tidal Basin to the Jefferson Memorial and then out to East Potomac Park. We had never been out to this small island park before, where we took a break off the bikes and watched the planes come and go from Reagan International across the river, before riding the bikes all the back up Capitol Hill.
Jefferson Memorial
A quick shower and rest and then we headed to one of Capitol Hill’s thriving areas of restaurants, also “new” to us, to meet our “old” friend Mimi. I’ve stayed in touch with Mimi since we lived here and I always love catching up with her. We had a fantastic meal at a Belgian Restaurant called Belga Cafe and enjoyed every minute of it. Great food and conversation. What a great day.
With Mimi and Belgian Waffles
Belgian Stew
Day Five
Our last day in DC! It’s been fabulous! Although the weather changed and it was a bit stormy, I still squeezed in one last run, we went to the laundromat and worked on the laptop. We found a few minutes to walk to the Eastern Market, one of the coolest and “new” to us places on Capitol Hill for an outdoor farmers market. Also packed our bags, ready to take the train to New York the next day. But we had one last “new” thing to do.
Eastern Market
Eastern Market
For dinner on this night we met Arne’s second cousin and her husband for an amazing dinner. This was our first time meeting Hannah and Fatih and they took us to a remarkable Turkish Restaurant called the Ottoman Taverna. We loved meeting them and spending time together. It was a perfect ending to a perfect visit to our nations capital.
Meeting new family
Amazing Turkish Food
Washington DC – Old, New, Red, White & Blue
Whether you are American or not, this city has so much to offer…we hardly scratched the surface. So many other museums and sites. A variety theater and music. Vast outdoor activities. And endless options for great food. Come and see for yourself – Washington DC – Old, New, Red, White & Blue.
I’m a big fan of Alice Hoffman, one of my all time favorite books was The Dove Keepers a few years ago. And this novel for today’s review is an earlier work of Hoffman. I also really enjoyed it. Here is my book review The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman.
Coney Island in the early 20th century was a place of freak shows and mystics. Coralie Sardie is the daughter of a sinister man who runs the Museum of Extraordinary Things. As Coralie grows and is becoming a woman, she is also becoming aware that things are not perhaps as they seem. She begins to suspect her father does not have her well-being in mind.
When Coralie turns 13, her father puts her in the freak show, as a mermaid. But one night while training in the frigid Hudson River Coralie stumbles upon a photographer bane Eddie Cohen and she falls in love. Eddie, who photographs the horrific Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire also becomes entangled in a mystery, and that mystery will bring him to Coralie’s door. And tragedy will nearly keep them apart.
Hoffman always leans towards the mystical and magical and she does so brilliantly in The Museum of Extraordinary Things. A time in New York’s history when things were changing, the characters in this novel share the struggles and triumphs of worker’s rights, women’s rights, disabled rights and much more.
*****Five stars for The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman.
Thank you for reading my book review The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman. We love it when you pin and share our book reviews. Thank you.
We’ve visited many of the lovely cities of the south over the years, from Charleston to New Orleans, Williamsburg to Memphis. But for some reason we have spent almost no time at all in the state of Georgia. So on our return to the USA this time, we decided to start in Georgia. I’m so glad we did. Five fabulous days in Atlanta and four fabulous days in Savannah. Both cities are full of amazing history, great food, friendly people, and lots to see and do. Georgia on My Mind – Southern Charm and So Much More. Here are our recommendations.
Jasmine in Bloom all over! So Lovely.
Atlanta
One of the only major American cities we had never visited, we arrived wanting to see as much as possible in this historic place.
Centennial Park Atlanta
Martin Luther King and Civil Rights
MLK National Historic Park is Atlanta’s top tourist attraction and it’s free! We visited this moving and inspiring site on two different days. The first day we visited Ebenezer Church where King preached as did his father. We also visited the beautiful memorial area where both Martin and his wife Coretta’s tombs are.
Ebenezer Baptist Chuch
Tombs for Martin and Coretta
On the second day we walked back to the site along Auburn Street because we wanted to take in all the historic markers. The markers are really well done and informative as you walk through the formerly segregated neighborhood of Sweet Auburn.
The carriage MLK’s coffin was carried in
After the walk we visited the MLK museum which was so good, and actually made me cry. We walked by the home where he was born and lived until he was twelve. We did not tour the home, you need to reserve that in advance.
Bus Tour
There are many options for a bus tour, which for us was a good way to get a feel for the lay of the city on our first day. Our tour took us to the Ebenezer Church, through multiple interesting and beautiful neighborhoods, to Beltway Park and to the Ponce City Market. We had lunch at Ponce, which is a really cool food court and gathering place inside the former historic location of the Sears and Roebuck Company.
The Ponce Center, former Sears and Roebuck
Centennial Park
Very close to our hotel, The Hyatt Place, is Centennial Park. Centennial Park is home to the giant Ferris Wheel, The Georgia Aquarium, the World of Coca Cola and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. Centennial Park is also part of the Olympic Grounds from 1996 and the location where the bombing took place. We highly recommend the the National Center for Civil and Human Rights which takes the MLK story farther and covers civil and human rights around the world. Don’t miss it. On the other hand we felt the World of Coca Cola was not worth the $25 entrance fee. Parts of it were interesting, but, meh.
National Center for Civil and Human Rights
The World of Coca Cola
Atlanta Botanical Gardens
Of course I loved this because as you know I love to visit botanical gardens around the world. The Atlanta Botanical Gardens are pretty compact, have a lot of natural areas as well as manicured gardens and include a children’s garden and a vegetable garden. Currently it is also home to a temporary exhibit of Thomas Dambo troll sculptures which we absolutely love his work.
Thomas Dambo at Atlanta Botanical Gardens
Atlanta Botanical Gardens
Atlanta Braves
We are on a quest to visit MLB Ballparks around the USA, so we made time to take in an Atlanta Braves game at the beautiful Truist Park. Truist Park is surrounded by The Battery, an area of restaurants, shops, bars and condos. We enjoyed dinner before the game.
Atlanta Braves
The Carter Center
Another quest in our USA travels is to visit as many Presidential Libraries as possible. The really amazing Carter Center, home to the Jimmy Carter Library, was our 8th Presidential Library. I learned a lot about the work the Carter Center does around the world as well as great history about our 39th President.
The Carter Center
The Carter Center
Famous Foods
Well, Atlanta is all about the Southern Comfort food – not always the healthiest, but definitely delicious. Our best meal was at Virgil’s Gullah Kitchen. You must eat here when in Atlanta. We had one fine dining meal at Lure, really delicious seafood and local southern service. On one of our long walk days we stopped in for Chicken and Waffles at the Atlanta Breakfast Club. We also enjoyed BBQ at Fox Brothers BBQ. Very greasy but an Atlanta institution (since 1928) is the Varsity Drive In…the largest drive-in in the world.
Clams at Lure
Chicken and Waffles at The Atlanta Breakfast Club
BBQ at Fox’s
The Varsity Drive In
Shrimp & Grits at Virgils
And Also Don’t Miss
We visited two amazing hotels that we learned about from our Bus Tour Guide; The Marriott Marquis has the most astonishing lobby…definitely worth stopping in to see. We also took the elevator to the 73rd floor observation deck of The Westin Peach Tree Plaza. What a view!
The view from the top of the Westin
lobby at the Marriott Marquis
Savannah
Not sure why we had never made it to Savannah before, but I knew it was a beautiful and very walkable city.
Savannah River Walk
Walking Tour
Our friends from Charleston drove over to spend a couple days with us in Savannah. We started our visit with a self guided walking tour. Using GPSmyCity we walked all over the beautiful historic area learning about historic sites, mansions, people and parks. Savannah is home to 22 parks or “squares”, as well as hundreds of monuments, statues and historic markers. The architecture of the city is wonderful and almost like walking through a movie set (which it has been many times, notably for Forrest Gump). I loved it.
So many parks and monuments
So many churches
Owens Thomas Mansion and Slave Quarters
Well worth seeing is the Owens Thomas House and Slave Quarters. Built in 1819, the tours look at the life of the enslaved during this 1800’s. Their website says;
Our tours focus on the art, architecture, and history of the home through the lens of slavery. Visitors will experience an inclusive interpretation of not only the wealthy families that inhabited this home for a span of over 100 years, but of also the enslaved people who lived and labored here.
Owen Thomas House
Slave Quarters at Owen Thomas House
Telfair Museums
The Telfair Museums run the Owens Thomas House (above) and also run two other museums that we visited. The Telfair Academy houses houses nineteenth- and twentieth-century American and European art in an neoclassical historic home built in 1819.
Telfair Academy
The Jepson Center is a modern architectural building and home to a collection of modern art and changing exhibits.
“The stunning live oak lined avenue beckons visitors to Wormsloe State Historic Site, whose abundant cultural and natural resources have been, and continue to be, shaped by the influences of the many inhabitants of the Isle of Hope through the centuries including those of Native American, African, and European descent.“
Live Oak Entrance at Wormsloe
Wormsloe
We enjoyed several hours in this parking, hiking through the quiet forests, bird watching and enjoying the beautiful weather.
Savannah Riverboat Cruises
On our final day in Savannah we enjoyed a sunny tour aboard the Georgia Queen with Savannah Riverboat Cruises. Thankful for the perfect weather, we sat on the open air top level and enjoyed the narrated one and half hour tour along the Savannah River. I highly recommend this when in Savannah.
Georgia Queen Riverboat
Riverboat Tour
Where to Eat
I didn’t realize what a popular destination Savannah is, and so missed the opportunity to get reservations at some of the more well known restaurants. That said we had some outstanding meals (and one mediocre, at Common) during our visit. We enjoyed The Ordinary Pub, located “under” the city and popular for local southern specialties and pub fare. We had a fantastic meal at Fleeting, located in a newly developed river front location a short walk from the historic area. And our final meal was at The Pirates House, operating as an inn since 1753 and serving up low country fare and great service.
Fleeting
The Ordinary Pub
The Pirates House
Since I had to have some Pecan Pie before we left Savannah we also visited the Pie Society. Don’t miss it. Leopold’s Ice Cream is really popular…but I was unwilling to stand in an hour long line for ice cream…but it must be good because lots of people do every day.
Pie Society
Leopold’s line for ice cream
Georgia On My Mind – Southern Charm and So Much More
We loved our time in this beautiful state and highly recommend a visit to Georgia. You will find friendly people, excellent food, astonishing history and gorgeous scenery, Georgia On My Mind – Southern Charm and So Much More.
I recently read Geraldine Brooks most current book Horse and enjoyed it. I decided to try her first novel Year of Wonders and I am so glad I did. I actually enjoyed it even more than Horse, and I’m not sure why it did not receive more praise. Here is my book review Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks.
Loosely based on Eyram Derbyshire, a real village that had to quarantine itself during the black plague. Brooks creates a fictional village in 1666. When an infected bolt of fabric makes its way to the isolated village from London, the protagonist Anna’s life will change forever.
Brooks tells a beautiful but sad tale of loss, fear, love and superstition. Anna will find herself thrust into a caretaker and healer, while much of the village dies, mourns the dead, and reverts to long-held superstitions and witchcraft to try to ward off the plague.
As the year of quarantine wanes and death visits every door, Anna, the local priest and his wife, will work themselves nearly to death trying to care for both the physical and spiritual bodies of the village folk.
Brooks writes with a profound emotional voice, with great detail, sharing the journey of this period of history through the thoughtful heroine Anna will become. The ending was, for me, unexpected but fulfilling. I loved this character Anna, her strength and perspective on life. Thank you for reading my book review Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks
*****Five stars for Year of Wonders
See last week’s book review Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
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At the end of this seven month travel itinerary, we found ourselves on board a cruise ship for the first time in five years. Over the past thirty years we have cruised about a dozen times. There are some really great things about cruising….and some not so great things. But overall our one week aboard Rhapsody of the Seas Southern Caribbean (Royal Caribbean) was a good experience, and a relaxing week after our whirlwind in Bolivia.
Rhapsody of the Seas
Let Me Be Honest
So I’m going to be brutally honest about the things I enjoy about cruising and the things I don’t. So if you are a big fan of cruising fair warning…you might get defensive. But this is my opinion and you can take or leave it, so here we go.
Rhapsody of the Seas
Not Like It Used to Be
Alas, cruising is just not like it used to be. Our very first cruise, in 1992, still to this day remains one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had. The service was impeccable. The food was unforgettable. The ship, though small (we were on Norwegian Cruise Line) was spotless.
In port in Grenada
Today service and food both are not near up to the standards of that first cruise. Unfortunately I would say the food on this cruise on the Rhapsody of the Seas was the weakest I’ve had. And although our nightly wait staff ( Emily and Princess) were lovely…the dining room seemed understaffed and a bit harried. Our room steward on this cruise was Roxanne and she was great.
I loved our balcony
Today the cruise lines nickle and dime you for everything. Years ago a cappuccino was part of breakfast…not anymore. Pay extra. Years ago yoga or cycling class was free in the fitness center…not anymore. Pay extra. Years ago room service was included if you wanted it. Not anymore…pay extra (except for continental breakfast). Back in the day everyone dined in the dining room and a buffet was a special event…now its a cafeteria style all day long feast where people over indulge to excess. But at least you don’t pay extra.
We had a great room steward
Relax and Enjoy
Today we cruise from time to time (last one was pre-pandamit in 2018) and when we cruise we approach it with low expectations. We enjoy the pool and always get a room with a balcony if possible. We love sitting on our private balcony. We enjoy the dining room, but are not fans of the buffet. We enjoy the Broadway style shows, but aren’t big fans of comedians or magicians.
There were a couple of good shows on board
Itinerary
This seven day cruise on board Rhapsody of the Seas Southern Caribbean departed from Barbados where we had spent a relaxing week in an Airbnb. We docked in five island ports over the seven days; Grenada, Bonaire, Aruba, Curacao and Trinidad & Tobago. Three of these were new to us, bringing our country total to 125.
Grenada
We chose to do only two excursions during the week. We did a bicycle tour in Bonaire, which was really beautiful but difficult due to the high winds. And we did a kayak bird watching tour in Trinidad & Tobago which we loved. On the kayaking tour we saw an astonishing array of birds and wildlife in Caroni Wildlife Sanctuary on the island of Trinidad. In the other ports of call we enjoyed just strolling around the colorful Caribbean ports.
Cycling on Bonaire
Kayaking in Caroni Wildlife Preserve
My favorite cruise itinerary was eight years ago when I took my mom on a cruise for her 75th birthday. My sister came too and we visited St Petersburg Russia, Copenhagen, Sweden, Estonia and Finland. It was great.
The longest cruise I’ve ever done was 28 days! This was when my husband and I used a cruise ship that was repositioning to get from Australia to Seattle. Even though it was LONG, it still was one of the funnest, most relaxing and most interesting cruises we have done. We made stops in Fiji, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Hawaii. I would consider a repositioning cruise again.
My Favorite Things on Rhapsody of the Seas
This ship is one of the smallest in the RCL line. For a short cruise like this one I like a smaller ship. I loved our dinner wait staff, but like I said before the food was unfortunately just mediocre.
Some pool time
Our room was very spacious and surprisingly had a lot of storage. I am always amazed how they squeeze storage into every nook and cranny in these rooms. We were very comfortable; thebed was great and the balcony was awesome. Our room steward was fantastic, and the room was very quiet.
We only went to a couple of the shows, but the ones we saw were just okay. I think the larger ships tend to have better entertainment. On our one day at sea the cruise staff had so many different things to do and that gave us lot of choices. I enjoyed the cake competition and the parade of flags the most.
Cake Competition
Over sixty countries represented in the crew Parade of Flags
Everyday we played trivia at least once, it’s one of our favorite things to do on board any cruise.
Trivia
I love formal night in the dining room, although most people don’t dress to the nines like back in the day. But since I don’t really have much of a reason to get dressed up very often, I like to have fun in a pretty dress. On this seven day cruise we actually had two formal nights on board Rhapsody of the Seas Southern Caribbean.
Formal Night
My Least Favorite Things
The buffet is annoying to me…people get so worked up over food. I only ever had the salad bar in the buffet during this cruise because fighting for food is not my idea of a good time. There was never a line for salad bar…hmmm. I must point out though, this buffet on this smaller ship was extremely small compared to some ships, so that played into my annoyance.
I’m not a big fan of dining with strangers, so we always try to get a table for two in the main dining room on our cruises.
Great sunsets
Anytime you throw a couple of thousand people together there are going to be people who are entitled. This is a big issue for me in any group situations…loud, pushy, or just plain rude. I do my best to take a deep breath and move along.
The ship seemed understaffed, particularly in the dining room during breakfast. One morning we waited 45 min for our food. Not acceptable.
On the final day disembarking was the most disorganized I have ever seen. What a cluster! No signage and no helpful personnel as we tried to find the right bus to the airport.
Royal Caribbean
I’ve cruised enough times on RCL to have Platinum status. It’s a low ranking frequent cruiser status that comes with a couple of minor perks. But the really big time cruisers are Diamonds and they get some awesome perks. Because cruising is not something I want to do very often, I have no plans to reach Diamond. But for those who do love cruising, all cruise lines have great loyalty programs including Royal Caribbean. I suspect we would choose Royal Caribbean again, although we usually choose based on itinerary not cruise line.
Platinum status perk
For the price, cruising is an economical way to explore multiple destinations and is particularly good for families, singles or the elderly. It has a lot of advantages, and despite some of the disadvantages you can’t beat the price per day for what you get. It’s also really nice to wake up in a new place each day without having to pack your bags. However, a short port of call will never give you the opportunity to really get to know a country deeply – which is something we value highly. So we will only cruise occasionally.
Caribbean sunsets
Thanks for reading my post Rhapsody of the Sea Southern Caribbean. However you like to travel, it’s time to get back out there people…start making some travel memories today.
Our next stop is the USA. We begin with a three week tour from Atlanta to Boston before returning to our home state of Washington for the entire summer. Looking forward to being home in the USA for four and half months before heading international again mid September. Blog posts coming about our Eastern USA stops.
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