Our Charming Gardeners

“Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” ~Marcel Proust I am deeply grateful to Francis, Jelena, Desi, Samuel, Isabella, Augustina, Bojan, Doina, Julia, Paolo, Fabio, Cristian, Volha, Marco, Milena, Janice, Lector, Mishra, Sergei, Claudiu, Milan, Nicoletta, Gusti, Sasha, Vitali, Levante, Subhamoy,…

Continue reading →

Masters of the Sea

Three captains will have commanded our ship as, in the Latin terminology of old Rome, “Magister Navis” or Master of the Sea, before our voyage ends. And we have had the privilege to dine at least once with each, and establish a casual acquaintance. With Oceania, their work contracts are a rotation of about two…

Continue reading →

Guardians of the Reef

The notoriously difficult waters of the Torres Strait are located between Australia and New Guinea and contain more than 274 small islands in the Queensland territory. The strait connects to the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest coral reef system that stretches for 1,500 miles along the northeast coast of the continent. These waters require…

Continue reading →

See, Swirl, Smell, Sip

For those who know Dean and me, it would be no surprise to learn that we have befriended the charming onboard head sommelier. He is Oleksandr from Ukraine, but better known as Sasha to all. Among the many onboard activities offered to amuse us, for varying fees we can partake in occasional wine tastings that…

Continue reading →

High Seas Hero

Our Captain, Jurica Brajcic, hails from Dubrovnik, Croatia, and has had salt water in his family’s blood for at least several generations. He is a tall man, imposing, with gray hair and moustache. He has been with Oceania for many years and was the first captain to sail our Insignia when she was purchased from…

Continue reading →