My first taste of real travel was when my sister and I spent 6 weeks in Europe one summer during college. I was 21, Marsha was 18. We were lucky to go. Looking back, my parents were selective visionaries for things that ended up really counting in my life and for which I am forever…
Continue reading →We just received our final travel documents…again. We still have the documents from the original six-month version of our trip that were already in the mail at the time it was cancelled. This new official document is actually more of a book, about 120 pages spiral bound. It is the bible for our cruise, tailored…
Continue reading →This giant “once-in-a-lifetime” cruise we were planning has so far taken me through every emotion, and I have yet to board the ship. And when we got the news that the trip was to be “abbreviated”, it felt like a balloon, blown up to that anxious tautness just before bursting, that suddenly flew away in…
Continue reading →We were supposed to be in the southern hemisphere this winter, when it is summer there. South America, Africa, Seychelles. Well, that part of the cruise was cancelled and we couldn’t quite get over it. Our calendar was totally empty and we just got back our refunded money that was already spent in our minds. So…
Continue reading →In the spirit of our upcoming voyage, here we are dressed for an 80s-themed costume party last Halloween as your Cruise Director Julie McCoy and Captain Merrill Stubing. Pretty scary.
Continue reading →Anyone who has been stranded overnight in an airport, missed their train, encountered a sudden highway closure due to blinding weather, or had their hotel reservation cancelled, knows that travel is guaranteed to challenge the traveler to be flexible, willing, and open to change. You may not like it, but hopefully in the end, you…
Continue reading →The day before Christmas Eve, we received a phone call from our travel agent informing us that Oceania had sent the following announcement by email to travel agents and passengers of our Around the World Cruise: Dear Insignia Guest and Travel Partners, We finished our initial repair assessment for Insignia and expect the ship will…
Continue reading →We have news that Insignia is now headed to San Juan where she is expected to arrive on December 22 and will go into dry dock for repairs. She appears to be sailing under her own power with a “restricted manoeuverability” status at a speed of about 7 knots. Oceania has informed us that we…
Continue reading →I received the terrible news that a blaze broke out in the engine room aboard the Insignia while the ship was docked in St. Lucia on Thursday, December 11. A crew member and two contractors died, and two other crew members were treated for injuries. The fire was contained to the engine room and extinguished….
Continue reading →We have been preparing for this voyage since June of 2013 and one would think we would have it all done by now. The amount of work it takes to get there is massive and we are now in the final crunch. Every detail of our life must be arranged in advance to function in…
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