Ready or not, my world is about to start turning again after two-and-a half + years, as I land in New York City to begin a 46-day cruise adventure. Planning this journey for over a year has been almost make believe, yet here I am. Astonishingly, my flights, luggage, and hotel transports all occur flawlessly,…
Continue reading →You’ve heard of the affliction called “homesickness”, impassively defined as “a longing for one’s home during a period of absence from it.” Well, I’m feeling that now, but for another kind of home…my sea home. Knowing that we have spent much time on the cruise ship Insignia, our friend and Oceania butler, Priyan, sent a…
Continue reading →We are packed…finally. Ready to leave for Copenhagen, the starting point for our cruise up the west coast of Norway, which has always held a special place in my heart. Norway is the homeland of my father’s ancestors. As young college coeds touring a summer in Europe, my sister and I were hosted on a…
Continue reading →There is an organizational structure implemented in a professional kitchen, just like the military, that is necessary for efficiency and to avoid chaos. Developed by Georges Auguste Escoffier, a legendary French chef and restaurateur born in 1846, this system was modeled after his time in the French army, creating a chain of command that delineates…
Continue reading →We were passengers on Oceania Insignia’s inaugural Miami to Miami “Around the World in 180 Days” voyage. Except, it turned out to be 109 days, thwarted at the final hour by a tragic accident on the ship. We were given the option to cancel or join the itinerary 71 days later in Singapore, when the…
Continue reading →Oceania hangs it’s hat, or rather it’s toque, on it’s culinary reputation, endorsed by Jacques Pépin and Bon Appétit, and it is a source of pride both at the dining table and in the classroom, where it offers the first ever at sea, hands-on culinary center that is absolute state-of-the-art. Available only on their custom…
Continue reading →Cruise ships offer many ways to overindulge, and one of the best ways to do that with food and wine onboard Marina is at La Reserve, a serious special restaurant endorsed by the oenophiliac magazine “The Wine Spectator”, and limited to 24 guests, which features an extravagant, carefully chosen and prepared, seven-course food and wine…
Continue reading →“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone”, the daughter of my friend advised her, as she was choosing a travel destination. And, as Dean and I are about to embark on another cruise, I am feeling a bit out of my comfort zone. To fill in some of the cancelled itinerary of our…
Continue reading →“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 →When we met with very rough seas leaving Columbia, the Captain announced that we would be forced to skip our last port of Key West and, to avoid the impending storm, take a longer route farther to the east around Cuba. So, the last days of our long voyage would be spent captive at sea,…
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