The High Seas

Back from vacation and not quite sure where to start... Willie and I took a 7-day cruise from NYC up through New England and Eastern Canada. It was the most eventful cruise we've been on!

So, I'll start with a brief recap of the highlights of the cruise.

Day 1 (Saturday) - set sail from NYC in the early evening - all peaceful and we enjoyed a great dinner of filet mignon with a bottle of Brunello. So far, so good. The picture is us while we were still safely docked in Brooklyn - unsuspecting and unafraid!

Day 2 - (Sunday) at some point during the night, our idyllic sea cruise turned into something else entirely - 70 MPH winds (yes, that's "gale force" in sea-speak) and 20 foot swells. And, yes, for those who are wondering - an giant ocean liner is no protection against winds and waves! We ventured up to the top deck to have breakfast (me clutching railings, chairs, and passerby's to try to maintain balance) where the ship was swaying like a willow in a windstorm. Several bites into breakfast, Willie broke out in a sweat and turned green. We retreated to our nice cozy mini-suite to ride out the storm.

During the day, our captain, who by strange coincidence was the same captain that we had on our Mediterranean cruise 2 years ago, kept coming on the PA system during the day and evening to give us updates. In this very thick Italian accent, he kept assuring us that the "shippa" was handling well and that we were still trying to get out of the low pressure system. (As he cautioned us not to go on any open decks or balconies!) When he came on at 8 pm, he assured us that we would not hear from him again this evening. He told us the same thing at 9:15 pm. And, the next morning, when we finally saw calm seas and blue skies and the Boston Harbor - he assured us that the big crack on Deck 15 was nothing that should cause us any discomfort or concern!! Yes, folks - the damned ship cracked. That entire part of the deck was cordoned off with yellow caution tape and there was a giant metal plate bolting the two halves of the deck together.

Days 3-4 - Not-withstanding the cracked deck, this part of the trip was uneventful and calm. Enjoyed our ports in Bar Harbor and St John - managed to scarf down some fresh oysters, so yours truly was happy!

Day 5 - Nice day in Halifax... or so we thought. Things started to take a turn for the worse when we noticed at 7 pm that we were still docked (ship was supposed to set sail at 6 pm). At around 8 pm, our fearless Captain Fortezze came on to alert us that another storm was moving in AND we had a lobster line wrapped around our propeller. Well, isn't that just freaking great? Oh, and by the way, the special in the dining room was lobster. No kidding.

By the time we sailed out of Halifax, the winds in the harbor were already gusting over 30 MPH, so we knew we were in for another rough night. Oh, and did I mention, we both had come down with colds by then?

Day 6 - Another day getting buffeted about the ocean. Me clasping anything I could get my hands on to avoid falling; Willie looking a bit green around the gills. we did, however, venture into one of the restaurants aboard to have bangors and mash for lunch! And we had a very nice Chilean sea bass for dinner in the Italian restaurant. It takes more than rough seas to keep us down!

Day 7 - kissed the ground in Brooklyn upon disembarking ... in the rain.

Stay tuned for my tips on surviving a cruise with only one balance nerve... !!!