CRUISING 2024

When Betty and I were planning our 2024 cruise(s) our bucket lists were quite different.   I really wanted to see the sub-continent (bottom of Betty's list) and she wanted to see Hawaii (bottom of my list).  Therefore we decided to do two cruises.  

As most of you know "my" cruise to India didn't quite go as planned.  On New Year's Eve Betty fell and smashed her elbow.  Thus, the only part of India I got to see was from her hospital window in Mumbai (Bombay).  The hospital was nevertheless superb and the surgery went very well; and, after 10 months our insurance even covered all the costs.  Here I have a bit of advice for travelers.  Most out-of-country hospitals will not deal directly with Canadian insurance companies.  So, you pay up front and get reimbursed later (in our case a lot later).  The advice is to get as much credit limit as you can on your plastic.  You might need it.

It looked like the Hawaii cruise might be a repeat of India.  Betty broke two bones in her right forearm, and after not realizing that they were broken her arm took on an odd angle that required lengthy surgery.  The surgeon wanted her to be in a cast for several weeks, but when we explained we were going on a cruise he agreed to remove the cast just before we left for the cruise, provided she could find a rigid brace (he noted the ones at the hospital were useless).  Forearm braces that de-mobilize neither the elbow or the wrist are rare.  Nonetheless Amazon located one in her size somewhere in China and it was airmailed to her for $ 13.

We boarded our ship in Los Angeles on Sunday and are now on a five-day sail to Hawaii, after which we will head to the South Pacific.  Although we have been on a couple of dozen cruises (in recent years mostly on Oceania) this is our first cruise with Viking Ocean.  Viking and Oceania are direct competitors in the same price range, so we were most curious to do our own comparison.  

It is still early in the cruise so time will tell, but some early impressions of Viking are mostly positive, although not exclusively.  The decor on the ship is definitely Scandinavian with lots of blonde wood and everything is very angular.  Perhaps the whole ship was designed by Ikea.  Here are a few shots from around the ship.

Although the included wines are not very good, one can upgrade for a price, or simply bring your own wine on board (no cover charge).  On the other hand, the food so far has been excellent.  I was most impressed the first morning when my smoked salmon eggs benedict was topped with caviar.

A general rule of thumb is that the longer the cruise the older the passengers.  Obviously, us old guys have time on our hands.  This cruise seemed to have attracted lots of the aged, perhaps not only because of its 34 days length, but because it has lots of non-stressful sea days.  There are so many people using either walkers or wheelchairs that the name of the ship should be changed from Viking Navigator to The Floating Nursing Home.

We have met very pleasant guests on board and last night's dinner was no exception.  We chatted endlessly over our bottles of upgraded wine with a couple perhaps not quite as old as us.  At the end of the evening they decided to tell us "their story".  At the age of 14 they were childhood sweethearts.  They married very young and immediately had kids.  After a few years, he got the urge to "sow some oats" and dumped her.  She eventually married someone else and he also got married.  After many years they were both widowed.  After 37 years apart they met up, he was forgiven, and 7 years ago they got married again.

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