On the weekend, we came across a story about “gentlemen hosts” on cruise ships. These are “jobs” for single men who pay $30 a day to go and have a good time on a cruise, with no romantic liaisons allowed. In other words, they have to be, well, gentlemen. The Gentleman Host Program and others… Continue reading Gentlemen Who Prefer Cruises
Category: People
Reasonable Review of Concordia
In the old and never-ending wake of the Costa Concordia accident, there is a new perspective that’s worth acknowledging. It comes, courtesy of a show the Discovery Channel aired this weekend. A former cruise ship captain from California, Paul Leyda, was interviewed extensively on the show. In a story that appeared in a Bay Area… Continue reading Reasonable Review of Concordia
Norwegian…Egyptian winning jingle
When you’re No. 2 — or even No. 3 or No. 4 — you try harder. Norwegian Cruise Lines has plenty of experience, competing with bigger brands, all of which are part of cruise line consortiums…Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Princess and so on. When you try harder, you try everything. Quality of products, quality of service.… Continue reading Norwegian…Egyptian winning jingle
American Queen — Plus a Horse Race
In another life, as a sports writer, there were five big sports events I hoped to see before moving on to another profession. One of them was the Kentucky Derby. I made it, in 1978, when Affirmed left the favorite, Alydar, a length-and-a-half behind at the finish line of the famous Run For The Roses.… Continue reading American Queen — Plus a Horse Race
New Panamax Ships and the Canal
We were having lunch with our friend and colleague Phil Reimer, author of Ports and Bows, yesterday. Somewhere between the breakfast burrito (yes, some people do have breakfast burritos for lunch but she doesn’t want to advertise it) and the Caesar salad, the subject of the Panama Canal came up (better the Canal than the… Continue reading New Panamax Ships and the Canal