Lion Eyes Part Of New Ship’s Custom

Everybody who’s interested in cruises knows that the playing ocean, as opposed to the playing field, is shifting in the direction of Asia. More cruises, more ships, even more cruise lines are re-locating. With the shift come new customs. The traditions that come with new ships include a bottle of champagne, a hull and a… Continue reading Lion Eyes Part Of New Ship’s Custom

The Death Of A Sea Salesman

The Orator of the Seas is silent. John Maxtone-Graham, who entertained cruisers with ship stories on whatever line would hire him, died of old age last week. He was 85. We met him once, on the Celebrity Eclipse. It was both our good fortuneand our misfortune … to have met him at all, and to… Continue reading The Death Of A Sea Salesman

Friday File: The Name's Tall-keet-nah

This is a town you would never choose to visit, until you have. In winter, its population shrinks to the level of Alaska’s small towns, of which there are many. It’s fairly flat, but climbers must go there to scale North America’s highest mountain. It has two streets, one called Main and the other just… Continue reading Friday File: The Name's Tall-keet-nah

Carnival’s Secret Out About fathom

Sitting with a group of cruise media intelligentsia (whenever there’s a group, we like to think it’s “intelligentsia”…or at least “collective intelligence”) last month on an Alaska cruise, we listened attentively to thoughts of fathom. Remembering that the word “fathom” was once used to measure depth of sea water, we quickly jumped into the 21st… Continue reading Carnival’s Secret Out About fathom

Adults Only On A Cruise Ship?

We probably should have known there was something politically incorrect about the cruise line known as Fred.Olsen when it put a period where most of us would put a space…okay, so it’s at least grammatically incorrect. It’s not like it’s being used to separate http and www. Now there is more evidence that this little-known,… Continue reading Adults Only On A Cruise Ship?