The Silver Lining

Our first night aboard the Grandeur of the Seas....aaaahhhhhh a little rest & relaxation is good for the soul... Very early the next morning, David prodded me awake. "Come on! Let's go! Let's walk around the upper deck and start this beautiful day!" Now when I am at home, I rise early and take my morning walk, and quite honestly I'd sort of planned to sleep in a bit on the cruise. So much for sleeping in! I got up, donned my walking shoes and we made our way to the upper deck. Surprise!! It was still dark. Even the SUN wasn't up yet! As we made our first round, I saw maybe 10 people, and 9 of them were crew! I was seriously ready to grumble. Toward the rear of the ship, the lights were dim. We were so far out at sea that there was no land in sight in any direction. David and I stopped our walk to watch the wake our ship was making: a frothy trail that seemed to glow in the dark water. Cupping my hands around my face, I blocked out as much of...

(Written on Sept. 21, 2010, onboard Royal Caribbean's "Grandeur of the Seas" as we headed toward Grand Cayman.) I snagged a couple of poolside chairs and managed to get in a little snooze after our early morning walk. But by 10:30, the sun was blazing in the sky and the day began heating up. Rather than risk a sunburn on our first day out, we gave up the lounges to a young couple, and moved to a table in the shaded area on the port side of the ship. I began watching the sea as we churned through the water. Off on the distant horizon I could see the uneven outline of an island: Cuba, I realized. Purplish hazy hills jutted out of the deep sapphire blue sea; we were too far away to see any details. I stood at the ship's rail, watching as we moved past this mysterious country. To my right, I noticed an older gentleman. He was dressed in a dark t-shirt, plaid shorts, white socks and tennis shoes. I guessed him to be in his late 70's or early 80's. He was g...