World Cruise - Entertainment And Education

Michael Bacala

One of the best things about cruising is the nightly entertainment and it has been outstanding during our first week. It has included a violinist, Michael Bacala from Poland, who can make the most beautiful sounds come from his violin--notes I never knew a violin could make. Elio Pace, a pianist from Great Britain, woke things up with quite an energetic night of popular music. Marc Paul, a magician and mind reader from Great Britain, blew minds with the amazing act of mind reading he did. And believe it or not, I actually was able to sit through a whole evening of a comedian's performance and eagerly go back for a second night. John Joseph, from NYC, was a tremendous talent. He has the intelligence and quick wit to work an audience and be funny in his delivery without being crude. I'm sorry that he won't be on the whole cruise with us. Of course there was also a show of Billy Joel's music accompanied by the band and ship's singers and dancers. We saw the show a couple of years ago as they had just put it together and performed it for the first time during that cruise. I didn't like it back then but they have really updated it and made it much more entertaining than it first was.

Owen Ullman

The mornings and afternoons at sea are filled with the opportunity to listen to the guest lecturers on board. Jack McManus is giving several talks on social media, what it is and its role in our lives. Owen Ullman, a reporter with USA Today, is speaking on a variety of world affairs topics. Bill Miller, who we have heard speak before, is lecturing again on the history of cruise liners. Jay Wolfe is the destinations lecturer and after speaking about the history of the Caribbean, he has begun to talk about the history of the Panama Canal.

Add to all of this all the other activities associated with the spa (nutrition, skin care, exercise programs), the needlework/knitting classes, the bridge classes, the computer classes, the music classes. . .the list goes on. It can be overwhelming but we learned long ago that it's not a good idea to try to do it all. Pick and choose is the rule and leave time to relax and enjoy the views. As I write this, I'm in the Palm Court looking out at the harbor of Santa Marta in Columbia. It's peaceful and cool--outside is very hot and humid. I will have to put the computer away soon though. They're getting ready for tea time. Don't want to miss the scones.