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4 ports in 4 days is a lot and that tends to challenge my schedule to post daily. But I was on target till WIX threw me a curve ball. My pics won't load. Rest assured, I'm writing the blog in MS Word each day so nothing will get missed. I just can't transfer it to wix with pics. They're working on it. But if I don't have an answer by Saturday morning, ill have 5 consecutive sea days to find a new platform, transfer everything and post the link on wix to the new site. Y

1/26/26 When you embark on a cruise of this magnitude, there are a lot of firsts.  First port, first show, first specialty dessert, first meal, first new friend and the list goes on.  But you don’t always know your last anything will be your last.  But in this case we do.  We know today will our last of 5 consecutive sea days before we port in Hawaii.  5 days is a lot.  There are entire cruises that last less than 5 days and we just spent more than that at sea.  To reiterate,

1/25/26 The day started out as many do now, with an exercise class, which I’m thoroughly enjoying.  I was today years old when I learned the benefits of Yoga and Pilates.  I may have to break down and join a gym when we get home.  I guess I have time to consider it as we still have about 110 days of this cruise. After yoga, I went to the fitness center for 30 minutes to get in some treadmill time before Sunday Church Service (more on that in a minute).  I didn’t have my table

1/24/26 There are many times I think people want to engage in conversation, but they just don’t know how to get it started.  Maybe they're in a line waiting for service, or maybe they’re seated next to someone in the theater, where the weight of an awkward silence is a real sensation.  If you make eye contact but don’t say anything, it creates an even more awkward moment.  Statements like “The weather sure is hot” or “How ‘bout them Yankees” were born for moments like this. 

1/23/26 Here we are, the second full day at sea and it still hasn’t warmed up; but that’s ok.  This was one of the most jam-packed days so far.  In fact, I didn’t catch up on my blog for the previous day till almost noon.  Usually I’ve completed it by 7am; but that’s ok.   I was a little sore from my first ever Pilates class; but that’s OK.  And I didn’t get in my 10,000 steps as committed……and yes, that’s ok too.  The great thing about this stage of life is that it’s all ok.

1/22/26 It’s interesting how the entire dynamic of the ship has changed practically overnight.  With a large group of Panama Canal cruisers disembarking in LA and Pacific Circle cruisers embarking, it’s like an entirely different cruise.  Of course, the addition of many friends we knew from WC23 make it more personal and fun. Sherri and I decided to take advantage of one of our perks….unlimited fitness classes.  This morning, I did a Pilates class and then a stretch class, wi

1/21/26 When I was young, age 7-12, my parents would send me and my brother to sleep-away camp for 2 months each summer.  I would like to think it was because they loved us so much, but truth-be-known, they wanted to travel unencumbered.  That’s ok.  It was the 70’s.  My granddaughter is 7 now and I can’t imagine sending her away for 2 months in the summer……not to mention the cost.  If someone told me they were sending their 7-year-old away to camp for 2 months, I’d likely gi

1/20/26 The word Lazy isn’t really a part of my vocabulary.  For me, I feel a little guilty when I don’t take full advantage of the limited and precious time we’re granted on this earth. I also somewhat irrationally feel that when I’m lazy, I’m admitting defeat to the aging process and declaring myself “Old”.    I know some people feel they’ve earned the right to be lazy, and I’m happy for them.  But for me, today was lazy.  And given that Forrest Gump was playing on the “Mov

1/19/26 For those of you who have not cruised, you’ll find this interesting.  Please read on.  If you’ve cruised before but not on Princess, you’ll find this interesting.  Please read on.  If you’re loyal to Princess, you can skip the next 3 paragraphs. The title suggests there’s a medal but actually, it’s a medallion and it’s your identification while you've entrusted your vacation dreams and safety to Princess.  If you haven’t cruised before, every cruise line has an identi

1/18/26 If you’ve visited PV (Puerto Vallarta), you’re probably wondering where this giant staircase is.  Rest assured, it’s reasonably flat along the coast.  But as I mentioned in an earlier post, our goal is 10,000 steps a day and in PV, we achieved 26,000 because we walked to and from the Malecon from the ship.  It’s about 3.5 miles each way, not to mention the time spent on the actual Malecon, which is a beautiful, pedestrian-friendly promenade with shops and statues and

1/17/26 Cruises are filled with a disproportionately higher share of outgoing, chatty people.  I’m one.  I admit it. Perhaps that’s why I enjoy a cruise.  I meet a lot of people who can genuinely hold up their end of a conversation, which means I don’t feel so compelled to fill the void.  It’s hard to believe but I’m a better listener on a cruise.  I love people’s stories, well, most of them anyway.  Cruisers' willingness to share more than just the where they live and what t

1/16/26 Whenever we visit a new country or port, I have a very simple rating system in my head: 1)    Could have skipped that 2)    Glad we came but no need to return 3)    I could live here Huatulco is definitely #3.  What puts it in that category, you may be asking.  It’s a variety of aspects.  It must have a: 1)       Reasonable cost of living 2)       Democratic gov’t 3)       Access to health care 4)       Moderate climate year round 5)       Clean 6)       Welcoming cul

1/15/26 On sea days or on light port days, I’ll blend in a host of other topics about the cruise or the journey (mental and physical) to taking a world cruise.  Today was a light port day as I spent just an hour off the ship walking around the port.  But more on that after a word from our sponsor: Why this, Why now? (a post I meant to post prior to embarkation) When I was in college, I read a book called Rabbit Redux by John Updike.  I don’t remember anything about the book e

1/14/26 It almost boggles my mind that back when we were hesitantly considering the WC23, one of my biggest concerns was the # of sea days.  55 of them scheduled on that cruise and with port cancellations, it turned out to be 58 of 111 days.  I thought I’d be bored to death on sea days. Let me be the first to admit, I was wro…..( try that again)  I was wron……Ok, the concern was not only inaccurate, it’s quite the opposite.  I LOVE sea days.  So does my wife.  And today was no

1/13/26 I visited you 3 years ago almost to the day.  Though I didn’t articulate it this way, you were a bit like a pre-teen, ugly duckling about to go through puberty and hopefully exit a beautiful swan.  Well, to be candid, you’ve matured some but are still a bit stuck in a pre-pubescent stupor.  I'm a girl dad of 2 wonderful daughters (now 35 and 30), but trust me, the prepubescent stupor stage is tough. Reminds me of a joke. A teenage girl is on the phone for about 30 mi

1/12/26 For those of you who are joining our wonderful adventure in LA, there’s a great chance you’ve been on another Princess World Cruise and if so, you were likely on the Island Princess.  If you’re following my blog for another reason, let me give you some context.  In 2023 we did the World Cruise aboard the Island Princess.  It was a nice ship but older and in need of some renovation and improvement.  Having a windowless fitness center, for example, was a bummer for 4 mo

1/11/26 Today we docked in Fuente Amador, a “suburb” of Panama City.  Florida has a Panama City….we’re not talking about that one.  This was the authentic Panamanian experience.  This was also the first completely new port from WC23, “the first of firsts”.   It was ….well ….exhilarating to be in a completely new destination full of both mystery and surprise.   We marveled at so much we didn’t expect which made this a truly delightful port day. But I’m ahead of myself.  Though

1/10/26 Today was such an excellent day in all ways.  Flexibility is key.  And as with yesterday’s post, allowing the day to find its own rhythm is also key.  Also, this was the first day which was really a complete repeat of WC23.  Yes, but Cartegena was a repeat , you might be correcting me.  Yes, but we experienced it differently by doing a taxi tour instead of the HOHO.  Small change, big difference.  But with the Panama Canal Transit, you don’t really have the same flexi

1/9/26 I find it interesting as we chat with passengers who are only on the Panama Canal segment of the cruise; they simply can’t fathom being on the ship for 131 days.  “Oh, I could never do that” I hear frequently.  Never,  really?  I struggle with that reaction.  Here’s a thought to ponder.  Many people I’ve worked with in the past thought they were irreplaceable….then, during a restructure, they were replaced in a week or even worse, their job was eliminated.  Let that si

1/8/26 We are blessed to absolutely adore our two sons-in-law. The older one has been part of our family for 15 years. He's as much our son as his wife is our daughter. When we leave after a visit or even to run out for milk, he says, tongue in cheek, "Make good choices". I laugh every time. Today we were in Cartagena, Colombia As we recapped the day, we agreed we made good choices today.  I woke up early at my usual 5am and busied myself on Facebook and reading the news. I