I needed a little R & R, so decided to risk life and limb and get on a ship for a little cruise. The trips to Alaska are cheap right now and it is only September, so I figured that it wouldn’t be very cold. I bought a new fuzzy sweater, a pair of jeans, and off I went. The ship offered free wi-fi, free wine, free meals, and, of course, free walks around the deck. I took advantage of all of them, and thoroughly enjoyed my week of living dangerously, which means I left my computer at home.
The sea is my strength, and I love being on the water. It brings me peace and humility and reminds me that Someone Else is in charge. I remember that most of my worries are insignificant, the world is a big place, and I am only a very tiny minnow in a gigantic blue pond.
Mother Nature put on a show, grandstanding her glory. She set the temperature at about fifty degrees and strutted her stuff. I wished I had also brought gloves and a stocking cap because those free walks around the ship set me shivering. The views were amazing with glaciers a mile long and half-mile wide, eagles soaring through the wooded forests, sea otters out for a swim, diving, then rolling over, teasing the tourists, making me dizzy. Whales…my goodness, I saw whales! Pods and pods of humpbacks that blew spouts of air and then dove with their marvelous tails slapping the water as they headed deep below the surface. I didn’t take any pictures because the whales appeared and disappeared too fast for my pokey fingers. Every night, divine sunsets displayed a variety of colors, changing every few seconds from spectacular to even more spectacular.
I watched a variety of music shows, with a variety of everything. “Unchained Melody” quickened my heartbeat and tempted me to dance, while a rousing rendition of “Cotton-Eye Joe” made me desperate to drink more wine. Just for the record, I ate too much and will have to rethink the concept of free food and wine as a cruise benefit. Eye-roll here.
All in all, it was a great trip. I had to mask up, but I didn’t mind one bit because I was on the sea, dancing with Mother Nature. If you, like me, love dancing with Mama Nature (or working off dinner on a dance floor) as well as changing the beat of your hum-drum-drum, maybe you can join me next summer? Mark your calendars for June 18-25, 2022 for the first-ever Wrinkly Bits cruise. (Contact Cindy Turner for information cindy@cindyturnertravel.com.)
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