Nearing the End

We are on our last full day, tied up in Marseilles, France, along with four other large passenger ships. I don't have any definite plans yet; we thought we'd be joining another colleague of Ransom's for a bit of touring and perhaps lunch, but that doesn't seem to be happening, so I may well just go ashore on my own, check out the cathedral, and grab a local snack. And I might just stay on board. The ship really is at its best when hundreds of the passengers are ashore.

Two of those passengers have resurfaced since we met them two days in. Ali and Darren are a couple of Brits in their late forties and a delight to hang out with. Yesterday we went ashore in Livorno, had a bit of a walkaround and a long, leisurely lunch before retuning to the Equinox. Joined then again before dinner and for the show at 10:45. More on that in a bit.

Darren is in the diplomatic corps and is about to be posted to Israel for three years. They have decided not to sell their London home but to instead invite Ali's two brothers to live there. That's financially advantageous to the brothers but the main motivation? To not inconvenience the cat! Taking him from their spacious home to a smaller Israeli flat and then, worse, to a six-month quarantine three years from now is more than they are willing to put the cat through. I can certainly understand that; how many decisions have I made based on our dogs' needs?

They're off to Cassis today on an afternoon tour. I'm tempted to join them but have pretty much reached my bus-riding quota for this month. Likewise, I have reached my cruise show quota for this sailing; one is more than enough. It was not awful, it was just too long and too derivative: a dance/acrobatic show with a canned soundtrack and some of the worst costumes I have ever seen. The acrobatics were impressive -- though if you've ever seen Cirque du Soleil or Pilobulus you've seen it before, and better. And why, when acrobats are doing their thing center stage, would you have dancers executing bad dance moves on the sides, distracting from the main event? Ransom bailed before it started; we three stayed through, but only because we were enjoying each other's company and really had nowhere better to be. (It was, for the record, the latest I had been out and about on the ship, returning to cabin 7255 at 11:52pm -- a far cry from my party-all-night early cruises).

The ship continues to impress; even though she is nearly sold out (2800 passengers) she rarely feels crowded. Most of those passengers are well behaved although, for a change, it is not just the Americans who are occasionally loud and obnoxious. Boorishness apparently does not respect national borders.

Tomorrow we disembark in Barcelona, spend the day there and fly home Monday. It's time. I miss the dogs, I miss eating simply and I miss my routine. Having said that, this has been an excellent cruise on an excellent ship. For those reading this blog who have still never sailed, or have not sailed since, say, the late 70s, it's time to do it!

Celebrity Equinox

Queen Mary, tied up at Long Beach

Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth 2 in New York