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Just Cruising
Having returned from my first cruise, I’m going to attempt to do my favorite story justice. First of all, a pro tip: go on your first cruise with someone experienced, who knows that you should never lose your key card (for me the importance was that it’s currency at the bar) and to lock your passport in the safe. Bonus points for someone responsible who doesn’t stay up all night in the bar.
Last night, because it was our last night, I chose to wear a dress that was a little too short and heels that were a little too high. I’d been informed that my luggage would be picked up at midnight, so I casually threw a pair of jeans and a t-shirt on my bed. My good friend and seasoned traveler (and responsible adult) left the bar before midnight and said she would take care of getting our luggage ready.
She called me in a panic a bit later — the porters had been waiting for her and she’d quickly thrown everything into my suitcase (thankfully not my makeup, or what is known as $1,000 worth of the “natural look”) — but I had nothing to wear in the morning except the dress that was a little too short and the too-high heels.
So I had a choice this morning — too short dress and too high heels, or just throw on my trench coat and too high heels. So rather than do the “walk of shame” in last night’s clothes, I teetered off the boat in too-high heels and trench coat (looking like an aging, pathetic flasher), found my luggage and threw on a pair of skinny jeans (all you ladies know that one does not simply “throw on” a pair of skinny jeans) while a very nice porter waited for my wardrobe change and made suggestions about shoe choices.
So if anyone is tempted to take their first cruise, I have some friend recommendations for you. Oh … and make sure Mark Steyn and Michelle Bachmann are there.
Published in General
Was it like this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZvugebaT6Q
BTW – I got a pic of @katievs and I together but frankly it did not do her justice so I’m not going to share. It did not begin to capture her grace and style. Plus the sea air was playing havoc with my hair.
I look forward to seeing all Ricochetti on the upcoming NR Cruise! Hit me up on the first night cocktail party for the location of the Secret Post-Dinner Cocktail Party location.
@susanquinn should be making an announcement soon . . .
Hilarius! When comedy didn’t try to be anything but just plain funny. Personally I was always fond of the bathrooms on cruises. They are so small that if you drop the soap, you have to get out of the shower to retrieve it.
First party is the night before, in the hotel. Just saying.
I DO.
@annefy I forgot to ask, what was your take on Mark Steyn in general?
Mr. Steyn has been one of my favorite political commentators for years and I always thought he came across as kind and personable.
When the CRTV lawsuit began they alleged some very derogatory things (that many parties do in such situations, of course) that I thought couldn’t be true (he was habitually late, unprofessional, short with the staff, etc.) but then again there is the warning about meeting your idols.
Can’t claim to know the man but I spent a fair amount of time in his company and he was warm and personable. And very approachable. He and I and a few others closed the bar on the last night
A good friend was supposed to join my friend and I on the cruise but she passed away two weeks prior. Mark was very sorry to hear the news and wrote her husband a lovely note of condolence.
I enjoyed his company – he’s full of good stories and anecdotes and trivia. Much like how he is on TV.
PS. Forgot to mention – M Steyn somehow found both the posts I wrote here at Ricochet about the cruise and linked to them on SteynOnline.com!
so the founders are right — all the cool people read Ricochet!
Thanks Annefy!
We first met him on the 2006? cruise. He was standing alone at the beginning of the first social so we talked to him. He was super nice. After his first seminar, everyone wanted to talk to him. That was when America Alone came out. When I walked the Promenade Deck, there were NR cruisers all around sitting and reading it. He is one of my favorite speakers ever.
The funniest thing I ever heard on a cruise was on a later one. HAL was shaking out the new Eurodam. It had a small galley fire and the alarm for the crew went off. Eventually the captain, in very thick Dutch accent, announced what was happening and that everything was under control. Next time Steyn was on a seminar, he imitated the captain and that announcement. I laughed until I cried.
No matter how mad you get at some of the writers, you will find them to all be super nice to get to know. I disagree with a few now on some issues but find it impossible to dislike them personally. In fact, some of the nicest people I have ever met do ricochet podcasts and the cruises. I can’t even imagine a cruise without Rob Long, James Lilacs, and Jonah Goldberg.
Even when he was in his mid nineties, Bernard Lewis was entertaining crowds of fans with his stories. Fred Thompson was a great socializer, too. Greg Gutfeld was in person as you see him on TV, and even attended the informal socials in the Crow’s Nest. One of the best is Kevin Williamson. On the cruise after Hurricane Sandy, one of the speakers didn’t make it because his house was damaged so on the night we sat at his table, we had no speaker. When Kevin’s table broke up after dinner, he stopped by our table and sat with us for a while. He will go to one of the bars after dinner and socialize with NR cruisers, too.
My biggest regret is waiting until 2004 to do my first NR cruise because I lost opportunities to meet other great minds. Milton Friedman was supposed to be on the 2006 cruise out of San Diego but cancelled due to health. He passed during that cruise. I did meet Robert Conquest, Bork, Buckley, B. Lewis, and Thompson before we lost them.
Thanks for the stories and the photo @EHerring !