The Living Journey

This morning we arrived in Gdansk, Poland on a cool, dreary and chilly day. There were many locals out and about despite the rain to welcome us to their country…a hearty group.
Outside the harbor entrance there is a huge memorial known as the Westerplatte Monument.

Stockholm is probably my favorite Scandinavian city. It’s particularly great on a sunny summer day.  There’s a lot of great architecture and parks and water views everywhere.
The first day we were there I took a long walk by myself.

This morning we arrived in Wismar, Germany which is located on the Baltic Sea. It is a small city of about 45,000 and we were last here with the Ship in 2016.

Wismar retains much of its charm and many reminders of its days as a member of the Hanseatic League and over more than 250 years of Swedish control (1648-1903).

Late last month The World emerged from a month-long dry dock in Cadiz, Spain. Planning was years in the making and the results are nothing short of magnificent. The transformation from ideas to conceptual renderings to exquisite,

A highlight of the island of Curaçao is its capital city of Willemstad. This UNESCO World Heritage site is best known for its candy-colored Dutch colonial architecture, multicultural neighborhoods, and stunning national parks. We walked from the pier adjacent to the city and had a chance to look at Rif Fort,

The port city of Manta (north of Guayaquil) is one of Ecuador’s largest cities. While it is primarily a seaport – home to the country’s major tuna fishing fleet – Manta is also a center for the chemical industry.

At the end of February 2022, we began another journey as we continue exploring and photographing the world by sea. We flew from the United States to Pape’ete, Tahiti where our first night was spent at the delightful Intercontinental Hotel near the Pape’ete airport before heading to the Ship the next morning for a nasal swab PCR COVID-19 test (a requirement before boarding).

We had a very pretty sail into Mazatlán, my favorite stop in Mexico so far. We caught the first shuttle into town and set out for a long walk along the oceanfront promenade. The old town was quaint and authentic,

Well, it’s been quite a 2 years for all of us now, hasn’t it? Our beautiful Ship, The World, was in a warm layup from March, 2020 until July, 2021 when it went back into operation in Greece.

Off the southern coast of Spain on the island of Mallorca, the city of Palma de Mallorca delivers breezy Mediterranean scenery, a plethora of art, perfect weather, Blue Flag beaches, and gastronomic surprises that have transformed this capital city into a year-round destination.

I wouldn’t let myself believe this trip was actually happening until we got all the way here.
Four airports, an actual port, and various assorted taxis and ferries later we were on the Ship, cruising through the Mediterranean on our way to Portofino.

The last group of islands in Raja Ampat that we visited on the expedition was a day spent snorkeling, kayaking and Zodiac cruising around the islands of Misool, one of “The Four Kings” that are known as Raja Ampat.

We anchored near the village of Kwatisore and close to several bagans, fishing platforms built around a boat. Fishermen live on the platforms and fish for about six weeks at a stretch. Because there is no refrigeration, they keep the captured fish alive in nets under the bagan while locals in boats come by and to purchase some of the catch every day.

We joined the Ship on January 13th in Palau. For those of you who are unfamiliar, it’s an archipelago nation of over 500 limestone islands. Only a few of them are populated. There are only about 25,000 people altogether and most of them live on Koror.

After the crowds and history of Bangkok and Ayutthaya, Ko Kut was a complete change. We anchored off this tiny island and ferried people to the pier near a white sand beach.

The crew had set up a buffet lunch and brought out the kayaks and Hobie Cats.