I’m so glad that Cruise International magazine has come out at last, partly because it’s always lovely to have an article in print, and partly because I can now tell you all about our super-swanky holiday this summer. We went on a six star (yes, six! Five stars are just soooo low rent, you know) cruise of the Greek islands, courtesy of Silversea.
Well, it was an amazing experience. I suppose, like many people, I’d always associated cruises with older people. And also, the idea of being stuck in a confined space with strangers I might not like had never appealed. But I knew that friends like fabulous blogger Becky of Englishmum fame had taken to cruising like a duck to, ahem, water. Becky is waaaay more sociable than I am, but if she liked it, it must be fun. And if life’s taught me anything, it’s to throw myself out of my comfort zone occasionally and try something new, whether it’s countries, husbands or, in this case, a cruise.
I needn’t have worried for a moment. There were all age groups on board, and you could spend as much or as little time with people as you wanted. We were spoiled rotten from the moment we walked up the gangway, and the food, drink, ambiance, view, weather and the islands themselves – including the incredible Ephesus in Turkey – were all perfect and wonderful.
But the best thing of all was spending some time with my lovely Child One. She’s been off at uni now for a couple of years and so I can see her with, perhaps, a little bit of objectivity, and I was so glad to know the kind of person she’s become. She was endlessly enthusiastic about every aspect of the cruise, she was open to all the experiences that came our way, she was keen to keep up her academic studies by learning as much as possible from the art expert on board (she is studying art history). She even catalogued the ship’s fantastic collection of original artworks. Meanwhile, we also laughed ourselves silly pretty much the whole time, ate a lot of chocolate and may have enjoyed the odd glass of wine.
I’d like to thank Cruise International and Silversea for sending us off on this lovely voyage, full of all kinds of discoveries.