Category: Travel

It’s funny how, for me anyway, one of the best things about travel is that along with the opportunity to see new faces and places, learn some life lessons and gain insight into the wild world, it helps you appreciate what you have at home.

The rituals and traditions of home, which for me include the first sip from a freshly brewed cup of tea, the sight and smell of a home-grown rose against a brilliant blue sky, that feeling when the washing has all been sorted, and slipping between the sheets of our freshly made bed.

Things I generally take for granted but appreciate so much more after time away.

To be honest I have mixed feelings about today, the day when our bags would have been packed and ready to go, give or take a few too many clothes, shoes, bits and pieces from home.

My lists would have been checked and ticked off, my anxiety and stress levels high, with the delicious anticipation of the journey ahead buzzing and fuzzing my brain.

This is the day the countdown would have been in hours instead of months, weeks or days. Counting down to the time to close the cases, shut the front door and leave home.

I am genuinely sorry that the holiday we have looked forward to and saved for is not starting today, but also very grateful for the opportunity to take stock, unwind, and just be at home instead.

This is the day my lesson is to savour the tea, smell the roses, count my blessings and appreciate that home is exactly where I need to be.

And to imagine how great the next holiday can be!

I celebrated a milestone on Wednesday, seven years ago my now husband proposed, on our first night on board our first ever cruise.

Fast forward seven years, nine cruises, a handful of new friendships and a lifetime of memories and I can honestly say I’m done.

No it’s not my marriage that’s giving me itchy feet, hand over heart my love for the wonderful man I am privileged to have as my life partner is exponentially stronger than I ever thought possible.

It’s cruising from Australia with Australians I’m done with.

There’s still so much of the world, including Australia, I want to explore but for now there’s no ship on the horizon I plan to board from or return to Australia.

Maybe it’s because we’ve done so much in such a short period of time, or that the serenity of traveling by sea has been tarnished because of and by our laidback larrikan reputation that was unfortunately evident and reinforced on our recent Australia based cruises.

Don’t get me wrong, cruising on the Ovation of the Seas is a truly amazing experience and highly recommended. The ship itself is absolutely awesome, and apart from some teething problems, the crew did their best to ensure our experience on board was entertaining and positive.

For me it’s just a shame that Australia based cruises now include the bonus of bearing witness to the Aussie attitude of ‘I’ve paid my money, I can do what I like.’

“So what if it’s formal night? You can’t stop me walking around the ship or sitting in the front row of the theatre in my boardies and thongs!”

“I’ve paid for the drinks package so I’m going to drink my body weight in alcohol every day, that’s what I call value for money!”

“And my kids love cruising too! They can run amok throughout the hallways, stairs, lifts and especially in the pool, and heaven help the idiot who tries to pull them into line!”

Sorry, that’s just not my idea of a good time, so for now it’s somewhere over the horizon I plan to explore, starting and ending on a far distant shore.

Sea Princess has just arrived at Marina Bay Cruise Terminal and for some this marks the end of their cruise from Fremantle. Personally I will be only too happy to wave goodbye to the Aussie bogons on board who have unfortunately only reinforced the stereo typical view of us overseas.

The second half of our cruise includes day trips to Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Indonesia and will also include three formal nights, and it will be interesting to see how our fellow passengers interpret the ‘smart casual’ dress code for the other nights on our journey home.

Described as ‘Dressing as for a nice restaurant at home’ was interpreted as wearing cut off jeans, singlets and thongs in the main dining room by a few of our fellow passengers on the first half of our cruise.

Attempts by the Head Waiters to discretely recommend dining in the other venues more suited to casual attire were met with contempt and even hostility and unfortunately only proved to reinforce the Aussie Bogan stereotype we also encountered on board Queen Mary 2.

As was the case on the Queen I am sorry to say I have felt ashamed of the reputation being reinforced at sea by some of our compatriots.

One of the best thing about going on a cruise is the ability to choose your own experience thanks to the wide variety of dining and entertainment venues on board.

For those who prefer a casual cruise I respect your right to choose but please show some respect for your fellow passengers and especially the wonderful wait staff and stay away from the main dining room.

So after what’s felt like a never ending countdown it’s now only two more sleeps until we get on board Sea Princess!

We’ve stocked up on prescription medication, sunscreen and insect repellant, and in my mind packing for this adventure is going to be infinitely less stressful compared to our most recent cruise on QM2.

I like to think that there’s a lesson to be learnt from every travel experience and in theory after six cruises in six years I’ve learnt a few lessons and have packing down to a fine art.

In reality I’m doing everything possible to avoid the reality of condensing what I want down to what I need, preferably in one case and a carry-on.

There’s a mountain of clothes piled up on the bed in a spare room and I’m thinking I need to make the most of my Netflix time at home before we leave.