People Watching

July 23, 2008
A TRAVELER’S OBSERVATIONS OF FELLOW PASSENGERS (aka “People Watching”)
Cruising has changed. At least the cruising this traveler has known over the past almost twenty years has changed. In the past, it was the rare occasion when some thoughtful grandparent took a grand child on a cruise. I always felt a little sorry for the kid who was usually a teenager or often a college aged young adult. Shipboard programs were definitely geared to the retired or near retired traveler. The young people had to make do with older generation talk at dinner and lectures and such designed to entertain granny and gramps. Today things have changed big time.
Granted, the last three cruises have been mid summer; high season for European travelers. Add the nose dive the U. S. dollar has taken in recent months creating a bonanza for families that couldn’t afford to cruise in the past and you have perhaps a new incentive for travelers to live the good life on the high seas resort style. I dropped by the public library in Dover a few weeks ago and read in the London Times that the British Pound passed the U.S. $2.00 mark for the first time in a generation. Add the growth of the Euro against the U. S. dollar to and exchange rate of $1.60 for one Euro and you have cruise ship rates that all of a sudden have fallen into the range of affordable for many who couldn’t afford the pleasure in the past.
And then, in all fairness, the Norwegian Cruise Line has developed a line of marketing that makes “your resort afloat” much more attractive to many than in the past. NCL’s motto of “Freestyle Cruising” has lowered the barrier for those who envisioned a Titanic style activity where folks dressed in tux and gown for dining. The standard for dress now aboard NCL vessels allows anything to be worn in most dining rooms as long as it includes shoes and long pants and any shirt for men and something similar for ladies. One dining room out of eleven requires a dress code that will not allow jeans on men or women in the evening.
So maybe the “new look” in cruising is catching on. Whatever the reason, things have changed; probably for the better for the new crowd of young families that are enjoying cruising on the Baltic this summer.
For the almost seasoned cruise passenger, the change is a little shocking but not so great that one can’t live with it. What “live with it” means is probably something different for each traveler. I saw a couple of my age, a few nights ago, smiling with their hands clasped in front of them as though they wanted to clap as about 50 children, ages 6 to 8, marched down the middle of the hall chanting something like military marchers do. The chanters were in good voice and it was obvious they had practiced their cadence chant and learned to use their loudest voices. It was soooooo cute! The kids were heading for the early show at the “Stardust Theater” where the song and dance troupe was putting on a musical spectacular. When I arrived for the early show, it appeared that there were about 100 youngsters , ages 5 - 10, seated together in one section of the theater. They were obviously having a goodtime. For most shows the kids are not allowed to sit in the front two rows unless accompanied by parents which is rare.
On deck there are hot tubs for kids only, hot tubs for families and hot tubs for adults. One of the two pools is for adults only. The usual buffet that is found on most ships has a section for kids with lower tables and hassock like stools rather than chairs with a children’s buffet close by. One of the bar venues, aptly named “Bar City” has separate viewing rooms opening off of the dance floor where kids can play video games or watch DVDs of movies for the younger set. When a very sophisticated trio specializing in Latin music plays, there are often a dozen or so teens lounged in the room with little kids trying to mimic adults by improvising dance movements on the dance floor that seem right at the moment. Often the dancing toddlers have parents near by who are encouraging their creative efforts.
I like to eat late on cruise ships as do most Europeans. I guess if I ate at 5:30 with the folks from Iowa and Kansas it would be a little quieter. At 9:00 PM it’s not very quiet. For the last two nights there has been an extended family that eats together along with a two year old that likes to exercise his vocal chords while the adults are talking and not paying attention to him. Last night we were two tables away and I observed the passing of the screeching child from one parent to another. I noticed Mother soaking the child’s pacifier in her cocktail. That just seemed to make the screeching louder. Fortunately, I just turned off my hearing aids. I did feel sorry for some of my fellow passengers but many appeared not to mind.
I must admit that with rare exception, as in the case of the screeching kid and a few babies that do their natural crying bit when tired or hungry, the kids on board are unusually polite. The fact that families are traveling together says a lot about parental attitudes that foster well behaved kids. Our American way is more often a case of leaving the kids with grandparents when the parents are going to go on vacation. We can’t seem to have fun when the kids are around. Ship board life is real togetherness. When a family with three toddlers share a single inside cabin, that’s togetherness.
The ship provides a full range of activities for children of all ages with a special section of the ship labeled “no adults allowed”. A cadre of a dozen or more college aged girls spend all day every day making sure that each child on board is having the best of times and the kids seem to love it.
It would be interesting to see how the kids get along in the programs provided. Overheard elevator conversations lead to the acceptance that English is not the universal language of travelers. My penchant for trying to strike up conversations in elevators fails more often than not due to mutual language deficiencies. The kids all learn their marching chants in English but it’s my guess that they do a lot of signing when they want to share the colors in the crayon box. The usual attempt on first night by someone assigned to warm up the crowd by asking where people are from yields the idea that passengers on this series of cruises are from all over.
Differences in nationality leads one to some unfair conclusions in a situation like the one I’m in. I’ve noticed that the “dominant male” in table settings of Italian, Spanish and South American travelers is gifted by our creator with a wonderfully loud voice. He seems assured that every one within six tables wants to know everything that he has to say. This level of decibels is also applicable in elevators, presumably so that those unfortunate enough to be in the elevator next door can hear. When papa, or the one paying the bill, is absent, the “dominant female”, who has been unusually restrained before now takes over the task of entertainment. You don’t even need to look in their direction to tell who Mama is when the gals are chatting it up.
The dominant role in Asian families has a somewhat different tack. When papa speaks he speaks softly. No one eats and everyone listens intently. The younger men at the table tend to look down and stare at their plates when dad is wound up but are quick to make an appropriate remark in support when he finishes. The ladies all smile very nicely and keep whatever they might be thinking to themselves.
The English impress me as not knowing one another at the dinner table. If the dining room was filled with English diners the most prevalent sound with be the clicking of silverware on plates and an occasional soup slurp. While I had the pleasure of dining with an English couple at my assigned table on a recent voyage, and found them very pleasant to chat with, my recollection is that they never spoke to one another. English tend to eat very fast at least those that I’ve eaten with always seemed to be the first to finish with each course.
Americans treat dinner as a social occasion. As an avowed people watcher, I’ve concluded that Americans can be spotted easily in dining room because they’re constantly talking. If there are more than two couples at a table there will probably be more than one conversation going on at all times. Single couples tend to identify the level of affection shared. In the dining room I frequent most often, there are tables with a wall bench seating for two and chair seating on the opposite side for two. When a couple is seated at such a table, which is often, the affectionate ones tend to sit on the same side while the left overs sit across from one another. This may be a defensive measure by the husband who doesn’t want his wife to fork her left-overs onto his plate but more often as not it seems as the best way to sit as far apart as possible. What’s really nice is to see an octogenarian couple sitting on the same side of the table whispering sweet nothings to one another. But then, maybe its just because their hard of hearing.
My favorite dining room watching is when I find a couple that is obviously not married and totally infatuated with one another. The man smiles when he talks and the lady listens attentively with flirtatious glances and an occasional giggle. The exchange continues as whatever food has been served gets cold and the level in the wine bottle diminishes. When they leave it is always holding hands and smiling at one another. That’s what I hope people see when they see my lady and me at dinner, forever.
Lots of love to all,
Grandpa Bill, Dad, Bill and Mr. B

Musings of a Traveler

12 July 2008
The Musings of a Traveler.
For all who have experienced the exasperation of setting the clock ahead an hour each spring when day-light savings time is manifest, it is easy to conceive of the affect upon the traveler heading eastward. Periodically notice is given to reset wristwatches and alarm clocks to the new time zone’s requirement. On this particular cruise of twelve days, our ship manages to cross through three time zones on its voyage from Dover, England to St. Petersburg, Russia causing three nights in six days when all lose an hour’s sleep. And then the ship turns around and returns to Dover providing travelers an extra hour’s sleep every other day. What a wonderful idea. Passengers disembark feeling well rested, given the extra sack time during the last six days, and all go home to report that the cruise was “restful”. Restful for all except those revelers who dance and drink away the night no matter what the time.
For the home bound, the routine of sun up and sun down is one that becomes a part of one’s being that can be taken for granted. The closer home is to the equator, the less the change in the hour of expected sun actions. Traveling to the extremes of the hemispheres introduces some interesting changes. Since this trip is close to the middle of the year and in the northern hemisphere, days are a bit longer than most of the passengers are accustomed. As an example, the daily bulletin on board ship, “Freestyle Daily” (every ship as a cutesy title for its bulletin), reported while in St. Petersburg, Russia, our northern most port, that sunset was scheduled for 11:35 PM and sunrise at 5:16 AM. I recall on our previous circuit, twelve days earlier, noting that sunrise was schedule for 4:20 AM. One actually can read by the light of the “midnight sun” as I learned for the first time in 1989 when friends took me on a 1:00 AM canal boat ride in then Leningrad. In 1997 I recall walking the dog past midnight in Fairbanks, Alaska and watching teams in a local softball league start their game after midnight without any field lights. It’s a wonderful world but kind of strange until you get used to it.
Eating on board a modern cruise liner is an art form. Most passengers react to the abundance of food with gusto and determination. Few seemed to eat as they normally do when at home. But then, home doesn’t have eight to ten restaurants under its roof, all within walking distance even for cripples, with a variety of cuisine to satisfy any and all tastes. The rule of the house is that the passenger gets what he wants, when he wants it, whether he needs it or not. If lobster tail is on the menu, why not order two, or three, or four. Like Bill Clinton mused; he did it because he could. The number of passengers within view each evening who order two or three desserts following each meal is enough to blow one away. In between meals there is a constant offering of wonderful stuff. A grill near the pool on this ship fires up its kitchen at 2:00 PM creating the aroma of barbecued hamburgers and such that has the effect of popcorn cooking in a movie theater. Two hours after lunch is served a line forms for hamburgers and fries with all the trimmings. The question of the day is obvious: WHERE DO THEY PUT IT ALL? This traveler has learned the hard way that he can’t do that. It took me a week to find where they hide the bathroom scales and I dutifully visit it once a day which leads to breakfasts consisting solely of fruit, lunches of salads and dinners with only one appetizer and one entree. It’s a challenge that few seem capable of conquering.
BINGO With all the wonderful things to do on board a cruise ship, it continues to amaze me the numbers who are attracted to the daily Bingo game. It costs big bucks to participate but it is something one can do in a seated position that doesn’t take any great mental exercise or stress. Maybe that’s what a cruise vacation is all about; but Bingo? By the size of the pay outs, I imagine the game is probably one of the ship’s biggest money makers. But then, if one wins the “big one” one can pay off the credit card bill when it comes.
On Board shopping seems to attract hordes of folks no matter what is being sold. Having the privilege of doing the same cruise twice now I have become aware that each of the twelve days at sea is like the twelve days of Christmas. Each has it’s special sale. We have watches, jade, silver and gold chains made from spools of chain of different patterns and sizes, booze at wonderful discounts but you can’t drink it on the ship ( If you get sloppy you have to pay dearly for the privilege), and oh yes - paintings. Why folks would pay big bucks for a cruise and air fare to get there and then spend a part of each day attending an “art auction” to buy “some of the truly great art of our life time”. They do. Maybe it’s the free champagne that always flows at such affairs.
The bigger the ship, the greater the number of places to listen to music and drink, or maybe its drink and listen to music. Each venue has its specialty in music. This is all fine and good, except that the world of entertainment knows in its heart that people won’t come unless the performance is going to be something special. So we have “sock hops” featuring music from the 50s and 60s, or “Latin Night”, or Country Western Night”, “Waltz Away the Night” and such. The observation I have made, being an aficionado of entertainment of any sort, is that no matter what the evening’s fare is announced to be, the music is always the same. Dance combos play like they only know a limited number of songs and that’s what they play, no matter what the Entertainment Director has decided to call the evenings fare. Have you ever watched people try to line dance to “The Girls from Ipanema”?
The nightly “show” in the ship’s big theater has its ups and downs but people attend whatever is showing and always clap loudly at the end. The best shows are always those performed by the cast of boy and girl singers and dancers. These kids work hours to bring their performances to a finely honed point of perfection. The energy exhibited alone is worth the price of admission which by the way is free. The shows always try to capture the unique talents of the troupe and exploit them to the fullest. This troupe has a couple of male dancers who do marvelous forward flips that always miraculously get worked into the show. The girl dancers are all lovely and skinny and are always costumed to take advantage of their loveliness about which no man in the audience dare complain. To please the ladies, I suppose, all dances involving male dancers guarantee a couple of times in the show where the male dancers turn their back sides to the audience and wiggle their bottoms. There must be a purpose there that escapes me but it’s a sure thing it will happen. Beyond the troupe’s performance, ships always have a juggler, a magician, a comedian and a musical performer of some sort. On this cruise we have a marimba player who can also play a half dozen other instruments that are worked into his act. We do have a male vocalist but he probably isn’t very good because the show band plays so loudly backing him up that it’s hard to know if he’s good or not. Girl singers are my favorite but none is aboard on this cruise.
The daily bulletin of each ship I’ve ever sailed on always has an interesting announcement that sounds like I should see what’s happening. The announcements are always the same: “Friends of Bill W” and “Friends of Dorothy”. The announcement usually reads that the “friends” will meet in one of he bars on board about 5:00 PM. I now know for certain what these friend groups are all about. Friends of Bill W are members of Alcoholics Anonymous. Why they meet in a bar I’m not sure although I noticed yesterday that this cruise’s Friends of Bill W just switched their meeting place to the Chapel. Not many ships come equipped with a Chapel but this one does. Friends of Dorothy clarified its mission on the first day of this cruise by adding the letters GLBT to the announcement which I was told stands for Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender. I guess I won’t bother with visiting the Friends of Dorothy although the name certainly intrigues me.
All of the above leads one to the conclusion that maybe it’s not wise to spend too much time on cruise ships and away from home. My traveling friend Marty is a good example. He proudly tells all, whether they ask him or not, that this is his 53rd cruise in less than four years. Since the only thing Marty ever finds to talk about is how many times he has been in the port we are currently visiting, maybe too much of any one thing can really be too much, no matter how wonderful it sounds. On the other hand, it’s nice to have Marty around when a tour guide in a new town is needed.
Love and kisses to all,
Grandpa Bill, Dad, Bill and Mr. B

July 5 2008

26 June 2008
Wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen….Wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen!
The song has it right. Most will agree that the city, Denmark’s largest, has a charm that other European cities would like to adopt. With only one skyscraper downtown, there is a small town charm about the place that makes it inviting. The cobbled stone streets add to the old feeling and the small shops that line the auto excluded downtown streets almost beg one to look in the windows.
Copenhagen is a royal city, home of the world’s oldest monarchy ever since King Erik set up permanent residence in 1417. The present Queen Margrethe II, lives in the royal Amalienborg Palace in the heart of Copenhagen. Marty and I walked through the square in the center of the palace complex along with a hundred or so people who were tourist gawking, picture taking or just taking a short cut through the grounds. The palace is interesting in that some past monarch decided to build identical buildings to house each of several princes. Today, unless you have a guide book in hand, it is impossible to tell which is the queen’s house.
While we passed through the palace square, a two car caravan of long black important looking cars made it’s way through the people in the square and entered an entrance that opened electronically. A half dozen costumed guards with M1 rifles stood about doing their thing but none bothered to guard the opening from we peasants watching the scene. We did witness a “changing of the guard” that appeared to this inexperienced watcher to be a bit sloppy with the leader walking in stooped fashion rather than straight and erect.
Our walk through town in search of an internet café took us through the main shopping area along a cobbled street with no automobiles. I was surprised that there were so many people on the streets for a Tuesday morning. A lot of shopping, if not looking, seemed to be taking place in all of the shops. The shops closest to the palace seemed to be for “high end” trade. I recognized a few names such as Louis Vitton and such, all with elegantly prepared windows. As we moved across town toward the Tivoli Gardens the rent obviously dropped and allowed MacDonalds and Burger King to operate amidst discount jewelry stores and book shops.
We found an internet café with a crowd of people hunched over several dozen computers that must have been satisfying some weird fantasies and needs as attested to the few heads rose from concentration as I worked my way to my assigned machine. Other than the fact that the configuration of the key board on my machine differed from my laptop, I was in business. It took a while to clear some 40 messages, mostly unsolicited ads; a privilege I withheld while using shipboard wireless connection at fifty-five cents a minute. I was able to do my computer thing and I was out and on my way within the thirty minutes I bought for a couple dollars worth of Kronnen.
A post office was our next objective and we found one in the next block. In the post office I stood in what I thought was a line for ten minutes before I noticed someone come into the office and head directly for a little machne that provided numbers…just like the butcher counter at Gene’s. Once numbered, I was quickly chosen from among the many to complete my business.
Back on the ship, I had a chance to think a little about the current cruise. Something seemed definitely different from other cruise experiences. As I wondered through the ship in an attempt to define the difference, I was confronted with a major difference. Of the 2500 plus on board there must be at least 200 children, maybe more. As I walked I passed a number of families with children ranging in age from about one year old to teen age. I sought out the area of the ship designed for children’s programs and found dozens of kids of all sizes busily engaged in games and crafts. Tonight during a magician’s performance at the early show a baby crying in the balcony brought the show to a stand still with a good ad lib from the performing magician that brought down the house. Later, as I discussed the difference with Marty who has been on more than sixty cruises in the last three years, we decided that the age of the passengers was definitely younger. Of course, this is summer and many people are on summer vacation. Older seasoned people who like to cruise have probably recognized this long before me and have chosen to do their cruising when school is in session and vacations are over. The few older set passengers seemed less sophisticated than the run of the mill senior traveler and probably in the process, as we speak, of planning to take their next cruise when school is in session.
Before we left Copenhagen, a show announced as a Folkorico took place in the main theater lounge. I expected ladies in dirndles and men in leder hosen to do some local dances and such. What actually occurred was a real treat. An actor dressed as Hans Christian Anderson, during his time, and abut twenty kids of all ages dressed in costume took the stage. Hans Christian Anderson introduced each group of children as representing one of Anderson’s childrens’ stories. Thumblina, Princess and the Pea, The Emperor has no Clothes, The Ugly Duckling, The Little Match Girl and several others were acted out briefly adding a new quality to Copenhagen, the proud home of Hans Christian Anderson.
Today the Norwegian Jewel berthed at the little coastal town of Warnemunde. We stopped at Warnemunde so that about half of the passengers could take a twelve and half hour trip to Berlin. The trip features a two and half hour train ride each way and costs an arm and a leg. While tempting, I think it would be preferable to find another way to visit Berlin.
This former fishing village has become a popular vacation spot with Europeans because of nearby beaches and the quiet little town atmosphere that is present. Winding cobblestone streets lined with little shops make for an inviting stroll. This morning the sun was shining brightly as shop keepers opened their shops, swept off the walk in front and chatted with their neighbors. I found a bank ATM to provide a supply of euros that I will need in coming months and another post office. As I wondered, I noted ladies seated at sidewalk cafes sipping their morning coffee while men downed beer from mountainous glasses. I decided to get in the spirit of the Warnemunde morning and found a chair at a nice little sidewalk café. I greeted the waitress with my practiced gute morgen and followed with Ich will ein grosse beir…a geselbe, pointing to a huge beer a man at the next table had in hand. Sure enough in a few minutes the waitress returned with a huge glass of beer just like the man next door, I think a liter, and I thanked her with veil danke to which she smiled and responded “bitte shoen”, I finished a Time magazine I had brought along about the same time as I finished the beer. I paid and headed back to the ship quickly realizing that my German ancestry didn’t provide me with the genes that would encourage drinking a liter of beer before lunch. I made it back to the ship without making a fool of myself (I think) and quickly headed to the buffet lunch line to give my stomach something of substance to soak up all of that brew. Lunch and a lot of beer made for a very sound nap.
Love to all,
Grandpa Bill, Dad, Bill and Mr. Berck