Many of you have been on one. You know about it better than I. This was my first trip on a big ship since the USS Butner carried me to Germany in 1955. Not quite the same.
Fort Lauderdale had cruise ships everywhere! This is a BIG business. It is like going to a major airport. Immigration and Customs (Home Security) is waiting to give you a shock, with long lines and shakedowns. Prepare to remove your shoes, belts, coins, watches, and anything else they wish. I wondered if profiling EVER comes into play. My wife, leaning on a cane, and bent a bit with gray hair and a grandmotherly look surely does not profile to be a terrorist! If she was smuggling anything on, it was EMU Oil or Extra Strength Tylenol. I was so relieved our heads were not shaved at the end and we were told to, "Give me twenty"!
After clearing customs and boarding this ship called the Constellation, it was like entering a Christmas wonderland with elves everywhere to serve! The ship could hold its own with any five star hotel. A giant Christmas tree adorned the grand foyer. Beautiful decorations were most everywhere. Our room was 7070. It had a nice little outside balcony where one could watch the seas and whatever. There are elevators at several places. They are glass encased, giving views
as one elevates or descends. They ran all the way to eleven where one could jog or walk a track around the outside deck. Swimming pools and sauna were on the tenth floor. They were popular for many. I walked on by on the way to the buffet area. A formal dining room was also available with reserved tables! We were faithful to attend. There were enough forks and knives at my plate to supply our house. I didn't see a paper plate on the entire trip! Our table had a head waiter and assistant. They were efficient and pleasant. They placed your napkin in your lap. You had no choice but to be couth!
I enjoyed the library. See a book you want to read? Take it! No librarian or two cents a day fee for late returns. Someone came twice each day to change sheets or prepare the beds for sleeping. Emily was our guest. She slept on a comfortable sofa bed. there was always a chocolate delight in a shiny pack waiting on the pillow.
We attended a worship service. The minister was an upbeat, "all's right with the world" female. I called her Dr. Feelgood. She was okay. The second time around I went to the library and read the Gospel of Mark all the way through. That made me feel good.
There is more. I will afflict you with that later. It really isn't the real world, but it is a nice and fun world. It isn't heaven, but closer than some of those folks will get, I'm afraid.
