We set sail for our 177-day around the world cruise on Monday, January 14. We are sailing on Oceania’s Insignia ship with 682 other passengers, 285 of which are joining us for the entire journey. The other 400 or so will be disembarking at Los Angeles, where we will pick up a new group of passengers for the next leg of the journey. And so it will go every 30 days or so as we make our way around the globe.
The ship is beautiful, with plenty of activity, dining and lounge options. There’s even a putt-putt golf course! We will be living in 210 square feet, which may sound pretty tiny, but we were able to find room for all of our belongings, including the three large suitcases we used to get them here and Ken’s golf clubs.
We have already begun making new friends, some on the bus that took us from the hotel to the port, some at the Champagne Welcome Reception for the world travelers, and some at dinner. We are a diverse group. There are those who have done multiple world cruises (one woman is on her FORTIETH – 4-0 – world cruise!), those who have never cruised before (what a way to start!), blue collar folks, senior executives, business owners – all of whom are retired. We’re probably within 10 years of the majority of our fellow passengers, but there are some older folks. Everyone has been very friendly so far, but, alas, we haven’t found anyone to play Mexican Train or Pinochle with us yet (sigh).
It looks to be a wonderful experience and we can’t wait to get started!
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