Well, now that we’re back in Texas, and our chores are done, (at least the ones waiting for us) we have set our sights on the next adventure, that of the World Cruise commencing on 5 January of 2023. We are desperately trying to tie up any loose ends that may cause an issue if they unravel during the four months that we’ll be away. Tidying up doctor’s visits and prescription refills are on the top of the agenda and are proceeding nicely. We did get the Platinum Package of Cruise Insurance for all the obvious reasons including the Big One… (No! Not THAT one! You know…. just in case we get sick enough to warrant an early departure from the ship.)
You Never Know…
So armed with that comfort of mind we are going through the checklists of recommended items to bring along and making arrangements for excursions in the fifty or so Ports of Call that are on our Itinerary.
The Cruise is from the beginning of January to the end of April, 111 days all together. As I mentioned, there are about fifty Ports so, that leaves us with about half of the voyage doing just that…. voyaging!
‘Days at Sea’ are actually my favorites. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t wait to visit all of the interesting places that are scheduled, but I do enjoy just being on the water. The Art of Relaxation is something that is entirely foreign to me. I do envy those that can sit by a poolside or on the beach for hours and hours without a care in the world.
But that’s not me.
Besides having Restless Leg Syndrome (for which I am the Poster Child) I seem to always need to be moving. Kind of like those sharks that need to keep swimming forever in order to keep water flowing past their gills in order to breathe.
So, I use my time wisely on board and roam the ship making sure that everything is running nicely. My goal is to actually gain access to the Bridge before the end of the cruise and let the helmsman take a break so I can take over for a while.
Hah! Fat Chance! (But I’ll try anyway!)
One of the activities that occur on the days at sea are the Formal Nights for dinner. This Elegant Evening happens on practically every cruise on every cruise line on the planet. It is a favorite of most of the female passengers, and maybe not so much of the male variety. The rules of these evenings are spelled out nicely, but not really enforced unless you insist on dining in your tank-top and cut-offs. The suggested attire is gowns for the ladies and tuxedos or dark suits for the gentlemen. But, if you show up in the dining room looking at least neat and tidy, no one will escort you out…. They do realize that YOU are the guests here. In reality you just end up looking stupidly out of place if you insist on dining there. We’ve been on cruises where we intentionally did not pack any fancy duds. In those cases, we had dinner up on the Lido Deck, where the buffet is always out and usually consists of some of the fare that is being served down in the dining room anyway.
This way, we did not look uncomfortably out of place and had a nice meal to boot!
The number of Formal Nights depends somewhat on the length of the Voyage. There are usually two Formal Nights on a seven-day outing, probably three on a ten to twelve day sailing and the numbers go up from there.
I don’t know the exact number (yet) of proposed Formal Nights, but we’re out for 111 days so just by doing the math we are expecting quite a few.
Back in the day I actually owned two tuxedos.
Now, I don’t own any.
I’ve gone both routes here, bringing my own and renting one through the cruise line where it magically appears in your stateroom upon your embarkation.
Enter COVID.
The rental folks that Princess used to use did not survive the Cruise Industry Shutdown and they (Princess) have yet to find anyone else to fill that void. So, what’s a cruise guy to do? Remember before when I said that I used to have two tuxes? (Note the Past Tense) When we were downsizing in order to fit everything that we needed into the motorhome, we tried to envision our lives going forward.
They did not include Tuxedos! (Not that I would have been able fit into them anyway!)
Now I don’t mind getting dressed up and I actually think Tux’s are just fine. We also just finished binge-watching Downton Abbey for the second time, so we had quite the taste of formal dining in our minds as this Dilemma of Magnificent Proportions presented itself. We also did not want to stick out like some country bumpkins’ in the dining room filled with some extremely well-to-do folks that can afford like a hundred thousand dollars for one of those fancy suites! We are just fine with our Inside Cabin thank you, but we don’t need to amplify the fact that we are definitely on the lower tier of the financially viable folks on board!
(The great equalizer is that the sights that we will be seeing are available to everyone, no Class distinctions there!)
Back to the Tuxedo Trauma. Renting one on dry land for an extended period would not be a fiscally smart move so the next best thing is to purchase one (and all of the accoutrements) and bring it on board with us. Off to Men’s Wearhouse in College Station (home of Texas A&M and the Aggies) where we were amply served by Brody and Perla. They outdid themselves and I am now the proud owner of a new tuxedo, shirt, shoes, etc. The best part was that the bow tie was Buy One, Get One… so I procured a very nice velvet maroon one!
Paula helped with all of these Very Important Decisions and looked me up and down as I stood there modeling the Fancies…… until she realized that she may need to procure a few more Evening Gowns!
Fashion Show!