Boarding Rituals
Just thinking about boarding the ship … makes me wish it was happening today. I remember the first time we boarded a cruise ship … we were amazed at the beauty of the Atrium, and, as we wondered the ship, we found so many beautiful areas that brought us great pleasure over the coming 7 days and nights. But, we both have a ritual that’s lasted since that first cruise, and it’s our signal to relax into vacation mode.
The place where this begins for both us is the sailaway party on the open deck. We position ourselves along the rail of the ship, overlooking the port we’re leaving. Of course, waiters arrive quickly to deliver a “drink of the day”. Photographers and videographers wonder by, asking us and others to pose for their cameras, to catch the joy in our eyes. Roger begins slipping into vacation mode as the ship sails out of port, land disappearing, with just the ocean in view. He loves that feeling. As the band begins to play, my hips begin to sway, and all my worries slip away. When is the moment you enter vacation mode? Is it a place, a sight, a scent? I’d like to know.