Wednesday, February 11, 2026    At Sea

This is the first of four sea days, during which I used to accomplish a lot of logging and blogging, but I can’t seem to find time to do any of that between office hours and Bridge and just running the DV. 

We put together and delivered Newsletter 11.  There was a block party at 4 o’clock and I managed a half-hour of it.  It’s always fun.  It was quiet at the table and Mike Lynche was the vocalist on the world stage, pretty good, nothing special.

Thursday, February 12, 2026  At Sea

We sailed from Santiago, Chile, with new passengers. 

We had Linda and Bob Eckert to dinner at the table.  David and Dawn were on the World Stage and it was a most interesting act.  He plays what appears to be an electronic xylophone but it does a lot more.  He calls it a Xylosynth and it was captivating.  Google “David Meyer – xy” and that will bring him up.  It’s classical music, mixed with rock and funk and very high energy.  While he was blowing me away with his act, his looks and mannerisms were for all the world those of John Sidorchuk, my cousin, and Joanne’s husband. That just made it more fun.  Joanne wasn’t there but Dee stayed and invited David and Dawn to dinner, which pleased me enormously. Do not miss them if you are ever on a ship with them.  They are fascinating.

Friday, February 13, 2026     At Sea 

Our Distinguished Speakers today were a couple who had circumvented the earth in a 35-foot sailboat, named “Real Time”.  They lived on it from 1988-1997.  The dinghy was “Online”.  Can you tell they were both programmers?  They set off from San Francisco and barely made Australia in what became their first talk.  The audiences loved it and wanted more.  There were more than 50 people in the room.  At least 25 of them were DV people, 19 of whom came to dinner afterwards in the dining room. The entertainment were called Supernova Duo and what they did was a Fleetwood Mac tribute.

Saturday, February 14, 2026     At Sea 

It was an ordinary work and Bridge day, but David and Dawn came to our table for dinner and were positively delightful. 

We missed Pablo Bendersky on the stage, we were having so much fun.  He’s good too, though.

Sunday, February 15, 2026     Easter Island

It was a gorgeous day on Easter Island and Joanne and I went on a good HAL shore excursion to see the moai up close and personal. I’ll let the pictures tell this one:

It doesn’t get better on Easter Island.  This is at least my fourth time there, but we couldn’t dock, twice, and I just walked around the third time.  This is a place where it really pays to take the excursion.  Pablo Bendersky came to dinner at the table and was a most charming and interesting guest.

Monday, February 16. 2026

I have clients enjoying the Maharajahs’ Express in India at the moment and flying home March 10, on Emirates through Dubai.  They contacted me to start looking at alternatives. Irina Guskova entertained us with her violin.

Tuesday, February 17, 2026        At Sea on Mardi Gras

Here it is Mardi Gras, and the first day of the Chinese New Year, all at the same time.  Kung Hei Fat Choy and Happy New Year of the Horse.  Just in time to feed on pancakes and sober up for lent.  It happens.  It was another pretty ordinary work day, with Bridge in the afternoon, like all sea days.  I know I am over a month late.  It’s all I can do to keep up with the stuff that needs to be done and pronto.  I do let myself relax every night.  My happy hours in the Crows’ Nest have been mostly solitary rest time for me. 

Our dinner guest was Willie Ames, one of the enrichment speakers.  He was the most entertaining dinner guest yet.  The man is an old Cruise Director for Regent and Oceania, a Hollywood stuntman, saw stardom and infamy, got shot out of cannons, etc.  You name it, this guy has done it and can he ever tell a story.  Now he makes a career of going around on ships, talking about whatever he thinks will interest the group.   If he doesn’t know anything about it, he just googles himself up a presentation.  Amazing, and a lot of fun.  Big Mike Lynche was on the World Stage again and I enjoyed him.

Wednesday, February 18, 2026             Scenic Cruising Pitcairn Island

And you had to wonder what that meant.  We can’t get off on Pitcairn Island, but it comes to us.  A large contingent of residents pulls their long boat alongside and boards us.  Some of them lecture aboard and they sell a goods to us from stalls set up around the swimming pool.   In 2016, I bought a cheeseboard, in the shape of a whale, by Brad Christian, age 13.  I went looking for him, or another relative.  That would pretty much include the whole island, as they are pretty much all descended from Fletcher Christian, of Mutiny on the Bounty fame.  Sure enough, I found one Andrew Christian, who is a cousin.  He told me Brad was 23 now, living in New Zealand, and had a girlfriend.  They both looked swell in the picture Andrew had on his phone.  I bought a nut bowl, made by Andrew, of mirowood.  It’s very smooth and slick but ‘mirowood’ doesn’t google well.  I wouldn’t say it came from a tree native to Pitcairn Island.  I didn’t buy any T-shirts, either.  The ship pays the islanders to entertain us, and they certainly make money selling T-shirts and trinkets.  They take back a lot of it in kind.  Their longboat goes back laden with food and drink, especially drink.

David and Dawn were back on stage and this time we made sure Joanne saw them.   She saw some resemblance to her husband , but was not as struck by it as I was.  I get it.  She knows him better.

Thursday, February 19, 2026

We had an appointment with one of our people at the desk.  He had volunteered to be a Distinctive Speaker and we wanted to hear what he would have to say.  We were sorry, but we were afraid we couldn’t take this one.  Afraid was the right word. He wasn’t selling anything.  He was merely planning to discuss financial planning and some of the options.  He said he could explain Bitcoin, which I have never understood.  He said it was a scary thing but he believed there was one brand of it you could trust.  We weren’t going to risk someone losing millions of dollars and suing DV because they heard it from one of our Distinctive Speakers.  We respectfully, but firmly, declined his kind offer.

Then we printed and delivered another Newsletter. Pablo Bendersky was on the world stage with a piano concert.  I like him a lot and I love a piano.

Friday, February 20, 2026

I found out where the ship would be docked in Hong Kong, so I could start preparing my talk.  The Supernova Duo were on stage and they were good again.