By ship from England to Australia

Way back in the day, early sixties, we took a trip to Australia, from England and by way of Europe, the Suez Canal, Singapore and India, then Western Australia and up to Newcastle. It was six weeks on a ship and now days that would be considered a very long time. I remember Greece and the Parthenon, the menus with their exotic tropical fruit fronts, going through the Suez canal and seeing people walking by and on their camels (the canal is fairly narrow), the onboard library, the laundry facilities at the end of the ship, movies and dinners. This ship was of German registry and I remember them announcing dinner sittings by yelling out achtung! first and then telling us about upcoming events, and dinner of course. I was a kid and my focus was on basic things like food and games.

In this new decade (I'm sure that "my ship" is long gone), passenger liners are small self-contained cities which could exist for quite some time at sea. There are even ships that are residencies, with apartments you can own and travel around the world while living in luxury. On cruise ships there are food courts and parks to enjoy, rock climbing and movie theatres, live theatres and gambling, many fine restaurants and even dancing fountains. Cabins vary from economy to luxury suites with balconies. These ships are massive and can carry thousands of people. They remind me of self-contained spaceships traveling to distant worlds. Food is stored in giant kitchens and fresh produce is brought in or bought at various ports. Not on those shorter voyages of course, but those that last weeks as they wander from port to port, around the world. Almost like that spaceship visiting different planets and seeing diverse cultures and people. Cruising is a different way of travel. Where else could you go rock climbing as you glide through the water?