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14 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | JANUARY 2023 Lubeck, Germany, Holsten Gate, the writing at the gate translated to "Unity Inside and Peace Outside" Leaning tower of Pisa in Salerno, Italy The Amalfi Coast in Salerno, Italy By Margi Spies Have you ever considered going on a vacation where you only had to unpack once and for the next six months, travel to many places in the world? On August 2020, we decided to take the plunge and booked a 180 day Around The World (ATW) cruise leaving Los Angeles on Jan. 6, 2022 heading west and ending in New York on July 5, 2022. We thought what an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime experience this would be. It was hard to imagine being on a cruise ship for that length of time and preparing for that kind of adventure – medications, vaccinations, packing and getting your home ready for you to be gone that long. A big thank you to Mary and Bill Christelman for providing guidance, advice, and a checklist to follow; their insight of the countries and ports based on their travels and photos were invaluable. Prior to the ATW cruise, we had been on six cruises ranging from 10 to 28 days. Our first cruise was on January 2014 to celebrate Jack's 65th birthday. We flew from Los Angeles to Papeete, Tahiti, and got on a cruise ship for 10 days traveling throughout French Polynesia. We loved the cruise ship life and decided this was a great way to travel. Other cruises we have taken were to Alaska, the Caribbean, through the Panama Canal, and the Mediterranean. We thought Covid would be over by January, 2022, and the itinerary would go forward as planned. It turned out we were wrong. Two months before we departed, Australia and New Zealand were canceled from the itinerary. Everything else was still a go, however, we knew many countries were still closed to cruise ships and our itinerary would most likely change again. We began referring to our cruise as "The Magical Mystery Tour." We left L.A. and headed west to Hawaii and then on to French Polynesia. We were informed of a major itinerary change at the end of January. Instead of heading further west, we would be returning to L.A., down to Mexico and Central America, and through the Panama Canal, then sail the Caribbean and on to Miami. Next was an Atlantic crossing to Europe and the Mediterranean where we spent several months before another Atlantic crossing to Newfoundland, Canada, and on to our final destination, New York City. The ship held 656 passengers. There were only 277 people, however, on the ATW cruise with over 400 crew/staff. We knew everyone by the end of the cruise and made some wonderful friends. We went to 45 countries, 99 ports with 18 overnight port stays, and a total of 54 days at sea. During sea days, we had a variety of guest lecturers who were experts on our destinations that enriched our port excursions; we received an overview of history, geography, cultural values, and other points of interest that made it an incredible educational experience. We felt we had taken two semesters abroad. We took a lot of walking tours to help offset the calories we consumed enjoying the delicious gourmet cuisine on the ship. Our goal was to wear the same size clothes when we got off the ship in New York as we did when we got on the ship in L.A. Between excursions at the many ports we visited, we took Polynesian jewelry making, photography, and art classes from the various Artists in Residence on the ship. I learned various mixed media techniques – drawing, using colored pencils, watercolor and acrylic painting, and painting on fabric. We joined a trivia team, played Canasta and Mexican Train with couples we met on board, attended cooking Around the World in 180 Days THE MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR

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