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No travel no more!

5/30/2017

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Remember back when I lamented that I wouldn't be traveling this year?  Well, when my daughter decided not to go to Europe, she cashed in her money back from her travel insurance (good girl) and she and I decided to go on a cruise!

I searched (as I do) and found an 8 day cruise from Miami to St. Maarten, Puerto Rico, back to the Bahamas again, and then returning to Miami!  We will be cruising on the MSC Cruise Lines Divina.  Have you never heard of them?  You're not alone!  Although MSC is known in Europe and South America, they just started sailing in the  US last year, and the Divina is their only ship sailing from here.  Later this year, they will add the MSC Seaside in December 2017 and plans to roll out a ship from their Meviglia class in or around 2018.  MSC (which stands for Mediterranean Shipping Company, by the way) is looking to expand quickly into the North American market.  You may not have heard of them until now, but you will definitely hear about them in the future!

Emily and I are even more excited about the Divina because the MSC cruise line is very European in culture, and she and I love Europe.  Breakfasts consist of Mediterranean fare, along with delicious-sounding continental fare.  We are really excited to sample the pain au chocolat, just to see if it is as good as the chocolate bread we had in France and Britain last year.  The dress code is a little less shorts and tee shirts and a little more capris and blouse.  There are several theme nights on our cruise; although we aren't sure what we will have yes, former cruisers have reported Italian Night where you wear red, white and green; Black and White Night where you wear black and white clothes, and decade theme nights.  I'm excited to see what we will do!

Apparently most of the crew barely has English as a second language.  Emily and I are pretty excited about that, and hope that our steward speaks French.  Wouldn't that be great?

We are thrilled with the customer service so far.  Our reservationist is Tim Brosnan, from Ireland but according to him, he is NOT related to our favorite Irishman, Pierce Brosnan.  Tim has been wonderful to work with and even got us upgraded from the the Bella to the Fantastica experience level, complete with a balcony room!  We have also opted for the All Inclusive drink packages so that we can have fun while not worrying about our drink charges.

I look forward to sharing our journey with you.  I plan on giving you tips; the good, the bad, and if there is ugly.  I will also be sharing which excursions we are taking when I book them.  Em and I are not going on the same excursions, so you will get a two-for-one feel.  It is very close to time to start packing, so I will also be sharing both a packing list beforehand, as well as an "Ooops I should have," or "Ooops I didn't" packing list afterward.

Bon Voyage!
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    Meet the Author

    I'm Valerie, and before turning 40, I hadn't seen much of the world.  In the past few years, however, I've been able to travel more.  I'm over 50 now, so my take on travel is even more mature!  I have discovered a great love for travel! Join me as I talk about the differences of traveling over 40 ​50.

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