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from Monte Carlo to Marseille was beset by next cruise, whenever and wherever that
surging waves and heavy winds that wors‐ might be.
ened by the hour and shook us like rag On our last day, which we spent in
dolls from 10 pm to the early morning Barcelona, our most favored port of call,
hours. we were enjoying a late afternoon on the
Our Club Ocean berth (a roomy 550 open-air, canvas-covered second-story
square feet, plus a 230 square feet ve‐ balcony of a Renaissance art gallery just
randa) along the portside hull proved far off La Ramblas, savoring a native repast of
from optimal, with a barrage of what paella and sangria.
sounded like shotgun fire banging against A cloudburst brought a brief deluge,
the ominously creaking hull. and I turned to the fellow sitting at the ta‐
To add to our distress, around midnight ble next to us (though we couldn’t hear the
the suite’s lighting system went into a flick‐ couple’s conversation) and I said some‐
ering frenzy, switching on and off, on and thing like, “Looks like you’re gonna get
off without stop until sunrise finally res‐ some rain.”
cued us and the winds and waves died To which he replied, “That’s right, mate.”
down. Hearing his accent, I asked where he
That morning, we advised the ship’s ho‐ was from.
tel manager of our travails and he dis‐ “Britain, but we’ve lived in the U.S. for
patched a repair crew to fix whatever 30 years now.”
might be wrong. Even after removing the “Oh, where in the U.S.?”
ceiling panels and checking the tangled
maze of wiring, they found nothing. “California.”
Luckily, quick-thinking Maria had cap‐ “Oh, what city?”
tured a few minutes of cell-phone video, “San Diego.”
the two of us cowering under the covers By now very curious, I asked, “What
beneath the disco-ball light show. At vari‐ neighborhood?”
ous times, we thought we’d be goners, with “Mission Hills.”
visions of frigid sea water crashing into our Which is exactly where we live.
suite or the ceiling bursting or dangling hot Turns out they live less than a mile from
wires electrocuting us. us.
None of which happened, but still… It’s good to be home.
The ship’s hotel manager said he under‐ We can’t wait for our next cruise when‐
stood and offered us a $700 credit for our ever and wherever that might be.
234 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2024
