We’ve been at sea for exactly eight days. This is the longest we’ve ever been at sea; we crossed the Indian Ocean from Perth, Australia to Mauritius Island in 2024 and that was 7 days. We did 7 days between Namibia, Africa and Cape Verde, in 2024, also on the World Cruise. But this has been eight days, across the upper Pacific Ocean, being chased by a major storm.

Our captain has done a brilliant job out-running the storm. We were supposed to go into the Bering Strait, as we made our way from Hakodate, Japan to Whittier, Alaska. However, Captain Diego Pera decided to stay in the Pacific, and to avoid the storm, would go gangbusters until he reached the protection of the Shelikof Strait. We’ve been driving so hard that even the Captain and the First Officer were not in attendance at tonight’s Captain Circle event. We’ve had 3.5-meter swells, and we’ve had some sunshine. We’ve had snow, torrential rain, 45 mph sustained winds and fog so bad, they were blowing the horn every 30 seconds because visibility has been less than a half a mile. It’s been a wild ride.

Yet, the rockiness has not been terrible. Yes, the outer deck 7 has been closed, off and on, for days. Yes, the barf bags have been out. Yes, there have been periods when the ship has seemed like a ghost town because everyone has been seeking refuge in their cabins, and the creaking in the mid-stairwell has been truly impressive. When walking around the ship, you might feel like you’re walking uphill, only to realize you’re walking downhill. But personally, we’ve not experienced any sea sickness and we are grateful for that.

Our biggest issue has been the time changes. When we heard that we were adjusting the time, 7 out of the 8 days, losing 1-hour each day, we were thinking, no big deal! But frustratingly, it has been a big deal and we think most of the ship is finding themselves in some state of sleep deprivation. Despite making the time adjustment in the middle of the day (at 1pm), the body still recognizes that an hour has been taken away. Everyone, but Marshall, is experiencing wide awake periods in the middle of the night. People are reporting being awake until 4am, then sleeping until 10am, when they usually rise at 6am. It’s so weird but clearly something that we’ll all have to endure and deal with.

Also, our cabin has been taking a beating. We’ve had multiple days when the wind shear has driven water through the sliding glass door. The carpet in front of our door is fully saturated and housekeeping has been on top of it, bringing in towels and jet-powered blowers. One day, they had the slider open, and the blower going, to try to dry it all out. The temp in the cabin dropped to 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Alas, we think the seal is broken and they’ve done their best to resolve, including giving us an unexpected $500 per person future cruise credit. No hard feelings; it’s an old ship and they are trying.

During the crossing, we’ve enjoyed lectures, some specialty meals, gambling and crochet, and the time has passed just quickly enough. Tomorrow, we will be in Whittier where they are expecting 18 inches of snow. We are not fully prepared for that, having not packed any boots, but we’ll double up on our socks and stick them in our tennis shoes. We’re taking a Princess 5-hour boat tour, to get an up-close view of wildlife and glaciers, and surely, we can’t let wet feet get in the way. Onward!

Tomorrow: Whittier, Alaska, USA