Taking a Christmas Cruise
We’ve always had very traditional Christmas celebrations. So when my husband suggested we take a cruise last over last Christmas I was not keen to the idea. After all, being away from home meant no tree, no wrapped presents, no holiday foods, lights or…stress. It was a very unconventional idea, one I wasn’t sure my children and grand children would accept. But I had to admit: it was a tempting thought.
That must have been enough for him. He booked it and we picked a bright summer’s day to inform the family we just wouldn’t be around for Christmas. To our delighted surprise nobody seemed to be disappointed. As Thanksgiving came and went we celebrated the traditional holidays as we always did. But as the date of our cruise drew close, we packed up Christmas at home and prepared for Christmas away.
It gave celebrating Christmas a whole new feel. We left a few days early and spent time in New York City, exploring the famed lights of Christmas in the City and seeing the Rockettes Christmas show. Then it was off to Brooklyn, where we boarded for our cruise.
We are old-time cruisers. But there was something special and magical about taking a cruise during the week of Christmas and New Years. The crew went all out and if you think Christmas lights at night are special you should see them at night at sea. We headed for South America and had many warm, not-so-Christmasy days. But everywhere we went was Christmas in its own special way. The food was different, the feel was different but the Christmas spirit was the same.
I’m not saying this is something we’d do every year. But it will long be a memorable Christmas for me, one that I will always cherish. Christmas is Christmas…even if it is different.
