At Sea With The Conversationalist - Part 1

As I write, Seabourn Encore is sailing down the Red Sea having left the Jordanian port of Aqaba with over 500 guests who had spent a day at either Petra, Wadi Rum or the ruined Shobak Crusader castle. Peter O’Toole and Lawrence of Arabia were much in discussion. Before that came Crete and the Suez Canal transit which is always a highlight.

Seabourn Encore

We are now on six days in a row at sea with shipboard life settling into a pattern. I lecture each sea day along with my fellow speakers, a former Royal Navy officer, now a great friend met on earlier trips, and an Arabist. Seabourn passengers have all achieved a lot in their lives so anyone who stands in front of them to talk must be in top form.

Guests and crew alike see cruising back at full tilt. The first “formal” night was packed, many participants commenting this was the first time that had happened since the return from Covid began. This cruise is almost at full capacity, all reports have forward bookings at high levels. A “get to know the neighbours” corridor party revealed a strong emphasis on making up for lost time and a thought that taking all available opportunities was probably a good idea.

That included jokes about “SKIing” (Spending Kids’ Inheritance). No doubt that will provoke more attacks on Boomers, but there is a definite sense in which the pandemic has sharpened people’s views on life and prospects.

Some veteran cruisers discern changes in shipboard life. Itineraries are perhaps more flexible, for example, and on this cruise we are bypassing India which is normally a stop. And an increased use of phone apps and computer messaging to convey program information has caused confusion for some.

But Seabourn crews are working overtime to revive their industry that was hit so hard by Covid. That has led to some changes in the pattern of cruises, so Australians (and Fremantle residents) can expect to see more of Seabourn over this summer before repositioning cruises shift them to other spheres.

There are a lot of Australians and New Zealanders on board, some having taken the cruise specifically, others adding it to other travel. Many already have bookings for their next adventure. Among the Americans, Brits and Europeans who make up the rest, there are a number who do several cruises a year because it suits their lifestyles.

Is there a heightened sense of escapism now post-Covid? Possibly, but the big numbers who attend the lectures are really plugged into the world and want to learn more about this complex part of it and that’s where our task as “Conversationalists” comes in. Outside the talks, we are always in conversation with someone or a group of people ready to discuss what is going on here or anywhere else in the world for that matter.

Many of the guests have travelled through here before, many others have not, but they all welcome the chance to learn more about how what they see now in places like Israel and Jordan has been shaped by events and people long in the past.

At Shobak, for example, they are taken back 1100 years to Crusader days and the first major East-West encounter that set so many contemporary attitudes and standpoints. In turn, that helps them understand why the Qatari government banned the Crusader uniforms being worn there by English World Cup football fans.

In Akko (Acre in the European minds) they saw where so many battles between East and West began back then, a forerunner to the clashes of today – there were blasts in Jerusalem while we were in port a long way off.

Our next stop is in Muscat, Oman, always a guest favourite. The souk is a classic gem and a wonderful opportunity to see something of an authentic life with the etiquette guides a neat reminder of cultural difference.

Dubai will see a good many current guests disembark and a new set come aboard for the run to Singapore. Meanwhile we navigate one of the world’s busiest waterways, a timely reminder that Fremantle sits on one of the great maritime trade systems and is well placed to take advantage of that if we so dare.

Cruising is back with a vengeance, if this trip is anything to go by.

* By Brian Stoddart. You’ll find more feature articles by Brian Stoddart right here!

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