Sister and I love to cruise together and live the life of luxury. Food, fun, gambling, and naps are easy to get used to. We always get a room with a balcony so we can sip coffee in the morning and watch the waves. This time we opted for a room with only a window. My grandson is part orangutan and climbs on and leaps from everything. Even with two of us taking care of him, we don’t move as fast as we did when we were raising our kids. We were taking no chances. His parents were clear that they wanted him back in one piece.
When we decided to take this trip, we couldn’t wait to tell the little one. When we told him that his grandmother and auntie were taking him on a boat, instead of big smiles we got serious frowns and anxious looks on his sweet face. It didn’t take us long to realize that he had no clue what a cruise ship was. He was worried about how the three of us were going to fit in the boat to sleep and he showed great concern over what we would take along to eat. The only boats in his realm of understanding were the ones in his coloring books that usually included a lone fisherman reeling in an undersized fish.
The big day finally arrived. As we approached the harbor, he was instantly awestruck when the ship came into view. As we made the long trek towards the gangway, each of us managed our own personal luggage. I bought him his own “big boy” suitcase on wheels. What was I thinking? He maneuvered it similarly to how he rides on his scooter and his bike. Fortunately, I also bought him an adorable little straw fedora hat, so when he crashed into the ankles of the poor cruisers ahead of us and they turned around to see who caused them pain, they were met with a darling and very stylish angel.
As a side note, this is the first time in history of our travels that my sister and I have both “carried on” our bags. We decided that we might get better at overpacking if we were committed to a small overnight bag and a tote. It was only for three days and we had the baby in tow. Sister kept reassuring me that keeping it simple and casual was the way to go. I tried to be brave about the whole thing, but I really prefer to be prepared wardrobe-wise for any activity or mood. What if I don’t feel like wearing the three or four outfits that fit into one little bag? What if I get invited to the Captain's Table or meet a man who wants to marry me on board? Tell me... which tank top and cargo pant ensemble should I wear?
My sister made the reservations and explained to the booking agent that we would be sharing a room with a little kid and that we needed some guidance. We left it all in her hands. Imagine our surprise when we walked into our room with three twin beds; two of them stacked bunk style. The old girls were not used to such Spartan accommodations, but my grandson was so excited at getting to climb up a ladder and sleep high up with his grandmother underneath, we couldn’t be anything but pleased. Sister got the bed looking out the window to the sea, my little sailor was on top and I went back in time as I crawled into my lower bunk. When I woke up the first morning in my usual groggy state, for a moment I worried that I might be late to class. But seriously, it really was quite cozy. There was just enough space between the wall and the bed that my grandbaby could slide his tiny hand to meet mine and squeeze goodnight.
The one saving grace through all the discussions before we left was that he knew there was a pool and a water slide. I had bought him some children’s swim goggles shaped liked two dolphins for the occasion and he would have worn them the whole trip if we’d let him. He couldn’t wait to go swimming with his new gear. Sister and I dutifully took him to the pool area only to discover that the sun had forgotten to come out and the wind was blowing relentlessly. I was ready to call it all off—my grandson was shivering—but he was not to be discouraged. We are glad to report that they had a little kids water slide with only a few inches of water underneath. My sister takes her role as a great-aunt very seriously and took him by the hand and headed towards the little slide. In ankle deep water with her skirt flapping in the breeze, my sis led my grandson up the ladder to the top. I took my position to snap a photo as proof. He slid down quickly with ice cold water gushing from behind. He landed with a smile and my photo was perfect. You can hardly tell he was blue.
It didn’t take our little man long to get completely into the regime in the dining room. Our waiter treated him like a celebrity and he dined sumptuously. During one of our many trips to the bathroom during dinner, we passed by the ship's library. My grandson found this room to be fascinating, so we went in. The décor was very King Arthur-style with beautiful wood, beveled glass book cases, and leather wing-backed chairs. There was nobody in there, so I had to explain in my most reverent chapel voice, that this is where people come to think and spend quiet time. Evidently that didn’t sound like too much fun, so back to the dining room we went.
I think the best part of being on a cruise ship is when you go back to your stateroom at night. The lights are low, your bed is turned down and chocolates are on the pillow. But the absolute most joyous part is when you spot the animals that your room steward has crafted out of towels. High pitched squeals and tumultuous laughter broke out as we spied the terry cloth octopus on one of the beds. I am telling you, nothing tickles my sister more than those damn towel animals. They never get old with her. My grandson was too busy scaling up his ladder to his private crow’s nest to care or even notice that my sister was busy taking endless photos of the towel sea creature.
While we were away, I spent some nice time with my little guy in the evenings. It was just the two of us. Sister loves the casino and spent every moment there that she could. The baby kept asking where his aunt was. At first, I told him the truth. Then I realized that I probably shouldn’t let him know at his tender age that his aunt is a bit of a gambler. So the next time he asked where Auntie was, I told him the library. And every time after that, my answer was the same: the library. When he and I were on the way back to the room on the last night, he turned to me and said "My Auntie likes to think an awful lot... she must be very smart... huh, Grandma?” “Yes, darling”, I replied. “Your Auntie is one of the world’s great thinkers, indeed”. Hey, sister, I always have your back, even with an almost five year old.
