Arriving in India in Style

Resuming the saga of two weeks ago......There are ways to arrive in style....and then there are ways to arrive in STYLE.

The time--oh, my God, it's early...5:45am to be precise. Pitch black outside.

The place- deck 7 on the ship.

Cue the James Bond Theme. With secrecy approaching a surprise visit by Dick Cheney to Iraq, we link up by the elevators with my new bestest buddy, Aunty Ruthy. She was a friend of my beloved Aunty Mame and spent many happy days on the ship with her.

Now, Aunty Ruthy is a pal of the Serenity's captain. So with the okay from him, off we went to deck 11. Yep, WAAAYYYY up. To the Bridge.

From what I understand, before 9/11/2001, visits to the bridge were fairly routine. Not so anymore. Quietly shuffling down the corridor in near-darkness, past the deck officers' quarters, we reach the door and ring a door bell. Yes- a door bell- Not a buzzer, knocker, or alarm--a door bell. The door swings open, and in front of me is a wall of glass. And the deep, dark blue of the sky before sunrise and the inky blackness of the ocean.

Wow.

The next thing I notice is the silence. It's so incredibly quiet. Aside from my mom and Aunty Ruthy, there's the Captain (Mom thought it was humorous he had to put on reading glasses....), the Chief Officer in charge of Safety and Security

who also happens to be the officer at my table on formal dinners--(and whose appearance in evening dress can best be described as "yummy"), and just a handful of other officers. No sound but a line of computer type every few minutes or so. Or Chief calling out a change in course by a degree or two.

We watched the pilot from Cochin come on board,

the boat pulling up alongside the ship with what looks so effortless, but requires amazing timing. And into Cochin harbor we sailed.

What amazed me most is that this huge ship- all 820 feet/250 meters and 68,000 metric tons of her- can be manuvered within a few centimeters. Captain delicately docked her as easily as I would park my car along the curb. We THEN had to back up 6 meters because of an ill-placed fence on the quay! 6 meters. It was fascinating.

If I didn't already love this gorgeous lady, I would after that morning. She is the fairest of crafts.

I finally understand what has lured folks out to sea for centuries. I wonder if I am too old to become a sailor.