ABOARD AND OFF THE GREAT CRYSTAL SERENITY – MEMORIES FOR LIFE Barbara Kingstone March 10, 2017 Chile, Cruises, Feature, Indulgences, South America SIZE DOES MATTERI've been on several ships but never one as large as the Crystal Serenity which is a 68,000-ton ship where luxury abounds. Large means space and, even with 1070 guests, I never felt crowded. My...
“On the road to Mandalay, where the flyin’fishes play. An’the dawn comes up like thunder outer China ‘crost the bay!” From a trip in 2003 Barbara Kingstone December 18, 2015 Asia, China, Cruises, Feature, Myanmar “On the road to Mandalay, where the flyin’fishes play. An’the dawn comes up like thunder outer China ‘crost the bay!” So wrote poet Rudyard Kipling who spent only forty eight hours in Myanmar...
There couldn’t be a better name for this French canal barge, Panache Barbara Kingstone August 23, 2015 Cruises, Europe, France, Indulgences Captain Alan’s eyes were wide and almost teary when he told the 12 guests on the barge, Panache, the news. Our itinerary from Strasbourg France had been changed. After two years of repairs on the...
France isn’t only Paris. Think about barging on the silky waters of the Canal du Midi Barbara Kingstone May 1, 2014 Cruises, Europe, Feature, France Say France and I’m already head over heels in love. From the time I was in my teens, I was smitten with anything French. Perhaps that was why a newly graduated doctor who had studied in Montpellier,...
On the Road to Mandalay… Barbara Kingstone October 10, 2013 Asia, Cruises, Myanmar “On the road to Mandalay, where the flyin’ fishes play. An’ the dawn comes up like thunder outer China ‘crost the bay!” Poet Rudyard Kipling spent only forty eight hours in Burma (now Myanmar) and...
Canal Barging in France. So Easy, So Special. Barbara Kingstone September 18, 2013 Cruises, Europe, Feature, France When I mentioned to our friends that for our anniversary, my husband and I had decided to take an ultra deluxe French canal river barge trip on one of European Waterways’ barges, this one being, The...
Ahoy, the Seabourn Spirit is unrivaled when it comes to luxury at sea Barbara Kingstone September 16, 2012 Cruises, Europe, Italy, Montenegro I haven’t cruised for years. There’s really no valid reason for this delay since I’ve enjoyed cruising. It’s so easy and creates a sense of carefree diversions where one is devoid of tension,...
The Seabourn Spirit is like floating on a sea of gems Barbara Kingstone September 3, 2012 Cruises, Europe, Indulgences, Jewellry, Shopping On a recent cruise on one of the small exclusive, Seabourn ships, the Seabourn Spirit, my two passions met... cruising the Adriatic in complete luxury on this marvelous liner and their boutique filled with...
What a difference a decade makes in China and The Three Gorges Barbara Kingstone August 6, 2012 Asia, China, Cruises Seven years ago on my first Three Gorges Cruise, I was underwhelmed by the ship, the food, the service and, of course, the river, not yet completed, and the concern about what was to happen to the Yangtze...
The once sleeping country has awakened. China has stunned the world Barbara Kingstone July 28, 2012 Asia, China, Cruises Many years ago while I was living in Hong Kong, pre-handover, I heard the now -overused phrase which Napoleon stated “Let China sleep for when she wakes, she will shake the world.” Over the years I’ve...
