Tues 25th.  On deck as we cross the equator.  The crowd cheers, the band plays. We move from winter to summer.  Dinner with friends.  Another great day somewhere in the Pacific ocean.

Wed 26th. No internet today.  Attend three different lectures.  Dinner with another couple plus the husband/wife cruise directing duo of Jamie and Dana.  Always nice to meet new people.  Many wonderful stories.  Jamie tells of meeting an 86 year old Chinese man in forbidden city and inviting him for an interview.  The man decided to conduct the interview at the local McDonalds, because according to him it had the best tea in all of China.  We lament the homogenization of the world.

My blog address is firstworldcruise, but of course Ferdinand Magellan really holds the distinction for this achievement.  In 1519 he set out to conquer his own xenophobia by sailing around the globe.  'Ferdi' was a snappy dresser.  Invented 'formal night' for the cruise industry.  Although he did not live to complete circumnavigation of the globe, some of his crew did eventually make it back to Spain where they were awarded Platinum status by the King, thus enjoying extra perks on subsequent cruises.

A cocktail party for Regent's repeat customers.  Since 82% of passengers onboard are return customers, they invite all passengers.

Jan 27.  Mauritius is a tiny island nation - a speck of land in the Indian ocean 600 miles east of Madagascar.  Settled or visited at various times by the Dutch, French and British, it is now an independent nation.  I meet Prithum, a native of Mauritius who speaks fondly of his homeland.  He suggests we visit sometime, says it's a nice place.  On this cruise Prithum is working in the Veranda buffet aboard the Regent Seven Seas Voyager, which happens to be my breakfast venue of choice.  Each morning as I saunter towards the buffet, I see him arranging smoked salmon, keeping the buffet fully stocked.  Eye contact.  Just a quick glance, a slight nod, and he dashes back to the kitchen to fetch a dish of sambal oelek, my new favorite hot sauce.  Another example of how the international crew on this ship are quickly learning the names and habits of the passengers, anxious to make our journey as pleasant as possible.

Enjoy breakfast on the deck just outside the buffet.  Begin to notice the subtleties of ocean and sky.  Slight differences in wave motions.  Dramatic cloud patterns.  Nature speaks to us, but to our untrained ear sounds like a Thai cab driver.  We have no idea what she is saying.  Experienced sailors are fluent in the language of the sea.  Ancient Polynesians were master navigators yet had no metal, no modern tools.  Just stars, weather, currents, birds.  Moved across the vast Pacific in hand-made wooden canoes.  Hear story of a blind man who helped ancient polynesians navigate.  He could successfully navigate the Pacific ocean by tasting the seawater and detecting changes in salinity.  We wonder if ocean water still tastes the same as 1,000 years ago.