Mein Schiff Southeast Asia cruise: Day 9 – 17.1 knots, wind from the east, no swell to speak of

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The day ripples along as we alternate between sunbathing and going to the theater for the country lectures. Who would have thought that a political scientist on board a cruise ship would prove to be such a popular part of the entertainment program. The speaker, Thorsten Geers, is entertaining and makes the lectures on various aspects of Southeast Asia, each lasting about an hour, very entertaining. At the same time, he manages to make politics and geography seem so interesting and entertaining that I could have been more interested in these two subjects at school if he had been a teacher at my school.

Thus, on our “free” days, that is, sea days, when we don’t take much more than these lectures from the extensive program on board, we learn a lot about the region we are touring during these two weeks. Much more pleasant than listening to someone during the shore excursions at 34 degrees in the shade.

Boredom would certainly not arise, because on such travel days there are always plenty of activities. From painting with coffee to shuffle board and ice carving or cooking duel (guest vs. crew) to gin tasting and “three wines from three glasses” (since apparently the shape of the glass also influences the taste of a wine), it’s all there. When you’ve had enough of the heat on deck, there are relaxing to intellectual pastimes inside at a well-chilled 23 degrees.