So many places, such little time

by John Curnow on 10 Nov 2017 It must have all started back in the Med. It was a short, but oh-so-sweet little soiree into the azure sea surrounding so many interesting lands. It had been a good many years since my last immersion in the glorious locales that form the myriad of spaces around the Western Mediterranean. It was joyous, enchanting and strangely peaceful, even for such a densely populated area.

Yes. This is where the notion started and soon the reasons for cruising were super-obvious. Escape forms part of it, so too space, and in combination they almost automatically bring about a true and deep form of relaxation. So many places, such little time…

Progressing forward somewhat, it became ultra-evident that the boats had gotten faster, pointed higher and had copious amounts of space to offer many souls on board, or just a lucky and select few.

In the most amazing paradox, on the one hand I was left feeling why were we trying to race somewhere when it is about chilling, and then almost immediately I became present to the fact that the enjoyment delivered by more feel, more control, more responsiveness, even in super light airs, delivered such a magnificent sense of joy that I got to fully appreciate that it was both about chilling out in what ever spare time you could afford, and also being able to get to more places in the available time.

In this way, the advancements of the cruising vessel to meet the requirements of the pace that everything seems to move at was not lost on me one bit. Rather, it was imprinted on me so keenly, as to make me think that my feet had been placed inside quick-set concrete. Alas, so many places, such little time.

Previously, I had been able to take much longer meandering around the Med, and after some time reminiscing about that, I then crossed the Atlantic to think about the Caribbean, where there are so many islands to see. Some types of crusiing vessel have not become popular there, and yet they hold great sway in Europe and also Australia.

The latter of course can have areas where the wind does blow reasonably hard, just like in the Caribbean, so it cannot be a weather based issue, and has to instead be cultural. Alas, with all of this going around my head, once again it all came back to so many places and such little time, for it is in the cruising that you get to immerse yourself in the significant array of possibilities presented before you. You learn more than nuance, and gain much more than knowledge. On returning, the material from SV Te Mana came in, and quickly the grand Pacific reminded me of just how vast the whole equation is.

So what does it all mean? In the time that has flown by since the wee sojourn, the only word that comes close to accounting for it is appreciation. So in the appreciation of all of that, so many places and such little time has almost left me with a permanent smile. I am thankful for the opportunities and the rewards they delivered. I can only hope that it is the same for all of you out there, whether you have been cruising for 30 years or 30 days.

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