ready?
We are preparing for boarding M/V Spree to go to the Dry Tortugas Ecological Reserve. We did couple of multiday sailing trips before, but we haven’t done liveaboard yet and have only a faint idea what to expect. I hope that three days of Internet withdrawal will be the greatest challenge. But if you don’t hear from us by the end of the month, you can start mounting a rescue expedition.
The boat takes 22 passengers, sleeping quarters are arranged in bunks of 4 to a cabin. The crew promises to feed us constantly. Alas, gourmet food is not mentioned: this is definitely not a cruise ship. Not that I would know the specifics of one never setting the foot aboard. The idea of a giant floating hotel is so unappealing that even the allure of tropical destinations pales next to it. Being marooned on a ship with hundreds of other people strikes me as oppressing, not exhilarating. And with 68% Americans overweight and 34% obese ‘all you can eat’ is plain cruel. Not to mention all those touted attractions: rock climbing, ice skating, tennis, volleyball, etc - one can do all that at home at a fraction of a cost and less crowd to compete with. I am happy to accept that I don’t know what I am missing and have little desire to be proven wrong. I’d rather take a road trip and wander aimlessly hoping to experience something unexpected.
I’ve decided on the Spree Expedition as an alternative way of seeing Ft. Jefferson, a bizarre nineteenth century fortification on an island in the middle of nowhere. I absolutely have to see it. I find the absurdity of building a fort and hoping for the enemy to dutifully pass by it to be shot at utterly romantic and charmingly wasteful. Not that I try to belittle the hardship of people who build the fort or those who were held prisoners here.
Of course the big part of the trip is scuba diving: 5 times a day including a night dive. If that doesn’t make us tired of diving, nothing will. Hopefully oil from the spill won’t get there. At least not before we do.
