I enjoyed myself on the big ship even though I wasn’t much interested in the things the cruise provided for entertainment. The pseudo luxury with spas, servants at the ready, and turn down service wasn’t for me. Nor dressing up in fancy clothes, drinking, partying or even socializing. I never went to the fancy gala dinners and I generally looked for quietest corners where there wasn’t other people. Still, watching the sea go by was worth it all for me. The ocean is so calming and beautiful and the days of relaxation were much welcomed. I managed to find good veggie food in the buffet. I drew a lot of pictures and wrote a lot while taking a break from the internet. Also, since I don’t have a home I enjoyed 7 nights in a nice hotel room that rocked me to sleep every night. 

Below is a shortened journal from my trip.

Day 1. My brother Kyle met me on the edge of Prospect Park in Brooklyn and we rode down towards the boat at Brooklyn Pier. Along the way we passed a Whole Foods and I stocked up on some walnuts and cashews for the trip. If you drink pro-cruise takers will tell you to stock up on as much alcohol as you can carry too because it is pricey on the boat. The pier felt like an airport except a lot more laid back. Carts towing trailers of luggage sped around and people stepped out of buses and cabs heading to the terminal. Kyle and I hung out around the edge of the water for a bit looking at the monstrous size of the boat and feeling like we probably weren’t allowed to be on our bikes here. Cruise ships might be sailing ecological disasters but they sure are impressive as an engineering feat. It’s a city block that somehow floats.

Kyle pedaled home and I headed inside of the terminal which was swarming with people. I walked in timidly carrying a growing fear that they might not let me bring my bike on even though I’d called ahead and been told it was fine. An agent grabbed me sharply and told me to follow her lifting up a gate and escorting me out of line. She parked me and my bike in front of a long line of people waiting at the x-ray machine and yelled out, “we’ve got another bike!” I immediately relaxed on hearing ‘another.’ 

Past security I carefully wheeled my bike trying not to bump into anyone when another agent pulled me aside and sent me through a side door with no one around. This ended up being a short cut reserved for wheelchairs and suddenly I was on the gangway walking on to the boat. I never even broke stride and made it to the door to my room. 

My room is great. Surprisingly big and my “might be partially blocked balcony view” is not blocked at all. And holy crap, I’m tired. I sat on the bed and exhaustion seemed to catch up with me all at once. I hadn’t slept well last night and I suppose the last 12 days of pedaling my bike from Michigan were bound to catch up with me.

After a couple hours the boat slowly sailed out of NYC passing the statue of liberty and leaving behind NYC’s amazing skyline. I stayed up on the top deck for the view but I was fighting sleep the entire time. It was amazing to see the city from this position 13 floors up and from the water but as soon as I felt like I’d seen the best of it I went back to my room to rest. Asleep by 8:30pm.

I woke up around 4am and watched stars from my balcony. It was astonishing and worth this entire trip. Looking straight ahead at the horizon and there were stars. Looking up the stars were unendingly dense with more and more coming into focus the longer I looked. Bright shooting stars flew across the sky and from below came the soft sound of waves from the calm sea. 

Day 2. Today I explored the boat. It is massive and there is so many things hidden away in corners. I walked for miles (like real miles) and still haven’t seen it all. I’m not really sure how all the different classes work but from what I understand there is specific restaurants and bars for different class passengers, I have no idea what class I’m in but I got one of the cheapest tickets I could.

There is a “gala” tonight with a fancy dress code for dinner. I don’t even own a shirt with buttons anymore and certainly don’t have a dinner jacket along in the bags on my bike. I couldn’t think of anything less desirable than having to get dressed up on vacation but a lot of folks on board seem to love it. Luckily the main buffet is still open for people wearing shorts and a t-shirt and the food is good. I tend to eat simply and wasn’t at all unhappy to have some white rice, kidney beans and some assorted vegetables. 

I was still very tired today but did a short workout in the gym. It felt like stretching more than exertion but I needed to do something rather than let my metabolism completely shut down. Even so I was in bed and happily sleeping to the gentle rocking of the boat by 9pm. 

Day 3. Sometime in the night the boat entered a solid wall of fog. Looking out the window I can see the water but then all around in every direction is a  dense grayish murk. It looks cold outside and everything is wet, but it is warm and humid. 

The breakfast buffet was an attack of tottering old people. The ever so slight roll of the boat  combined with clumsy geriatric passengers from both the UK and USA who can’t agree on which side of the hallway to walk on makes things chaotic. Throw in a few self-entitled rude people who feel comfortable cutting in front of anyone and things get really comical. There may be a clear line waiting patiently but they’ll swoop into the middle pretending to be (or maybe have trained themselves to honestly be) unaware that they are pushing other people out of the way. It’s kind of like bumper cars while holding a plate of food in front of you. The varying degrees of over politeness and abject rudeness mix together into an off-balance, staggering crowd of drunk sailors moshing around together. This would be annoying if it was real life but like the rest of the trip I feel like a passenger observing from the outside… quality people watching.

It does feel a bit like I’m staying in an old folks home but for the most part people are sweet and nice. Sitting next to me a moment ago was a heart warming yet heart breaking couple who were dealing with what I assume was Alzheimer’s. The man kept calling himself stupid saying he couldn’t remember where the room was or what boat they were on. His tone of voice was clearly in crisis and he seemed reduced to being a toddler despite being 83. The woman lovingly consoled him and calmed him down. “It’s ok if you don’t remember, you’re with me.” He’d breathe deep for a minute and tell her he was so very tired. She’d tell him it was ok and they could go back to the room after he ate a bit. 

Day 4. I’ve been drawing and writing throughout my days on board. I can’t remember the last time I really took some time off. That’s the problem with being a freelancer, I feel like I’m always working because I’m always thinking about the project I’m working on, the next job coming up, or an idea I want to make happen. Actually, that’s not much of a problem since these are all things I want to be doing. I did do some actual work on the 2026 Fairdales today so know that some of the colors and graphics for those bikes were created in the middle of the Atlantic.

I’m not bored on the boat. I really can sit on my balcony listening to the waves doodling or typing for hours. I’m making progress on a book. I’m experimenting with some new drawing/ painting techniques. It’s nice. 

Day 5. The average age of the passengers on this ocean liner has to be 70-80 years old. That means that for the benefit of the hard of hearing the conversations around the breakfast buffet are a bit louder than I’m used to and mostly revolve around difficulties using the internet. A freelance IT person could make a killing here logging in old folks phones. I’ve been purposefully staying offline while I’m here. I could pay the $25 for a day’s access to the net but I’m enjoying the break. One day I found a computer in the ship’s library that had been left logged in so I did a quick scan of a few news and bike sites. It seemed like the world was continuing on without me without much trouble. Well, you know what I mean… there was loads of trouble of course but not much of anything I could do about it. 

I’ve been doing more drawing, writing and painting camped out at a table with an ocean view on an upper deck or sitting in my little hotel room. Still feels nice and relaxing and I’m quite content except for a few nagging alarms in my brain that want me to get online and download a file for a job I need to finish. It will have to wait though as I’m forcing myself to stay on vacation for another day. 

Day 6. A little introspection today. On the ship motoring across the Atlantic and as usual I find myself searching for the places where the other people are not. I think the idea of a cruise is to meet interesting people from around the world but I’ve spent my time here alone and avoiding people as best I can. The conversations I over hear make me glad I’m not part of them and the people I see don’t seem to be people I want to meet. That seems awfully close minded of me but it is my knee jerk reaction to withdraw in social situations and I worry about myself because of it. I’m in the middle of a traveling and I seem to want to be alone more than be around people. I’ve always been this way as far as I can remember and it seems so different than most people I know. Why do I seem to always want to avoid crowds and talking to people? Shyness is part of it for sure but doesn’t seem like the full story. I’m generally happy figuring things out alone and I’m more or less happy but occasionally I am lonely. The cure for this seems as simple as striking up a conversation but I’ve pretty much avoided any of those for the last 6 days of being on this boat. 

I don’t have an answer for this loner side of myself but it is one I’ve been unsure of my whole life. Sometimes I can happily be in the middle of the right group of close friends but often it is overwhelming for me. Too many things to second hand feel. 

Day 7. Today I tuned up my bike on my balcony and packed up my bags. Tomorrow will be an early landfall in Southampton and the 3000+ mile ride across the water will be complete. I’ll be pedaling away from the port still feeling like I’m on the same road that started way back at the end of my Aunt’s driveway in Michigan. Feeling pretty good about this journey.