Ko Kut, Thailand

Monday | December 8, 2014

We sailed into in Thailand today at 8:00 AM. It seems very Caribbean–esque. And we were treated to a beautiful rainbow right outside our terrace.

By the time we awoke and roused ourselves out of bed, we realized that we had drunk too much last night – at least too much considering we were going on a snorkeling trip today.

We headed out on a relatively primitive wooden Thai dive boat with about 30 residents. It was pleasant enough. I had borrowed a friend's professional mask and snorkels so I had all the right equipment.

The ride out to the snorkeling location lasted about 45 minutes. The Gulf of Thailand is very picturesque, so we had an enjoyable ride. In addition, we were able to get to know more residents and have deeper conversations with those we already knew.

The snorkeling was underwhelming. There were not many fish and the corral was mediocre.

We were supposed to have a snorkeling session, a lunch on board and then another snorkeling session for a total of six hours. But after the first snorkeling session, a mutiny occurred. A few strong headed (and selfish) residents had decided they had had enough and wanted the entire dive boat to return to the ship. One of the concierges was the ship’s representative and while she was great in the water and with the guests, she buckled in the face of the mutineers. As a result, we went back to the ship. From our standpoint, it wasn’t that bad because the sun was unadulterated and four more hours at sea would have been deadly. There was definitely a silent group (including me) who were not happy about the change in plans.

Back on the ship, one of my friends learned that I used to race sailboats, he asked if I could teach his wife to sail because, surprisingly, no one on the crew knows how to sail. (I find that assertion not credible because a third-grader can sail a Hobie cat blindfolded.)

So I took a zodiac to the island where we were treated to a gorgeous beach populated only by 30 smiling members of the ship’s crew who were there to attend to our every need. I commandeered a Hobie cat and took my friend's wife out for a little over an hour. Then, I rode on a green monster, that was towed behind the speedboat at a ferociously high rate of speed, until I was positive that each vertebra in my back had been rendered disjointed. Then, back to the ship where we all cleaned up for dinner.  And were treated to a beautiful sunset.

Exhausted, I trudged up to East where I feasted on a marvelous beef dinner. Wine was a 2012 Mac Forbes Wesburn pinot noir ($188), a nice pairing selected by one of our sommeliers..

And two other notes about wines and the ship’s restaurants. The ship has a policy that if you ask a sommelier to select a wine to pair with dinner, and you don’t like the taste of the wine – for any reason – the ship will buy back the wine in full and invite you to replace it with anything you like. That’s very special.

On a similar note, unlike cruise ships that bury their restaurants on one of the lower floors with no views, The World elevates its restaurants to the highest deck where we can all enjoy lovely views of the various cities, towns and oceans and rivers that we pass through. Moreover, each of the restaurants has ample outdoor seating, adding further ability for residents to enjoy the views. Having said all that, it is rare to find more than four or five tables occupied in any given restaurant. If the word “exclusive” comes to mind, it should!