Sea you later retirement: The cruise adventure of 'Camp Mother'
When four independent living apartment residents from Arvida Aria Bay retirement community spotted a cruise ad over bubbles, they quickly whipped out their credit cards and booked the 39-night cruise from Italy to Africa.
Calling their group ‘Camp Mother’, this merry band of neighbours-turned-shipmates – Lindsay Watkins, Carole Abraham, Joan Eden, Ginny Hart – along with two husbands Kevin and Frank, embarked on a voyage of sights, glamour, and the occasional moment of "where’s the restaurant again?" aboard the MSC Splendida.
The first stop was Milan for some shopping before boarding their floating palace. From there, it was a whirlwind of ports, fashion parades, bazaar visits, Suez Canal armed escorts, volcanoes, and a friendship bridge. “There’s this massive bridge in Egypt called the Friendship Bridge. It sweeps over the Suez and we were all out on deck to see it,” explains Carole.
The variety of foods was a definite trip highlight for the group as they agreed the salmon onboard was delicious, as were the cocktails.
Trip highlights included; a dreamy day trip to Lake Como with lunch in a proper Italian restaurant; an impressive train trip in Bari; an adventure to the volcano above the clouds on Reunion Island; and an elegant Turkish fashion parade. “The models were wearing these beautiful reversable lambskin leather jackets,” Lindsay adds.
Of course, not every port was perfect. “I wouldn’t rush back to the circus that was Istanbul and I wasn’t a fan of the buses in Athens buses. But I’d definitely go to Greece again,” says Ginny.
They kept in contact via a Whatsapp text group and made memories that would put a travel influencer to shame. More than anything though, the trip was a chance to travel again and this time with Arvida Aria Bay village friends. “We’re all healthy and we like to stay active. That’s what we have in common,” says Joan.
The group from the Auckland retirement community agreed that having your mates nearby means never having to navigate a pirate zone (or a 14-deck cruise ship) alone. That team support also extended to Frank, who is living with Dementia, and according to his wife Ginny, he had a great time on the trip.
Their advice to others? “Sparkling wine and spontaneous life decisions are the way to go. Grab your friends, your sunglasses, and your sense of humour,” Lindsay advises. Just don’t forget the map of the ship.
