Beginning of an End

This next trip was a tough one. In the summer of 1990, Stan and I were getting along rather nicely. But I was going through a crisis. My business partner, Michael was very ill and my life was in turmoil. I was trying to see if I could savage my marriage and at the same time, stressing over Mike. I had been offered a free cruise on Royal Viking Line the first week of September which was the cruise line we were working for at the time. I had asked Stan if he would come with Nikki and me. I even had two cabins to off-set the strangeness of the whole thing. He agreed.

As things would happen, we lost Mike the same week I was scheduled to set sail. After much discussion, I made the difficult decision to sail. I needed to be away from what had been a roller coaster year and losing Michael was more than I was able to handle.

Royal Viking Line was a luxury cruise line. Much more geared to an older sophisticated clientele. We sailed to Bermuda. An island I had been to hundreds of times and never got tired of. No poverty and beautifully maintained.


Arriving in Bermuda

It ended up being a peaceful and relaxing time. Stan and I got along fine but I think we both knew we were better apart than together so it was bittersweet. It seemed appropriate I was on the high seas when Mike’s funeral took place. I met him at Home Lines and built a company together based on cruising. I had my own private farewell with him in the middle of the ocean. And there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss this wonderful person.




Stan, Nikki & a Viking


Ship's Pool


Pink sand beaches of Bermuda


On the streets of Hamilton, Bermuda (Ship is in the background)

A Palace for a Princess

At the end of April, Nikki and I flew to Nassau, Bahamas. I wanted to see the new Crystal Palace and it was a beauty. Large and spacious, the pool area was beautiful. The Atlantis wasn’t built yet. The Crystal Palace is noted for its very colorful façade. We were only there for 3 nights. Nikki did the usual, joining the kid’s club and finding a friend. Fun and relaxing.


Gorgeous landscaping


With her new friend

I'd Rather Try Speaking French than Ski

I have not been able to make heads or tails of my photos during 1990 so I am going to wing it.

My traveling started in January when I went on a Fam trip to Miami. At this time, I had opened my business and we started out as a cruise only agency. Carnival Cruises invited me to see their ships and their corporate offices over a long weekend. It was an educational trip although to be honest…it’s all abit vague now.

February, Ronna invited me on a ski trip with her and her girlfriend, Darcy. And no, I did not ski. I think it was just the lure of visiting Vail. I decked myself out with a whole ski outfit…OMG…I looked FABULOUS!! LOL I think a part of it was because the ski pants which was a whole one piece jumpsuit thing was very tight so it pulled me all in, really slimming me down. I didn’t really care about the skiing but Ronna was and is a real ski enthusiast. Vail was gorgeous. Now I understood the difference between snow conditions of the East and the West . The “powder” of the West is incredible and ended up being very important for me.


The Vail Racquet Club where we stayed


In my brand new ski outfit


Ronna & me

Ronna felt I should take a lesson. So I did. I did okay considering I was not athletic. But on another day, she and Darcy wanted to go snow-mobiling. Groan. At the time, I didn’t really drive so I wasn’t too thrilled to be driving anything. But I was a good sport and went along. I thought maybe I could just ride piggyback on Ronna’s mobile but no…we all had one to ourselves. It was a group of us and we followed a guide along a trail. Well…Ronna loves recounting this adventure even though I do not. Because at three separate times, I flew off the snowmobile landing in the soft powder. (This is the reason I appreciated the “powder”). I swear to this day that my brakes were not working. Of course the rest of the group and the guide was not pleased with me since we would all have to stop…find my wayward snowmobile and then begin on our way again. Ronna loves remembering me flying through the air, laughing until she has tears in her eyes. Me...not so much…but I never begrudge Ron of her memories.


Ronna not flying off her snowmobile


Obviously I didn’t hold it against her because the next month, I accompanied her to Paris for the first time for my birthday. (Nikki went to Disney World with Stan) With the help of Daniel, I found a small boutique style hotel on the Rue du Faubourg Sainte Honore . A very fashionable neighborhood and in easy walking distance to all the main attractions. Our room was on the top floor and very attic-like with sloping ceilings. The first day of any European trip is tough. You just want to sleep the day away because of the time change but Ronna didn’t want that to happen to us but of course it did. When we awoke, it was evening already and we had not gotten our bearings. We just headed out - she wanted to see the Eiffel Tower. We came upon the Metro and with no knowledge of what to do or where we were going, Ronna, never one to be shy, just took charge. She went up to the booth and asked for directions to the ET and the clerk clearly didn’t speak or understand English but Ronna wouldn’t believe her!! After getting nowhere, she was adamant that the clerk was lying! I thought…uh-oh…this is going to be an interesting trip!

In the end, it was a great trip. We had a fabulous time and had a lot of laughs. We met people and was invited to a small jazz club. We saw all the sights - visited the Louvre and saw the Mona Lisa and went up to the Eiffel Tower - we did eventually find it! Walking up and down the Champs D’Elysees was our favorite thing to do. I splurged and picked up a brand new Louis Vuitton bag because of course, one just must when in Paris!

Not as organized as I want to be!

Looking through my journals, it looks as if 1990 was a banner travel year. I need to sort it all out. I didn't label any of my pictures! In the meantime, I want to post this photo because I happen to love it. I am thinking this was taken during our trip to the Bahamas staying at the Crystal Palace. Will write more soon.


April 1990

More Mickey & Friends

I guess with all that traveling in 1988, I took it easy and didn’t go away again until September of 1989. And although Stan and I had separated, we went on a family vacation. We sailed on the Majestic which was a ship that featured the Disney characters and then stayed at a beautiful condominium named Vistana and once again visited the Magic Kingdom and Seaworld.


Nikki wins a trophy

Any place we went, Nikki would join the children’s club if they offered one. She was very good about being part of the activities and always made friends. On this cruise, we signed her up and it’s a great thing for the kids. The cruise lines have wonderful games and prizes for the children and this also frees up the parents for some adult time.


Fun and games on the private island

There was a costume party planned and the kids and parents were to make costumes from materials that the ship provided…oak-tag, crepe paper..etc. Well…I went all out and made Nikki a Crayola crayon. It was a hit but I didn’t think of the consequences…she couldn’t bend or sit!



On this trip, she was much better with the Disney characters. No longer scared of them, she was more than willing to take photos with them as you can see. We all had a great time.

"Firsts" of Many

I traveled quite a bit in 1988. After the May trip to Disney, I was invited along with Ronna to Hedonism in Jamaica, an adult only resort. At the time, she was working with a lot of travel agents at Home Lines and was offered a “fam” trip which is one of the main perks of being in the travel business. “Fam”, short for familiarization were free or heavily discounted trips to various locations given by tour operators or hotels so agents could see the property for themselves and then sell it. It was and is a great promotional tool.

The funny thing was I was an actual travel agent and she wasn’t but had to fake it. It was June and the weather was gorgeous when we landed in Montego Bay airport. The ride to the resort was another 2 hours to Negril. When we arrived, we were greeted with the Welcome rum punch. Hello!

Ronna and I laughed hysterically when we entered our room for the first time. There was a huge king sized bed and a mirror above it! We had plenty of room sharing the bed. It was all-inclusive and all the meals and drinks were included. I had some photos…especially of us in the bed with the mirror but I can’t find them and I’m tired of looking!

One of the first nights we were there, Ronna and I took a walk on the beach after dinner. The sun was setting and we were alone. As the light faded and we just stood quietly talking by the lapping surf, when suddenly without much noise, a native Jamaican came out of the water wearing snorkeling gear and asked us..”Manja?” We shook our heads and he dived back down! Hilarious.

This was my first taste of traveling as a “single” woman again and I started to wear contact lens for the first time on a regular basis. It was an interesting time and Ronna made many friends. A couple of the guys worked in Forest Hills and I actually saw them a few times after this trip.

In November, I took Nikki to St. Maarten. This was the first trip that was just the two of us so there were a lot of “firsts” in 1988. We stayed at the Great Bay Hotel and it was in walking distance to town. It was quiet since it was the off-season. The pool was relaxing and I remembered bringing my needlepoint with me to work on. I also remembered very clearly, a mother and adult daughter also being there. The mom was youthful looking and in great shape and they both attracted some gentlemen to buzz around them. I had thought to myself at the time…I would like to do that one day with Nikki but it seemed so far away! But now I don’t think Nikki would be up to doing that!

Meeting Mickey & Friends

In May of 1988 when both Nikki and Kris were 3, we made our first trip to Disney World. We stayed at Fantasy Villas, the first time we were at a place that wasn’t just a hotel room. It was a 2 floor townhouse and we loved it. Fully equipped, it was as if we were staying in a friend’s home. Very roomy, very comfortable for the 5 of us with 2 bedrooms, a full kitchen, dining room and living room.



We rented a car and Tony did all the driving but Kris was at the stage where she insisted she sit in the front seat and her mom in the back. We had to tell her this was “Aunt Esther’s car” and she was okay with me sitting in front with Tony. Everywhere we went, that was the arrangement - only on the last day, I had Kathy sit in front with her husband because “Aunt Esther” said so!


On Main Street for the first time



It was a lot of fun and when we first entered Magic Kingdom and saw the Disney characters, Kris immediately wanted to hug them and shake their hands. Nikki was excited but from afar. She didn’t want to be near them and appreciated them at least 6 feet away.


Kris meeting one of the characters up-close


Nikki giving a wide berth


Yummy!!

The most memorable moment was on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. As our turns came up, Nikki and I grabbed the first car and not realizing we would be plunged into darkness, it scared Nikki and she started crying hysterically. Throughout the whole 3 minute ride, she was terrified. I couldn’t wait for it to end. Behind us, I could hear Kris also wailing. I couldn’t believe both kids got so frightened. But as we all got off the ride, Kris wasn’t crying because she was scared, she was crying because she felt Nikki got to sit “up-front” even though we had individual cars!





But all the other rides were fabulous, especially Small World. We went back to Disney many times after this but for me, this trip was the sweetest.