Audrey Hepburn

I Climbed the Statue of Liberty — or Did I?

Published July 7, 2015 | By Clark Norton

The Statue of Liberty — I remember it well. Or not. Photo from U.S. National Park Service.

False memories are an odd thing — they can seem as real, or more real, than things you’ve actually done.

I was reminded of this in doing research for my Fourth of July Independence Day Travel Trivia Quiz.

It seems that Thomas Jefferson was convinced later in his life that on July 4, 1776, an elaborate mass signing ceremony of his Declaration of Independence took place in Philadelphia. The Second Continental Congress did adopt the document that day, declaring U.S. independence from Britain.

Except the signing ceremony never happened as he remembered it. Most delegates didn’t sign the document until August 2, nearly a month later.

I’ve always prided myself on my memory, especially where travel is concerned. For instance, I can tell you that when I was ten years… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Travel Behavior | Tagged Audrey Hepburn, Joplin Missouri, Liberty Island, Mt. Everest, Sir Edmund Hillary, Statue of Liberty, Thomas Jefferson | 8 Comments

Maria Theresa: An Empress, a Mom, a New Ship

Published February 9, 2015 | By Clark Norton

Uniworld’s European Jewels river cruise will feature the SS Maria Theresa. Photo from Uniworld.

I’ve often wondered about the derivation of the ship godmother tradition. A female celebrity of some sort says a few nice words about a new vessel and, in theory, breaks a bottle of Champagne across the bow to christen it.

According to one account I read, the tradition goes back thousands of years to when pagan priests would douse a new ship with blood as a kind of bon voyage send-off.

Somehow this morphed into celebrity godmothers and bottles of bubbly. Even royalty have gotten into the act. Queen Elizabeth II has served as godmother for a couple of Cunard’s “Queen” ocean liners, and Kate Middleton has appropriately doused a Princess Cruises vessel.

Actresses Make Great Godmothers

Actresses are commonly tapped. In retrospect, I would have gladly splurged on a balcony… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Boat travel, Cruises, Luxury travel | Tagged Archduke Franz-Ferdinand, Audrey Hepburn, Insight Vacations, Princess Anita von Hohenburg, ship godmothers, SS Maria Theresa, Uniworld | 2 Comments

According to government and private surveys:

Leading-edge baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1955) and seniors account for four out of every five dollars spent on luxury travel today.
Roughly half the consumer spending money in the U.S.--more than $2 trillion--is in the hands of leading-edge baby boomers and seniors.
Baby boomers (born 1946-1964) travel more than any other age group.
When asked what they would most like to spend their money on, baby boomers answered “travel” more than any other category, including improving their health or finances.