Roland was a German fellow who was already onboard when we boarded in Baltimore, and he was the first person we met at our first lunch. Roland was special, and I've written an entire post about him later in this travelogue.
Roland (Wilke in the background)
Wilke was another German fellow about my age, and he was the second person we met after boarding in Baltimore. He was also retired, and he spoke really good English. He had taken another cargo ship from Europe to Cleveland, Ohio via the St. Lawrence seaway earlier in the summer, and then did a motor tour of the Great Plains and upper Midwest. Apparently he had been saving for this trip for 10 years or something like that. Ellen and I both found it amusing that on this big trip to America, one of the places he elected to see was Bemidji, Minnesota. It turned out, Wilke wanted to see where the Mississippi River begins, and it begins in Bemidji. Anyway, he was a very intelligent, mild-mannered guy who was always pleasant to talk to.
Wilke
David and Ruth were both retirees from Scotland. David had been a merchant mariner for a couple of years in his youth, and then spent the rest of his career in the Scottish police force. Ruth had been a pharmacy technician. It seems they’ve been together since they were teens. At this point they appear to be just traveling the world in cruise ships and freighters, and David had hours and hours of slide shows from the various trips they’ve taken.
David and Ruth
Anne and Hans were a couple from the Netherlands; they were each just a year younger than I. Anne was American by birth, having been born and raised in the Bronx. She had a doctorate in some sort of environmental studies, and she consulted for a living. Hans was retired from a career in Dutch flower logistics and distribution. He had an interesting youth, which included time at an ashram in India. They were both very interesting to talk to.
Ann and Hans
Chris was a Swiss fellow about our age. He was a retired welder, with a wife, two kids, and two grandkids. He was a very pleasant fellow, with an easy laugh. Apparently he had worked in Alberta, Canada back in the 1970s, and had developed a hankering to see Alaska and the northern Canadian territories. So he and his wife flew to Montreal early in the summer, then hopped over to Calgary where they rented a car and drove over 9,000 kilometers around the Yukon Territory and Alaska. Unfortunately, they had kitted out with cool weather clothes, and found it to be in the 70s and above while they were there. Anyway, Chris’s wife had flown back at the end, and Chris was taking the boat.
Chris
Sebastien was the baby of the group; he was 42-ish and French. He was an elementary teacher by background, and he had just finished five years in North America. Three of those were working in Louisiana on a project to help keep French culture and language alive among the Cajuns, and the last two were in Vancouver. He was on his way home to Toulouse for a new job.
Sebastien
By and large it was a pleasant group, and it was enjoyable to have meals together and hang out in the passengers’ lounge after dinner drinking wine, talking, and working on a jigsaw puzzle.
From the lower left, going clockwise:
Roland, Sebastien, Hans, Ann, David
Ruth, Rick, Ellen, Chris, Wilke
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