AS A KID I GREW UP IN MIAMI BEACH AT THE SOUTH END (poor section) ... OUR PLAYGROUND WAS THE OLD PIER AND JETTIES (govt. cut) ...WHERE WE WOULD GET UP BEFORE SUNRISE AND WATCH ALL THE NOW VINTAGE CRUISE SHIPS COME INTO THE PORT OF MIAMI..... AT SUNSET WE WOULD BE FISHING ON THE JETTIES AND WAVE TO ALL THE RICH LUCKY FOLKS ON THEIR WAY TO THE EXOTIC BAHAMAS & CUBA VIA THESE WONDERFUL SHIPS..... I ALWAYS SAID WHEN I GROW UP I AM GOING TO BE ONE OF THOSE LUCKY CRUISERS.....SOME OF THE FIRST SHIPS WERE THE ... S.S. CALYPSO ...THE S.S. BAHAMA STAR ...THE S.S. FLORIDA ...THE S.S. CUBA ...LATER CAME THE FOREIGN SHIPS THAT CHANGED THE CRUISE INDUSTRY FOREVER! ... THE NORWEGIAN CARIBBEAN LINES ... M.V. SUNWARD ...
M.V. STARWARD... M.V. SKYWARD ... ALL SISTER SHIPS ABOUT 21,000 TONS ... BIG FOR THE DAY, BUT TINY BY TODAY'S STANDARDS. ...LATER CAME CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES ... S.S. CARNIVALE ... S.S MARDI GRAS ...AND THE S.S FIESTA ... BIGGER & BETTER ... AND THE PRICES KEPT GETTING LOWER. .... MY DAD WORKED FOR THE AIRLINES IN MIAMI AND GOT SPECIAL DISCOUNTS FROM VARIOUS CRUISE LINES ... AND TOOK ADVANTAGE OF THE CHEAP TRAVEL. ....AND OF COURSE THERE WAS GAMBLING ABOARD AND BOY DID DAD LOVE TO PLAY CRAPS ... WHEN I GOT TO BE 21 I TOOK MY GIRLFRIEND TO NASSAU ABOARD THE M.S. SUNWARD II ... INSIDE CABIN ON THE REAR OF THE SHIP ... THE ENGINES KEPT YOU UP ALL NIGHT...MY 1ST. TIME ON A BIG SHIP ...WE HIT A SQUALL AT SEA AND BOY I LOVED IT ... GREAT ADVENTURE, EVERYONE ELSE GOT SICK, I WAS GOO TO GO, BUT MY GIRLFRIEND LOST WEIGHT! ... COULD YOU BELIEVE IT IS LESS EXPENSIVE TO CRUISE TODAY ... THAN 50 YEAR'S AGO? .... THRU THE YEAR'S I HAVE COLLECTED QUITE A BIT OF SOUVENIRS FROM THE CARIBBEAN AND THE BAHAMAS ...MOSTLY RELATED TO THE CASINO HOTELS AND SHIPS ... HOW SAD THESE SHIPS MOST ALL HAVE DIED IN THE SCRAP YARDS ... HOPE YOU ENJOY THE OLD PICTURES ... YOUR COMMENTS ARE MOST WELCOMED! .... THANKS RICH BURGEL











END OF THE CRUISE FOR THESE OLD LADIES! ....