00:00I've just boarded the Seabourn Encore in Asia and I'm asking the question, is two
00:06weeks too long to be on a cruise ship? Come with me while I find out. As we
00:11float into Ha Long Bay in Vietnam at dawn, it's also a new dawn for me as a
00:17solo cruiser. A special welcome awaits us at the dock. Then it's time for a kayak
00:26on the tranquil waters in Ha Long Bay. The service is a highlight on the ship and
00:31sometimes it includes a little bit of magic and the cocktails are, oh, epic. I
00:39quickly get used to solo dinners like the beautiful meal for one at Solis. I learn
00:45I will never go hungry on this cruise. Chocolate even turns up when I least
00:49expect it. Oh, it's like a big chocolate plate. Back on land, the excellent iced
00:57coffee at Hoi An in Vietnam deserves a special mention. As do the restaurants
01:03making banh mi and pho soup, some of the nicest I've tried. It doesn't take long
01:09for me to get into the swing of the ship's constant pool parties and the
01:25excellent dessert buffets. But it's the culture at the ports that will stay with
01:29me the most, like the throng of motorbikes in Ho Chi Minh City, trying durian for the
01:35first time at the Ben Tan market in Saigon. And then, riding through mangroves at
01:41Sihanoukville in Cambodia. And watching traditional Cambodian folk dances on the
01:47ship afterwards. And who could forget our decadent day at Koh Kood, a private island
01:53in Thailand. We are drinking champagne and eating caviar in the surf. Some of the staff are just going to
02:03get me a glass of
02:04champagne and I've had some caviar served from the surfboard over there. And it's amazing!
02:10What a vibe! Two weeks just, oh, flew by.
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