Et Cetera, etc., etc.

We promised you more dish, facts and highlights from our recent cruise that took us from Dubai to Rome aboard RSSC Voyager and here's our first installment.

The Sultan of Oman, Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said, cruises in style.

We saw his yacht, the Al-Said (pictured above), docked in the harbor at Muscat earlier this month.  According to MONOCLE magazine, this 155-meter, German-built mega yacht is reputed to be one of the three or four largest in the world while the biggest rumor floating around the Gulf Region is that this ship has a concert hall that can hold a 50-piece orchestra.

Now that's first-class.

The Sultan travels by air in one of two 747's: one being a 747-SP with an extended upper deck for...communications equipment??...and anti-missile devices in its engine cowlings.  His other bird is a newer model 747-430.

Going my way?

If land travel grabs his fancy, it's by Maybach.  This customized version includes a fully-retractable rear roof for catching the cool evening moonlight between Salalah and Muscat.

Now it's not all about planes, ships and automobiles in the sultanate.  According to a 2010 UN Development Program report, Oman ranked #1 out of 135 countries in improvement in the last 40 years.

Want to travel with PTV at Sea on our ship?  We cruise on RSSC Mariner in November for a voyage from Venice to Rome.  Details at ptvatsea.com

(Credits:  content:  MONOCLE monocle.com, photo:  PTV at Sea)

Ciao for now

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager approaching Civitavecchia, Italy

4 am

PTV at Sea ends its journey this morning.  We've spent the past 20 days cruising three seas and we've made countless new friends in ports and onboard RSSC Voyager throughout the journey.

We've visited holy shrines, birthplaces of religion, and ancient ruins.

We've reveled in the glamour of life in modern ports and explored nomadic life in vast deserts.

And hopefully we've provided an enlightened view of the world through our presentations.

So thank you Charlie Cook, Jacki Lyden, Bill O'Leary, Michael & Pat York, Ari Shapiro, and Dr. Michael Ledeen.

A hoot of the ship's horn to PTV's Kevin Corcoran, Josh Murray, Conor Gaughan, and Dann Tucker. 

And special thanks to Regent Seven Seas Cruises and the crew and staff of Voyager

May the wind be always at your back.   Until we sail again.

For photos from this cruise and updates on our November voyage from Venice to Rome and 2012 sailings, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook.

Lead or Follow

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager sailing the Mediterranean Sea

We're gearing up for our visit to Italy with lessons from the masters of the Italian Renaissance explored in presentations by our special guest traveler scholar and author Dr. Michael Ledeen.

Dr. Ledeen's lecture, "Machiavelli on Modern Leadership", was a quick overview of the book he's written by the same title.   It was a "Great Books Seminar 101".  What elements does a state need to govern effectively?  Should leaders lead with fear or with love?  It opened up a wide-ranging discussion amongst RSSC Voyager passengers.

Today we focus on Naples and Dr. Ledeen's book "Virgil's Golden Egg & other Neoploitan Miracles" provides the context.

Beyond the limoncello of Capri and the pizza of Rome, we can't wait to get home to read "The Prince" this summer!

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

Friends, Lovers, Cougars and More

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager sailing the Mediterranean Sea

Beginning day 17 on board our ship.

We now have new friends and acquaintances from those living  "just around the corner" to some living around the world.

We've watched our shipmates from dawn to dusk and are bringing home a lifetime of stories to tell.

We have enough content to write a book-  some fact and some fiction.

It's safe to say we've met movie stars, television stars, famous newsmakers, and those with "famous" radio voices.

For the fiction book we've developed characters from jewel thieves to barons, and titans to frauds.

But more importantly we've been part of a community.  And that's perhaps the best slice of life to share with you this morning.

Peace and Shalom!

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

Dead Sea Float

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager in port Haifa, Israel

Let the pictures tell the story.  Visit PTV at Sea on Facebook!

Peace and Shalom!

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

Jerusalem: A City for the World

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager in port Ashdod, Israel

The significance of Jerusalem as a city for the world became apparent to us yesterday.  It's segregated plot full of holy shrines for Muslims, Christians and Jews.

But the relevance-  the holiest of the holies- and the proximity of these religious places puts it into perspective:  it's a city the world can enjoy and everyone who lives there or just travels through should always keep the thought of a peaceful coexistence top of mind.

President Obama's speech tonight is being closely monitored here.  We'll be catching it via satellite.

Peace and Shalom!

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

Security Checkpoint

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager cruising the Mediterranean off Israel 

Besides seeing history from our balconies onboard the RSSC Voyager, we're exploring current political issues in our guest lecture series.

The short version:  Dr. Michael Ledeen, the Freedom Scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, pieced together the puzzle on the origins of modern day terrorism and Ari Shapiro, one of NPR's current White House reporters and a former US Supreme Court reporter, helped us to understand how the past two administrations have defined and executed strategies to deal with the war on terror.

This may all sound wonky and heady, but these two experts made the subjects fascinating and easy to understand.  For that we are grateful.

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

Hello Suez

Aboard RSSC Voyager in transit on the Suez Canal

We're about 3 hours into our Suez transit and it's beautiful.

See photos and news briefs throughout the day on PTV at Sea on Facebook.

Back to Deck 12 now for more fun and pictures.

Indiana Jones: We Love You!

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager cruising the Red Sea

There was no rest for the weary for travelers with PTV at Sea as we spent a weekend ashore in two ports- Aqaba, Jordan and Safaga, Egypt- visiting exotic lost cities, tombs and temples.

We felt like we were Indiana Jones, Cleopatra, archaeologists, and simply curious explorers walking the ancient city of Petra, strolling through the temples in Luxor, and descending steep staircases into the tombs of the pharoes in the Valley of the Kings.

Our private guide took us to places reserved for few- like the tomb of Ay- where ornately-painted baboons told time on the walls of this burial chamber deep underground.  We touched a 5,000 year old statue inside the Karnak Temple and with a bit of camp, we crossed the Nile in a small motorboat called "Darling".

It was more of a weekend that any of us could have ever imagined, it was magic!

It may be Monday, but we're going to rest for a bit.  We arrive this morning in the beach city of Sharm el-Sheikh for a little sun and spa before hearing from our friend, NPR's White House correspondent Ari Shapiro, at his lecture later today.

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

Land of Kings

From Luxor, Egypt.

We've abandoned ship for a two day overland trip to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings.
Follow our adventure in pictures on Facebook.

The Red Sea is Blue

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager cruising the Red Sea

There's a real magic in the air when sailing the open seas.  The ship rocks the body to sleep, the fresh salt air is good for the skin, and the sound of the wind and the water soothe the mind.

And even sailing 50 miles off of Saudi Arabia and 70 miles off the coast of Ethiopia the natural beauty is incredible.

Sunrises and sunsets though sandy skies.

The perfectly flat horizon.

The silhouette of a passing freighter.  

But what sticks out most is the ocean because the Red Sea is blue.  Really, really blue.

And isn't it amazing that it looks the same today as it did centuries ago. There are not many places left in the world like it.

Let's keep it that way.

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

The Kit-Kat Club

Aboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager cruising the Red Sea

Life has been more than a cabaret for PTV at Sea guest traveler Michael York.  In front of a near-capacity audience in the ship's Constellation Theatre, York shared travel tales from movie locations around the world along with his personal history from the stage to the screen.

This Hollywood legend's take on a great film:  it entertains, educates, and enlightens.

Well said.

Michael introduces the classic "Murder on the Orient Express" tomorrow.  We saw him yesterday in Cabaret and the Kit-Kat Club never looked better.

For photos and short briefs from the sea, please visit PTV at Sea on Facebook.

Washington Insiders

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager cruising the Gulf of Aden

Passengers aboard Voyager went inside The Beltway yesterday and, in fact, went inside the White House.

How?

Charlie Cook, the well-known election analyst and commentator, shared his thoughts on the 2012 US presidential race.  He talked about the Republican primary campaigns and the re-election challenges facing President Obama.  Hints:  watch gasoline prices and the unemployment rate.

Bill O'Leary, the veteran Washington Post lensman, took the audience behind the scenes at the White House by sharing images which have graced the pages of the newspaper. His series covered the years between Presidents Carter and Obama.

It doesn't get much more insider than this.

See pictures and short takes on our cruise by visiting PTV at Sea on Facebook.

A Mosque, Minarets, and More

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager in port, Salalah, Oman

It's feeling really foreign today, and that's a good thing.

We're in The Sultanate of Oman (the country)...in the Governorate of Dhofar (the state)...and His Majesty Sultan Qaboos has been ruling for some 40+ years.

The city we've visited, Salalah, was the key trading center for frankincense...remember the Three Kings...Magi...Wisemen?

We toured the world's only "Museum of the Frankincense Land".

For many of us, we saw the inside of a mosque where more than 3,000 men can pray on any given Friday.

And we called it just a little dusty port town on the Yemen border when we started out.

Travel doesn't get much better than this.

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

Want Change? Vote or Tweet

Onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager sailing the Arabian Sea

"Politics and Change" could be the brief and simple theme for the two PTV at Sea presentations given today by our guest travelers, veteran election analyst Charlie Cook and NPR's correspondent and substitute host Jacki Lyden onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager now sailing along the coast of Oman.

Cook spoke about the 2010 US mid-term elections-  the numbers behind the numbers- and what drives voters to make their choices and Lyden gave a fascinating talk about social media's influence on recent Middle Eastern democracy movements.

One thing was clear from both:  political change happens, whether it be from voters at the ballot box or from activists connected on Twitter or Facebook.

The PTV at Sea series continues on Sunday with Cook assessing the 2012 presidential race and Lyden speaking on the influence of women in the Middle East's political landscape.  Also presenting will be Washington Post photojournalist Bill O'Leary who will be showing a selection of his images shot for the newspaper.

For photos from our events and updates on our travels throughout the day, follow PTV at Sea on Facebook or Twitter.

What's old is new again

PTV at Sea- onboard Regent Seven Seas Voyager sailing the Arabian Sea

The Voyager made its first port call in Muscat, Oman since departing Dubai.

Dubai with its commanding skyscrapers, modern shopping malls, and a taste for everything and anything big, provided a contrast in look, feel and general layout to our next port Muscat, Oman.

This small sultanate, with its capital located near the strategically-important Straits of Hormuz- the geographic mouth of the Persian Gulf- is growing out, not up, linking villages more closely across the desert.

And while at various times over the centuries foreign invaders have ruled the country (Persians, Turks and Portuguese), the country only began welcoming visitors again in 1970.

So what may have been familiar travel turf to many voyagers along trade routes in the Middle East, this charming port is actually a new place to be explored once again.

For pictures from our afternoon in Muscat, please visit www. Facebook.com/ptvatsea.