Discovering the Sea Cruisers

Honestly, I like the Amy Donoho I've met. The name of this blog might suggest that there is some vast conspiracy and that the Donohos have no redeeming qualities. This simply isn't true.

I discovered the Sea Cruisers youtube channel sort of by accident. My wife had booked what was to be our second cruise on Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas. After reading many unsavory reviews she wasn't convinced that it was wise to spend such a large chunk of money on something that we may not be entirely pleased with. We had spent so little on our first cruise, and so thoroughly enjoyed it, that the thought of spending so much and having a bad time really just didn't sit well with us. Royal still allowed full refunds before the cancellation date so we canceled our reservation.

After looking around I found a ship tour of the MSC Divina on youtube and it really intrigued me. So much so that we kept looking at youtube videos of the ship and eventually booked a reservation. It was in this time that we discovered the Sea Cruisers vlogs about their trip on the Divina. In less than a week we had discovered that they were doing a group cruise and, for better or worse, decided that it might be a way to meet some folks that were as interested in traveling as we had recently become. We then canceled the Divina and booked on their January 2018 group sailing aboard the MSC Seaside.

The Seaside left much to be desired but the friends we made have already contributed so much to our lives. The group was 31 strong and after 11 months I still remember all their names and have visited with a handful of them more than I have seen my best friend (a man I've known for 25 years) in the same time. It was amazing how the group of 31 was able to meld so beautifully at sea. Maybe it was a trick played on our minds by the close proximity, lack of responsibility, and overall allure of the cruise experience, but we absolutely made lifelong friends on this sailing. For that I am eternally grateful to Amy Donoho.

With that said, too much information has come to light and there have been too many developments for the justice and fairness minded part of me to stay quiet. I will do my best to only relay the truth in this blog. I will refrain from speculation and conjecture, and when I do convey those ideas I'll be sure to note that they are such. I fully understand there are two sides to every story and that no one ever knows the full truth about any given situation. I’m sure Amy has her side of the stories that will come out in this blog, and I’d be happy to hear her side if she so chooses. If you have stories of your own you’d like to share please feel free to leave them in the comments here or join the discussion on the facebook group. Please do attempt to keep your comments as truthful and honest as possible. Inflammatory and speculative comments will not help this situation at all.

Part 2 - Trouble on the Horizon