First night on board the ship, and already I'm at a computer and surfing the Net. I'm in a computer room right next to the casino on deck 7. It was glorious sailing underneat the Golden Gate Bridge. How often do you get to do that in a luxury liner. The best part is that people were waving at us from the bridge. That was cool.

When I walk around, I can feel the boat move. I keep thinking I'm in an earthquake, because that's the only time the ground has shaken for me in the past. But no, I'm on a huge boat sailing down the California coast to Monterey.

This cruise reminds me so such of being in Las Vegas. It's like a slice of America, full of people that I never get to see. The people on the boat are from everywhere, although there are many Californians. Sadly the boat is not at capacity, and my friend and I wonder how long this cruise line will sail out of San Francisco.

The cruise director made a joke tonight about how Ft. Lauderdale, his hometown, is like San Francisco. My friend and I looked at each other, and said "like so not". I grew up in a very small town, and this cruise has a small town feel. We keep running into the same people all the time. I thought I moved to San Francisco so I wouldn't have to live in a fishbowl, but here I am in a fishbowl of a cruise.

So far so good, I suppose. As we set sail out of San Francisco, we popped open a bottle of Bollie's that my friend had smuggled on board. Sipping champagne as you set sail is not a bad way to start your vacation.