Living Without The Internet

This morning we are entering the port of Nynashamn, Sweden.  The sun is bright and warm.  My faithful readers may be wondering if I have been lost at sea.  I have not posted a blog (though I have written one or two each day)  since leaving Manchester, England, six days ago.  The reason for not posting is simple.  I’m living without the internet.  Well, that isn't quite true, for there is internet available onboard the ship, but it comes with a staggering price tag.

 Several package options are offered:  a pay-as-you-go at 99 cents a minute, or an unlimited "social media" connection at $14.99, or an unlimited Wi-Fi connection for $24.99, or a premium unlimited option for $34.99 per day.  Now I've always been a bit of a Scrooge--avoiding frivolous spending in order to save up for such a trip as this one I'm on right now. Nine days at $34.99 (round it off...) would be about $315 which would almost pay the roundtrip airfare for my wife to fly to California to visit her sister, or enough for two weeks or more  of groceries. That $315 is double the amount of my monthly bill at home for TV cable and internet.  Another observation prevented me from splurging for onboard internet connection.  That observation was the long line that gathered at the ship IT guy's desk every day.  Apparently a lot of people were having trouble connecting and maintaining connection even though paying that exorbitant daily fee.  Not me!

Living without the internet did not diminish my life or  prevent me from writing each day.  I was free to do that and I did.  This very blog, for example, was written on the morning of the eighth day of our cruise as we entered the port of Nynashamn, Sweden.

I was able to post a brief message or two on Facebook and send and receive messages and Emails while riding the HopOnHopOff buses in Tallinn, Estonia and Helsinki, Finland.   That service was free and I used it to let family and friends know where we were (not lost at sea) and that everything was okay.  It is possible to live without the internet and now you know how stingy I am.  

Nynashamn, Sweden