Lately I've been strangely attracted to stories that take place on or under the sea. After finishing The Cat's Table, Michael Ondaatje's excellent new book about a long and incident-packed voyage from Sri Lanka to London, I turned my attention to Vingt mille lieus sous les mers, my first plunge into the world of Jules Verne. I also found myself watching an obscure Hitchcock movie, East of Shanghai (1931) because it takes place on a cruise ship.
Apparently I'm not the only one daydreaming about long sea journeys. Last week I read that Disney Cruise Line (yes, Disney also has boats) is adding a second cruise to Hawaii after an overwhelming response to its first cruise, which will leave Los Angeles on April 29 and last 15 days, stopping in exotic places like Ensenada, Mexico.
It's easy to see the appeal of cruises right now. Even if it has cell-phone reception and internet access, a ship feels disconnected, far away from the cares of the world. People can email you with their petty workday problems, but what can you do about them when you are literally all at sea? In the 21st century, work is all around us, 24 hours a day. How comforting it must be to know that the office has disappeared over the horizon. Instead of worrying about your next meeting, you can reflect on your next port of call. Although I suspect that, for most people, the ship is all they need.
