I think we agree in principal. It was the getting there and doing the exploring that was my main interest. I remember when I was in the Navy, we made 2 Mediterranean cruises, and exploring all the different ports of call was an experience that I'll never forget and would love to repeat. Rome, Naples, Pompeii, Valencia, etc. etc... If getting there meant running at 12 or 14 knots for several days I think I could stand the boredom. Since it's roughly 3100 nm from NYC to Europe, running at 12 - 14 knots would take somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 days. But if you went by way of the Azores you could stop for refueling, resupply and spend days exploring there. Think of how cool that would be. To just cruise anywhere you wanted, with not a care in the world except to wonder what you were having for dinner.

ray: