The 2009 Laughter Cruise Long Beach
California, USA to Ensenada, Mexico
The Laughter Cruise of 2009 was a grand success. Feedback has been unanimously glowing, and interest in future cruises is high!
Friday afternoon the laughing gang met in an elegant Dining Hall and received a gaily decorated gift bag containing delightful costume pieces, mementos, and (a brilliant idea of Kathy Burns): a colorful “sailor’s hat”. For ½ hour everyone colored, painted, or attached stickers to their hats – with promises to wear them at the Group Photo on Sunday. At the sit-down dinner that evening – the food was marvelous, always - we all sat together at two large tables. The air was full of laughter, stories and socializing. (The wait staff said we were an awfully fun bunch – for a group that wasn’t drunk!) Many of us went for a night-time stroll on the top deck, enjoying the pleasant ocean breeze as the ship moved at a leisurely pace towards Mexico.
Saturday morning we gathered in the open air for a Laughter Club session, weaving among the decorations of the Mini-Golf Course. The playfulness was clearly contagious, as several of the cruise’s other passengers joined in our laughter shenanigans. After a pause for another ample breakfast, we gathered in a cozy and colorful lounge to watch Mira Nair’s renowned documentary on Laughter Yoga, and then to participate in the new program “Laughing with the Stars”. Between scenes of great cinematic joyfulness (with movie stars like Gene Kelly, Julie Andrews, Dick van Dyke and Robin Williams) we laughed up a storm. After lunch, the group headed ashore in Ensenada where we laughed “Gibberish Punchlines” on every street corner until we arrived for photo-taking at a picturesque museum. We then took our time strolling back to the ship, grabbing souvenirs and happy memories. Our shipboard reunion at a Piano Lounge reserved just for us was marked not only by fun stories from the day’s trip, but also delightful music at the keyboard, from Chopin and Bach to boogie-woogie and “Rhapsody in Blue”. At dinner, the dress code was formal, while the dinnertime laughs were hearty and heartfelt.
Photos of Cruise California to Mexico 2009
Sunday with the ship at sea began with a morning Laughter Session (dodging the mini-golfers) which again attracted more friends-of-hilarity. The afternoon featured an All-Gibberish Grand Salon and Fashion Show, with poetry, story-telling, stand-up comedy, and a limerick contest – all done without a single word in any intelligible language! You won’t believe how fun this is until you experience it. After a pause we watched some clips of great cinematic moments which also were performed in gibberish, featuring movie stars Danny Kaye, Jim Carrey – and even Charlie Chaplin. A trek up to the top deck got us in position for some hysterically fun Group Photos, and shortly thereafter we burned off some calories with the new program, “Laugh Tracks” - strolling around the jogging track (at a comfortable pace) with various Laughter Exercises performed while in motion. Waltzing, careening, walking like Frankenstein, with arms spread wide… again, several cruise-goers spontaneously joined us as we worked up a good appetite for the final sit-down dinner and celebration with our attentive and playful table-waiting team.
Monday morning had a hint of sadness as we bid farewell to our new cruise-buddies, but mostly we were tickled with joy at the anticipation of our next meeting. Awaiting departure, a spontaneous Laughter Session occurred on a platform by the swimming pool. By 9:30am we were off the ship and waltzing back on shore.
We’re already looking towards a weekend (or week-long) trip to Mexico next year, as well as other Laughter Cruises. A one-night trip to Catalina Island is planned for January 17-18 2010, and we are seeking collaborators for Laughter Cruises originating from Florida in 2010 and beyond. The Rivers of Europe, anyone? Or perhaps the Greek Isles?
We’d love to have you join us on our next cruise! Watch for announcements on www.LYInstitute.org.
See photos from the 2009 Laughter Cruise to Mexico at: - http://good-times.webshots.com/album/575519744TgdbQA
http://community.webshots.com/user/JoyfulGent - here you can see more photos by jeffrey.