It’s absolutely one of my favorite weeks of the year. You know what I’m talking about: Shark Week! It’s absolutely riveting and yet, terrifying at the same time. I love watching it, but then I’m hesitant to get back in the ocean anytime soon.
What does Shark Week have to do with cruising? Well, I love both of them. A lot. This got me to thinking – what do they have in common? And I came up with 4 Things Cruises and Sharks have in common.
Here’s my list:
1. They’re everywhere. Sharks live in every single ocean on the planet. Cruise ships sail in pretty much every ocean on earth. Sharks are found at all depths and all over the world. Some of the most famous sharks live near South Africa and Florida. Cruise Ships visit popular ports all over the world – including the Caribbean, Europe and Alaska. The closest common factor – cruise ships and sharks move around the world the same way – through the oceans.
2. They’re in all different sizes. Small, medium and big sharks. Small, medium and big cruise ships. When you think of big cruise ships, you think of Royal Caribbean’s Oasis and Allure of the Seas. When you think of big sharks, you think of Whale Sharks and Great Whites. Not all sharks are colossal – just like not all cruise ships hold 6,000 passengers. Viking River Cruises, Silver Sea and Yachts of Seabourn all offer small, intimate cruising experiences. The smallest shark in the world – Dwarf lanternshark – only grows to a maximum of 8.3 inches.
3. There’s feeding frenzies. I’ve seen the buffets. I’ve seen the lines and I’ve seen the crowds. There’s not other way to describe it; it’s a feeding frenzy. I’ve seen food snatched of plates and ‘smaller’ passengers just pushed out of the way. I see a lot of similarities between a midnight chocolate buffet and chum-fest for sharks. Not to mention – the sheer quantities of food on a cruise ship. Here’s a fun fact for you: Great White Sharks consume an average 11 tons of food a year. An average human consumes like a half a ton of food a year – unless they cruise and then that number increases.
4. They’re famous. Sharks have their own week and have now for 27 years, setting a record in the process for the longest-running cable television programming event. Cruise ships have been part of culture and history for over 100 years. Everyone’s heard of the Titanic. Everyone’s heard of a Great White shark (though most people weren’t afraid of them until Jaws came out in 1975). When someone sees a cruise ship for the first time, there’s usually a moment of awe at the size of the massive ships. Both sharks and cruise ships are thoroughly entrenched in popular culture and history.
What did I miss? Are there any other similarities or commonalities between my two loves? Have you ever seen sharks out in the big blue? We’d love to hear about it – shoot us an email with your stories.
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