I have always been fascinated by the giant floating apartment complex that is The World. You stay in your apartment while the boat travels the world, to destinations voted for by the residents and Captain. The World is in Stockholm at the moment. I watched as the tenders left the ship to ferry residents into town for the day.
In theory I think the idea is an amazing one. Instead of leaving your home to travel, your home does the travelling. No packing and unpacking of suitcases or the stress that comes with travelling these days.
I wonder, though, what it is like in reality. I have travelled by boat quite a lot - cruising on ferries to the Baltic States and Finland, around the South African coast, from Cape Town to Southampton in the days before air travel was so common, around Hawaii (where I worked on a boat) - and I have always found it exciting at first, if rather disconcerting. The movement (though you do get used to it), the fact that there is not much to do apart from the same old things every day, the horrible carpets, the stale air, seeing the same people every day, the rough seas, the small cabins, the samey food. I sometimes felt trapped on board and could not wait to get off.
On The World there are shops, restaurants, gyms, tennis courts and you have your own kitchen and good-sized apartment, but the fact remains that your world on the ship is not that big. What would you do all day on long trips between countries? Could you work? I guess many people live there only part of the year, but apparently most people are permanent residents. I wonder where you register yourself if The World is your primary residence?
This is the itinerary for 2022
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