Carolfay

Trixiegal has it exactly right. Most of the clothes in my wardrobe now have come from those four online sites. And they are indeed addictive!

I ended a cruise on June 22 in Stockholm. Two very sweet ladies I met on board had a nasty incident with a taxi driver who tried to cheat them, then drove off with one lady's carry-on bag when they challenged him. As far as I know, the bag wasn't recovered. I hope this isn't representative of Stockholm taxi drivers, but now I'm starting to wonder . . .

Correct. A few months ago, I hadn't heard of Warnemunde or of Schwerin, but now they're part of one of the best days on my recent cruise. Having an engaging guide like Dave can make all the difference.

I did Dave's Warnemunde tour on June 11 and would not hesitate to recommend it. Dave has energy and charm to spare, along with voluminous knowledge of the area and fluent German. He shared plenty of historical and cultural information without being pedantic. Included in our tour was a hearty pub lunch, along with train rides out to the town of Schwerin and back. Wear good walking shoes; Dave estimated we covered about 8 miles on foot.

Apparently, the movie sticks pretty closely to what actually happened (surprise) . If you look at portraits of Queen Caroline, however, her looks weren't in the same category as the actress who portrays her (no surprise).

I enjoyed the Danish film "A Royal Affair" (which I found on Netflix). It's lovely to look at and tells of the scandalous episode in the 1760s that involved King Christian, his young English wife and the king's German physician. Pretty juicy stuff . . .

OK with me, Duhcar, so long as "blind tasting" doesn't refer to our condition by the end of the evening . . . And I'll keep an eye out for the Stoli Elit!

I'll have Stoli in my suite, so come on by . . .

Our cruise concludes in Stockholm on Saturday, June 22. I believe that's Midsommer Day in Sweden - yes? What do I need to be prepared for in terms of attractions and so forth that will be closed, as well as limitations on public transport?

I'd be interested in comments from anyone who has done some of the bicycle tours offered by cruise lines, especially in Baltic ports like Ronne (Bornholm), Klaipeda (Curonian Spit), Visby (Gotland), Tallinn and Mariehamm (Aland). I'm in decent shape and have done quite a bit of road cycling, and this kind of touring sounds as if it might be a good way to experience some of these areas - and burn off a few shipboard calories, too.

We do sound alike, cindiedee. I'm 60 and having plenty of fun with the nice clothes I couldn't afford when I was young - including pretty sundresses. There may come a day when I'll be glad I had my fling with fashion . . .

To clarify my last remarks, I'm only speaking for myself, of course, but keeping my weight down has never been easy for me, and I've always found it easier to get rid of an extra 5 pounds than an extra 20. On vacation, I find that I often eat less (no snacks lying around) and walk more (so many sights to see), so the clothes typically fit the same when I'm on my way home . . .

Wearing elastic-waist pants - that would be the start of a too-slippery slope for me . . . When things start to get tight on me, that's when I know it's time for some behavior modification. I have too much money tied up in my wardrobe to have things in there that don't fit.

Thanks! I like to support the design lines that make dresses for short women like me, and I've generally had very good luck with Ralph Lauren . . .

Royalcruz and I must have similar taste. Here's the one I just got for my Seabourn holiday:

http://www1.macys.com/shop/product/lauren-ralph-lauren-petite-dress-one-shoulder-sequin-mesh-gown?ID=815492&PseudoCat=se-xx-xx-xx.esn_results

Many thanks, Michigan David! Seabourn says I've got my $400 onboard credit.

On my last cruise, I became enthralled by Shadow of the Wind (Barcelona setting) by Zafon. I also found A Small Death in Lisbon by Robert Wilson well written and suspenseful. Since I was cruising between Barcelona and Lisbon, these choices weren't accidental!