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A century after its discovery, scientists capture first confirmed footage of a colossal squid in the deep

<div class="theconversation-article-body">The colossal squid was first described in 1925 based on specimens from the stomach of a commercially hunted sperm whale. A century later, an international voyage captured the first confirmed video of this species in its natural habitat – a 30-centimetre juvenile, at a depth of 600 metres near the South Sandwich Islands.</p> <p>Colossal squid can grow up to seven metres and weigh as much as 500 kilograms, making them the heaviest invertebrate on the planet. But little is known about their life cycle.</p> <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lzPoG9H8Hlo?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption><span class="caption">The first sighting of a juvenile colossal squid in its natural environment. Credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute.</span></figcaption></figure> <p>The footage of a young colossal squid in the water column was a serendipitous sighting, as many deep-sea squid observations are.</p> <p>It was seen during the live “divestream” feed of a remotely operated vehicle during the <a href="https://2022annualreport.schmidtocean.org/">Schmidt Ocean Institute</a> and <a href="https://oceancensus.org/">Ocean Census</a> partner expedition searching for new deep-sea species and habitats in the far south Atlantic, mostly focusing on the seafloor.</p> <p>Those tuned into the stream had the remarkable experience of seeing a live colossal squid in its deep-sea home, although its identity was not confirmed until the high-definition footage could be reviewed later.</p> <p>Predators such as whales and seabirds are still one of our best sources of information about the colossal squid (<em>Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni</em>) because they are much better at finding it than we are.</p> <p>This partially explains why we have only just filmed this species in its natural habitat. Not only do these animals live in an enormous, dark and three-dimensional environment, they are also probably actively avoiding us.</p> <p>Most of our deep-sea exploration equipment is large, noisy and uses bright lights if we are trying to film animals. But the colossal squid can detect and avoid diving sperm whales, which probably produce a strong light signal as they swim down and disturb bioluminescent animals.</p> <p>The squid best able to avoid such predators have been passing on their genes for millions of years. This leaves us with a current population of visually acute, likely light-avoiding animals, well capable of detecting a light signal from many metres away.</p> <h2>Delicate beauty of deep-sea animals</h2> <p>The colossal squid is part of the “glass” squid family (Cranchiidae). Three known glass squid species are found in the Antarctic ocean, but it can be difficult to distinguish them on camera.</p> <p>Researchers from the organisation Kolossal, aiming to film the colossal squid, observed a similarly sized glass squid during their fourth Antarctic mission in 2023. But since the characteristic features needed to identify a colossal squid – hooks on the ends of the two long tentacles and in the middle of each of the eight shorter arms – weren’t clearly visible, its exact identity remains unconfirmed.</p> <p>In the Schmidt Ocean Institute footage, the mid-arm hooks are visible. And for this young individual, the resemblance to other glass squids is also clear. With age and size, colossal squid likely lose their transparent appearance and become much more of an anomaly within the family.</p> <p>While many will be amused by the idea of a “small colossal” squid, this footage showcases a beauty shared by many deep-sea animals, in contrast to the monster hype and “stuff of nightmares” click-bait titles we see all too often.</p> <p>This colossal squid looks like a delicate glass sculpture, with fins of such fine musculature they are barely visible. It has shining iridescent eyes and graceful arms fanned out from the head.</p> <p>At full size, the colossal squid may be a formidable predator, with its stout arms and array of sharp hooks, able to tackle two-metre-long toothfish. But in our first confirmed view of it at home in the deep sea, we can marvel at the elegance of this animal, thriving in an environment where humans require so much technology even to visit remotely.</p> <h2>Stranger than science fiction</h2> <p>Until recently, few people were able to take part in deep-sea exploration. But now, anyone with an internet connection can be “in the room” while we explore these habitats and observe animals for the first time.</p> <p>It’s hard to overstate the importance of the deep sea. It holds hundreds of thousands of undiscovered species, it is probably where life on Earth started, and it makes up 95% of the available living space on our planet.</p> <p>It has animals more splendid and strange than our most creative science fiction imaginings. This includes squids that start life looking like small light bulbs and then grow into true giants; colonies of individuals living together with each contributing to the group’s success; animals where males (often parasitic) are orders of magnitude smaller than females.</p> <p>This first confirmed sighting of a colossal squid inspires and reminds us how much we have left to learn.</p> <hr /> <p><em>The expedition that captured the footage of the colossal squid was a collaboration between the Schmidt Ocean Institute, the Nippon Foundation-NEKTON Ocean Census, and GoSouth (a joint project between the University of Plymouth, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research and the British Antarctic Survey).</em><!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/254584/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <hr /> <p><em>By <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kat-bolstad-646280">Kat Bolstad</a>, Associate Professor of Environmental Science, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/auckland-university-of-technology-1137">Auckland University of Technology</a></em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-century-after-its-discovery-scientists-capture-first-confirmed-footage-of-a-colossal-squid-in-the-deep-254584">original article</a>.</em></p> <p><em>Image: </em><em>Schmidt Ocean Institute</em></p> </div>

Technology

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Cause of fatal Sea World chopper crash finally revealed

<p>A catastrophic combination of radio failure and limited visibility led to the tragic mid-air collision of two Sea World helicopters on the Gold Coast in January 2023, a final investigation report has revealed.</p> <p>The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) released its long-awaited findings on Wednesday, more than two years after the accident that claimed four lives and left nine others injured at the height of the summer holiday season.</p> <p>According to the report, a critical inbound taxiing call from one helicopter, which was carrying five passengers, failed to transmit to a second helicopter preparing for takeoff with six people aboard. Investigators determined that a fault in the antenna of the first helicopter, VH-XKQ, prevented the transmission, despite the pilot having made the call. The faulty antenna had been an issue for several days prior to the crash.</p> <p>While the ground crew had earlier advised that the airspace was clear, by the time the second helicopter lifted off, that advice was no longer valid. The first helicopter had been waiting for a taxi call from the second chopper to ensure safe separation, but the call never came.</p> <p>“Neither pilot was aware of the existence of faults in the radio of VH-XKQ that likely prevented broadcast of the taxi call,” the ATSB report stated. Without functioning radio communications, neither pilot could pinpoint the location of the other aircraft, contributing to the fatal collision.</p> <p>The investigation also identified limited visibility from both helicopters and the pilots’ divided attention – focused partly on boat traffic and other aircraft in the area – as additional contributing factors. Sea World Helicopters’ safety systems, including radio calls, hand signals, and visual warning devices, were found to be inadequate. These shortcomings led both pilots to incorrectly assess the position of the other helicopter.</p> <p>Further compounding the tragedy, the ATSB found evidence that some passengers were improperly restrained, although it could not determine how this affected the severity of their injuries.</p> <p>The report also highlighted operational changes leading up to the crash. A week before the incident, the helicopters were swapped, and a year earlier, the helipads had been relocated – both changes that contributed to a breakdown in safety protocols and increased collision risk. The new aircraft lacked internal company radios, had no live traffic displays, and the pilots were unfamiliar with the systems, the report noted.</p> <p>The collision claimed the lives of pilot Ashley Jenkinson, 40, British tourists Ron and Diane Hughes, aged 65 and 57, and Sydney mother Vanessa Tadros, 36. Tadros’ 10-year-old son Nicholas survived but required extensive surgeries. Victorian mother Winnie de Silva, 33, and her nine-year-old son Leon were also hospitalised with serious injuries.</p> <p>Michael James, the pilot of the second helicopter, managed to execute an emergency landing despite suffering injuries from shattered glass. He passed away in June 2024 after a battle with cancer.</p> <p>The findings come as Shine Lawyers, representing several victims and families affected by the crash, prepare for civil proceedings. Claims of up to $925,000 per person have been lodged against Sea World Helicopters, and the release of the ATSB report is expected to inform further legal action.</p> <p>“This was such a profoundly unnecessary loss of life which must be prosecuted fully to ensure it never happens again,” said litigation specialist Roger Singh. “We will examine the findings of this report with a view to identifying other potential defendants and further damages which may be sought.”</p> <p><em>Images: ATSB</em></p>

Legal

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Man reveals what it's like to spend 25 years at sea

<p>Mario Salcedo has mastered life at sea, living on cruise ships for 25 years and completing his 1,000th voyage with Royal Caribbean. </p> <p>Salcedo, also known as "Super Mario" in cruise circles revealed that he spends around  $101,000 on on cruises per year for a cabin with a balcony. </p> <p>The senior funds his ocean-bound lifestyle through investment management work. </p> <p>His loyalty to Royal Caribbean has earned him some recognition among the crew, with some ships creating makeshift offices for him on deck, complete with cordoned-off tables, chairs and signs reading "Super Mario's Office".</p> <p>Salcedo spoke about his love for cruising in an interview with <em>allthingscruise.com. </em></p> <p>"Cruising never gets old," he began. </p> <p>"I'm so used to being on ships that it feels more comfortable to me than being on land."</p> <p>The full-time cruiser began his life at sea after "tiring of the suit-and-tie business world and the long flights to international clients."</p> <p>The Cuban-born businessman went on his first cruise in 1997 and became hooked since then. </p> <p>In 2000 he began living on Royal Caribbean ships, spending only a few days per year on land, and taking a short 15 month break during the Covid pandemic. </p> <p>Salcedo said he spends about five hours a day working and "has fun" for the rest of it. </p> <p>"It's zero stress," he said. "The best lifestyle I can find."</p> <p><em>Image: Wayleebird / Shutterstock.com</em></p> <p> </p>

International Travel

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Sixteen people missing after tourist yacht sinks

<p>Egyptian officials have confirmed sixteen people are missing after a tourist yacht capsized in the Red Sea after being struck by strong waves. </p> <p>The governor of the Red Sea region, Amr Hanafy, said rescuers saved 28 people from the sinking vessel south of the coastal town of Marsa Alam, and some were airlifted to receive medical treatment.</p> <p>The Egyptian Navy warship El Fateh and military aircraft have intensified their efforts to locate the missing, with rescue teams working around the clock.</p> <p>A total of 44 people were on board the yacht, including 13 Egyptians, and 31 foreign nationals from the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Poland, Belgium, Switzerland, Finland, China, Slovakia, Spain and Ireland.</p> <p>The governor confirmed that 16 people are still missing, including four Egyptians and 12 foreign tourists. </p> <p>The boat had no technical issues, while passengers onboard said the reason behind the sinking was a strong wave that hit the boat, causing it to capsize. </p> <p>The governorate received a report shortly before dawn on Monday of a distress call made from the yacht, which had left Marsa Alam for a five-day journey.</p> <p>The Egyptian Meteorological Authority on Saturday warned about turbulence and high waves on the Red Sea and advised against maritime activity for Sunday and Monday.</p> <p>The boat is the second vessel to sink in the area this year. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Facebook</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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Sad end in search for young boy swept out to sea

<p>A body has been recovered in the search for a young boy swept out to sea in front of his family while on a fishing trip at The Entrance, NSW over the weekend.</p> <p>Laith Alaid, 11, was crossing a channel about 5pm on Sunday when he was caught in the outgoing tide. </p> <p>His father managed to save his other three sons aged, three, seven and nine, but he could not reach Laith in time.</p> <p>Bystanders looked after the three children while Laith's father tried to reach him. </p> <p>“(The father) came here by himself and with his four beautiful boys ... and he tried to save them all, he saved three and by the time he turned around (Laith) was gone ... in a split second,” family member Zeid Alhirz said. </p> <p>The family were visiting the Central Coast from Sydney and had been fishing when it is understood they took a shortcut across the channel between an estuary and the ocean. </p> <p>Relatives said they had visited and fished at the popular tourist spot for years and had crossed the channel at least three times before tragedy struck. </p> <p>An extensive multi-agency search was conducted and on Wednesday police were called back to The Entrance after a body was found in the water. </p> <p>“While the body is yet to be formally identified, it is believed to be that of the missing boy,” NSW Police said.</p> <p>Inspector David Piddington said “lots of people try to move across that channel” but he advised against it.</p> <p>A report will be prepared for the coroner.</p> <p><em>Images: 7News</em></p>

Caring

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Desperate search after Aussie man swept out to sea while saving swimmer

<p>A desperate search is underway for an Australian man who got swept out to sea while saving a tourist from drowning on a Bali beach. </p> <p>Craig Laidley, 56, was walking along Balian Beach about 4.15pm on Wednesday when he heard 29-year-old Micro Stalla calling out for help.</p> <p>The Perth man rushed into the water to save the German tourist, but unfortunately Laidley never made it back to shore after being swept out to sea by an "extreme" wave. </p> <p>Laidley, who reportedly lives in Bali, was last seen “drifting back out to the ocean”.</p> <p>He was reported missing to police about three hours later, and they immediately launched a search, with  with Denpasar Search and Rescue Office head Nyoman Sidakarya confirming the search is still ongoing. </p> <p>“[On Wednesday] night our team tried to search for victims using land searches and today the Denpasar Search and Rescue Office dispatched 10 people with land and sea SRU divisions,” Sidakarya said. </p> <p>“Information from the team at the location is that the wave conditions are extreme," he added. </p> <p>Rescue teams used rubber boats to search for Laidley within a 10km radius of where he was last seen and also scoured the coastline on foot.</p> <p>Police have also conducted interviews with witnesses as part of their ongoing search. </p> <p>One witness said that there were no warning signs around the beach, despite the dangers. </p> <p>“Incidents like this happen often here,” he told the ABC.</p> <p>“About four months ago, a foreigner went missing. He was found dead 4 hours later. In the last five years, there have been five incidents like this.”</p> <p>Laidley's family have appealed to the public to help find him. </p> <p>“Hello, our family is seeking assistance from the public in Bali,” Craig’s nephew posted on Facebook.</p> <p>“Craig was last seen helping a male that was reportedly drowning in the ocean between Tebing Balian rocks near Balian Beach.</p> <p>“He was then seen drifting back out to the ocean after saving this man’s life.”</p> <p>The search is set to continue on Friday morning. </p> <p>The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said it is providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian reported missing in Indonesia.</p> <p><em><strong>Editors Update: </strong></em></p> <p>Craig Laidley’s body has been found on the beach on Friday morning by searchers. His two brothers, Bruce and Glenn, arrived in Bali overnight to join the search. </p> <p>His family are  still coming to terms with the loss, but have told <em>7News </em>that they are proud of his heroic rescue and glad that his brothers were there to bring him home.</p> <p><em>Images: Denpasar Search and Rescue Agency/ Facebook</em></p>

Caring

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Why one baby king penguin is Sea Life's new social media star

<p>A baby king penguin at Sea Life Melbourne has become the aquarium's newest celebrity for one massive reason: his size. </p> <p>Pesto the king penguin is just nine months old and 22.5 kilogram, which is already bigger than his parents. </p> <p>Photos of Pesto, who is just 90 centimetres tall, towering over his parents have gone viral online, with thousands of people shocked at the animal's whopping size. </p> <p>When Pesto was born, he broke the record of being the biggest chick ever born at Sea Life. </p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-Crh17SzVD/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-Crh17SzVD/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Herald Sun (@heraldsunphoto)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>"I think he's always going to be a big boy," says Sea Life penguin keeper Michaela Smale. She said that once he fledges, "he will shrink and slim down a little but he's already significantly taller than his dad."</p> <p>Despite being less than a year old, adulthood is already on the horizon as Pesto has started losing some of his baby feathers, with swimming lessons from his dad likely to be starting soon.</p> <p>"Sometimes they become quite independent teenagers, so maybe he's ready for his bad boy phase," says Smale.</p> <p>"I hope he retains some of his quirky personality and hopefully we can follow his adventures as he becomes part of the colony."</p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram </em></p> <div class="" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div id="adspot-mobile-mobile-3-above" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;"></div> </div>

Domestic Travel

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Stormy seas ahead: Why confidence in the cruise industry has plummeted

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jennifer-holland-969445">Jennifer Holland</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-suffolk-3830">University of Suffolk</a></em></p> <p>The cruise industry has weathered many storms, including fairly regular brushes with disease. Outbreaks of <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/pub/norovirus/norovirus.htm">norovirus</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3294517/">H1N1</a> and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/world/americas/measles-scientology-cruise-ship.html">measles</a> have all happened in the not too distant past. Despite this, a cruise has traditionally been regarded as a safe holiday – the kind where you don’t have to worry about a thing.</p> <p>COVID-19 has changed this. Cruise ships were a hotbed of transmission during the early stages of the pandemic, particularly the Diamond Princess, which was quarantined for six weeks in Japan in spring 2020. It had over <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/369/bmj.m1632">700 confirmed cases</a>, and for a period was the world’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2020/feb/20/coronavirus-live-updates-diamond-princess-cruise-ship-japan-deaths-latest-news-china-infections?page=with:block-5e4ea39f8f0811db2fafb3ec#block-5e4ea39f8f0811db2fafb3ec">leading COVID-19 hotspot</a> after China. Coverage of this and other ships’ outbreaks has taken its toll.</p> <p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S259019822100035X">Research</a> that I conducted with colleagues in Australia shows that the pandemic has changed how people think of cruise holidays. We surveyed over 600 people in the UK and Australia, both cruisers and non-cruisers, to ask them about their willingness to cruise and future travel intentions, to explore how COVID-19 has affected perceptions of travel and cruise risks.</p> <p>Nearly 45% of interviewees had less belief than before the pandemic that cruise lines are transparent and honest about safety or health issues. Respondents were also fearful of going on a cruise, with 47% saying they don’t trust cruise lines to look after them if something goes wrong. This is staggering for an industry that depends on repeat customers.</p> <p>We further found that 67% of people are less willing to cruise as a result of the pandemic, while 69% said they feel less positive about cruising now. What’s most surprising is that even repeat cruisers said they feel nervous about cruising as a result of the pandemic, with this emotion coming up repeatedly in the survey’s open-ended questions. This is a gamechanger. Until now, loyal cruisers have always come back, with previous disease outbreaks having <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0261517716300309">little</a> <a href="http://ijbssnet.com/journals/Vol_4_No_7_July_2013/2.pdf">impact</a>.</p> <h2>What went wrong?</h2> <p>When the pandemic began, cruise ships immediately suffered high infection rates among passengers and crew. During the first wave, thousands were <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/27/stranded-at-sea-cruise-ships-around-the-world-are-adrift-as-ports-turn-them-away">stranded onboard</a> ships as they were held in quarantine or <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0160738320302103?via%3Dihub">refused entry to ports</a> as borders closed. By the end of April 2020, <a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/tourism-cruises/article241640166.html">over 50 cruise ships</a> had confirmed cases of COVID-19 and at least 65 deaths had occurred among passengers and crew.</p> <p>The story of one ship – the Ruby Princess – gained particular attention. Its passengers were allowed to disembark in Sydney in mid-March, with a number carrying the virus. The ship would go on to be linked to more than <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-53802816">900 COVID-19 cases and 28 deaths</a>. The state of New South Wales later launched a <a href="https://www.dpc.nsw.gov.au/assets/dpc-nsw-gov-au/publications/The-Special-Commission-of-Inquiry-into-the-Ruby-Princess-Listing-1628/Report-of-the-Special-Commission-of-Inquiry-into-the-Ruby-Princess.pdf">public inquiry</a> into the ship’s outbreak and found that the state’s ministry of health made a number of serious errors in allowing passengers to get off.</p> <p>It didn’t take long for cruises to be depicted as <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-24/virus-explosion-in-australia-exposes-cruise-ships-hidden-menace">places of danger and infection</a>, particularly in Australia. Lots of information about COVID-19 on cruise ships was published, especially about the <a href="https://cruiseradio.net/the-cruise-ship-story-mainstream-media-got-wrong/">Ruby Princess</a>, grabbing the <a href="https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&amp;q=Ruby%20Princess">public’s attention</a>. Undoubtedly, this amplified people’s perceptions of risk around cruise holidays. Our study found that the many stories on COVID-19 also reminded the public of previous illnesses and outbreaks onboard cruise ships.</p> <p>Given the high intensity of media interest in Australia, we weren’t surprised to find that perceived risks were higher there compared with the UK, with willingness to cruise lower. This suggests that there could be regional differences in how difficult it is for the industry to recover after the pandemic.</p> <h2>What happens next?</h2> <p>Most respondents in the study said they would wait until it was safe to cruise again – and there’s probably a long way to go on changing the current perception of cruise ships as giant incubators of disease. It’s doubtful pent-up demand from loyal cruisers will be enough to fill cruise ships to capacity – which is critical for <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057%2Fs41278-020-00158-3">long-term economic viability</a> – and so <a href="https://theconversation.com/can-the-cruise-industry-really-recover-from-coronavirus-144704">financial uncertainty</a> grows.</p> <p>The pandemic has been <a href="https://cruising.org/-/media/Facts-and-Resources/Cruise-Industry-COVID-19-FAQs_August-13-2020">catastrophic</a> for the industry so far, with financial losses of US$50 billion (£36 billion), 1.17 million job losses, 18 cruise ships sold or scrapped and at least <a href="https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/cmv-becomes-the-third-cruise-line-to-go-out-of-business-in-a-month">three cruise lines stopping trading</a>. Before the pandemic, a new cruise ship was built <a href="https://www.seatrade-cruise.com/news-headlines/golden-age-med-ports-need-prepare-new-generation-large-ships">every 47 days</a>, and off the back of the industry’s robust growth over the past two decades another <a href="https://cruising.org/en-gb/news-and-research/research/2020/december/state-of-the-cruise-industry-outlook-2021">19 ships</a> are due to enter operation in 2021, despite demand very likely to have fallen.</p> <p>To recover, the industry will need to address people’s perceptions of risk, which our research shows have heightened. Risk perception has a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/004728759803700209">significant influence</a> on holiday decision-making, and it will be even more critical post-COVID.</p> <p>In the wake of the pandemic, would-be cruisers will need to think about health protocols, outbreak prevention plans, onboard sanitation procedures, social distancing measures and health screenings. Also, they’ll need to consider the implications of potential outbreaks during the cruise. These could result in being quarantined in their cabin, needing to access healthcare, or even the cruise being terminated.</p> <p>All of this creates uncertainty, which adds to perceptions of risk. The industry will need to provide reassuring answers on all of these points to entice holidaymakers back onboard. Cruise companies will also need to convince customers that they are trustworthy and accountable, given the concerns about honesty and transparency raised by our research.</p> <p>Overall, the sector has been devastated by the pandemic. Possibly no other area of tourism has been as widely affected. A return to the robust growth enjoyed previously is unlikely for many years, if ever. But for there to be any chance of this happening, the industry must understand how the pandemic has affected people’s perceptions of cruises and address their concerns.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/152146/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jennifer-holland-969445"><em>Jennifer Holland</em></a><em>, Lecturer in Tourism, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-suffolk-3830">University of Suffolk</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/stormy-seas-ahead-confidence-in-the-cruise-industry-has-plummeted-due-to-covid-19-152146">original article</a>.</em></p> </div>

Cruising

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Rough seas or smooth sailing? The cruise industry is booming despite environmental concerns

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/frederic-dimanche-836528">Frédéric Dimanche</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/toronto-metropolitan-university-1607">Toronto Metropolitan University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kelley-a-mcclinchey-1287281">Kelley A. McClinchey</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/wilfrid-laurier-university-1817">Wilfrid Laurier University</a></em></p> <p>Cruise ship season is officially underway in British Columbia. The season kicked off with the arrival of Norwegian Bliss on April 3 — the <a href="https://www.cheknews.ca/first-cruise-ship-of-the-season-to-arrive-in-victoria-in-less-than-2-weeks-1196426/">first of 318 ships</a> that are scheduled to dock in Victoria this year. Victoria saw a record 970,000 passengers arrive in 2023, with more expected in 2024.</p> <p>The cruise industry <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trip.2021.100391">was badly hit</a> by the <a href="https://financialpost.com/financial-times/the-2020s-were-meant-to-be-a-boom-decade-for-cruises-then-covid-19-hit-them-like-a-tidal-wave">suspension of cruise operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic</a> in 2020. Fuelled by heavy consumer demand and industry innovation, cruising has made a comeback. It is now one of the fastest-growing sectors, rebounding even faster than international tourism.</p> <p>While many predicted <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/05/carnivals-struggle-to-survive-the-coronavirus-as-outbreak-wipes-out-the-cruise-industry.html">a difficult recovery</a>, a <a href="https://cruising.org/en">recent industry report shows a remarkable post-pandemic rebound</a>. Two million more people went on cruises in 2023 versus 2019, with demand predicted to top 35 million in 2024.</p> <p>But environmental issues plague the sector’s revival. Are they an indication of rough seas ahead? Or will a responsive industry mean smooth sailing?</p> <p>Cruising has long been criticized <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/their-purpose-is-to-be-fun-but-theres-a-dark-side-to-cruising-the-seas/dzxivdoos">for being Janus-faced</a>: on the surface, cruises are convenient, exciting holidays with reputed economic benefits. But lurking underneath are its <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2017.11.002">negative environmental and social impacts</a>.</p> <h2>Unprecedented growth</h2> <p>Newly constructed mega-ships are part of the industry’s unprecedented growth. Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas is the <a href="https://www.cruisehive.com/top-10-biggest-cruise-ships-in-the-world/66448">largest cruise ship in the world</a>, with 18 decks, 5,600 passengers and 2,350 crew.</p> <p>MSC World Europa with 6,700 passengers and 2,100 crew, P&amp;O Arvia with 5,200 passengers and 1,800 crew, and Costa Smeralda with 6,600 passengers and 1,500 crew also claim mega-ship status.</p> <p>Those sailing to and from Alaska via Victoria will be some of the <a href="https://hakaimagazine.com/features/cruise-ship-invasion/">estimated 700,000 passengers departing Seattle</a> on massive ships three sport fields in length.</p> <p>Baby boomers represent less than 25 per cent of cruise clientele. Gen X, <a href="https://www.thenewdaily.com.au/life/2024/01/15/cruise-millennials-gen-z">Millennials and Gen Z</a> have more interest than ever in cruising, with these younger markets being targeted as the future of cruise passengers.</p> <p>The Cruise Lines International Association asserts that <a href="https://cruising.org/-/media/clia-media/research/2024/2024-state-of-the-cruise-industry-report_041424_web.ashx">82 per cent of those who have cruised will cruise again</a>. To entice first-timers and meet the needs of repeat cruisers, companies are offering new itineraries and onboard activities, from <a href="https://www.timescolonist.com/business/royal-caribbean-quantum-cruise-ship-1st-at-sea-bumper-cars-skydiving-observation-capsule-4585987">simulated skydiving and bumper cars</a> to <a href="https://nationalpost.com/travel/cruise-ship-offers-pickleball-on-the-high-seas">pickleball</a> and lawn bowling.</p> <p>Solo cruise travel is also on the rise, and <a href="https://www.cruisetradenews.com/demand-for-multi-generational-cruise-holidays-on-the-up-data-finds/">multi-generational family cruise travel</a> is flourishing, explaining the extensive variety of cabin classes, activities and restaurants available on newly constructed and retrofitted ships.</p> <p>However, only a few cruise ports are large enough to dock mega ships. Cruise lines are responding by offering off-beat experiences and catering more to the distinct desires of travellers.</p> <p>In doing so, there is a <a href="https://www.positivelyosceola.com/2024s-top-cruise-trends-embracing-smaller-ships-solo-adventures-and-luxury-suites/">move towards smaller vessels and luxury liners</a>, river cruises and <a href="https://www.travelweek.ca/news/cruise/expedition-cruising-what-is-it-and-how-do-you-sell-it/">expedition cruising</a>. Leveraging lesser-known ports that can only be accessed via compact luxury ships <a href="https://www.cntraveler.com/story/small-cruise-ships-are-more-sustainble-and-on-the-rise">offers more mission-driven, catered experiences</a> for the eco-minded traveller.</p> <h2>Cruising and environmental costs</h2> <p>Cruise ship visitors are known to negatively impact Marine World Heritage sites. While most sites regulate ballast water and wastewater discharge, there are <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/su12020611">concerns about ship air emissions and wildlife interactions</a>.</p> <p>Cruise ship journeys along Canada’s west coast, for example, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jul/09/us-cruise-ships-using-canada-as-toilet-bowl-for-polluted-waste-alaska-british-columbia">are leaving behind a trail of toxic waste</a>. <a href="https://foe.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Comparison_of_CO2_Emissions_v2.pdf">A study by environmental organization Friends of the Earth</a> concluded that a cruise tourist generates eight times more carbon emissions per day than a land tourist in Seattle.</p> <p>Also, a rise in expedition cruising means more negative impacts (long-haul flights to farther ports, less destination management in fragile ecosystems, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/03/briefing/last-chance-tourism.html">last chance tourism</a>) and a rise in carbon dioxide emissions.</p> <p>Toxic air pollutants from cruise ships around ports are higher than pre-pandemic levels, <a href="https://www.transportenvironment.org/discover/europes-luxury-cruise-ships-emit-as-much-toxic-sulphur-as-1bn-cars-study/">leaving Europe’s port cities “choking on air pollution</a>.” Last year, Europe’s 218 cruise ships emitted as much sulphur oxides as one billion cars — a high number, considering the introduction of the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(20)30002-4">International Maritime Organization’s sulphur cap in 2020</a>.</p> <h2>Rough seas ahead or smooth sailing?</h2> <p>Royal Caribbean said its Icon of the Seas is designed to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/worlds-largest-cruise-ship-sets-sail-bringing-concerns-about-methane-emissions-2024-01-27/">operate 24 per cent more efficiently than the international standard</a> for new ships. International Maritime Organization regulations <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-22/royal-caribbean-s-icon-of-the-seas-highlights-climate-impact-of-cruises">must be 30 per cent more energy-efficient</a> than those built in 2014.</p> <p>But despite the industry using liquefied natural gas instead of heavy fuel oil and electric shore power to turn off diesel engines when docking, industry critics still claim <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/jan/26/icon-of-the-seas-largest-cruise-ship-human-lasagne-climate-fuel-lng-greenwashing">the cruise sector is greenwashing</a>. As a result, some cities like Amsterdam, Barcelona and Venice are <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/07/21/war-on-cruise-ships-amsterdam-latest-port-to-limit-or-ban-cruise-liners">limiting or banning cruise ships</a>.</p> <p>Environmental critiques remain strong, especially for <a href="https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/ijegeo/issue/65449/957262">polar expeditions</a>. The industry must respond and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-01949-4_131">increase sustainability efforts</a>, but their measures remain reactive (i.e., merely meeting international regulations) rather than proactive. In addition, by sailing their ships under <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/05/13/real-problem-with-cruise-industry/">flags of convenience</a>, cruise companies evade taxes and demonstrate an unwillingness to abide by a nation’s environmental, health and labour regulations.</p> <p>In any case, environmental concerns are escalating along with the industry. <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/cruising-green-eco-operators-make-waves">Travel agents and industry figures are aware of these impacts</a> and should help promote cruise lines that demonstrate a commitment to sustainable practices.</p> <p>Local residents need to expect more from port authorities and local governments in order <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2024.103732">to cope with cruise tourism</a>. Cruise consumers should recognize the environmental costs of cruising, and demand accountability and transparency from cruise lines.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/228181/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/frederic-dimanche-836528"><em>Frédéric Dimanche</em></a><em>, Professor and Director, Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/toronto-metropolitan-university-1607">Toronto Metropolitan University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kelley-a-mcclinchey-1287281">Kelley A. McClinchey</a>, Teaching Faculty, Geography and Environmental Studies, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/wilfrid-laurier-university-1817">Wilfrid Laurier University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock</em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/rough-seas-or-smooth-sailing-the-cruise-industry-is-booming-despite-environmental-concerns-228181">original article</a>.</em></p> </div>

Cruising

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Families including someone with mental illness can experience deep despair. They need support

<div class="theconversation-article-body"> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/amanda-cole-1484502">Amanda Cole</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/edith-cowan-university-720">Edith Cowan University</a></em></p> <p>In the aftermath of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/bondi-attacker-had-mental-health-issues-but-most-people-with-mental-illness-arent-violent-227868">tragic Bondi knife attack</a>, Joel Cauchi’s parents have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/video/2024/apr/15/bondi-junction-stabbings-joel-cauchis-father-extremely-sorry-for-victims-video">spoken</a> about their son’s long history of mental illness, having been diagnosed with schizophrenia at age 17. They said they were “devastated and horrified” by their son’s actions. “To you he’s a monster,” said his father. “But to me he was a very sick boy.”</p> <p>Globally, one out of every eight people <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders">report a mental illness</a>. In Australia, <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/mental-health-services/mental-health">one in five people experience a mental illness</a> in their lifetime.</p> <p>Mental illness and distress affects not only the person living with the condition, but <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/chronic-conditions-and-multimorbidity">family members and communities</a>. As the prevalence of mental health problems grows, the flow-on effect to family members, including caregivers, and the impact on families as a unit, is also rising.</p> <p>While every family is different, the words of the Cauchis draw attention to how families can experience distress, stress, fear, powerlessness, and still love, despite the challenges and trauma. How can they help a loved one? And who can they turn to for support?</p> <h2>The role of caregivers</h2> <p>Informal caregivers help others <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-welfare/informal-carers">within the context of an existing relationship</a>, such as a family member. The care they provide goes beyond the usual expectations or demands of such relationships.</p> <p>Around <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-welfare/informal-carers">2.7 million Australians</a> provide informal care. For almost a third of these the person’s primary medical diagnosis is psychological or psychiatric.</p> <p>It has <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1074840708323598">long been acknowledged</a> that those supporting a family member with ongoing mental illness need support themselves.</p> <p>In the 1980s, interest grew in caregiving dynamics within families of people grappling with mental health issues. Subsequent research recognised <a href="http://www.aihw.gov.au/chronic-diseases/">chronic health conditions</a> not only affect the quality of life and wellbeing of the people experiencing them, but also impose burdens that reverberate within relationships, caregiving roles, and family dynamics over time.</p> <p>Past studies have shown families of those diagnosed with chronic mental illness are increasingly forced to <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24943714/">manage their own depression</a>, experience elevated levels of <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23692348/">emotional stress</a>, negative states of mind and <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21165597/">decreased overall mental health</a>.</p> <p>Conditions such as depression, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia can severely impact daily functioning, relationships, and <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36875411/">overall quality of life</a>. Living with mental illness is often accompanied by a myriad of challenges. From stigma and discrimination to difficulty accessing adequate health care and support services. Patients and their families navigate a complex and often isolating journey.</p> <h2>The family is a system</h2> <p>The concept of <a href="http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/40336/1/16937_eng.pdf">family health</a> acknowledges the physical and psychological wellbeing of a person is significantly affected by the family.</p> <p>Amid these challenges, <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1330720/full">family support</a> emerges as a beacon of hope. Research consistently demonstrates strong familial relationships and support systems play a pivotal role in mitigating the adverse effects of mental illness. Families provide emotional support, practical assistance, and a sense of belonging that are vital for people struggling with mental illness.</p> <p>My recent <a href="https://www.collegianjournal.com/article/S1322-7696(24)00004-0/fulltext">research</a> highlights the profound impact of mental illness on family dynamics, emphasising the resilience and endurance shown by participants. Families struggling with mental illness often experience heightened emotional fluctuations, with extreme highs and lows. The enduring nature of family caregiving entails both stress and adaptation over an extended period. Stress associated with caregiving and the demands on personal resources and coping mechanisms builds and builds.</p> <p>Yet families I’ve <a href="https://www.collegianjournal.com/article/S1322-7696(24)00004-0/fulltext">interviewed</a> find ways to live “a good life”. They prepare for the peaks and troughs, and show endurance and persistence. They make space for mental illness in their daily lives, describing how it spurs adaptation, acceptance and inner strength within the family unit.</p> <p>When treating a person with mental illness, health practitioners need to consider the entire family’s needs and engage with family members. By fostering open and early dialogue and providing comprehensive support, health-care professionals can empower families to navigate the complexities of mental illness while fostering resilience and hope for the future. Family members <a href="https://www.collegianjournal.com/article/S1322-7696(24)00004-0/fulltext">express stories</a> of an inner struggle, isolation and exhaustion.</p> <h2>Shifting the focus</h2> <p>There is a pressing need for a shift in research priorities, from illness-centered perspectives to a <a href="https://shop.elsevier.com/books/child-youth-and-family-health-strengthening-communities/barnes/978-0-7295-4155-8">strengths-based focus</a> when considering families “managing” mental illness.</p> <p>There is transformative potential in harnessing strengths to respond to challenges posed by mental illnesses, while also <a href="https://www.collegianjournal.com/article/S1322-7696(24)00004-0/fulltext">supporting family members</a>.</p> <p>For people facing mental health challenges, having <a href="https://www.sane.org/information-and-resources/facts-and-guides/families-friends-carers">loved ones who listen without judgement</a> and offer empathy can alleviate feelings of despair. Beyond emotional support, families often serve as crucial caregivers, assisting with <a href="https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/emergency-help/helping-someone-else/">daily tasks, medication management and navigating the health-care system</a>.</p> <p>As the Cauchi family so painfully articulated, providing support for a family member with mental illness is intensely challenging. Research <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4804270/">shows</a> caregiver burnout, financial strain and strained relationships are common.</p> <p>Health-care professionals should prioritise support for family members at an early stage. In Australia, there are various support options available for families living with mental illness. <a href="https://www.carergateway.gov.au/?utm_source=google&amp;utm_medium=paid-search&amp;utm_campaign=10626744435&amp;utm_adgroup=102994881737&amp;utm_term=carer%20gateway%20wa&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gclid=EAIaIQobChMIt8T6pJzIhQMVjAyDAx2KiQl1EAAYASAAEgLj-fD_BwE">Carer Gateway</a> provides information, support and access to services. <a href="https://www.headspace.com/?utm_source=google&amp;utm_medium=search&amp;utm_campaign=HS_Headspace_Brand-Exact_Search_AU-INT_Google_NA&amp;utm_content=&amp;utm_term=headspace&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4uKKvpzIhQMVFheDAx1bZgk8EAAYASAAEgLy6vD_BwE">Headspace</a> offers mental health services and supports to young people and their families.</p> <p>Beyond these national services, GPs, nurses, nurse practitioners and local community health centres are key to early conversations. Mental health clinics and hospitals often target family involvement in treatment plans.</p> <p>While Australia has made strides in recognising the importance of family support, challenges persist. Access to services can vary based on geographic location and demand, leaving some families under-served or facing long wait times. And the level of funding and resources allocated to family-oriented mental health support often does not align with the demand or complexity of need.</p> <p>In the realm of mental illness, family support serves as a lifeline for people navigating the complexities of their conditions.</p> <hr /> <p><em>If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call <a href="https://www.lifeline.org.au/">Lifeline</a> on 13 11 14.</em><!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/228007/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/amanda-cole-1484502"><em>Amanda Cole</em></a><em>, Lead, Mental Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/edith-cowan-university-720">Edith Cowan University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/families-including-someone-with-mental-illness-can-experience-deep-despair-they-need-support-228007">original article</a>.</em></p> </div>

Caring

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Passengers stranded after three-year cruise abruptly cancelled

<p dir="ltr">When Life At Sea <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/travel/cruising/world-first-three-year-cruise-revealed" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> their world-first three-year voyage in early 2023, many were quick to jump at the opportunity to spend the next years of their life onboard. </p> <p dir="ltr">People from around the globe <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/travel/cruising/meet-the-woman-preparing-to-spend-three-years-at-sea#xd_co_f=YTM5MzVmOGQtNTY4My00NWE1LThjNDctMTUxMjJlNjVhMWNj~" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sold their homes</a> and belongings to fork out the hefty $180,000 price tag to spend 36 months travelling the world, with their once-in-a-lifetime voyage set to kick off in November. </p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-ddf609a3-7fff-7e5e-04e2-f5d7a488896d"></span>But now, as their departure date loomed, Life At Sea have left passengers stranded after abruptly cancelling the trip in its entirety. </p> <p>Life at Sea Cruises was scheduled to depart from Istanbul, Turkey on November 1st but departure was relocated and delayed twice to November 30th, before passengers were informed on November 17th the cruise was off, according to <em>CNN</em>.</p> <p>The news outlet reported that the ship that was destined to be the vessel of the three-year journey was bought by another company just one day before the voyage was cancelled. </p> <p>The owner of Life at Sea Cruises’ parent company Miray Cruises, then confirmed they couldn’t afford the ship because investors had pulled out “due to unrest in the Middle East” – but suggested they were working on getting another ship and a new departure date. </p> <p>The idea that the vessel would be replaced filled some travellers with hope they would still be embarking on their three-year adventure, before CEO of Miray Cruises was forced to clarify: “In case we weren’t clear, the Life at Sea cruise trip is cancelled.”</p> <p>Passengers were devastated by the news, with those who thought they had locked in the next three years of their lives telling <em>CNN</em> they felt “incredibly sad”, “angry” and “betrayed”.</p> <p>“I had the next three years of my life planned to live an extraordinary life, and now [I have] nothing,” said one cruiser.</p> <p>“I don’t think they will ever understand how much damage they’ve caused us,” said another.</p> <p>The more than $180,000 three-year trip had been celebrated by big cruising fans and called a “nightmare” and “claustrophobic” by critics across social media.</p> <p>The company’s website is still advertising the cruise as normal, with a countdown stating on Monday it was three hours “until we go for an adventure of a lifetime”.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Life At Sea</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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Why can’t we just tow stranded whales and dolphins back out to sea?

<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/vanessa-pirotta-873986">Vanessa Pirotta</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/macquarie-university-1174">Macquarie University</a></em></p> <p>On Tuesday night, a pod of almost 100 long-finned pilot whales stranded itself on a beach on Western Australia’s south coast. Over the course of Wednesday, more than 100 parks and wildlife staff and 250 registered volunteers worked tirelessly to try to keep alive the 45 animals surviving the night.</p> <p>They used small boats and surf skis to try to get the pilot whales into deeper water. Volunteers helped keep the animals’ blowholes above water to prevent them drowning, and poured water on them to cool them down.</p> <p>Our rescue efforts were, sadly, unsuccessful. The animals (actually large ocean-going dolphins) able to be towed or helped out to deeper water turned around and stranded themselves again, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=228337910167574&ref=sharing">further down the beach</a>. Sadly, they had to be euthanised.</p> <p>Unfortunately, towing whales and dolphins is not simple. It can work and work well, as we saw in Tasmania last year, when dozens of pilot whales were rescued. But rescuers have to have good conditions and a fair dash of luck for it to succeed.</p> <h2>Rescuing beached whales is hard</h2> <p>When we try to rescue stranded whales and dolphins, the goal is to get them off the sandbars or beach, and back into deep water.</p> <p>Why is it so difficult? Consider the problem. First, you have to know that a pod has beached itself. Then, you have to be able to get there in time, with people skilled in wildlife rescue.</p> <p>These animals are generally too big and heavy to rely on muscle power alone. To get them out far enough, you need boats and sometimes tractors. That means the sea conditions and the slope of the beach have to be suitable.</p> <p>Often, one of the first things rescuers might do is look for those individuals who might be good candidates to be refloated. Generally, these are individuals still alive, and not completely exhausted.</p> <p>If rescuers have boats and good conditions, they may use slings. The boats need to be able to tow the animals well out to sea.</p> <p>Trained people must always be there to oversee the operation. That’s because these large, stressed animals could seriously injure humans just by moving their bodies on the beach.</p> <p>There are extra challenges. Dolphins and whales are slippery and extremely heavy. Long-finned pilot whales can weigh up to 2.3 tonnes. They may have never seen humans before and won’t necessarily know humans are there to help.</p> <p>They’re out of their element, under the sun and extremely stressed. Out of the water, their sheer weight begins to crush their organs. They can also become sunburnt. Because they are so efficient at keeping a comfortable temperature in the sea, they can overheat and die on land. Often, as we saw yesterday, they can’t always keep themselves upright in the shallow water.</p> <p>And to add to the problem, pilot whales are highly social. They want to be with each other. If you tow a single animal back out to sea, it may try to get back to its family and friends or remain disorientated and strand once again.</p> <p>Because of these reasons – and probably others – it wasn’t possible to save the pilot whales yesterday. Those that didn’t die naturally were euthanised to minimise their suffering.</p> <h2>Successful rescues do happen</h2> <p>Despite the remarkable effort from authorities and local communities, we couldn’t save this pod. Every single person working around the clock to help these animals did an amazing job, from experts to volunteers in the cold water to those making cups of tea.</p> <p>But sometimes, we get luckier. Last year, 230 pilot whales beached themselves at Macquarie Harbour, on Tasmania’s west coast. By the time rescuers could get there, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/sep/27/44-pilot-whales-rescued-and-returned-to-sea-after-mass-stranding-at-tasmanian-beach">most were dead</a>. But dozens were still alive. This time, conditions were different and towing worked.</p> <p>Rescuers were able to bring boats close to shore. Surviving pilot whales were helped into a sling, and then the boat took them far out to sea. Taking them to the same location prevented them from beaching again.</p> <h2>Every stranding lets us learn more</h2> <p>Unfortunately, we don’t really know why whales and dolphins strand at all. Has something gone wrong with how toothed whales and dolphins navigate? Are they following a sick leader? Are human-made undersea sounds making it too loud? Are they avoiding predators such as killer whales? We don’t know.</p> <p>We do know there are stranding hotspots. Macquarie Harbour is one. In 2020, it was the site of one of the worst-ever strandings, with up to 470 pilot whales stranded. Authorities were able to save 94, drawing on trained <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/sep/25/death-at-hells-gates-rescuers-witness-tragic-end-for-hundreds-of-pilot-whales-on-australian-coast">rescue experts</a>.</p> <p>We will need more research to find out why they do this. What we do know suggests navigational problems play a role.</p> <p>That’s because we can divide whales and dolphins into two types: toothed and toothless. Whales and dolphins with teeth – such as pilot whales – appear to beach a lot more. These animals use echolocation (biological sonar) to find prey with high-pitched clicks bouncing off objects. But toothless baleen whales like humpbacks (there are no dolphins with baleen) don’t use this technique. They use low-frequency sounds, but to communicate, not hunt.</p> <p>So – it is possible to save beached whales and dolphins. But it’s not as easy as towing them straight back to sea, alas.</p> <p><em>The Conversation thanks 10-year-old reader Grace Thornton from Canberra for suggesting the question that gave rise to this article.</em><!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210544/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/vanessa-pirotta-873986">Vanessa Pirotta</a>, Postdoctoral Researcher and Wildlife Scientist, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/macquarie-university-1174">Macquarie University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty </em><em>Images </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-cant-we-just-tow-stranded-whales-and-dolphins-back-out-to-sea-210544">original article</a>.</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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Gratitude amplified: Unlocking the key to happiness and deep connections

<p>In today's fast-paced world, filled with negative news, challenging experiences, and personal losses, finding joy and gratitude can often be a difficult task.</p> <p>As we naturally tend to focus on the negative aspects of life, it becomes essential to pause and cultivate gratitude, which can have a profound impact on our lives and the lives of those around us.</p> <p><strong>What is gratitude? </strong></p> <p>Gratitude involves showing appreciation for the things in life that are important to you, and taking a moment to notice and acknowledge these moments have proven benefits of lifting mood and helping you feel more positive throughout the day. Have you ever stopped to notice that there is something to be grateful for every day if we just take stock? It could be a person who kindly let you merge into traffic, a refreshing breeze on a scorching day, a beautiful rainbow after a heavy downpour, or a thoughtful call or text from a friend. </p> <p>Gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness. Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships. We also know that Gratitude begets gratitude, meaning that any kind act is likely to bring kindness back, in spades! </p> <p><strong>Practice Gratitude – Write down 3 things per day</strong></p> <p><a href="https://theresilienceproject.com.au/">The Resilience Project</a> changed my life by introducing a simple practice: at the end of each day, we take five minutes to write down three things we are grateful for that happened that day. It could be as simple as a walk in the sun, a phone call from a friend, a stroll with your dog, or even a comforting cup of tea. </p> <p>Engaging in this exercise helps you articulate your gratitude and realise the abundance of things to be grateful for in our everyday lives.</p> <p>I personally experienced the transformative power of gratitude during the two years of COVID lockdown in Victoria while working full-time and home schooling my two boys, aged 8 and 10. Our family embraced this practice each night, which not only changed our outlook on life but also sparked positive conversations during dinner.</p> <p>Surprisingly, it was often the simplest things we were all grateful for, like homemade meals or cherished moments of togetherness.</p> <p>I distinctly remember preparing a hot meal and passing it over our neighbour's fence when their family was unwell with COVID. To our surprise, a few weeks later, they reciprocated with a homecooked meal. In those challenging times, a sense of community became such a source of positivity, and we were immensely grateful for the love that went into that dinner.</p> <p>So why not take the time to stop and smell the roses and practice gratitude? Who knows, over time, you may start to notice your stress levels decreasing, your relationships improving, and be blessed with a strengthened sense of community.</p> <p><strong><em>Melissa Cutajar is <a href="https://www.connectedwomen.net/">Connected Women</a>’s Member Experience and Partnerships Manager. With a deep interest in health and wellness, Melissa is a source of positivity and creativity to the Connected Women team.</em></strong></p> <p><strong><em><a href="http://connectedwomen.net/">Connected Women</a> provides a community for women over 50 to connect with each other and build meaningful friendships. With a rapidly growing communities in Perth, Sydney, Wollongong, and Melbourne, Connected Women provides a safe and welcoming space for women to come together and share experiences. To learn more about the organisation and how you can get involved, visit connectedwomen.net.</em></strong></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

Relationships

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Movies that received zero stars

<p>There are good movies, so-so movies and bad movies. Is there anything worse, though, than a bad movie? Yes, there is. And I have seen my share.</p> <p>For decades, <em>Newsday </em>has used a four-star rating system for its film reviews. When I became the paper's movie critic in 2008, I had to figure out how to approach this system. Obviously, it's rare to see a four-star movie – even if it's not <em>Citizen Kane</em>, it has to be something truly outstanding.</p> <p>Three stars signals a wholehearted recommendation, though not exactly a masterpiece. Many movies fall into the two-and-a-half-star range: They're just meh. Tougher to call is the one-star or half-star movie – how do you decide between a D grade and a D-minus?</p> <p>Then there's the nuclear option: zero stars. What makes a movie so awful that it deserves zero stars? Like the four-star movie, this is a rare breed.</p> <p>This is a movie whose redeeming qualities are either infinitesimal or non-existent. It's a movie that fails so spectacularly it doesn't get credit for decent lighting or being in focus. A zero-star movie doesn't even get credit for existing.</p> <p>Every zero-star movie is unique in its own way, but over the years I've noticed that the worst of the worst tend to fall into a few different categories.</p> <p>Here are four examples.</p> <p><strong>Vanity projects</strong></p> <p>It's easy to poke fun at A-list stars and their outsize egos, but they often bring it upon themselves. Remember when John Travolta thought that <em>Battlefield Earth</em> would turn us all into Scientologists? Or when Mariah Carey played a version of herself in <em>Glitter</em>? Remember almost every movie Madonna ever made?</p> <p>For sheer self-centredness, though, nothing beats last year's <em>By the Sea</em>, written and directed by Angelina Jolie-Pitt and starring herself and her husband, Brad. (They produced it as well.) They play an American writer and his wife who stay in a beachside French hotel during the 1970s.</p> <p>He's depressed, she's depressed, they never have sex. With little dialogue and even less action, the movie mostly features the two stars standing around in chic outfits, smoking cigarettes and gazing with despair upon million-dollar views of the coast.</p> <p>Kinder critics praised the cinematography and scenery, but I couldn't find a reason to give this extended Chanel No. 5 commercial even a half-star. I figured the two actors got enough gratification just admiring themselves on screen for two hours.</p> <p><strong>Insults to intelligence</strong></p> <p>Filmmakers often assume their audiences will swallow just about anything. In the sci-fi failure <em>Transcendence</em>, Johnny Depp uploaded his consciousness into the cloud – a literal one, in the sky. (I gave that movie a half-star for sheer nuttiness.)</p> <p>In the zero-star fantasy<em> Jupiter Ascending</em>, the Wachowskis told the story of a housemaid (Mila Kunis) who sells her eggs to buy a telescope but discovers she's a princess. These movies took years to make, yet we spotted their idiocy within minutes.</p> <p>Then there's <em>Aloha</em>, Cameron Crowe's zero-star comedy-drama from 2015.</p> <p>Among its many terrible ideas were casting Emma Stone as a native Hawaiian (as if nobody would notice?), hoping we'd swoon when Bradley Cooper says cheesy things like "Would you stop getting more beautiful?" and creating a baffling climax in which an orbiting space object is destroyed by rock music.</p> <p>Filmmakers tend to be smart people, but moviegoers are no dopes, either.</p> <p><em>Aloha </em>made just US$26.3 million on its US$37 million budget, one of the year's major flops.</p> <p><strong>Lapses in taste</strong></p> <p>Taste is subjective, of course, but some movies cross a line just to cross it. Adam Sandler's zero-star comedy <em>That's My Boy </em>(2012), whose plot hinged on statutory rape and incest, marked a new low – until Peter Farrelly reset the bar with<em> Movie 43</em>.</p> <p>An anthology comedy spearheaded by Farrelly with several directors and writers, <em>Movie 43</em> (2013) rounds up more than a dozen A-list stars in an orgy of nastiness and vulgarity.</p> <p>Among the more hideous highlights are Chris Pratt and his real-life wife, Anna Faris, as lovers with a scatological fetish; Richard Gere as the CEO of a product that hacks off its customers' penises; and Chloe Grace Moretz as a teenager getting her period.</p> <p>"Once you see it, you can't unsee it," the trailers promised.</p> <p>As for the cast, they probably wish they could un-be in it.</p> <p><strong>Sheer ineptitude</strong></p> <p>Finally, some movies are so badly made that they barely qualify as movies. <em>Left Behind</em>, for instance, a faith-based rapture-fantasy starring Nicolas Cage, was so sloppy and disorganised that it literally couldn't keep track of night and day.</p> <p>At least that film was made by relative amateurs. <em>The Last Airbender</em> (2010), a fantasy-adventure based on the Nickelodeon series, was directed by M Night Shyamalan, the maestro who gave us <em>The Sixth Sense</em>. Here, Shyamalan completely loses his ability to coherently tell the story of Aang (Noah Ringer), a boy with mystical powers trying to unite four tribes. The dialogue is so crammed with fictional exposition that the actors sound like they're reading a Pokemon manual, while the choppy editing seemed almost random.</p> <p>Not even the special effects deserved a half-star: The postproduction 3-D made the whole movie look as flat as a View-Master slide. With its US$150 million budget, <em>The Last Airbender</em> was an inexcusable, zero-star disaster.</p> <p>As a last note, a truly terrible movie is just as exceptional as a truly great one, and in some ways just as fascinating. It's my job, though, to sit through them so you don't have to.</p> <p>You're welcome.</p> <p><strong>THE WORST OF THE WORST</strong></p> <p><strong>10. <em>All About Steve</em> (2009)</strong></p> <p>There's a reason you've never heard of this romantic comedy starring A-listers Sandra Bullock and Bradley Cooper: It's because she plays an irritating crossword fanatic and he plays an uninteresting person. In terms of on-screen chemistry, they're the equivalent of bleach and ammonia.</p> <p><strong>9. <em>Moms' Night Out</em> (2014)</strong></p> <p>This botched comedy (starring Trace Adkins and Patricia Heaton) stands out for many things, but one is a technical reason: The filmmakers somehow managed to capture the weirdest, ugliest facial expression on nearly every actor in nearly every scene. It's like a 90-minute flip-book of ruined family photos.</p> <p><strong>8. <em>Jem and The Holograms</em> (2015)</strong></p> <p>Aubrey Peeples plays an aspiring singer who is shocked – shocked! – to discover that global stardom requires personal and artistic sacrifice. File this movie's profound message under Things a 9-Year-Old Could Have Told You.</p> <p><strong>7. <em>Remember Me</em> (2010)</strong></p> <p>In this saccharine yet creepy romance, Robert Pattinson plays a young, moody guy – no stretch there – who sleeps with a woman to get revenge on her father. Aww, how cute! The plot also hinges on the World Trade Centre attacks. Double cute!</p> <p><strong>6. <em>Jupiter Ascending</em> (2015)</strong></p> <p>This sci-fi fantasy from the Wachowskis (The Matrix) defies description, but here's an attempt: A humble house-cleaner (Mila Kunis) discovers she's a galactic princess thanks to a part-wolf warrior (Channing Tatum). It's a statistical marvel whose 127 minutes include not a single good idea.</p> <p><strong>5. <em>Rock The Kasbah</em> (2015)</strong></p> <p>A washed-up rock manager (Bill Murray) decides to make a pop star out of an Afghan singer (Leem Lubany). Magically, she reverses centuries of religious and cultural stigmas by performing the songs of Cat Stevens, now known as Yusuf Islam. Possibly the most misguided comedy ever made.</p> <p><strong>4. <em>Aloha </em>(2015)</strong></p> <p>Cameron Crowe's cloying romance stars Bradley Cooper as an ex-military man trying to bed a happily married woman (gross!) while flirting with a native Hawaiian (played by Emma Stone?) and trying to stop an outer-space missile (say what?). The movie is so wide of the mark that you can't even tell where it was aiming.</p> <p><strong>3. <em>Movie 43</em> (2013)</strong></p> <p>Richard Gere, Halle Berry, Kate Winslet, Hugh Jackman and many other talented people run through the most repulsive, unimaginative and unfunny skits ever filmed. The whole thing almost literally stinks. <em>Movie 43</em> currently holds a difficult-to-attain 4 per cent rating on RottenTomatoes.com.</p> <p><strong>2. <em>The Last Airbender</em> (2010)</strong></p> <p>M Night Shyamalan's fantasy-adventure is so disjointed and disorganised that you might think the reels got mixed up – possibly with a whole other movie. You could watch it 10 times and still not understand a thing, though by then you'd have gone permanently insane.</p> <p><strong>1. <em>By The Sea</em> (2015)</strong></p> <p>Think back to the most pretentious European art-film you've ever had to endure. Now imagine Angelina Jolie making that movie, and you've got <em>By the Sea</em>, starring herself and Brad Pitt as depressed Americans who visit France and smoke a lot. Remember how Jean-Paul Sartre said hell is other people? That's because he hadn't seen this movie.</p> <p><em>Written by Rafer Guzman. First appeared on <a href="http://Stuff.co.nz" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Stuff.co.nz</span></strong></a>.</em></p> <p><em>Images: Columbia Pictures</em></p>

Movies

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Around the world three-year cruise in crisis

<p dir="ltr">When Life at Sea Cruises announced their record-breaking <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/travel/cruising/world-first-three-year-cruise-revealed">three-year voyage</a> around the world, eager travellers raced to book their cabins onboard. </p> <p dir="ltr">Marketed as the "world's first – and only three year cruise", demand for rooms was “unprecedented”, with some travel enthusiasts moving out of their homes and selling their possessions in preparation for the trip of a lifetime. </p> <p dir="ltr">Despite the demand for a spot on board the MV Gemini, the future of the voyage is now in jeopardy, with Life at Sea Cruises, a subsidiary of Miray Cruises, being inundated with demands for refunds just months after the bookings opened. </p> <p dir="ltr">The entire team at Life at Sea Cruises, which was set up specifically for the record-breaking project, has parted ways with Miray Cruises after an apparent breakdown in communication over the suitability of the ship.</p> <p dir="ltr">Mike Petterson, the now former managing director for <a href="https://www.lifeatseacruises.com/">Life at Sea Cruises</a> confirmed to <em><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/three-year-cruise-crisis/index.html">CNN Travel</a></em> on Wednesday that he and the rest of the founding team have "stepped away" from the project.</p> <p dir="ltr">Despite the team breakdown, Kendra Holmes, director of business development and commercial operations at Miray International, insisted that the voyage will still go ahead. </p> <p dir="ltr">"This cruise is not cancelled," Holmes said. "We are moving ahead. It is departing November 1st as planned. So I just want to make sure to clear that up right now. We are not cancelling this."</p> <p dir="ltr">However, it's still unclear whether the voyage will go ahead on board MV Gemini, or a different ship.</p> <p dir="ltr">"Currently the name of the ship is Gemini," Holmes added, before explaining that she was not able to discuss a new ship at present.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I wish that we didn't have these kinds of situations," said Fuat G., hotel director at Miray Cruises. "We are moving forward. Whatever we have to do to finish that project. And [we will] go to a second, third, fourth and fifth ship. Whatever it is."</p> <p dir="ltr">A press release announcing the project back in March stated that the MV Gemini would be "overhauled" for the voyage.</p> <p dir="ltr">However, according to Irina Strembitsky, former director of sales and marketing of Life at Sea Cruises, the ship, which has capacity for up to 1,074 passengers, was deemed "unseaworthy" by an engineer, who also expressed doubt that it would be able to complete a three-year journey.</p> <p dir="ltr">Understandably, the news of the uncertainty that the trip will go ahead has caused major concern for passengers, with some demanding a refund.</p> <p dir="ltr">One traveller who voiced her concerns is retired teacher <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/travel/cruising/meet-the-woman-preparing-to-spend-three-years-at-sea">Sharon Lane</a>, who booked a ticket for the entire three-year journey and planned to sell most of her belongings before setting off. </p> <p dir="ltr">Lane says that regardless of how things turn out, she will not be going on the journey, which was due to visit 135 countries and seven continents.</p> <p dir="ltr">"Life at Sea says the trip is cancelled. Miray says it's still a go, but without the entire Life at Sea management team," she told <em>CNN</em>.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I don't really care who is right or wrong. I'm allergic to chaos. Going was a huge calculated risk to begin with. Now, it's far too risky for my liking."</p> <p dir="ltr">"It's very sad," she said. </p> <p dir="ltr">"I was all in. It will take me some time to undo what I have already set in place, but at least I'm not one of those who has already sold a house and all of my belongings. My heart aches for them."</p> <p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 12pt; margin-bottom: 15pt;"><em>Image credits: Life at Sea Cruises</em></p>

Cruising

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How to deep clean your kitchen bin

<p>Cleaning the kitchen bin is household chore that can be easily overlooked until a stench begins to creep into your home.</p> <p>To rid your bin of the odour, follow these deep cleaning steps so that you can have a fresh-smelling and clean kitchen bin.</p> <p><strong>1. Put on your rubber gloves</strong></p> <p>Cleaning a bin requires you to handle an object that has been full of food scraps and questionable liquids, it is best to wear some rubber gloves to protect you from the germs.</p> <p><strong>2. Empty the bin</strong></p> <p>Begin by emptying your bin and ensuring that there are no lingering food particles in the bottom. Your main objective is to remove any gunk that can be seen.</p> <p><strong>3. Wash the bin</strong></p> <p>If you have access to an outside area, take your bin outside and hose it down. If you can only clean your bin indoors, then you can do this in the bathtub. Once the bin has been rinsed, pat it down with paper towel.</p> <p><strong>4. Spray with disinfectant</strong></p> <p>Using a disinfectant cleaner of your preference, generously spray down the inside and outside of your bin. Also include the top and bottom of the bin as you spray.</p> <p><strong>5. Scrub the bin</strong></p> <p>Use a toilet brush or other long-handled nylon bristle brush to scrub your bin thoroughly. After you have finished scrubbing all over, let the disinfectant cleaner sit for five minutes.</p> <p><strong>6. Rinse and dry</strong></p> <p>After the five minutes has passed, rinse the can thoroughly. Depending on what you prefer, let the bin dry in the sun or dry it with a towel.</p> <p>Once you have deep cleaned your bin, maintain your hard work by wiping down the inside and outside of the bin with disinfectant spray every time you empty the trash can.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

Home & Garden

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Meet the woman preparing to spend three years at sea

<p dir="ltr">When Sharon Lane heard about a once in a lifetime trip offered by a cruising company for a three-year voyage around the world, she began dreaming of her life on board. </p> <p dir="ltr">The 75-year-old cruising fanatic, a retired teacher from California, is no stranger to all-or-nothing travel experiences. </p> <p dir="ltr">She has frequented Europe with her students, taught foreign languages, and in the 1990s, she up and left to spend two years in South Africa. </p> <p dir="ltr">While looking for her next adventure, Sharon discovered an incredible voyage with Life at Sea Cruises. </p> <p dir="ltr">The company is selling places on board the <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/travel/cruising/world-first-three-year-cruise-revealed">MV Gemini</a>, which sets sail from Istanbul on November 1st 2023 on an epic three-year global journey that will take in most of the planet's prime cruising destinations.</p> <p dir="ltr">The MV Gemini will stop at 375 ports over its three-year voyage, with 208 of these including overnight stays. The ship will stop everywhere from India to China to the Maldives to Australia, with some multi-night stopovers.</p> <p dir="ltr">A recent convert to the world of cruising as she has gotten older, Lane said one of her favourite sensations is the calming feeling of being adrift at sea. </p> <p dir="ltr">"I actually prefer the ocean days, when we're just sailing through or powering through the oceans, it just thrills me," Lane tells <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/cruise-ship-three-years-mv-gemini-passenger-perspective/index.html">CNN Travel</a>.</p> <p dir="ltr">After hearing about the voyage from a friend, Sharon immediately started her planning and budgeting. </p> <p dir="ltr">"By midnight that night, I had done enough research that I booked a room," she says.</p> <p dir="ltr">The cheapest rooms on the MV Gemini cost around $US30,000 ($45,000) per year, including a discount for solo travellers. </p> <p dir="ltr">Since booking her ticket, Lane is busy working out the details before her embankment date in November. </p> <p dir="ltr">She is selling most of her possessions, giving up her rental lease and preparing for a long stint at sea.</p> <p dir="ltr">"The logistics are crazy," says Lane. "It's a leap of faith, but I know there will be a place here when I get back. Or maybe I'll end up living in another country. I don't know, the sky's the limit."</p> <p dir="ltr">While she is getting rid of most of her belongings, she is determined to bring along a few family photos for the journey, particularly a favourite picture of her now-adult grandsons back when they were kids and she took them on a whale-watching trip.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I have that laminated and I'll take magnets and I'll stick it to my door for two reasons," says Lane. "One, I get to see their faces every time I go in, which is always fun, and the other reason is it makes it really easy to know which door is yours, because you've got your grandsons smiling back."</p> <p dir="ltr">Lane hopes her epic journey might inspire others to take a risk and push themselves out of their comfort zone, as she still regrets the years she spent in midlife putting off travelling and doesn’t want others to hold the same regrets. </p> <p dir="ltr">"I think I was always waiting for the perfect time to go when everything is right in life, when money is right, when appointments are right, when other people want to go," she says.</p> <p dir="ltr">"Don't stay home," she encourages. "Home may be where the heart is, home may be where you hang your hat – hang your hat, and then get on the boat, get on the plane, get in the car, go somewhere."</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image credits: CNN Travel </em></p>

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Natural wonders you must see before they disappear

<p>While we don’t mean to alarm anyone, you’ve likely heard the grim timelines: if global warming continues, the Great Barrier Reef will be bleached by 2030; glaciers in the Swiss Alps, on Mt. Kilimanjaro, and in Glacier National Park will disappear in under 40 years; and Arctic ice melt will send polar bears into extinction. It’s a sad state of affairs.</p> <p>So while we sit and hope for a miracle, make sure you travel and see any of the precious places on your bucket list before it’s too late.</p> <p>While you might be thinking that tourism will add stress to these already distressed areas, in actual fact it can also provide income, which in turn can help preserve these wonders. Here we look at our top seven areas – some that are lesser know than others – and all of which can be visited responsibly.</p> <p><strong>Belize barrier reef</strong></p> <p>One of the most diverse reef ecosystems in the world is home to whale sharks, rays, and manatees, as well as sturgeon, conch and spiny lobsters.</p> <p>The Danger: Sadly, like the Great Barrier Reef here in Australia, the Belize Barrier Reef leads a fragile existence. A section of the nearly 700-mile-long Mesoamerican Reef that reaches from Mexico to Honduras, the Belize reef suffered a severe bleaching in 1998, with a loss of 50 percent of its coral in many areas, including much of its distinctive staghorn coral. Since the bleaching, its decline has continued, due to global warming of the world’s seas, agricultural pollution, development, and increasing tourism, which has given rise to more coastal development and an invasion of cruise ships.</p> <p><strong>The Congo Basin</strong></p> <p>Tropical rainforests like the Congo Basin produce 40 per cent of the world’s oxygen and serve as a vital source of food, medicine and minerals.</p> <p>The Danger: At more than 1.3 million square miles, the Congo Basin has the world’s second-largest rainforest. According to the UN, up to two-thirds of the forest and its unique plants and wildlife could be lost by 2040 unless more effective measures are taken to protect it. Extending across six nations, 10 million acres of forest is degraded each year due to mining, illegal logging, farming, ranching and guerilla warfare. Roads cut by loggers and miners have also enabled poachers and bushmeat hunters to prey on endangered animals like mountain gorillas, forest elephants, bonobos and okapis. As the forest shrinks, less carbon dioxide is absorbed, and rain decreases, adding to climate change.</p> <p><strong>The Dead Sea</strong></p> <p>It’s the lowermost spot on earth (1,312 feet below sea level to be exact), has 10 times more saline than seawater (meaning that you would float like a cork does in water), and is believed to contain therapeutic minerals.</p> <p>The Danger: In the last 40 years, the Dead Sea has shrunk by a third and sunk 80 feet, stranding formerly seaside resorts and restaurants nearly a mile from shore. The Jordan River is the lake’s sole source, and as surrounding countries increasingly tap its waters, little reaches the Dead Sea, which could disappear within 50 years. Further pressure is put on the sea by the cosmetic companies and potash producers who drain it for minerals.</p> <p><strong>The Everglades</strong></p> <p>This 2.5 million–acre wetland in Florida encompasses cypress swamps, mangroves, sawgrass and pine savannahs. It's the only place in the world where crocodiles and alligators share territory.</p> <p>The Danger: A host of dangers are putting this delicate wetland at risk: pollution from farms, invasive species, and encroaching development. As a result, The Everglades is now half the size it was in 1900. Worse still, this is the sole habitat of the Florida panther, and there are less than 100 of the creatures left in the wild.</p> <p><strong>Madagascar</strong></p> <p>More than 80 percent of Madagascar’s flora and fauna are found nowhere else on Earth, thanks to millions of years of isolation in the Indian Ocean off of Africa.</p> <p>The Danger: If nothing is done to save the world’s fourth-largest island, its forests will be gone in 35 years (once 120,000 square miles, they're now down to 20,000), and their unique inhabitants along with them. Forest ecosystems are being destroyed by logging, burning for subsistence farms, and poaching.</p> <p><strong>The Maldives</strong></p> <p>The nation is rich in coral reefs and endangered fish — such as the giant Napoleon wrasse, leopard shark and some 250 manta rays (most with wingspans of 10 feet).</p> <p>The Danger: If global warming continues to melt the ice caps and raise sea levels, scientists don’t hold much hope for the Maldives. Its 1,190 small islands and atolls (200 of which are inhabited) scattered across the Indian Ocean rise a mere eight-feet above sea level. In 2008, the President of the Maldives announced the government would start buying land in other countries, including India, for future homes for citizens displaced by rising waters. In 2009, he held a cabinet meeting underwater to stress the islands' vulnerability.</p> <p><strong>The Poles</strong></p> <p>The natural phenomena here are unique and inspiring: towering icebergs, Aurora Borealis, and majestic animals (penguins, polar bears, whales).</p> <p>The Danger: The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, the world’s largest non-profit ocean research group, has predicted that 80 per cent of the emperor penguin population of Antarctica will be lost, and the rest in danger of extinction, if global warming continues. As sea ice disappears at the poles, so do entire ecosystems: the phytoplankton that grows under ice sheets feeds zooplankton and small crustaceans like krill, which are on the food chain for fish, seals, whales, polar bears and penguins. Studies predict that with continued warming, within 20 to 40 years, no ice will form in Antarctica.</p> <p><em>Images: Getty</em></p>

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“That’s why we call him Superman”: Sea World crash survivor speaks

<div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>The little boy who nearly lost his life in the tragic Sea World helicopter crash has revealed an update on his journey to recovery two months after the incident occurred.</p> <p>Nicky Tadros shared the news after months in hospital, with doctors initially unsure if the 10-year-old would make it out alive.</p> <p>“My kidneys have woken up and I’m no more on a fluid restriction,” he said on Nine’s A Current Affair.</p> <p>“And my liver levels have gotten better and all my blood test results have come back really good.”</p> <p>Nicky was on one of the helicopters that collided mid-air at Sea World on the Gold Coast.</p> <p>His mother, Vanessa Tadros, was killed alongside British tourists Ron and Diane Hughes and Sea World Helicopters chief pilot Ash Jenkinson. The other helicopter managed to land on a sandbank.</p> <p>Nicky’s father, Simon Tadros, said he was incredibly proud of his “strong willed” son’s recovery effort.</p> <p>“The bravery he’s showing and he’s just pushing through every kind of hardship,” Mr Tadros said.</p> <p>“That’s why we call him Superman, because everything you put in front of him, he just pushes it out on the way.”</p> <p>Despite the effort to save Nicky’s life, doctors were unable to save his right leg, with the 10-year-old having to undergo a five-and-a-half-hour operation to amputate.</p> <p>“I was nervous at the beginning because I thought they get a chainsaw and chop it off from Bunnings Warehouse,” he said.</p> <p>Although the boy had endured countless surgeries with a long road to recovery ahead, he was grateful for the support he received.</p> <p>“I thank [Australia] for everything because I know that they’re always praying for me and caring for me and that’s the same with dad,” he said.</p> <p>“[Dad]’s always caring for me, since day one he’s never left my side no matter what.</p> <p>“When I’m sad when I’m happy when I’m angry, he’s there for me.”</p> <p>Mr Tadros has celebrated each milestone as his son works toward leaving hospital and returning to his normal life.</p> <p>Nicky also shared what he was most looking forward to once he leaves hospital.</p> <p><em>Image credit: A Current Affair</em></p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div>

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