BTW - Some cruisers I like still post there who haven't made it over here (namely, DocDesdin, especially since we socialized on the Mariner and have exchanged a few emails since we got back), so I occasionally look to see what's up.

For starters, I took the time to submit a review of the Mariner March 9th (an abbreviated version, mind you) and have yet to hear from them or see it posted.

Today, however, I was really dissapointed by a troll on that board. Someone (a new poster, with about 17) innocently asked how she could find Ngaire, because she wanted to refer her parents to her website, she thought the website was really nicely laid out and provided a lot of information. MarnaLou was kind enough to provide the link. NOTHING REGARDING PRICING WAS EVER MENTIONED ON EITHER POST. This troll (who has only 2 posts) sarcastically said that Ngaire's website may be easy to read, but that Ngaire didn't have the best pricing and that Radisson may not be the best choice for this person's parents, the claim was made that their TA could beat Ngaire.

I mean, seriously, who asked this person for their opinion? I know there are people who don't like Radisson, fine, we are all entitled to our opinions. It almost sounded like another TA with some sour grapes.

BTW, I did shop the Nov. 9 cruise around very extensively (went back to the outfit we used for March 9th and some others) and Ngaire DID have the best pricing overall (and she knew this before I booked, because I told her, and she generously replied that if someone had a better price, she would appreciate that...now that my friends, is pretty classy). The final 3 (of which Ngaire was a part of and so was the outfit we used for March 9th) all were within $100 of each other and she WAS the best.

I think some other outfits don't like the idea of Ngaire's transparency on the website, where she clearly posts all the fares (for both new to RSSC and Socitey Members) for each category, and is clear about all the charges. Most of those other sites require a big song and dance to get some sort of info out of them.

More surprisingly, I think the troll must be one of those "CC sponsored" agencies, because the thread is there, and as I understand the "new rules" you can't even suggest a TA to another boardie...true or not???

Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends ~~M. Angelou~~