We began cruising shortly after the pandemic mandates were lifted. Our first trip back was on a cruise ship that held 6,000 passengers. There were 650 onboard passengers. We were two of those passengers. We rattled around in all that luxury like marbles in a glass bowl. We met many fellow travelers. We laughed a lot, had a ton of fun and hated it when the cruise ended.
Royal Caribbean gave us a bracelet to wear. That was our welcoming gift. It said “Royal Caribbean Comeback.” 
And they had come back from something awful. An industry devastated by a pandemic, ships sitting out at sea with crew members stranded for months and months away from their families, the stock market crash on their stocks, maintaining the ships. So many problems Royal Caribbean overcame.
We all wore our bracelets. We were all proud of our bracelets.
Because of the limited number of passengers, the crew members took extra special care of us, as they always do. We wore masks. We wore gloves. We used the hand wipes.
We did not touch anything, like the railing of the stairs, without some protection between our hand and the rail, usually gloves.
Royal Caribbean instituted new safety factors for the safest cruising possible. There were Purell stands everywhere so you could pump a squirt in your hand without touching anything, just getting the Purell into your hand.
When going to dine, either in Main Dining or at the Windjammer and most other restaurants, we had new handwashing stations.
Sinks with water coming out of them where you had to “washy washy” before “yummy yummy.” These wash stations were similar to what you would see in a lady’s room or a men’s room. Below is a photo of two of the wash stations for use before entering an eatery. 
People do things with their hands without thinking, put them in strange places. As a precaution, after we have filled our plates, we use a Wet One to clean the sides of a glass or the handle of a cup someone else has touched. We clean the silverware (because someone had touched it before putting it in that linen napkin). In other words, we clean everything that we are going to use that someone else has touched.
The restrooms have automatic doors. You do not need to touch anything when entering or exiting. You just wave your hand in front of the black button.
Did we ever get ill? Yes. But it was not from any cruise that we took. We became ill from a lady at our local Publix Supermarket. Our cases were not severe, but they were not nice, and I don’t ever want to have it again.
Before each cruise you are required to answer questions on your health, a ‘wellness check.’ Fill it out and be honest. You don’t want to be ill away from home, and you do not want to give your illness to someone else.
Norovirus. An awful thing. Up one way and down the other way. At the same time. I’ve read that the best way to prevent it is by hand washing. Many of the sanitizers cannot stop it. Breathe in through your nose and out through your nose when in a confined space with others, like an elevator. Your nose filters out the bad. Norovirus can spread through the air, but it is mostly transferred by touch. Use your wipes, if you wish.
Have fun cruising. Dress up, dress down. Use wipes, don’t use wipes. Wear masks, don’t wear masks. We are all different. We are all unique. What works for us might not work for you. (We no longer wear masks, unless we are around someone who we can hear coughing in an ill way; thus, we always have a mask on our bodies. Just in case.)
Thanks for reading.
Trish
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