Sailing on the rivers of Europe in the Summer brings cruise travelers up close to iconic destinations, many of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Often stopping in the city center of major Euro destinations and small towns along the way, Summer is a great time of the year to just walk off the ship. Ashore we find festivals and events both ongoing and seasonal that can make for great travel memories. Sailing on the Rhine River and River Danube, river cruise travelers commonly stop at these uncommon destinations along the way.
Bamberg, Germany
A popular stop on sailings between Budapest and Amsterdam, Bamberg is typical of small German towns by the river. Follow the aroma of grilled sausages to the city center where beer gardens are plentiful.
Budapest, Hungary
Often a first stop on Euro river cruise itineraries, those flying in from North America tend to spend the day sleeping. Instead, go a day early, rest then tour the city on a hop on, hop off bus or just a walking tour of the well-mapped area. In the Summer, flowers in bloom alone are worth a trip.
Wertheim, Germany
A fairytale city standing at the confluence of the Rivers Main and Tauber, Wertheim is known for wine, castles and a medieval city center that brings a year-round Renaissance festival-like vibe, all year.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
By bus, canal boat or simply walking from where cruise ships dock to the city center is a cultural experience like no other in Amsterdam. From the historic 17[SUP]th[/SUP] century canal district to the famous red light district, Amsterdam has coffee shops, nightclubs, shopping and culinary options that are simply enchanting in the summer.
Koblenz, Germany
Koblenz is a 2,000 year-old city that serves as a backdrop for a variety of summertime activities. A summer festival in July is a fun for all place to visit but just lingering in the area as so many locals do can make for a great summer travel memory.
A chef aboard the Carnival Magic completes a pasta dish in the Cucina del Capitano restaurant offering family-style Italian dining. Photo by Andy Newman/Carnival Cruise Lines
Not that it ever strayed very far, cuisine has regained its position as a top attraction for travelers choosing a cruise vacation. Or so it would seem from all the attention culinary topics are receiving lately. Several recent announcements by a variety of cruise lines indicate the topic of food is still a big selling point.
Why Now? Why Food?
Maybe it’s because new ship rollout has slowed down a bit. The process of building and launching a new ship has always been good for promoting a cruise line in general and everything new they do specifically. Perhaps ships enable the current culinary push with more possibilities via new dining venues and a move away from a one-kitchen-produces-all mentality.
Certainly, that the cruise industry has turned a corner from being known as the world of buffets to a place where culinary delights are created is a contributing factor. Moving beyond having the ability to feed thousands around the clock, no small task in and of itself, cruise lines have figured out how to decentralize production. Rather than telling cruise travelers what they have an appetite for, cruise lines are listening.
While unlimited grazing is still possible, passengers are finding smaller, more manageable portions. Sure, they can order a dozen of them, but the force-feeding of the past is out, opening the door for appropriate choices for each individual.
A New Spin On An Old Idea
A case in point, Princess Cruises recently announced a partnership with a master chocolatier to produce Chocolate Journeys, a new onboard “experience”. Far more than a chocolate fondue fountain at a buffet, the Chocolate Journeys event has chocolate authority Norman Love (Godiva Chocolates) designing custom-crafted desserts as well as chocolate and wine pairings.
Perfectly timed, the Princess Chocolates Journeys experience will offer less-guilt small bites, a cruise traveler favorite-sized portion. Princess itself has had great success in the ‘feed around the clock, just not so much at once’ craze with their centrally located International Café in the atrium area of their ships. Small chocolate bites fit right in here.
Silver Muse Spaccanapoli, Pizzeria, Pizza, The Grill, Pool Deck, Pool Grill
The New Alternative
Not all that long ago, big ship cruise lines started adding alternative dining venues; perhaps a steakhouse to supplement the main dining room experience. That idea quickly blossomed into multiple dining venues on most ships, some included in the price, others for a nominal extra charge. Regardless of the number of options or their cost: cruise passengers loved them.
The result is an environment turning towards elimination of the main dining room experience, once seen as the most efficient, most profitable way to feed thousands, three times a day.
On The Horizon
Ingraining multiple dining options into standard fare, Royal Caribbean International’s Quantum class ships won’t have the main dining rooms per se. Instead, passengers will choose between a number of venues each night.
Making a further attempt to include formerly alternative dining as part of the experience, Norwegian Cruise Lines recently announced an all-inclusive option. Now included, complimentary access to one of the line’s specialty restaurants every night of the cruise as part of the deal. Also known as Norwegian’s Ultimate Dining Package, its just one part of their new All-Inclusive package that claims to offer over $2,400 in value.
If all of the above does not convince us that culinary efforts will continue to be a big part of the cruise experience, special sailings focused on food and wine certainly should.
Celebrity chefs taking to sea today, in person, to share their knowledge and love of food go far beyond the celebrity chef endorsement of yesteryear; when lending their name to a menu did the trick.
Celebrity Cruises’ Modern ‘Luxury focus’ has brought upscale dining, healthy cuisine and unique culinary concepts to sea in a way unmatched by other cruise lines. Now, Celebrity is launching four cruises featuring former “Top Chef” contestants, giving passengers the opportunity to participate in complimentary cooking demonstrations, the show’s famous, interactive Quickfire Challenges and other activities.
On board Seabourn Sojourn for an 11-day “Best of the Riviera Food & Wine Cruise” cruise travelers will visit some of Europe’s most appealing food and wine regions, sailing October 30, 2014 from Monte Carlo, through the French and Italian Rivieras to Rome. Celebrity Guest Chefs from the region will be along on the voyage as well as Seabourn’s award-winning team of corporate executive chefs and wine experts.
It seems that when we engage a travel service provider, be they a giant cruise line or a taxi driver, the experience can go one of three ways.
They did what they said they would do
They fell short of doing what they said they would do
They exceeded what they said they would do
Handling Bad News
It is not good when a travel service provider falls short of the expectation set, but acceptable ways to react are predictable. Reasonable travelers might simply tag that experience as “not for them” and move along. Others will want the wrong to be made right, at the time.
Handling Good News
When they do what they told us they would do, meeting our expectations, all is well. Thank you Mr. Travel Service Provider. Have a nice day. Also predictable.
Handling The Extraordinary
Where the real problems happen is when travel service providers far exceed our expectations and we make that experience the new standard by which all others are measured. This is where our reaction as travelers can get us into serious trouble.
Say we just happen to have a very personable cabin steward who anticipates our every wish. By the end of the sailing we want to adopt him or her…and their family back home in the Philippines that we came to know about over the course of the sailing.
The Big Mistake We Make
From the time we experience ‘the best-ever’ service, we are officially “spoiled”. On future voyages, other cabin stewards may perform the function of their jobs well, but will not live up to the one stellar experience that we allowed to define our expectations. We see that in all areas of travel service operations too.
The personality of a waiter in an alternative-dining venue encourages us to eat there multiple times. Yes, the foundation of a dining experience (the food) was good too. But the main reason we came back was because of the personable waiter. And why not? Who doesn’t like to be recognized and appreciated?
The cruise ship Captain that chooses to be out and among passengers, shaking hands and chatting frequently, sticks in our head. Other Captains on other ships might be just as personable, but we just happened to be at a different part of the giant ship when he was making is rounds. It happens.
Great Expectations For All
The key to not allowing one stellar experience to be our new standard is to enjoy it thoroughly, while it happens, then move along. Remember it when recalling tales of the voyage, but don’t let it drag down future experiences with similar potential.
It is conceivable that each cruise, each dining experience, each tour or taxi ride has the hidden potential to be a stellar experience if we leave that door open. It is within the realm of possibility for us to turn an ordinary experience into an extraordinary one, perhaps in a totally unanticipated way, with our heads in the right place.
Try it yourself and see
Choose to believe the best is about to happen and it often will. Look for the unique elements of any given travel situation and explore those. If one part of a travel plan falls apart, don’t let it spoil what might otherwise be a wonderful experience.
That can be hard to do when luggage is lost, flights delayed or unanticipated motion discomfort sets in. Still, there are ways around parts of travel that fall far below expectations.
After luggage being lost, I learned how to travel with only clothing and gear I could carry with me. That was the takeaway, the end result, after the trip was over. During travel, sailing with Star Clippers on the tall sailing ship Royal Clipper with my daughter, it was a tough situation. After seeing similar situations ruin the travel of others, I had to say out loud, several times: “We can’t let this ruin the cruise.” And we didn’t.
Sometimes it takes saying it out loud, verbalizing what direction you need to head with your travel experience. Simply put: people who are really good at travel take an active role in defining it, setting their own great expectations.
A dozen years or so ago, North Americans fell in love with cruise travel, fueling the biggest surge in cruise line growth ever. What was once a travel option for “the newly wed or nearly dead”, became the vacation of choice for millions. More, bigger ships were built to satisfy the healthy demand. Initially selling us on the idea of sailing in general, cruise lines diversified and defined their individual offerings as unique, as they continue to do today. Over time, much has changed with what we experience on cruise vacations, like it or not.
Might as well get this one out of the way right up front. Reflecting the view of our society on this topic and others, cruise lines have all but banned smoking on board. Smokers have been confined to much smaller areas to kill themselves in as opposed to an entire side of the ship on open decks, multiple interior spaces, staterooms and balconies. As a former smoker, this was a tough one to adjust to as I associated cruising with smoking.
Buffets Are Out, Dining Experiences Are In
The standard offering of Early or Late seating in cruise line dining rooms of yesteryear has been expanded on almost all cruise lines to include an open seating option, at the very least. Multiple alternative dining venues grace the decks of many ships, often for an additional fee. Royal Caribbean’s new Quantum-class ships will not have a main dining room at all, reflecting a desire for choice on the part of cruise passengers.
Staying Connected Easier, More Efficient
Not all that long ago, one of the best parts of sailing (for some) was turning on a cell phone while cruising and seeing “NO SIGNAL” as the ship sailed away. This was a time of Internet Cafes used to check email because wireless systems at sea did not exist yet. It was a time when cruise lines offered a $99 per week unlimited use package but not all that many passengers were interested. Today we are on the verge of enjoying high-speed land-like access on ships that boast a snappy wireless system that includes free ship-sponsored content.
Travel Agents Are Back And Better Than Ever
Initially only something a savvy traveler would book through a travel agent, the Internet brought the ability to do that for ourselves. Many cruise travelers embraced that ability and never looked back. Others tried booking on their own, were wise enough to know they could not do it as well as a professional in the business and came back to travel agents; those that were left in business. What they found were travel professionals specializing in different niches of travel, rather than a one size fits booking option.
You can enjoy shows, music and dancing aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise.
Not Your Mother’s Entertainment
Considered one of the foundation qualities of a cruise vacations, entertainment too has changes dramatically over the years. The 70’s Vegas-style review was replaced with unique and engaging entertainment options. Improved technology allowed more capability at sea, bringing Broadway musicals, audience-participation shows, concerts at sea, branded entertainment venues and more. If you swore off entertainment at sea years ago as boring, take another look: entertainment options at sea are worthy of your time.
Oh And Guess What: The Ship Is Not The Destination
A decade ago, think “cruise” and thoughts of a lovely Caribbean sailing came to mind. Then, we did not care all that much where the ship sailed, just that it did. The ship itself was a very big part of the travel experience and cruise lines designed itineraries to maximize that fact. ‘Days at sea’ while seen as necessary evils by some, heaven by others, were clearly in favor of the cruise line. Keeping us on board generated more revenue and cruise lines liked that. Bigger ships were built with more onboard features to seal the deal. Then we got bored. Today, cruise lines are focusing on off-ship elements of the experience as never before, capitalizing on the amazing places they visit.
At the end of the day, cruise lines are listening to passengers, a variety of ways. The paper survey we were asked to turn in at the end of the voyage is being replaced by random electronic surveys sent via email. But even that effort has been updated with cruise lines looking to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other online social platforms to find out what we like, don’t like and dream about for the future. Want to have a say in what we experience at sea? Engage a cruise line socially and tell them what you want. They’ll listen; like it or not.
Like car dealers and grocery stores, it seems there is always a ‘sale’ going on at most major cruise line, and for good reason: there is. Price continues to be a driving reason to book your favorite cruise line now rather than later. While comparing line to line has become more difficult in recent years as cruise lines continue to differentiate themselves from one another, we still do; at least when it comes to price. Looking beyond the front-page website banner ads, television commercials and direct mail offers though, there are some other cruise line discounts available that you might not know about.
Resident Discounts
Many major cruise lines target specific states or geographic regions for a couple reasons. In far in advance of sailing, cruise lines analyze where passengers who have booked so far on any given sailing are located, targeting areas where few are coming from for a discount to encourage booking. Close to sailing, offering a discount to Florida residents for sailings that depart from Florida ports can help fill up ships with passengers who find it easier to sail because they can drive, rather than fly, to the embarkation port.
Discounts For Kids
Like other discounts, this one comes and goes too, in a variety of forms. Look for family-friendly discounts at times when families don’t normally sail like the Fall and Winter. When kids are normally in school, prices for third or fourth guests in a stateroom are at their lowest and availability is at its highest. On the flip side, travel during the popular summer months or any time when kids are normally out of school and the price of third/fourth passengers in a stateroom soars. On some ships and sailings the price of the fourth can even be more than that of the third.
Past Guest Discounts
The topic of past guest discounts, in general, is well-known. Not so well-known is that the past guest element often affects other promotions as well. In addition, a past guest’s status within the cruise line loyalty program often reaps more rewards as they sail more. Savvy cruise travelers know this is one of the very best reasons to use a travel agent who is aware of their cruise history and works it to their best advantage.
Discounted Upgrades
Closer to sailing, as cruise lines are making their best efforts to fill up ships, they may offer those already booked a discounted upgrade opportunity. While someone just entering the booking arena at that time might have a $1000 difference in price between a standard balcony cabin and a suite, the existing booked passenger might be offered an upgrade from their booked balcony to a suite for half that price. These offers are normally time-sensitive and on a first-come, first-served basis.
Specific Group Discounts
Discounts for active or retired military members are offered on a variety of lines and are often one of the best pricing options. Still, knowing the rules can reap even greater rewards as cruise lines occasionally sweeten the deal, extending that military discount to more than one stateroom or make it a better value by adding some bonus extra. Firefighters, teachers and those who work in support industries like airline, shipping and freight company employees also might have an available discount.
How To Take Advantage Of These Offers
Consider your booking a work in progress rather than a line item to check off the list of things to do. It’s a mistake many, if not most, cruise travelers make that is easily avoided by continuing to research pricing and value periodically between the time the booking is made and sailing.
Yes, it’s a good reason to use a proactive travel agent who will do this for you. Travel agents have access to all offers, all the time; a distinct advantage over consumers. Still, we can do this ourselves too if time permits. Just be sure to pay extra special attention on cruise line websites that all qualifiers for discounts are checked before searching, if using the cruise line web site booking engine. Even then, its a good idea to double check that booking with a live person to be sure the price is an accurate reflection of what you qualify for. It might not be.
The best of both worlds happens when passengers take ownership of their booking and continue to look for the best offers while working with a travel agent who can more efficiently confirm (or prove not applicable) offers that come up along the way.
Florida is known for its Sun, Sand and Cruise Ships. What you may not know is Florida is fast becoming a powerhouse in the growing Craft Beer and Microbreweries world. In 2013 alone Florida’s 66 small breweries produced an amazing 130,000 barrels or 4.03 million gallons of craft-brewed beer for an economic impact of $875.8 million, ranking the state 12th in the nation.
Recently Carnival Cruise Line and Tampa, Florida based Cigar City Brewing have teamed up to bring their popular brews on-board 13 Florida based Carnival ships. Guests who sail aboard one of these ships will be able to partake in these two Cigar City beers:
Florida Cracker Belgian-Style White Ale – Named for the colonial-era “Cracker” cowboys of Florida. It is brewed with unmalted wheat, orange peel and coriander, which ends with a spicy, dry finish. The beer pours cloudy straw in color and has moderate notes of orange peel, coriander and hints of vanilla.
Invasion Pale Ale – Gold in color, this is Cigar City’s version of a “session” beer (a beer with a relatively low alcohol content), in a hoppy ale that celebrates Tampa’s alleged history of being a pirate hideout. The tropical aroma offers suggestions of peach, mango, lime and papaya. Invasion has a light caramel malt character laced with a slight “breadiness” and the finish offers a bounty of tropical and citrus hop flavor and bitterness.
This is exciting for Carnival Cruisers who plan to sail from a Florida port. They now have a chance to enjoy a unique Florida made Craft Beer. Cruising is all about new and exciting experiences, be it a zip-line ride or a special dinner. Having a unique Craft Beer available may help make your next Carnival Cruise extra special.
Listen to the Weekend Travel Show to learn more about this partnership:
Cruise Addicts was aboard the Carnival Legend as Carnival Cruise Line and Cigar City Brewing announced an exclusive agreement to offer Cigar City’s award winning craft beer aboard their ships. Starting on July 13th, 2014 Cigar City’s Florida Cracker Belgian-Style White Ale and Invasion Pale Ale on all 13 Carnival ships sailing from five Florida ports. Hear more from an interview with Cigar City’s, Joe Burns and learn more about the company and what it will be offering Carnival Cruise Line guests.
Regardless of the number of days, we want our cruise vacations to be fun. We may book at the last minute or plan years in advance. We might have qualified for a great deal, paid more than we anticipated or been someone else’s guest, paying nothing. To get there might have been a drive to the port or flying in to the embarkation city from far away. All that aside, once on the ship, we want it to be enjoyable. Here are some ways to add more quality time on board.
Book The Same Ship Again
There is a whole lot to be said for being on familiar turf; knowing your way around any travel destination. A cruise ship, especially big ones, are a destination of sorts and knowing our way around a ship or the general layout that seems to be common for a particular cruise line is helpful. There are no rules that say we must try different lines, ships or itineraries. We sailed Carnival Victory three times early in our cruise history, just because we liked the layout of the ship and the itinerary she sailed. If we saw familiar faces in the crewmembers, all the better, but don’t count on that; crew are contract employees and may be back home or on another ship when you return.
Memorize The Deck Plans
This is especially good advice for those sailing on mega-ships that take days just to explore, but also good advice for sailing even the smallest of ships. More important: the location of major venues in relation to other major venues. Once on the ship, things will look different, depending on what deck and which side of the ship we initially enter on. Still, if we know that the showroom is at the front of the ship on deck six, the same deck as the casino; two decks down from our cabin location, etc, we will find places much easier, increasing the quality time we have on board. The very first sentence out of my mouth on boarding any ship, to whoever is greeting us: What deck and what side of the ship am I on?
Choose A Flexible Dining Option
Having to cut short time ashore to come back to the ship and get ready for dinner can end one great experience and put unnecessary pressure on the next to be better than it might be. Traditional cruise ship dining locked in to early or late seating forces us to plan our evenings on board around that time. Choosing a flexible, open seating dining option allows more quality time with us calling the shots on when to eat and with whom. Might as well get used to this too, open seating and even the elimination of a main dining room one-size-fits-all experience seems to be the way cruise lines are heading.
Choose Traveling Companions Carefully
Who will be sitting across the table from you at dinner is important. If given a choice, I would rather sail alone than with someone who would be high-maintenance, requiring a lot of my attention. Hey, it’s my vacation too so why should I have to burn up my vacation insuring that others are having a good time. We see this on nearly every sailing of every ship we have ever been on: someone who should not be on the ship because they were not suited to enjoy it for any number of reasons.
Go Easy On The Packing Skills
Simply put, no formal wear is required on almost any cruise line. No one will check your luggage to insure that you have ballroom attire before allowing you on the ship. The same can be said for packing multiple items of the same clothing; shorts, jeans, t-shirts, swimwear as well as travel gear. In the past, we had a period of time set aside for “unpacking” where we set up house in our cruise ship stateroom, bringing nearly all the comforts of home along for the ride. At the end of the voyage, packing back up to go home took a similar amount of time. Reducing the amount of “stuff” we bring along adds quality time onboard, on both ends of the voyage.
Have A Plan For Off-Ship Activities
If choosing shore excursions in advance, treat them like dining. If in traditional fixed time dining, that assigned time dictates how the rest of the evening will go. If choosing a shore excursion, make sure its worth defining your day by the time it takes. Even if planning to simply walk off the ship at any given port of call for a day at the beach, some shopping or lunch, write that down and have a day by day plan to get the most out of your cruise vacation.
Don’t Lock In Too Much
Probably one of the most important parts of planning to allow more quality time on board: Don’t be afraid to alter the plan and stray off into unknown territory if it looks attractive once there. If having a good time at the pre-dinner drink place, don’t hesitate to skip dinner and stay right there. Ashore, if you find a nice place for lunch and want to make that the event of the day, do that. Every cruise director on every ship will tell you: It’s YOUR vacation and encourage you to do what YOU want to do. That’s probably the secret to making every sailing a winner, but a plan and some thought along the way is a good idea too
Travel by cruise ship is a safe way to see the world, for a number of reasons. The closed environment of a cruise ship provides a layer of safety from the outside world as do secure staterooms that keep trouble out. But being in a safe area and being safe are often two different things. Takiing a fresh look at travel safety, here is our updated list of travel safety tips and suggestions.
[LIST=1]
Attend the Safety Drill- this is mandatory. It was mandatory before but a $20 bill could get you out of it. Now, cruise lines will disembark you right off the cruise ship with no refund and you will have to get home on your own.
Buy A Travel Vestlike the SCOTTeVESTwith RFID protection will keep all your valuables on you, hidden and protect you from those who might try to steal your identity electronically.
Update Those Apps-Must have smartphone apps include those for bank accounts, credit cards and others that you want to hear from if something goes wrong. The Mapquest app has saved me a number of times when lost in an unfamiliar city. A language translation app is a good idea and make sure it is one that works offline for constant translation.
Learn Some Of The Languagewherever you might sail to. Knowing some local lingo well, even just basic phrases like “how much?”, “please”, and “thank you”, help you look like a savvy traveler. There are plenty of others who do not go to the effort and are better targets for criminals.
Tell Your Bank And Credit Card Companieswhen going outside of your normal geographic area. That will prevent charges from the ship or a vendor ashore from being declined. Many financial institutions allow us to do that online now.
Be mindful of jewelry- Leave it home or lock it up in your cabin safe but by no means go ashore wearing gold or diamonds. Just like one might be careful in a new city or town on land, we need to be careful ashore at any port in the world.
Using the buddy system is still a great idea for everyone, especially teens and children. The important part of the buddy system that is often missed is to have one person responsible for another and know where they should be all the time.
Be Mindful Of Cash- Like jewelry, we don’t want others to know how much cash we might be carrying. Before going ashore its a good idea to have a budget for what we will spend that day. Carry no more cash than that amount in your pocket, leave the rest hidden somewhere else. The idea is to NOT be flashing a big wad of cash around in a foreign land.
Be alert or designate someone to be alert– This is for anywhere. Be aware of your surroundings, where exits are, where help could be found and be realistic about it: If you know you will have your head buried deeply in a book, so be it. Just have someone else be alert.
Use Ship Excursions- If for no other reason, the ship knows where you are. If late returning, they will know that too and come looking for you and the rest of your tour group. On a ship-sponsored shore excursion, the ship will not leave you behind.
Trust your instincts- We will be in many unfamiliar situations as we travel. The alternative is to stay home, lock the door, and never go anywhere. We could get run over by a bus walking across the street.
Be alert,use common-sense safety tips and trust that not everyone in the world is out to get you. Otherwise we close the door to some exciting cruise vacation travel opportunities that can make for some fabulous memories.
The Mojito has risen in the ranks to become of the most popular cocktails. It originated in Cuba, was second to the Daiquiri on Ernest Hemingway’s list of favorite cocktails, and, since the 1980’s, has become one of the more fashionable tropical cocktails.
It’s very simple, using mint and lime to accent the rum. Choose a premium rum like Cruzan, Appleton or Mount Gay for a spectacular Mojito. See below for variations.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 1 Cocktail
Ingredients:
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 6-8 mint leaves
• Club soda
• 1 lime, halved
• 2 ounces light rum
• Mint sprig for garnish
Preparation:
1.Place the sugar, the mint leaves, and a little club soda into a highball glass.
2.Muddle well to dissolve the sugar and to release the mint flavor.
3.Squeeze the juice from both halves of the lime into the glass.
4.Drop one half of the lime into the glass.
5.Add the rum.
6.Stir well.
7.Fill the glass with ice cubes.
Florida is known for its Sun, Sand and Cruise Ships. What you may not know is Florida is fast becoming a powerhouse in the growing Craft Beer and Microbreweries world. In 2013 alone Florida’s 66 small breweries produced an amazing 130,000 barrels or 4.03 million gallons of craft-brewed beer for an economic impact of $875.8 million, ranking the state 12th in the nation.