By GERRY BARKER

Before our visit to Maine on American Cruise Lines' ship, American Constitution, I knew it was famous for lobster (40 million pounds annually -- 90 percent of the nation's supply) and lighthouses (65 in all), as well as the home of novelist Stephen King. What I didn't expect to find was ... trolls.

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By Gerry Barker
North Palm Beach Life

Photos of the first Chefs Making Waves cruise
Courtesy of Rich Johnson, Spectacle Photo and
Tammy Vega, @TammyVega

​Theme cruises are all the rage, and getting more popular all the time. Just find a popular niche that has a loyal following, and the fanbase will eagerly join.

Many are music-related (Rock Legends, Soul Train, The 80s Cruise), including the always-sold out "Dave Koz and Frinds at Sea" cruises; the Turner Classic Movies cruise, Star Trek, Comic-Con and even clothes-optional cruises (we didn't need to see that, right?).

One of the newer entries is called Chefs Making Waves, featuring top celebrity chefs, plus food personalities and authors. After a successful debut earlier this year, the second Chefs Making Waves cruise is set for May 5-9, 2025. Hosted on Norwegian Gem, it's a four-day, roundtrip cruise from Miami to Cozumel.

The lineup of award-winning chefs and mixologists include Richard Blais, Maneet Chauhan, Tom Colicchio, Scott Conant, Robert Irvine, Antonia Lofaso, Jonathan Waxman, Geoffrey Zakarian and Claudette Zepeda, with "additional talent to be announced soon." Guests will enjoy "cooking demonstrations, buffet spotlights, curated dining and and restaurant takeovers."

By GERRY BARKER

Until last week, I never knew what a “lobsterbake” was. Or, that Camden, Maine boasts the only stop sign on the entire 2,370 mile-length of US Highway 1, the longest north-south road in the United States.

We learned that, and much, much more, during our recent 11-day “New England Explorer” cruise on American Cruise Lines' ship, American Constitution. And explore New England we did, a region steeped in lobsters, lighthouses and a region well known as the bedrock of American history. This was our third ACL cruise (previously we toured Puget Sound and the Upper Mississippi) and our first time to visit many of the ports along the Northeastern coast.

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