Seasoned Sailors
Copyright by Wheel Me On... 2008
Marking their 56th & 57th Voyage
Few people can say they have cruised the sea as many times as these members have during the past twenty-two years, but it is true and since 1986 they have been sailing the big blue, meeting people who have become lifelong friends and sometimes joining them on various cruises throughout the year. Gus Sirot retired from the textile business (where he bought and sold fabric) in 2000. He was going to take off for only one year, but made it permanent at the age of 60, following the infamous attack of 9/11. His wife, Sue, was an elementary school teacher, additionally spending several years teaching middle school special education as well as Spanish. Before she retired, Sue served as a bilingual resource room teacher in New York City, and then retired due to disabilities. In truth, the two of them have cruised over seventy times on various vessels until finally settling in with a single cruise line. During 2008, they began their 56th voyage on Princess Cruises in November and were already booked for a cruise in the New Year. Wheel Me On... is proud to present our "seasoned sailors" to our readership.
Sue & Gus Sirot
Photography by Harris BellovinSue & Gus Sirot Cruising on the Emerald Princess 2007
The Sirot's reside on the Northeastern side of the USA and are more than just experienced travelers of the sea because they have experienced some of the best as well as some of the worst vessels and conditions. This fantastic two-some appear determined to cram as many voyages on their calendar every year with their love for cruising. According to Sue, Princess Cruises has organized activities for her to attend while the vessel is docked at a Port of Call that is either not accessible or is barely accessible. For Sue, "this is a plus", because she is dependant with using a motorized scooter.
According to Sue Sirot, the majority of crew members on board Princess Cruises are friendly, polite and caring, whether a person has a disability or not. When they began traveling by vessel in 1986, the Sirot's sought a cruise line offering them the mix of activities and entertainment they would both enjoy, new friends, access and pleasantries that would encourage them to take another voyage with the same cruise line. Eventually, they settled with the Princess fleet and have enticed many individuals to experience the same, though it is true cruising or sailing may not be for everyone, it is by far the best vacation for sea-goers' compared to land vacations on an economical and social level.
Deck hands and Crew members often turn into lifelong friends when showing their compassion and concern for persons requiring assistance, even though "assistance" may be "part of the job", as shown while Sue Sirot descends from the gangplank from the Dawn Princess in 2006. (Photo on left courtesy of Harris Bellovin.)
The lack or unavailability of land tours at Ports of Call for persons with disabilities requiring the use of lifts on buses occurs because many are not ports in the USA and rather that of foreign countries with different laws not requiring access, sometimes prohibiting cruise passengers from doing a land tour. Sue Sirot is indeed a well-seasoned sailor, content with intermixing with other passengers, playing Trivia games and enjoying various activities while remaining on-board. As a "free wheeler", Sue is content with finding something for herself to do while her husband, Gus, goes on an interesting land tour. (Photo on right taken by Phyllis Pullman provides a glimpse of Sue Sirot riding her scooter, after leaving a Trivia Contest held in the Wheelhouse and glancing at the dance floor aboard the Emerald Princess in January 2008).
On November 20, 2008, the Sirot's began their 56th cruise with Princess Cruise Lines on Emerald Princess for ten days. During their voyage, Sue kept us posted with informative emails and one in particular added, "We've been on many cruise lines, but prefer Princess because they have organized activities for me to attend while we are in port; since many ports are not very accessible this is a plus." Both Sue and Gus love cruising for the sociability; Gus enjoys relaxing with friends while Sue plays games such as Trivia.
With Sue using her scooter for "walking", the Sirot's approached the gangplank and began their 56th cruise on November 20, 2008, embarking form Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Joining cruising friends the two of them had met over the years, they were back in an element of enjoying cruising and during the next ten days, the two of them stopped at ports including Princess Cays, Saint Thomas, Saint Kitts, Aruba, Bonaire, and Grenada before and returning to Fort Lauderdale. Of these Ports of Call, Princess Cays, (a privately owned island), was the only port requiring a tender and Sue did not leave the vessel, (passengers using mobility devices typically do not go ashore). Instead, Sue Sirot found other things to do and caught up on her mail; her notes by email during their voyage were informative and encouraged sharing:
November 21, 2008 ~ Princess Cays
We are back with all our friends aboard the Emerald Princess and know most of the Trivia players from last year as well, but we lost the first Trivia game by one point to friends from last year who made a perfect score. It is great to travel with our friends, Lisa and Les, from Ohio as well as Gill from the United Kingdom; add our friends Andre and Angela, and we have a great Trivia group!
Neil is the same Cruise Director as last year; our friend Agosto, (from the dining room), is our Table Captain, and many of the same cruise staff worked on the Island Princess when we sailed on her the last time. The weather here at Princess Cays is beautiful; we are having a great time!
November 23 ~ Saint Thomas Island
When the vessel pulled into Saint Thomas, Sue took advantage of visiting the vendors near the dock, purchasing jewelry and tee shirts from the local islanders. No sooner did she write, "There are many passengers with mobility devices onboard but I have not seen any Service Animals." The sighting of a Service Animal changed a few days later.
November 25 ~ Saint Kitts
Sue found this island also accessible to leave the vessel and entered the area where vendors displayed their local goods for visitors: "I got off in St. Kitts today and got around quite easily".
On November 30, Gus and Sue Sirot began their fifty-seventh cruise aboard Princess Cruises as they began their journey back to Fort Lauderdale in the United States of America on the Emerald Princess. The Sirot's did not have to change their cabin and remained in the same stateroom throughout their 20-day voyage.
November 30, 2008
Just a quick note to tell you what a pleasure the Emerald Princess has been in terms of mobility; the doors on the Lido Deck all open automatically, and I am free to go wherever I want with my scooter. We are having a marvelous time and looking forward to another wonderful cruise on this back-to-back trip.
December 2, 2008
My friends and I are making good use of our brains and winning many Trivia games. We have won so many luggage tags that I give most of them away. We are having a wonderful time. I see it is almost time to play Scattergories!
December 3, 2008 ~ Aruba
Last night we watched "Hancock", at the movie under the stars; tonight is 50's & 60's night, so we will do that Trivia and sing along to the tunes. While we were in Aruba today, I met someone traveling with a Service Animal who is traveling on the Emerald Princess!
The port in Aruba is very accessible for persons using mobility devices; there were several shops and even a casino nearby. I went ashore for about an hour and bought the obligatory tee shirt and a hair bow.
Today I played Taboo, Trivia and Pictionary. We're having a great time!!
December 4 ~ Bonaire
December 5 ~ Grenada
The access in Bonaire and Grenada was excellent!
December 6 ~ Dominica
Today I played Taboo; then did team Trivia. After that, I went to the pool and did my exercises, then showered to meet my husband and friends for lunch. We went into Dominica for a little while, but Emerald Princess docked too far away from the town; I went back to the ship. My husband and our friends took the shuttle bus to town.
On the evening of December 7, 2008, Gus and Sue Sirot attended the Past Passenger Cocktail Party and received the honor as one of the most cruised passengers on the ship; the Sirot's were presented with a crystal plaque, a bottle of champagne, and a complimentary photograph of two of them taken with the Captain as a souvenir.
~ Our Sincere Congratulations to Gus & Sue Sirot ~
At the end of January 2009, the Sirot's will board the Pacific Princess for a 20-day roundtrip voyage to the Amazon, during their 58th cruise on Princess Cruises. Gus and Sue Sirot have additionally cruised on Holland America, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Lines as well as several other cruise lines.
Editors Note: Princess Cruises currently has seventeen ships in her fleet; among this fleet are the Caribbean Princess, Coral Princess, Crown Princess, Dawn Princess, Diamond Princess, Emerald Princess, Golden Princess, Grand Princess, Island Princess, Pacific Princess, Sapphire Princess, Sea Princess, Star Princess and the Sun Princess. Some of these vessels have access problems according to our members, while several members have commented the Island Princess and Emerald Princess are apparently completely accessible for persons requiring the use of mobility devices. Princess Cruises has expressed there is limited access on board the Pacific Princess. Some of the Princess vessels are scheduled for dry dock. We are hopeful all ships will be retrofitted for accessibility modifications under the US Supreme Court Ruling (June 6, 2005) and the Americans with Disabilities Act, (ADA), so long as the vessels are readily achievable and feasible.
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