Yeah, I get you X. Seeing half a dozen cruise ships crowded into the St. Thomas docks looks nice and all that.... but you can't help that sneaky feeling that if something dumps out "accidentally" you'll never know which ship is responsible.

I know you're a diver (so am I), and are particularly sensitive to the plight of coral reefs, as well you should be. Puerto Rico's own coral reefs have seen significant decline over the years for whatever reason we want to assign to it. Forces of nature, or man-made. My dad was an avid diver, as are my brothers and I, and I remember many a wonderful time diving among the reefs, usually looking for something to spearfish.

I think cruising is doable in a green way... if only these greedy corporations would concentrate in putting back as much or more than they take away. Unfortunately where there's billions to be made, everything else gets kicked to the curb. I think the St. Maarten (or St. Martin, depending on who's saying it) upgrade was well needed, though. Having a huge ship travel hundreds of miles to get there..... only to have to anchor off shore and sent tenders to offload passengers.... seemed like such a waste of time. The ship's already there, so it's not like the environment isn't feeling the impact already. But it's like anything else. If the local government of whichever island or port of call... proceeds with upgrades carelessly and only looking at the bottom line.... it's wrong. That's where the cruise lines should take responsibility and say "You know what? We'd like you to upgrade your docking facilities... but we need to make sure you do so in an environmentally responsible manner. We'd like to be involved in your permitting and construction process, if only as an oversight to make sure things are done right." That would give these cruise companies major points. And they've got the clout.

The wife and I love cruising... although as you say it's no way to truly explore and get to know other cultures. For trips to Europe, for instance, I would definitely eschew Mediterranean cruises in favor of traveling by land from country to country.