By Gary Walther

Day 9: Tuesday, At Sea En Route to Komodo Island, Indonesia

At half past noon the Europa 2 slides past Cape York, the northernmost point of the Australian mainland and swings to port to enter the Torres Strait, which separates Australia and New Guinea and is flecked with 274 islands. We’re headed for Thursday Island, named for the day on which it was encountered by Captain Bligh, to in effect check out of the country with the Australian immigration authority. Along the way we pass Wednesday and Friday islands, named for the same reason as Thursday was.

This week, today through Friday, will be spent at sea, which brings up a big question: What do you do with all of that time?

One extreme allures: Just indulge … Read More

Gary Walther, the former editor-in-chief of Departures and ForbesLife, now writes “The Hotel Detective” column on Forbes.com