A woman has sold her house and is going to leave everything behind to embark on a three-year-long round the world cruise.
Meredith Shay will be living in luxury for 1,000-plus days on the MV Gemini when it embarks on the world's first three year long cruise.
The former flight attendant has opted to stay in one of the most luxurious seventh-floor suites with a balcony, which she hopes will become a hub for the friends Meredith is looking forward to making along the way.
The Floridian retiree will use half the money from the sale of her home on the cruise, which costs $29,999 (£24,700) a year for the cheapest cabins.
Over three years she and more than 1,000 other fellow passengers will travel 130,000 miles across all seven continents and 135 countries, stopping at 375 destinations and taking in 13 world wonders.
Meredith signed up to this once in a life-time experience just 12 hours after first hearing about it, and on the morning cabins first went on sale.
"I've no children or grandchildren so I am free, happily so at this point. Why not do something like this?" she told The Mirror.
When asked how she was planning to finance the trip, Meredith said she "just sold well".
"I can put things in storage and be off," she said.
"I like new experiences as it keeps me fresh. I've been looking for about two years (for a long cruise).
"It had been ruminating in my mind for a few years. Through the years I've travelled to many of these countries. I was a flight attendant for 22 years, took total advantage of my ability to travel for nothing and stay in hotels."
Part of the reason she's packing up her life's possessions and hiding them away in storage containers until 2026 is a love of travelling but intense dislike of airports.
Passengers on the once-in-a-lifetime holiday will witness the majesty of glaciers and ice formations in the Antarctic and South America, douse themselves in warm sunshine and the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, visit dozens of bustling cities in North America before heading across the Pacific to Tokyo and Seoul, the stunning beaches of Jeju Island, and the towering skyscrapers of Shanghai.
The ship will spend an incredible 206 days stopping at more than 70 locations in the South Pacific and Australia, taking in Australia's big cities, the pristine beaches of the island nations and the stunning mountains of New Zealand.
All of this without without the need to take a single flight or traipse through one airport, before the ship has even got to North Asia or Europe.
Meredith is particularly excited to spend more time in Eastern Europe and revisiting favourite spots including the Seychelles, Maldives and Cambodia - where she last was in 1973.
"I will be very interested to see how it has changed," she continued.
"(I particularly like) the fact that we can get off and leave the ship for weeks at a time. If it gets too monotonous, or close cabin, you can get off. That's the beauty of it."
As well as committed travellers in their retirement, the cruise is aimed at digital nomads who will work remotely from the ship, making use of its office space and highspeed wi-fi to conduct business from the Seven Seas.
That means Meredith will be spending the next three years with more than a thousand complete strangers from many different walks of life and professions, from golf pros and coders, to doctors and dentists.
When asked if she was worried about forming and maintaining relationships in the confines of a 19,000 tonne cruise ship, Meredith quipped: "No I'm not concerned about that, I am charming. I have a large cabin on the seventh floor. I figure I will be a meeting place.
"I've been to Mongolia and Bhutan, I did it all my own. Being with 1,000 people will be a new experience."
The cruise ship is due to undergo a $10m revamp before it sets sail, making the cabins like "a lovely hotel room."
Guests' will live in relative luxury, having their laundry taking care of each week, and enjoying access to doctors and nurses in the health centre, a nail saloon and massage, and a golf simulator.
There will also be classes, lectures, a cinema and volunteering opportunities to pass the time.
"My real true love is going into shop with no anticipation into buying, but learning about the people in shops," Meredith said when asked what she was most looking forward to doing.
"You get to know the core of the area you're in. I've had more great experiences spent getting dressed in Tel-Aviv, you have fun and you have coke and tea, you learn about the people.
"I love talking with people from across the world."
