07-Sep-2006  (yacht cruise)

• 'Waters grow choppy for lobby's perk to lawmakers (Chicago Tribune)
They called it the "Congressional Cruise Series," featuring lovely evenings on a luxury yacht complete with "two large staterooms ... a deluxe entertainment center and an airy comfortable salon." They billed it, unabashedly, as a way for lobbyists to develop relationships with influential politicians.
• 'Cruisin' to the charms of classics (Calendarlive.com)
Cool salt air, bright sunlight and bubbling ocean waters do not make a setting usually associated with jazz. But the more familiar environment of smoky, dimly lighted rooms took a holiday Sunday morning during the 12th annual West Coast Jazz Party's Jazz Brunch Cruise, when more than 400 jazz fans embarked on the Hornblower yacht Entertainer in a 3 1/2-hour cruise around Newport Harbor.
• 'Hospitality Industry Veteran Mikhail Shamkin Named General Manager at British Virgin Islands Resort, Bitter End Yacht (Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance)
CHICAGO----Sept. 6, 2006--Mikhail Shamkin has been named General Manager of Bitter End Yacht Club, the world's premier sailing and watersports destination located on the North Sound, Virgin Gorda, in the British Virgin Islands.
• '10 Best: Indulge yourself (Belfast Telegraph)
If you've always fancied a classic Nile cruise but have been put off by having to join the crowds, here's a good option. Abercrombie & Kent's Sun Boat IV will be relaunched in chic, contemporary style at the end of September.
• 'Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club (Boothbay Register)
Under the leadership of Robbie Roberts, we had another superb Captain's Choice Luncheon Cruise on August 26, to Christmas Cove. That's two in a row Robbie, and I bet number three during the September Shipyard Race will be just as spectacular.