The Stuck at the Airport cruise review team has been on assignment on a ship for the past two weeks making our first transatlantic voyage from Rotterdam, The Netherlands to New York City.

We’ve been on Holland America Line’s Rotterdam, which is recreating the line’s very first voyage, which took place exactly 150 years ago.

These days, of course, flying from Europe to the United States is the way to go. And the journey, by plane, is perhaps 7 hours. If the flight takes much longer, modern-day travelers start complaining.

On this journey, though, the crossing has taken 7 days.

It’s always thrilling to see the view of New York City when landing at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) or Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR).

But early this foggy morning, sailing past the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island is an entirely different, and oddly emotional, experience.