Free Republic

Life can have its little irritations when you're cruising around the world on your £100million superyacht. For example, the endless vista of clear blue sea fails to provide much greenery to ease the eye - apart from the odd tropical island. For the owner of a forthcoming craft named WallyIsland, however, this will not be a problem. For he, or she, will have a personal ocean-going garden. The 325ft-long yacht is to feature a growing area with shrubbery and flower beds, kept healthy by an irrigation system. It will also have a tennis court, pool and five accommodation decks including...

In days of yore, there were only yachts. Until there came superyachts. Twice as large as their predecessors, with midocean necessities such as spiral staircases, split-level saloons and flybridge hot tubs, these floating mansions did more than eclipse conventional yachts -- they made them appear impish, toylike. And then, along came megayachts. These Poseidons, in good truth, possessed not only grandeur (nobody dared describe a yacht less than 150 feet as a "mega"), but touches of lavishness, such as crystal elevators and goatskin walls. They even came with gyroscopically controlled swimming pools -- to keep the water smooth in the...