On Daily Life...

Strange: The sun rose, in beautiful glory at 5:52 am on Saturday. On Sunday, the sun rose through dreary clouds at 6:39 am.

We did not change time zones, just traveled from one extreme of the time zone to the other, and changed latitudes.

It is very strange to wake up at the same time on consecutive days, one day to day light and the next to darkness, when you are not expecting it.

About ship board life:

I love ship board life. It is like college, but a little more mature. I have breakfast, lunch and dinner with friends and without ever going to the grocery store.

Everything is in walking distance or you are completely out of luck.

Bowls of prophylactics are available every where.

There is always a party somewhere.

Alcohol is everywhere.

You become notorious for some terrible off hand comment.

You get the idea.

Then there are the funky jobs on board: Sanitation Officer (this is not at all what you think it is), Clearance Officer and Laundry Master.

There is this girl aboard, who loves to drink and socialize. She found her perfect job. She is society hostess, where she is paid to drink and socialize. And she does it well.

I am exhausted, but very happy. I spend much of my day laughing. My coworkers are hysterical.

Speaking of coworkers, Andrea is here. (Andrea is the funniest kiwi alive. She makes my sides hurt. Her biggest fear in life is breaking out in chronic cats. This is the manifestation of spinsterhood.)

We are going ashore. Five feet from my window is Cadiz, Spain.

Cannes Can Shoe

I went shopping in Cannes yesterday.

Let me describe Cannes.

Shoe shop, shoe shop, lotion and potion shop, shoe shop, clothing shop, shoe shop, shoe shop, mobile phone shop, shoe shop.

I have never before in my life seen so many shoe stores.

So I went to Cannes and I went shopping. I did not see the sites. I did not see the Tibetan artifacts or the tower or any of the sites. I saw the shopping strip, the cafes and a kind of up scale flea market.

You have to understand, I live on a ship. If I need shoes, and I have three hours in Cannes…. I spend my time in Cannes shoe shopping, and picking up things that I hope are shampoo and not bleach.

Fortunately, I needed shoes… when I was in Cannes. I cannot imagine a better place to need shoes.

So Cannes is old French architecture on soft hills that lead to the Mediterranean. There is much emphasis on the out door café’s and promenades. There was a flea market/art walk on the central boulevard. All in all, it was a little more cramped than my home town of Santa Barbara with French Riviera architecture. It amazes me how much Santa Barbara is like many Mediterranean cities. It is not the rolling hills by the water and harbor, with quaint promenades, so much as the air of casual glow in the afternoon sun.






(Sorry, I did not get any really great pictures.)

Cannes is approved as a lovely place to spend a few afternoons window shopping (they siesta), working on your skin cancer or enjoying a local café.

Also available in Cannes was, by far my favorite, vending machines. I wonder if they have them in Amsterdam. On nearly every block in Cannes, was a condom vending machine. (I don’t believe they are having an unusual amount of sex. I think they’re just poor planners.) I never saw a soda vending machine, a cigarette vending machine, a candy vending machine. Just condoms… condoms, condoms.

Makes me think...

Maybe shoes are an aphrodisiac.




I am doing great.

Working hard.

Eating well.

Playing well with others.

Today was a day at sea, where I recouped from a late night.

Tomorrow is Gibraltar.

Oh, a weird thing worth mentioning… it is a very strange existence where you watch the sun rise through the only window in your room in the morning and set through that same window that evening.

Tid Bits and A Couple Pics

If you read this, and you don’t know me, then I should tell you I work on a cruise ship.

Sunday was Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo picture and a close up of the Monte Carlo Casino.
Monday was Portofino (pictures to come)
Tuesday was Porto Cervo (charming, little, no pics)
Wednesday was St. Tropez (I was dead on my feet. No knowledge of this. I think I took pictures.)
Thursday was Barcelona. This was an embarkation day. Embarkation day is the day when all the current passengers leave and all the new passengers come. It is very busy! Plus I got my cabin, pictures to come.

Today is Friday. Friday we spent all day at sea, a sea day as opposed to a port day (where we are naturally in port).

It was an amazing day, clear, warm, and calm seas. There was a huge pod of porpoises starboard this morning, playing in mirror flat water some nearing for the ruffle of wake. (Awesome!)

I ran around the promenade deck four times, which is a mile. I went to the slop chest, which is the company store, for some soap and water.

I went to the Captain’s black tie formal and had wonderful sushi. I sat with three co-workers at dinner, a Kiwi, a Canadian and a guy from Namibia. For how eclectic the group, we have surprisingly similar views on the world and on religion. It was interesting.

We, the Kiwi, Canadian and Namibian, work in the nerdery or geekery where we fix id10t errors. I had never heard of a nerdery or a geekery before. I like these terms. I have decided to use them lots.

Geekery.

Nerdery.

Geekery.

I should sleep. We arrive in Cannes at 8 am. I have to be at work by 6:30 to prep for arrival.

I get to go ashore in Cannes! Very exciting!

More, far more interesting stuff to come from cabin 4143.

There Is A Moon Out My Port Hole

Glistening off the sea,

Moving quickly from left to right

Calories

The treadmill said I burned 104 calories.

I think I burned five hundred.

I account for what the treadmill doesn’t, being on deck 12 of a ship in choppy waters.

Today was Portofino.

Gorgeous!

Choppy waters.

I had to go through safety training today, which involved watching passenger videos of all cruise ship disasters in the last ten years. One involved a fire that killed 180 people. (Don’t worry Mom, there were significant safety violations that are not an issue on my ship.) The biggest disaster risk on a cruise ship is fire. Just thought would share. It was scary.

Dinner was a treat, smoked salmon and caviar. Yummy!

It is five am.

I must sleep.

Pictures to come…. One day…. When I have sleep.

Awesome

Being in Monte Carlo

For the Grand Prix

Pictures to come...

I called the phone company...

And the number was busy.

Does that seem wrong to anyone else?

I bet they could get a deal on call waiting.

Anyway... if you don't know, I am moving to Europe on Thursday so I have been busy. Stupid Cool will restart in Europe!