Hello Everyone! Hope you all enjoyed my last post from uh...2 weeks ago? Sorry 'bout that...I'm not starting out too well am i? I should get better now that we are in the Caribbean and into our regular routine!
Okay, so since I wrote last I've been out on 2 of the Canary Islands, Crossed the Atlantic Ocean, been to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands and had one Embarkation day in Puerto Rico...
Canary Islands - I was able to go out in Tenerife, and La Palma, in Tenerife we mostly did some shopping, didn't really get too many pictures (to be posted soon), but it looks like a nice place, rather brown though, not a lot of greenery...They have a really nice shopping street - with no cars and lots of shops. La Palma was really nice and I'd really like to go there again, maybe spend a week...lol We did a bit of browsing in the shops and had lunch in a really beautiful square, it feels very Spanish there (it is a owned by the Spanish, but Tenerife doesn't feel so Spanish). I picked up a few discounted Christmas decorations there so I do actually have a few up in my cabin now.
Hmmm, Crossing the Atlantic - not as bad as I thought, they were concerned about bad weather when we left the Canaries, so we left an hour early, luckily we seem to have missed the storm because we had pretty good weather all the way across, you'd be surprised how warm it was - we were crossing near the equator and it was actually kinda hot and muggy in the middle of the atlantic on day 3! It's a little freaky to look outside and for 5 whole days to only see the ocean...and by day 4 I was definitely feeling a little rough around the edges, like I just needed to be on land, but day 5 was better knowing that the following day we'd be making landfall...
Onship, I did make it to latin night, it wasn't all that great, not too many people came, but I did get to dance...so I was happy - even though it was with an american rather than a latin! Maybe there will be more people next time. I've really made some good friends already, the ladies at the Guest Relations desk are really nice, and the Guest Account Purser (from Vancouver) and I get along really well, we always go out together in port, and eat together. I got to spend my first cruise in a cabin to myself, which was wonderful - I now share the cabin with one of the Guest relations staff but she's supposed to be moving out in 2 cruises, so I may get it to myself again, I won't hold my breath...but it would be nice if I did! We only have 7 more cruises until this ship closes, it's hard to believe that's all that's left! I'm also still training with the GAP onboard so hopefully I can get into the pool for the Guest Account Purser position soon. The current GAP is great at giving me stuff to do and helping me train further.
Okay, Tortola - LOVE IT! Beautiful Island, nice and green, hilly, beachy, lots of bays....kind of a shabby town, but still nice and comfortable. We arrived in Tortola the first time on the 18th, and were able to get out to have lunch in a nice british style pub - where for some reason I had Jamaican Jerk Chicken Quesadillas...LOL, doesn't seem very british! Then we took the slow route back to the ship and wandered through the tourist stalls. We were there again today after embarkation yesterday, and got to do a bit of shopping, went to the supermarket and a department store of some sort, to pick up a few necessities - I'm so excited, I bought a nice brand new towel - the towels we are given on board are terrible! Smelly sometimes, all of them have black stains, you don't really want to dry yourself with them if you open your eyes to look at them! So to have a nice new towel of my own is very nice. We then went back to the british style pub (there doesn't seem to be too many eating options right near where we dock) and had a drink and some nachoes out on the patio. It was so nice - Sorry to hear that you've all been stuck in the snowy winter wonderland of minus temperatures back at home in Victoria! Wish you were all here instead!
Yesterday was our first embarkation day in a US port so it was a VERY hectic day! We had a full crew immigration, US Coast Guard Inspection, Guest turnaround, and an early arrival and late departure! I was recruited to help with the full crew inspection, so my day was supposed to start at 5am, when my alarm went off, but for some reason my body decided that I should get up 15 minutes sooner...I know Mom, I was as shocked as you! So, 4:45, I'm up showered dressed, and waiting at the gangway by 5:45 to get outside and set up the crew passport distribution...Of course guests come first so as soon as they were ready to disembark guests, crew immigration stopped - that was 7:45, and of course it took us a while to get everything back to the ship - breakfast at 8:30, and to the room for a short nap - oh, no, wait...the US Coast Guard decided we needed to do our drill at 9:30 so at 9:15 the announcements started, and as soon as that was over - 10:30 ish, we were back to the terminal to complete immigration...Finished that around 1:30 - just in time to get the dregs of lunch on ship, a brief nap - 1 hour, and back to work, working in the terminal checking guest passports, helping the Financial Controller and the GAP, and finally finishing around 9:00 that night! Luckily I was able to leave a little early as we didn't leave San Juan until about 10pm.
Okay, so that was a really long post, and now I'm going to let you go do whatever else you were planning to do today! I won't wait so long next time!
Love you all! Miss you! Write me soon! Oh, and Merry Christmas from the Caribbean! Thinking warm thoughts for those of you at home in the cold snow!
Tabitha
Travel Map
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Sunday, December 7, 2008
My first blog from The Galaxy!
Hello Everyone!
How are you all doing? I'm pretty good, a quick blog today as there isn't too much to say yet!
Had some pretty good flights, nothing like last time where I was running for planes! It was definitely cold in Calgary and Frankfurt though! So cold in Frankfurt we were delayed leaving cause they could only open one runway. Made it to Rome Thursday afternoon (Rome Time), the hotel was right at the airport so it didn't take too long to get there, just a little painful to haul all of my bags on the walk! When I arrived, I decided to take a shower to get all cleaned up and revive myself for getting out to see Rome - unfortunately, instead of revived, I pretty much just fell asleep on the bed! So unfortunately this time through Rome, my view was from the hotel window and the bus to the ship! There wasn't much to see except some countryside...Oh well, next time!
It was very windy when we arrived at the port - the ship almost didn't make it into the port that morning because of the high winds and of course as soon as we left, it was VERY windy, and VERY rought weather, so I was rather sick all evening and night - only getting better later the next morning after we reached some calmer weather - and by calmer I mean maybe we were only in 20 foot waves! I heard one crew member say that someone saw the propeller come out of the water! We were definitely rockin' and rollin' and not in a good way! Hopefully that's the last of the bad weather - I'm told the last couple of times they have crossed the Atlantic, it's been quite smooth.
So, the office is good, still have a window to see outside - yeah! The financial Controller seems great - nice guy, the Guest Account Purser that I work with is from Vancouver, so it's great to work with someone from home. Today we were in Cartagena, Spain, but unfortunately we had boat drill this morning and then training almost all afternoon, so no chance to get out, I didn't even grab my camera and go out to take pictures - just came directly to the computer to tell you about how things are going!
Tomorrow we will be in Gibralter - training is in the morning, so hopefully I can go out in the afternoon! After that we'll have 1 day at sea before we get to the Canary Islands!
Anyways, hope to hear from you all soon! But better get this posted and offline so I'm not spending too much on internet! love you! miss you all!
Tabs
How are you all doing? I'm pretty good, a quick blog today as there isn't too much to say yet!
Had some pretty good flights, nothing like last time where I was running for planes! It was definitely cold in Calgary and Frankfurt though! So cold in Frankfurt we were delayed leaving cause they could only open one runway. Made it to Rome Thursday afternoon (Rome Time), the hotel was right at the airport so it didn't take too long to get there, just a little painful to haul all of my bags on the walk! When I arrived, I decided to take a shower to get all cleaned up and revive myself for getting out to see Rome - unfortunately, instead of revived, I pretty much just fell asleep on the bed! So unfortunately this time through Rome, my view was from the hotel window and the bus to the ship! There wasn't much to see except some countryside...Oh well, next time!
It was very windy when we arrived at the port - the ship almost didn't make it into the port that morning because of the high winds and of course as soon as we left, it was VERY windy, and VERY rought weather, so I was rather sick all evening and night - only getting better later the next morning after we reached some calmer weather - and by calmer I mean maybe we were only in 20 foot waves! I heard one crew member say that someone saw the propeller come out of the water! We were definitely rockin' and rollin' and not in a good way! Hopefully that's the last of the bad weather - I'm told the last couple of times they have crossed the Atlantic, it's been quite smooth.
So, the office is good, still have a window to see outside - yeah! The financial Controller seems great - nice guy, the Guest Account Purser that I work with is from Vancouver, so it's great to work with someone from home. Today we were in Cartagena, Spain, but unfortunately we had boat drill this morning and then training almost all afternoon, so no chance to get out, I didn't even grab my camera and go out to take pictures - just came directly to the computer to tell you about how things are going!
Tomorrow we will be in Gibralter - training is in the morning, so hopefully I can go out in the afternoon! After that we'll have 1 day at sea before we get to the Canary Islands!
Anyways, hope to hear from you all soon! But better get this posted and offline so I'm not spending too much on internet! love you! miss you all!
Tabs
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Back to Sea...
Hello Fans! I'm back! I know I haven't blogged for a while, but there hasn't been all that much to say for the last couple of months! I've been home for nearly 2 and a half months, and I'm now getting ready to go back to a ship! I've had a nice time off work, visiting friends, playing my Wii, moving things in, out, and around the storage locker, etc. I'm so glad I got to see so many of my friends and spend some good quality time with my family, but I'm ready to go back - and well, now I'm out of money, so I kinda need to go back...LOL
Now I know you're curious, what did I do on my vacation? Well, not a heck of a lot...Went on some walks, took a few pictures - check out my picasa site to see them - cuddled my cat, and went on a week long trip to Kamloops to see my friend Nikki and her family. I had a great time there, finally got to know their baby (not so baby anymore!), and she's the so sweet, and cute, and adorable...wouldn't have missed that trip for the world.
So, now you want to know what's next...I will be traveling next wednesday (Dec 3rd) to Rome, Italy to meet my ship (The Galaxy) on December 5th, where we will proceed to do a repositioning cruise, crossing the Atlantic Ocean (FOR 5 DAYS!!!) to the sunny caribbean where we will spend the winter! I know, you're all jealous now! Before meeting the ship, I will have about a half day in Rome, so I'm excited to check that out. I recently found out that I will be meeting the ship on the same day as someone I worked with on Infinity, and she will be arriving at about the same time as me, so I should have some company on my explorations!
Our first cruise was supposed to stop twice in Morocco, but for unknown reasons it has changed it's course, and we will now stop in Cartagena, Spain, and Gibralter, UK instead. Not as exciting but definitely not so shabby! After that, we'll be making 3 stops in the Canary Islands, before it's yes 5 FULL days at sea crossing the Atlantic Ocean (uhhh, where did I put those sea sick pills???) before we reach first the British Virgin Islands, and then our final destination, Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico will become our embarkation port, so all guests will come and go from there, and we'll be traveling to lovely places such as Aruba, Barbados, Dominca, Grenada, Curacao, St Kitts, St Maarten, etc throughout the winter!
I will be missing Christmas here at home, and that makes me sad...I'll really miss my family and friends at that time, but I'm also looking forward to a new experience. I'm curious about what the parties will be like and what is done on ships to help crew with missing family and friends at that time of year. So I am going to need you guys to keep in touch, especially at Christmas!
So, prepare yourselves, as I'm sure I'll have tonnes to say over the next few weeks on the new adventure, so you'll have to tune in frequently to stay on top of what's going on with Tab!
Love you all! Thanks for reading, and your support!
Tabs
Now I know you're curious, what did I do on my vacation? Well, not a heck of a lot...Went on some walks, took a few pictures - check out my picasa site to see them - cuddled my cat, and went on a week long trip to Kamloops to see my friend Nikki and her family. I had a great time there, finally got to know their baby (not so baby anymore!), and she's the so sweet, and cute, and adorable...wouldn't have missed that trip for the world.
So, now you want to know what's next...I will be traveling next wednesday (Dec 3rd) to Rome, Italy to meet my ship (The Galaxy) on December 5th, where we will proceed to do a repositioning cruise, crossing the Atlantic Ocean (FOR 5 DAYS!!!) to the sunny caribbean where we will spend the winter! I know, you're all jealous now! Before meeting the ship, I will have about a half day in Rome, so I'm excited to check that out. I recently found out that I will be meeting the ship on the same day as someone I worked with on Infinity, and she will be arriving at about the same time as me, so I should have some company on my explorations!
Our first cruise was supposed to stop twice in Morocco, but for unknown reasons it has changed it's course, and we will now stop in Cartagena, Spain, and Gibralter, UK instead. Not as exciting but definitely not so shabby! After that, we'll be making 3 stops in the Canary Islands, before it's yes 5 FULL days at sea crossing the Atlantic Ocean (uhhh, where did I put those sea sick pills???) before we reach first the British Virgin Islands, and then our final destination, Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico will become our embarkation port, so all guests will come and go from there, and we'll be traveling to lovely places such as Aruba, Barbados, Dominca, Grenada, Curacao, St Kitts, St Maarten, etc throughout the winter!
I will be missing Christmas here at home, and that makes me sad...I'll really miss my family and friends at that time, but I'm also looking forward to a new experience. I'm curious about what the parties will be like and what is done on ships to help crew with missing family and friends at that time of year. So I am going to need you guys to keep in touch, especially at Christmas!
So, prepare yourselves, as I'm sure I'll have tonnes to say over the next few weeks on the new adventure, so you'll have to tune in frequently to stay on top of what's going on with Tab!
Love you all! Thanks for reading, and your support!
Tabs
Friday, September 19, 2008
I'm Home
Hey Everyone!
Hope you are all doing well, as you can see from my title I'm home now. I have now completed one full contract with Celebrity on the Infinity, and I really enjoyed myself.
The last few weeks of cruising were good, we were still doing the same Alaska run so not a lot to report about, the weather stunk, the scenery was still beautiful, the friends onboard were still great. My Birthday party on the pier was a sucess, thanks to those that came out. It was so great to see everyone that came, and have some friends from the ship come out and meet everyone.
I'm not planning to do a lot on my vacation, visit my friend Nikki and her family in the Okanagan and maybe a shopping trip to Seattle, but otherwise, will be sticking around Victoria doing some photography and visiting with friends and family. If you want to chat I'll be staying with Mom and Dad and can be reached there.
I've received my letter of employment for my next contract, and as it stands so far, I'll be joining the Galaxy on December 5th as an apprentice purser. The ship will be in Rome when I join, so hopefully I'll have a chance to see the sites there the afternoon and evening that I arrive to meet the ship, as I won't meet the ship until the day after I arrive. The ship will not be staying in Europe though, my first cruise on the ship will be a trans-atlantic, so it will stop in a couple of places in Morocco, as well as 3 stops in the Canary Islands, before we have 5 sea days across the atlantic, and then it'll be through the British Virgin Islands before we hit Puerto Rico, our main point of turn around for the winter season in the Caribbean. And boy do I need a warm place to go, I hardly got any sun this summer, and am definitely feeling deprived of Vitamin D!
Before leaving the ship, I received a performance review, and the financial controller really seemed to like me - LOL - out of 7 catagories, I received 2 meets expectations, and 5 exceeds expectations, so I'm very happy with that, and I expect that this will really help me with my promotion to Guest Account Purser. He has also asked me to contact him by email as soon as I've reached the Galaxy, so that he can speak to the financial controller on my ship about me, and the progress I should be making towards that next position. I'm very excited about that, as I really want to move on from Apprentice purser as soon as I can.
Anyways, keep in touch while I'm here in Victoria on vacation, as I will definitely need something to do with 2 and a half months of not working!
Love you all, and thanks to everyone that supported me throughout my crazy decision to leave home and travel the world!
Tabs
Hope you are all doing well, as you can see from my title I'm home now. I have now completed one full contract with Celebrity on the Infinity, and I really enjoyed myself.
The last few weeks of cruising were good, we were still doing the same Alaska run so not a lot to report about, the weather stunk, the scenery was still beautiful, the friends onboard were still great. My Birthday party on the pier was a sucess, thanks to those that came out. It was so great to see everyone that came, and have some friends from the ship come out and meet everyone.
I'm not planning to do a lot on my vacation, visit my friend Nikki and her family in the Okanagan and maybe a shopping trip to Seattle, but otherwise, will be sticking around Victoria doing some photography and visiting with friends and family. If you want to chat I'll be staying with Mom and Dad and can be reached there.
I've received my letter of employment for my next contract, and as it stands so far, I'll be joining the Galaxy on December 5th as an apprentice purser. The ship will be in Rome when I join, so hopefully I'll have a chance to see the sites there the afternoon and evening that I arrive to meet the ship, as I won't meet the ship until the day after I arrive. The ship will not be staying in Europe though, my first cruise on the ship will be a trans-atlantic, so it will stop in a couple of places in Morocco, as well as 3 stops in the Canary Islands, before we have 5 sea days across the atlantic, and then it'll be through the British Virgin Islands before we hit Puerto Rico, our main point of turn around for the winter season in the Caribbean. And boy do I need a warm place to go, I hardly got any sun this summer, and am definitely feeling deprived of Vitamin D!
Before leaving the ship, I received a performance review, and the financial controller really seemed to like me - LOL - out of 7 catagories, I received 2 meets expectations, and 5 exceeds expectations, so I'm very happy with that, and I expect that this will really help me with my promotion to Guest Account Purser. He has also asked me to contact him by email as soon as I've reached the Galaxy, so that he can speak to the financial controller on my ship about me, and the progress I should be making towards that next position. I'm very excited about that, as I really want to move on from Apprentice purser as soon as I can.
Anyways, keep in touch while I'm here in Victoria on vacation, as I will definitely need something to do with 2 and a half months of not working!
Love you all, and thanks to everyone that supported me throughout my crazy decision to leave home and travel the world!
Tabs
Sunday, August 10, 2008
NEWS!!!! - And Birthday Plans!
Hello everyone! I know, it hasn't been that long since I last posted, and I'm sure you're wondering why????
Well, I have a couple of things to tell you about...
I got my next ship posting - I was actually given a couple of choices - I will be coming home on either the 18th or 19th of september, I've put in a request for the 18th, so I can just get off the ship in victoria. They offered that I could come back to this ship, Infinity on October 19th, but that would give me only a months vacation, and I'd be coming back to a ship going mostly to places I've already been - don't get me wrong, there's definitely more to see in South America, as I only did one cruise...And, Infinity has a lot of my good friends, and that is definitely a plus - being in South America definitely means some really good latin parties! Second choice is joining the Galaxy on Dec 5th - this option gives me 2 and a half months vacation, plus I'd be joining the ship in Rome, and then traveling the transatlantic to the Caribbean. The Galaxy is actually being sold in March, so if I was to join, I'd be part of the team that would be closing the ship. I was concerned about this as it would only be 3 months into my contract that we would stop the ship, and I was worried that my contract would be cut short, but I've been told that this is not likely, what is likely is that I would be transferred to another ship after I was no longer needed for the close of Galaxy. Well, you can imagine after comparing the 2, which I might have selected? GALAXY!!!!! Whooo hooo! So here's the deal, I'll meet the ship in Rome on Dec 5th, and then travel to Casablanca!!!! then another stop in Morocco....then 3 stops in the Canary Islands...then 5 days as sea while we cross the atlantic...I've heard that's not so fun...and then into the British Virgin Islands, then Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico will be our turn around port, and we'll hit all the popular western caribbean destinations, St Maarten, St Lucia, British Virgin Islands, St Kitts, Barbados, Aruba...Mmmmmm nice....Then when they close the ship, who knows where I will go, but hopefully it'll be another nice ship in nice ports!!!
Okay, next topic - as many of you know, my birthday is coming up, and I'm planning on a celebration in Victoria on August 28th. This is the plan...we will dock at 7pm, and I'll be able to go out at approximately 7:45/8:00. The plan is to invite you all to join us on the dock, Mom and Dad will be there, and will bring the cake, if you want to come please let me know as soon as possible, and let me know if you can bring a little food to share - nothing special! Just some munchies...Oh, and I am inviting a few friends from the ship to come out and say hi as well, so maybe you can meet some of my ship friends!!!! Sound fun? Send me a message, or email me to let me know if you are coming and what you will bring!
Final topic - and most important! I am still looking for a home for my dear little kitty Ricardo! Please let me know if you hear of someone looking for a cat! He is a little needy and not big on being friendly with other animals, so he probably needs to be in a home by himself. I would really like to find him a home before I come home in September so that I can get things done while I'm there. Please, please help me! I'm so sad for my kitty right now!
Okay, so that's it for now, if there are any changes to the party, or questions from you, I'll make another blog to let everyone know, so stay posted!
Love you all, miss you, and hope to see you all on August 28th!
Tabs
Well, I have a couple of things to tell you about...
I got my next ship posting - I was actually given a couple of choices - I will be coming home on either the 18th or 19th of september, I've put in a request for the 18th, so I can just get off the ship in victoria. They offered that I could come back to this ship, Infinity on October 19th, but that would give me only a months vacation, and I'd be coming back to a ship going mostly to places I've already been - don't get me wrong, there's definitely more to see in South America, as I only did one cruise...And, Infinity has a lot of my good friends, and that is definitely a plus - being in South America definitely means some really good latin parties! Second choice is joining the Galaxy on Dec 5th - this option gives me 2 and a half months vacation, plus I'd be joining the ship in Rome, and then traveling the transatlantic to the Caribbean. The Galaxy is actually being sold in March, so if I was to join, I'd be part of the team that would be closing the ship. I was concerned about this as it would only be 3 months into my contract that we would stop the ship, and I was worried that my contract would be cut short, but I've been told that this is not likely, what is likely is that I would be transferred to another ship after I was no longer needed for the close of Galaxy. Well, you can imagine after comparing the 2, which I might have selected? GALAXY!!!!! Whooo hooo! So here's the deal, I'll meet the ship in Rome on Dec 5th, and then travel to Casablanca!!!! then another stop in Morocco....then 3 stops in the Canary Islands...then 5 days as sea while we cross the atlantic...I've heard that's not so fun...and then into the British Virgin Islands, then Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico will be our turn around port, and we'll hit all the popular western caribbean destinations, St Maarten, St Lucia, British Virgin Islands, St Kitts, Barbados, Aruba...Mmmmmm nice....Then when they close the ship, who knows where I will go, but hopefully it'll be another nice ship in nice ports!!!
Okay, next topic - as many of you know, my birthday is coming up, and I'm planning on a celebration in Victoria on August 28th. This is the plan...we will dock at 7pm, and I'll be able to go out at approximately 7:45/8:00. The plan is to invite you all to join us on the dock, Mom and Dad will be there, and will bring the cake, if you want to come please let me know as soon as possible, and let me know if you can bring a little food to share - nothing special! Just some munchies...Oh, and I am inviting a few friends from the ship to come out and say hi as well, so maybe you can meet some of my ship friends!!!! Sound fun? Send me a message, or email me to let me know if you are coming and what you will bring!
Final topic - and most important! I am still looking for a home for my dear little kitty Ricardo! Please let me know if you hear of someone looking for a cat! He is a little needy and not big on being friendly with other animals, so he probably needs to be in a home by himself. I would really like to find him a home before I come home in September so that I can get things done while I'm there. Please, please help me! I'm so sad for my kitty right now!
Okay, so that's it for now, if there are any changes to the party, or questions from you, I'll make another blog to let everyone know, so stay posted!
Love you all, miss you, and hope to see you all on August 28th!
Tabs
Monday, July 28, 2008
Okay, Okay, I know...nearly a month...but...
Okay, I know, it's been a long time, but we're doing the same cruise over and over, there's not always a lot to share! and now I have to be careful what I say! My ship friends have found me on facebook, and could find me here too! For the dirty details send me an email! LOL!
Of course you must know that I'm still really enjoying myself...I've been going to the latin parties every time they have one, and dancing better and better every time...We have some really talented Latin dancers on board so it's really easy to learn from them. I've really adapted to the schedule, and really don't have problems with short sleep nights anymore, as long as I can have my afternoon nap! I've been making a lot of new friends lately, which is really nice since a lot of my current friends are heading off for vacation either already or soon.
So, the job...it's changed some...we have started training the guest relations staff on the bank duties, and I must say, either we have some really smart GRO's or we're really good trainers! I think it's probably a combination! LOL...They have been doing really well, and haven't needed a lot of help so far. We've got a couple of new GRO's right now that are starting to learn, so hopefully they do just as well. I heard from my friend Ricardo who transferred to another ship that they aren't doing nearly so well as our ship! I've been training myself with the guest account purser, and I think I'm doing pretty well. They've asked me for next cruise to be the guest account purser with Liza (Current GAP) to shadow me, so that'll be really interesting, and hopefully fun! I'm looking forward too it - although, it probably means I can't go out for long in Victoria next Thursday, cause I'll be preparing to close the cruise the next day. I'm sure that I will impress them, so I'm not at all nervous (yet!).
I've been missing some of my close friends lately, and hope you will write me soon! I also want to remind everyone that my birthday is coming up at the end of August, and I plan on having a 'Party on the Pier' for my birthday! Please keep August 28th open as that will be the thursday of my birthday week. I would love to have a bit of a potluck, we can all meet in the parking lot in front of my ship, bring a bit of food, and have my ship friends meet my family and home friends! I think it'll be a lot of fun, so stay tuned for more info!
Hmmm, haven't talked about our ports lately. I loaded a few more pictures yesterday and have some more to load soon, I'm almost ready, but just need to sort out which ones to load - maybe tomorrow or wednesday. Hmm, what have I done that's new. Well, I'm really enjoying Sitka. A couple of weeks ago I went out with some friends to the Raptor Centre, they rehabilitate injured birds (eagles, owls, hawks), so that was really nice, we also went for a walk through the Sitka national forest near the town, and that was SO nice, it really felt like I was at home, maybe walking at East Sooke Park. So nice, that I've gone to the forrest every time since (only 2 so far), and plan to go there everytime going forward too. This week, it was funny, cause we had a couple of guys come out with us - 2 deck apprentices, and one officer from the bridge, and one of the apprentices wanted to go for a walk in the woods when we told him about it, but the officer from the bridge (one of the good latin dancers from Panama), really didn't want to go, but the other guys convinced him, and he actually thanked me afterwards cause he had such a good time - it was nice too that we were able to spot quite a few bald eagles and 2 golden eagles. It was funny cause, he actually told me I should be working on the bridge as a spotter! LOL, of course that worried me a bit, I wonder who they have working there that they couldn't spot a few eagles in some trees??? LOL
Alrighty, I better go get ready for the next latin party tonight, I plan for my feet to hurt tomorrow!!!!! LOL! Love you all! There's only 7 more cruises before I come home for vacation and get to see everyone!
Tabs
Of course you must know that I'm still really enjoying myself...I've been going to the latin parties every time they have one, and dancing better and better every time...We have some really talented Latin dancers on board so it's really easy to learn from them. I've really adapted to the schedule, and really don't have problems with short sleep nights anymore, as long as I can have my afternoon nap! I've been making a lot of new friends lately, which is really nice since a lot of my current friends are heading off for vacation either already or soon.
So, the job...it's changed some...we have started training the guest relations staff on the bank duties, and I must say, either we have some really smart GRO's or we're really good trainers! I think it's probably a combination! LOL...They have been doing really well, and haven't needed a lot of help so far. We've got a couple of new GRO's right now that are starting to learn, so hopefully they do just as well. I heard from my friend Ricardo who transferred to another ship that they aren't doing nearly so well as our ship! I've been training myself with the guest account purser, and I think I'm doing pretty well. They've asked me for next cruise to be the guest account purser with Liza (Current GAP) to shadow me, so that'll be really interesting, and hopefully fun! I'm looking forward too it - although, it probably means I can't go out for long in Victoria next Thursday, cause I'll be preparing to close the cruise the next day. I'm sure that I will impress them, so I'm not at all nervous (yet!).
I've been missing some of my close friends lately, and hope you will write me soon! I also want to remind everyone that my birthday is coming up at the end of August, and I plan on having a 'Party on the Pier' for my birthday! Please keep August 28th open as that will be the thursday of my birthday week. I would love to have a bit of a potluck, we can all meet in the parking lot in front of my ship, bring a bit of food, and have my ship friends meet my family and home friends! I think it'll be a lot of fun, so stay tuned for more info!
Hmmm, haven't talked about our ports lately. I loaded a few more pictures yesterday and have some more to load soon, I'm almost ready, but just need to sort out which ones to load - maybe tomorrow or wednesday. Hmm, what have I done that's new. Well, I'm really enjoying Sitka. A couple of weeks ago I went out with some friends to the Raptor Centre, they rehabilitate injured birds (eagles, owls, hawks), so that was really nice, we also went for a walk through the Sitka national forest near the town, and that was SO nice, it really felt like I was at home, maybe walking at East Sooke Park. So nice, that I've gone to the forrest every time since (only 2 so far), and plan to go there everytime going forward too. This week, it was funny, cause we had a couple of guys come out with us - 2 deck apprentices, and one officer from the bridge, and one of the apprentices wanted to go for a walk in the woods when we told him about it, but the officer from the bridge (one of the good latin dancers from Panama), really didn't want to go, but the other guys convinced him, and he actually thanked me afterwards cause he had such a good time - it was nice too that we were able to spot quite a few bald eagles and 2 golden eagles. It was funny cause, he actually told me I should be working on the bridge as a spotter! LOL, of course that worried me a bit, I wonder who they have working there that they couldn't spot a few eagles in some trees??? LOL
Alrighty, I better go get ready for the next latin party tonight, I plan for my feet to hurt tomorrow!!!!! LOL! Love you all! There's only 7 more cruises before I come home for vacation and get to see everyone!
Tabs
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Sorry It's been so long...Been missing you!
Hello everyone!
I am so sorry it's been so long since I've posted! For a while there wasn't much to say, it's been the same old same old...Seattle, Hubbard, Juneau, Ketchikan, Victoria, Seattle...Things have started changing now though, so I do have something more to say!
First, The weather has finally been getting better, I actually wore shorts in Seattle during the last embarkation day (friday)! I had to go get them out of my suitcase, as I hadn't worn them since Mexico!!! I heard it's supposed to be nice in Juneau tomorrow, and I think I'll get to go out, so that'll be great. I got to go out in Ketchikan again FINALLY last week, it was such a nice day, it felt like home, it was raining just a little bit, but still warm, and smelled like home. I admit, I did get a little home sick, but I enjoyed it SO much. I took tonnes of photo's of flowers (to be posted on Picasa soon!), and did a bit of shopping (bought 2 pairs of earings for myself) and had a nice breakfast and lunch. In Seattle I finally found some really comfy good sturdy walking sandles, so now that it's nice out I can still get out for a good hike without over heating my feet!
As many of you know already, the bank on the Celebrity ships are all closing, ours was the last ship, and we closed this past friday in Seattle, we had our last morning during disembarkation, and before we'd even finished balancing our floats, they'd taken the 'BANK' sign down! So, due to this our jobs have changed a bit, as well as our schedules, we are required to spend 6 hours a day in Guest Relations, watching them with their cash transactions, and getting them all trained up, then at least 2 more hours in the admin office doing whatever else is necessary for our job. It was really crazy the last couple of days as we also had to get payroll done! So far things are going pretty well, guest relations has really stepped up and are doing a good job, but of course it's not busy yet, the last day of the cruise will really tell us how they can handle the pressure of handling money! I've been enjoying the time with guest relations, getting to know the staff, and I've started to make some good friends over there. Ana, from Portugal, Josue from Peru and I have spent a few nights having Martini's in the Martini bar over the last few weeks! Love the Martini Bar! I've also been really enjoying Latin night in the crew bar, man, these guys can dance! Josue, Daniel, Marco, Alex, and even Wilmer...Wilmer claims to have liked me since I signed on more than 3 months ago, but had to ask me what my name was last week...LOL - dumbass...
I've been making some other friends as well, Rosalba, the Captains Club Hostess (and probably the most beautiful woman on the ship...guys...unfortunately she's in drydock...LOL), also Carolina, the international hostess, Daniel, who works in our Shore Excursions department, and he's a sweetheart, I think we've become pretty good friends...It's good to finally be starting to make some more friends, though, Rosalba & Carolina both leave within the next couple of weeks! Ah, but this is ship life, others will arrive to replace them...
Hmmm, what else is there...I'm still seeing the same guy that I started seeing about 6 or 7 weeks ago, unfortunately with the changes for my department, and his busy schedule, we've hardly been able to spend any time together, we finally got to speak for 10 minutes tonight after hardly exchanging a word since about a week ago...you'd think it would be easy on ships, but, it's not! Especially since we are still keeping things quiet - I'm quite surprised that no one has caught on yet - it's a rare thing on ships to keep relationships quiet...I think maybe it helps that I'm spending time with other guys (Daniel & Josue), it throws people off the real trail...LOL!
I believe now that I have about 10 and a half weeks left till my scheduled vacation in mid September, so that's exciting, just 2 and a half months! I did some training with our guest account purser, Liza, last week, so it feels good to be progressing towards a promotion. It'll be a bit hard to train over the next couple of weeks while the transition of the bank to guest relations is going on, but I hope to get a few more hours in during that time. Javier, our Financial Controller has told me that after I've trained a bit more he wants me to do the GAP (guest account purser) job for one entire cruise, with Liza just shadowing me! So exciting! And a bit scary! I think it's really gthe best way though, for me to learn everything, and to deal with issues as they arise rather than hope that Liza contacts me to tell me or show me what to do with them. I hope to be able to do that by the end of July. I think Javier thinks that I can do really well at it, so I want to prove to him that I can. Although, I've got a good life on this ship, so I don't really want to be promoted and moved to another ship before the end of this contract either! LOL
Alrighty, I think that's about it for me for now, I'm sure your eyes are tired from reading all my updates! I love you all, and miss you so much!
Love,
Tabitha
I am so sorry it's been so long since I've posted! For a while there wasn't much to say, it's been the same old same old...Seattle, Hubbard, Juneau, Ketchikan, Victoria, Seattle...Things have started changing now though, so I do have something more to say!
First, The weather has finally been getting better, I actually wore shorts in Seattle during the last embarkation day (friday)! I had to go get them out of my suitcase, as I hadn't worn them since Mexico!!! I heard it's supposed to be nice in Juneau tomorrow, and I think I'll get to go out, so that'll be great. I got to go out in Ketchikan again FINALLY last week, it was such a nice day, it felt like home, it was raining just a little bit, but still warm, and smelled like home. I admit, I did get a little home sick, but I enjoyed it SO much. I took tonnes of photo's of flowers (to be posted on Picasa soon!), and did a bit of shopping (bought 2 pairs of earings for myself) and had a nice breakfast and lunch. In Seattle I finally found some really comfy good sturdy walking sandles, so now that it's nice out I can still get out for a good hike without over heating my feet!
As many of you know already, the bank on the Celebrity ships are all closing, ours was the last ship, and we closed this past friday in Seattle, we had our last morning during disembarkation, and before we'd even finished balancing our floats, they'd taken the 'BANK' sign down! So, due to this our jobs have changed a bit, as well as our schedules, we are required to spend 6 hours a day in Guest Relations, watching them with their cash transactions, and getting them all trained up, then at least 2 more hours in the admin office doing whatever else is necessary for our job. It was really crazy the last couple of days as we also had to get payroll done! So far things are going pretty well, guest relations has really stepped up and are doing a good job, but of course it's not busy yet, the last day of the cruise will really tell us how they can handle the pressure of handling money! I've been enjoying the time with guest relations, getting to know the staff, and I've started to make some good friends over there. Ana, from Portugal, Josue from Peru and I have spent a few nights having Martini's in the Martini bar over the last few weeks! Love the Martini Bar! I've also been really enjoying Latin night in the crew bar, man, these guys can dance! Josue, Daniel, Marco, Alex, and even Wilmer...Wilmer claims to have liked me since I signed on more than 3 months ago, but had to ask me what my name was last week...LOL - dumbass...
I've been making some other friends as well, Rosalba, the Captains Club Hostess (and probably the most beautiful woman on the ship...guys...unfortunately she's in drydock...LOL), also Carolina, the international hostess, Daniel, who works in our Shore Excursions department, and he's a sweetheart, I think we've become pretty good friends...It's good to finally be starting to make some more friends, though, Rosalba & Carolina both leave within the next couple of weeks! Ah, but this is ship life, others will arrive to replace them...
Hmmm, what else is there...I'm still seeing the same guy that I started seeing about 6 or 7 weeks ago, unfortunately with the changes for my department, and his busy schedule, we've hardly been able to spend any time together, we finally got to speak for 10 minutes tonight after hardly exchanging a word since about a week ago...you'd think it would be easy on ships, but, it's not! Especially since we are still keeping things quiet - I'm quite surprised that no one has caught on yet - it's a rare thing on ships to keep relationships quiet...I think maybe it helps that I'm spending time with other guys (Daniel & Josue), it throws people off the real trail...LOL!
I believe now that I have about 10 and a half weeks left till my scheduled vacation in mid September, so that's exciting, just 2 and a half months! I did some training with our guest account purser, Liza, last week, so it feels good to be progressing towards a promotion. It'll be a bit hard to train over the next couple of weeks while the transition of the bank to guest relations is going on, but I hope to get a few more hours in during that time. Javier, our Financial Controller has told me that after I've trained a bit more he wants me to do the GAP (guest account purser) job for one entire cruise, with Liza just shadowing me! So exciting! And a bit scary! I think it's really gthe best way though, for me to learn everything, and to deal with issues as they arise rather than hope that Liza contacts me to tell me or show me what to do with them. I hope to be able to do that by the end of July. I think Javier thinks that I can do really well at it, so I want to prove to him that I can. Although, I've got a good life on this ship, so I don't really want to be promoted and moved to another ship before the end of this contract either! LOL
Alrighty, I think that's about it for me for now, I'm sure your eyes are tired from reading all my updates! I love you all, and miss you so much!
Love,
Tabitha
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Latest Update
Good Day Everyone!
Sorry it's been so long since I updated you! There hasn't been much to report, as we are now doing the same route every week. Exciting news, I've made it to the half way point, and after this cruise, there will be only 11 weeks left of my contract! Yipee!
I finally got up in the tram at Juneau last week, so that's exciting as well, I took some pictures, but still have to resize them before i post them for you, it was beautiful from the top of the mountain overlooking Juneau, you could see all the way down the channel that you have to come down to get to the city. When I was up there, there was a ship coming in, The Norwegian Pearl, so I got some nice shots of that ship coming down the channel.
Well, this week I started training for the guest account purser position, so I'm excited about that, I haven't had a lot of time, and will need to train a lot more before I'm ready to apply for the position. They have delayed the transfer of the bank duties to guest relations for a couple more weeks, shoreside will come on board to start the transfer on the 27th of June, so hopefully they don't delay it again so that we can just get this taken care of. It'll be a really interesting time I think!
Not much more other than that for now I think...I was missing my friends and family a lot the last couple of weeks, but am starting to feel better now - but of course, I still love to hear from you!
Talk to you soon!
Tabs
Sorry it's been so long since I updated you! There hasn't been much to report, as we are now doing the same route every week. Exciting news, I've made it to the half way point, and after this cruise, there will be only 11 weeks left of my contract! Yipee!
I finally got up in the tram at Juneau last week, so that's exciting as well, I took some pictures, but still have to resize them before i post them for you, it was beautiful from the top of the mountain overlooking Juneau, you could see all the way down the channel that you have to come down to get to the city. When I was up there, there was a ship coming in, The Norwegian Pearl, so I got some nice shots of that ship coming down the channel.
Well, this week I started training for the guest account purser position, so I'm excited about that, I haven't had a lot of time, and will need to train a lot more before I'm ready to apply for the position. They have delayed the transfer of the bank duties to guest relations for a couple more weeks, shoreside will come on board to start the transfer on the 27th of June, so hopefully they don't delay it again so that we can just get this taken care of. It'll be a really interesting time I think!
Not much more other than that for now I think...I was missing my friends and family a lot the last couple of weeks, but am starting to feel better now - but of course, I still love to hear from you!
Talk to you soon!
Tabs
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Update + Need a new home for my Kitty... :-(
Okay, so lets get the not so fun stuff out of the way....Ricky will become homeless in September as his current living accommodations will no longer be available to him. When I had set up this home for him it was agreed that they would take him for a trial 6 months (my first contract) to see how things went. The woman that initially took him, absolutely LOVES him, unfortunately she lives in her mother's house and mom is elderly and does not want to accept his love. So I have been informed that when I come home in September I will have to find him a new home. I would like to find something sooner if at all possible so that we can get him settled somewhere else sooner. Please let me know if you are interested by sending an email to tabithav@shaw.ca .
A few things about Ricky, he does need a home without other animals, he's not a bit fan of other animals, and will attack (even big dogs) though I suspect that eventually he could be acclimatized if necessary, but I think the stress of moving again is enough. He needs a lot of love, and does tend to talk a lot...but he's the most loving kitty I've ever met...
Okay, on to happier thoughts...
I know it's been awhile since I wrote about my adventures, and I appologize about that, I've been upset about writing to ask for Ricky's new home...But I do have much to talk about!
Well, last time I think I told you that our Financial Controller Theo was leaving us, and Javier was coming on board to replace him. I really miss Theo, he was a great guy! But Javier seems really cool as well - really seems to respect us, and has a fun time along with the work that needs doing. He's asked me to train with Liza (the guest account purser) so that I can have the opportunity to do that once the bank duties are transferred to Guest Relations, so I will start that training in mid June sometime.
About the bank duties, we have a couple of staff from Shore side coming on board a little over a week from now to oversee the transfer of the bank duties to Guest Relations, so this week and next we are doing a bit of training with the guest relations officers so that they can become familiar with our practices and get an idea of what they will be doing in a couple of weeks. Apparently on the other ships it's been pretty crazy so they are trying to plan ahead a bit more with us, we are one of the last ships to make the change so we shall see how things go!
I finally made it off the ship in Sitka this week, it's a small town, I didn't have much time, so mostly just a quick walk around, ate some not so good Japanese food, had a walk up this hill where you can look over the town for a few pictures (already posted on Picasa!) and then it was back to the ship. I was told there was a great spot to have Hamburgers, where 3 older ladies ran a hamburger cart, but I wasn't able to find it, I'll have to get my friend to show me next time!
We of course were back at Hubbard Glacier this cruise, I hadn't planned to go and take photo's this time as it was also payroll day for the staff, which means that we are working long hours to hand out all the pay, but when I went upstairs to have some lunch I noticed that we were a lot closer to the glacier that we had been before, so of course I had to run to get my camera and head out to shoot some pictures. It was really clear this close to the glacier how big that thing is...When you are a mile or more away it doesn't look so big as right up next to it! It was really incredible. The glacier comes out into Yakatuk Bay, and normally you come into the bay, and you end up next to a bit of an island that's just on the right hand side of the bay, but this time we were able to go past the island, and when you get this close you can actually see that the glacier also extends down this narrow channel (or maybe the glacier makes the channel narrow!) So you can see down the side of it. There was a lot of calving activity (Ice falling from the glacier) but I was late getting up there so didn't see much of that! Next time! (Again, check out the pictures on Picasa)
Next up was Juneau, I finally brought my camera with me in Juneau this time - usually I end up doing chores - shopping, and don't bring the camera cause of not so good weather, but this time I decided to bring it anyways, I went down past the docks to where you can over look the bay a bit and there was a bit of an estuary type area where i took a few photos...On the way back I saw a sign for the Alaska State Museum, I don't know what made me do it, but I thought, well if it's cheap to go in, I'll check it out...It was $5, so I went in and I'm so glad I did! Upstairs they were having a photo exhibition for local amature photographers, man there were some BEAUTIFUL photo's in there. I was so impressed! I wish I could show you my favorites! There was one that was of a bay type area in Alaska, mountains in the background (but they were a little over exposed) but the bay was reflecting the mountains, and they'd set up the composition so well, that the best part of the mountains was highlighted by the sun, and reflected into a small little pool of water (and perfectly exposed)...I know I'm not explaining it well, but it was so incredible!!! The winning photo was of an old abandoned building rooftop that had graffiti on it, and water, and the lighting was perfect with reflecting in the water on the roof and off the graffiti...Mmmm...may have go to back next week!
Well, that's about everything for where we went and updates about work...Now for the fun stuff...ship life!
I finally feel like I'm not the new girl anymore, I now have friends on other ships!! My co-workers from the beginning of my contract, Anna and David, have started their new contracts. David was able to get on the ship he wanted (Summit), as his girlfriend is on that ship. I sent him an email, but haven't heard back yet. And Anna has gotten the job she wanted working as a Casino Cashier on the Mercury - which is also in Alaska but we won't ever meet in any ports to say hello...too bad!
Other things on the ship are going well, been to the gym a couple of times, and still eating fairly healty. I am seeing a guy from Shore Excursions and that seems to be going pretty well... ;-)
Mom and Dad are coming by the ship this Thursday, and are bringing a little barbeque to cook me up some hotdogs, and potato salad, so I'm pretty excited to see them! I also get to see my dear friend Shannon and chat with her all night, hopefully I'm not late back to the ship!!!
Anyways, I've written tonnes, and probably need to get off the internet for a while! So I will say good night, Love you all! Write soon!
Tabs
A few things about Ricky, he does need a home without other animals, he's not a bit fan of other animals, and will attack (even big dogs) though I suspect that eventually he could be acclimatized if necessary, but I think the stress of moving again is enough. He needs a lot of love, and does tend to talk a lot...but he's the most loving kitty I've ever met...
Okay, on to happier thoughts...
I know it's been awhile since I wrote about my adventures, and I appologize about that, I've been upset about writing to ask for Ricky's new home...But I do have much to talk about!
Well, last time I think I told you that our Financial Controller Theo was leaving us, and Javier was coming on board to replace him. I really miss Theo, he was a great guy! But Javier seems really cool as well - really seems to respect us, and has a fun time along with the work that needs doing. He's asked me to train with Liza (the guest account purser) so that I can have the opportunity to do that once the bank duties are transferred to Guest Relations, so I will start that training in mid June sometime.
About the bank duties, we have a couple of staff from Shore side coming on board a little over a week from now to oversee the transfer of the bank duties to Guest Relations, so this week and next we are doing a bit of training with the guest relations officers so that they can become familiar with our practices and get an idea of what they will be doing in a couple of weeks. Apparently on the other ships it's been pretty crazy so they are trying to plan ahead a bit more with us, we are one of the last ships to make the change so we shall see how things go!
I finally made it off the ship in Sitka this week, it's a small town, I didn't have much time, so mostly just a quick walk around, ate some not so good Japanese food, had a walk up this hill where you can look over the town for a few pictures (already posted on Picasa!) and then it was back to the ship. I was told there was a great spot to have Hamburgers, where 3 older ladies ran a hamburger cart, but I wasn't able to find it, I'll have to get my friend to show me next time!
We of course were back at Hubbard Glacier this cruise, I hadn't planned to go and take photo's this time as it was also payroll day for the staff, which means that we are working long hours to hand out all the pay, but when I went upstairs to have some lunch I noticed that we were a lot closer to the glacier that we had been before, so of course I had to run to get my camera and head out to shoot some pictures. It was really clear this close to the glacier how big that thing is...When you are a mile or more away it doesn't look so big as right up next to it! It was really incredible. The glacier comes out into Yakatuk Bay, and normally you come into the bay, and you end up next to a bit of an island that's just on the right hand side of the bay, but this time we were able to go past the island, and when you get this close you can actually see that the glacier also extends down this narrow channel (or maybe the glacier makes the channel narrow!) So you can see down the side of it. There was a lot of calving activity (Ice falling from the glacier) but I was late getting up there so didn't see much of that! Next time! (Again, check out the pictures on Picasa)
Next up was Juneau, I finally brought my camera with me in Juneau this time - usually I end up doing chores - shopping, and don't bring the camera cause of not so good weather, but this time I decided to bring it anyways, I went down past the docks to where you can over look the bay a bit and there was a bit of an estuary type area where i took a few photos...On the way back I saw a sign for the Alaska State Museum, I don't know what made me do it, but I thought, well if it's cheap to go in, I'll check it out...It was $5, so I went in and I'm so glad I did! Upstairs they were having a photo exhibition for local amature photographers, man there were some BEAUTIFUL photo's in there. I was so impressed! I wish I could show you my favorites! There was one that was of a bay type area in Alaska, mountains in the background (but they were a little over exposed) but the bay was reflecting the mountains, and they'd set up the composition so well, that the best part of the mountains was highlighted by the sun, and reflected into a small little pool of water (and perfectly exposed)...I know I'm not explaining it well, but it was so incredible!!! The winning photo was of an old abandoned building rooftop that had graffiti on it, and water, and the lighting was perfect with reflecting in the water on the roof and off the graffiti...Mmmm...may have go to back next week!
Well, that's about everything for where we went and updates about work...Now for the fun stuff...ship life!
I finally feel like I'm not the new girl anymore, I now have friends on other ships!! My co-workers from the beginning of my contract, Anna and David, have started their new contracts. David was able to get on the ship he wanted (Summit), as his girlfriend is on that ship. I sent him an email, but haven't heard back yet. And Anna has gotten the job she wanted working as a Casino Cashier on the Mercury - which is also in Alaska but we won't ever meet in any ports to say hello...too bad!
Other things on the ship are going well, been to the gym a couple of times, and still eating fairly healty. I am seeing a guy from Shore Excursions and that seems to be going pretty well... ;-)
Mom and Dad are coming by the ship this Thursday, and are bringing a little barbeque to cook me up some hotdogs, and potato salad, so I'm pretty excited to see them! I also get to see my dear friend Shannon and chat with her all night, hopefully I'm not late back to the ship!!!
Anyways, I've written tonnes, and probably need to get off the internet for a while! So I will say good night, Love you all! Write soon!
Tabs
Monday, May 26, 2008
Tab Needs Love from her friends back home...
Anybody out there? Yes, Nikki, I know you are there - I LOVE YOU!!! But I haven't heard from too many others lately and I'm definitely getting lonely without you!
Well, I'm almost 2 and a half months into my contract, and it sure seems to have gone quickly. Can you imagine? in less than 2 and a half months, I've traveled from Victoria to Buenos Aires, around Cape Horn, and all the way up the west side of south America, been through the Panama Canal twice, all the way up the Alaska Pan Handle to Hubbard Glacier? And of course been back to home sweet home 3 times??? It's pretty incredible. I'm still a little blown away by it all.
Other things have happened as well, I've met men I like, men I really don't like, I've met new friends on the ship - some that have already left for their vacations, been through 3 changes of personnel in a 7 person department - with another change happening this week (BTW). I've adjusted to living in a cabin with a roommate, AND I've adjusted to not getting 8 hours of sleep per night. Right now it's nearly 11pm, and I have to work at 6:30 tomorrow morning - but I don't plan on going to bed for a couple more hours! I've already gotten sick of the food, and really only eat cause I'm hungry now - though every once in a while I still go a little crazy, like when they have a taco station, or an omelet station (MMMMMMMmmmmmm). I've learned how to walk down a moving hallway and not hit walls, and of course keep smiling and saying good evening to the guests at the same time. I've had acupuncture to cure sea sickness, and headaches (and it's still working BTW).
Stacy you'll like this one, I've gotten over my lazyness, I went to the gym 3 nights ago, and got inspired by one of the trainers training a couple of other girls bootcamp style, and I had to do it, I'm still sore, and have been back to the gym every night since - and I'm feeling fabulous now for it!
Most importantly, I'm relaxed, taking fabulous photos, taking things one day at a time, and having the best time of my life....Who woulda thought it? Not me...that's for sure. The worst thing about being on the ship, is not talking to all of you, I miss my family, and my friends VERY much, and really hope that you will be in touch soon.
Okay, well that's my spew for the night, I gotta go call a boy...LOL - maybe that will get your attention...LOL!!!!!
Love you all lots, hugs and kisses! Miss you!
Tabs
Well, I'm almost 2 and a half months into my contract, and it sure seems to have gone quickly. Can you imagine? in less than 2 and a half months, I've traveled from Victoria to Buenos Aires, around Cape Horn, and all the way up the west side of south America, been through the Panama Canal twice, all the way up the Alaska Pan Handle to Hubbard Glacier? And of course been back to home sweet home 3 times??? It's pretty incredible. I'm still a little blown away by it all.
Other things have happened as well, I've met men I like, men I really don't like, I've met new friends on the ship - some that have already left for their vacations, been through 3 changes of personnel in a 7 person department - with another change happening this week (BTW). I've adjusted to living in a cabin with a roommate, AND I've adjusted to not getting 8 hours of sleep per night. Right now it's nearly 11pm, and I have to work at 6:30 tomorrow morning - but I don't plan on going to bed for a couple more hours! I've already gotten sick of the food, and really only eat cause I'm hungry now - though every once in a while I still go a little crazy, like when they have a taco station, or an omelet station (MMMMMMMmmmmmm). I've learned how to walk down a moving hallway and not hit walls, and of course keep smiling and saying good evening to the guests at the same time. I've had acupuncture to cure sea sickness, and headaches (and it's still working BTW).
Stacy you'll like this one, I've gotten over my lazyness, I went to the gym 3 nights ago, and got inspired by one of the trainers training a couple of other girls bootcamp style, and I had to do it, I'm still sore, and have been back to the gym every night since - and I'm feeling fabulous now for it!
Most importantly, I'm relaxed, taking fabulous photos, taking things one day at a time, and having the best time of my life....Who woulda thought it? Not me...that's for sure. The worst thing about being on the ship, is not talking to all of you, I miss my family, and my friends VERY much, and really hope that you will be in touch soon.
Okay, well that's my spew for the night, I gotta go call a boy...LOL - maybe that will get your attention...LOL!!!!!
Love you all lots, hugs and kisses! Miss you!
Tabs
Friday, May 23, 2008
Pictures On Picasa!!!
Okay, not much to say at the moment, I'll have more later, but wanted to let everyone know that ALL of my pictures are now posted to Picasa!!! Yippee! I hope it was worth the wait!
http://picasaweb.google.com/tabithav76
Check them out, and let me know what you think, my absolute favorite is in the last Hubbard Glacier album, a portrait shot with the sun glinting off the ocean and the mountains in the background...Hopefully I'll have some more fabulous shots after this cruise to share!
Miss everyone! Lots of love!
Tabitha
http://picasaweb.google.com/tabithav76
Check them out, and let me know what you think, my absolute favorite is in the last Hubbard Glacier album, a portrait shot with the sun glinting off the ocean and the mountains in the background...Hopefully I'll have some more fabulous shots after this cruise to share!
Miss everyone! Lots of love!
Tabitha
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
A Much Better Week
Well, we're now half way through another cruise, and it's been a much better trip so far. Seattle was very nice, warm weather, I even got a little burnt! Our Pier is very close to Pike Place Market, so I went for a stroll through the market, picked up a sandwich from the Cheese Factory, and a drink, and went to sit in the park and enjoy my lunch! It was a really nice day! After that I strolled along the piers, and it looks like there is a lot to explore so I don't think I'll get tired of our stops in Seattle!
Bit of a Funny Story...and a little embarassing...
As we left Seattle I got ready for work but didn't need to be in the bank right away so I decided to go up to the Helipad to take some pictures. I went up, took a few pictures, and then a security guard came running up and asked me where the guest was...Now I was in Full Evening Uniform, black pants, dress shirt black blazer with stripes on the sleeves...and I said I haven't seen anyone, and I've been here for about 10 minutes...He says he got a call from the bridge saying there was a guest on the helipad - they aren't allowed, just crew is allowed - so I guess the bridge thought I was a guest...OMG, the security guard had to call them back and tell them who I was! It was so embarassing! I was so nervous about them watching me from the bridge that I just went to a guest area to finish taking pictures! And I was nervous about going out even though I knew others would too when we went to Hubbard Glacier!
As we sailed out of Seattle it was a beautiful afternoon, and it was nice to take some photo's of the city from the sea. We passed Race Rocks around sunset that night, and I got some great sunset pictures over the western part of the island - it was like a fairy tale it was so beautiful! Sailing off into the sunset!
After last cruise I can tell you I was a bit nervous about heading out to sea that day, and for the next day when we would be at sea all day, but we actually had some pretty good weather so there was nothing to worry about.
We arrived in Sitka on Sunday, and it looks like a really beautiful port, unfortunately because of my working hours I wasn't able to go out, but next week I should be able to. I had another Acupuncture treatment that morning for the headaches that I've been getting since the last treatment, and it felt really good, though clearly my sinuses are part of my problem, my nose completely stuffed up and I had to breathe through my mouth for most of the treatment! Then, after the treatment, I couldn't stop sneezing ALL DAY! It was really kind of funny...but it was really just my sinuses clearing everything out with the sneezing and it stopped the next day.
Yesterday we were in Hubbard Glacier for the 3rd time, but the first time that we had clear weather - it was INCREDIBLE, INCREDIBLE, INCREDIBLE. The sky was so blue, the water was this really beautiful colour, the glacier itself was vibrant, the icebergs were fantastic...I went up to the front of the ship (Helipad) and along with a few other crew members took a tonne of pictures. I think around 185! We were at the glacier for about 2 hours, and I spent the entire time outside, sailing towards the glacier it was pretty cold, but once we stopped and started turning, it was WARM, the sun on your back and just beautiful. Very lucky this cruise I think. Dale, I think there might be a few pic's in there that you might want!!!
Today we were back in Juneau and I was able to go out for a short while, I had a Fish Taco at a stand near the pier, and went to my favorite Coffee shop in Juneau for a little rest before walking around for a bit and heading back to the ship.
We'll be in Ketchikan again tomorrow, but I won't have the chance to go out, and probably won't be able to go out for a few weeks in Ketchikan due to the duties I have at this time, but as long as I can get out in Juneau I should be okay with that - especially since we go home every week to Victoria!
We will arrive in Victoria Thursday evening, but I won't be going out this time, some of the family is coming on board for a tour this time, I can't wait to show them the ship!
And I have an update about pictures, a good friend on the ship has helped me get my laptop set up - it was a little more complicated than I thought it would be! So I will be working on getting some photo's uploaded from South America tonight! So you should see them late tonight or tomorrow morning. But, I won't be posting them here or on Facebook, I've decided to post them on my picasa site - http://picasaweb.google.com/tabithav76 - so check out the photo's when you get a chance, I'm not sure how long it will take as I've got A LOT of photo's to upload, so keep checking back for more!
Love you! Miss you!
Tabs
Bit of a Funny Story...and a little embarassing...
As we left Seattle I got ready for work but didn't need to be in the bank right away so I decided to go up to the Helipad to take some pictures. I went up, took a few pictures, and then a security guard came running up and asked me where the guest was...Now I was in Full Evening Uniform, black pants, dress shirt black blazer with stripes on the sleeves...and I said I haven't seen anyone, and I've been here for about 10 minutes...He says he got a call from the bridge saying there was a guest on the helipad - they aren't allowed, just crew is allowed - so I guess the bridge thought I was a guest...OMG, the security guard had to call them back and tell them who I was! It was so embarassing! I was so nervous about them watching me from the bridge that I just went to a guest area to finish taking pictures! And I was nervous about going out even though I knew others would too when we went to Hubbard Glacier!
As we sailed out of Seattle it was a beautiful afternoon, and it was nice to take some photo's of the city from the sea. We passed Race Rocks around sunset that night, and I got some great sunset pictures over the western part of the island - it was like a fairy tale it was so beautiful! Sailing off into the sunset!
After last cruise I can tell you I was a bit nervous about heading out to sea that day, and for the next day when we would be at sea all day, but we actually had some pretty good weather so there was nothing to worry about.
We arrived in Sitka on Sunday, and it looks like a really beautiful port, unfortunately because of my working hours I wasn't able to go out, but next week I should be able to. I had another Acupuncture treatment that morning for the headaches that I've been getting since the last treatment, and it felt really good, though clearly my sinuses are part of my problem, my nose completely stuffed up and I had to breathe through my mouth for most of the treatment! Then, after the treatment, I couldn't stop sneezing ALL DAY! It was really kind of funny...but it was really just my sinuses clearing everything out with the sneezing and it stopped the next day.
Yesterday we were in Hubbard Glacier for the 3rd time, but the first time that we had clear weather - it was INCREDIBLE, INCREDIBLE, INCREDIBLE. The sky was so blue, the water was this really beautiful colour, the glacier itself was vibrant, the icebergs were fantastic...I went up to the front of the ship (Helipad) and along with a few other crew members took a tonne of pictures. I think around 185! We were at the glacier for about 2 hours, and I spent the entire time outside, sailing towards the glacier it was pretty cold, but once we stopped and started turning, it was WARM, the sun on your back and just beautiful. Very lucky this cruise I think. Dale, I think there might be a few pic's in there that you might want!!!
Today we were back in Juneau and I was able to go out for a short while, I had a Fish Taco at a stand near the pier, and went to my favorite Coffee shop in Juneau for a little rest before walking around for a bit and heading back to the ship.
We'll be in Ketchikan again tomorrow, but I won't have the chance to go out, and probably won't be able to go out for a few weeks in Ketchikan due to the duties I have at this time, but as long as I can get out in Juneau I should be okay with that - especially since we go home every week to Victoria!
We will arrive in Victoria Thursday evening, but I won't be going out this time, some of the family is coming on board for a tour this time, I can't wait to show them the ship!
And I have an update about pictures, a good friend on the ship has helped me get my laptop set up - it was a little more complicated than I thought it would be! So I will be working on getting some photo's uploaded from South America tonight! So you should see them late tonight or tomorrow morning. But, I won't be posting them here or on Facebook, I've decided to post them on my picasa site - http://picasaweb.google.com/tabithav76 - so check out the photo's when you get a chance, I'm not sure how long it will take as I've got A LOT of photo's to upload, so keep checking back for more!
Love you! Miss you!
Tabs
Friday, May 16, 2008
The last week was a doozy...
Good Afternoon everyone!
Sorry it's been a week since I wrote, but we've had quite a week! We traveled from Seattle to Ketchikan, Hubbard Glacier, then Juneau and back down to Victoria in the last week, and we had terrible weather...terrible, terrible weather...many of the crew who have done these cruises in Alaska before said it's the worst weather they've ever seen. Anytime we were in open waters, it was rough, windy, rainy, huge swells. For a couple of days we had swells hitting deck 3 and 4! Usually if it's rough they will hit decks 1 and maybe 2...I was VERY sick a few days ago, and after speaking with one of the acupuncturists on board I decided to give it a try...what an amazing thing! I am a total acupuncture enthusiest now! I had the acupuncture, the next day we had really rough waters again and I was fine, I started to feel a little bad in the evening, so she told me just to come back and she'll take care of that, but after that day, we had an even rougher day, and I felt NO sea sickness. It's amazing! I'm so into it, I'm going to try it for some other things as well! I felt so incredible after the treatment and even the next day. The night I had the treatment they had a special party for us in the guest disco, and it was a little rough, but not much, but if it's even a little rough, I don't have any alcoholic drinks cause i don't want to make myself sick in anyway, but that night I had a couple of martini's and danced till 3am! I had to get up at 7am the next morning for work, I was up about 10 minutes before the alarm, and feeling fabulous! I've never felt fabulous after so little sleep before! Can't wait for my next treatment!
So, back to our travels, we had a lot of rain in both Juneau and Ketchikan, but it didn't stop me (I'm from Victoria!) I went out had a look through some shops in both cities, I hadn't been out in Juneau before so it was nice to have a look around. It's a cute little town, right at the edge of the pier (like Ketchikan) so you don't have to take time to travel to the city, which is nice when you don't have much time like us crew! Next time if it's nice, there is a tram that goes up the mountain right from the pier, and I'd like to go up to take some pictures of the area and the city from above, it was too foggy this time, and wet of course! My friend Nuno that I was going to go out to take pictures with in Juneau left to be transfered to another ship, so that was disappointing for me, but I've found a new friend that is really into photography! Oh, and by the way, he uses ACDSee Pro 2 and LOVES IT! LOL...
Coming back down towards Victoria we were supposed to do some travels thorugh the Alaska Inside Passage, but unfortunately due to the weather we had to bypass as we were going into the weather, and it slowed us down so much that we were hours behind. We bypassed the passage and we were still 3 hours late into Victoria yesterday! It was incredible. We were all so happy when we were going between the Charlottes and the mainland cause it wasn't quite so bad, and of course once we got inside Vancouver Island it was SO much better last night. I sure hope the next cruise is better...
We made it to Victoria at about 4:30 last night, and I was able to go off the ship at about 5:45, I met up with Mom, Dad, Brooklynn & Kolten for some Ice Cream at Beacon Drive in, and then met up with (ONLY 3) of my friends at the Irish Times pub. I was hoping for a better turn out! But they got my undivided attention...Would it help get you there if I bring some hot ship men (maybe some Greeks and Brazilians?), and sexy ship women (Latinos?) next time???? LOL
Anyways, that's about it for this past week, We'll be heading back up to Alaska again and I'll try to update you a bit more often this time, if the weather is better it should be easiser, as I won't get sick reading and typing! Okay, thanks for reading, and hope to hear from you soon!
Love you all!
Tabs
Sorry it's been a week since I wrote, but we've had quite a week! We traveled from Seattle to Ketchikan, Hubbard Glacier, then Juneau and back down to Victoria in the last week, and we had terrible weather...terrible, terrible weather...many of the crew who have done these cruises in Alaska before said it's the worst weather they've ever seen. Anytime we were in open waters, it was rough, windy, rainy, huge swells. For a couple of days we had swells hitting deck 3 and 4! Usually if it's rough they will hit decks 1 and maybe 2...I was VERY sick a few days ago, and after speaking with one of the acupuncturists on board I decided to give it a try...what an amazing thing! I am a total acupuncture enthusiest now! I had the acupuncture, the next day we had really rough waters again and I was fine, I started to feel a little bad in the evening, so she told me just to come back and she'll take care of that, but after that day, we had an even rougher day, and I felt NO sea sickness. It's amazing! I'm so into it, I'm going to try it for some other things as well! I felt so incredible after the treatment and even the next day. The night I had the treatment they had a special party for us in the guest disco, and it was a little rough, but not much, but if it's even a little rough, I don't have any alcoholic drinks cause i don't want to make myself sick in anyway, but that night I had a couple of martini's and danced till 3am! I had to get up at 7am the next morning for work, I was up about 10 minutes before the alarm, and feeling fabulous! I've never felt fabulous after so little sleep before! Can't wait for my next treatment!
So, back to our travels, we had a lot of rain in both Juneau and Ketchikan, but it didn't stop me (I'm from Victoria!) I went out had a look through some shops in both cities, I hadn't been out in Juneau before so it was nice to have a look around. It's a cute little town, right at the edge of the pier (like Ketchikan) so you don't have to take time to travel to the city, which is nice when you don't have much time like us crew! Next time if it's nice, there is a tram that goes up the mountain right from the pier, and I'd like to go up to take some pictures of the area and the city from above, it was too foggy this time, and wet of course! My friend Nuno that I was going to go out to take pictures with in Juneau left to be transfered to another ship, so that was disappointing for me, but I've found a new friend that is really into photography! Oh, and by the way, he uses ACDSee Pro 2 and LOVES IT! LOL...
Coming back down towards Victoria we were supposed to do some travels thorugh the Alaska Inside Passage, but unfortunately due to the weather we had to bypass as we were going into the weather, and it slowed us down so much that we were hours behind. We bypassed the passage and we were still 3 hours late into Victoria yesterday! It was incredible. We were all so happy when we were going between the Charlottes and the mainland cause it wasn't quite so bad, and of course once we got inside Vancouver Island it was SO much better last night. I sure hope the next cruise is better...
We made it to Victoria at about 4:30 last night, and I was able to go off the ship at about 5:45, I met up with Mom, Dad, Brooklynn & Kolten for some Ice Cream at Beacon Drive in, and then met up with (ONLY 3) of my friends at the Irish Times pub. I was hoping for a better turn out! But they got my undivided attention...Would it help get you there if I bring some hot ship men (maybe some Greeks and Brazilians?), and sexy ship women (Latinos?) next time???? LOL
Anyways, that's about it for this past week, We'll be heading back up to Alaska again and I'll try to update you a bit more often this time, if the weather is better it should be easiser, as I won't get sick reading and typing! Okay, thanks for reading, and hope to hear from you soon!
Love you all!
Tabs
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Weather Delays...
So, it sounds like I might not make it to Irish Times until 6:30 Thursday evening, stayed tuned incase more bad weather postpones us again - I should be there till about 9:30 in the evening.
Tabs
Tabs
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Prince Rupert to Seattle
Good Day everyone!
Thanks Nikki for all your comments! I love to read them!
How's everyone doing? I'm still very well. I moved my cabin yesterday, the new cabin is all the way forward on the ship, on the tween deck (which is below zero deck - so below sea level), when you are so far forward you can feel the movement of the ship more - so I feel a little sea sick this morning as it's a bit of a rough day. I definitely need to make an acupuncture appointment to get rid of this for the remainder of the cruise, if I have to stay in this cabin, I will feel sick much too frequently for my taste. Otherwise the cabin is alright, it's a bit bigger, more space, there's a desk that I can keep my computer on, I'm still undecided on the shower, it's smaller, but has a better shower head and curtain (meaning it doesn't stick to my ass), so we shall see maybe tomorrow after another shower! The toilet wouldn't flush this morning, but my roommate tells me that this is normal for a rough sea day well, I don't like that so much either.
So, since we last spoke, we've been to Prince Rupert, Vancouver & Seattle...
I didn't think I'd get to go out in Prince Rupert as we didn't arrive until 2pm, and I had to work at 4pm (and we can't go out until most of the guests have gone out), but I ended up having to stay and help the guest account purser with some stuff, so I didn't finish work until 2:30, this meant that I didn't have to come back to work until 6:30 so I had a couple of hours to go out. It was a good thing too, as both pairs of jeans that I had with me were kaput, so I had only one pair of pants and one pair of capri's with me - and you can't do capri's in Alaska yet! So, I decided to go look for some pants, I was told there was a mall within a ten minute walk from the ship so I headed up - it was a crappy little mall, but they had a rietmans - so I headed in there, found 5 pairs of pants to try on, and ended up buying 4 of them! So I am all set for pants now, next I need to find a few more t-shirts I think, but that shouldn't be too hard, there is apparently a fred meyer and a costco not far away in Juneau, and I get to go out there next time by.
After the shopping trip, I went down to Cow Bay, which is just next to the dock (what a tiny little dock by the way!). Apparently it's called Cow Bay because when delivering some cows to the area, they had some problems with docking the boat, so they just pushed all the cows off the boat, and made them swim to shore! So all of the trash cans, etc are painted black and white like a cow. It's a small little area with some port shopping, and a couple little restaurants, I had a drink at the coffee shop, and wandered back to the ship.
After Prince Rupert we had a sea day traveling through the Inside passage between Vancouver Island and the main land, due to the hours I was working, I was able to go upstairs to take a look at about 8:00 that night, but it was the perfect time, it was just as we were getting to the thinest area between the island and mainland, and the sun was starting to go down...mmmm perfect. We could see the coast mountains off the Port side (left) and behind us (aft) the sun was setting. I took about 50 photos it was so perfect. The mountains were beautiful, and the sunset over the water was amazing, it was just like you imagine it to be really. One of the guests was upstairs when I was taking photos and asked if my pictures would be for sale later as it had to be a perfect shot. I was flattered, but of course, my photos are for me (and you - eventually) only!
We arrived in Vancouver a little before 7am yesterday morning, I missed going under the Lion's gate bridge by about 3 minutes, but I knew we'd be leaving the same way so I'd have another chance. Due to us repositioning, we were only off loading the guests in Vancouver yesterday, and not picking up anymore there. No one was allowed off the ship due to the short turn around time, we had to leave as soon as all the guests were off and any deliveries were received. Well, that's not quite true, because we also had a short turn around last night in Seattle, about 10 people got off in Vancouver to rent a car and drive to the port in Seattle in order to be there for guests arriving before the ship arrived. So this means that we had about 8 hours of sailing WITHOUT GUESTS!!! Woooohooooo!!! When we left Vancouver a number of staff had come up to deck 11 to watch and take pictures going under the Lion's gate bridge and Vancouver, and Stanley Park - BTW, you really get a great view of where all the damage from the wind storm last winter - it's still SO evident...quite incredible actually, the sea wall is looking good though!
Due to our sailing without guests, we had some special things going happening for crew on the ship, they did a special crew sale in the gift shops - and you didn't have to be in Uniform!!! And, the opened the Cova Cafe (the onboard coffee shop) so that we could go up and enjoy a coffee in the cafe - this isn't all that special for me (we still had to pay for them), but it is really special for those crew that can't be in those areas when guests are on board. It was really good of those crew that worked those areas to work hours that they didn't necessarily have to work so that other crew could have the privledge of being in those areas. I had a coffee with the manager of the specialty restaurant, Christian, he's a really sweet guy and I think we will be very good friends on the ship.
I took a lot more pictures on the way to Seattle, but I wasn't as impressed as I was with the Inside Passage pictures, it was really sunny so the pictures were a bit washed out. Maybe ACDSee can fix them! I'll have to give it a try. And of course I had to take care of moving my stuff to my new cabin.
Once we reached Seattle I had to go out to the pier (again no one else could go out cause we had a short turn around to leave). As the Apprentice Purser, we take turns assisting the Documenation Officer with Embarkation duties, looking at passports for Visa's etc and it was my turn. Lucky for me, most of the guests had already checked in so there wasn't a heck of a lot to do. It was such a strange turn around, we arrived at 7pm, and departed around Midnight, so late, and I think the guests were probably pretty upset by the time we arrived, as the place that they were being held before getting on the ship looked like a cattle barn... and some of them were waiting all day!
After finishing my embarkation duty, I came back on the ship and our new guest account purser had called the other 2 Apprentice pursers to help her and the documentation purser get a few things done, so I also stayed to help. The poor lady is so stressed right now, she's had a few things go wrong with the last cruise and she hasn't been able to balance. So, I think she felt better that we all jumped in to help...I hope that this cruise goes better for her, especially since we are now doing 7 day cruises, which means less time to get things done.
Anyways, that's it for me, bit of a long post today! I'll talk to you all soon, and I'll talk to you soon!
Tabs
Thanks Nikki for all your comments! I love to read them!
How's everyone doing? I'm still very well. I moved my cabin yesterday, the new cabin is all the way forward on the ship, on the tween deck (which is below zero deck - so below sea level), when you are so far forward you can feel the movement of the ship more - so I feel a little sea sick this morning as it's a bit of a rough day. I definitely need to make an acupuncture appointment to get rid of this for the remainder of the cruise, if I have to stay in this cabin, I will feel sick much too frequently for my taste. Otherwise the cabin is alright, it's a bit bigger, more space, there's a desk that I can keep my computer on, I'm still undecided on the shower, it's smaller, but has a better shower head and curtain (meaning it doesn't stick to my ass), so we shall see maybe tomorrow after another shower! The toilet wouldn't flush this morning, but my roommate tells me that this is normal for a rough sea day well, I don't like that so much either.
So, since we last spoke, we've been to Prince Rupert, Vancouver & Seattle...
I didn't think I'd get to go out in Prince Rupert as we didn't arrive until 2pm, and I had to work at 4pm (and we can't go out until most of the guests have gone out), but I ended up having to stay and help the guest account purser with some stuff, so I didn't finish work until 2:30, this meant that I didn't have to come back to work until 6:30 so I had a couple of hours to go out. It was a good thing too, as both pairs of jeans that I had with me were kaput, so I had only one pair of pants and one pair of capri's with me - and you can't do capri's in Alaska yet! So, I decided to go look for some pants, I was told there was a mall within a ten minute walk from the ship so I headed up - it was a crappy little mall, but they had a rietmans - so I headed in there, found 5 pairs of pants to try on, and ended up buying 4 of them! So I am all set for pants now, next I need to find a few more t-shirts I think, but that shouldn't be too hard, there is apparently a fred meyer and a costco not far away in Juneau, and I get to go out there next time by.
After the shopping trip, I went down to Cow Bay, which is just next to the dock (what a tiny little dock by the way!). Apparently it's called Cow Bay because when delivering some cows to the area, they had some problems with docking the boat, so they just pushed all the cows off the boat, and made them swim to shore! So all of the trash cans, etc are painted black and white like a cow. It's a small little area with some port shopping, and a couple little restaurants, I had a drink at the coffee shop, and wandered back to the ship.
After Prince Rupert we had a sea day traveling through the Inside passage between Vancouver Island and the main land, due to the hours I was working, I was able to go upstairs to take a look at about 8:00 that night, but it was the perfect time, it was just as we were getting to the thinest area between the island and mainland, and the sun was starting to go down...mmmm perfect. We could see the coast mountains off the Port side (left) and behind us (aft) the sun was setting. I took about 50 photos it was so perfect. The mountains were beautiful, and the sunset over the water was amazing, it was just like you imagine it to be really. One of the guests was upstairs when I was taking photos and asked if my pictures would be for sale later as it had to be a perfect shot. I was flattered, but of course, my photos are for me (and you - eventually) only!
We arrived in Vancouver a little before 7am yesterday morning, I missed going under the Lion's gate bridge by about 3 minutes, but I knew we'd be leaving the same way so I'd have another chance. Due to us repositioning, we were only off loading the guests in Vancouver yesterday, and not picking up anymore there. No one was allowed off the ship due to the short turn around time, we had to leave as soon as all the guests were off and any deliveries were received. Well, that's not quite true, because we also had a short turn around last night in Seattle, about 10 people got off in Vancouver to rent a car and drive to the port in Seattle in order to be there for guests arriving before the ship arrived. So this means that we had about 8 hours of sailing WITHOUT GUESTS!!! Woooohooooo!!! When we left Vancouver a number of staff had come up to deck 11 to watch and take pictures going under the Lion's gate bridge and Vancouver, and Stanley Park - BTW, you really get a great view of where all the damage from the wind storm last winter - it's still SO evident...quite incredible actually, the sea wall is looking good though!
Due to our sailing without guests, we had some special things going happening for crew on the ship, they did a special crew sale in the gift shops - and you didn't have to be in Uniform!!! And, the opened the Cova Cafe (the onboard coffee shop) so that we could go up and enjoy a coffee in the cafe - this isn't all that special for me (we still had to pay for them), but it is really special for those crew that can't be in those areas when guests are on board. It was really good of those crew that worked those areas to work hours that they didn't necessarily have to work so that other crew could have the privledge of being in those areas. I had a coffee with the manager of the specialty restaurant, Christian, he's a really sweet guy and I think we will be very good friends on the ship.
I took a lot more pictures on the way to Seattle, but I wasn't as impressed as I was with the Inside Passage pictures, it was really sunny so the pictures were a bit washed out. Maybe ACDSee can fix them! I'll have to give it a try. And of course I had to take care of moving my stuff to my new cabin.
Once we reached Seattle I had to go out to the pier (again no one else could go out cause we had a short turn around to leave). As the Apprentice Purser, we take turns assisting the Documenation Officer with Embarkation duties, looking at passports for Visa's etc and it was my turn. Lucky for me, most of the guests had already checked in so there wasn't a heck of a lot to do. It was such a strange turn around, we arrived at 7pm, and departed around Midnight, so late, and I think the guests were probably pretty upset by the time we arrived, as the place that they were being held before getting on the ship looked like a cattle barn... and some of them were waiting all day!
After finishing my embarkation duty, I came back on the ship and our new guest account purser had called the other 2 Apprentice pursers to help her and the documentation purser get a few things done, so I also stayed to help. The poor lady is so stressed right now, she's had a few things go wrong with the last cruise and she hasn't been able to balance. So, I think she felt better that we all jumped in to help...I hope that this cruise goes better for her, especially since we are now doing 7 day cruises, which means less time to get things done.
Anyways, that's it for me, bit of a long post today! I'll talk to you all soon, and I'll talk to you soon!
Tabs
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
OMG, So much is happening!!!
Good Day! How's everyone doing today? I'm quite well! I tried to login yesterday to update you on what's going on, but while in the Hubbard Glacier area we didn't have Internet service - I hope that doesn't mean we never will when we are at Hubbard Glacier each week!
Okay, so lots to update you on! We went to Icy Straight Point the other day, it's fairly close to Sitka, a very small bay - only one ship can come at a time, but they apparently are so busy that after today they won't have a day without a ship until mid september! Unfortunately we aren't coming back there! It's a beautiful little bay, surrounded by snowy mountains, the tender from the ship to the dock is only about 5 minutes, and you go out at this old Cannery that's been converted into shops, restaurants and the excursion meeting point. I didn't get into the town itself, but I have been told it's not so great. The cannery area was really nice though, the shops were fabulous with local arts and crafts being sold, and the food smelled really good - too bad I didn't have enough time to try the halibut and chips! You can also walk around the point to have a look around, there's a nice walking path, and you can even go wlking in the woods. The big point here is the zipline - OMG, it's freaky! It's the longest zipline in the world I'm told, and it looked a little scary - even for me. I don't even know how you get to the top, it looks like you come off the side of the mountain! It looked like everyone doing it had fun though!
Next day, we were at the Hubbard Glacier, what a magnificent site! Incredible! So BIG! We were told ahead of time that because it's so early in the year we will probably only be able to get about 6 miles away from the glacier - so quite a ways, but, our fabulous captain made it in further though all the icebergs, and we were only about a mile away. Unfortunately that makes me think of global warming, if we were able to get that close when normally at this time of year you would be 5 miles further away. I took 127 photographs this day of the glacier, the area, and of course the icebergs, what blew me away was the colour of the ocean here, it was so aqua, it reminded me a bit of the Caribbean ocean colour, but clearer and crisper in the way that the cold weather makes this clearer and crisper!
Today we were in Juneau, Alaska, unfortunately I didn't get to go out as it was my turn to work the afternoon shift, and we had a boat drill in the morning, so no one could go out in the morning. Oh well, there's always next week! We were so busy, I didn't even have time to run upstairs and take a few photos from the ship - though, it didn't look all that exciting from the couple of glimpses I got of outside. I'm excited about going out next time though!
Okay, last couple of things to update you on, we have received word about when the changes will be made for the bank and our positions. We have someone coming from Shore side to help with the transition some time in June! So Soon! We also answered some questions to Theo (The Financial Controller) about what we want to do going forward, so I imagine they will plan on what they will do with us next when they come on board as well. I hope to have the opportunity to train into other positions (2nd officer) so that I can make a bit more money, and have some more responsibility. This means that depending on what's decided I could be changing positions and possibly even my ship as early as July! I now have som disappointing news. I have to move to a new cabin tomorrow, I will be sharing with my co-worker Tunde (who I really like) but I will be getting the top bunk again, and of course sharing, she and her old roommate do like perfume a lot, so I was concerned about moving, and having my allergies be a problem, but she's been so sweet, she's requested a really good cleaning, carpets, walls, bedding, curtains, etc. She's so sweet, I think she will be a good roommate, but I'm still so disappointed that I have to share again! I've been so spoiled before!
Oh, have to tell you about my embarrassing incedent from yesterday...I was asked to help with the payroll audit, for this, you have to go with payroll, the financial controller to meet with the captain, staff captain and hotel director and they pick out a few employees names to audit and ensure that the payroll is being done correctly, etc. Well, yesterday was a bit of a rough sea day, and we had to go up to the captains office, deck 8 forward (the very front of the ship, next to the bridge), I got so sea sick...I didn't throw up, THANK YOU! But I was pale as a ghost and sweating profusely, it was so embarassing to be sea sick in front of the captain! So I have now decided to meet with the acupuncturist to have a treatment to get rid of the sea sickness, she promises me it will work for this entire cruise! I'm excited about that, I'm also considering trying it for weight loss assistance - to go along with the diet and excercise of course to see what it's like. She also indicated that she can resolve the sea sickness for good, but it'll take a few treatments, and it is pretty expensive. $50 for 2 treatments - crew price...I don't think I'm quite ready to spend that much, so we'll give it a go for the sea sickness this cruise and see how things progress.
Next up, tomorrow we will be in Prince Rupert, I'm not sure if I'll get the chance to go out as we are there later in the afternoon.
Anyways, better get myself off the internet, so I'll talk to you soon!
Love you! Miss you!
Tabs
Okay, so lots to update you on! We went to Icy Straight Point the other day, it's fairly close to Sitka, a very small bay - only one ship can come at a time, but they apparently are so busy that after today they won't have a day without a ship until mid september! Unfortunately we aren't coming back there! It's a beautiful little bay, surrounded by snowy mountains, the tender from the ship to the dock is only about 5 minutes, and you go out at this old Cannery that's been converted into shops, restaurants and the excursion meeting point. I didn't get into the town itself, but I have been told it's not so great. The cannery area was really nice though, the shops were fabulous with local arts and crafts being sold, and the food smelled really good - too bad I didn't have enough time to try the halibut and chips! You can also walk around the point to have a look around, there's a nice walking path, and you can even go wlking in the woods. The big point here is the zipline - OMG, it's freaky! It's the longest zipline in the world I'm told, and it looked a little scary - even for me. I don't even know how you get to the top, it looks like you come off the side of the mountain! It looked like everyone doing it had fun though!
Next day, we were at the Hubbard Glacier, what a magnificent site! Incredible! So BIG! We were told ahead of time that because it's so early in the year we will probably only be able to get about 6 miles away from the glacier - so quite a ways, but, our fabulous captain made it in further though all the icebergs, and we were only about a mile away. Unfortunately that makes me think of global warming, if we were able to get that close when normally at this time of year you would be 5 miles further away. I took 127 photographs this day of the glacier, the area, and of course the icebergs, what blew me away was the colour of the ocean here, it was so aqua, it reminded me a bit of the Caribbean ocean colour, but clearer and crisper in the way that the cold weather makes this clearer and crisper!
Today we were in Juneau, Alaska, unfortunately I didn't get to go out as it was my turn to work the afternoon shift, and we had a boat drill in the morning, so no one could go out in the morning. Oh well, there's always next week! We were so busy, I didn't even have time to run upstairs and take a few photos from the ship - though, it didn't look all that exciting from the couple of glimpses I got of outside. I'm excited about going out next time though!
Okay, last couple of things to update you on, we have received word about when the changes will be made for the bank and our positions. We have someone coming from Shore side to help with the transition some time in June! So Soon! We also answered some questions to Theo (The Financial Controller) about what we want to do going forward, so I imagine they will plan on what they will do with us next when they come on board as well. I hope to have the opportunity to train into other positions (2nd officer) so that I can make a bit more money, and have some more responsibility. This means that depending on what's decided I could be changing positions and possibly even my ship as early as July! I now have som disappointing news. I have to move to a new cabin tomorrow, I will be sharing with my co-worker Tunde (who I really like) but I will be getting the top bunk again, and of course sharing, she and her old roommate do like perfume a lot, so I was concerned about moving, and having my allergies be a problem, but she's been so sweet, she's requested a really good cleaning, carpets, walls, bedding, curtains, etc. She's so sweet, I think she will be a good roommate, but I'm still so disappointed that I have to share again! I've been so spoiled before!
Oh, have to tell you about my embarrassing incedent from yesterday...I was asked to help with the payroll audit, for this, you have to go with payroll, the financial controller to meet with the captain, staff captain and hotel director and they pick out a few employees names to audit and ensure that the payroll is being done correctly, etc. Well, yesterday was a bit of a rough sea day, and we had to go up to the captains office, deck 8 forward (the very front of the ship, next to the bridge), I got so sea sick...I didn't throw up, THANK YOU! But I was pale as a ghost and sweating profusely, it was so embarassing to be sea sick in front of the captain! So I have now decided to meet with the acupuncturist to have a treatment to get rid of the sea sickness, she promises me it will work for this entire cruise! I'm excited about that, I'm also considering trying it for weight loss assistance - to go along with the diet and excercise of course to see what it's like. She also indicated that she can resolve the sea sickness for good, but it'll take a few treatments, and it is pretty expensive. $50 for 2 treatments - crew price...I don't think I'm quite ready to spend that much, so we'll give it a go for the sea sickness this cruise and see how things progress.
Next up, tomorrow we will be in Prince Rupert, I'm not sure if I'll get the chance to go out as we are there later in the afternoon.
Anyways, better get myself off the internet, so I'll talk to you soon!
Love you! Miss you!
Tabs
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Victoria, Nanaimo, Inside Passage & Ketchikan!
Hello! Sorry it's been a while, I've got a lot to catch you all up on. And by the way, I haven't seen any comments lately - maybe no one is reading???
Okay, so I was back home in Victoria on Wednesday, had a great visit with the family - I miss you all so much, thank you for coming! We had lunch at Boston Pizza near Kevin's work (my brother for those of you who don't know who Kevin is) and a great visit. After lunch we headed to Mom's office for a quick stop before heading back to the ship. We really got a good comparison to the size of the ship, as we were coming back, we were looking at the ship, and we saw the Coho Ferry coming from Port Angeles near the cruise ship, and the Coho looked like a dinky toy compared to the ship! It was so funny, we were all laughing! I'll never look at a ferry the same way again. LOL! Next time we are in Victoria will be May 15th, and I want to try and see people if you have time! I am planning to go off the ship with some co-workers to have some dinner and I will post and let you know where we will be so that if you get a chance you can come by. We will be in Victoria from 2pm till 8pm that day, I hope to get time off the ship from 3pm till 7pm, so we will definitely settle some where for people to visit! I will post more when I have more info!
After Victoria, we slowly made our way to Nanaimo, as you can imagine it really wouldn't take long at even half speed so we went really, really slow. I managed to get a few decent shots of the sunset that night outside Victoria! It was a very nice send off from home! It was very unfortunate that I didn't get to go out in Nanaimo, it was a port I really wanted to visit - HAHAHAHAHA - no wait, I offered to work the long shift that day, why would I want to go there? LOL, so it was onward to the Inside Passage, we missed a lot of the northern Vancouver Island area due to it being dark and all, but the Northern Passage of Alaska was during the day, really unfortunately this time I didn't get to see much due to the hours I was working, and when we were in the 'good viewing areas'. Apparently some guests saw some whales, I told them it was a good thing mom wasn't on the ship or they wouldn't have seen them. HAHAHAHAHAHA...
Today we were in Ketchikan, Alaska, I really liked this port, it's such a cute little town, with beautiful mountains surrounding it, there is still lots of snow on the mountains, and it was quite cold still today - I even heard a local complain about the cold! I went with 2 co-workers for chinese food today, and then wandered around the town by myself and did a bit of shopping. Town is right at the pier so you only have to cross the street to get to the stores. I bought a few things that I needed mostly, a jacket (so I won't freeze next time!), a t-shirt, and a few more magnets for posting things up in my cabin. I would have liked to have stayed longer as I didn't get to explore it all, but of course, now that we are in Alaska for the summer, there's always next week!
Tomorrow we will be in Icy Straight Point which is supposed to be really beautiful, it will be a tender so it time off the ship will be more limited than a docked port, but I should have the time to go out, take a few pictures and explore near the pier. Apparently this is such a small place, that they can only take one cruise ship at a time here. Can't wait to see it!
So, life on the ship is changing a bit as well, we have had a few changes occuring in our department, as I think I already mentioned, Albert joined us in the bank at the beginning of the last cruise, and this cruise we had Ricardo join Albert and myself in the bank, and we have a new guest account purser joining to take over for Veronica, her name is Liza. So far we all seem to get along fairly well, and I'm keeping an open mind that things will stay this way. Having 2 guys to work with in the bank seems pretty good, as they are very relaxed and easy going. Due to the change over with Anna leaving, and these guys just being brand new to our ship (they've both done the job before), I am left with a lot of extra duties right now. I am in charge of Stamps (what a pain in the behind!), charging gratuities, bingo reconciling, copying for Theo, preparing the schedule, and making sure these guys are doing what they need to do. It feels really good, but I can definitely do with out some of these jobs! We will start to transition some of these jobs later this cruise and next cruise, but they will still rely on me for help, as some of the things we do on this ship are different than they are used to from other ships.
There is still no news about what will happen with our jobs next. My projection is that once we are into the regular routine of 7 day cruises to Alaska they will start the process of transfering things over to guest Relations. One person in Guest Relations said that she heard it's supposed to be done for June or July. I expect that once we've trained them in the job, we will have to support them for a while in ensuring that they are doing everything correctly, and backing them up when they have problems. So hopefully I will get the training I need to move onwards and upwards before the end of my contract in September!
Other news on the ship, I'm still prospecting for a new boyfriend, there's a few guys I find attractive, but now I have to get to know them better to see if they are worth my time or not. I still don't have a new roommate (please everyone keep your fingers crossed), so hopefully I won't get one for a while, and can keep my room to myself! It's so nice this way!
Anyways, that's about it for shiplife today, please send me a note or leave a comment to let me know you are alive and well! I miss you all, and hope to see you in Victoria on the 15th!
Love,
Tabs
Okay, so I was back home in Victoria on Wednesday, had a great visit with the family - I miss you all so much, thank you for coming! We had lunch at Boston Pizza near Kevin's work (my brother for those of you who don't know who Kevin is) and a great visit. After lunch we headed to Mom's office for a quick stop before heading back to the ship. We really got a good comparison to the size of the ship, as we were coming back, we were looking at the ship, and we saw the Coho Ferry coming from Port Angeles near the cruise ship, and the Coho looked like a dinky toy compared to the ship! It was so funny, we were all laughing! I'll never look at a ferry the same way again. LOL! Next time we are in Victoria will be May 15th, and I want to try and see people if you have time! I am planning to go off the ship with some co-workers to have some dinner and I will post and let you know where we will be so that if you get a chance you can come by. We will be in Victoria from 2pm till 8pm that day, I hope to get time off the ship from 3pm till 7pm, so we will definitely settle some where for people to visit! I will post more when I have more info!
After Victoria, we slowly made our way to Nanaimo, as you can imagine it really wouldn't take long at even half speed so we went really, really slow. I managed to get a few decent shots of the sunset that night outside Victoria! It was a very nice send off from home! It was very unfortunate that I didn't get to go out in Nanaimo, it was a port I really wanted to visit - HAHAHAHAHA - no wait, I offered to work the long shift that day, why would I want to go there? LOL, so it was onward to the Inside Passage, we missed a lot of the northern Vancouver Island area due to it being dark and all, but the Northern Passage of Alaska was during the day, really unfortunately this time I didn't get to see much due to the hours I was working, and when we were in the 'good viewing areas'. Apparently some guests saw some whales, I told them it was a good thing mom wasn't on the ship or they wouldn't have seen them. HAHAHAHAHAHA...
Today we were in Ketchikan, Alaska, I really liked this port, it's such a cute little town, with beautiful mountains surrounding it, there is still lots of snow on the mountains, and it was quite cold still today - I even heard a local complain about the cold! I went with 2 co-workers for chinese food today, and then wandered around the town by myself and did a bit of shopping. Town is right at the pier so you only have to cross the street to get to the stores. I bought a few things that I needed mostly, a jacket (so I won't freeze next time!), a t-shirt, and a few more magnets for posting things up in my cabin. I would have liked to have stayed longer as I didn't get to explore it all, but of course, now that we are in Alaska for the summer, there's always next week!
Tomorrow we will be in Icy Straight Point which is supposed to be really beautiful, it will be a tender so it time off the ship will be more limited than a docked port, but I should have the time to go out, take a few pictures and explore near the pier. Apparently this is such a small place, that they can only take one cruise ship at a time here. Can't wait to see it!
So, life on the ship is changing a bit as well, we have had a few changes occuring in our department, as I think I already mentioned, Albert joined us in the bank at the beginning of the last cruise, and this cruise we had Ricardo join Albert and myself in the bank, and we have a new guest account purser joining to take over for Veronica, her name is Liza. So far we all seem to get along fairly well, and I'm keeping an open mind that things will stay this way. Having 2 guys to work with in the bank seems pretty good, as they are very relaxed and easy going. Due to the change over with Anna leaving, and these guys just being brand new to our ship (they've both done the job before), I am left with a lot of extra duties right now. I am in charge of Stamps (what a pain in the behind!), charging gratuities, bingo reconciling, copying for Theo, preparing the schedule, and making sure these guys are doing what they need to do. It feels really good, but I can definitely do with out some of these jobs! We will start to transition some of these jobs later this cruise and next cruise, but they will still rely on me for help, as some of the things we do on this ship are different than they are used to from other ships.
There is still no news about what will happen with our jobs next. My projection is that once we are into the regular routine of 7 day cruises to Alaska they will start the process of transfering things over to guest Relations. One person in Guest Relations said that she heard it's supposed to be done for June or July. I expect that once we've trained them in the job, we will have to support them for a while in ensuring that they are doing everything correctly, and backing them up when they have problems. So hopefully I will get the training I need to move onwards and upwards before the end of my contract in September!
Other news on the ship, I'm still prospecting for a new boyfriend, there's a few guys I find attractive, but now I have to get to know them better to see if they are worth my time or not. I still don't have a new roommate (please everyone keep your fingers crossed), so hopefully I won't get one for a while, and can keep my room to myself! It's so nice this way!
Anyways, that's about it for shiplife today, please send me a note or leave a comment to let me know you are alive and well! I miss you all, and hope to see you in Victoria on the 15th!
Love,
Tabs
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
San Francisco
Hello!
How's everyone? I'm doing very well, getting excited that I will be in Victoria to visit the family for lunch tomorrow! Can't wait to see them, and hug them and tell them all my stories in person!
We were in San Francisco yesterday, what a great looking city. Unfortunately I didn't get to explore much as I was craving shopping, and definitely needed a few things (ahem, underwear!) So I went to Victoria Secret and spent a few $$$ there. LOL, it was great fun! Had a little look around Union Square, which is quite a nice area, there's lots of fancy stores there like Tiffany's, Sak's Fifth Avenue, and Macy's, had a little lunch, and took a taxi back to the pier - I would have liked to have taken the trolley, but didn't want to get lost as I was by myself! I can't wait to go back sometime to try the trolley's and take some of the steep hills! They looked like they would have been fun to ride down! LOL! Once back at the pier, I decided to go for a walk, the pier is quite neat, very long, and I found a small spot where you could walk out to the end of a pier, there were some fishermen there doing some fishing, and you could look out at a suspension bridge (not the Golden Gate though). I took a few pictures, and headed back to the ship to take a nap and get ready to go back to work.
My Co-worker Anna left yesterday in San Francisco, and her replacement came on board (Ricardo - don't tell him that his name is the same as my cat!), I will probably meet him today, he's from the Phillipenes, which is also where Anna is from, and Alberto. We also have a new Guest Account Purser starting this cruise, as the other, Veronica, will leave in a few days, so Lisa (Also from the Phillipenes) came on a few days early to get the hand over from Veronica. So, most of my team has or is changing, so things will probably be a bit different around here! I'll keep you posted on how that goes!
Talk to you soon! And don't forget to comment!!!! I want to know how you are doing!
Tabs
How's everyone? I'm doing very well, getting excited that I will be in Victoria to visit the family for lunch tomorrow! Can't wait to see them, and hug them and tell them all my stories in person!
We were in San Francisco yesterday, what a great looking city. Unfortunately I didn't get to explore much as I was craving shopping, and definitely needed a few things (ahem, underwear!) So I went to Victoria Secret and spent a few $$$ there. LOL, it was great fun! Had a little look around Union Square, which is quite a nice area, there's lots of fancy stores there like Tiffany's, Sak's Fifth Avenue, and Macy's, had a little lunch, and took a taxi back to the pier - I would have liked to have taken the trolley, but didn't want to get lost as I was by myself! I can't wait to go back sometime to try the trolley's and take some of the steep hills! They looked like they would have been fun to ride down! LOL! Once back at the pier, I decided to go for a walk, the pier is quite neat, very long, and I found a small spot where you could walk out to the end of a pier, there were some fishermen there doing some fishing, and you could look out at a suspension bridge (not the Golden Gate though). I took a few pictures, and headed back to the ship to take a nap and get ready to go back to work.
My Co-worker Anna left yesterday in San Francisco, and her replacement came on board (Ricardo - don't tell him that his name is the same as my cat!), I will probably meet him today, he's from the Phillipenes, which is also where Anna is from, and Alberto. We also have a new Guest Account Purser starting this cruise, as the other, Veronica, will leave in a few days, so Lisa (Also from the Phillipenes) came on a few days early to get the hand over from Veronica. So, most of my team has or is changing, so things will probably be a bit different around here! I'll keep you posted on how that goes!
Talk to you soon! And don't forget to comment!!!! I want to know how you are doing!
Tabs
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Cabo San Lucas
Hello!!! Hope everyone is doing well??? I'm doing quite well, thanks for asking - LOL.
Well, since we last chatted, I've been to Cabo San Lucas, briefly anyways. We didn't have much time due to working hours and the time that we left port - and because it was a tender rather than docked, which means we have to take a tender boat to the port, and that can take a lot longer depending on how many people are waiting, and of course the weather. It was only a 20 minute tender trip to the shore, but because of when we (as crew) are required back (30 minutes sooner than guests), we need to be careful about ensuring that we are back in time. I'm sure that I gave myself too much time, but better safe, than paying to fly to San Francisco to meet the ship in 3 days and risk being fired! I stayed mostly near the pier in Cabo San Lucas as there was plenty of shopping options there. There was a typical mexican market with a lot of stalls filled with silver, t-shirts, and other souveniers, so I had a look through there and bought a few things. Then I walked along the marina to take a few pictures and see what was down at the other end. There were some restaurants that looked nice - not enough time for me to stop for a margarita though! :-( Apparently in Cabo (right next to the pier) there is a good place (and cheap too) to swim with the dolphins, of course again, no time, but maybe next time I'm down this way.
There was one stall on the marina pier where you could have your picture taken with a leopard - I was not impressed, this poor little guy was in this tiny caged and being manhandled to let tourists have a picture with it, I'm sure it must have been drugged in order for it to be subdued enough to be with the public. I was so sad, I couldn't look.
Of course I was back on the ship with plenty of time to spare, but man, getting off the tender boat back onto the ship was tough, there were a lot of waves from boats and wave runners going past, the tender boat was smashing against the ship platform, and bouncing up and down, I don't know how some of the people on this ship were getting in and out, there were people in wheelchairs, and elderly that could barely walk with their canes. They have 3 guys there to help you out, but trying to help someone that can't lift themselves very well must be very hard, and I'm sure they must have injuries due to this on every cruise.
Today was the first of two sea days before we reach San Francisco. I've managed to work the schedule so that I can go out in San Francisco to do some shopping!!! I had a look online and it looks like Victoria Secret is just a couple blocks away from the pier! Today was a pretty good day, but a little rough I think - I don't notice so much anymore, but I felt very sleepy this afternoon, and that's usually how I feel when the ship is rocking a bit. And the guests were saying it was quite windy outside on the top deck.
Tomorrow will be a busy day, we actually have to work 10 hours in the bank each - the bank will be open from 9am until 11pm, in order for guests to pay their shipboard accounts and get more tip money from us. On sea days we usually only work 7 hours in the bank, and 8 hours on port days, so we are very lucky as most crew do work the full 10 hours each day.
Anyways, that's it for me for now! Talk to you soon!
Love,
Tabs
Well, since we last chatted, I've been to Cabo San Lucas, briefly anyways. We didn't have much time due to working hours and the time that we left port - and because it was a tender rather than docked, which means we have to take a tender boat to the port, and that can take a lot longer depending on how many people are waiting, and of course the weather. It was only a 20 minute tender trip to the shore, but because of when we (as crew) are required back (30 minutes sooner than guests), we need to be careful about ensuring that we are back in time. I'm sure that I gave myself too much time, but better safe, than paying to fly to San Francisco to meet the ship in 3 days and risk being fired! I stayed mostly near the pier in Cabo San Lucas as there was plenty of shopping options there. There was a typical mexican market with a lot of stalls filled with silver, t-shirts, and other souveniers, so I had a look through there and bought a few things. Then I walked along the marina to take a few pictures and see what was down at the other end. There were some restaurants that looked nice - not enough time for me to stop for a margarita though! :-( Apparently in Cabo (right next to the pier) there is a good place (and cheap too) to swim with the dolphins, of course again, no time, but maybe next time I'm down this way.
There was one stall on the marina pier where you could have your picture taken with a leopard - I was not impressed, this poor little guy was in this tiny caged and being manhandled to let tourists have a picture with it, I'm sure it must have been drugged in order for it to be subdued enough to be with the public. I was so sad, I couldn't look.
Of course I was back on the ship with plenty of time to spare, but man, getting off the tender boat back onto the ship was tough, there were a lot of waves from boats and wave runners going past, the tender boat was smashing against the ship platform, and bouncing up and down, I don't know how some of the people on this ship were getting in and out, there were people in wheelchairs, and elderly that could barely walk with their canes. They have 3 guys there to help you out, but trying to help someone that can't lift themselves very well must be very hard, and I'm sure they must have injuries due to this on every cruise.
Today was the first of two sea days before we reach San Francisco. I've managed to work the schedule so that I can go out in San Francisco to do some shopping!!! I had a look online and it looks like Victoria Secret is just a couple blocks away from the pier! Today was a pretty good day, but a little rough I think - I don't notice so much anymore, but I felt very sleepy this afternoon, and that's usually how I feel when the ship is rocking a bit. And the guests were saying it was quite windy outside on the top deck.
Tomorrow will be a busy day, we actually have to work 10 hours in the bank each - the bank will be open from 9am until 11pm, in order for guests to pay their shipboard accounts and get more tip money from us. On sea days we usually only work 7 hours in the bank, and 8 hours on port days, so we are very lucky as most crew do work the full 10 hours each day.
Anyways, that's it for me for now! Talk to you soon!
Love,
Tabs
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Huatulco, Mexico
Hello!
Well, I made it out yesterday in Huatulco, you wouldn't believe this port, it's so amazing! As I'm sure you know, the ship I am on is huge, it has 12 decks not including the lower decks (Deck zero and Tween, which makes it actually 14 - but zero and tween are below sea level) , so in Huatulco, you arrive into this tiny little bay, that I'm amazed is deep enough for our ship, to this little dock, where even if you couldn't swim you could jump off the side of the boat and still managed to make it to shore! When we walked from the forward part of the ship where we got out, it took about 3 minutes to get to the end of the dock and about 10 more seconds to go down the stairs to the beach. We went over to a restaurant at the other end of the beach (so maybe another 5 minutes walk) had some really good seafood soup and free tortillas with salsa, and of course a couple of Pina Coloda's! Of course I had to work later in the afternoon, so we just had a quick dip in the warm green salty ocean water, and then back to the ship to go to work.
Today we stopped in Acapulco, I was supposed to go out with a new friend (a cutie from Indonesia), but I had more troubles with my cabin door this morning, I couldn't get back into my room after breakfast, and so I had to go get my key card re-programed and that took too long so I didn't go out...it was so disappointing, you'd think I'd be used to this, my key card hasn't worked properly since day one! So now I'm hoping it will work for 1 week (I'm being optimistic - leave me alone).
Tomorrow we have another sea day, and then the following day is Cabo San Lucas, which I'm told is a great port, and I have I think 4 hours in the afternoon to go off ship, so we will of course have lunch again and hopefully swim again. The food on the ship seems to be getting bad again, tonight's food in the officers mess was really bad, I could hardly eat it, I stuck to cheese and sliced meat mostly cause I couldn't stomach most of what was available...
Anyways, better get ready to go to the Latin party tonight by having a nap, talk to you soon!
Tabs
Well, I made it out yesterday in Huatulco, you wouldn't believe this port, it's so amazing! As I'm sure you know, the ship I am on is huge, it has 12 decks not including the lower decks (Deck zero and Tween, which makes it actually 14 - but zero and tween are below sea level) , so in Huatulco, you arrive into this tiny little bay, that I'm amazed is deep enough for our ship, to this little dock, where even if you couldn't swim you could jump off the side of the boat and still managed to make it to shore! When we walked from the forward part of the ship where we got out, it took about 3 minutes to get to the end of the dock and about 10 more seconds to go down the stairs to the beach. We went over to a restaurant at the other end of the beach (so maybe another 5 minutes walk) had some really good seafood soup and free tortillas with salsa, and of course a couple of Pina Coloda's! Of course I had to work later in the afternoon, so we just had a quick dip in the warm green salty ocean water, and then back to the ship to go to work.
Today we stopped in Acapulco, I was supposed to go out with a new friend (a cutie from Indonesia), but I had more troubles with my cabin door this morning, I couldn't get back into my room after breakfast, and so I had to go get my key card re-programed and that took too long so I didn't go out...it was so disappointing, you'd think I'd be used to this, my key card hasn't worked properly since day one! So now I'm hoping it will work for 1 week (I'm being optimistic - leave me alone).
Tomorrow we have another sea day, and then the following day is Cabo San Lucas, which I'm told is a great port, and I have I think 4 hours in the afternoon to go off ship, so we will of course have lunch again and hopefully swim again. The food on the ship seems to be getting bad again, tonight's food in the officers mess was really bad, I could hardly eat it, I stuck to cheese and sliced meat mostly cause I couldn't stomach most of what was available...
Anyways, better get ready to go to the Latin party tonight by having a nap, talk to you soon!
Tabs
Monday, April 21, 2008
Costa Rica - My favorite stop yet!
Hello Everyone!
How're you all doing? I'm doing very well these days, I got to go out in Punta Arenas Costa Rica yesterday! It was a great afternoon, my friends and I purchased tickets to go sit by the pool in a resort in the mountains. It was $29 US (maybe a little high for what we got). It took 40 minutes to get to the resort, but it was a beautiful ride, we got to see a lot of different areas. Once we got there, we were so high on the mountain that we could see the ocean and it was quite far away. It was a beautiful resort, very lush with flowers, and trees and bushes, it seems that it might have been an orchard at one time as there was an area that had a tonne of banana and lemon trees. They sell themselves as an adventure resort, so they have zip lines, trampolines, ATV tours, and Horseback riding tours. I think it's a place my mom would like to go to - if just for the horses! The tours cost more and we weren't sure about time, so we didn't do any of those, but it was a nice time anyways. The cost included transportation, lunch (no drinks though - huh?) pool access, and free internet. Unfortunately the internet connection wasn't very good so I wasn't able to get any pictures loaded - sorry, but I really did try!!!! We had our lunch, which was a tradional Costa Rican meal with Rice, beans, veggies and meat (I had chicken), it was really good, then we splurged on desert, which was warm pineapple with icecream and chocolate sauce. It was really good.
All in all it was a really great day, although, I did burn my shoulders a bit, it should turn into a tan by tomorrow I think, it wasn't too bad.
Otherwise, things are going pretty good, we are having a team meeting and dinner tonight in the casual dining area. It should be very good, as usual...
I'm still looking for a new boyfriend, there are a couple of guys that I'm interested in, I just have to figure out if my first choice is serious with his flirting or not - if not I will give my second choice a chance, who I know is interested.
I have one problem that I've been dealing with that I must complain about! Ever since I came on ship my cabin door hasn't worked properly, it took about 3 weeks to find out that the battery in the lock needs to be replaced, so I sent in a request, as far as I know, it's been done, but the door is still f#$%ed up, and it was really getting annoying, finally last night, it stopped working all together, so I had to put in a request for a joiner to come and look at the door, I put in the request and had security help me get into my cabin, he was supposed to come this morning to fix it at 11am, but apparently something else came up and he couldn't come, so I wasted my morning waiting...So then this afternoon I had to go back to my room to change my uniform for evening, and I called cabin services to call security to come and let me into my cabin, and she was SO rude, they always assume that it's the key that's not working and for that you have to go to the crew pursers office to have it re-magnitized, so I explained, no it's not the key, the door is broken and they didn't come to fix it when they were supposed to, then she got all pissy with me about it (I think she thought I was lying) and then she didn't call security to come fix it! I had to call back 15 minutes later cause no one came! When we go to change our uniforms, we have to be quick because we are still on duty. It ended up taking 20 minutes for them to come, and then I was late going back to work! It was so frustrating, now I have to arrange again for someone to come and let me into my room later after dinner, and I'm sure they will be pissy with me again. Anyways, that's my rant, hopefully it will be fixed tommorrow!
Alrighty then! I feel better, talk to you all soon! Miss you!
Tabitha
How're you all doing? I'm doing very well these days, I got to go out in Punta Arenas Costa Rica yesterday! It was a great afternoon, my friends and I purchased tickets to go sit by the pool in a resort in the mountains. It was $29 US (maybe a little high for what we got). It took 40 minutes to get to the resort, but it was a beautiful ride, we got to see a lot of different areas. Once we got there, we were so high on the mountain that we could see the ocean and it was quite far away. It was a beautiful resort, very lush with flowers, and trees and bushes, it seems that it might have been an orchard at one time as there was an area that had a tonne of banana and lemon trees. They sell themselves as an adventure resort, so they have zip lines, trampolines, ATV tours, and Horseback riding tours. I think it's a place my mom would like to go to - if just for the horses! The tours cost more and we weren't sure about time, so we didn't do any of those, but it was a nice time anyways. The cost included transportation, lunch (no drinks though - huh?) pool access, and free internet. Unfortunately the internet connection wasn't very good so I wasn't able to get any pictures loaded - sorry, but I really did try!!!! We had our lunch, which was a tradional Costa Rican meal with Rice, beans, veggies and meat (I had chicken), it was really good, then we splurged on desert, which was warm pineapple with icecream and chocolate sauce. It was really good.
All in all it was a really great day, although, I did burn my shoulders a bit, it should turn into a tan by tomorrow I think, it wasn't too bad.
Otherwise, things are going pretty good, we are having a team meeting and dinner tonight in the casual dining area. It should be very good, as usual...
I'm still looking for a new boyfriend, there are a couple of guys that I'm interested in, I just have to figure out if my first choice is serious with his flirting or not - if not I will give my second choice a chance, who I know is interested.
I have one problem that I've been dealing with that I must complain about! Ever since I came on ship my cabin door hasn't worked properly, it took about 3 weeks to find out that the battery in the lock needs to be replaced, so I sent in a request, as far as I know, it's been done, but the door is still f#$%ed up, and it was really getting annoying, finally last night, it stopped working all together, so I had to put in a request for a joiner to come and look at the door, I put in the request and had security help me get into my cabin, he was supposed to come this morning to fix it at 11am, but apparently something else came up and he couldn't come, so I wasted my morning waiting...So then this afternoon I had to go back to my room to change my uniform for evening, and I called cabin services to call security to come and let me into my cabin, and she was SO rude, they always assume that it's the key that's not working and for that you have to go to the crew pursers office to have it re-magnitized, so I explained, no it's not the key, the door is broken and they didn't come to fix it when they were supposed to, then she got all pissy with me about it (I think she thought I was lying) and then she didn't call security to come fix it! I had to call back 15 minutes later cause no one came! When we go to change our uniforms, we have to be quick because we are still on duty. It ended up taking 20 minutes for them to come, and then I was late going back to work! It was so frustrating, now I have to arrange again for someone to come and let me into my room later after dinner, and I'm sure they will be pissy with me again. Anyways, that's my rant, hopefully it will be fixed tommorrow!
Alrighty then! I feel better, talk to you all soon! Miss you!
Tabitha
Friday, April 18, 2008
The Panama Canal - Again!
Hello All!
Today we came through the panama canal from the east to the west this time - on our way back up home to be closer to all of you again! Can't wait! I don't know if you know this but when you come from east to west, with how the canal is actually situation, you actually travel south east to get to the Pacific Ocean! Oh, and one more piece of Canal trivia for you, did you know that they are building new locks? To the north of the existing locks they will start I think later this year, building a new set, that will hold bigger ships - it's amazing how close you get to the edges, and we are not the biggest ships that have been through those locks. I heard from mom today and she watched us come through the Gatun locks first thing this morning, unfortunately I wasn't out of bed yet to wave hello like she asked me to - I promise I dreamed I was waving back!
I was able to watch us com through the final lock at Gatun but then had to head off to work for a few hours. In the afternoon in time for the first set of locks coming out to the pacific, I was able to go up to deck 5 forward which is where the helicopter pad is - and climbed up there to get a view from the very front of the ship - it was really amazing up there. It is a passenger free area so we don't have to be in uniform - thank GOD I could wear shorts, cause it was smokin' hot! Sorry, I don't mean to rub it in to you folks in Victoria that got snow today - LOL!!! Okay, I'm totally rubbing it in. LOL...I got some great pictures and even some video of us and the ship next to us (Holland America) going through the locks, so that was really cool.
Just a quick note today to tell you about the trip back through the canal, it was great fun, and now we start heading north. A stop in Costa Rica in 2 days, and on to Mexico, the US, then CANADA!!! (ahhhh, home, family - sigh)...
I miss you all, and please send me messages - or if you want to chat with me live sometime you can find me on MSN at tabs_76@hotmail.com!
Talk to you soon!
Love,
Tabs
Today we came through the panama canal from the east to the west this time - on our way back up home to be closer to all of you again! Can't wait! I don't know if you know this but when you come from east to west, with how the canal is actually situation, you actually travel south east to get to the Pacific Ocean! Oh, and one more piece of Canal trivia for you, did you know that they are building new locks? To the north of the existing locks they will start I think later this year, building a new set, that will hold bigger ships - it's amazing how close you get to the edges, and we are not the biggest ships that have been through those locks. I heard from mom today and she watched us come through the Gatun locks first thing this morning, unfortunately I wasn't out of bed yet to wave hello like she asked me to - I promise I dreamed I was waving back!
I was able to watch us com through the final lock at Gatun but then had to head off to work for a few hours. In the afternoon in time for the first set of locks coming out to the pacific, I was able to go up to deck 5 forward which is where the helicopter pad is - and climbed up there to get a view from the very front of the ship - it was really amazing up there. It is a passenger free area so we don't have to be in uniform - thank GOD I could wear shorts, cause it was smokin' hot! Sorry, I don't mean to rub it in to you folks in Victoria that got snow today - LOL!!! Okay, I'm totally rubbing it in. LOL...I got some great pictures and even some video of us and the ship next to us (Holland America) going through the locks, so that was really cool.
Just a quick note today to tell you about the trip back through the canal, it was great fun, and now we start heading north. A stop in Costa Rica in 2 days, and on to Mexico, the US, then CANADA!!! (ahhhh, home, family - sigh)...
I miss you all, and please send me messages - or if you want to chat with me live sometime you can find me on MSN at tabs_76@hotmail.com!
Talk to you soon!
Love,
Tabs
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Jamaica & Colombia
Hello Everyone!
I'm missing your comments, I haven't seen very many lately and want to hear about what you think!
So, we had a busy few days with Embarkation duties, payroll stuff and payroll hand out, I worked quite a few hours extra, but keeping busy is good, and it makes the sleep afterwards all that much more rewarding!
So, we went to Jamaica the other day, I was able to go out, but didn't have the best time there, I couldn't find anyone to go out with as I had to work in the morning and most of the people I knew had already gone out for the day. I should have gone where everyone else on my bus went - to the beach to hang out and eat, but I decided to go into town. Town is VERY poor, it was sad to see really, the bus dropped us off at a little tourist shopping mall where they sell some souvenier type things. I decided to walk into town, and of course got trailed by a guy that wanted to help me find a good place to eat, and of course being nice and not realizing at first (cause I'm canadian an all) that he wasn't just doing it to be nice...so he charged me $10 to take me to his friends restaurant - by the time I realized what was going on, I didn't really want to be left alone, I was the only white girl in the area, and didn't really want to try to navigate by myself, he was a nice guy, and he got me back to the bus area nice and safe. I bought myself a little painting there, and hopped the bus back to the ship. I think I would have had a much better time in the more touristy area of the beach, but now I know for next time.
Today I had the morning shift in the bank when we got to Cartagena, Colombia and as the ship was leaving at 2pm today, we had to be back on board by 1:30, I didn't have much time leaving the bank at 11:30 so I didn't figure I would get to go out. But as I was finishing my lunch in the officers mess, a friend that also enjoys photography told me that he and another guy were going out just into the terminal to take some photos of some lizards. So he asked me to join them. So I did actually get to go outside, got a bit of sun on my face (no I didn't burn - yea!) It was VERY hot, and very Muggy, I had to wait for my camera lens to un-fog, it took a few minutes, then I had to take the filter off so the main lens could un-fog! We got some picturs of some pelicans in the trees and then went into the grassy area of the terminal where when we looked closely towards the water there were a whole bunch of Iguana's!!! (not lizards) So I got a few pictures of the Iguana's - one really good one! I promise I'll break down soon and pay the higher price for internet so you can see some pictures! Also got a few pictures of some flowers and the ship, as well as the ship that was in port next too us.
Anyways, next up is the Panama Canal tomorrow, I hope to get some more pictures of us going through some locks but I think I might be sleeping when we go through the first set, and working during the evening set so maybe not!
Anyways, again, send me some comments! I miss you all!
Love,
Tabs
I'm missing your comments, I haven't seen very many lately and want to hear about what you think!
So, we had a busy few days with Embarkation duties, payroll stuff and payroll hand out, I worked quite a few hours extra, but keeping busy is good, and it makes the sleep afterwards all that much more rewarding!
So, we went to Jamaica the other day, I was able to go out, but didn't have the best time there, I couldn't find anyone to go out with as I had to work in the morning and most of the people I knew had already gone out for the day. I should have gone where everyone else on my bus went - to the beach to hang out and eat, but I decided to go into town. Town is VERY poor, it was sad to see really, the bus dropped us off at a little tourist shopping mall where they sell some souvenier type things. I decided to walk into town, and of course got trailed by a guy that wanted to help me find a good place to eat, and of course being nice and not realizing at first (cause I'm canadian an all) that he wasn't just doing it to be nice...so he charged me $10 to take me to his friends restaurant - by the time I realized what was going on, I didn't really want to be left alone, I was the only white girl in the area, and didn't really want to try to navigate by myself, he was a nice guy, and he got me back to the bus area nice and safe. I bought myself a little painting there, and hopped the bus back to the ship. I think I would have had a much better time in the more touristy area of the beach, but now I know for next time.
Today I had the morning shift in the bank when we got to Cartagena, Colombia and as the ship was leaving at 2pm today, we had to be back on board by 1:30, I didn't have much time leaving the bank at 11:30 so I didn't figure I would get to go out. But as I was finishing my lunch in the officers mess, a friend that also enjoys photography told me that he and another guy were going out just into the terminal to take some photos of some lizards. So he asked me to join them. So I did actually get to go outside, got a bit of sun on my face (no I didn't burn - yea!) It was VERY hot, and very Muggy, I had to wait for my camera lens to un-fog, it took a few minutes, then I had to take the filter off so the main lens could un-fog! We got some picturs of some pelicans in the trees and then went into the grassy area of the terminal where when we looked closely towards the water there were a whole bunch of Iguana's!!! (not lizards) So I got a few pictures of the Iguana's - one really good one! I promise I'll break down soon and pay the higher price for internet so you can see some pictures! Also got a few pictures of some flowers and the ship, as well as the ship that was in port next too us.
Anyways, next up is the Panama Canal tomorrow, I hope to get some more pictures of us going through some locks but I think I might be sleeping when we go through the first set, and working during the evening set so maybe not!
Anyways, again, send me some comments! I miss you all!
Love,
Tabs
Monday, April 14, 2008
Another Update
Hello! I can't believe it's been a week since I last posted! Sorry about that, time goes so quickly!
Okay, last time we talked I told you about what's been happening with my job...Things are still looking good for us, we still don't have any news on when things will start changing but I expect it to be in the next few weeks...
We had a new Jr Purser start today to take over for the co-worker that left in Colombia. So there will be a period of adjustment as he gets settled and we transfer some work between us. My other co-worker Anna will also be leaving soon (San Francisco in 2 weeks), so I have to learn about what she does - charging the gratuities before she goes, then I have to transfer some things to Albert and Ricardo (replacing Anna in San Fran), it feels really good, the Financial Controller seems to really trust me already so I am very confident in what I'm doing and learning, and also in what may happen for me in the future with the job situation.
Okay, so traveling stuff, we went through the Canal, that was cool, I got to go up to deck4 outside and watch as we went through a lock - then I learned that as staff we can go up to the helicopter pad at the front of the ship deck 5 and watch from the front, so I will try to do that next time - that will be so cool! It was very hot in the Canal, I also took a video of another ship going through the lock next to us, so that's kind of neat. the cruise on the lake between the locks was very nice and felt relaxing when I wasn't working.
We stopped in Cartagena, Colombia but I didn't make it off the ship, I'd had a tough day and then couldn't find anyone to go with - and really didn't want to go alone, so I just went to bed instead and slept for my whole break. oh well, then in Jamaica I was working the bank so did not have a chance to go out either. We made it Ft Lauderdale yesterday, and again it was very hard to go out. I had to work in the morning, then we had boat drill with the coast guard watching - so no one can leave until that is finished. Then the US restricts us on when we can go off ship, only every 30 minutes, so we finished boat drill at 1:00 so I missed that time to go off cause I was changing, then I missed the 1:30 cause my gentleman friend was leaving that day and wanted to visit me (but he ended up not being able to), by then it was too late as we all had to be back on ship at 2:30 and I didn't think an hour would be enough time, so again, I slept! It's too bad too, cause the ship was hours late in leaving the port due to the amount of deliveries that we got - FINALLY - maybe we will have some good food! We were supposed to leave at 5pm, and I think we left at 9pm!
So, next up is Jamaica again, and I will be going out tomorrow - I'm starting to get a little crazy with having been on ship for quite a few days now. After Jamaica, we will have another sea day, then back to Cartagena Colombia, and back through the Canal the next day.
Well, send me some messages on facebook or email, I love to hear from you and want to know how you are doing!
Talk to you soon, miss you all!
Tabs
Okay, last time we talked I told you about what's been happening with my job...Things are still looking good for us, we still don't have any news on when things will start changing but I expect it to be in the next few weeks...
We had a new Jr Purser start today to take over for the co-worker that left in Colombia. So there will be a period of adjustment as he gets settled and we transfer some work between us. My other co-worker Anna will also be leaving soon (San Francisco in 2 weeks), so I have to learn about what she does - charging the gratuities before she goes, then I have to transfer some things to Albert and Ricardo (replacing Anna in San Fran), it feels really good, the Financial Controller seems to really trust me already so I am very confident in what I'm doing and learning, and also in what may happen for me in the future with the job situation.
Okay, so traveling stuff, we went through the Canal, that was cool, I got to go up to deck4 outside and watch as we went through a lock - then I learned that as staff we can go up to the helicopter pad at the front of the ship deck 5 and watch from the front, so I will try to do that next time - that will be so cool! It was very hot in the Canal, I also took a video of another ship going through the lock next to us, so that's kind of neat. the cruise on the lake between the locks was very nice and felt relaxing when I wasn't working.
We stopped in Cartagena, Colombia but I didn't make it off the ship, I'd had a tough day and then couldn't find anyone to go with - and really didn't want to go alone, so I just went to bed instead and slept for my whole break. oh well, then in Jamaica I was working the bank so did not have a chance to go out either. We made it Ft Lauderdale yesterday, and again it was very hard to go out. I had to work in the morning, then we had boat drill with the coast guard watching - so no one can leave until that is finished. Then the US restricts us on when we can go off ship, only every 30 minutes, so we finished boat drill at 1:00 so I missed that time to go off cause I was changing, then I missed the 1:30 cause my gentleman friend was leaving that day and wanted to visit me (but he ended up not being able to), by then it was too late as we all had to be back on ship at 2:30 and I didn't think an hour would be enough time, so again, I slept! It's too bad too, cause the ship was hours late in leaving the port due to the amount of deliveries that we got - FINALLY - maybe we will have some good food! We were supposed to leave at 5pm, and I think we left at 9pm!
So, next up is Jamaica again, and I will be going out tomorrow - I'm starting to get a little crazy with having been on ship for quite a few days now. After Jamaica, we will have another sea day, then back to Cartagena Colombia, and back through the Canal the next day.
Well, send me some messages on facebook or email, I love to hear from you and want to know how you are doing!
Talk to you soon, miss you all!
Tabs
Monday, April 7, 2008
Job Changes!!! Already???
Okay, so a few days ago, we were told that the bank will be merged with Guest Relations on Celebrity Ships. So, what does this mean? We didn't know at the time, we thought, oh crap, now we have to be guest relations, does this mean our salary will go down? What about if there isn't enough jobs? Will we lose our jobs? Finally today we got some answers, and it's all good news!
My feeling initially was, my contract says apprentice purser, and I want that to stay, as you all know how I can be with patience, and guest relations deals with a lot of complaints all day long! I would not have lasted in that position. So what is happening you ask? Well, the word from head office is that all the apprentice pursers will be trained for a few different positions, including Jr Payroll, Payroll, Guest Account Purser, Documenation Officer, and some HR positions. Once we complete the training, we will be assessed and offered positions where they think we are best suited. I'm very excited about this as some of these positions are 2 stripe officers and some of those positions come with a cabin to yourself!!! I'm very excited to learn some different jobs as the one in the bank can be quite boring especially mid cruise when there isn't as much to do.
Anyways, just a quick update for you to let you know what's happening with me. As an FYI for all of you that want to see, I did get a couple of pictures of the new man, and I will get those up soon too!
Love you!
Tabs
My feeling initially was, my contract says apprentice purser, and I want that to stay, as you all know how I can be with patience, and guest relations deals with a lot of complaints all day long! I would not have lasted in that position. So what is happening you ask? Well, the word from head office is that all the apprentice pursers will be trained for a few different positions, including Jr Payroll, Payroll, Guest Account Purser, Documenation Officer, and some HR positions. Once we complete the training, we will be assessed and offered positions where they think we are best suited. I'm very excited about this as some of these positions are 2 stripe officers and some of those positions come with a cabin to yourself!!! I'm very excited to learn some different jobs as the one in the bank can be quite boring especially mid cruise when there isn't as much to do.
Anyways, just a quick update for you to let you know what's happening with me. As an FYI for all of you that want to see, I did get a couple of pictures of the new man, and I will get those up soon too!
Love you!
Tabs
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Sweating in Ecuador...
First a little update on ship life, things are going very well, some of you may know already that I've met a man that I like already. He's a very sweet kind Turkish man, but unfortunately he will go home to Turkey in just a few days when we reach Ft Lauderdale...and when he returns after vacation he will be on a different ship in Europe. So it seems it will be a short but sweet relationship. It's really nice to have someone close to you to talk to on the ship.
We had a special party last night in the constellation Bar on deck 11 last night. It was a party to say goodbye to south America as the next few days will be our last here. And also it was a congratulations party for us, because the last 2 cruises we did in South America got very good ratings. I believe the rating is out of a total of 300, and most cruises are in the 270-280 range, but in South America usually it is around 240, the cruise that was done before I came on board got a rating of 263 which is a record - and I might add, they were in code red for a few days (meaning there was a virus on board so there were a lot of quarantines), and this last cruise (my first!) got a rating of 261, it's un heard of in South America to get 2 such good ratings in a row, so the party was also to give the staff the appreciation they deserve for the good job done on the last 2 cruises. It was a nice party, but it seems not very many people have been going to the parties on ship lately as not one party since I started on board has had very many people come! I hope I don't smell bad...???
So, the day before yesterday we stopped in Lima, Peru, and unfortunately I didn't even get to go up to an outside deck to take photos! I had training in the morning, then boat drill, then only 30 minutes to grab some lunch and I was at the bank until we left port and it got dark! Apparently the port near Lima can be quite dangerous, there was a shuttle bus that takes you directly from the terminal to the nicer part of town - people likened this area to East LA! Well, one of our staff decided to walk (ALONE) and he got mugged by 2 men at gun point! they ripped his clothes to get into his pockets and left him holding his shorts. He seemed alright yesterday when I talked to him, but it must have been terrifying! Kind of made me glad I couldn't go off ship in a way!
Yesterday was a Sea Day so I got to sleep a lot - I'm learning that Sea Days are great, because you can catch up on your sleep during your afternoon break instead of going ashore!
Today we stopped in Manta, Ecuador and I was able to go out. I went out with my new boyfriend Yilderay (from Turkey) and we went down to the beach area which has a lot of seafood restaurants, and had some lunch there, then we walked out to the water and along the beach a bit before heading back in land. It was VERY hot and humid in Manta today so the water felt really nice on our feet. We wandered back through a few vendor stalls, and I was treated to a nice Necklace made out of shell (maybe?) with my initial and a heart on it (Everybody say Awe!) It was sweet. Then I took a few pictures, unfortunately near where we were, there wasn't a lot to see, and we couldn't travel too far from the ship because we had to come back to work. Apparently there are some really nice parks near by, and if I get back down this way, I will definitely arrange something in order to go take some pics.
Anyways, that's about it for now, Miss you all!
Love,
Tabs
We had a special party last night in the constellation Bar on deck 11 last night. It was a party to say goodbye to south America as the next few days will be our last here. And also it was a congratulations party for us, because the last 2 cruises we did in South America got very good ratings. I believe the rating is out of a total of 300, and most cruises are in the 270-280 range, but in South America usually it is around 240, the cruise that was done before I came on board got a rating of 263 which is a record - and I might add, they were in code red for a few days (meaning there was a virus on board so there were a lot of quarantines), and this last cruise (my first!) got a rating of 261, it's un heard of in South America to get 2 such good ratings in a row, so the party was also to give the staff the appreciation they deserve for the good job done on the last 2 cruises. It was a nice party, but it seems not very many people have been going to the parties on ship lately as not one party since I started on board has had very many people come! I hope I don't smell bad...???
So, the day before yesterday we stopped in Lima, Peru, and unfortunately I didn't even get to go up to an outside deck to take photos! I had training in the morning, then boat drill, then only 30 minutes to grab some lunch and I was at the bank until we left port and it got dark! Apparently the port near Lima can be quite dangerous, there was a shuttle bus that takes you directly from the terminal to the nicer part of town - people likened this area to East LA! Well, one of our staff decided to walk (ALONE) and he got mugged by 2 men at gun point! they ripped his clothes to get into his pockets and left him holding his shorts. He seemed alright yesterday when I talked to him, but it must have been terrifying! Kind of made me glad I couldn't go off ship in a way!
Yesterday was a Sea Day so I got to sleep a lot - I'm learning that Sea Days are great, because you can catch up on your sleep during your afternoon break instead of going ashore!
Today we stopped in Manta, Ecuador and I was able to go out. I went out with my new boyfriend Yilderay (from Turkey) and we went down to the beach area which has a lot of seafood restaurants, and had some lunch there, then we walked out to the water and along the beach a bit before heading back in land. It was VERY hot and humid in Manta today so the water felt really nice on our feet. We wandered back through a few vendor stalls, and I was treated to a nice Necklace made out of shell (maybe?) with my initial and a heart on it (Everybody say Awe!) It was sweet. Then I took a few pictures, unfortunately near where we were, there wasn't a lot to see, and we couldn't travel too far from the ship because we had to come back to work. Apparently there are some really nice parks near by, and if I get back down this way, I will definitely arrange something in order to go take some pics.
Anyways, that's about it for now, Miss you all!
Love,
Tabs
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Arica, Chile
Well, I'm back again! Today we stopped in Arica, Chile which is at the northern end of Chile. I was able to get off the ship again today, and it is a nice city - although I must admit we didn't get very far from port...
Once off the ship there were a few vendors selling their crafts, I bought a nice colourful blanket for the end of my bunk to make it a little more home like in my cabin, it's got a lot of orange in it so it suits me great. It also has some Chile type designs so it feels very authentic. Then we walked through a mall area and found a restaurant for lunch - it took 2 hours!!!! It was crazy, but this is the Chile way of life, we ordered drinks and our meal, and it took probably half an hour for the bread to come, then another half an hour for an appitizer for my friend Tunde, and another half hour for our lunch to come! It was okay, some of the food was good, but I had some Kalamari on mine and it was VERY rubbery so I couldn't eat that part of my meal.
After our 2 hour meal we really didn't have much time left, I took a few pictures of the vendor area which was a nice square with a church at the top end of it, and we headed back to the ship to go back to work.
Tomorrow we head up into Peruvian waters, and will arrive in Lima the next day. Unfortunately it is my turn to work the afternoon shift, so I will not be able to leave the ship. But I have found out that I will be able to go out when we reach Manta, Equador, and Cartegena, Colombia! I'm very excited!
Well, better get to my evening nap! Talk to you all soon!
Tabitha
Once off the ship there were a few vendors selling their crafts, I bought a nice colourful blanket for the end of my bunk to make it a little more home like in my cabin, it's got a lot of orange in it so it suits me great. It also has some Chile type designs so it feels very authentic. Then we walked through a mall area and found a restaurant for lunch - it took 2 hours!!!! It was crazy, but this is the Chile way of life, we ordered drinks and our meal, and it took probably half an hour for the bread to come, then another half an hour for an appitizer for my friend Tunde, and another half hour for our lunch to come! It was okay, some of the food was good, but I had some Kalamari on mine and it was VERY rubbery so I couldn't eat that part of my meal.
After our 2 hour meal we really didn't have much time left, I took a few pictures of the vendor area which was a nice square with a church at the top end of it, and we headed back to the ship to go back to work.
Tomorrow we head up into Peruvian waters, and will arrive in Lima the next day. Unfortunately it is my turn to work the afternoon shift, so I will not be able to leave the ship. But I have found out that I will be able to go out when we reach Manta, Equador, and Cartegena, Colombia! I'm very excited!
Well, better get to my evening nap! Talk to you all soon!
Tabitha
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Coquimbo, Chile
Well I finally made it off the ship in Chile! I went to Coquimbo which is where the dock is for the port of La Serena, I did not take the $15 cab ride to go to La Serena as we didn't have a lot of time, and there was a nice street with some shops to look through in Coquimbo. My co-worker and I walked the street, and I took a few pictures, and we went to a grocery store to pick up a few supplies and a snack. Then we sat in a nice square with our snack.
Life on the ship is about the same, I'm starting to get used to the hours and sleeping whenever I get the chance, last night I actually got a full nights sleep (kind of) I slept for an hour around 9pm, then was up until about 12:30 and slept until 7am...
Next stop is Arica, Chile which is at the northern tip of the country next to Peru. I don't yet know if I will have time to leave the ship as we are still waiting for our next schedule. Hopefully I will have time. Then we will be off to Peru, Equador, Panama Canal, Colombia and Jamaica before we hit US soil at the end of this cruise in Ft Lauderdale.
Not a lot of info in this post as Coquimbo is not all that interesting, but I will update you again soon!
Love,
Tabs
Life on the ship is about the same, I'm starting to get used to the hours and sleeping whenever I get the chance, last night I actually got a full nights sleep (kind of) I slept for an hour around 9pm, then was up until about 12:30 and slept until 7am...
Next stop is Arica, Chile which is at the northern tip of the country next to Peru. I don't yet know if I will have time to leave the ship as we are still waiting for our next schedule. Hopefully I will have time. Then we will be off to Peru, Equador, Panama Canal, Colombia and Jamaica before we hit US soil at the end of this cruise in Ft Lauderdale.
Not a lot of info in this post as Coquimbo is not all that interesting, but I will update you again soon!
Love,
Tabs
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Traveling the coast of Chile
Hello! It's been a few days, and thought I'd better post an update. Not a lot has happened as we've been at sea with only one port stop in Punta Arenas - I was unable to get off the ship in this port.
We went to Cape Horn, unfortunately I wasn't feeling too well from the rough seas, so I slept through most of it. I only got upstairs to take a couple of pictures as we were leaving. I wasn't able to see any glaciers there. From here we traveled to Punta Arenas where unfortunately I only had 3 hours between shifts which was not enough time to leave the ship as we were tendered rather than docked, and the tender was very far from shore. Even if I had more time I probably wouldn't have gone as the seas were so rough that they actually had to stop the tender boats for about 2 hours in the afternoon. I would NOT have enjoyed that!
From Punta Arenas we traveled through the straight of Magellin where I was finally able to see a Glacier (pictures later - I know, I know - soon!) It was very beautiful traveling here and not very rough as we were protected by islands - I think I spent about an hour on deck 4 going outside and back in (It was cold and I didn't have a sweater) taking LOTS of pictures.
Today we traveled through the Chilean Fjords, unfortunately again I only got to get out to see them as we were leaving as I was working all afternoon. I will definitely have to come back here someday so that I can see more of these towns and the places we travel past.
Tomorrow we will travel to Puerto Montt, Chile - our second to last stop before we complete this cruise in Valparisio. I will have 5 hours between shifts and even though it is a tender again I should be able to get off the ship for an hour or 2 - I hope so as I need to buy a couple of things!
Tonight the HR department is hosting a special Easter Dinner upstairs in the buffet for all of the crew - usually most of the crew is not allowed upstairs to eat in the passenger areas but because of Easter, they will be allowed tonight - although it doesn't start until 11:30!!!!
Talk to you all soon!
Miss you!
Love
Tabitha
We went to Cape Horn, unfortunately I wasn't feeling too well from the rough seas, so I slept through most of it. I only got upstairs to take a couple of pictures as we were leaving. I wasn't able to see any glaciers there. From here we traveled to Punta Arenas where unfortunately I only had 3 hours between shifts which was not enough time to leave the ship as we were tendered rather than docked, and the tender was very far from shore. Even if I had more time I probably wouldn't have gone as the seas were so rough that they actually had to stop the tender boats for about 2 hours in the afternoon. I would NOT have enjoyed that!
From Punta Arenas we traveled through the straight of Magellin where I was finally able to see a Glacier (pictures later - I know, I know - soon!) It was very beautiful traveling here and not very rough as we were protected by islands - I think I spent about an hour on deck 4 going outside and back in (It was cold and I didn't have a sweater) taking LOTS of pictures.
Today we traveled through the Chilean Fjords, unfortunately again I only got to get out to see them as we were leaving as I was working all afternoon. I will definitely have to come back here someday so that I can see more of these towns and the places we travel past.
Tomorrow we will travel to Puerto Montt, Chile - our second to last stop before we complete this cruise in Valparisio. I will have 5 hours between shifts and even though it is a tender again I should be able to get off the ship for an hour or 2 - I hope so as I need to buy a couple of things!
Tonight the HR department is hosting a special Easter Dinner upstairs in the buffet for all of the crew - usually most of the crew is not allowed upstairs to eat in the passenger areas but because of Easter, they will be allowed tonight - although it doesn't start until 11:30!!!!
Talk to you all soon!
Miss you!
Love
Tabitha
Saturday, March 22, 2008
The End of the World...
Good Day from as close to the end of the world as I can reach! I am currently just a couple hundred nautical miles from Cape horn, as well as only around 400 nautical miles from antarctica! It's crazy, this is not something I ever imagined.
Well to update you on dinner, it was great! I only had one glass of wine with dinner as I was worried about more wind last night and I did not want to be dehydrated! But no worries, it was not windy enough for me to get seasick! Hopefully I am over that now - please keep your fingers crossed for me!
My mother asked me today what exactly do I do on the ship? So I will tell everyone as I'm sure some of you are wondering. My title on the ship is Junior Purser, and I work the in the bank mostly. In the bank we exchange money for guests (and crew) Give the guests smaller change so they can tip the crew, and the crew bigger bills so they don't have all $1 bills...It's a great circle...We also help guests with their accounts, they can pay their bills at the bank, as well as make deposits and get account statements. Those of you at ACD and CH will think this is funny - there are NO training documents, so less than 1 week on the job, I am already writing documentation!!!! My life is documentation!!! LOL! We also have some special duties, we assist our supervisor the guest account purser in some of her duties, so far mostly just reviewing and matching accounting records. We also assist the payroll department with stuff envelopes full of cash for paying the crew, and giving out the envelopes to the crew (big day for me on the 28th as I will help with that for the first time). There is also assistance to the documentation purser on embarkation day in assisting to collect passenger passports and other documents. There is definitely some busy times during payroll and the last day of the cruise when guests are settling their accounts, but during the middle of the cruise it can be quite quiet so I will have to start asking for more work - I don't like not being busy!
Thursday and Friday of this week were 2 days at sea, so I spent most of my time working and sleeping, but today we stopped in the Ushuaia port, which is the southern most town in the world. It is a small town, but cute, it has a nice main street with some good BBQ restaurants, I didn't want to take that much time to eat though, so I just ate quickly so I could take more photos! I took some photos of the harbour and the town. The mountains here are very pretty and remind me a little bit of Bella Coola, I enjoyed my time here even though it was only 2 hours.
So tommorrow on Easter Sunday we will travel to Cape Horn, we will not be able to get off the ship, it is just cruising past it, before heading to the next port - our first port in Chile - Sorry can't remember the name of it, I will know it next time I post. I am very excited to see Cape Horn and to take some photos. As well as some other islands here at the southern tip of South America!
Okay, again I promise, pictures will come soon!
Talk to you soon!
Miss you!
Love,
Tabitha
Well to update you on dinner, it was great! I only had one glass of wine with dinner as I was worried about more wind last night and I did not want to be dehydrated! But no worries, it was not windy enough for me to get seasick! Hopefully I am over that now - please keep your fingers crossed for me!
My mother asked me today what exactly do I do on the ship? So I will tell everyone as I'm sure some of you are wondering. My title on the ship is Junior Purser, and I work the in the bank mostly. In the bank we exchange money for guests (and crew) Give the guests smaller change so they can tip the crew, and the crew bigger bills so they don't have all $1 bills...It's a great circle...We also help guests with their accounts, they can pay their bills at the bank, as well as make deposits and get account statements. Those of you at ACD and CH will think this is funny - there are NO training documents, so less than 1 week on the job, I am already writing documentation!!!! My life is documentation!!! LOL! We also have some special duties, we assist our supervisor the guest account purser in some of her duties, so far mostly just reviewing and matching accounting records. We also assist the payroll department with stuff envelopes full of cash for paying the crew, and giving out the envelopes to the crew (big day for me on the 28th as I will help with that for the first time). There is also assistance to the documentation purser on embarkation day in assisting to collect passenger passports and other documents. There is definitely some busy times during payroll and the last day of the cruise when guests are settling their accounts, but during the middle of the cruise it can be quite quiet so I will have to start asking for more work - I don't like not being busy!
Thursday and Friday of this week were 2 days at sea, so I spent most of my time working and sleeping, but today we stopped in the Ushuaia port, which is the southern most town in the world. It is a small town, but cute, it has a nice main street with some good BBQ restaurants, I didn't want to take that much time to eat though, so I just ate quickly so I could take more photos! I took some photos of the harbour and the town. The mountains here are very pretty and remind me a little bit of Bella Coola, I enjoyed my time here even though it was only 2 hours.
So tommorrow on Easter Sunday we will travel to Cape Horn, we will not be able to get off the ship, it is just cruising past it, before heading to the next port - our first port in Chile - Sorry can't remember the name of it, I will know it next time I post. I am very excited to see Cape Horn and to take some photos. As well as some other islands here at the southern tip of South America!
Okay, again I promise, pictures will come soon!
Talk to you soon!
Miss you!
Love,
Tabitha
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