One Month to Go!

I can't believe it. I only have 4 weeks to go before I'm home again. In some regards this contract has gone really fast, however it seems like years ago that I signed on my first ship of the contract. I haven't loved everyday out here for sure, but in typical fashion I'm starting to love it right before it's time to leave. It really is a strange life out here. You get dropped into a new place with new people and pretty much a new job on each ship since none of them are exactly the same. Just as you get settled in to a good routine and make some friends, it's time to leave. That was especially true this time since I switched ships half way through.

It's not a lifestyle I would wish on anyone, but I've had opportunities and experiences I would not trade for anything. It's pretty easy for those of us out here to become unhappy with our lives and then we take a look back. I had left my state less than a dozen times when I graduated from high school. I didn't get my passport until I was in college. And my first flight came after my college degree. I never wanted to go to summer camp because I didn't want to be away from home. Even now, when I'm home, I'd rather stay there instead of going out and doing something. But for some reason God decided to show me the world. And I'm grateful.

Right now I'm on my first cruise from Tampa, Florida. Last cruise was a 14 night repositioning from Boston to Tampa- with stops in 6 islands. They were all ports I had been to, but it was still one of the best cruises of my contract. I went snorkeling in St Lucia on a catamaran tour. I went back to the Boatyard in Barbados where I jumped off the pier several times and used the rope swing a few more. In St. Thomas I visited the worlds largest cruise ship and had lunch with a friend of mine who works there. I love reconnecting with people I have worked with before. That's part of the life I wouldn't wish on anyone- you meet amazing people, become fast friends, share incredible experiences, and then never talk to them again. It's really quite horrible. Thankfully that wasn't the case for us. We were able to reconnect and it was just like old times.

Our last port was Aruba and I went back to the water park I had visited on my last cruise on my last ship before I was transferred. It was great to go back with a whole new group of friends and act like a kid all over again.

There was lots going on on board last week too. They let the crew use the kids pool and water slide so I got to slide on the ship fully clothed! They also had a Pirate Party for us on the Mooring Deck.

This cruise is short and fast, but a lot of fun. I'm back in Mexico for the first time in a few years and enjoyed yesterday in Cozumel and today in Costa Maya. I have family visiting in less than a week and I can't believe I'll be home one month from today!

Canada and New England

I’m back in the Caribbean again after a 3 month hiatus in cooler weather. In true form for the Caribbean, I basked in warmth and sunshine this morning and ran from the rain in the afternoon. I’m not always the Caribbean’s biggest fan, but I must admit that it is nice to be back. I’ve missed the clear blue water and being warm. As nice as it is to be back, I had another great Canada and New England season. Since I can’t quite remember what I did on each cruise, I’ll just give you the highlights of each port.

Boston

Boston was the end of one cruise and the beginning of the next for me this year. That’s sad because I didn’t have as much time in port as I would if it was a normal port day. Don’t fret- I still managed to have some adventures! There were a few days that I just walked downtown and didn’t really get up to much, but one week I went to Salem and visited the Witch Trial Museum. I must admit, this is a piece of American history where I have a large knowledge gap. I couldn’t have told you much of anything about Salem previous to this journey, but it was interesting. The next week I visited Lexington and Concord where the first troops were fired on in the American Revolution. I love the history of Boston and everything dealing with the Revolutionary War, so it was nice to visit a historical site I had never seen.

Portland

I LOVE Maine. Love it! While I prefer the countryside, Portland is a very nice city. Most of my trips here were spent in and around town. While my parent’s were cruising with me, we enjoyed a trolley tour of the city that included a stop at the famous Portland Headlight Lighthouse. My mom really likes lighthouses so I was really excited to finally have them on a cruise were we could go see some. Unfortunately, the weather was pretty terrible that day and our Lighthouse Lover’s Cruise was cancelled. Fortunately for me this wasn’t my last trip here and I was able to go on the cruise later. But, back to when my parents were here, we rode the Narrow Gage railroad along the water front. I didn’t even know there was such a thing as a Narrow Gage railroad, but the tracks are about 2.5 feet apart. It was used as a commuter train while the normal gage was used for long distances. The remaining tracks run along side a bike trail that follows the coast for a few miles. I never knew this trail existed and I walked it every Portland visit since finding it.

The week after my parents were there, dear friends of mine from Pittsburgh were in town visiting their son and were able to come down to the ship to see me for the day. We went out to Kennebunkport for the afternoon. It is beautiful there. The downtown shopping area is very pretty and quaint. The homes around town are gorgeous! It is like no place I have ever been. We took a trolley tour around town here too (trolley’s are apparently big in Maine. Who knew?). We saw Walker’s Point- the name of the Bush complex in Kennebunkport. Not a bad summer home. Seeing Kennebunkport was great and spending time with my dear friends was even better!

The following week was my last trip and was when I went on the Lighthouse Cruise. It of course took us to Portland Headlight, but it showed us about 5 other lights as well as taking us close to the Casco Bay Islands. Some of the islands only contain summer homes and have the power shut off in the winter, but some of them are inhabited year round and people take the water taxi to the mainland to work. Some of them even have an island car and a mainland car. The tour took us by Fort Gorges which looks a bit like Alcatraz in the bay. It is now an undeveloped urban park and you can kayak out to it and explore on you own. However, you will need a flashlight to find your way around inside. The outside is very green and looks a bit like the green roofs and green buildings that are all the rage in cities nowadays. I think this one is a bit different though since most of the plant life is poison ivy. Awesome. I wonder if that was put there on purpose when the fort was built. That way even if they were overcome and defeated the enemy would get a nasty surprise.

One of the lighthouses we passed had remnants of a long walkway stretching out on one side with nothing at the end. We were told the bathroom used to be at the end. The bathroom had a straight drop into the ocean. I get a little nervous every time I use a port-a-potty, I can’t imagine using a 20’ above sea level port-a-potty with a clear view of the surf breaking on the rocks below.

On the way back to the pier I got to see a little harbor seal playing in the water and I saw one the next day in Bar Harbor too!

Bar Harbor

My favorite place on earth! Seriously, I adore it here. If I wasn’t afraid of the winters and had a normal life I would live here. I still might some day. One of my favorite things to do is visit Acadia National Park, but I only made it there 3 times this year. The best way to get into the park is to take the Park Hopper bus- a free bus service with multiple lines that will drop you off throughout the park. It takes some planning, but it really is the best way to see and experience this HUGE space. The first trip to the park this year was with my parents. I knew they would love it as much as I did if given the chance so I took them to the Shore Path. This hike starts on a sandy beach called Sand Beach (Creative, eh?). It quickly climbs to granite cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and begins to wind down as you reach Thunder Hole where the water hits the rocks with such force that it occasionally sounds like cracks of thunder (again, another creative name). We caught the bus from here to Jordan Pond House and walked down to Jordan Pond. The foliage wasn’t as great this year as we had hoped for, but it was still breathtaking. And I think I was right, my parents did love it!

My next trip to Acadia took me back to the Jordan Pond House. This time I wanted to hike around the whole thing. I did it and it was amazing. 3 miles before lunch. Beautiful! Lunch was served at the Pond House. Amazing tomato basil bisque and their famous popovers. I had heard of popovers and I expected them to be like turnovers- fruit filled pastries. I was wrong. They are more like hollow muffins made out of croissant type material served with a slide of blueberry preserves. Delicious nonetheless.

Sadly my trip to Jordan Pond was on the last day the busses were in service for the year. That means when I wanted to go to the park next I had to walk there. I walked through town, around the Great Meadow Loop, down the Jessup Path, and around the Tarn Trail. All of that led me to the Ladder Trail- aka the steep way up Mt Dorr. It was only a mile so I decided to go for it, although I will admit I was a bit terrified of falling off the face of a mountain alone and no one would ever know what happened to me. But, clearly that fear didn’t become a reality. I made it up in about an hour- a difficult hour. It’s called the Ladder Trail because there are a couple spots with metal ladders bolted to the side of the mountain (I had assumed this would be the case, because as we established earlier they are pretty straightforward with their naming in this neck of the woods). However, I think Stair Trail may have been more appropriate. 90% of the trail is walking up granite steps. Big, leaf covered granite steps that go on for a mile. I don’t take the stairs 10 decks up to my office, yet I decided to take stairs for a mile up the side of a mountain! It was incredible! The view from the top was well worth the effort. I could see my ship in the bay and the entire town of Bar Harbor- basically I could see where I started my day and how far I had come. Mt Dorr is situated between Cadillac Mountain and Champlain Mountain. I visited the summit of Cadillac (via bus) on my first visit to Acadia and I climbed Champlain via the hardest trail in the park, The Precipice, last year so it was nice to complete the trifecta. Going down the mountain was less strenuous, but still a bit tricky- in fact I fell. Some places were nothing but a sheet of granite and it was wet and covered in leaves on my trip. I was alright though and I made it back into town in once piece. I think I covered about 10 miles that day and I loved it! Why aren’t all the ports like this?

Part of Acadia is a bit removed from the rest of the Park and is actually closer to town. It is known as Bar Island. It is the closest island to Bar Harbor and gets its name from the sandbar that you can walk across at low tide to reach the island (again with the crazy naming!). I had wanted to do this for over a year, but I always had my timing wrong. I made it out there this year, but I was afraid of getting trapped out there so I turned around and crossed back shortly after reaching the island.

I also like spending time in the town of Bar Harbor. Very Stars Hollow-y. It looks like a small town that got stuck in time a few decades ago. I imagine that all of the locals know each other. In fact, you can feel a sense of community about town. It’s really indescribable, but you will know what I mean on your first visit.

St. John, New Brunswick

St. John is not one of my favorite stops but I do love getting a big breakfast at Cora’s and walking through the craft aisles in the City Market. Also I enjoy the St. John Pedway system especially since it always rains in St. John. You may not know what a Pedway is. I didn’t. A pedway is a skywalk- a sidewalk in the sky that connects buildings to one another so you don’t have to go outside. You enter the first building about a 10 minute walk from the ship. From there you go the next 5 blocks without going back outside. It’s awesome!

Halifax, Nova Scotia

Halfiax has a great waterfront district and I enjoy just taking a walk on the boardwalk although it is usually quite cool and breezy. They also have a beautiful Public Garden and I like to buy lunch nearby and sit on a bench near the pond and eat lunch and read my book.

While my parents were here we went out to Peggy’s Cove- another spot that is always cold and windy. I believe this is the site of the most photographed lighthouse in Canada. It is gorgeous. The granite rocks have been rounded by the crazy wild surf up there. The drive to and from is also beautiful- lots of islands and homes right on the water.

The following week I mentioned to some friends that I wanted chicken wings. They researched it and found a sports bar rated one of the top wing spots in Canada- we went there for the next 3 weeks. Love it! On our last trip we also visited the Discovery Center- a hands on science center. I built a molecule of tryptophan, tried to build a roller coaster, put myself in a bubble capsule, and spun super fast in a chair, among other things. Yes it was nerdy, but it was so much fun.

So that was Canada and New England. I do love it up there. The history. The weather in the fall. The wide acceptance of US currency. All good things for me. Like I said, I’m back in the Caribbean now. St Thomas yesterday, St Kitts today, and St Lucia tomorrow. Hopefully I’m going on a catamaran snorkel trip tomorrow, but I think a few more people have to sign up before they will let us go. This cruise is a 14-day before we start 4 and 5 day cruises. In other words, this is the last time I can relax for the rest of my contract. I do nearly the same amount of work in 14 days that I will soon have to do in 4 days. Yikes! Oh well- I have family visiting in just over 2 weeks and I’m home in exactly 6 weeks!

Random things I couldn’t write a whole post about:

1. Yesterday, some one said to me: “I hate to ask, but what ocean is this?” If you have to preface it with “I hate to ask” maybe you should just Google it on your own time without revealing your ignorance to others. I tried to sound impressive so I pointed out that it was technically the Caribbean Sea but also considered part of the Atlantic Ocean. This lady was a guest on another ship. but I should have asked her where she was from. I didn’t notice a significant accent indicating she might not be from this side of the world, but hopefully she had some good reason to not know what ocean her ship that sailed from Florida was in.
2. I really like the Amazon.com Wish List capability. I may have mentioned this last year, but it’s how I do my Christmas list now. You simply look up the items you want then click “Add to Wish List” then you can rank the priority of this gift and add comments like size or color requirements. Then other people can go on there and see what you want and even just order it straight from there if they want. Also, you can install a universal “Add to Wish List” button in your browser and you can add things from any website to you list. Cool, huh? Then after Christmas you can go on and remove what you received and save the rest for your birthday or next year. As you think of things or something new comes out that you want, you can just add it to your list whenever. I also only recently discovered that you can build other lists called “Gift Organizers.” So as I get Christmas shopping ideas I can just add it to my Gift Organizer and go back for it later. You can also build profiles for different people that you shop for with what you bought them in the past and it will generate future gift ideas for you. In addition, it stores all of their shipping info so you don’t have to add it the next time. Check it out!

Transatlantic

How long ago did I promise you a blog would be coming “soon”? A month? Can’t be. Wow. Really? I’ve been back on this side of the pond for a month? Things have been a little busy. First of all, I’ve been enjoying some of my favorite ports up here in Canada and New England. I’ve had a change in bosses. And I had my parent’s cruising for a week. All of those have required my attention and energy so I haven’t been writing much- sorry. If I take a break from writing for a bit I find it really hard to start again. In fact I will find just about anything else to do instead of write. If you don’t believe me, I read the last 4 months worth of Reader’s Digests in just over a week AND I went to the gym today- second time this week. I know, I think I need a therapist too.

So what did I promise last time? Tales of the crossing? Who can remember? That was so long ago.... I’ll give it a try though...or maybe I’m making it up. You weren’t there. In fact, how do you know any of my stories are true? You believe the pictures? Um, ever heard of Google Images? Maybe instead of visiting all of these places I’ve actually just been sitting in my cabin perfecting my Photoshop skills to trick you all. For all you know my ship is actually a riverboat casino permanently docked somewhere in Louisiana. If you still think I’m out having worldwide adventures read on.

My transatlantic crossing cruise began in Harwich, England and ended 14 days later in Boston, Massachusetts, USA- hence trans-Atlantic.

Our first port of call took us on a jaunt across the Bay of Biscay to Le Harve, France. Also known as “The Port of Paris.” Paris is not a port. Don’t let that title confuse you. Le Harve is a port, or a parking lot for ships. Paris is a mere two hour bus ride away. Now a two hour trip may sound far to some, but it’s Paris. How can you not go?!?! Plus it’s about two hours from my house to where I used to work in Pittsburgh and I cannot begin to even count the number of times I’ve made that trip in the last four years. If I’m willing to drive two hours to see Pittsburgh, or my hometown for that matter, how can I not travel two hours to see Paris? So, yes, I went. I bought a seat on the “Eiffel Tower Crew Tour.” I was a little surprised when my “tour” just dropped me off at the base of the Eiffel Tower and told me when to be back at the bus. No trip to the top? No informative tour guide speeches? Nope. First, I got in line for the lift to the top of the tower, but then I decided I needed to get my workout in yet today so I got in the line for the stairs. That’s right, I took the stairs up the Eiffel Tower. I took a picture of stair number 500, but I honestly can’t remember how many stairs there were in total. 720? Maybe. That sounds familiar. That took me to the first and second levels. From there we had to take a lift to the top, but we didn’t have time. Sad. I went the whole way to Paris and didn’t make it to the top of the Eiffel tower. Oh well. I guess I have to go back. I want it to be some spectacular “End of ‘Sleepless in Seattle’” type situation up there anyway (yes, I know that was the Empire State Building. Studying Nora Ephron films helped me earn my college degree. Be jealous.).

From the Tower I saw the Notre Dame and the Arch de Triumph. I would love to actually go see those places up close someday, but I just didn’t have enough time. There was definitely a lack of planning on my part which is unusual since I plan everything. However, I did get to eat lunch in a sidewalk cafe. If memory serves I even ate French Fries in France (Mental note: “French Fries in France” is a great title for a children’s book). I had wanted to eat French Fries, French Toast, French Bread, and French’s Mustard. I got the fries and a few croissants. That will have to do for now.

The next day was Cherbourg, France. I’m glad I’m typing instead of speaking because I cannot say the name of this town for some reason. “Cherbourg” and “familiarization” are tough for me. Those and “Rural Juror.” Say it. See?

Anyway, Cherbourg is a fishing village. It was a cute French town. I felt like I was walking through a movie set. Narrow streets. Pastry shops. Beautiful. There is an awe-inspiring Gothic church in the town too. It was my safe-haven from the rain and was absolutely gorgeous. There was also a tiny, yet amazing, park in town. A former mayor, or official of some kind, in Cherbourg had loved nature and plants and he built this park with lots of unique plants. Including a palm tree. I saw what is possibly the only palm tree in France.

After France I was off to Ireland, a place I have always wanted to visit. My first stop was Cobh- aka the last above water stop of the Titanic. I had wanted to go kiss the Blarney Stone and see the Blarney Castle, but I had to work that afternoon so I was just able to see Cobh and nearby Cork. Cork is a city. I guess a nice city. I’ve found that I’ve become pretty unimpressed by cities unless there are things I want to see and do there. I don’t shop so the main reason most people go downtown is completely lost on me. But there were some nice, historical churches around town and it was all quite pretty.

Cobh is a smaller town and it looks like the economy is not great over there either. Lots of storefronts were boarded up and are now for sale. It was rather sad. One of the first things I saw in Cobh was a monument of a girl and her two brothers representing some of the first people to arrive in the United States through Ellis Island. Lots of people left Ireland for the States during the Famine. This was of particular interest to me because I visited Ellis Island for the first time earlier this year.

Cobh has markers on a few sites throughout town that pertain to the Titanic. For example I found a set of stairs that the passengers walked down on their way to the dock. There is also still a “White Star Line” sign atop one of the waterfront buildings.

I was in Dublin the next day, but it was a short one. I think I had to be onboard around 3:00 PM. Like a lot of the European ports, you had to take a shuttle bus into town. The bus dropped us off right across from King’s College but I didn’t really have time to explore it. Instead I went and saw the Dublin Castle, local parks and churches and just tried to blend in and observe a typical Dublin day. To help with that I had lunch in a pub. I didn’t make it to the Guinness factory, but I did see a Guinness truck in town making local deliveries.

After a day and half at sea I was in Reykjavik, Iceland. Can someone explain to me why I can say Reykjavik and not Cherbourg?

We didn’t get in until about 2:30 PM so I went out on deck to see the sail in. I could see the majestic cliff-lined coast of Iceland while we were still a long way out. As we got closer, a guest lecturer we had onboard from Iceland made announcements telling us about what we were seeing. I saw steam rising from the mountains and it was from all of the volcanic activity of the island. I was about to see a lot more steam since later that night I went to the Blue Lagoon- a resort with natural hot springs. It wasn’t as hot as I had expected it to be, but it was still really nice. The Blue Lagoon provided silica to put on your face as a spa treatment. They had a swim up bar and I loved drinking my smoothie while warming my bones in the lagoon.

We were there for an overnight and I spent the next day walking around town. Iceland is now one of my favorite places in the world. I would love to go and spend a week or more there. See the volcano. Hike on the glaciers. Sit in the hot springs some more. Everything is incredibly expensive in Iceland, but it is like no other place I’ve seen. I would really like more time to explore.

One of my favorite parts was the Northern Lights. I saw them a little bit the night we were docked in Reykjavik. At first glance I was really disappointed. It looked like a cloud with a slight green tint or even pollution. Perhaps a better description is the scene in “Christmas Vacation” where the old guy causes an explosion while lighting his cigar on the lawn of the Grizwald’s house- the first glimpse of the Northern Lights I had looked like the gasses that were coming from the storm drain in that scene. But with a little patience, I saw an amazing display of God’s creativity. What would start off as a faint green line would become a bright green swirl and would sometimes change to white or even red as it danced through the sky. The display was even better the next night. I spent hours watching the night sky all bundled up. I tried so hard to get pictures of it and only figured out the correct camera settings for it as they disappeared. Refer back to my earlier Google Images comment.

I was now on the Voyage of the Vikings- Iceland to Newfoundland. After 3 days at sea we landed in St John’s, Newfoundland, Canada. How long did it take the Viking’s? Probably longer than that. While I was happy to cross another Canadian Province off the list, there really wasn’t much to see in St. John’s. I had some really nice blueberry pancakes and I enjoyed reading about how St. John’s was home to many escort ships used in war. Other than that I just walked around town some more.

Three days later I was in Boston and back in the continental United States for the second time in four months. The only other time was as I was changing planes at JFK on my way from San Juan, Puerto Rico to Helsinki, Finland. Being out of the States for that long really is a big deal since until 4 years ago I had only ever been out the country to Canada three or four times and didn’t even have a passport. Actually I had never been on an airplane until four years ago. Crazy how life can change. It’s also crazy how it is not at all how you imagine it. I make it a priority to live with no regrets though. Try new things and always have fun. My new motto is “We don’t stop playing because we get old. We get old because we stop playing.”

Go play. And learn how to use Google Images. And Photoshop.

5 Weeks, 12 Countries, Countless Stories

It’s been so long since I’ve written- and yet it has all gone so fast for me. I’ve been on my new ship for over a month now and in some ways it seems like I’ve been here for awhile, but it still feels brand new in other ways. I’ve actually only been here for 2.5 cruises, but that is equivalent to over 4 cruises on my last ship.

Since I last wrote, I flew from San Juan to New York where my feet got to be on Continental US soil for an hour or so before I took off for Munich and then Helsinki, Finland. By the time I landed in Finland I was excited, nervous, and jet lagged. I was also relieved- my luggage and I had made all of our connections. However, my bags must have sat on the tarmac in the pouring rain in Munich for awhile because both they and their contents were soaked, but wet belongings are better than no belongings. I grabbed my bags and headed for the airport door- there were 2 doors here. Above the first one it said “Nothing to Declare.” I don’t remember what the second one said, but I decided that I didn’t know of anything I had to declare (in other words, I have no idea what this sign means so I’m just going to act like this is where I’m supposed to be). I went through the door and was suddenly outside. That was it? That can’t be it. I think I skipped a step. Don’t I have to talk to some one? Show my work papers? Surely there is more to this than walking through the exit. I saw a Customs official leaving the building and asked her if I did something wrong. She said I only needed to go to the other door if I had lots of drugs, alcohol, or cash on me. I assured her I had none of the first two and not enough of the third- she replied with a “Welcome to Finland.” And that was it...my European journey began. And then stopped.

I was at the airport and there was supposed to be a transport to the ship for me. That’s one of the benefits of having all of my travel done by the company. They take me from the ship to the airport, I do all the airport stuff, then they take me from the new airport to the new ship. However, no one was here this time. I asked some people standing around, but they weren’t waiting for me. I found an internet pay phone and called the ship’s agent and soon someone was there for me and I was in a cab on the way to the ship.

Finland is beautiful! I had never been to Europe before and didn’t really know what to expect. Most of my time would be spent in the Baltic- not typical places to be featured in books, television, or movies so I had no preconceived ideas. One thing that surprised me about my time over there was how familiar it all seems. It’s not really that much different from the States. Sure there are some differences- example: all of their historic sites are a few centuries older than ours- but overall, a lot of it was the same.

I didn’t have time see much that day in Finland- just what I could see out the window of the cab. But the next day I was in St. Petersburg, Russia. It so happened that there was a crew tour that day and even though I had just signed on, they still let me go! This tour took me to St Isaac's Cathedral and Church on the Spilled Blood. Both of these were Russian Orthodox churches and were unlike any other church I have ever been in, and believe me I’ve been in a lot! These churches were extremely ornate- lots of wood carvings and gold in St Isaac's and lots of mosaics in Spilled Blood. The mosaics are so well done they look like paintings and the most fascinating thing was that they are “Natural Mosaics” meaning the pieces in the picture are the color they are found in nature. They didn’t paint or artificially produce any pieces to make the picture they wanted- but they found it in nature. This church has an odd name and I assumed that it was in reference to the cross, but it is actually built on the exact spot where a popular Russian Czar was murdered and “spilled his blood.” Another fascinating fact about these churches is there are no seats- Russian Orthodox churchgoers stand for hours for their services.

The ship overnights in St. Petersburg meaning we just sit in port for 2 days and people can come and go as they please. I filmed an event outside that night and was very surprised to walk out at 10:00 pm and have it still be light out. I technically missed the “White Night” season, when it is light nearly all day and night, but since I was just a week or two late it was still light late into the night.

The next day I headed out with a friend of mine from an old ship to explore the city some more. We saw a Russian McDonald’s and The Hermitage- a winter palace of the Czars that is now an art museum.

Russia was never a spot on my list of places I wanted to visit, but I’m glad I got to go. I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting, but I think it was something like snow, gray, and bareness. Lots of drab, gray buildings. Depressing apartment complexes and angry people. It wasn’t completely different from that, but the beauty of the churches impressed me. However, a lot of the people just seem sad. Not necessarily angry like I had expected, but depressed at least. However if I was that cold all the time, I may be depressed as well. I will say that a lot of store owners and tour guides were helpful and friendly when needed.

The next day I woke up in Tallin, Estonia but I could have sworn it was “The Land of Far Far Away” from the Shrek movies. There were castles, cobblestone streets, and a quaint medieval atmosphere. I found a map outlining a walking tour of the old town and took off to see every location listed. My legs were killing me by the end of the day, but I saw so much. Tallin is also the current Co-Culture Capital of the European Union so there were lots of theaters and art around.

The following day was my first time in Sweden- a place I had actually wanted to visit. For this trip I was in Gothenburg. I was told this was the most boring port of the cruise, but I had a great time! The ship docks on the Volvo campus. The Volvo Museum is basically at the end of the gangway and is surrounded by various Volvo offices and manufacturing facilities. However, next to that is a small lighthouse with a maze of walking trails along the coast and through fields- it was gorgeous!

After walking around for hours I caught a bus into town and fell even more in love with Swedish design. Anyone who has ever been to an IKEA knows what I’m talking about. Swedish design is creative, beautiful, and just makes sense- like a MacBook for your life. Walking down the streets in Sweden is like walking through a world of IKEA- I loved it. I have done some reading recently about the importance of image for a business- it’s not good enough to have a good product, but people have to love it for you to be successful. It’s part design, part function, part packaging, part presentation. From what I’ve seen, the Swedes have this down more than most.

I few days later I was in Harwich, England- my first time to the UK. I have since been informed that there are much better places in the UK I should consider seeing. I was, however, quite excited to eat Fish ‘n Chips in England- you had to pay for every condiment except Malt Vinegar...perfect for me! Now it was time for my first full, and my ship’s last, Baltic Cruise.

The first port of call was Copenhagen, Denmark. I’m actually disappointed in myself here- I did not see nearly all that I wanted to... lesson learned. I did get to see the changing of the Royal Guards at the palace, so that was exciting. They are the guards you can walk up to and stare at and they won’t acknowledge you...not that I tried it. I also visited Tivoli Gardens an old amusement park. This is the park that Walt Disney visited and was inspired to create Disney World. It reminded me of Coneaut Lake- an old time amusement park.

My second trip to Sweden took me to Stockholm. I got up very early (for me) to watch the sail in. The ship sails through an archipelago. Many of the islands are adorned with mansions and matching boat houses- it was beautiful. Stockholm didn’t have all of the design elements of Gothenburg, but I did see some ingenuity in the Ice Bar. Yep, a bar made completely out ice. I donned my complimentary floor length parka and glove set and stepped into a world of frozen water- the walls were ice, the seats were ice, the tables were ice, the artwork was ice, the glasses were ice. It was a unique place and a great experience. However, the better story happened while we were looking for the Ice Bar...

I knew the bar was in a hotel, but I didn’t know which one. I saw the name of one in the center of town and thought, “Sure, that sounds like the right one.” It wasn’t. But the nice valet boys knew where it was and gave me a map. So my friends and I went out the door and back the way we came. Immediately after crossing the first street I had to step behind my friends to let someone pass and I looked up to make eye contact with him. I did a double take and thought, “That’s Brad Paisley.” I started to say some thing- struggling to think of what to say- should I just say “Hi Brad.” “Brad?” “Are you Brad Paisley?” “You are a phenomenal guitar player.” “Your wife was great on ‘According to Jim.’ Where’s she?” But in the spit second as I was thinking of all of this I also thought, “Of course it’s not Brad Paisley! You’re in Sweden!” Plus, this guy was in running shorts, a tshirt, and a baseball cap since he was just out for a jog. Surely Brad Paisley would have an entourage, or a guitar, or something. So instead I kept the eye contact, gave a little nod, and maybe said “Hi.” We walked a couple steps and I told my friend I thought it was Brad Paisley, but he had no idea who that was. That night I just thought I would Google the current tour schedule, and sure enough- Brad Paisley played Stockholm a couple nights before! Why didn’t I say anything?!?!?!??!

After I stopped beating myself up I was in Helsinki, Finland again. It looked completely different to me this time. Perhaps it was the lack of jet lag. I had lots of time in this port and decided to walk into town instead of taking the bus. The walk began along the water and I liked it so much and I decided to take the long route to town. Over an hour later I got to the center of the city. Another beautiful place. Very historic, but also some great modern design.

The next two days were spent in Russia again and I was blessed with the opportunity to escort a group of guests on a tour. Our first stop was Peterhof a summer palace of the czars. The first room was called the Gold Room and it was so shiny I’m surprised I didn’t go blind. There was gold everywhere- and I don’t mean the walls were painted a warm yellow, I mean there was actual gold (the precious metal, not the color) EVERYWHERE! There was lots of gold throughout Peterhof, but this first room was a ballroom and used for parties so it had the most gold to make a big impact on important guests. All of the rooms inside were impressive- fine china, priceless artwork, mirrors, thrones, gold, etc. It was amazing.

What I liked even more though, were the palace grounds. There are hundreds of fountains at Peterhof because the first czar to live there (Peter) liked fountains. More than just regular fountains though, Peter liked trick fountains. Peter was a prankster. One fountain is called “The Oak Tree.” True to its name, it looks like an oak tree and even has fake flowers “planted” around the bottom of it. However when you get close to it, a valve is turned and water sprays all over you. As you reach the nearby bench to grab a seat to recover from your shock of being suddenly soaked, water sprays up your back as soon as you sit down! Along the path near the oak tree are what looks like an irrigation system. Turns out it’s an irritation system- twice a day water springs forth and covers the nearby pedestrians. Closer to the residence of Czar Peter is a single bench behind a small stone walkway rimmed with trickling water. When tour guides step onto the stones the trickle gets a bit bigger, when tourists step on it the trickle turns into a shower.

After our day at Peterhof, the summer palace, we were on our way to the Hermitage, the winter palace. On the way we stopped for a traditional Russian lunch- complete with champagne and vodka, well only champagne for me- 11:30 am seems a tad early for vodka- but I guess not for the Russians. I did however, have caviar for the first time- not bad, but not something I’m dying to try again either.

The Hermitage is now an art museum featuring originals from Degas, Picasso, Da Vinci, Monet, Rembrandt, and many, many others. I saw so much art in such a short amount of time it was overwhelming. The palace is still very much intact, just much of the furniture has been removed and artwork added. So there was still lots of gold and a very impressive throne room. There was also an Egyptian exhibit feature hieroglyphics and mummies. Our tour didn’t include that part, but when our guide gave us a bathroom break I ran down the hall and took a peek.

The next two stops were back to Tallin, Estonia and Gothenburg, Sweden. More of the same here. Then it was back to Harwich to begin our Transatlantic Crossing- about which I have many, many more stories.

At this point I surmise you need a break from reading and I need a break from writing, but I will post tales of the crossing very soon. I’ve had an amazing 5 weeks, but it’s good to be back in the US as I’m doing New England and Canada cruises at the moment. This is actually my favorite itinerary- it feels more like home, lots to do outside, and no exchange rate.

More to come....

The E Hurricanes are After Me!

I’m writing this post whilst stuck onboard my ship. I’m so close I can see the outside, but they won’t let us go. This cruise required a change in itinerary and since we usually arrive in San Juan immediately following St. Croix our ship doesn’t have to do much in terms of Customs and Immigration. However, since we came from foreign ports into San Juan we are required to do much more. Someone forgot to tell someone and the Customs and Border Patrol Officials that were supposed to be here at 6:00 AM had to be called at home and pulled from their beds to come inspect the ship. Because of that I should be flying my kite at the fort and instead I’m sitting on the floor in sight of outside. Sad.

I mentioned earlier that we had to change itineraries. Apparently the E Hurricanes are after me. Some of you may recall that Hurricane Earl sent me to Portland, Maine for an overnight last fall. This year, Hurricane Emily shuffled our ports a bit. It really wasn’t a big deal....until today.

Because of the shuffle, we went to St. Croix first instead of last. This was my last visit to St. Croix as I transfer at the end of next cruise. A “Must Do” I have read is the Snorkel Trail at Buck Island. Over a year ago I did the Snorkel Trail at another US Virgin Island, St. John. It’s kind of like a hiking trail, except underwater. There are placards on the ocean floor indicating the beginning and end of the trail as well as describing certain fish and types of coral along the way. The water was rougher than I had expected so it was hard to get pictures and get a good look at some things, but it was still really nice. The coral formations here are much larger than most snorkel places. The one downside, probably caused by the rough water, was many of the placards were silted over. Our snorkel guide dusted one of them off, but only the one that said “End of Trail” so I didn’t really learn anything. All in all it was a good trip. The boat ride to and from the island was very scenic- we even saw a dolphin on the way there!

Our next port was Barbados. I walked to the beach that the crew always go to, but hardly anyone was there. There had been a big crew party the night before so apparently people needed their sleep more than they needed the beach. I didn’t let the low attendance slow me. I grabbed my mask and snorkel and took off to see the turtles again. I found 3 turtles and a different shipwreck from the last one I saw. I’m not sure if the shipwreck was deeper or if the water was less clear but the pictures aren’t as good as the other ones, but I could still see fine.

The next day was St. Lucia- not a favorite of mine. It is a beautiful island if you get out of the port town, but there’s not much in town. I went to a nearby hotel and grabbed lunch and some internet.

Antigua was my island of choice for Friday. I had our bi-weekly emergency drill in the morning and the lifeboat I am assigned to was going in the water and I volunteered to go with it. Usually I just sit in it, but I got to man the radio this time and get our orders from the Staff Captain on the Bridge. Exciting, huh?

After boat drill I went to my second favorite pizza place in the Caribbean. Then I finally convinced someone to go on an island tour with me. I was told I had to go see Devil’s Bridge. It is a natural bridge on the Atlantic side of the island. The bridge was formed by the violence of the waves removing all rock except this narrow bridge above the splashing water. This stop was even better than I had expected!!!! I loved it. It is said that, years ago, slaves would frequent this spot and nothing was in between here and West Africa. So they would come here and talk to their families. They would also come here and commit suicide by jumping off the bridge or slave owners would punish slaves by throwing them over. It is said that if you fall in the water here, you will not be able to get back out and you will die. Thankfully I did not fall in. I did however cross the bridge- twice. There was another group of people there on a taxi tour and they were all yelling for us not to do it that it was too dangerous. Our cab driver yelled back and said you can’t keep grown people from being adventurous...and he encouraged us to go. I won’t lie, I was scared- but that made me have to do it...not let the fear win. My friend was way ahead of me, but a few steps on to the bridge I stopped because I was scared. Just then a big wave hit and I was splashed. He turned and laughed at me, but later when he was taking a picture for me, he got really soaked!

After the bridge we went to Shirley’s Heights and Nelson’s Dockyard. These are both historic and touristy sites on the island. They were both nice, but not as fun as the bridge. However, we did see the homes of Timothy Dalton, Michael Cane, and Eric Clapton. We were told after the fact that we also passed Crossroads Rehab center- I think Mariah Carey and Brittany Spears stayed there when they were living the crazy life.

I was in St. Maarten yesterday. Nothing terribly exciting for me there. Lunch in a French Cafe, a swim in the ocean, and a skype call home. Then I came back onboard to do laundry and go to work. Living the life....

I’m in San Juan today and they finally let us get off the ship! I just came to my favorite pizza place and my usual waitress said, “Do you want your regular?” I thought for sure she didn’t remember what I usually get, so I started to tell her and she interrupted me and repeated my normal order to me. I’m a regular! I’ve always wanted to have a spot like that where they know what I want and I can say things like “I’ll have the usual.” Now I have that...and I’m leaving. Well, it was fun this once.

Sorry, no pictures this time. They won't load for some reason.

Angst to Adventure

So much can change in such a short amount of time. I know it has been awhile since I’ve written anything, but I was finding it difficult to write. I took this contract with plans to be on one ship for 10 weeks before switching ships for the rest of my contract. It was also planned that my boyfriend would be joining me shortly after my ship switch. Two weeks ago we were informed that would not be happening. I was crushed...we both were. But I was given the choice to return to the last ship I worked on and meet him there. I felt that I was faced with an impossible choice: Live my dream of seeing the world and risk losing someone I have grown to care for OR Go be with him and give up on my dream for now. True to the promise I made myself in high school, I have not given up on a dream for a boy. We’ll see where we are in a few months time and take it from there, but for now I’m Europe-bound in 3 weeks.

With the bad news and the decision making process, I just couldn’t write. I would think about it, but just couldn’t bring myself to put words on the page. If I had free time I would watch movies or TV and I have finished reading all of the books I brought with me. Easier to consume someone else’s creative work than produce your own. However, things are getting better and life is getting back to normal. Not that my life is ever normal or that I would recognize it if it were....I think my first summer after college was the last time my life was normal. Oh, and a period of about a month after I left life on the road.

If last cruise was a week of angst this cruise has been one of adventure. I finally bought a kite in San Juan last week. There is a fort in town with a large lawn and it is always cluttered with people flying kites. Since witnessing this over a year ago, I’ve wanted to try it out. So last Sunday I went to the makeshift kite stand in the corner of the lawn and bought myself a kite. It a beauty too- with a scene of Lighting McQueen from the movie Cars. I was a little worried that I didn’t know how to fly a kite. I think I flew one a couple times as a kid, and then when I was working at the dollar store in high school I believe I bought one and my dad helped me fly it. I remember it not being very much fun and quite difficult. Well, it’s much easier in San Juan. I think they have better wind than Pennsylvania. I was under the impression that in order to get the kite in the air you have to run. You probably do back home, but here it tries to take off as soon as you take it out of the package.

The rest of the cruise got off to a bit of a slow start with a trip to my typical beach in Barbados. I did a little snorkeling, but not much.

I found and swam with another turtle for a bit though. The next day I was in St Lucia- the boring day of the cruise. I wasn’t planning on getting off the ship this day, but some friends and I went to a nearby hotel for lunch and internet. The adventures started the next day....

Antigua is a port I’ve visited many times...every other cruise for much of the last 2 years. I had heard about a place to zipline and do a ropes course in the rainforest, but I had never left the town, the nearby beaches, or the

pizza place in the airport (don’t judge me). Realizing I only had 2 more trips to Antigua, I decided I must make my move. Shortly after getting my ticket for the tour I realized, “I don’t like heights. Why did I just sign up for this?” Not being one to back down from pretty much anything I decided to go through with it anyway.

The rainforest wasn’t really what I was expecting. I actually don’t know what I was expecting. Rain, maybe? No rain. There was forest though. I think I was expecting it to be wet and muddy if not raining....but I didn’t notice that much either. It just seemed like every other forest I’ve seen, but with palm trees instead of pine trees.

I did 9 ziplines and then did 3 of those a second time. The biggest one was over 300 feet long and over 300 feet off the ground. I loved it! After I felt how secure it was on the last one, I wasn’t scared at all. They hook you in while you are

standing on a platform around a tropical tree and tell you when you can go. Then you jump off the platform and ZING! off you go through the air.

After the last zipline you had to do the Leap of Faith to get down from the platform in the tree. Here they hook you into a winch and tell you to step off the platform. When you do, the winch lowers you the 30 or so feet to the ground. It’s basically a controlled free fall. That was the worst part for me. You can see where you are going on the ziplines and you feel secure sitting in the harness, but that feeling was gone here as you were falling. I made it back to the earthen surface just fine though.

Now that the ziplines were done it was time for the ropes course. Here I was faced with about 12 different kinds of suspension bridges. The first was just the normal bridge you would seen on a playground- wooden planks below, rope mesh sides. No big deal. The next consisted on a single steel cable for you feet and one rope for your hands...basically tightrope

walking

with a rope railing. Trickier, but still easy. The next was the most difficult for me. There were wooden planks every few feet, nothing on the sides, but differing lengths and diameters of ropes hanging down from above. You basically had to Trazan yourself across the bridge with the planks there for support. The more balance and upper body strength you have the easier all of these are supposed to be. I made it across them all with no one needing to assist me or come rescue me. I didn’t see anyone fall, but a few people needed assistance.

At the end, I was awarded a “Certificate of Bravery” for completing the course. Personally, I was actually very proud of myself. I did it! I faced my fears and pushed myself to do the ziplines and complete all of the ropes course elements. In the end, not only did I survive and succeed, I actually enjoyed it.

Later that night, back onboard, there was a crew dodgeball tournament. I haven’t played dodgeball since high school I would estimate, but I really wanted to play so I joined a team. We only had 4 teams, but we played for about an hour, and my team was the champion!!!! However, I am terrible. I got better as the game went on, but I was really horrible at the beginning. I haven’t thrown a ball in awhile and my aim could stand to improve a bit. But I had fun and we will hopefully be doing this again before I leave.

I found myself in St Maarten the following day. It seemed hotter than usual so it wasn’t long before I jumped in the ocean. Then I flew my kite on the beach before heading to my favorite restaurant on the beach for lunch and internet before returning to the ship.

After a late night of work, I was up early go diving in St. Croix. I became a certified open water diver a few months back before I left my last ship. However, I haven’t been diving since. Again, I was quite nervous faced with this trip. I had only done my training dives, what if I’ve forgotten what to do? What if I freak out and ruin everyone else’s dive? Thankfully all of my worries went unfulfilled once again and I was fine. I definitely still have more to learn and I can get a lot better at many of the underwater skills, but over all I did well. I did notice that I am a bit too goal oriented and I focused more on the people in front of me, where we were going, where my buddy was, and making it to the end of the dive than I did on looking around and exploring the underwater world.

On our first dive we went to what is known as The Wall. We descended to about 20 feet and swam along for 20 minutes, suddenly the ocean floor drops away. It is a near vertical drop to around 3,500 feet. The deepest we descended was 77 feet, but it was so cool to look in front of you, behind, up, and down and see a solid wall of coral and sea life.

Our second dive was spent in the coral beds of the shallower water. In fact, St Croix has a coral nursery where they are trying to regrow coral that was destroyed. It kind of looks like an underwater greenhouse- little potted coral dotted the ocean floor. We saw lots more sea life on our second dive including a sting ray! I was able to get pretty close to it- it was just sitting on the ocean floor. I guess we were near a squid and a sea turtle as well, but I didn’t see those. Sad. As my diving skills and my confidence in my abilities improve I’m sure I’ll start looking around and exploring a bit more. There are some pictures from the dive, but I need to get them from the guy that took them- then I’ll post a few.

I’m hoping to do a wreck dive next cruise so hopefully I’ll write about that soon. Three more cruises left on this ship- where has the time gone. I’ve been out here for 7 weeks already. I feel like I was just home...now everyone is going back to school. Have a great week!

St. Island

I spend a lot of time in a variety of saintly islands. On Saturday I was in St. Croix. There is a fantastic deli in St. Croix that I have visited on every trip there. They make HUGE sandwiches, have Dt. Mountain Dew, and it is located right on the beach. I think they even have free wifi there. Pretty much a paradise within paradise. The deli owners told me that there is good snorkeling down the beach from their place so I decided to check it out.

They were right! The underwater world wasn't exceptionally colorful. It was actually pretty dull. All light brown rocks and sand in the varying shades of blue water. Not much coral. No wrecks. Just rocks. And lots, and lots, and lots of fish. I probably saw more fish here than I have in any reef I've explored. And some of them were big fish too. A lot of times you will see tiny tropical fish- colorful and pretty, but small. There were some small ones here, but some big ones as well. Entire schools of fish would stick together and either swim along or hang out under the overhang of the rocks.

I had several hours so I just floated around for most of it- letting the current take me down the shore. I have only ever snorkeled in a group of 2 or more and never by myself so there is always the pressure to go where everyone else wants to go and at the speed they want to go. Being by myself allowed me to linger longer and practice taking pictures underwater. Typically I just snap hundreds of pictures and then, statistically, some of them have to be good. Taking underwater pictures is harder than you realize. Imagine trying to keep your moving subject centered when you cannot stay in one place or keep steady.

As I was floating along, I got carried a long way down the shore- away from the crowds, the swimmers, and the other snorkelers. I was looking down at some fish and I looked ahead of me and there was a turtle. If you read my last post, you know that I saw some turtles extremely close to me recently. However, those turtles were in amongst a large group of people and were lured there with food. In fact, those turtles probably hang out in that area knowing that tours come through and feed them everyday. But not in St. Croix. I was about a half a mile to a mile down shore from a protected turtle nesting ground and I just happened to see this little guy as he was out for a swim. I was so excited and really wanted to call people over to look at him, but I picked my head up and no one was around. I swam alongside the turtle for awhile and wanted to stick with him, but he was swimming back the way I had come from and I was afraid I would be missing cool stuff up ahead so I let him swim on.

Amid all the excitement and fun I was having, I left my skin a little to exposed to the sun for way too long. The backs of my legs are now as bright as the surface of the sun! Remarkably this is the first time I've been this burnt this contract. Typically my pale Pennsylvania skin sizzles just thinking abut the sun!

Trying to avoid the sun for a few days I decided to take a walk and sit and read in the shade today in St Thomas. I typically walk from the ship to the nearby yacht club, find a bench, and read for awhile. The walkway has speakers every few feet playing upbeat music softly. The speakers were switched off today and I believe there was a steel drum summer camp practicing nearby. The good news is the group has learned a song! The bad news is that the group has learned A song! I was only in the area for about 30 to 45 minutes but I heard the Star Spangled Banner the entire time!

Depending on my burn healing and my work schedule, I'm hoping to go snorkeling and maybe even diving later this cruise so look for more posts and pictures soon.

Sea Turtles and Shipwrecks: Just Another Day at the Office

I had never tried snorkeling before I started working on cruise ships. The muddy lakes and pristine swimming pools of Northwest Pennsylvania are not the best environments for underwater exploration, so I really never had the need. I snorkeled for the first time in December of 2009 and I was hooked.

I have always loved water. I love water sports. Being in water. Being around water. Drinking water. Washing dishes. Maybe not that last one. But in general, water has always been a big part of my life. So it was really not a surprise that I wanted to work on a ship. I can easily do my job on land somewhere, but why would I? It only takes one glimpse beneath the surface of the ocean to realize how amazing it is.

One of my favorite islands to visit is Barbados. I haven’t explored much of the island, but there is a beach I love and I visit every chance I get. A few weeks ago I was told that a short walk along the shore from my favorite spot was a great place to find sea turtles. Barbados is know for its turtles and I had seen one in the water while I was walking along the boardwalk in town over a year ago, but I had yet to see one up close or swim along beside it.

I mentioned to a couple of my friends that I wanted to swim with the turtles on this particular trip to Barbados and it just so happened that one of them knew where to go. He also told me that there were really cool shipwrecks in the area as well. We got to my favorite beach early, but the boys wanted to take a nap and then play volleyball before our snorkel trip so I tried to patiently wait. I was so excited though! Finally an adventure and not just going out in port to find internet and update my blog. **wink**

Around noon we set out for the turtle spot. There were several tour boats about 100 yards from shore. If you pay the $50 or so you get dropped off right over the turtles. We swam it...for free. My friend that knew where he was going, Emilio, led the way and Jorge and I followed. We had been swimming along for awhile when Jorge stopped swimming beside me and I saw the turtle that was beside him. He thought it was another person from one of the tours until he looked over and saw the turtle! Now these aren’t the gigantic turtles you see on the Discovery Channel, but they are still quite large. We saw several and they were probably the size of my torso. The water is so clear that as we were treading water and talking to each other you could see a turtle approaching. One of us would yell, “There’s one right there!” We’d all scramble to get our masks back on and our snorkels in our mouths so we could get another look.

After playing with the turtles for a bit we decided to swim to the shipwreck. This was located probably three to five times the distance we had already swum. Swam. Swimmed? Let’s just say we had more swimming to do.

Emilio told us we would have to swim to the red buoy and it was right around there somewhere. We swam, er, I mean, we had been swimming for awhile when he realized the ocean was getting much deeper and darker than he remembered. We looked around and saw a couple tour boats anchored with lots of people snorkeling a few hundreds yards away so we decided to swim over there to see what they were looking at.

Before we could reach them we had to swim through some very dark water. Typically the darker the water is, the deeper it is, so not really the best place to be. However, it was cloudy that day, so we told ourselves that was why. At one point on the swim when it was particularly dark, the three of us held hands and swam through it. Aren’t those the kind of friends you want? First of all they are crazy enough to jump in the ocean without lifejackets and swim half a mile with you to see some turtles and a ship put there by a careless captain. Then to top it all off, when things get scary they don’t bail, but reach out and take your hand so we all get through it together. And the reward was definitely worth the swim through dark waters.

As the water was getting lighter I saw what looked like boards on the ocean floor so I hovered over them to take a picture. As I was doing so Emilio reached back and tapped my shoulder and pointed ahead. I looked up and saw the ship. Now, I’ve been told before while snorkeling in the islands that I would see a shipwreck. The “ship” always turned out to be a boat. Trust me I know the difference. Not this time. This was unmistakably a ship. I do kinda wish I was on one of those paid tours because they probably told you what ship it was and what it was doing at the bottom of the ocean. Oh well. It’s probably in a book somewhere I’ll look it up. Do people still do that, look things up in books? I’ll Google it- that sounds much more 2011. Anyway...back to the ship....

This ship was amazing. The front had a mini-mooring deck, there were compartments open to the inside of the ship, and the back had beautiful grid work still fully intact. I had never seen anything like it. To top it off, there were more tropical fish than I have ever seen while snorkeling. It was beautiful. I’ve included pictures here because there is no way I can accurately describe what it was like. These pictures won’t even do it justice. Jorge took a video of me swimming the length of the ship so I will work on posting that as well.

I had wanted to swim a bit further because more people were snorkeling over there so I presume there was another wreck. However, we all still had to swim back and I was hoping to make another stop at the turtles. So we left my new playground and headed for land. It sure seemed to take a lot longer to get back than it did to get out there!

We stopped in the turtle spot again and there were more this time. I got to see a couple of them up close and even touched one of them! Watching them swim is beautiful. They glide so effortlessly!

I have to do more snorkeling and hopefully more diving very, very soon. I’m trying to do a dive this weekend. If that doesn’t wor

k out, I will be snorkeling. I’ve never had a disappointing snorkeling day. The ocean is too amazing for that to happen!

All in all this Barbados day has been the best day of my contract so far. Hopefully it is the beginning of so much more! The whole day was great: waffles and french toast for breakfast, a swim in the ocean, nap on the beach, amazing time snorkeling, delicious Barbados hot sauce on my lunch, a nap, fresh linens and a vacuum from the Keeper of all things Linen (true story, not just a cheap call back to last week’s blog), and a tiny bit of work which actually consisted of doing the twist and filming other people doing the same. Life is beautiful!