Driving a Lifeboat

So today was my very first day actually driving a lifeboat. WOW! We went up to Deck 7, wearing our white coveralls like real "technical" working people. Within 5 minutes of climbing around the wires to release the Lifeboat I got my first dirt mark on my coveralls!!!!! I'm sooooooooo technical now!

We did the checks of all the wires and hooks and then were lowering the lifeboat to the ocean. For a brief moment I began to question WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING...as i'm picturing the cable snapping and us plumetting to the ocean. However we hit the water without drama. After a few people had their turn it was mine....super fun, although its a little bit like driving a bathtub, but bigger! Very hard to steer. Now my last turn was just before we were going in so the instructor asked if I would like to park under the cables. I laughed and said "are you crazy" he said nope, give it a try. So in I went, steering towards the ship, praying not to screw up, waiting for the intructor to hell commands and then I realized, he said turn to Starboard and the tub wasn't going as sharp as I would like. I hit reverse yet it was too late, with a bump we hit the ship, luckily it was very very tiny little bump. The instructor laughed so hard I thought he would go overboard, at that time I look up and in the window of the Purser's office is a note "SLOW DOWN MEG!" How fantastic that they would try to help me!

Anyways...lesson learned, must come in slower, must crank wheel harder and must ignore instructor as he had more fun with me doing what I did then if I had made it!!!!! Stay tuned.

CPSC Course

Well I have been advised that finally the curse has hit me. I must take the CPSC course. This course is a 3 week course taught by a Fleet Instructor who comes from Head Office. The purpose of this course is to teach crew to drive the lifeboats!!!! Yup those orange "tub" looking like boats that are awful to drive I now have to learn to drive. Reason being...my emergency duty has be as 1st in charge of a lifeboat and so far because I didn't have the course someone else has to do that part of my duty. But unfortunately this Fleet Instructor has decided to come and its my time, along with 12 other people.

So starting the 2nd of Sept. not only do I have to work from 11pm until 8am but I then have to do handover to learn my new job which will be Front Desk Supervisor during the morning once i'm done my job and then at 2pm I have to go to class until 5pm every day. Sometimes this class is practial, driving boats, sometimes its theory. And they expect that I stay awake through these classes?!?! Anyways...I was pretty upset, 3 weeks of this is a joke, but i've decided that oh well...the course should be fun, another AP is in this course so we should have fun and if I sleep in class that is their fault, they are the ones who've TOLD me I have to do this course.

There may be hints of bitterness in this story because I'm just learning to get over it, but in the end I know I will have fun with it anyways. And i'm sure in the long run there is a reason for everything. So I will have like 0 time to go ashore but maybe I can put in some pics of me driving the lifeboats???? Stay tuned

Lots of love from the cursed.

Pompei

Today I went to Pompei and it has been something i've wanted to do for a very long time. I remember when I was little me and Mum looking at a book about Pompei, specifically I remember seeing a picture of a dog, dead, covered in ash. So going to Pompei was like a very surreal experience for me. It was very sad. To look at what was a vibrant City, they had markets and homes and roads build for wagons, you could even see the groove in the road where the wagons travelled. The street signs were not words because people did not read, they were symbols. Pompei's inhabitants were very into gambling as many of their murals and paintings have to do with women, and gambling. The bodies that I saw were actual people who died in Pompei, however it was the worse death possible. Because when the volcano errupted it wasn't the Lava that hit Pompei it was Ash and Gas. So the people sufficated slowly yet kept their shape. This is very different from a neighbouring city which had been covered in Lava (Herculaneum), so the people there literaly incinerated once the Lava hit them, quicker death then those of Pompei.

The bodies in Pompei were preserved because a once everything settles, the ash covering their bodies made holes, when you looked through all of the bones were completely fine so they poured mold into the casing and created body molds.

Anyways, little depressing but I found it so interesting and very sad.

Nice

Today while we were in Cannes, France I took a bus to Nice. Its a beautiful town with cute little streets and a great market with fresh flowers, fruit and veg and breads. Their beaches are amazing only they are not sand they are those really soft round stones?!? But it doesn't hurt your feet. We also did a tour up to a lookout point and saw the house owned by Elton John.

Montserat

I took a bus from Barcelona, Spain to the Mountain of Monstserat to visit to monestary there. The mountain was amazing, big but not with just one massive peak, it had like fingers all over the place that stretched towards the sky! Very very cool. The monstary was neat and people stay in the old dorms as a hotel, they go there to hike the mountain. Even cooler, when I went int the Cathedral of the "Black Madonna" aka wife if Jesus all my pics came out with these little light bubbles. If anyone remembers my days in St. Andrews we were advised that these are "ghost or spirits".

Alghero (Sardinia)

I went on tour to see some ruined citied in Sardinia. Basically they were towers built with rock and the people lived inside of these towers. We were able to go inside and see how they had windows and different rooms broken up. Then we went to a lookout point and back to the ship. It was really interesting because they say they are finding artifacts from colonies like this all over.

Basketball in Civitavecchia

Today I opted not to go on tour (i'm exhausted) and to spend the day with Kellon who's claiming I care more about old buildings then I do spending time with him ha ha ha. So to prove what a cool chick I am I went to watch him and a bunch of guys play basketball. The port agent had booked a very nice basketball court, indoor facility for the guys to play at for a few hours. A team from the Emerald Princess was supposed to come and play against us, but they chickened out:)

It was a cool day, Kellon enjoyed himself so much and the owner of the place had two boys there playing so Kell took some time to play with them and give them a few pointers. When we were leaving another owner showed up, he spoke english, and asked if our guys would want to play a local team when we get back to Civi in 2 weeks. The guys are pumped and the team has begun practicing. So all in all...I had a good time today, Kellon had the time of his life. Especially playing with the kids, trying to communicate as they don't know any english and he doesn't speak Italian, lots of sign language and motioning, they got a game going.

Pisa

Today I went to Pisa to visit the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Its a small area but very beautiful, we visited the Cathedral where they have a real Bishop mummafied and in a glass show case in the Cathedral. Then I got to walk around (but not inside) the Tower. It is really amazing, when you see it, its amazing to see such a big building on such a tilt. The tour guide was great, she told us that recently they had a British architect come out and try to secure it, they don't want it to be straight, but they do want it not too fall over in the near future. This architect was able to secure it so they are confident it will stay as it is for a while now. Also I found out that in Pisa, all building are actually tilted, odd place I tell you!

Monaco

While in Monte Carlo I went to the old City of Monaco to visit the Cathedral and the Palace. In Monaco they still have a Prince and a fully working Palace, changing of the guard and everything. The castle was pretty, but very modest however Monte Carlo definately has no financial difficulty. The day I was there the Prince was in, the flag was up so he was somewhere in the Palace, although his Yacht was out for the day...hard to be a Prince huh? I knew about the Yacht because the tour guide pointed out that if you look at the picture of the harbour, see all the yachts ligned up and then the empty spot...thats where the Prince's yacht parks.

Barcelona

I went on a tour of Barcelona which was great....it is such a beautiful City. We passed by La Sagrada Familia Cathedral which was designed by Gaudi (the famous artist who did a lot of work in Barcelona) and the Olympic Ring however I opted to bypass the Olympic Ring to go and see an older castle that was across the street...I mean if I wanted to see the Olympic Ring in Barcelona I could watch re-run of the 1992 Olympics ha ha ha

Naples - Joining Sea Princess

So I stayed in the "Jolie Hotel" in Naples, Italy. Honestly I was concerned but it was BEAUTIFUL and the view from my room window was like no other. When i woke up I got to watch the Sea Princess sail in - cool to see

Hello from Europe

Hey All,

Sorry, no pics yet, but i'm settled into my new position onboard the Sea Princess as Night Manager. I will be on tour almost every day/all day this cruise and I can't wait. I'm going back to Rome, to Pisa, to Nice and to many other amazing places. Then hopefully I will have some pics to put up.

Nights are great...a little bit boring at times, but also you get to see some of the most random things as well (this will have to be told over the phone) ha ha ha. So stay tooned... more to come.

Family Time

Just a few bragging moments of my beautiful nephew...damn he's a cuttie, sorry Steph but I think he gets that from his Auntie!!! (Me that is)

Steph you had better be showing Kaden pictures of his Auntie Meg while i'm gone, that way he won't forget me! Don't worry Matty, I will bring back a tribal mask for him just like you asked.

My Time At Home

My vacation is coming to an end and i'm about to go back to the Sea Princess. I had a great time at home full of great friends and family. Going back to the ship this time at least I have my lap top so i'm hoping to be able to stay in contact with everyone just a little bit more then I have in the past.

While I was at home I was able to go camping for 2 long weekends and had a fabulous time. Thank God for the amazing weather. And just recently Dad and Sue purchased a WATER TRAMPOLINE! So my last week in Kenora will be spent on this beautiful invention, soaking up the last of my Kenora Summer.

So I wish everyone a fantastic summer and i'll try to update the blog as much as I possibly can.

My Nephew

After visiting my baby nephew:

More and More

Been a Long Time! I'm at Home!

So its been an awful long time but i'm home! I guess pictures say a thousand words so here they are:

More Time @ Sea??

Hello Family and Friends,

So in the ever eventful life that I lead, there is more news.

I have been promoted to Assistant Purser and will be the Pratica (or administrations officer) onboard. This means I take care of all Immigration, Ship Clearance, ARrival and Departure paperwork, counting all pax onboard, getting into port etc. Yup heavy stuff. In doing this I receive more money, my own cabin, and the fact that if I take any time off from Princess now...I will always come back as Assistant Purser, never as a Junior Assistant Purser again! So it kind of makes all the work i've done over the last 2 years worthwhile now as my position is secured.

This does mean I have been extended, nothing heavy, just by 2 months and therefore am going home on May 12. I will finish out the Caribbean season on the Sea Princess, do the crossing to Southampton and 1 Med cruise and then I go home. Then its STRAIGHT to go and see my little nephew (who at that point will be so big and i'm pretty sad about that).

Also....more opportunities have come from no where. I cannot tell to much at the moment but I will give a hint. It comes in the form of returning to a place where I worked before, enjoyed it and its fairly close to home???? It would only be for the summer??? Anyone got a hint yet?

I will fill you all in when things are concrete. So I hope to hear from you all, I know my Blog has not been updated to often so your not used to checking it BUT CHECK IT because news it flying in.

More Updates

I forgot another picture, we had a Christmas Photo Shoot in the Crew Bar...so here is my Christmas greeting to everyone...late but here:

This should be my last pic for a bit, i'll download some more soon. I now have 2 cruises left (1 month) and then I'm flying home.

Steph, I've asked Head Office if they will fly me to Toronto and I was answered with a big fat NO! So it looks like I will fly home and then i'll fly myself to Toronto. I can't wait to see all of you guys! Beannie and Tom, i'll see you guys then.

Oh yeah, Dad and Sue are having a fantastic time here and do not want to leave.

Talk to you all soon!

Pic Updates

Just thought I could take a couple of seconds to update you all, but I guess the easiest way is to do it by pictures. Hope you all enjoy!