Stories from the Sea of Life: April 2012

(but I started writing this on day two… so I’ve gone back and edited it. Sorry if some of it reads wonky…) (yeah I cheated and created it like a journal entry in word then copy and pasted... what?)

So for those of you following along on facebook: the flights went smoothly though I didn’t get to have lunch with Ross like I wanted to because the first flight was running about 20 minutes behind schedule. Grabbed a quick bite at Panda express before the flight to Miami and mostly ate it on the plane. Landed with no troubles, got to the hotel and all that stuff went just fine…

Got to the Majesty the next morning after a random tour of Miami hotels per the tour bus shuttling us to the port… lol. One of the two smallest ships in the fleet, but still a real force to be reckoned with!!! The Majesty of the Seas has twelve decks. And a labyrinth of hallways and stairwells that I’m just starting to get straight and I have a really good sense of direction… (got it figured out by the end of week one though. I’m still learning new routes, but I can get just about anywhere on the ship in less than ten minutes!!)

Still haven’t left the ship since I signed on, but it is only day two. These first two weeks are gonna be my longest as I have a TON of training sessions to do… fire safety, business ethics, lifeboat demos, save the waves, cultural diversity… and these are just the ones that I’ve done (or will have done by the time I post this…) and that’s not even a complete list either!!! It’s like being back in college a little bit. Wake up at like 7:00am. Spend the morning in classes. Lunch. Go work in the theater. Learn what has to be done when I have the duty pager. Dinner. Maybe a little bit of free time. (yesterday’s was used to unpack and today’s is obviously spent journaling for the blog…) Then off to the theater for Call and the evening’s show(s). After the show we strike and set the next thing. When we’re done with work what do we do? CREW BAR!!! (Also, prices on drinks are ridiculously AWESOME! Like $0.75 bottle beers… all the time. Shots? $2, maybe $3/3.50)

(since day two I have managed to get off ship a couple times… in Miami to get some necessities such as shampoo & body wash and then for just a little bit today in Nassau just to look around and go for a walk where there are trees… palm trees, but still trees.)

So, the crew I’m working with? All guys. Of course.

--> There’s David our PM (production manager) Before I met him he was described to me as ‘looks like Papa Smurf except not blue, flamboyantly gay, and sometimes too much to handle’ I don’t see the Papa Smurf thing… He’s definitely a bit flamboyant, and so far I’m a fan. He’s one of those people that you just have to get used to… kinda like me, so it’s no surprise I like him. Even though his first question to me was if I was a dyke… He made some comment about me being the only girl and I said that wasn’t unusual and I’m just one of the guys anyway… He asked and said he was hoping for a dyke after I basically said no, not a dyke – penis for me, thanks.

David reminds me of myself as a PM. His biggest challenge with me is that I think I’m superwoman and he’s doing pretty well with it. lol

Then there’s Daniel (Danny), Jose (Rafael), and Adam, the light, lounge, and sound techs respectively.

-->Danny is Irish, stupidly rich b/c he designed power for THE royal wedding and got a six figure paycheck for it (pounds not US dollars- so not a small 6 figures either) and then bought a house in Westminster London. All that aside, he’s pretty cool to work with. And he knows what’s he’s doing, which is more than can be said for most people. (did I mention he’s worked for Cirque? And a bunch of different bands including U2 and Metallica?) He’s 22 which makes him the youngest out of us all, but he’s also the head sound and light… I think he has done more so far than I will in my life and he’s two years younger than me… the more I think about that the more it pisses me off… lol

--> Rafael is American (San Diego), used to work at Sea World, and seems pretty cool as well. This guy has got “work smarter not harder” down to an art… I’ve known plenty of people that live, and abide by, and even exemplify that phrase – but not a one of them has accomplished as much as Rafael by doing so very little. I’m impressed. Also he has a good sense of humor. And did I mention his last name is Corona? Like the beer? As in his family owns it and he’ll probably inherit it? Well it’s true…

--> And then there’s Adam. Adam is pretty cool. He’s Asian and German of descent but actually Canadian. But b/c he’s been living/working in the US for years he doesn’t have an accent. Also, I intend to learn as much sound as I can from him and he is perfectly okay with that. He’s worked on Broadway stuff like Phantom. He’s really laid back and easy to be around. I approve.

Then there are the three other Stage Staff. Rodrigo (Tapia), Albert (Al) and Joseph (Joe).

--> Albert is from Trindad and Tobago. His accent can be thick sometimes, but it’s mostly not a problem. He knows what he’s doing backstage though he doesn’t have a background in theatre aside from on ships. He’s been doing ships for years and seems to be the one person on stage staff that can see I am completely capable.

--> Tapia is Brazilian and his accent and the way he phrases things can sometimes cause confusion, but I’ve been following him around all week learning the On Duty duties… he is frustratingly by the book. If it is listed for him to do he does it. If it’s not something he’s supposed to be doing he’s against it. Even tried to warn me not to fold dancers’ costumes before the end of the show b/c if they get damaged in any way I could be blamed. Between that and the way he ‘teaches’ I have a very short fuse with Tapia anymore. He seriously had me watching him sweep and mop the stage (come on like I haven’t done this before!?!) and vacuum the dressing rooms… beyond that, He’s not theatre either. He was a DJ.

--> And then there’s Joe. He’s only been here a month and this is his first cruise too. He’s got some kind of sound degree, but no theatre background, which I think gives me a leg up on him… that and he’s kinda the bitch of the group. But he’s cool and someone I can commiserate with about how stupid the drama between Tapia and Albert is. (Apparently they used to be friends, and then they had to bunk together and things just went to shit. If either of them have extra breath they’re bitching about the other…) Poor guy has been stuck in the middle of all this for a month.

All told it’s not too bad… I mean it could be a whole bunch of catty bitches trying to run each other off… once I’ve had the chance to prove myself and everyone gets used to me everything will be peachy.

It feels SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO good to be working theatre again. It’s as though my soul has been a fish out of water for months that just got dropped back into the ocean, somehow still alive, and can breathe right again. I know that humility has always been my weakness when joining a new theatre/crew. I know what I know and I know that I know it, damn it! But having heard the caliber of stuff these guys have worked on… and the fact that I haven’t worked theatre in nearly a year? Fuck. It makes me look at myself as the underling stage staff that I am even though before I got on the ship I was convinced that I should have been hired in a higher position. That and I have sooooo much more experience than any of the other stage staff... Maybe there is something to the idea of working your way to the top when you join a new crew, eh? At least that’s what I’m telling myself. But then David himself was apparently stage staff for one cruise before becoming production manager… sounds like the right footsteps to follow.

Right… guess you’re curious about the shows? We do a Welcome aboard show, and farewell show, two different music review shows, and change our headliner every 2-4 weeks. The headliner does like 4 shows a week, 2 per cruise I think… and tends to be like a comedian, juggler, magician, soloist, etc. and there’s also a guest artist that tends to be a comedian sort too… basically it’s something like a dozen shows a week… but some of them fade into one another…

The cruise is really regular too. Mon-Fri is a four night cruise (boards Mon. afternoon and disembarks Fri morning) that starts in Miami, hits Nassau (where we are today), CoCoCay (RC’s private Island) and then Key West. Then Fri.-Mon. is a three night cruise (embarks Fri. afternoon and disembarks Mon. morning) that again starts in Miami, then we go to CoCoCay and then Nassau again. Monday and Friday are turnover days where we load and unload passengers and all their crap… those are actually our less busy days for the theater… good times.

So each week I can be found as follows:

MONDAY: Miami, FL, turnover day. (American port so phone & internet will be on)

TUESDAY: Nassau Bahamas

WEDNESDAY: CoCoCay Bahamas (RC private island)

THURSDAY: Key West, FL (American port so phone & internet will be on)

FRIDAY: Miami, FL, turnover day. (American port so phone & internet will be on)

SATURDAY: CoCoCay Bahamas (RC private island)

SUNDAY: Nassau Bahamas

(yup, my exciting cruise life is just as regular and planed out as the rest of my life... lol only this time it's not my fault!)

The food is okay, I get the feeling that the crew mess is often just guest leftovers… and not in the best way possible. I have seen pigs feet and cow’s feet both in the crew mess. And labeled as such. Needless to say I am way less excited about the cultural cuisine…. But there’s usually something worth eating, even if it’s just a salad or sandwich or both. But I do have to say that there is generally a meat and potatoes option and you know I love my meat and potatoes...

The only other thing is that I haven’t really had a chance to take pictures to post… I got some of the house in out theater, those are up on facebook. But my next big goal is to go camera crazy on the ship so you can all see where I’m living and such. Will try to post pics when I can!!! Lol

And with that I am done.

All my Love

~Elle~

I was up bright and early this morning to pack the last of my toiletries and such and then have breakfast with my other half and her legal other half... and the micro midget. (for those not in the know - which i think is basically anyone not at that breakfast with a few exceptions - that equates to my BFF from high school Felicia, her husband Wayne, and their youngest girl Alex who only a few months old) IHOP and BACON!!!! And then to the airport!

My first flight was delayed, but only by 20 minutes or so... but that was just enough that I didn't have the time to do lunch with Ross (a friend of the family who happens to be a pilot himself - Captain) which kinda made me sad. It would have been really nice to see him!

Had to take a tram to get from one terminal to the next in Houston cause that airport is so big... Then had just enough time to grab some Panda Express for lunch (had some while waiting to board but mostly ate it on the plane) and get going again. Boarded and found my seat only to offer to switch since the guy next to me and his wife were separated... Same row but they were both in the middle and on opposite sides of the aisle... So I gave up my window seat so they could sit next to each other. They both thanked me at the time and before they exited. Wish I'd had the window seat though; turns out my favorite part of flying is watching the world go by all small below me... Flying is a blast, but the airports are less fun.

Anyway got to Miami fine. Retrieved my checked bag from the luggage carousal and started looking for the person who was supposed to exist there with a Royal Caribbean sign only to end up calling the RC assistance hotline. They basically said if I can't find them to just look for the courtesy shuttle operated by the hotel. Done and done.

Checked into the hotel, got cleaned up and then went down to the bar/grill for dinner and a mojito. And now after some talking and texting and chilaxing - it's bedtime!

Tomorrow will be bright and early for me as well, gotta be up and repacked and showered and checked out so I can catch a shuttle to the port at 9am. <-- for the record that's normally when i'm waking up... and I lost and hour! lol

All My Love,
I'll post when I can!
~Elle~

Stories from the Sea of Life

Monday, April 16, 2012

Just a quickie...

Thursday, April 12, 2012

A week and a half in and I can finally post a real blog entry!!!

Monday, April 09, 2012

No time, and when there is time I sleep...

Sunday, April 01, 2012

Planes, Trams, and Automobiles!