MARTIN!

I want to tell you about my awesome friend and co-worker Martin. He complained that I never mentioned him in this blog so I thought I would dedicate a whole entry just for him! I’m not only doing this so that he will stop harassing me but because he deserves it! He is one of my favouritest people ever! Why, you ask? Well, here’s a list:

1. He has awesomely hilarious t-shirts
2. He plays our “Cruise Staff vs. passengers” water volley ball game wearing water wings and an inflatable tube around his waist.
3. He nicknamed me “Crazy”…and for some inexplicable reason to me- it stuck!
4. He is soooo nice- like switching IPM’s with me so that I can get off in Phuket instead of him!
5. He is caring- when I was in quarantine he was the only one to call me to see how I was doing!
6. He is ALWAYS up for a drink!
7. He is so funny- and he has the best laugh!

The list could go on and on but I better stop there before his head gets too big! I am soooo sad that he is leaving in a few weeks. I’m going to miss him soooo much! I only hope that I get the chance to work with him again one day!

Love you Martin!

xoxo D

Bali & Vietnam!

I’m going back a few weeks but I still need to tell you about my wonderful time in Bali. For a while though, it looked like we wouldn’t make it there. The rough weather we experienced at the beginning of the cruise continued to ease off, but it still wasn’t perfect conditions quite yet. As we neared Bali the Captain was unsure if it would be too rough to stop there. He announced that we would get there around 3:30 am- if the weather was good enough we would anchor, if not we would head to Vietnam and make an extra stop there instead. We all went to bed with our fingers crossed that we would be able to get off in Bali. When we woke up we were happy to see that we had made it to Bali! I managed to get on a passenger tour that day to an Elephant Safari Park. The bus ride was a few hours long but it was really nice to see the beautiful countryside, as well as some intricate gold structures. When we reached the elephant park I was amazed at how close we could get to the animals. Unlike zoos where the elephants are miles away, we were able to go right up to them and pet them, take pictures with them, feed them- it was incredible! We also got to go on an elephant ride, see an elephant show, and have a wonderful buffet lunch.

A few days later we were in Phu My. Vietnam. Since we had an emergency drill in the morning we didn’t have enough time to go into Ho Chi Minh City again, so instead we decided to check out the resort town of Vung Tau. We asked our cab driver to drop us off at a nice restaurant but when we arrived it was all passengers from the ship! Kind of wanting some “alone” time away from passengers, Frenchie remembered a place she went to last time she was in Vung Tau so we headed there instead. It was beautiful! It was right on the water with excellent food and service. The only downside was 1) it started to rain as soon as we started eating (luckily we were under a canopy) and 2) by the time we finished our meal it was time to head back to the ship! It was a short but sweet day in Vietnam!

xoxo D

Birthday Blog!

On July 8^th we started another cruise from Fremantle. As you know, its winter in Australia now so we have been encountering a bit of stormy weather in that area. The Captain warned us that the conditions would be quite rough the next few days…and he wasn’t joking! I thought that I had gotten my “sea legs” after being on the ship for a few months- but that wasn’t the case this time! The next day I definitely needed to take multiple sea sickness pills. The plus side was that most of the passengers weren’t feeling well either so it was very quiet at all our activities, but on the other hand I was worried that my birthday the next day would turn out to be a bust if the weather continued like this! Fortunately that wasn’t the case. By the evening of the 9^th the seas had settled down a bit and people were ready to party. I know, I know, my birthday isn’t until the 10^th, but for some reason on the ship people like to start celebrating right at midnight! I don’t want to get into too many details (the pictures on Facebook will do most of the talking) but the night turned out to be pretty ridiculous! If that night is any indication of what my 26^th year will be like, then I am looking forward to a very fun time ahead of me!

The next day, my ACTUAL birthday, I woke up slightly hungover and extremely exhausted. My morning and afternoon was spent like any typical sea day- hosting activities and events for the passengers, but my boss was kind enough to give me the night off so I could relax and enjoy my birthday. Although my evening wasn’t nearly as crazy as the night before, it was kind of nice to have a more low-key celebration! The Cruise Staff team had a nice meal all together in the Officer’s Mess complete with some red wine, then we had a few more beverages in the Crew Bar, and then it was off to Frenchie’s cabin for a small wine and cheese party. My team all pitched in and bought me a beautiful Swarovski crystal necklace and a few other good friends stopped by- I couldn’t have asked for a better ending to my birthday! Well actually, it would’ve been better if all my friends and family back home could have been there as well, but you can’t have it all! I received lots of wonderful cards, emails and well-wishes so thank you very much!

xoxo D

Where was I...Oh yeah, Canada Day!

Where do I begin? So much has happened this month and there is so much I need to fill you in on! I’m going to have to update you in segments because otherwise this entry will be about 20 pages long! Let’s start where I left off- Canada Day. On July 1st we were in Port Kelang and I didn’t have to work. The day started off pretty low-key: me and my co-worker Martin (he says I don’t mention him enough in this blog so watch out for his name lots more!) took the shuttle bus in Kelang town where they dropped us off at a mall (it’s actually the largest mall in Malaysia!) Our first order of business was lunch. Martin had been to this really cool “hot pot” restaurant before and I wanted to try it too, so that’s where we went! It’s like those Korean BBQ places where you cook your meat at your table, except instead of a grill it’s a boiling pot of broth that you cook your food in! It was a really fun experience- and really tasty as well! After our meal we cruised around the mall for a bit and then it was back to the ship.

Of course since it was Canada Day we couldn’t let the day pass without a big celebration. Apparently Canada Day is always HUGE on ships, so we had a lot to live up to! There were only 8 Canadian crew members on the ship but by the end of the night I think we had a few “adopted” ones too! We decorated the crew bar with red and white balloons, we printed off lots of “Canadian” pictures (the Stanley Cup, beavers, the loonie, Don Cherry, etc), and we even “borrowed” the massive Canadian flag from the bridge to hang up! Someone had brought temporary tattoos from home, and I stole some red and white leis from the Cruise Staff storage locker…we even had special Canadian drinks like Caesars and Canadian Club! It turned into an amazing night and a Canada Day I will never forget!

A few days later it was American Independence Day and although there are about double the amount of American crew members as there are Canadians, their party didn’t compare to ours! Since my roommate is from Florida I still celebrated though- any excuse for a party, right?!

xoxo D


PS. Both those guys aren't even Canadian! HAHA

Yay for Malaysia!

Work hard, play hard- I think that should be my motto! It was a busy few days at sea but now that we have 5 port days in a row it’s my chance to finally relax and have some fun! Our first port day was Phuket- unfortunately I was IPM so I was stuck on the ship. But on the plus side the weather was quite miserable so I wasn’t too disappointed! And being on the ship gave me the chance to get my hair done- something that was much needed! Our 2^nd port day (yesterday) was in Langkawi. We could only get off the ship in the afternoon due to the fact that we had emergency drills all morning- joy! With only a few hours to spend in town I decided to go for an hour long full body massage. It was amazing- so relaxing…and so cheap! Back home you would probably pay at least $100, but I paid 80 ringitt which is less than $30!! After my massage I wandered to the beach. I was planning on doing a little sun tanning but I figured it probably wasn’t a good idea since I was all oiled up from my massage! I didn’t want to get burnt to a crisp so instead I called it a day and headed back to the ship. My evening was also quite eventful- it was quiz night in the crew bar…and my team won! Our prize was $50 each!!! (If you were wondering how a team of not-so-smart Cruise Staff managed to win its because the game was “Majority Rules”- all we had to do was guess the most popular answer!) Today was our 3^rd port day in a row and we were in Penang. In the morning I headed to a local mall with a few friends so that we could use the free internet at Starbucks- I know, thrilling! Fortunately my afternoon was a little more exciting than that. I managed to get on a passenger tour as an escort so I spent the rest of the day exploring Penang by trishaw! We stopped by a temple, a museum, and finished the day at a fancy hotel for some snacks. Just like in Vietnam, it was a wonderful way to see the city- much nicer than if I was on a tour bus! Tomorrow it is off to Port Kelang for (hopefully) another great day!

xoxo Dianna