The 2006 holiday season was a highly emotional one. Thanksgiving Day, my mom was given a clean bill of health after a short battle with breast cancer. A few weeks later came the Christmas vacation we all desperately needed. We sailed on a seven-day cruise onboard the beautiful Queen Mary 2 to the Western Caribbean. The ports-of-call were Montego Bay, Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, and Cozumel. I couldn’t wait. We had to fly to Ft. Lauderdale, FL for the cruise. We were loaded down with luggage like you wouldn’t believe. We even had to pack formal wear in our bags. We left Newark, NJ a good hour late due to poor weather. We finally landed around 1pm. When we landed in Ft. Lauderdale, we got hit with more rain. What a way to start a vacation! Getting on board the ship went faster than getting to the terminal. We were sure happy for that. At that moment, it was time to relax and be ready to have a good time.
Just as we entered the ship’s main promenade, Santa was sitting in his chair. It was the sight we were all looking forward to. We paused with pictures with Santa, and we headed to our cabins. We were on deck six, just two decks up from where we boarded. At our cabins, we met our cabin attendant, Larry. He was the nicest gentleman you could meet. He showed us our life jackets, our evacuation route, our muster station, and our dining assignment. Afterward, we went upstairs to the King’s Court buffet on deck seven. The buffet on the Queen Mary 2 is absolutely incredible. There isn’t one item you ask for that they don’t have on the buffet. The buffet was that inviting! After a late lunch, it was time to sit back and wash it all down with a few drinks. Onboard the Queen Mary 2, I drank a B-52 for the very first time. A B-52 is Kahlua, Bailey’s, and Grand Marnier mixed straight up or on the rocks. It’s goooooood!! See my earlier story about cruise drinks entitled “Cruise Drinks: Straight Up And Straight Down”. The cruise was officially off to a great start.
Day two was a sea day. We were en route to our first port-of-call, Montego Bay, Jamaica. Breakfast onboard the Queen Mary 2 was awesome. That morning was kind of unusual. I was at the King’s Court breakfast buffet and I came across a rather strange situation. I was at the bacon tray. There were fifteen strips of bacon stuck together. What was I going to do, pull them all apart at the buffet and hold up the line? No! I did what every man should do. I took the whole chunk of bacon as it was. I scarfed down fifteen strips of bacon with my breakfast along with my fresh fruit and my toasted bagel. How’s that for being brave? I skipped lunch because I was so full. What a day it was! The second night of the cruise was a formal night. My dad, my brother, and I wore our tuxedos. We had three formal nights during that week. You’ll be so proud of me. Of all three formal nights, I never complained once about being dressed to the nines that often. I’m usually not a big fan of weddings and anything that involves a tuxedo. That cruise was a true breakthrough for me. I finally was a good sport after all.
Celebrating Christmas Eve onboard the Queen Mary 2 was an experience like no other. It was truly something special. Immediately following dinner time, it was time to attend Christmas Eve mass in the Royal Court Theatre, the ship’s main theater. My brother and I volunteered to give out Holy Communion to the crew and staff in the upper tier. After mass, we all assembled in the ship’s main grandeur for a Christmas carol sing-along. Members of the crew and staff also were present. The cruise director led the singing. We must have sung ten different songs including a few favorites. After the sing-along, my family and I went back to our cabins. We changed out of our formal wear and we went downstairs to the Golden Lion lounge for drinks. Yes, I had another B-52. Oh, do they taste great! It was the perfect ending to a perfect day at sea.
Christmas Day, we pulled into Montego Bay. The ship launched its own tenders to take us to and from shore. It was a gorgeous morning. There were two other cruise ships docked at Montego Bay; Star Princess and the Costa Magica. My brother and I went on the Dunn’s River Falls and Dolphin Cove tour. It was a rather long bus ride to Ocho Rios, where they’re located. The ride was just under two hours. Our tour guide was very friendly. She pointed out many key locations along the way; Montego Bay’s airport, and yes, many of the all-inclusive resorts located along Jamaica’s north shore, including Hedonism. Our tour guide was so funny when she said, “There are no kids allowed, but you can make them there!”. Oh my Lord, was everyone in the bus laughing their butts off. It was a fun drive not to forget.
Shortly later, we arrived at Dunn’s River Falls. The tour guide gave us a few safety instructions. One of the most important was stay together and not venture off without telling anyone. Secondly, we were told not to buy anything from the street vendors. Some of them are not to be trusted for many reasons. We all had to wear aqua shoes so not to slip on the rocks. Climbing up Dunn’s River Falls was not hard at all. As long as you climb up the ledges that are sound, you’re good. Dunn’s River Falls was the location used for the 1989 Tom Cruise/Elizabeth Shue movie “Cocktail”. Remember the romantic love making scene there in that film? I do! Great movie! While my brother and I were climbing the falls, we came across the utmost grotesque scene ever. I thought Tom Cruise and Elizabeth Shue had it going good at the falls. We saw this fat lady in a bikini climbing the falls. I am not sure if she was from our ship. She was probably from one of the other two ships. She was so chunky, and so heavy-set, that she needed two men to hoist her up the falls. Oh my Lord, was it out of place. I could barely look. It looked like Jaba The Hut on a forklift. We got to the top of the falls without vomiting. After watching a fat lady in a bikini with two athletically toned guys hoisting her up with their hands in her crotch, yeah, that made me want to keep my breakfast down. I was happy I was able to keep all fifteen strips of bacon, my toasted bagel, and fruit down. Phew! It was a tiring climb, but a whole lot of fun. They even took pictures of us climbing the falls. I never bought a copy. I kept away from those vendors as we were told. Without a doubt, it was truly a fun day I’d tell everyone about it, like now!
The last part of our tour was Dolphin Cove. There we got to swim with the dolphins in a closed in lagoon. There we also had lunch. The lunch special, barbequed jerk chicken. Oh, was it awesome. No one does jerk chicken better than the Jamaicans. While we were walking around through the forest, there was a guy challenging people to have a snake sit on their head. Oh, God, he put this green tree snake on my head. I froze up like an Eskimo. I like watching snakes on TV, but not wearing them. It was quite the experience!! We then headed back to the tour bus, to take us back to the ship. It was a long hour and forty-five minute ride back to the ship. I wanted to stop in and stay hello to the people at Hedonism, but I picked up a brochure at the cruise terminal. That is definitely a must-do on my list. Back onboard the Queen Mary 2, we got suited up in our tuxedos once again. It was dinner time, and time for the Christmas Gala Buffet. After dinner, we all went to the Royal Court Theater for the Christmas celebration show. It was an amazing show, featuring many more Christmas carols performed by the guest performers and the Cunard singers and dancers. It was an incredible program, well put together. Another great day onboard had come to a close.
The following morning, we arrived in Grand Cayman. It was not a pleasant morning at all. When I woke up, the swells outside in the harbor were fierce. Many of the ships that had arrived that morning were struggling to get their tenders into position. Many of them scratched Grand Cayman and left. The Queen Mary 2 and a few other ships stayed to tough it out. Tender service was limited due to the horrific sea conditions. When we finally boarded a tender, we were being tossed around like dolls. It took a good hour or so to reach shore with the rough waves. When we finally arrived on shore, we visited the Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville restaurant. We visited the gift shop. My brother stocked up on every single album he didn’t have. When we were finished there, we took a taxi cab ride to the town of Hell. Yes, I said “Hell”. Why is it called Hell? Just behind the post office, there is this shallow body of water. There were these jagged rock formations jutting out of it. The gentleman who first settled the town and saw these formations commented wondering, “Where am I, Hell?” I even bought a t-shirt that said “I’d Rather Go To Hell Than To School!”. The taxi driver took us back downtown so we can board our tender to the ship. By the time we re-boarded the ship, the Queen Mary 2 and Star Princess were the only two ships remaining in the harbor. The sea conditions were indeed that bad. At six o’clock, we were underway again. Next stop, Costa Maya, Mexico!
Our next two days were in Mexico. After Grand Cayman, we docked in Costa Maya. We went on a shore excursion to the Mayan ruins of Chachchoben. Wow, what a well preserved Mayan village! We took tons of pictures left and right. There was so much to see there. Chachchoben, in the Mayan language, means “City of Corn”, because it was the crop which made the village flourish at the time. There was so much to talk about back aboard the ship later on that night. Later on around midnight, there was a pirates party on the stern deck. It was a lot of fun. From the stern, I could see all of the ships following us to Cozumel. It was sure quite the sight. After the party, it was time to split the sheets. Another great day of cruising was over.
The second to last day of the cruise, we docked in Cozumel. I looked out the window, and I could not believe how many cruise ships were docked there with us. I counted eighteen in all. Royal Caribbean and Carnival made up a vast majority of the count. That morning, my brother and I went on the Atlantis submarine excursion. Now, that was awesome! The ocean there dips as deep as four thousand feet. The many species of fish and undersea life was unbelievable. It was incredible and plainly breathtaking. Don’t think that the submarine excursion was the only thing we did in Cozumel. We also browsed around the duty-free shops near the cruise ship pier. We didn’t buy a single thing, but it was fun to just walk around. Afterward, we headed back onboard the ship. Our time kicking around in Cozumel was done.
Remember what I said that the submarine and duty-free shopping weren’t the only things we did in Cozumel? Royal Caribbean’s Grandeur of The Seas docked right next to us. It was also docked next to us in Costa Maya. Early in the morning, I got to watch this young and good looking lady wearing nothing but her bathroom towel, combing her hair over the edge of her balcony. Girls doing that hair bob thing is so mesmerizing. The really funny part was that my brother and I were able to keep up with the schedule with everyone onboard the Grandeur. There was this one cute girl in her twenties, in a red bikini who had to be caught up with her color on the sun deck . She was in the same chair the day before, so we knew when she’ll be there the following day. To all you guys out there, girl watching on a cruise, or on another ship is an amazing experience. It’s something you don’t want to miss out on. Aside from girl watching, we even watched the belly flop competition on the Grandeur. The Queen Mary 2's top deck is a good fifty feet higher than the Grandeur’s. It was a type of day that I hope to experience again very soon. Fingers crossed!
At six o’clock at night, we cast off from Cozumel. We were on our way back to Ft. Lauderdale. We had our third and final formal night of the cruise. The food on the menu that night was fabulous. I don’t know how I managed not to get cocktail sauce from getting on my cummerbund, but I didn’t. That’s why I cannot stand tuxedos on any occasion. The following morning, we were speeding along at sea. Late that morning, I read in the cruise program that they were doing sign ups for the passengers’ talent show. When I showed up at the Chart Room to sign up, the cruise staffer recognized me right off the bat. She said, “You look familiar!”. I told her that I had performed in the show back in July, doing my comedy bashing on wedding traditions. Five o’clock came along. It was show time once again in the Queens Room. There were a lot of other fascinating performances. One young lady did a belly dancing routine. Another family did a group performance of the song “High Hopes”. Well, I did my comedy performance doing a bashing on birthday traditions. It went alright, but not my best. I got a good applause, but it wasn’t my strongest. That cruise was a bit different than the July cruise. There were many people from other countries onboard. To this day I ask myself, “When on earth am I going to learn to play the guitar?”. The farewell show later that night was of the variety type. The stand up comedian, Jeff Wayne, did a short performance. The acrobatic duo, The Moosen Men, did a short routine of their own. The two female guest entertainers, Suzanne Godfrey and Jeri Sager, did their final routines on stage. The grand finale was performed by the Cunard singers and dancers. One of the best cruises I’ve ever been on had come to an end. Unfortunately, it ended too soon.
The next morning, we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale. We went to breakfast upstairs and then we finished packing our carry-on bags. While waiting for our luggage number to be called, we watched the longshoremen load the endless pallets of food provisions for the upcoming trip. What stuff they need to keep twenty-eight hundred people well-fed! Finally, our color and number was called. We went downstairs to the main deck. We shook hands with many of the staff as we left the vessel. Leaving any ship during disembarkation is an empty feeling. We went through customs, got our luggage together, and headed for our airport bus. I don’t remember much from the rest of that day, but I do remember asking my dad one big question. While we were leaving Newark Airport’s long-term parking lot, I asked my dad “Can we do that again?”.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Friday, September 21, 2012
God Save The Queen!
The one ship I had wanted the chance to work with was the Queen Mary 2. Monday night, November 16th, 2009, I got that chance. My staff administrator called to tell me that someone called in sick for the Queen Mary 2. It was an opportunity to work with one of the most beautiful ships in the world. Did I take the job? Oh, did I! I was requested to be at the Brooklyn Red Hook Terminal by 7:30 A.M. My dad and I woke up at 5 A.M. the next morning. We quickly ate, had our coffee, and we hit the highway. It took about forty minutes to get there. The Brooklyn terminal is a really nice looking cruise terminal. Unfortunately, it isn’t the easiest to get to. We arrived at the terminal with plenty of time to spare. My dad told me, “Moose, be sure to let us know how you’re doing, ok?”. I wished my dad a good day at work, and he drove off. My day with the Queen Mary 2 started. I walked in, went through security, met up with the pier coordinators, and signed in. I was assigned to do wheelchairs during disembarkation and boarding. I could not argue with that. Many of my colleagues in Bayonne who’ve worked the Queen Mary 2 before told me about the enormous tips they’ve gone home with. Ok, let’s not get carried away. The Queen Mary 2 is one of my favorite ships aside from the Explorer of The Seas. It was time to get my “ship face” on!
The Queen Mary 2 started its disembarkation right on time. One of the supervisors quickly briefed me on which gangway to use when entering the ship, which gangway to exit through, and the proper route to take during boarding. It was very straight forward. First, the ship’s security staff had to take my ID photo. The ship’s security officers took my photo, and it was off to the races. All of the disembarking guests requiring wheelchair assistance were gathering in the Golden Lion, one of the lounges on the main deck. One of my colleagues from Bayonne was dispatching the wheelchairs on board. Once I arrived at the Golden Lion, I was introduced to my first guest, Mary. Talking about a “small world after all”, this guest and her husband were avid railroad travelers. As I was wheeling her off the ship and through customs, I asked her what transportation she had leaving the terminal. She said, “We’re taking the train from New York Penn Station to Kissimmee, Florida. We have a time share down in the area”. I responded, “You’re taking the Silver Star! Oh, that’s a really nice ride. I’ve been wanting to go to Disney World by train for a long time. You sure picked a beautiful day for riding the rails.” “We sure did!”, the husband replied. After I helped the wife out of the wheelchair and into the taxi cab, the husband tipped me. I said, “Thank you very much, and enjoy Florida”. The taxi pulled away and they were off. Back to the races!
A few minutes later, I headed back to the ship to tend to the next guest. This guest was just as pleasant as the first. Her name was Edith. I introduced myself, and asked how her trip was. She told me that she had the sways after their five-day crossing from England. She answered, “It was awful! We had twenty-five foot swells coming over from Southampton. The captain said that it was the roughest weather ever encountered in the ship’s history.” I plainly said, “She’s built to handle waves like that. Hey, you’re in New York now, and you made it safely, which matters.” I then said, “My family and I had rough weather all throughout our Christmas cruise on the Norwegian Gem last year. It wasn’t fun, but we enjoyed ourselves as much as we could. Sometimes, you have to make the best of the worst of situations.” Edith responded, “You know David, you’re very right about that. You must have a masters degree.” I started laughing when I answered, “I have a masters in education from Saint Peter’s College in Jersey City”. When we found her limousine, she gave me a healthy tip. Once the door was closed, the driver stepped on it. Off she went! I love New York taxi and limousine drivers. “Floor it!” has got to be their motto. I quickly headed back to the ship. I tended to another guest, and did the same thing. His name was George. I wheeled him through the gangway, helped him find his luggage, pushed him through customs, and brought him outside to his transportation. While I was doing so, I ran into a familiar face. As I was approaching the gangway, I met up with the cruise director, Ray Rouse. He was the cruise director on both of my cruises on the Queen Mary 2, just three years before. He was talking to the security staff. I snuck up on him and said, “Good morning, Ray!”. He turned around and he recognized my face right off the bat. He said, “Hey, how’s it going man!” How’s your family doing?”. I said, “We’re all hanging in there.” He said, “Give your parents my kind regards!”. I replied, “I sure will.”. Before I knew it, disembarkation was over. The Queen Mary 2 stood ready to receive her new guests. Lunch time!
At lunch time, I went outside to the hot dog cart and bought myself an Italian sausage sandwich. That kept me alive and kicking for the whole day. Hey, when you’re Italian, some form of meat is always on the menu. Lunch time was a good hour long, which wasn’t too shabby. While we were eating in our own little corner of the embarkation lounge, we were all talking about the Baltimore trip. That trip was the topic of discussion all day long. Who wants to forget Baltimore? That was a work day like no other, a bonding experience I should say.
At noontime exactly, embarkation began. I quickly reported to the terminal entrance where all of the guests in need of wheelchairs were waiting. The first guest I assisted, was rather pleasant. His name was Eugene, which is my middle name. They have sailed on the Queen Mary 2 once before. They told me that they were very much familiar with the ship. I made sure they had all of their belongings, and I took the husband through security. First I went through, and then security patted him down. Once the rest of his family walked through the metal detector, I took them to the check-in counter. Even though I didn’t know all of the New York check-in staff, they sure knew that they were doing. It’s my job in Bayonne too, so I’m in the same “boat” as them. After this family was done checking in, they followed me and the husband onboard. As we entered the ship, I asked the family, “I’m sure you are familiar with the lounges and clubs on board. Are you?”. They said, “Oh yes, David. This ship is absolutely wonderful.” I took the husband in the elevator up to their deck, while they followed along in another. Finally, we reached their cabin. They gave me a very healthy tip. I’m not going to say how much. Doing the job properly, and keeping the guests happy is what matters.
The next guest I assisted was very friendly. He had a wonderful family, too. His name was Henry. They were absolutely wonderful. I remember it well. This family was sailing on the Queen Mary 2 for the very first time. I took them through security, and then to the check-in area. While they were filling out their health forms, I asked them about how they heard about the Queen Mary 2. They said, “We heard that this ship has quite an on board atmosphere.”. I said to them, “That it is. It’s an incredible ship. There are plenty of things to do and plenty of places to hang out. Once we’re on board, I’ll point out some of the popular places.” The wife said, “That’s so kind of you.”. Once they were checked in, they followed me and Henry through the hallway. They didn’t want their embarkation portraits taken. They said, “They’ll be taking pictures all throughout the trip!”. I retorted, “They sure know how to sneak up on you and pop the flash. I love the Titanic grand staircase backdrop they set up on formal nights.”. I then added, “The photography staff on board does an incredible job. There’s never a time when they take a horrible shot of you.”. Just as we entered the ship, I showed them the duty free shops, the Golden Lion, and the casino. I then said, “On the deck down below, there’s another place called the Chart Room, where the champagne is always flowing. Also, do check out the Queen’s Room and the G-32 Lounge right next door.”. Henry said, “You sure know this ship, David!”. I answered, “Every cruise is like practice.” We took the elevator up to their cabin. They too gave me a healthy tip. As I left their cabin, I said, “Enjoy your cruise, and have a great time.”. “We sure will, David. Thank you so much for your help.”. It was back to the gangway and to the terminal once again. The day was going awesome. Well, so I thought!
It was a gorgeous afternoon. I had already assisted two guests onto the ship. Embarkation was going great. I had assisted two guests who were absolutely pleasant. Just as I returned to the wheelchair waiting area, that’s when I met “the fat guy”. This guest and his family flew in from Poland. If I can recall, Jon was his name. This guy was one heavy dude. He had this pot belly you would not believe. He looked like he weighed three hundred and fifty pounds, maybe more. He got up using is cane, and sat down in the wheelchair. When he sat down, I could have sworn I heard the chair’s axle bend. I started thinking to myself, “How in God’s name did the plane get off the ground?”. They spoke broken English, very little I should say. I took him through security, and the family followed behind us. Pushing this guy was a challenge. I was then wondering why they didn’t check him in at the curb. Once they were all checked in, I pushed this guy toward the boarding area. This guy was H-E-A-V-Y. I thought I was pushing a pallet load of food provisions. Yikes! We entered the boarding area, and we passed the photography staff. I was glad they didn’t take this family’s photograph. Who would want to take a picture of this guy? This guy had me on the verge of a hernia. When we entered the elevator, this guy’s body mass took up half the space. I was sure hoping the elevator would make it to the gangway level. It did. Phew! The first leg of the trip was over.
Getting Jon on board the ship was one challenging situation. The easy part was over, well, sort of. Immediately afterward, I began trying to get the wheelchair over the metal bulkhead and into the gangway. He was so heavy, he was sliding forward, and almost slid out of the chair. The gangway then pitched downward, and then it would turn sharply to the right, then upward, and then onto the ship. I didn’t want this guy to slide out of the chair and get hurt, so I had to do things the hard way. I turned him around and I dragged him through the gangway backwards. This guy, Jon, was heavier then Jaba The Hut. As I was dragging him through the descending portion of the gangway, I felt my chair pushing against me. The last thing I wanted was for this guy to run me over. I then started thinking to myself, “If this guy runs my butt over with this wheelchair, what a way to go out!”. I couldn’t imagine my tombstone saying, “R.I.P. Do Not Despair. Pancaked By A Fat Guy In A Wheelchair”. Pulling this guest through the gangway was like a sequel to The Little Engine That Could, or should I say.......ah, forget it. Finally we reached the end of the gangway. I was fearing that the ship was going to list. He nearly ran me over as I carefully rolled him down the bridge plate into the ship. He made it!
Finally, the real easy part was coming up. I was wrong! The ship had these metal bulkheads which I too had to navigate over. When I hit one of them, he nearly slid out of the chair. I had to turn him around again and drag the chair backwards. The elevator door opened, and I took him into one elevator. The rest of his family followed in another. I was so glad they did that. I was afraid the elevator wouldn’t move an inch with everyone else in it, including him. We finally arrived at their deck, five decks up exactly. I was then whispering to myself, “How in hell is he going to get around this ship?”. Well, I left that up to them. The wife tipped me ten dollars. I said, “Have a safe trip, and take care.”. I returned back to the gangway. When I returned, I was met by a bunch of my Bayonne colleagues who were just giggling at me. I said, “Did you see the guy I was pushing? THAT WAS ONE...HEAVY DUDE!”. One of my dear colleagues, Paul, said, “You should have charged him per pound, Dave.” I said, “Shut up!”. I then said, “I hope they loaded enough food on board.”. The rest of the day went along without a hitch. Before I knew it, embarkation was over. The Queen Mary 2 was preparing to set sail on her thirteen-day Caribbean cruise, with one fat guy in tow. I really mean, “in tow”.
When work was done, Paul, a few of his Brooklyn colleagues, and I signed off and left the terminal. As we were waiting for the bus to take us to Jay Street, we watched the ship leave. I still couldn’t believe that a ship that big can float. Having sailed on her twice, that was one incredible ship to work at. Once we got off the bus at Jay Street, Paul showed me the way to the subway station. We all said, “Good Night” to each other, and I walked down the subway steps. I took the A train to New York Penn Station, where I took the train to Secaucus, NJ. There I changed trains to finish the trip home. The long day’s work, including pushing a three hundred and fifty pound man, sure caught up with me. When I walked in through the front door of my home, I shared my story from my parents and brother. When I told the story about Jon, the fat guy, did I have my mom and my brother laughing hard. That was the topic of discussion for a month, even on Thanksgiving Day at our friends’ house. Here’s to having an exciting and rewarding job!
The Queen Mary 2 started its disembarkation right on time. One of the supervisors quickly briefed me on which gangway to use when entering the ship, which gangway to exit through, and the proper route to take during boarding. It was very straight forward. First, the ship’s security staff had to take my ID photo. The ship’s security officers took my photo, and it was off to the races. All of the disembarking guests requiring wheelchair assistance were gathering in the Golden Lion, one of the lounges on the main deck. One of my colleagues from Bayonne was dispatching the wheelchairs on board. Once I arrived at the Golden Lion, I was introduced to my first guest, Mary. Talking about a “small world after all”, this guest and her husband were avid railroad travelers. As I was wheeling her off the ship and through customs, I asked her what transportation she had leaving the terminal. She said, “We’re taking the train from New York Penn Station to Kissimmee, Florida. We have a time share down in the area”. I responded, “You’re taking the Silver Star! Oh, that’s a really nice ride. I’ve been wanting to go to Disney World by train for a long time. You sure picked a beautiful day for riding the rails.” “We sure did!”, the husband replied. After I helped the wife out of the wheelchair and into the taxi cab, the husband tipped me. I said, “Thank you very much, and enjoy Florida”. The taxi pulled away and they were off. Back to the races!
A few minutes later, I headed back to the ship to tend to the next guest. This guest was just as pleasant as the first. Her name was Edith. I introduced myself, and asked how her trip was. She told me that she had the sways after their five-day crossing from England. She answered, “It was awful! We had twenty-five foot swells coming over from Southampton. The captain said that it was the roughest weather ever encountered in the ship’s history.” I plainly said, “She’s built to handle waves like that. Hey, you’re in New York now, and you made it safely, which matters.” I then said, “My family and I had rough weather all throughout our Christmas cruise on the Norwegian Gem last year. It wasn’t fun, but we enjoyed ourselves as much as we could. Sometimes, you have to make the best of the worst of situations.” Edith responded, “You know David, you’re very right about that. You must have a masters degree.” I started laughing when I answered, “I have a masters in education from Saint Peter’s College in Jersey City”. When we found her limousine, she gave me a healthy tip. Once the door was closed, the driver stepped on it. Off she went! I love New York taxi and limousine drivers. “Floor it!” has got to be their motto. I quickly headed back to the ship. I tended to another guest, and did the same thing. His name was George. I wheeled him through the gangway, helped him find his luggage, pushed him through customs, and brought him outside to his transportation. While I was doing so, I ran into a familiar face. As I was approaching the gangway, I met up with the cruise director, Ray Rouse. He was the cruise director on both of my cruises on the Queen Mary 2, just three years before. He was talking to the security staff. I snuck up on him and said, “Good morning, Ray!”. He turned around and he recognized my face right off the bat. He said, “Hey, how’s it going man!” How’s your family doing?”. I said, “We’re all hanging in there.” He said, “Give your parents my kind regards!”. I replied, “I sure will.”. Before I knew it, disembarkation was over. The Queen Mary 2 stood ready to receive her new guests. Lunch time!
At lunch time, I went outside to the hot dog cart and bought myself an Italian sausage sandwich. That kept me alive and kicking for the whole day. Hey, when you’re Italian, some form of meat is always on the menu. Lunch time was a good hour long, which wasn’t too shabby. While we were eating in our own little corner of the embarkation lounge, we were all talking about the Baltimore trip. That trip was the topic of discussion all day long. Who wants to forget Baltimore? That was a work day like no other, a bonding experience I should say.
At noontime exactly, embarkation began. I quickly reported to the terminal entrance where all of the guests in need of wheelchairs were waiting. The first guest I assisted, was rather pleasant. His name was Eugene, which is my middle name. They have sailed on the Queen Mary 2 once before. They told me that they were very much familiar with the ship. I made sure they had all of their belongings, and I took the husband through security. First I went through, and then security patted him down. Once the rest of his family walked through the metal detector, I took them to the check-in counter. Even though I didn’t know all of the New York check-in staff, they sure knew that they were doing. It’s my job in Bayonne too, so I’m in the same “boat” as them. After this family was done checking in, they followed me and the husband onboard. As we entered the ship, I asked the family, “I’m sure you are familiar with the lounges and clubs on board. Are you?”. They said, “Oh yes, David. This ship is absolutely wonderful.” I took the husband in the elevator up to their deck, while they followed along in another. Finally, we reached their cabin. They gave me a very healthy tip. I’m not going to say how much. Doing the job properly, and keeping the guests happy is what matters.
The next guest I assisted was very friendly. He had a wonderful family, too. His name was Henry. They were absolutely wonderful. I remember it well. This family was sailing on the Queen Mary 2 for the very first time. I took them through security, and then to the check-in area. While they were filling out their health forms, I asked them about how they heard about the Queen Mary 2. They said, “We heard that this ship has quite an on board atmosphere.”. I said to them, “That it is. It’s an incredible ship. There are plenty of things to do and plenty of places to hang out. Once we’re on board, I’ll point out some of the popular places.” The wife said, “That’s so kind of you.”. Once they were checked in, they followed me and Henry through the hallway. They didn’t want their embarkation portraits taken. They said, “They’ll be taking pictures all throughout the trip!”. I retorted, “They sure know how to sneak up on you and pop the flash. I love the Titanic grand staircase backdrop they set up on formal nights.”. I then added, “The photography staff on board does an incredible job. There’s never a time when they take a horrible shot of you.”. Just as we entered the ship, I showed them the duty free shops, the Golden Lion, and the casino. I then said, “On the deck down below, there’s another place called the Chart Room, where the champagne is always flowing. Also, do check out the Queen’s Room and the G-32 Lounge right next door.”. Henry said, “You sure know this ship, David!”. I answered, “Every cruise is like practice.” We took the elevator up to their cabin. They too gave me a healthy tip. As I left their cabin, I said, “Enjoy your cruise, and have a great time.”. “We sure will, David. Thank you so much for your help.”. It was back to the gangway and to the terminal once again. The day was going awesome. Well, so I thought!
It was a gorgeous afternoon. I had already assisted two guests onto the ship. Embarkation was going great. I had assisted two guests who were absolutely pleasant. Just as I returned to the wheelchair waiting area, that’s when I met “the fat guy”. This guest and his family flew in from Poland. If I can recall, Jon was his name. This guy was one heavy dude. He had this pot belly you would not believe. He looked like he weighed three hundred and fifty pounds, maybe more. He got up using is cane, and sat down in the wheelchair. When he sat down, I could have sworn I heard the chair’s axle bend. I started thinking to myself, “How in God’s name did the plane get off the ground?”. They spoke broken English, very little I should say. I took him through security, and the family followed behind us. Pushing this guy was a challenge. I was then wondering why they didn’t check him in at the curb. Once they were all checked in, I pushed this guy toward the boarding area. This guy was H-E-A-V-Y. I thought I was pushing a pallet load of food provisions. Yikes! We entered the boarding area, and we passed the photography staff. I was glad they didn’t take this family’s photograph. Who would want to take a picture of this guy? This guy had me on the verge of a hernia. When we entered the elevator, this guy’s body mass took up half the space. I was sure hoping the elevator would make it to the gangway level. It did. Phew! The first leg of the trip was over.
Getting Jon on board the ship was one challenging situation. The easy part was over, well, sort of. Immediately afterward, I began trying to get the wheelchair over the metal bulkhead and into the gangway. He was so heavy, he was sliding forward, and almost slid out of the chair. The gangway then pitched downward, and then it would turn sharply to the right, then upward, and then onto the ship. I didn’t want this guy to slide out of the chair and get hurt, so I had to do things the hard way. I turned him around and I dragged him through the gangway backwards. This guy, Jon, was heavier then Jaba The Hut. As I was dragging him through the descending portion of the gangway, I felt my chair pushing against me. The last thing I wanted was for this guy to run me over. I then started thinking to myself, “If this guy runs my butt over with this wheelchair, what a way to go out!”. I couldn’t imagine my tombstone saying, “R.I.P. Do Not Despair. Pancaked By A Fat Guy In A Wheelchair”. Pulling this guest through the gangway was like a sequel to The Little Engine That Could, or should I say.......ah, forget it. Finally we reached the end of the gangway. I was fearing that the ship was going to list. He nearly ran me over as I carefully rolled him down the bridge plate into the ship. He made it!
Finally, the real easy part was coming up. I was wrong! The ship had these metal bulkheads which I too had to navigate over. When I hit one of them, he nearly slid out of the chair. I had to turn him around again and drag the chair backwards. The elevator door opened, and I took him into one elevator. The rest of his family followed in another. I was so glad they did that. I was afraid the elevator wouldn’t move an inch with everyone else in it, including him. We finally arrived at their deck, five decks up exactly. I was then whispering to myself, “How in hell is he going to get around this ship?”. Well, I left that up to them. The wife tipped me ten dollars. I said, “Have a safe trip, and take care.”. I returned back to the gangway. When I returned, I was met by a bunch of my Bayonne colleagues who were just giggling at me. I said, “Did you see the guy I was pushing? THAT WAS ONE...HEAVY DUDE!”. One of my dear colleagues, Paul, said, “You should have charged him per pound, Dave.” I said, “Shut up!”. I then said, “I hope they loaded enough food on board.”. The rest of the day went along without a hitch. Before I knew it, embarkation was over. The Queen Mary 2 was preparing to set sail on her thirteen-day Caribbean cruise, with one fat guy in tow. I really mean, “in tow”.
When work was done, Paul, a few of his Brooklyn colleagues, and I signed off and left the terminal. As we were waiting for the bus to take us to Jay Street, we watched the ship leave. I still couldn’t believe that a ship that big can float. Having sailed on her twice, that was one incredible ship to work at. Once we got off the bus at Jay Street, Paul showed me the way to the subway station. We all said, “Good Night” to each other, and I walked down the subway steps. I took the A train to New York Penn Station, where I took the train to Secaucus, NJ. There I changed trains to finish the trip home. The long day’s work, including pushing a three hundred and fifty pound man, sure caught up with me. When I walked in through the front door of my home, I shared my story from my parents and brother. When I told the story about Jon, the fat guy, did I have my mom and my brother laughing hard. That was the topic of discussion for a month, even on Thanksgiving Day at our friends’ house. Here’s to having an exciting and rewarding job!
Saturday, August 25, 2012
A Work Day To Remember!
Thursday, November 12th, 2009, the northeast was rocked by a nor'easter. The following day, I received a phone call from my staff administrator. My brother and I were busy in the garage re-stringing lights on our Christmas wreath. I was asked if I could travel with the Bayonne staff to Baltimore. I was told briefly what ship I was going to be working with. She asked if I could report to the Bayonne shopping area by 10:30 A.M. I said, “Will be there!”.
Saturday morning the 14th, my family headed down the shore to Point Pleasant, and I left for Bayonne. I drove to Bayonne in uniform, ready for another exciting work day. I arrived at the shopping center about half an hour prior to everyone else. I went to Dunkin Donuts to get a bagel and coffee, and continued to wait for everyone. When I saw a motor coach pull up near the movie theater, I knew something was up. More and more of us started to show up outside the theater, including two of the pier coordinators. At that moment, I began thinking to myself, “This is no Boston run!”.
We left Bayonne shortly before 11 A.M. We were on the New Jersey Turnpike en route to Baltimore. While on board the bus, we were given a synopsis of the situation. We were told that Royal Caribbean’s Grandeur of The Seas, was due to arrive that morning at 7 A.M. The nor'easter caused the ship to slow down on its way to Baltimore. The port of Baltimore was also forced to close due to the severe weather conditions. We arrived at the Cruise Maryland terminal just before 2 P.M. We were met by one of the Baltimore supervisors. She stepped onto the bus and addressed us about the situation. She made it known to us that many of the motor coaches, taxis, and limousines were turned away. She also made it known to us that we were going to be handling many guests who will be unhappy, because they were going to lose a full day from their cruise.
Inside the terminal, we were advised that letters were going to be distributed to the guests as they arrived. I called my parents up down the shore and said, “We’re going to have a long day here, and possibly a long night too.” My dad asked me, “What’s the deal down there, moose?”. My dad calls me the moose. That’s my family nickname. I have no clue why. I explained the situation to him. I told him that I would not be home for a good while, possibly after midnight. My dad told me to work hard, and keep in touch throughout the day. That I did, once or twice. The long wait for the ship had begun.
While inside the terminal building, we were shown the staff room, the check-in area, the customs area, the whole nine yards. A short time later, the pizza arrived. There was plenty of it to keep up us alive and kicking for the remainder of the day. In addition, they had plenty of diet soda on hand to keep us laced. After eating, I went to the vending machine and bought a few chocolate bars. Any caffeine I could get my hands on, I made sure I had plenty of it. We sat around watching TV, crocheting, and playing cards. I was listening to my iPod. We waited, and waited, and waited, and waited. It looked like a scene from "Waiting for Godot".
Never have I ever been so anxious in one day. I finally decided to call my dear old college roommate, Mario, and see what was going on with him. He picked up after the first ring, and I got the usual response from him, “Mr. Kriso, what’s going on champ?”. I said, “Greetings from Baltimore!”. He then asked, “What the hell are you doing down in good old Baltimore, buddy? Making music with the crabs?”. I plainly responded, “The whole Bayonne staff and I are here waiting for one of Royal Caribbean’s ships to show up. The nor'easter delayed it an entire day. We’re going to be here all night, it seems.”. We spoke about other things; college, my work in Boston, my job search, substitute teaching, the girls from our class; just plain old college classmate jazz. After I hung up with him, I went back to listening to my iPod. I even chugged down another diet soda to keep myself awake.
Shortly later, I walked back outside to the pier. I looked out to the horizon, towards the Francis Scott Key Bridge. At that very moment, I saw a bunch of lights and some flash bulbs going off. It was the Grandeur of The Seas. The wait was over!
It was 6 P.M. The Grandeur of The Seas was finally approaching the Baltimore channel. I bolted into the terminal. When I raced inside, I said to everyone, “I see her!”. A dozen of my colleagues started celebrating. One of the ladies asked, “Where is she? Show me!”. I said, “Come out here. I saw her on the horizon approaching the Francis Scott Key Bridge.”. We all walked out to the edge of the pier, and there was nothing out there. I said, “I know she was out there. She’s probably in the channel entering the harbor right about now.”. We walked back inside the terminal and started cleaning up the staff room. Half an hour later, the pier supervisor took us on a walk-through disembarkation. She showed us where the guests were going to be directed. She pointed out where guests were to go if they had taxis to catch, and where the guests’ parking lot was. Two agents were needed to assist passengers in the customs area. I volunteered, and I was directed to that spot, right outside the customs hall door. I was going to be directing the guests to the customs area once they exited the gangway. The fun part of the day was finally about to begin.
When we were finally shown the gangway area, we saw the ship coming into port. The ship looked absolutely beautiful, with her lights on, and all of the guests camera flashes going off. We started applauding as the ship pulled alongside the pier. I yelled up to the guests on deck saying, “We’ve been waiting all day for you!”. Once the ship started lowering her lines, it was time to go to work. Half an hour later, disembarkation started. The express walk-off guests were the first ones off. They were allowed to leave the ship with all of their luggage with no assistance. I was walking back and forth along the long line of guests, telling them to have their customs forms and passports ready. They came off the ship and through customs they went. Immediately afterward came the general disembarkation. Many of the guests onboard the ship that evening all had one situation in common. They were twelve hours late, and were worried that they had missed their flights home. Some even missed their trains home, or were cutting it close to their flights and trains. I was able to help the guests with their train situations. I gave them Amtrak’s phone number, and advised them to tell the agent on the phone their situation, and hopefully they would be rescheduled. More than one hundred guests had trains to catch home, to New Jersey, to Connecticut, and even Rhode Island. Disembarkation continued until 9 P.M. I was getting exhausted, but the night wasn’t over yet. My favorite part was finally coming up.
At 9:30 P.M., guest check-in officially started. It was my time to shine. I went to my computer station, and raised my station paddle. The first party came up to my computer. I greeted them, saying “Welcome to the Grandeur! Do you have your health forms all completed?”. I then said, “I apologize for the long wait today.” This party was absolutely cool with the delay. They weren’t upset at all. They appeared to be a little tired from a long day of doing practically nothing, but they weren’t upset. I asked for their passports, their cruise tickets, and the credit card that they had registered. I gave them their stateroom key cards, and wished them a safe trip and a pleasant evening. Once I was done with them, I showed them to the waiting area. I raised my paddle again, and the next party came to my station. This party wasn’t upset either. Same as before, I asked for their health forms, cruise tickets, passports, and their credit card. I issued their stateroom keys, and off to the ship they went. The night wore on. I was looking at my watch every half hour. I was hoping for a break in the flow of guest traffic, so I could step away for a diet soda. I was getting weary, and yawning my butt off like no tomorrow. Finally, I heard the words I hoped to hear, “David, you’re free to have dinner if you haven’t done so.”. I stepped away and went into the break room to have a cup of coffee and a diet soda. The night wasn’t over yet. There was still plenty of guests walking in. It was the longest day my colleagues and I had ever worked. We were going on seventeen hours. We were surely on the verge of setting a record.
It was 1:30 A.M. Our longest work day in history was nearly complete. Once the incoming guest traffic started to subside, we were just begging to call it a night, or I should say, morning. I never saw my colleagues yawning so much after a long night. We were talking about every last guest we checked in. It wasn’t all that bad of a night. Some weren’t so happy about losing a day from their trip. What can you do? You do your job and be happy that you did it properly, right? That’s what matters. Before heading out to the bus, we were all thanked by the pier management for giving up a whole day to assist them on short notice. If it weren’t for us going down there, the Baltimore staff would have been up a creek without a paddle. The Carnival Pride was due in at 7 A.M. later that morning. At 2 A.M., we finally boarded the bus. We set a huge record. We worked the longest shift ever; nineteen and a half hours. Once we were all on board, we hit the highway north back to Bayonne. I took out my iPod, put on Bruce Springsteen, and I fell asleep minutes later. I didn’t wake up until 5 A.M., when we were arriving in the Bayonne area. When we pulled in front of the movie theater, it took a short while for many of us to rise and shine. We got off the bus and went back to our cars. As I was on the New Jersey Turnpike approaching Giants Stadium, the sun was starting to creep up over New York City. I said to myself, “Man, is this awkward!”. I was returning home from work while everyone else was just waking up. How strange!
At quarter of six, I finally pulled into my driveway. I went inside, turned off the alarm, changed out of my uniform and put on my my Aerosmith pajamas. Minutes later, I went to bed. At 11 A.M., I woke up. I quickly took a shower, got dressed, and went to church. At church, I fell asleep during the readings, then during the Eucharist, and finally during Communion. When I finally arrived back home, I turned on the Jets game. Once again, I fell asleep. I slept through the entire game. A short time later, my family returned home from Point Pleasant. They saw me passed out on the couch. My dad said, “Moose, you want to have pizza for dinner?”. I was so out of it. I think I said, “Let’s go for it! As long as diet soda’s not on the menu.”. A long and hard day sure has its rewards, doesn’t it?
Saturday morning the 14th, my family headed down the shore to Point Pleasant, and I left for Bayonne. I drove to Bayonne in uniform, ready for another exciting work day. I arrived at the shopping center about half an hour prior to everyone else. I went to Dunkin Donuts to get a bagel and coffee, and continued to wait for everyone. When I saw a motor coach pull up near the movie theater, I knew something was up. More and more of us started to show up outside the theater, including two of the pier coordinators. At that moment, I began thinking to myself, “This is no Boston run!”.
We left Bayonne shortly before 11 A.M. We were on the New Jersey Turnpike en route to Baltimore. While on board the bus, we were given a synopsis of the situation. We were told that Royal Caribbean’s Grandeur of The Seas, was due to arrive that morning at 7 A.M. The nor'easter caused the ship to slow down on its way to Baltimore. The port of Baltimore was also forced to close due to the severe weather conditions. We arrived at the Cruise Maryland terminal just before 2 P.M. We were met by one of the Baltimore supervisors. She stepped onto the bus and addressed us about the situation. She made it known to us that many of the motor coaches, taxis, and limousines were turned away. She also made it known to us that we were going to be handling many guests who will be unhappy, because they were going to lose a full day from their cruise.
Inside the terminal, we were advised that letters were going to be distributed to the guests as they arrived. I called my parents up down the shore and said, “We’re going to have a long day here, and possibly a long night too.” My dad asked me, “What’s the deal down there, moose?”. My dad calls me the moose. That’s my family nickname. I have no clue why. I explained the situation to him. I told him that I would not be home for a good while, possibly after midnight. My dad told me to work hard, and keep in touch throughout the day. That I did, once or twice. The long wait for the ship had begun.
While inside the terminal building, we were shown the staff room, the check-in area, the customs area, the whole nine yards. A short time later, the pizza arrived. There was plenty of it to keep up us alive and kicking for the remainder of the day. In addition, they had plenty of diet soda on hand to keep us laced. After eating, I went to the vending machine and bought a few chocolate bars. Any caffeine I could get my hands on, I made sure I had plenty of it. We sat around watching TV, crocheting, and playing cards. I was listening to my iPod. We waited, and waited, and waited, and waited. It looked like a scene from "Waiting for Godot".
Never have I ever been so anxious in one day. I finally decided to call my dear old college roommate, Mario, and see what was going on with him. He picked up after the first ring, and I got the usual response from him, “Mr. Kriso, what’s going on champ?”. I said, “Greetings from Baltimore!”. He then asked, “What the hell are you doing down in good old Baltimore, buddy? Making music with the crabs?”. I plainly responded, “The whole Bayonne staff and I are here waiting for one of Royal Caribbean’s ships to show up. The nor'easter delayed it an entire day. We’re going to be here all night, it seems.”. We spoke about other things; college, my work in Boston, my job search, substitute teaching, the girls from our class; just plain old college classmate jazz. After I hung up with him, I went back to listening to my iPod. I even chugged down another diet soda to keep myself awake.
Shortly later, I walked back outside to the pier. I looked out to the horizon, towards the Francis Scott Key Bridge. At that very moment, I saw a bunch of lights and some flash bulbs going off. It was the Grandeur of The Seas. The wait was over!
It was 6 P.M. The Grandeur of The Seas was finally approaching the Baltimore channel. I bolted into the terminal. When I raced inside, I said to everyone, “I see her!”. A dozen of my colleagues started celebrating. One of the ladies asked, “Where is she? Show me!”. I said, “Come out here. I saw her on the horizon approaching the Francis Scott Key Bridge.”. We all walked out to the edge of the pier, and there was nothing out there. I said, “I know she was out there. She’s probably in the channel entering the harbor right about now.”. We walked back inside the terminal and started cleaning up the staff room. Half an hour later, the pier supervisor took us on a walk-through disembarkation. She showed us where the guests were going to be directed. She pointed out where guests were to go if they had taxis to catch, and where the guests’ parking lot was. Two agents were needed to assist passengers in the customs area. I volunteered, and I was directed to that spot, right outside the customs hall door. I was going to be directing the guests to the customs area once they exited the gangway. The fun part of the day was finally about to begin.
When we were finally shown the gangway area, we saw the ship coming into port. The ship looked absolutely beautiful, with her lights on, and all of the guests camera flashes going off. We started applauding as the ship pulled alongside the pier. I yelled up to the guests on deck saying, “We’ve been waiting all day for you!”. Once the ship started lowering her lines, it was time to go to work. Half an hour later, disembarkation started. The express walk-off guests were the first ones off. They were allowed to leave the ship with all of their luggage with no assistance. I was walking back and forth along the long line of guests, telling them to have their customs forms and passports ready. They came off the ship and through customs they went. Immediately afterward came the general disembarkation. Many of the guests onboard the ship that evening all had one situation in common. They were twelve hours late, and were worried that they had missed their flights home. Some even missed their trains home, or were cutting it close to their flights and trains. I was able to help the guests with their train situations. I gave them Amtrak’s phone number, and advised them to tell the agent on the phone their situation, and hopefully they would be rescheduled. More than one hundred guests had trains to catch home, to New Jersey, to Connecticut, and even Rhode Island. Disembarkation continued until 9 P.M. I was getting exhausted, but the night wasn’t over yet. My favorite part was finally coming up.
At 9:30 P.M., guest check-in officially started. It was my time to shine. I went to my computer station, and raised my station paddle. The first party came up to my computer. I greeted them, saying “Welcome to the Grandeur! Do you have your health forms all completed?”. I then said, “I apologize for the long wait today.” This party was absolutely cool with the delay. They weren’t upset at all. They appeared to be a little tired from a long day of doing practically nothing, but they weren’t upset. I asked for their passports, their cruise tickets, and the credit card that they had registered. I gave them their stateroom key cards, and wished them a safe trip and a pleasant evening. Once I was done with them, I showed them to the waiting area. I raised my paddle again, and the next party came to my station. This party wasn’t upset either. Same as before, I asked for their health forms, cruise tickets, passports, and their credit card. I issued their stateroom keys, and off to the ship they went. The night wore on. I was looking at my watch every half hour. I was hoping for a break in the flow of guest traffic, so I could step away for a diet soda. I was getting weary, and yawning my butt off like no tomorrow. Finally, I heard the words I hoped to hear, “David, you’re free to have dinner if you haven’t done so.”. I stepped away and went into the break room to have a cup of coffee and a diet soda. The night wasn’t over yet. There was still plenty of guests walking in. It was the longest day my colleagues and I had ever worked. We were going on seventeen hours. We were surely on the verge of setting a record.
It was 1:30 A.M. Our longest work day in history was nearly complete. Once the incoming guest traffic started to subside, we were just begging to call it a night, or I should say, morning. I never saw my colleagues yawning so much after a long night. We were talking about every last guest we checked in. It wasn’t all that bad of a night. Some weren’t so happy about losing a day from their trip. What can you do? You do your job and be happy that you did it properly, right? That’s what matters. Before heading out to the bus, we were all thanked by the pier management for giving up a whole day to assist them on short notice. If it weren’t for us going down there, the Baltimore staff would have been up a creek without a paddle. The Carnival Pride was due in at 7 A.M. later that morning. At 2 A.M., we finally boarded the bus. We set a huge record. We worked the longest shift ever; nineteen and a half hours. Once we were all on board, we hit the highway north back to Bayonne. I took out my iPod, put on Bruce Springsteen, and I fell asleep minutes later. I didn’t wake up until 5 A.M., when we were arriving in the Bayonne area. When we pulled in front of the movie theater, it took a short while for many of us to rise and shine. We got off the bus and went back to our cars. As I was on the New Jersey Turnpike approaching Giants Stadium, the sun was starting to creep up over New York City. I said to myself, “Man, is this awkward!”. I was returning home from work while everyone else was just waking up. How strange!
At quarter of six, I finally pulled into my driveway. I went inside, turned off the alarm, changed out of my uniform and put on my my Aerosmith pajamas. Minutes later, I went to bed. At 11 A.M., I woke up. I quickly took a shower, got dressed, and went to church. At church, I fell asleep during the readings, then during the Eucharist, and finally during Communion. When I finally arrived back home, I turned on the Jets game. Once again, I fell asleep. I slept through the entire game. A short time later, my family returned home from Point Pleasant. They saw me passed out on the couch. My dad said, “Moose, you want to have pizza for dinner?”. I was so out of it. I think I said, “Let’s go for it! As long as diet soda’s not on the menu.”. A long and hard day sure has its rewards, doesn’t it?
Monday, August 13, 2012
My Very First Cruise Vacation
Let me take you back to February 1994. It was my high school mid-winter break. That week, I went on my first cruise vacation. I was sixteen years old.. For a four-day trip, it was a lot of fun. My family and I are serious Disney travelers. We tried Disney’s cruise. We sailed on board Premier Cruise Line’s Starship Atlantic. It was known as the Big Red Boat. My mom asked my dad, my brother, and I to wear our blazers on the plane to Orlando. I remember her saying, “You’re going to be wearing your blazers on the plane, so we don’t have to drag oh so much luggage with us. We’re gonna travel light.”. She also said, “Cruise passengers normally like to dress fancy.” Oh really!!
We touched down in Orlando around eleven o’clock in the morning. We headed downstairs to go to our rent-a-car bus. Waiting for the bus felt like forever. It was eighty-five degrees out. The humidity was extremely unforgiving. There were dozens of people standing near us who were also going to Port Canaveral. They were all wearing shorts, tank tops, and sandals. My dad, my brother, and I were wearing blazers. Yikes! We were sweltering beyond belief. I was so hot, I felt like I was a Domino’s Pizza heat wave bag for Halloween.
I was a fussy eater for a long time. When we boarded the Starship Atlantic, I knew I had a challenge in front of me. My dad was telling me that it was the perfect opportunity to start trying new things, especially cruise ship food. Cruise ship food is nonstop. At that time, the midnight buffet was still a hot event onboard. They no longer exist nowadays. Aside from the food, it was also an opportunity for me to not be so attached to my brother. The second day of the cruise, I lost sight of him. We finally met up around, oh, by two in the morning. He was furious with me, accusing me of not telling him where I was. We were both in unfamiliar territory, so I had no clue what he was griping about. I was truly having a blast.
There were plenty of activities going onboard the Starship Atlantic. My brother and I joined the Teen Cruiser Club. At least we had the chance to hang out with people close to our age. We happened to be the two oldest in the club. We did just about everything together. We had lunch together, went to the midnight buffet together, and hung out with Mickey and Minnie and the rest of the Disney character gang. During our day at sea, the Teen Cruiser Club was given a tour of the ship’s bridge. Seeing the ship’s bridge was quite nifty. I had never seen a cruise ship’s bridge before. Late in the evening, we went to a star gazing talk up on the top deck. Each of us was given a star gazer’s guide with a little flash light attached. The cruise staffer pointed out to us which constellations were which in the night sky. If I can recall, the ocean was very calm that night. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky. It was never so peaceful out there at sea, out in the middle of nowhere. The lights of Nassau could be barely seen out in the distance. When the presentation was over, we were allowed to ask the cruise staffer questions. We were also allowed to keep the constellation guides. Originally, I didn’t want to go on this cruise at all. I was wrong. At that point, the cruise was going great. I stood corrected.
On the third day, we docked in sunny Nassau, Bahamas. I was excited to see what Nassau was all about. Late in the morning, my family and I stepped off the ship to walk around town. There wasn’t a whole lot to visit. There were plenty of duty-free shops to browse through. We stopped for ice cream, looked through the shops, and then took a boat ride over to Paradise Island. Speaking of Paradise Island, the Atlantis Resort and Casino was just under construction. I remember seeing the monster cranes in the background. We did return to Nassau on back-to- back Christmas cruises on Norwegian in 2007 and 2008. We got to see the hotel, aquarium, and water park for real. If you have never been to the Atlantis Resort and Casino, you have to see it. It is truly out of this world.
We walked around Paradise Island, but never went to the beach. My brother and I were on a bit of a time crunch. There was one part of that trip I didn’t care for. It wasn’t the ship or the cruise experience. It was what we had to get done during the trip which kind of took the joy out of it in a heartbeat. My brother and I both had the same history teacher that year. He and I had to read this history novel to be completed by the end of the mid-winter break. There was a test on the book too, which left us in a rush to get it done. In addition, I had an English literature term paper to draft out. Yuck!! Who wants to do any homework on a cruise? Don’t ask!
At five o’clock, we departed Nassau, en route for Port Lucaya. That evening, we attended the Captain’s Cocktail Party, followed by the Captain’s Dinner. The cocktail party was held in the ship’s main lounge. There was a live band playing. Can I let you out on a huge secret? Back then, I was the shyest kid on the face of the planet. My parents were dancing together, while my brother and I were busy living it up. We were just drinking away, downing one iced tea and fruit punch after another. We weren’t of drinking age, so we were doing well. My mom then pointed at me. She asked me to join her on the dance floor. I was signaling, “No”. She started giving me the prayer gesture...”Pleeeeease???”. My brother and I kept on drinking, not paying any attention to her. My mom then did the unthinkable. She sent my dad off the dance floor to get me to dance with her. While I’m chugging down my fruit punch, my dad approached me. He said, “Will you please go dance with your mother? If you don’t, I’m gonna toss you off this ship!”. I said “No, I’m dog-tired from today.” My dad said, “Ok, just stay there then. We’ll talk later.” My brother stuck up for me asking, “Hey, you wanna get him back?” I said, “Let the games begin!” Right on our cocktail table, right in front of us, was dad’s stateroom card. Since my dad and my brother have the same first name, my brother charged another dozen drinks to his cabin account. HA-HA! At the end of the cruise, my parents were absolutely clueless of why their cabin bill was over one thousand dollars. Sweet revenge indeed! Sing with me! “Over the sea, let’s go men. We’re chargin’ it up, we’re chargin’ it up again!”
The following morning, we arrived at Port Lucaya. Port Lucaya is located on Grand Bahama, about half an hour away from Freeport. There was no pier, so we had to board a tender to shore. The tender ride was about ten minutes. We didn’t do all that much in Port Lucaya. We browsed around, took pictures here and there, and we returned back to the ship. Again, we didn’t go swimming in the ship’s pool. That history novel was a huge albatross hanging over our shoulders. We spend hours and hours in our cabin reading four chapters at a time. Despite the mountain of homework I had to get done, my first cruise vacation was quite the experience. I was surely looking forward to my next cruise, regardless of which line it was going to be.
The next day, we arrived back in Port Canaveral. It was an ugly morning. We packed up our carry-on bags, including our homework. I tried to track down the kids I met in the Teen Cruiser Club, but it was just too hectic of a morning. We left the ship, cleared through customs, and headed for the car. Next stop, Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, the second part of the trip. We did plenty that day. Unfortunately, we had to cut our time short in the Magic Kingdom. We had that dreadful history novel to make tracks on. If there was any part of that trip we didn’t like, it was reading that book, “The Rise And Fall of The Third Reich”. We stayed three nights in Disney World, and unfortunately the really hard part came up. The hardest part of any Disney World vacation is LEAVING. That Sunday evening we were flying home, we were delayed. There were high winds at Newark Airport. We had to stay on the ground for over an hour. We arrived home two hours late. We were returning to school the next morning. It was a trip we couldn’t get into to any kind of a groove. With a history novel to read and term papers on our plates, it was a trip with mixed feelings. The next morning, we lucked out. It was a snow day. It gave us an extra day to make progress on “the book”. We were fortunate to pass the test. Four years later, Disney took the cruising concept and plused it. Boy, did they! Four ships and counting!
In the Fall of 1999, I became a World Disney World cast member as part of their college program. Working with Disney was an experience like no other. I even attempted to go full-time. The spring of that year, the Disney Wonder was just launched. This summer, I have been working with the Disney Magic in New York City. The work experience is like stepping into the past. It’s truly amazing what events during your very first cruise vacation can transpire into. It’s even more amazing what having been a cast member can lead to. The work experience most definitely feels like a blast from the past. What's the best part of it? Pixie dust is the key ingredient to it all.
We touched down in Orlando around eleven o’clock in the morning. We headed downstairs to go to our rent-a-car bus. Waiting for the bus felt like forever. It was eighty-five degrees out. The humidity was extremely unforgiving. There were dozens of people standing near us who were also going to Port Canaveral. They were all wearing shorts, tank tops, and sandals. My dad, my brother, and I were wearing blazers. Yikes! We were sweltering beyond belief. I was so hot, I felt like I was a Domino’s Pizza heat wave bag for Halloween.
I was a fussy eater for a long time. When we boarded the Starship Atlantic, I knew I had a challenge in front of me. My dad was telling me that it was the perfect opportunity to start trying new things, especially cruise ship food. Cruise ship food is nonstop. At that time, the midnight buffet was still a hot event onboard. They no longer exist nowadays. Aside from the food, it was also an opportunity for me to not be so attached to my brother. The second day of the cruise, I lost sight of him. We finally met up around, oh, by two in the morning. He was furious with me, accusing me of not telling him where I was. We were both in unfamiliar territory, so I had no clue what he was griping about. I was truly having a blast.
There were plenty of activities going onboard the Starship Atlantic. My brother and I joined the Teen Cruiser Club. At least we had the chance to hang out with people close to our age. We happened to be the two oldest in the club. We did just about everything together. We had lunch together, went to the midnight buffet together, and hung out with Mickey and Minnie and the rest of the Disney character gang. During our day at sea, the Teen Cruiser Club was given a tour of the ship’s bridge. Seeing the ship’s bridge was quite nifty. I had never seen a cruise ship’s bridge before. Late in the evening, we went to a star gazing talk up on the top deck. Each of us was given a star gazer’s guide with a little flash light attached. The cruise staffer pointed out to us which constellations were which in the night sky. If I can recall, the ocean was very calm that night. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky. It was never so peaceful out there at sea, out in the middle of nowhere. The lights of Nassau could be barely seen out in the distance. When the presentation was over, we were allowed to ask the cruise staffer questions. We were also allowed to keep the constellation guides. Originally, I didn’t want to go on this cruise at all. I was wrong. At that point, the cruise was going great. I stood corrected.
On the third day, we docked in sunny Nassau, Bahamas. I was excited to see what Nassau was all about. Late in the morning, my family and I stepped off the ship to walk around town. There wasn’t a whole lot to visit. There were plenty of duty-free shops to browse through. We stopped for ice cream, looked through the shops, and then took a boat ride over to Paradise Island. Speaking of Paradise Island, the Atlantis Resort and Casino was just under construction. I remember seeing the monster cranes in the background. We did return to Nassau on back-to- back Christmas cruises on Norwegian in 2007 and 2008. We got to see the hotel, aquarium, and water park for real. If you have never been to the Atlantis Resort and Casino, you have to see it. It is truly out of this world.
We walked around Paradise Island, but never went to the beach. My brother and I were on a bit of a time crunch. There was one part of that trip I didn’t care for. It wasn’t the ship or the cruise experience. It was what we had to get done during the trip which kind of took the joy out of it in a heartbeat. My brother and I both had the same history teacher that year. He and I had to read this history novel to be completed by the end of the mid-winter break. There was a test on the book too, which left us in a rush to get it done. In addition, I had an English literature term paper to draft out. Yuck!! Who wants to do any homework on a cruise? Don’t ask!
At five o’clock, we departed Nassau, en route for Port Lucaya. That evening, we attended the Captain’s Cocktail Party, followed by the Captain’s Dinner. The cocktail party was held in the ship’s main lounge. There was a live band playing. Can I let you out on a huge secret? Back then, I was the shyest kid on the face of the planet. My parents were dancing together, while my brother and I were busy living it up. We were just drinking away, downing one iced tea and fruit punch after another. We weren’t of drinking age, so we were doing well. My mom then pointed at me. She asked me to join her on the dance floor. I was signaling, “No”. She started giving me the prayer gesture...”Pleeeeease???”. My brother and I kept on drinking, not paying any attention to her. My mom then did the unthinkable. She sent my dad off the dance floor to get me to dance with her. While I’m chugging down my fruit punch, my dad approached me. He said, “Will you please go dance with your mother? If you don’t, I’m gonna toss you off this ship!”. I said “No, I’m dog-tired from today.” My dad said, “Ok, just stay there then. We’ll talk later.” My brother stuck up for me asking, “Hey, you wanna get him back?” I said, “Let the games begin!” Right on our cocktail table, right in front of us, was dad’s stateroom card. Since my dad and my brother have the same first name, my brother charged another dozen drinks to his cabin account. HA-HA! At the end of the cruise, my parents were absolutely clueless of why their cabin bill was over one thousand dollars. Sweet revenge indeed! Sing with me! “Over the sea, let’s go men. We’re chargin’ it up, we’re chargin’ it up again!”
The following morning, we arrived at Port Lucaya. Port Lucaya is located on Grand Bahama, about half an hour away from Freeport. There was no pier, so we had to board a tender to shore. The tender ride was about ten minutes. We didn’t do all that much in Port Lucaya. We browsed around, took pictures here and there, and we returned back to the ship. Again, we didn’t go swimming in the ship’s pool. That history novel was a huge albatross hanging over our shoulders. We spend hours and hours in our cabin reading four chapters at a time. Despite the mountain of homework I had to get done, my first cruise vacation was quite the experience. I was surely looking forward to my next cruise, regardless of which line it was going to be.
The next day, we arrived back in Port Canaveral. It was an ugly morning. We packed up our carry-on bags, including our homework. I tried to track down the kids I met in the Teen Cruiser Club, but it was just too hectic of a morning. We left the ship, cleared through customs, and headed for the car. Next stop, Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, the second part of the trip. We did plenty that day. Unfortunately, we had to cut our time short in the Magic Kingdom. We had that dreadful history novel to make tracks on. If there was any part of that trip we didn’t like, it was reading that book, “The Rise And Fall of The Third Reich”. We stayed three nights in Disney World, and unfortunately the really hard part came up. The hardest part of any Disney World vacation is LEAVING. That Sunday evening we were flying home, we were delayed. There were high winds at Newark Airport. We had to stay on the ground for over an hour. We arrived home two hours late. We were returning to school the next morning. It was a trip we couldn’t get into to any kind of a groove. With a history novel to read and term papers on our plates, it was a trip with mixed feelings. The next morning, we lucked out. It was a snow day. It gave us an extra day to make progress on “the book”. We were fortunate to pass the test. Four years later, Disney took the cruising concept and plused it. Boy, did they! Four ships and counting!
In the Fall of 1999, I became a World Disney World cast member as part of their college program. Working with Disney was an experience like no other. I even attempted to go full-time. The spring of that year, the Disney Wonder was just launched. This summer, I have been working with the Disney Magic in New York City. The work experience is like stepping into the past. It’s truly amazing what events during your very first cruise vacation can transpire into. It’s even more amazing what having been a cast member can lead to. The work experience most definitely feels like a blast from the past. What's the best part of it? Pixie dust is the key ingredient to it all.
Monday, June 25, 2012
The Disembarkation Process: A Fresh Start At The End
All cruise vacations, regardless of length or type, are filled with great memories. From the very moment they board to the final night, cruise passengers begin having the time of their life. There is one part of every cruise vacation which cruise passengers dislike. It’s that part known as disembarkation. Very much like embarkation, disembarkation is highly sophisticated. In a previous article, “Common Sense: An Essential To Cruising”, the top five key hints of avoiding errors when cruising were discussed. During disembarkation, honestly, cruise passengers commit a comedy of errors on a weekly basis. It’s best to have an error-free disembarkation. Anyone can agree to that! Here are the five key hints to making disembarkation a hassle-free and desirable experience.
5) DOUBLE-CHECKING THE ON BOARD EXPENSE BILL
The morning of disembarkation, the onboard expenses statement will be attached to every cruise passenger's stateroom door. Cruise passengers are to look over it carefully and make sure that all of their charges are correct. If there are any questions, they are to be taken up with the guest services desk before leaving the ship. Cruise passengers who used a credit card for their on board charges will have their total balance automatically routed to their credit card. Those cruise passengers who selected “cash” as their form of on board payment, must be sure that their on board charges are paid up prior to disembarkation.
A short while ago, a passenger had a cash account on board. For whatever rhyme or reason, he was unhappy with his cruise. He decided to leave the ship without paying his outstanding balance. The ship’s security staff attempted to stop him, but he had already raced off the ship into the customs hall. He was later stopped and sent back to the ship where he was then questioned by U.S. Customs and the guest service manager. Ultimately, he had to pay his remaining balance regardless of reason. Those cruise passengers who have a cash account must double-check their stateroom bill for outstanding charges. Cruise passengers who do have outstanding charges must pay their outstanding balance at the guest services desk before leaving the ship.
4) REMOVING ALL PERSONAL BELONGINGS
This must-do cannot be any more important at the time of disembarkation. The night before disembarking, all cruise passengers are to take a good look around their staterooms. They are to check and double-check the drawers and closets for any items they may have left around during their cruise. Personal belongings may include cell phones, iPods, articles of clothing, jewelry, and car keys. Cruise passengers should also look under the beds. Things do get kicked underneath by accident. Additionally, cruise passengers must check their bathrooms for items they may have not yet packed in their luggage. Cruise lines are not responsible for property left behind.
Cruise passengers must double-check the stateroom safe. Cruise passengers often leave their passports or other travel documents in it. They may have stored articles of jewelry or other valuables in it. Recently, a passenger left his bottle of insulin in his stateroom refrigerator. Cruise passengers rarely check their stateroom refrigerator, however, it’s vital that all passengers double-check. Cruise passengers must check everywhere in the stateroom for all personal items before disembarkation. Once the passengers' stateroom cards are swiped for the final time, they are not allowed back on board. The process to retrieve items once off the ship can be long, tedious, and complicated. Disembarkation can be extremely hectic. While passengers coming off, the on board staff is already in the process of preparing the ship for the next sailing. It is essential that cruise passengers add this must-do to their list of disembarkation chores.
3) PROPERLY LABELING LUGGAGE
The night before disembarkation, cruise passengers must have their luggage packed and placed outside their stateroom door by midnight. Note: TRAVEL DOCUMENTS MUST NOT BE PACKED IN LUGGAGE. Cruise passengers will not be allowed through customs without them. Also, passengers must fill out a customs declaration form (Shown in slide show). It must be filled out even if no purchases were made. Cruise passengers must make sure that all of their luggage has personal identification attached. In addition, passengers must attach the colored/numbered tags provided to them. The passengers' names, addresses, and phone numbers must be written on the colored/numbered tags. The number on the tag is the number assigned to passengers for disembarking the ship.
When their luggage color and/or number is called, cruise passengers will proceed to the gangway. Once inside the customs hall, they are to proceed to the area where their luggage is located. Cruise passengers must double-check and triple-check that they have all of their luggage before clearing customs. A short time ago, a couple was exiting the customs hall. The couple asked where their luggage was. They had their carry-on luggage, but never stopped to look for their bags. On another day, two cruise passengers went through customs with the wrong luggage. They accidentally took each other’s luggage. These two passengers nearly went on their merry ways with the wrong baggage in hand. Note: CRUISE PASSENGERS MUST CHECK THEIR TAGS AND COUNT THEIR BAGS!
2) KNOWING THE WAY HOME
The evening before disembarkation, cruise passengers must review their transfer paperwork, if applicable. They should know ahead of time when their flights or trains are departing. Cruise passengers shout not wait until last minute. If flying home, passengers should know when and where their flight is departing from. For example, those who are sailing from San Francisco should know if they are flying out of Oakland or San Francisco International Airport. In the New York area, there are three airports. Cruise passengers must know ahead of time which one of the three they are flying from. It makes it a whole lot easier for the shore staff to assist them.
Not long ago, a ship was repositioning from San Juan, Puerto Rico. One passenger was coming off via wheelchair. She had no idea what airline she was flying on or what airport she was flying from. She never reviewed her transfer information prior to sailing. Without knowing where she was flying from, the shore staff had no idea which motor coach to direct her to. If it weren't for checking the manifest, figuring out where she was headed would've been a challenge. If cruise passengers didn’t purchase transfers, they should seek out mass transit connections to the train station or airport. If taxis are their choice of transportation, they're are dozens of them waiting outside the customs hall exit. To find out more, readers can see the article, “Cruise Transfers: Time vs. Cost”.
1) SELF-ASSIST VS. GENERAL DISEMBARKATION
Some cruise passengers carry a ton of luggage when they travel. Some travel light with one suitcase and a carry-on. Some cruise passengers travel with a whole matched collection. This part is number one on the list for a chief reason. Cruise passengers still misconstrue the meaning of the express walk-off program. Express walk-off, now "self-assist", doesn’t mean that cruise passengers can leave the ship and claim their luggage faster. The self-assist program is for cruise passengers who can carry ALL of their luggage without any assistance from the on board or shore staff. Cruise passengers who sign up for the self-assist program are the very first to leave the ship. Note: THOSE PASSENGERS WHO SIGN UP FOR THE SELF-ASSIST PROGRAM MUST NOT PLACE THEIR LUGGAGE OUTSIDE THEIR STATEROOM DOOR. There have been mornings where passengers disembarked from the ship too early, assuming that their luggage was ready to be picked up. They had to wait until all of the luggage was set up and inspected by the U.S. Customs K-9s. Cruise passengers who have all of their luggage, along with your passports and declaration forms, are clear to go on their merry ways.
Disembarkation is the most sophisticated and hectic part of any cruise vacation. There are a lot of must-do’s to be taken care of and many don’ts to be kept in mind. Disembarkation is not difficult as long as cruise passengers use their common sense. Cruise passengers must remember to pay their on board expenses if they set up a cash account. Before leaving the vessel, passengers must check around their staterooms for personal belongings. Passengers should properly pack and tag their luggage. Further, they should always review their transfer arrangements. Last but not least, cruise passengers must think carefully if they wish to sign up for the self-assist program. If cruise passengers can can handle all of their luggage, they are good to go. Disembarking from a cruise should never be hard. It begins the countdown to an upcoming cruise. Every ending brings about a good beginning.
5) DOUBLE-CHECKING THE ON BOARD EXPENSE BILL
The morning of disembarkation, the onboard expenses statement will be attached to every cruise passenger's stateroom door. Cruise passengers are to look over it carefully and make sure that all of their charges are correct. If there are any questions, they are to be taken up with the guest services desk before leaving the ship. Cruise passengers who used a credit card for their on board charges will have their total balance automatically routed to their credit card. Those cruise passengers who selected “cash” as their form of on board payment, must be sure that their on board charges are paid up prior to disembarkation.
A short while ago, a passenger had a cash account on board. For whatever rhyme or reason, he was unhappy with his cruise. He decided to leave the ship without paying his outstanding balance. The ship’s security staff attempted to stop him, but he had already raced off the ship into the customs hall. He was later stopped and sent back to the ship where he was then questioned by U.S. Customs and the guest service manager. Ultimately, he had to pay his remaining balance regardless of reason. Those cruise passengers who have a cash account must double-check their stateroom bill for outstanding charges. Cruise passengers who do have outstanding charges must pay their outstanding balance at the guest services desk before leaving the ship.
4) REMOVING ALL PERSONAL BELONGINGS
This must-do cannot be any more important at the time of disembarkation. The night before disembarking, all cruise passengers are to take a good look around their staterooms. They are to check and double-check the drawers and closets for any items they may have left around during their cruise. Personal belongings may include cell phones, iPods, articles of clothing, jewelry, and car keys. Cruise passengers should also look under the beds. Things do get kicked underneath by accident. Additionally, cruise passengers must check their bathrooms for items they may have not yet packed in their luggage. Cruise lines are not responsible for property left behind.
Cruise passengers must double-check the stateroom safe. Cruise passengers often leave their passports or other travel documents in it. They may have stored articles of jewelry or other valuables in it. Recently, a passenger left his bottle of insulin in his stateroom refrigerator. Cruise passengers rarely check their stateroom refrigerator, however, it’s vital that all passengers double-check. Cruise passengers must check everywhere in the stateroom for all personal items before disembarkation. Once the passengers' stateroom cards are swiped for the final time, they are not allowed back on board. The process to retrieve items once off the ship can be long, tedious, and complicated. Disembarkation can be extremely hectic. While passengers coming off, the on board staff is already in the process of preparing the ship for the next sailing. It is essential that cruise passengers add this must-do to their list of disembarkation chores.
3) PROPERLY LABELING LUGGAGE
The night before disembarkation, cruise passengers must have their luggage packed and placed outside their stateroom door by midnight. Note: TRAVEL DOCUMENTS MUST NOT BE PACKED IN LUGGAGE. Cruise passengers will not be allowed through customs without them. Also, passengers must fill out a customs declaration form (Shown in slide show). It must be filled out even if no purchases were made. Cruise passengers must make sure that all of their luggage has personal identification attached. In addition, passengers must attach the colored/numbered tags provided to them. The passengers' names, addresses, and phone numbers must be written on the colored/numbered tags. The number on the tag is the number assigned to passengers for disembarking the ship.
When their luggage color and/or number is called, cruise passengers will proceed to the gangway. Once inside the customs hall, they are to proceed to the area where their luggage is located. Cruise passengers must double-check and triple-check that they have all of their luggage before clearing customs. A short time ago, a couple was exiting the customs hall. The couple asked where their luggage was. They had their carry-on luggage, but never stopped to look for their bags. On another day, two cruise passengers went through customs with the wrong luggage. They accidentally took each other’s luggage. These two passengers nearly went on their merry ways with the wrong baggage in hand. Note: CRUISE PASSENGERS MUST CHECK THEIR TAGS AND COUNT THEIR BAGS!
2) KNOWING THE WAY HOME
The evening before disembarkation, cruise passengers must review their transfer paperwork, if applicable. They should know ahead of time when their flights or trains are departing. Cruise passengers shout not wait until last minute. If flying home, passengers should know when and where their flight is departing from. For example, those who are sailing from San Francisco should know if they are flying out of Oakland or San Francisco International Airport. In the New York area, there are three airports. Cruise passengers must know ahead of time which one of the three they are flying from. It makes it a whole lot easier for the shore staff to assist them.
Not long ago, a ship was repositioning from San Juan, Puerto Rico. One passenger was coming off via wheelchair. She had no idea what airline she was flying on or what airport she was flying from. She never reviewed her transfer information prior to sailing. Without knowing where she was flying from, the shore staff had no idea which motor coach to direct her to. If it weren't for checking the manifest, figuring out where she was headed would've been a challenge. If cruise passengers didn’t purchase transfers, they should seek out mass transit connections to the train station or airport. If taxis are their choice of transportation, they're are dozens of them waiting outside the customs hall exit. To find out more, readers can see the article, “Cruise Transfers: Time vs. Cost”.
1) SELF-ASSIST VS. GENERAL DISEMBARKATION
Some cruise passengers carry a ton of luggage when they travel. Some travel light with one suitcase and a carry-on. Some cruise passengers travel with a whole matched collection. This part is number one on the list for a chief reason. Cruise passengers still misconstrue the meaning of the express walk-off program. Express walk-off, now "self-assist", doesn’t mean that cruise passengers can leave the ship and claim their luggage faster. The self-assist program is for cruise passengers who can carry ALL of their luggage without any assistance from the on board or shore staff. Cruise passengers who sign up for the self-assist program are the very first to leave the ship. Note: THOSE PASSENGERS WHO SIGN UP FOR THE SELF-ASSIST PROGRAM MUST NOT PLACE THEIR LUGGAGE OUTSIDE THEIR STATEROOM DOOR. There have been mornings where passengers disembarked from the ship too early, assuming that their luggage was ready to be picked up. They had to wait until all of the luggage was set up and inspected by the U.S. Customs K-9s. Cruise passengers who have all of their luggage, along with your passports and declaration forms, are clear to go on their merry ways.
Disembarkation is the most sophisticated and hectic part of any cruise vacation. There are a lot of must-do’s to be taken care of and many don’ts to be kept in mind. Disembarkation is not difficult as long as cruise passengers use their common sense. Cruise passengers must remember to pay their on board expenses if they set up a cash account. Before leaving the vessel, passengers must check around their staterooms for personal belongings. Passengers should properly pack and tag their luggage. Further, they should always review their transfer arrangements. Last but not least, cruise passengers must think carefully if they wish to sign up for the self-assist program. If cruise passengers can can handle all of their luggage, they are good to go. Disembarking from a cruise should never be hard. It begins the countdown to an upcoming cruise. Every ending brings about a good beginning.
Monday, June 4, 2012
Picture, Picture, On The Wall: What's My Favorite Station Of Them All?
There is no day like National Train Day. It was Saturday, May 12th. I had the day off from work, and I was in no better mood for a train ride. National Train Day is the most fascinating day of the year. In 2008, my brother and I took the train from Newark, NJ to Baltimore. We visited the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum. I had a grand old time. This year, I couldn’t help but travel to my favorite railroad destination, the city home to my favorite train terminal, Washington DC. Railroad historians call Chicago the United States’s railroad capital. Allow me to differ with them. There’s only one city with the utmost “monumental” flavor, and a city that I consider the passenger train capital of the nation. As a long time Amtrak traveler, I rightfully call Washington DC’s Union Station the king of the hill.
I have been traveling to Washington DC by train since I was five years old. I remember the station being completely encased in scaffolding. In the 1980s, Union Station was undergoing a massive restoration. It was being restored to its former glory. My family and I had to walk through a maze of pedestrian corridors from the platform area to the station entrance and vice versa. In the fall of 1987, we drove down with friends from home. What a big mistake! The traffic was horrendous. It took all day to get there. Never would I drive to Washington again. The train turned out to be the best way to travel to Washington. Memorial Day weekend of 1988, we visited Washington by train. The station was not reopened yet. It was a fun weekend. I was celebrating my eleventh birthday. We took the Metroliner. Remember the Metroliner? The Metroliner was the precursor to the Acela. The ride was wonderful.
The following year, my family and I to returned to Washington. Union Station was fully restored and reopened. Again, we took the Metroliner. For my very first time, I walked into the station’s grandeur. I could not get over how glorious the station looked. It looked so sparkling new, that I could see my reflection in the floor tiles. The one part of the station’s boarding area that caught my attention was “The Great Train Store”. The moment we entered the station, I nearly got lost in the store. It wasn’t a big place. I just happened to get obsessed by everything inside. All of a sudden, I had my eyes fixed on an HO Scale Amtrak E-60 electric engine in the display case. My brother and I were building my brand new train table at home. I was staring at the engine for a long while. Well, guess what! Before boarding our train home, my parents bought it for my twelfth birthday. I was happier than a kid in a candy store. It sure was a memorable trip home.
This year, National Train Day couldn’t have meant more to me. I visited Washington once again. My brother and I took a Northeast Regional train. We arrived late morning. Besides sight seeing, I had an important task on my to-do list. My bedroom had recently been repainted. It was repainted a Languid Blue, closely similar to Amtrak’s blue. To dress up one of my walls, I wanted to put together a framed collage of Union Station. From a variety of angles, my brother and I began taking pictures of the station. We couldn’t take pictures of the main grandeur, due to the heavy duty scaffolding. The station’s ornate ninety-six foot high ceiling was being repaired from the August 2011 earthquake.
Railroad photography is one of my favorite hobbies. I couldn’t have been more excited about the idea of having a framed collage of Union Station in my room. We took pictures of five major points of interest; the station’s front facade, the arched portico, the station’s platform area, the former waiting area (once known as the world’s largest room), and finally a shot of the tracks from atop the station’s parking garage. It will be a framed and matted collage which will be well-liked by all. That same day, we went on the DC Ducks Tour. The tour conveniently began and ended at where else but Union Station. It was an exciting tour. I would most likely do that tour again. Later on, we took the subway to attend mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. It was our first time there since 1988. That whole entire day, Union Station was our home base. From the DC Ducks Tour, to my photography project, to attending mass, Union Station was the place to be. A beautiful Saturday in May spent at the most beautiful train terminal in the world.
Great memories last forever. They are forged from the innocence of childhood to unforgettable experiences in present day. I have visited many famous train stations around the United States. I have been to San Diego’s Union Station, Denver’s Union Station, New York City’s Penn Station, Boston South Station, Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station, and Baltimore’s Penn Station. Washington DC’s Union Station beats them all. Washington DC’s Union Station has played a substantial part in my life as a railroader. Every railroader has his or her favorite railroad terminal. For every railroader’s favorite station, for whatever the rhyme or reason, a special bond is formed. From arriving at Washington DC’s Union Station for the very first time, to my memories of its restoration, to finally seeing it in all its glory, to an Amtrak job interview, and in the many railroad memories to follow, it holds a true place in my heart. Like all the other buildings around Washington, Union Station plays a "monumental" role in my railroading life. Truthfully, it presents itself as a symbol showing how great it feels to be a railroader and an American.
I have been traveling to Washington DC by train since I was five years old. I remember the station being completely encased in scaffolding. In the 1980s, Union Station was undergoing a massive restoration. It was being restored to its former glory. My family and I had to walk through a maze of pedestrian corridors from the platform area to the station entrance and vice versa. In the fall of 1987, we drove down with friends from home. What a big mistake! The traffic was horrendous. It took all day to get there. Never would I drive to Washington again. The train turned out to be the best way to travel to Washington. Memorial Day weekend of 1988, we visited Washington by train. The station was not reopened yet. It was a fun weekend. I was celebrating my eleventh birthday. We took the Metroliner. Remember the Metroliner? The Metroliner was the precursor to the Acela. The ride was wonderful.
The following year, my family and I to returned to Washington. Union Station was fully restored and reopened. Again, we took the Metroliner. For my very first time, I walked into the station’s grandeur. I could not get over how glorious the station looked. It looked so sparkling new, that I could see my reflection in the floor tiles. The one part of the station’s boarding area that caught my attention was “The Great Train Store”. The moment we entered the station, I nearly got lost in the store. It wasn’t a big place. I just happened to get obsessed by everything inside. All of a sudden, I had my eyes fixed on an HO Scale Amtrak E-60 electric engine in the display case. My brother and I were building my brand new train table at home. I was staring at the engine for a long while. Well, guess what! Before boarding our train home, my parents bought it for my twelfth birthday. I was happier than a kid in a candy store. It sure was a memorable trip home.
This year, National Train Day couldn’t have meant more to me. I visited Washington once again. My brother and I took a Northeast Regional train. We arrived late morning. Besides sight seeing, I had an important task on my to-do list. My bedroom had recently been repainted. It was repainted a Languid Blue, closely similar to Amtrak’s blue. To dress up one of my walls, I wanted to put together a framed collage of Union Station. From a variety of angles, my brother and I began taking pictures of the station. We couldn’t take pictures of the main grandeur, due to the heavy duty scaffolding. The station’s ornate ninety-six foot high ceiling was being repaired from the August 2011 earthquake.
Railroad photography is one of my favorite hobbies. I couldn’t have been more excited about the idea of having a framed collage of Union Station in my room. We took pictures of five major points of interest; the station’s front facade, the arched portico, the station’s platform area, the former waiting area (once known as the world’s largest room), and finally a shot of the tracks from atop the station’s parking garage. It will be a framed and matted collage which will be well-liked by all. That same day, we went on the DC Ducks Tour. The tour conveniently began and ended at where else but Union Station. It was an exciting tour. I would most likely do that tour again. Later on, we took the subway to attend mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. It was our first time there since 1988. That whole entire day, Union Station was our home base. From the DC Ducks Tour, to my photography project, to attending mass, Union Station was the place to be. A beautiful Saturday in May spent at the most beautiful train terminal in the world.
Great memories last forever. They are forged from the innocence of childhood to unforgettable experiences in present day. I have visited many famous train stations around the United States. I have been to San Diego’s Union Station, Denver’s Union Station, New York City’s Penn Station, Boston South Station, Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station, and Baltimore’s Penn Station. Washington DC’s Union Station beats them all. Washington DC’s Union Station has played a substantial part in my life as a railroader. Every railroader has his or her favorite railroad terminal. For every railroader’s favorite station, for whatever the rhyme or reason, a special bond is formed. From arriving at Washington DC’s Union Station for the very first time, to my memories of its restoration, to finally seeing it in all its glory, to an Amtrak job interview, and in the many railroad memories to follow, it holds a true place in my heart. Like all the other buildings around Washington, Union Station plays a "monumental" role in my railroading life. Truthfully, it presents itself as a symbol showing how great it feels to be a railroader and an American.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
You know you're a cruise addict when/if:
you constantly visit cruise line web sites
you have a cruise countdown set up on your computer screen
you’re constantly talking about embarkation day
you dress accordingly for the embarkation photo
you go to the photo gallery to look at other passengers’ photos
you can’t wait to try on the ever so stylish life jacket
you know off the bat the difference between "port" and "starboard"
you know the life boat drill from the back of your hand
you can’t get enough duty-free shopping
you enjoy eating dinner with total strangers
you’re excited about the upcoming art auction onboard
you can remember your past cruise directors
you can imitate your cruise director
you can remember your past stateroom attendants
you go to the buffet more than three times a day
you religiously partake in afternoon tea
you can’t miss the theater production shows
you’ve been to every bar onboard
you refer to your fellow passengers as “your new friends”
you look forward to sharing a swimming pool with 3000+ people
you can fully summarize every culinary and drink demonstration
you know the real meaning of “tender”
you seek out unique onboard and shore adventures
you can’t get enough time on sun deck
you like to exercise your “sea legs”
you cry on disembarkation day
you use your old stateroom keys as Christmas ornaments
you have a cruise countdown set up on your computer screen
you’re constantly talking about embarkation day
you dress accordingly for the embarkation photo
you go to the photo gallery to look at other passengers’ photos
you can’t wait to try on the ever so stylish life jacket
you know off the bat the difference between "port" and "starboard"
you know the life boat drill from the back of your hand
you can’t get enough duty-free shopping
you enjoy eating dinner with total strangers
you’re excited about the upcoming art auction onboard
you can remember your past cruise directors
you can imitate your cruise director
you can remember your past stateroom attendants
you go to the buffet more than three times a day
you religiously partake in afternoon tea
you can’t miss the theater production shows
you’ve been to every bar onboard
you refer to your fellow passengers as “your new friends”
you look forward to sharing a swimming pool with 3000+ people
you can fully summarize every culinary and drink demonstration
you know the real meaning of “tender”
you seek out unique onboard and shore adventures
you can’t get enough time on sun deck
you like to exercise your “sea legs”
you cry on disembarkation day
you use your old stateroom keys as Christmas ornaments
Friday, May 18, 2012
Fashionably, My Funniest Cruise Memory
If you read my story, Nine Days Onboard The “Big E”, you got the picture that my brother and I had a blast. Well, you haven’t learned about everything. There were some things we didn’t do onboard the Adventure of The Seas in July 2007 which I managed to do onboard the Explorer of The Seas in June 2010. I’d hate to say it, but the belly flop competition is an understatement. The funniest thing ever happened on our cruise, onboard the Explorer of The Seas. If you enjoyed my story about my nine-day cruise, you are going to get an absolute kick out of this one. Keep on reading!
Day 2, we were at sea en route to Bermuda. I was battling a God awful bug. First, I had a cough and stuffy throat. Later, I wound up with a brief cold and a headache. In the afternoon, I went to the Weekend Warrior sports bar on the Royal Promenade. I ordered a B-52 to knock out the headache. A B-52 cures anything! I was fine after that. Sorry, but that’s not the funniest part. Patience, folks! I later went back to my cabin and began reading through the Cruise Compass for ice skating times down below at Studio B (the ice rink). I found the afternoon ice skating time. Right next to the time, it said “long pants and socks required”. I started combing through the remaining clothes in my suitcase. I couldn’t believe it. I never packed any sweat pants or any long pants for ice skating. I packed my khakis for the casual nights and dressed pants for the formal nights. No way on earth was I going to wear either one of these pairs of pants on the ice. I went to the Logo Souvenir shop on the Royal Promenade. In the back of the shop, on one of the racks, were these blue sweat pants. They had draw strings with an anchor graphic printed on the left leg. I thought, “Hey, these look awesome!”. They were the right size. I draped them against my body in the mirror, and gave them a look. I decided to buy them. I paid for them with my Sea Pass card and headed back to my cabin. That’s the end of part one.
Part two: I tried on the pants in my cabin and they fit perfectly. They weren’t tight at all. Never did they fit oh so comfortably. I went downstairs to Studio B and I went to get a pair of ice skates. I have never ice skated in my life. Never have I ice skated on board a cruise ship. I held on to the railing the whole forty-five minutes I was on the ice. I slipped and fell only three times. Hey, not too shabby! Not bad for my very first time. I ice skated for my very first time with no major bumps or bruises. I so wanted to ice skate again. To improve a bit, I signed up for a lesson with a member of the international ice cast. It definitely was a good day for me, despite feeling ill for a few hours. After ice skating, I went back to my cabin and changed into my swim suit. My brother saw the sweat pants I bought. He asked me, “Did you pack those?”. I told them that I had bought them. I left the cabin and went upstairs to soak up in the Solarium Jacuzzi. A refreshing ending to the day, indeed!
Ok, here’s the big moment you’ve been waiting for. A short while after dinner, my brother and I went back to the Logo Souvenir shop on the Royal Promenade. I had changed my clothes and put my blue sweat pants on. My brother had Crown & Anchor coupons he wanted to use for some items he saw earlier in the day. While we were browsing through the shop and thumbing through the t-shirts, my brother curiously asked me a question. He said, “David, educate me. Where did you get those blue sweat pants?” I answered, “Over there on that back rack!”. He looked and quickly turned towards me. With a slight chuckle, he said, “DUDE, YOU’RE WEARING WOMEN’S PANTS!”. I just plainly retorted saying, “Well, I had to wear something on the ice!”. Ain’t cruising fun!
Day 2, we were at sea en route to Bermuda. I was battling a God awful bug. First, I had a cough and stuffy throat. Later, I wound up with a brief cold and a headache. In the afternoon, I went to the Weekend Warrior sports bar on the Royal Promenade. I ordered a B-52 to knock out the headache. A B-52 cures anything! I was fine after that. Sorry, but that’s not the funniest part. Patience, folks! I later went back to my cabin and began reading through the Cruise Compass for ice skating times down below at Studio B (the ice rink). I found the afternoon ice skating time. Right next to the time, it said “long pants and socks required”. I started combing through the remaining clothes in my suitcase. I couldn’t believe it. I never packed any sweat pants or any long pants for ice skating. I packed my khakis for the casual nights and dressed pants for the formal nights. No way on earth was I going to wear either one of these pairs of pants on the ice. I went to the Logo Souvenir shop on the Royal Promenade. In the back of the shop, on one of the racks, were these blue sweat pants. They had draw strings with an anchor graphic printed on the left leg. I thought, “Hey, these look awesome!”. They were the right size. I draped them against my body in the mirror, and gave them a look. I decided to buy them. I paid for them with my Sea Pass card and headed back to my cabin. That’s the end of part one.
Part two: I tried on the pants in my cabin and they fit perfectly. They weren’t tight at all. Never did they fit oh so comfortably. I went downstairs to Studio B and I went to get a pair of ice skates. I have never ice skated in my life. Never have I ice skated on board a cruise ship. I held on to the railing the whole forty-five minutes I was on the ice. I slipped and fell only three times. Hey, not too shabby! Not bad for my very first time. I ice skated for my very first time with no major bumps or bruises. I so wanted to ice skate again. To improve a bit, I signed up for a lesson with a member of the international ice cast. It definitely was a good day for me, despite feeling ill for a few hours. After ice skating, I went back to my cabin and changed into my swim suit. My brother saw the sweat pants I bought. He asked me, “Did you pack those?”. I told them that I had bought them. I left the cabin and went upstairs to soak up in the Solarium Jacuzzi. A refreshing ending to the day, indeed!
Ok, here’s the big moment you’ve been waiting for. A short while after dinner, my brother and I went back to the Logo Souvenir shop on the Royal Promenade. I had changed my clothes and put my blue sweat pants on. My brother had Crown & Anchor coupons he wanted to use for some items he saw earlier in the day. While we were browsing through the shop and thumbing through the t-shirts, my brother curiously asked me a question. He said, “David, educate me. Where did you get those blue sweat pants?” I answered, “Over there on that back rack!”. He looked and quickly turned towards me. With a slight chuckle, he said, “DUDE, YOU’RE WEARING WOMEN’S PANTS!”. I just plainly retorted saying, “Well, I had to wear something on the ice!”. Ain’t cruising fun!
Monday, May 7, 2012
My First "Adventure" Onboard Royal Caribbean
July 1st, 2007, was a day I couldn’t wait for. It was a beautiful Sunday morning. My brother and I were about to sail onboard Royal Caribbean for our very first time. The ship we were about to sail on was the magnificent Adventure of The Seas, a Voyager class vessel. Three and a half hours later, we touched down in hazy and humid San Juan. The humidity was about seventy-five percent. After getting our bags from the luggage carousel, we were greeted by the Royal Caribbean meet and greet staff. We were instructed to place our luggage tags on our bags and bring them out to the box truck waiting curbside. After handing the bags to the driver, we boarded our shuttle bus to the San Juan cruise terminal. The adventure was about to begin.
The San Juan cruise terminal area is located in Old San Juan, in close proximity to El Castel Del Morro. We pulled into the terminal area, and the ship was right ahead of us. I had never seen a vessel so massive. I had sailed on the Queen Mary 2 on two previous occasions, but I had never seen a cruise ship with so many bells and whistles. We checked in with no problem, and we were onboard in less than ten minutes. Our rooms weren’t ready yet, so we went upstairs to have lunch in the Windjammer Café. If I could say one thing about the food, it was absolutely awesome. Did I say it was awesome? Correct me if you will. The food was sinful. Meanwhile, our luggage was still yet to arrive at our cabin. Our bags didn’t arrive at our cabin until seven o’clock at night. I was wearing my black buttoned flowered shirt with my jeans, and my brother was wearing very much the same. The heat and the humidity outside on the pool deck was unreal. We did whatever we could to stay inside. At least the air conditioning helped us out. Later, we had dinner in the main dining room. We met our table mates. We met a married couple from California, a dating couple from Pennsylvania, and there two other couples from Colorado. The evening started off without a hitch.
At 11pm, we finally pulled out of port. Our cruise had begun. Our cruise was taking us to Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua, St. Maarten, and St. Thomas. The following day, we were at sea. What was to happen during the afternoon blew my mind. Near the Windjammer Café, I was in line purchasing “Win A Cruise Bingo” cards. Outside the window, I noticed a monster crowd gathered by the pool. I was thinking it was only the band playing and everyone was just checking them out. I asked a member of the cruise staff what was going on. That’s when he told me what was happening. He told me, “Oh, that’s the belly flop competition!”. I missed the belly flop competition over bingo cards?? I guess I did. “Until next time!” I said to a few guests standing in line behind me. Eventually, next time did come. Three years later onboard the Adventure, I managed to nail down third place in the belly flop competition. I wore my bronze medal all the way home. So, how did my game of bingo turn out? In the third and final game, I was two numbers away from winning a free cruise. The afternoon pressed on. We used the Solarium pool, chilled out at the pool bar, and chugged down a few cups of tea downstairs at Café Promenade on the Royal Promenade. A pleasant day it sure was, despite missing out on the belly flop competition.
The next day, we arrived at our first port-of-call, Bridgetown, Barbados. It was a lovely morning. Dear friends of my family’s picked us up at the pier and drove us to their house. They drove us around the island, showing us what had changed, and told us about what was new with their family. We had traveled to Barbados many times when we were little. It was sure a fun place to visit. Our friends showed us the hotels we once stayed at. My, did things change! Even our favorite pizza place, Chefette, at Rockeigh Beach tripled in size. It was a tiny little place the last time we ate there. Wow, were things different! Before heading back to the ship, we met our friends’ daughter. She and her brother used to hang out with my brother and I when we used to visit many years ago. Time sure flies when having fun! We returned to Barbados on the Adventure of the Seas three years later on New Year’s Eve. That time, it was my parents, my brother, and myself all together. Now that was a reunion!
Back onboard the Adventure, we went upstairs for drinks. While enjoying a few drinks, we pulled out of Bridgetown. The following day, we tied up in St. Lucia. We had excursion tickets for the Brig Unicorn. The Brig Unicorn was the sailing ship used in “Pirates of The Caribbean: Curse of The Black Pearl”. It sure felt like I was on a movie set. It looked a bit different. Of course it looks different when you have a cooler onboard with the skipper passing around the rum punch, soda, and beer. What a fun day that was! We arrived back at the ship, and we boarded once again. We spent the rest of the afternoon onboard. I must have sat in the Jacuzzi with the ladies for over an hour. Just as we were having a good time, we pulled out once again. Next stop, Antigua! Antigua was a very quiet place. Oh my, was it raining cats and dogs. The rain was coming down hard. We had tickets for the 4x4 jeep tour. Our driver was a real piece of work. Every ten minutes or so, he would drive the jeep into an open field near the road. There he would drive the jeep around in circles, saying over his microphone, “Once around, twice is nice, three times a charm, oh my goodness!”. It was one fun day, to say the least. Once the tour was over, we headed back to the pier. We boarded the ship once again, and it was time to move on to St. Maarten. We had dinner at Portofino’s, the Italian specialty restaurant onboard. The food was absolutely fantastic. From the window, we watched the sun set as Antigua disappeared into the twilight. It was definitely the perfect ending to an exciting day.
We tied up in Philipsburg, St. Maarten the following morning. It was absolutely gorgeous out. We had tickets for the island highlights tour. The tour took us to the town of Marigot, the Maho Bay area, all along the island’s shoreline, and back. The tour guide pointed out Orient Bay to us, which is the most famous and busiest beach in the Caribbean. It’s part regular beach and part clothing optional. As soon as we finished the tour, we got into a taxi cab and headed to Maho Bay. Maho Bay is located fifty feet from the Princess Juliana International Airport. The jetliners are just fifty feet above you before they finally touch down. The noise was one thing, but watching the jets kick up sand while taking off was another. That is definitely a beach I want to visit again soon. Of all the Caribbean beaches on my list, Maho Bay is among the musts. Once all of the jet action died down, we headed back to the ship. We boarded the ship, put down all of our souvenirs, and went upstairs for drinks. After drinks, we got ready for dinner. Before we knew it, we began pulling away from the pier. The next and final port-of-call was St. Thomas, USVI.
Our departure from St. Maarten couldn’t have featured a bigger drama than anyone would imagine. As we were steaming away from the Philipsburg pier, the pilot was picked up and his boat pulled away. We were on our way once again, or so I thought. Less than five minutes later, the pilot boat came racing back to the ship. Everyone on the starboard side of the ship (the right side of the ship), were looking on. As the pilot boat pulled up alongside the ship, no one could believe what had happened. A nine year old child had been left behind in St. Maarten. When the child was lifted onboard, everyone on the starboard side started cheering. The big question which blew everyone’s mind was “What kind of parents leave their kid behind?” Does anyone know? The story was all over the dining room that night. Despite all the drama, dinner was a fun experience. Everyone shared what they did on island. That’s the fun part of sitting at a table for ten. The stories and poking fun at each other was endless.
The next morning, we tied up at the Havensight pier in St. Thomas, USVI. My brother and I had a few errands to do on island. We first took the cable tram up to Paradise Point. At Paradise Point, we took pictures and had a few drinks. When we were done, we headed back down the hill into the Havensight Mall near the pier to shop for booze. After buying two boxes of vodka and gin, we headed into downtown Charlotte Amalie to browse through the shops. We stopped by the camera store to look at some new camera models, made a traditional stop at the Little Switzerland store, and looked through every little trinket store along the way. Two of my favorite selections in the Little Switzerland store were Lladro and Lalique. They include human figurines, to porcelain animals. Lladro featured the largest porcelain train I have ever seen in my life. Is it ok to say that it cost thirty-five thousand dollars? It’s a store I cannot get enough of. Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the ship. Back onboard, we went back to our cabin. We put our souvenirs and stuff away. We also started packing our bags for disembarkation. Shortly later, we went upstairs to the pool deck for drinks. We even brought our cameras with us. While having our drinks, we noticed more drama brewing on the starboard side of the ship. It was four o’clock, castoff time. Just as the lines were being loosened, a couple was seen running down the Havensight pier towards the gangway. Luckily, the ship’s security staff let them onboard. The cruise just couldn’t get any more dramatic than we had imagined.
My least favorite part of any cruise is when it’s over. The final night of the cruise, the waiting staff did its parade around the dining room. The head waiter wished everyone a pleasant journey home. At our dining room table, we were passing around our address books. Everyone was writing down their phone numbers, email addresses, and home addresses. Later on in the evening, we all attended the farewell show in the Lyric Theater. The comedian for the night put on a hysterical performance, followed by a performance by the ship’s singers and dancers. When the show was over, streamers and confetti dropped from the rafters. It was quite the perfect ending to a cruise so packed with fun, adventure, and a bit of drama to along with it. The next day, everyone was saying their good-byes before swiping their Sea Pass cards of the final time. When my brother and I left the ship, I couldn’t say enough. For our first time onboard Royal Caribbean, it wasn’t just a cruise, it was an adventure. That’s why the ship is named Adventure of The Seas.
The San Juan cruise terminal area is located in Old San Juan, in close proximity to El Castel Del Morro. We pulled into the terminal area, and the ship was right ahead of us. I had never seen a vessel so massive. I had sailed on the Queen Mary 2 on two previous occasions, but I had never seen a cruise ship with so many bells and whistles. We checked in with no problem, and we were onboard in less than ten minutes. Our rooms weren’t ready yet, so we went upstairs to have lunch in the Windjammer Café. If I could say one thing about the food, it was absolutely awesome. Did I say it was awesome? Correct me if you will. The food was sinful. Meanwhile, our luggage was still yet to arrive at our cabin. Our bags didn’t arrive at our cabin until seven o’clock at night. I was wearing my black buttoned flowered shirt with my jeans, and my brother was wearing very much the same. The heat and the humidity outside on the pool deck was unreal. We did whatever we could to stay inside. At least the air conditioning helped us out. Later, we had dinner in the main dining room. We met our table mates. We met a married couple from California, a dating couple from Pennsylvania, and there two other couples from Colorado. The evening started off without a hitch.
At 11pm, we finally pulled out of port. Our cruise had begun. Our cruise was taking us to Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua, St. Maarten, and St. Thomas. The following day, we were at sea. What was to happen during the afternoon blew my mind. Near the Windjammer Café, I was in line purchasing “Win A Cruise Bingo” cards. Outside the window, I noticed a monster crowd gathered by the pool. I was thinking it was only the band playing and everyone was just checking them out. I asked a member of the cruise staff what was going on. That’s when he told me what was happening. He told me, “Oh, that’s the belly flop competition!”. I missed the belly flop competition over bingo cards?? I guess I did. “Until next time!” I said to a few guests standing in line behind me. Eventually, next time did come. Three years later onboard the Adventure, I managed to nail down third place in the belly flop competition. I wore my bronze medal all the way home. So, how did my game of bingo turn out? In the third and final game, I was two numbers away from winning a free cruise. The afternoon pressed on. We used the Solarium pool, chilled out at the pool bar, and chugged down a few cups of tea downstairs at Café Promenade on the Royal Promenade. A pleasant day it sure was, despite missing out on the belly flop competition.
The next day, we arrived at our first port-of-call, Bridgetown, Barbados. It was a lovely morning. Dear friends of my family’s picked us up at the pier and drove us to their house. They drove us around the island, showing us what had changed, and told us about what was new with their family. We had traveled to Barbados many times when we were little. It was sure a fun place to visit. Our friends showed us the hotels we once stayed at. My, did things change! Even our favorite pizza place, Chefette, at Rockeigh Beach tripled in size. It was a tiny little place the last time we ate there. Wow, were things different! Before heading back to the ship, we met our friends’ daughter. She and her brother used to hang out with my brother and I when we used to visit many years ago. Time sure flies when having fun! We returned to Barbados on the Adventure of the Seas three years later on New Year’s Eve. That time, it was my parents, my brother, and myself all together. Now that was a reunion!
Back onboard the Adventure, we went upstairs for drinks. While enjoying a few drinks, we pulled out of Bridgetown. The following day, we tied up in St. Lucia. We had excursion tickets for the Brig Unicorn. The Brig Unicorn was the sailing ship used in “Pirates of The Caribbean: Curse of The Black Pearl”. It sure felt like I was on a movie set. It looked a bit different. Of course it looks different when you have a cooler onboard with the skipper passing around the rum punch, soda, and beer. What a fun day that was! We arrived back at the ship, and we boarded once again. We spent the rest of the afternoon onboard. I must have sat in the Jacuzzi with the ladies for over an hour. Just as we were having a good time, we pulled out once again. Next stop, Antigua! Antigua was a very quiet place. Oh my, was it raining cats and dogs. The rain was coming down hard. We had tickets for the 4x4 jeep tour. Our driver was a real piece of work. Every ten minutes or so, he would drive the jeep into an open field near the road. There he would drive the jeep around in circles, saying over his microphone, “Once around, twice is nice, three times a charm, oh my goodness!”. It was one fun day, to say the least. Once the tour was over, we headed back to the pier. We boarded the ship once again, and it was time to move on to St. Maarten. We had dinner at Portofino’s, the Italian specialty restaurant onboard. The food was absolutely fantastic. From the window, we watched the sun set as Antigua disappeared into the twilight. It was definitely the perfect ending to an exciting day.
We tied up in Philipsburg, St. Maarten the following morning. It was absolutely gorgeous out. We had tickets for the island highlights tour. The tour took us to the town of Marigot, the Maho Bay area, all along the island’s shoreline, and back. The tour guide pointed out Orient Bay to us, which is the most famous and busiest beach in the Caribbean. It’s part regular beach and part clothing optional. As soon as we finished the tour, we got into a taxi cab and headed to Maho Bay. Maho Bay is located fifty feet from the Princess Juliana International Airport. The jetliners are just fifty feet above you before they finally touch down. The noise was one thing, but watching the jets kick up sand while taking off was another. That is definitely a beach I want to visit again soon. Of all the Caribbean beaches on my list, Maho Bay is among the musts. Once all of the jet action died down, we headed back to the ship. We boarded the ship, put down all of our souvenirs, and went upstairs for drinks. After drinks, we got ready for dinner. Before we knew it, we began pulling away from the pier. The next and final port-of-call was St. Thomas, USVI.
Our departure from St. Maarten couldn’t have featured a bigger drama than anyone would imagine. As we were steaming away from the Philipsburg pier, the pilot was picked up and his boat pulled away. We were on our way once again, or so I thought. Less than five minutes later, the pilot boat came racing back to the ship. Everyone on the starboard side of the ship (the right side of the ship), were looking on. As the pilot boat pulled up alongside the ship, no one could believe what had happened. A nine year old child had been left behind in St. Maarten. When the child was lifted onboard, everyone on the starboard side started cheering. The big question which blew everyone’s mind was “What kind of parents leave their kid behind?” Does anyone know? The story was all over the dining room that night. Despite all the drama, dinner was a fun experience. Everyone shared what they did on island. That’s the fun part of sitting at a table for ten. The stories and poking fun at each other was endless.
The next morning, we tied up at the Havensight pier in St. Thomas, USVI. My brother and I had a few errands to do on island. We first took the cable tram up to Paradise Point. At Paradise Point, we took pictures and had a few drinks. When we were done, we headed back down the hill into the Havensight Mall near the pier to shop for booze. After buying two boxes of vodka and gin, we headed into downtown Charlotte Amalie to browse through the shops. We stopped by the camera store to look at some new camera models, made a traditional stop at the Little Switzerland store, and looked through every little trinket store along the way. Two of my favorite selections in the Little Switzerland store were Lladro and Lalique. They include human figurines, to porcelain animals. Lladro featured the largest porcelain train I have ever seen in my life. Is it ok to say that it cost thirty-five thousand dollars? It’s a store I cannot get enough of. Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the ship. Back onboard, we went back to our cabin. We put our souvenirs and stuff away. We also started packing our bags for disembarkation. Shortly later, we went upstairs to the pool deck for drinks. We even brought our cameras with us. While having our drinks, we noticed more drama brewing on the starboard side of the ship. It was four o’clock, castoff time. Just as the lines were being loosened, a couple was seen running down the Havensight pier towards the gangway. Luckily, the ship’s security staff let them onboard. The cruise just couldn’t get any more dramatic than we had imagined.
My least favorite part of any cruise is when it’s over. The final night of the cruise, the waiting staff did its parade around the dining room. The head waiter wished everyone a pleasant journey home. At our dining room table, we were passing around our address books. Everyone was writing down their phone numbers, email addresses, and home addresses. Later on in the evening, we all attended the farewell show in the Lyric Theater. The comedian for the night put on a hysterical performance, followed by a performance by the ship’s singers and dancers. When the show was over, streamers and confetti dropped from the rafters. It was quite the perfect ending to a cruise so packed with fun, adventure, and a bit of drama to along with it. The next day, everyone was saying their good-byes before swiping their Sea Pass cards of the final time. When my brother and I left the ship, I couldn’t say enough. For our first time onboard Royal Caribbean, it wasn’t just a cruise, it was an adventure. That’s why the ship is named Adventure of The Seas.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Nine Days Onboard The "Big E"
June 2010, the cruise of the millennium, was THE BEST cruise ever. I can’t stress it any further than I have with my friends, family, and colleagues. My brother and I sailed on board Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of The Seas. I refer to her as “Big E”. My brother and I sailed from Cape Liberty-Bayonne, NJ. It was a nine day trip to Bermuda, St. Maarten, St. Thomas, and Puerto Rico. At first I wanted to pack my Amtrak duffel bag, but my mom told my brother and I to pack the two purple suitcases. I had no idea why she wanted us to pack them. I couldn’t believe I was taking Barney The Suitcase. I was getting worried that my colleagues at the cruise terminal, mainly the longshoremen, would laugh at me. Some of my friends used to joke with me saying, “Hey, Dave my man...did anyone tell you that you pack like a girl?” When traveling with a purple suitcase, I felt like I was on a crash course. Luckily no one joked with me. Phew! Instead, an even more favorable matter had arisen. I was doing guest check-in that Thursday. I was going to at some point be checking in guests who might be at my dinner table during the cruise. Throughout the afternoon, I was checking my Sea Pass card amongst guests I embarked, just hoping to come across a party that was going to be at my table. None of the parties I checked in happened to be so. At dinner later that night, I met this one family from Boston sitting at our table. The husband noticed me and said “Hey, weren’t you just in the terminal?” You were checking people in today. You were really moving. Nice work!” Life is more than just a fish bowl, huh folks?
Two days later, we tied up at King’s Wharf, Bermuda. My brother and I didn’t do all that much. We took the ferry from King’s Wharf across the way to Hamilton. We walked a few blocks in either direction. While doing so, we walked into all of the stores. We didn’t buy anything. Both of us took a boat load of pictures. It was a gorgeous day, with the temperature in the low eighties. After walking around, taking pictures, and browsing through the stores, we headed back to the ferry. Once back at King’s Wharf, we boarded the ship again. We had lunch at the Windjammer Café, and then hung out at the Solarium pool. Just as we were departing from King’s Wharf, I saw this huge squid swimming out from underneath the pier. At dinner, one of our appetizers was fried calamari. I asked the waiter, “Wendell, is this calamari from that squid we saw swimming near the pier?” He said, “No, I’m afraid not, but that’s a good guess.” Food for thought, I can’t imagine fast food in the dining room. Ha-Ha!
Two days later, we arrived at St. Maarten. We tied up at the pier around noon. I was hoping we were going to spend some time of our own at Maho Bay or Orient Bay. We were presented with a surprise. Our travel agent had arranged for us to be on a complimentary island highlights tour. After eating lunch, we headed downstairs and we met our tour guide at the pier entrance. We boarded our motor coach, and we were off. We had visited St. Maarten before when we sailed on the Adventure of The Seas. We sort of knew the places the tour guide was taking us. We visited the town of Marigot, and nearly touched the Maho Bay area. We then drove by famous Orient Bay, where a majority of the cruise passengers hang out while in port. It’s most definitely on my to-do list when I cruise again. We were then given each a post card with stamps already attached. We all wrote to someone at home and handed them to our tour guide at the conclusion of the trip. Before we knew it, we were back on board. We hung out on our balcony, and did some people watching while we were at it. Late at night, we pulled out of port and we were off once again. St. Thomas, here we come!
Early the next morning, we arrived in St. Thomas, USVI. It was another beautiful day outside. The temperature was in the mid-eighties. My brother and I took the tram ride up to Paradise Point, to take pictures and guzzle down a few drinks. The Carnival Liberty was in port next to us. St. Thomas, with ships in port, is a gorgeous sight. Every time you look at postcards in St. Thomas, they all have ships in the picture. It’s truly a sight to behold. When we returned to the port area, we took a bus to the Marriott Frenchman’s Reef, right at the mouth of the harbor channel. We stayed there a few times when we were little. We had lunch by the pool. Right in front of us, a little more than two hundred yards away, was our ship, the Explorer. She looked like a gem, with the water sparkling all around her. Next, we took the boat from Frenchman’s Reef to downtown Charlotte Amalie.
Hanging around downtown Charlotte Amalie was a ton of fun. We shopped for booze, did some souvenir shopping, and then did the most adventurous thing of all. We walked all the way back to the Havensight pier. Half way there, we stopped at a coffee shop called “Bad Ass Coffee”. There we helped ourselves to some iced coffee and kept walking until we arrived back at the ship. By the time we arrived back at the pier, our calves were hard as a rock. As we were walking on the pier toward the ship, one of the USVI’s famous youth steel drum bands was performing. They were called “The Rising Stars”. If you have ever heard these kids play, you don’t know what you’re missing. They are absolutely superb, like real professionals. We listened to them for a good half an hour. Just as we arrived at door of the Explorer, one of the guest relations officers I knew was at the gangway. I introduced my brother to him, and they shook hands. After talking briefly, we got back on board. Our day in St. Thomas was over. Another visit to St. Thomas was in the books.
The following morning, we arrived at our final port-of-call, San Juan, PR. Just as we tied up, we headed downstairs to the gangway. We boarded our tour bus at the pier entrance. We visited the Bacardi Rum Factory. It wasn’t what I was expecting, but the rum was absolutely awesome. We were all given two tickets, for two free drinks. I thought, what the heck, and helped myself to two Screwdrivers. Yummy! First we watched a short film presentation on the history of the Bacardi company. We were then taken on a mock up tour of how Bacardi’s charcoal fired rum is made. Later we were then shown, step-by-step, how to make a Bacardi Mojito. Immediately afterward, we walked through the gift shop. My brother and I bought a package of mint seeds for our garden at home. We also bought a few other souvenirs, including a canister of rum chocolates. When we were done, we headed back to the bus to return to the ship. It was two o’clock. It was time to pull in the lines and head back out to sea, back to Bayonne. The cruise was unfortunately nearing its end, but the fun was just about to heat up.
On our cruise on board the Explorer, I participated a lot of fun activities. I even took a class on how to play Bridge. That afternoon we departed San Juan, I participated in the event of all events...the “Men’s International Belly Flop Competition”. This event cannot be missed. This event, I swear it, looked like a meat market and a happy hour combined. Every last babe in a bikini onboard was at pool side soaking up every last ray available. There were eight participants including myself signed up for the belly flop competition. Each contestant had to make two jumps off a wooden jumping platform. The first jump was judged on style and grace, and the second jump was judged on splash factor and PAIN. I wore my patriotic swim suit for good luck. I scored a 4.998 on the first jump...a near perfect score! Half way to heaven! The second jump was not too bad, a 4.534, but then I got eliminated. This one contestant decided to change the position of the jumping platform, from horizontal to vertical. No one stopped him from doing so. He scored a 5.12. NO FAIR!! Later on at dinner downstairs, one of the guests at the table nearby bought me a beer for being the unofficial 1st place winner of the competition. After the waiter poured the beer for me, I went over to this guest nearby and said, “Hey, thank you so much, I greatly appreciate it.” This other guest said, “Dave, you got screwed up there. That jump you made was a 6. Here’s to next time, ok my man?”. We clinked glasses, and I once again shared with the guy and everyone at his table my thank you’s. Even at my table, all of the adults including my brother were treating me to a bottle of beer. How moving of an evening! Agree?
The next day was the charity event, “Walk of Wishes”. It was a six lap walk around the sun deck to benefit the Make A Wish Foundation. During the event, I’m was walking my laps around the sun deck with over two hundred guests. While we’re walking and making our way around the sun deck, I’m getting the hero’s welcome. This one guest points me out and shouts, “Hey, it’s the belly flopper! 4.998 baby!" Guests on both sides of the walking track were applauding me. People on the sun deck were buying me beer that whole afternoon. It must have been the black and blue marks on my chest, arms, and shoulders. Do you know how painful belly flopping is? It’s not too bad when jumping into chlorinated water, but with a salt water pool? Yikes! Belly flopping into salt water is like jumping off the roof of your house and landing on your backyard patio. One of the gentlemen I met on the sun deck gave me advice for the next belly flop competition. He told me to bring a crumby hat with me, a hat really worn out. He said that I should have someone toss it over the pool and I would grab it as I make my landing. He then gave me another hint of advice. He then suggested that I should toss the hat in the pool, land in the water, and let the hat land on my head as I come up to the surface. He then said “You’ll be scoring more than free beer next time!”.
The final night on board, we went to the farewell show in the Palace Theater. To start the show, a sneak preview of the “Cruise In Review” DVD was shown on a screen on stage. At first, I saw myself at the “Dancing Under The Stars” party on pool deck. Minutes later, came the footage from the belly flop competition. The Royal Caribbean TV staff showed my jump not once, but four different times. When my big jump was done, it was rewound three different times. Half the theater was going crazy. I never thought I would become that popular so quickly. It must have been a blessing.
The following day during disembarkation, I ran into some of the guys I met on pool deck. Then, two young ladies just down the hallway from my cabin saw me on the pier. I overheard one of them asking the other, “He works here?”. With a smile on my face, I said, “Yes, I work here.” Unfortunately, I never spoke with them again. She was “the one that got away” as they say. When my brother came through customs, I introduced him to my supervisor. She asked my brother, “Did you guys have a good time?” My brother answered, “Oh definitely. David was hogging the camera the whole trip.” There is one thing that still wears on my mind. Will there be a cruise that will top that one? Not anytime soon, but the belly flop stakes can’t be any higher.
Two days later, we tied up at King’s Wharf, Bermuda. My brother and I didn’t do all that much. We took the ferry from King’s Wharf across the way to Hamilton. We walked a few blocks in either direction. While doing so, we walked into all of the stores. We didn’t buy anything. Both of us took a boat load of pictures. It was a gorgeous day, with the temperature in the low eighties. After walking around, taking pictures, and browsing through the stores, we headed back to the ferry. Once back at King’s Wharf, we boarded the ship again. We had lunch at the Windjammer Café, and then hung out at the Solarium pool. Just as we were departing from King’s Wharf, I saw this huge squid swimming out from underneath the pier. At dinner, one of our appetizers was fried calamari. I asked the waiter, “Wendell, is this calamari from that squid we saw swimming near the pier?” He said, “No, I’m afraid not, but that’s a good guess.” Food for thought, I can’t imagine fast food in the dining room. Ha-Ha!
Two days later, we arrived at St. Maarten. We tied up at the pier around noon. I was hoping we were going to spend some time of our own at Maho Bay or Orient Bay. We were presented with a surprise. Our travel agent had arranged for us to be on a complimentary island highlights tour. After eating lunch, we headed downstairs and we met our tour guide at the pier entrance. We boarded our motor coach, and we were off. We had visited St. Maarten before when we sailed on the Adventure of The Seas. We sort of knew the places the tour guide was taking us. We visited the town of Marigot, and nearly touched the Maho Bay area. We then drove by famous Orient Bay, where a majority of the cruise passengers hang out while in port. It’s most definitely on my to-do list when I cruise again. We were then given each a post card with stamps already attached. We all wrote to someone at home and handed them to our tour guide at the conclusion of the trip. Before we knew it, we were back on board. We hung out on our balcony, and did some people watching while we were at it. Late at night, we pulled out of port and we were off once again. St. Thomas, here we come!
Early the next morning, we arrived in St. Thomas, USVI. It was another beautiful day outside. The temperature was in the mid-eighties. My brother and I took the tram ride up to Paradise Point, to take pictures and guzzle down a few drinks. The Carnival Liberty was in port next to us. St. Thomas, with ships in port, is a gorgeous sight. Every time you look at postcards in St. Thomas, they all have ships in the picture. It’s truly a sight to behold. When we returned to the port area, we took a bus to the Marriott Frenchman’s Reef, right at the mouth of the harbor channel. We stayed there a few times when we were little. We had lunch by the pool. Right in front of us, a little more than two hundred yards away, was our ship, the Explorer. She looked like a gem, with the water sparkling all around her. Next, we took the boat from Frenchman’s Reef to downtown Charlotte Amalie.
Hanging around downtown Charlotte Amalie was a ton of fun. We shopped for booze, did some souvenir shopping, and then did the most adventurous thing of all. We walked all the way back to the Havensight pier. Half way there, we stopped at a coffee shop called “Bad Ass Coffee”. There we helped ourselves to some iced coffee and kept walking until we arrived back at the ship. By the time we arrived back at the pier, our calves were hard as a rock. As we were walking on the pier toward the ship, one of the USVI’s famous youth steel drum bands was performing. They were called “The Rising Stars”. If you have ever heard these kids play, you don’t know what you’re missing. They are absolutely superb, like real professionals. We listened to them for a good half an hour. Just as we arrived at door of the Explorer, one of the guest relations officers I knew was at the gangway. I introduced my brother to him, and they shook hands. After talking briefly, we got back on board. Our day in St. Thomas was over. Another visit to St. Thomas was in the books.
The following morning, we arrived at our final port-of-call, San Juan, PR. Just as we tied up, we headed downstairs to the gangway. We boarded our tour bus at the pier entrance. We visited the Bacardi Rum Factory. It wasn’t what I was expecting, but the rum was absolutely awesome. We were all given two tickets, for two free drinks. I thought, what the heck, and helped myself to two Screwdrivers. Yummy! First we watched a short film presentation on the history of the Bacardi company. We were then taken on a mock up tour of how Bacardi’s charcoal fired rum is made. Later we were then shown, step-by-step, how to make a Bacardi Mojito. Immediately afterward, we walked through the gift shop. My brother and I bought a package of mint seeds for our garden at home. We also bought a few other souvenirs, including a canister of rum chocolates. When we were done, we headed back to the bus to return to the ship. It was two o’clock. It was time to pull in the lines and head back out to sea, back to Bayonne. The cruise was unfortunately nearing its end, but the fun was just about to heat up.
On our cruise on board the Explorer, I participated a lot of fun activities. I even took a class on how to play Bridge. That afternoon we departed San Juan, I participated in the event of all events...the “Men’s International Belly Flop Competition”. This event cannot be missed. This event, I swear it, looked like a meat market and a happy hour combined. Every last babe in a bikini onboard was at pool side soaking up every last ray available. There were eight participants including myself signed up for the belly flop competition. Each contestant had to make two jumps off a wooden jumping platform. The first jump was judged on style and grace, and the second jump was judged on splash factor and PAIN. I wore my patriotic swim suit for good luck. I scored a 4.998 on the first jump...a near perfect score! Half way to heaven! The second jump was not too bad, a 4.534, but then I got eliminated. This one contestant decided to change the position of the jumping platform, from horizontal to vertical. No one stopped him from doing so. He scored a 5.12. NO FAIR!! Later on at dinner downstairs, one of the guests at the table nearby bought me a beer for being the unofficial 1st place winner of the competition. After the waiter poured the beer for me, I went over to this guest nearby and said, “Hey, thank you so much, I greatly appreciate it.” This other guest said, “Dave, you got screwed up there. That jump you made was a 6. Here’s to next time, ok my man?”. We clinked glasses, and I once again shared with the guy and everyone at his table my thank you’s. Even at my table, all of the adults including my brother were treating me to a bottle of beer. How moving of an evening! Agree?
The next day was the charity event, “Walk of Wishes”. It was a six lap walk around the sun deck to benefit the Make A Wish Foundation. During the event, I’m was walking my laps around the sun deck with over two hundred guests. While we’re walking and making our way around the sun deck, I’m getting the hero’s welcome. This one guest points me out and shouts, “Hey, it’s the belly flopper! 4.998 baby!" Guests on both sides of the walking track were applauding me. People on the sun deck were buying me beer that whole afternoon. It must have been the black and blue marks on my chest, arms, and shoulders. Do you know how painful belly flopping is? It’s not too bad when jumping into chlorinated water, but with a salt water pool? Yikes! Belly flopping into salt water is like jumping off the roof of your house and landing on your backyard patio. One of the gentlemen I met on the sun deck gave me advice for the next belly flop competition. He told me to bring a crumby hat with me, a hat really worn out. He said that I should have someone toss it over the pool and I would grab it as I make my landing. He then gave me another hint of advice. He then suggested that I should toss the hat in the pool, land in the water, and let the hat land on my head as I come up to the surface. He then said “You’ll be scoring more than free beer next time!”.
The final night on board, we went to the farewell show in the Palace Theater. To start the show, a sneak preview of the “Cruise In Review” DVD was shown on a screen on stage. At first, I saw myself at the “Dancing Under The Stars” party on pool deck. Minutes later, came the footage from the belly flop competition. The Royal Caribbean TV staff showed my jump not once, but four different times. When my big jump was done, it was rewound three different times. Half the theater was going crazy. I never thought I would become that popular so quickly. It must have been a blessing.
The following day during disembarkation, I ran into some of the guys I met on pool deck. Then, two young ladies just down the hallway from my cabin saw me on the pier. I overheard one of them asking the other, “He works here?”. With a smile on my face, I said, “Yes, I work here.” Unfortunately, I never spoke with them again. She was “the one that got away” as they say. When my brother came through customs, I introduced him to my supervisor. She asked my brother, “Did you guys have a good time?” My brother answered, “Oh definitely. David was hogging the camera the whole trip.” There is one thing that still wears on my mind. Will there be a cruise that will top that one? Not anytime soon, but the belly flop stakes can’t be any higher.
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