What happens when ships meet up...

We had a rare opportunity where 3 of the 8 Celebrity ships were found in the same port at the same time. It was great for me, as I have spoken with these guys on several occassions and now had the opportunity to put a face to the name.

The first ship we met up with was the Zenith. She is the baby ship of the fleet. We were docked first and Manolis and I watched her come in. It wasn't until the 2 ships were side by side that you can truly see the difference between them.




Kostas (DSM on Zenith) and I then took the cab out to the international pier to meet up with the guys from the Century. She had an extensive drydock in April and there have been lots of changes made to the ship including a huge host of balconies and a new spa. On the not so great side for the guys, there has also been a few 'water' issues ~ not what you are looking for when you are dealing with electical equipment.

Kostas and I then gathered up the other 2, Nick and Manos and headed back to town for lunch. We went out in Carlos and Charlie's ~ your typical port restaurant and spent the afternoon! It was really great to see them, can't wait to meet up again!

Kostas from Zenith:



Me and Manos from Century:



James from Zenith, Nick from Century:



Nick:



We all know him ~ Charlotte is from the Spa on CS:



The group ~ what a technical bunch:

What we do when the Passengers are asleep

..or not onboard!

We had a 2 day cruise from New Jersey down to Fort Lauderdale which is now our home port. The beauty about making this change is that we are not able to transport passengers from one US port to another US port ~ this is a violation of what is known as the Jones Act. Implemented over 100 years ago it was to try and stop foreign vessels from acting like a ferry service. I say, if it gives me 2 days where I don't have to wear my white clothes, worry about running into passengers, and I get free run of the ship ~ bring it on!

I think the highlight during this time for people is that you get a chance to do things you don't normally do. The Spa ~ while I go on a somewhat regular basis for the theraputic massage, I am not sure that some of the other Staff or Crew members get that chance. Likewise, our speciality restaurant which is Fine Dining at it's best, isn't available to crew or other wait staff ~ so now was the perfect time to get in there. We also had a party in the guest disco. A place which is generally off limits unless you are sporting your Mr. Clean outfit, we managed to have a great party with a bunch of laughs. Although the more unforgiving laugh I think came in the morning with the hangover. I don't seem to recover quite like I used to...



Manolis has new glasses!!




What's in that cup? Yes, that's right ~ Hot Chocolate!


Hmmm, the Doctor is back!

Welcome to the sunshine... sort of

So we left the New England tours behind at the end of October. That means we have been in the Caribbean for over a month now as we are well into December. I am still pasty white. Where is the sun? In all honesty, I had one beach day ~ which was what I would qualify as a quasi beach day in that I spent more time on the patio with the Casino boys drinking fruity umbrella drinks than I did in the sun or the surf! What is up with that?!?

Although to be perfectly honest, the weather has sucked so far this season. There have been more rainy days than sunny and the seas have been rougher than I remember them being here. All I can say is that it is a good thing I am getting more used to the movement.

Our season has us going to all sorts of different ports which is kinda cool. What I need to make sure I do is take the opportunity to get out on some excursions to see some things while I am here. Right now we are alternating between the eastern and western Caribbean. We have been in the west (Cozumel, Jamacia, Panama) since coming down and what I have found is that I am not aware of the 'beach' locations. Perhaps this explains the lack of colour! This cruise we are on our first run back on the eastern side and hitting ports that I have been to last year. As a result, I am already thinking about the Beach in St. Maarten and St. Lucia and recalling the store in St. Kitts that sold me the world's most comfortable pants! Because of my responsibilities on embarkation day, (and our only US port) I have been missing out on that opportunity to do all the necessary errands ~ mail letters, go to the drug store, sort out my bills. As such I am looking very forward to St. Thomas which has all of that right at the pier and I can get some serious stuff accomplished that day!

I am hoping that the sun decides to show itself soon ~ Dad, Jane and Krista will be coming on the 29th for the New Year's cruise. It will be great to see them again. My contract is almost over. Was suppose to be done on the 15th which means I would have been home a week after they were here, but it looks like they may need me to stay until February. So even if I do extend for the month, I'll be home very soon. I am in the home stretch ~ I think....

Akis is currently on Infinity and while we are able to chat every day ~ it is tough to be apart. The drawback of extending is that I won't be able to see him in January and it will be a wee bit longer until we do meet up. Although his ship is now going around South America ~ which will be cool when I go to visit. The weather apparently has been very bad and there have been a few issues with the ship. This has resulted in a 14 day cruise having 11 sea days. I'm sure the guests were none too pleased about that! And rumour has it, it's cold down there! What is up with that?!?!

Manolis finally got off the ship ~ he is back home in Greece for a well deserved vacation. He did finally get new glasses ~ thank god ~ and he will be resting his weary body for the next 2 months until he comes back here in Feb. As always, life here is changing, as it is at home. Emails received today ~ I learned a friend from highschool is having a baby and a client turned friend has asked her man to be her life partner. All very exciting ~ it's good to hear the happy stories!

The other East Coast Ports ~ Boston, Bar Harbor and Portland

The East coast truly is a beautiful part of the world. I think I first fell in love with Boston when I came here in '99 to do some work for Class. The city is ripe with history and at the time it was February so it was flippin' cold, but I still managed to enjoy my time there.

Coming back I realize that I don't often get much time to go out in the ports. I would have liked to have taken the time to go out on a city tour, however I didn't manage to get my stuff together. So instead, I wandered the streets, saw some of the previous sights and then had myself a bread bowl and chili. I know that isn't very 'Boston' and the Clam chowder is what it is all about, but you know me and fish ~ just won't do it.





Bar Harbor is a cute little town. Reminds me a lot of home ~ population small in the winter, population HUGE in the summer. The town has a number of touristy shops along with restaurants down by the water. The cool, yet pain in the butt part of Bar Harbor is that you have to tender, which means you can't just walk off the ship and be on your way. It is a bit of a production to get out there and actually go for lunch. Have gone out twice for lunch with the gals and both times, it was a great break from the things going on back on the ship. I keep telling myself, this was suppose to be my 'no stress' job ~ somehow that didn't quite happen!




The other stop we had was Portland Maine. Cool little spot with some great outlet shopping. Now imagine, it isn't outlet shopping like you see in Bellingham, or in Niagara Falls where everything is crammed together in one big mall like building. These outlets shops are actually individual shops, along a street, with each store having it's own building. It was actually quite refreshing to shop, you walked outdoors and I was introduced to the world of Coach. Yes, Dad, this is what you bought me for my birthday ~ and I LOVE them!