I haven’t posted all week because my family was on board for my last week! My mom and her friend from work, and my cousin and here mom were passengers on the Infinity this week. We had a great time. They were wined & dined: dinner with the Captain, a private tour of the navigational bridge, chocolate-covered strawberries deliver to their stateroom…it was pretty wonderful.
In Ketchikan, we experienced the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show…quite the experience. Timbering is a world-famous sport out here, and the show the put on is pretty entertaining. We had beautiful weather in Ketchikan and did a lot of shopping & enjoyed the picturesque scenery. The salmon were jumping like crazy this week! It’s a pretty cool thing to see.
In Juneau, we took a bus to the Mendenhall Glacier, which is spectacular. We got pretty close to the glacier, and got to see the surrounding waterfall and icebergs in the water. The glacier is receding at unbelievably high rates, we learned.
In Skagway, we took an amazing helicopter ride! It’s about a 15 minute flight around Skagway, and we got incredibly close to a handful of gorgeous glaciers. It was sunny when we left the ground, but where we were flying it was raining! We also saw a gorgeous rainbow – the view from that perspective is so spectacular.
Overall, we had great weather and a wonderful week!
These past 6 weeks have been a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I’m so grateful to have visited this beautiful state and to have met some wonderful people. And now for the re-cap:
Things I’ll miss:
Ready-made salad bar
Half-price off everything
Charging everything to your crew card
The whole world being a 5 minute walk away
Waking up in a different city/state/country every day
Sailing through breathtaking glaciers
The awesome staff members
18 hours of daylight
Victoria, British Columbia
Things I won’t miss:
Changing time zones twice a week
Seasickness
No internet
Roaming charges
Alaskan winds
My 100 square foot cabin
Having to wear my uniform (and nametag) at all times
I’m SO excited to get back to NYC: I have rehearsal at 10AM tomorrow! Yikes. Thanks for reading sailingwithsarah – I’ve had a lot of fun living and chronicling my adventures. I’ll probably close up this blog and perhaps start another one…who knows, I’ve fallen in love with blogging! Love from Seattle for the last time…
Friday, August 27, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Food, Glorious Food
Yesterday they had a crew brunch for us after our crew boat drill! There is a brunch for the guests every Wednesday in the restaurant – there is a huge amount of variety, along with ice sculptures, fruit carvings, etc. They did the same thing for us, which was lovely. We felt so bad for the crew who had to work the crew brunch, though – a lot of the senior officers did the serving, which was very nice of them, but they to use some on duty waiters to clean up, etc.
Speaking of FOOD…I’m sure you’ve all been wondering about that! Cruisers gain about 1-3 pounds per day on a cruise. I remember feeling horrified at this concept when I originally learned I’d be on a cruise for 42 DAYS! I immediately had visions of returning 120 pounds heavier…which would be about 120% of my body weight, but the point is…you’ve got to be careful around here. From the minute the passengers walk on the ship, there is good and drinks everywhere, ALWAYS.
Deck 10 is the buffet deck and casual dining. There is a pasta station, salad bar, sushi bar, Asian station, sandwich bar, pizza, ice cream, etc. Pizza is available until 1AM every night. There is an outdoor grill with nachos, fries, etc. The restaurant takes up 2 floors, and there is also an a la carte specialty restaurant on board. There are about 6 bars, and a café which serves complimentary snacks and desserts all day long. Plus there are always special events, carvings, bar tending competitions, and parties as an excuse to bring out more food!
We have a crew mess on the first floor as we are not allowed to eat in passenger areas until after 2 pm. As some of you may know, I became a vegetarian shortly before coming on the ship. It’s quite hard in some ways to be a vegetarian on board (my roommate is also) – there is of course always the temptation of delicious meats everywhere! But there are also not so many vegetarian options (let’s just say I’ve had a LOT Of pasta & pizza). The gourmet salad bar has been my life saver – there are tons of options for lettuce, toppings, nuts, and dressings. A lot of times it’s hard not knowing exactly what you’re eating – I’m looking forward to being able to shop and cook for myself again.
The food is wonderful and the guests really enjoy it. Cruisers do tend to eat several meals a day, just because the food is always available. I’m looking forward to dining in the restaurant next week with my family!
Speaking of FOOD…I’m sure you’ve all been wondering about that! Cruisers gain about 1-3 pounds per day on a cruise. I remember feeling horrified at this concept when I originally learned I’d be on a cruise for 42 DAYS! I immediately had visions of returning 120 pounds heavier…which would be about 120% of my body weight, but the point is…you’ve got to be careful around here. From the minute the passengers walk on the ship, there is good and drinks everywhere, ALWAYS.
Deck 10 is the buffet deck and casual dining. There is a pasta station, salad bar, sushi bar, Asian station, sandwich bar, pizza, ice cream, etc. Pizza is available until 1AM every night. There is an outdoor grill with nachos, fries, etc. The restaurant takes up 2 floors, and there is also an a la carte specialty restaurant on board. There are about 6 bars, and a café which serves complimentary snacks and desserts all day long. Plus there are always special events, carvings, bar tending competitions, and parties as an excuse to bring out more food!
We have a crew mess on the first floor as we are not allowed to eat in passenger areas until after 2 pm. As some of you may know, I became a vegetarian shortly before coming on the ship. It’s quite hard in some ways to be a vegetarian on board (my roommate is also) – there is of course always the temptation of delicious meats everywhere! But there are also not so many vegetarian options (let’s just say I’ve had a LOT Of pasta & pizza). The gourmet salad bar has been my life saver – there are tons of options for lettuce, toppings, nuts, and dressings. A lot of times it’s hard not knowing exactly what you’re eating – I’m looking forward to being able to shop and cook for myself again.
The food is wonderful and the guests really enjoy it. Cruisers do tend to eat several meals a day, just because the food is always available. I’m looking forward to dining in the restaurant next week with my family!
Monday, August 16, 2010
Week 5 So Far
Well it’s been quite an eventful week 5 so far! Today was an unbelievably warm day in Ketchikan – as in 85 degrees, I-got-a-tan warm. Locals said it never gets this warm! It was warmer here today than it was back home in Boston…weird?
This evening, a priest who is vacationing on board organized and officiated a Catholic mass in the “Cinema” on board. It was the Feast of the Assumption of the Holy Mary and it was a lovely service. It was so nice of the Father to donate his vacation time on this holy Sunday. I forgot how much I missed that weekly tradition – it’s been 4 weeks!
I’ve met a lot of great passengers this week – a woman from Thailand who is vacationing with her elderly father is my new best friend. I also met a couple from Jamaica Plains who had just eaten at Finz in Salem before they left for the cruise! They were very impressed. Overall, everyone is in excellent spirits because the weather has been SO kind to us. It really does make such a difference in the passengers’ vacation and the morale of the crew.
We had a chance to see some meteor showers on Friday night – the stargazing is just amazing up on the top decks late at night. Mostly what we saw were bats flying in the sky – but they looked pretty cool under the light of the stars. There is so much scenery and activity out here that I would never get to experience otherwise. I now understand why Alaska is such a hot destination for people all over the world.
This week we got a new dancer. She has performer on Celebrity ships before, but she was sent out for the last 5 weeks of this contract because one of the other dancers really hurt her back and was sent home about 4 weeks ago. It’s been surprising to me how little consideration there is for illness onboard. If one of the dancers is sick, the dance captain has to re-choreograph the entire dance. Amy arrived on board on Friday and was in the show Saturday night. The guitarist on board has been under the weather, and it’s hard to account for these kinds of things happening. My wrists have been giving me a lot of trouble, but there’s no one else to do my job so we all persevere. There’s so much behind-the-scenes work that goes on to make sure everything runs smoothly when we run into unexpected problems; there is no barring accidents.
Another thing I was not aware of is tipping. There are no tip jars out on our ship at all – I believe it’s a fleet-wide policy (which is not the case on all cruise lines). I was playing a solo set in our Café and an enthusiastic audience member asked me if she could tip me. I didn’t know what to say, so I politely declined (now I’m having visions of hundred dollar bills….). When I checked with my boss later, he said technically the answer is no. But as long as you don’t say ‘yes’…
Always an adventure on the Celebrity Infinity!
This evening, a priest who is vacationing on board organized and officiated a Catholic mass in the “Cinema” on board. It was the Feast of the Assumption of the Holy Mary and it was a lovely service. It was so nice of the Father to donate his vacation time on this holy Sunday. I forgot how much I missed that weekly tradition – it’s been 4 weeks!
I’ve met a lot of great passengers this week – a woman from Thailand who is vacationing with her elderly father is my new best friend. I also met a couple from Jamaica Plains who had just eaten at Finz in Salem before they left for the cruise! They were very impressed. Overall, everyone is in excellent spirits because the weather has been SO kind to us. It really does make such a difference in the passengers’ vacation and the morale of the crew.
We had a chance to see some meteor showers on Friday night – the stargazing is just amazing up on the top decks late at night. Mostly what we saw were bats flying in the sky – but they looked pretty cool under the light of the stars. There is so much scenery and activity out here that I would never get to experience otherwise. I now understand why Alaska is such a hot destination for people all over the world.
This week we got a new dancer. She has performer on Celebrity ships before, but she was sent out for the last 5 weeks of this contract because one of the other dancers really hurt her back and was sent home about 4 weeks ago. It’s been surprising to me how little consideration there is for illness onboard. If one of the dancers is sick, the dance captain has to re-choreograph the entire dance. Amy arrived on board on Friday and was in the show Saturday night. The guitarist on board has been under the weather, and it’s hard to account for these kinds of things happening. My wrists have been giving me a lot of trouble, but there’s no one else to do my job so we all persevere. There’s so much behind-the-scenes work that goes on to make sure everything runs smoothly when we run into unexpected problems; there is no barring accidents.
Another thing I was not aware of is tipping. There are no tip jars out on our ship at all – I believe it’s a fleet-wide policy (which is not the case on all cruise lines). I was playing a solo set in our Café and an enthusiastic audience member asked me if she could tip me. I didn’t know what to say, so I politely declined (now I’m having visions of hundred dollar bills….). When I checked with my boss later, he said technically the answer is no. But as long as you don’t say ‘yes’…
Always an adventure on the Celebrity Infinity!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Hospitality
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about hospitality/the service industry. That is what working for a cruise line ultimately means: serving a unique and unforgettable experience to the guest. My department – entertainment – is considered a part of the larger umbrella of the hotel department. We are encouraged to engage with the guests and to contribute positively to their cruising experience; we as entertainers are often told what a difference it can make to a guest to form a relationship with the staff. I have found that people are particularly eager to engage with the entertainment staff.
I never really thought about my job as a musician as part of the service industry. If anything, I’ve always felt like I’m serving myself – I get paid to play music all day, how self-serving (and awesome) is that? But it has struck me recently that our job is to deliver an experience to the guest. Of course we play for the audience, but usually the music feels so personal that it never feels like work at all. It is an experience that you and the audience share. When I think about the service industry – hotel services, tourism, restaurant staff – I picture a staff member getting paid to serve the customer. We go to restaurants because we want someone to make us food and deliver it to us. We stay at a hotel and pay for the privilege for someone else to make the bed and clean the bathroom. My job never feels like that. Celebrity goes above and beyond to make sure that the guest feels like the crew is at their service. At each and every table on our buffet deck, there is a table card with the server’s name and the following: “It is my pleasure to serve you. We are at your service.” The crew does an amazing job of making the guests feel like royalty. Perhaps I am delivering an experience to the guest – it just happens that it’s also really fun for me, too.
I’m sure that plenty of people find fun work in the service industry. As cliché as it sounds, it is rewarding to be able to deliver that unique experience to the guest. The guests provide feedback each week from as way to show their appreciation and continued support of Celebrity Cruises. The courtesy rubs off on everyone in the environment, I think. We are asked to always smile and greet, and to address guests directly whenever we pass them on the ship. We always say “Good morning/afternoon/evening,” and “How are you?” Sometimes the way we feel is a result of the way we act, and always having to smile and greet people directly never fails to put me in a cheerful mood. I wonder what would happen if I smiled and greeted strangers on the streets of Manhattan…
I never really thought about my job as a musician as part of the service industry. If anything, I’ve always felt like I’m serving myself – I get paid to play music all day, how self-serving (and awesome) is that? But it has struck me recently that our job is to deliver an experience to the guest. Of course we play for the audience, but usually the music feels so personal that it never feels like work at all. It is an experience that you and the audience share. When I think about the service industry – hotel services, tourism, restaurant staff – I picture a staff member getting paid to serve the customer. We go to restaurants because we want someone to make us food and deliver it to us. We stay at a hotel and pay for the privilege for someone else to make the bed and clean the bathroom. My job never feels like that. Celebrity goes above and beyond to make sure that the guest feels like the crew is at their service. At each and every table on our buffet deck, there is a table card with the server’s name and the following: “It is my pleasure to serve you. We are at your service.” The crew does an amazing job of making the guests feel like royalty. Perhaps I am delivering an experience to the guest – it just happens that it’s also really fun for me, too.
I’m sure that plenty of people find fun work in the service industry. As cliché as it sounds, it is rewarding to be able to deliver that unique experience to the guest. The guests provide feedback each week from as way to show their appreciation and continued support of Celebrity Cruises. The courtesy rubs off on everyone in the environment, I think. We are asked to always smile and greet, and to address guests directly whenever we pass them on the ship. We always say “Good morning/afternoon/evening,” and “How are you?” Sometimes the way we feel is a result of the way we act, and always having to smile and greet people directly never fails to put me in a cheerful mood. I wonder what would happen if I smiled and greeted strangers on the streets of Manhattan…
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Plugs
Monday night the Food & Beverage Department hosted a crew toga party in recognition of our recent approval ratings from USPH (99%!) They opened the passenger club for a late night party and had tons of yummy food and champagne. Plus, of course, a bar tending contest, our a cappella sensation, and plenty of dance music. A good time was had by all.
Speaking of our a cappella sensation, a little plug for my “On Tap” friends. On Tap is our on board a cappella group (we just make fun of them because every time the cruise director announces them it’s as the a cappella “sensation”). Jake, John, Kevin, and Chase met at Lehigh University and will be on board for the next 6 months. They sing some awesome arrangements of everything from pop to rock to Motown. The passengers LOVE them (we’re not jealous, I swear) and so do we. They also sell their album, “First Draught” onboard. They’re always fun to listen to so I highly recommend you check them out! They’ve also been immensely helpful in my transition onboard :) Thanks, guys!
I’d also like to throw a shout-out to the wonderfully talented Jana Seale…singer/songwriter and guitarist. I could listen to Jana perform all day long! She has a huge list of songs which she sings beautiful – all of my favorite kinds of music (she does a mean Joni Mitchell). It’s a great opportunity to relax in the café or one of the lounges and hear some laid back tunes. Jana also sells her CD on board, and has been a huge help with my recent wrist issues. Check her out -gorgeous music!
Speaking of our a cappella sensation, a little plug for my “On Tap” friends. On Tap is our on board a cappella group (we just make fun of them because every time the cruise director announces them it’s as the a cappella “sensation”). Jake, John, Kevin, and Chase met at Lehigh University and will be on board for the next 6 months. They sing some awesome arrangements of everything from pop to rock to Motown. The passengers LOVE them (we’re not jealous, I swear) and so do we. They also sell their album, “First Draught” onboard. They’re always fun to listen to so I highly recommend you check them out! They’ve also been immensely helpful in my transition onboard :) Thanks, guys!
I’d also like to throw a shout-out to the wonderfully talented Jana Seale…singer/songwriter and guitarist. I could listen to Jana perform all day long! She has a huge list of songs which she sings beautiful – all of my favorite kinds of music (she does a mean Joni Mitchell). It’s a great opportunity to relax in the café or one of the lounges and hear some laid back tunes. Jana also sells her CD on board, and has been a huge help with my recent wrist issues. Check her out -gorgeous music!
Monday, August 9, 2010
In Which I Actually Talk About My Job
And now for a bit about my work – music! I play piano in the “Celebrity Orchestra” which mostly plays in the theater for the production shows: Welcome Aboard Show, iBroadway, Boogie Wonderland, Live at Sky, and Farewell Show. There is an additional production show called “Celebrate the World” that does not use live musicians. In addition to the theater, we also play big band sets once a week in the Rendez-Vous Lounge, the Captain’s Club Celebration, and a Jazz Brunch on Wednesday in the restaurant. I also occasionally play solo sets in the restaurant or one of the many lounges on board.
The hardest part about ship music is probably the constantly changing ensembles. During a typical 6-month contract, players could likely see 10 different people change in and out of their ensemble. For example, I’m filling in for the bandmaster’s vacation, so when he gets back it’ll be a whole different ensemble. I had never met the rest of my ensemble before, let alone played with them. Professional ensembles can take years to find a cohesive sound and create their unified voice. The only rehearsal I had with this ensemble was a sound check on my first day, and then we played shows together that evening. Every time we play big band sets, these are charts that I’ve never seen before, and songs that we’ve never before played together as an ensemble. You can imagine the difficulties, but it becomes a matter of survival instead of fine-tuning a group sound. This is not the kind of musical environment that I’m used to. As my mother ever astutely noted, our audiences are not here exclusively for our music – they are onboard for the total cruising experience: hotel, food, scenery, destination, activities, shore excursions, etc. On Broadway, the case is different.
Broadway audiences tend to be filled with New Yorkers – and New York theater professionals at that. The level of criticism, observation, and expectation is very different. The audience response here is fantastic – audiences LOVE the shows, ensembles, and performers on board. I think people are generally blown away by the talent because they are not coming expecting Broadway-level shows, and for a lot of them, the level of talent and professionalism they seen on board is unprecedented.
The nice thing about playing on the ship is that we don’t have to play the same show 8 times per week. We do have to play each show twice per night – something that Broadway musicians only face (usually) twice per week – but the shows are only about an hour so it doesn’t seem like a hassle. And since it has been 7 days since I last played iBroadway, I’m always looking forward to playing it for a second time.
Also to my surprise, no one (NOBODY) has commented on my playing – in a positive or negative way. Not my boss, not my band mates, not the cast members. I’m coming from an academic setting, which is to say highly observational, critical, and progressive. As I mentioned, the audiences have been wonderfully responsive, but the standards to which I’m used to holding myself have disappeared. Let’s hope it’s not a culture shock when I get back to school!
The hardest part about ship music is probably the constantly changing ensembles. During a typical 6-month contract, players could likely see 10 different people change in and out of their ensemble. For example, I’m filling in for the bandmaster’s vacation, so when he gets back it’ll be a whole different ensemble. I had never met the rest of my ensemble before, let alone played with them. Professional ensembles can take years to find a cohesive sound and create their unified voice. The only rehearsal I had with this ensemble was a sound check on my first day, and then we played shows together that evening. Every time we play big band sets, these are charts that I’ve never seen before, and songs that we’ve never before played together as an ensemble. You can imagine the difficulties, but it becomes a matter of survival instead of fine-tuning a group sound. This is not the kind of musical environment that I’m used to. As my mother ever astutely noted, our audiences are not here exclusively for our music – they are onboard for the total cruising experience: hotel, food, scenery, destination, activities, shore excursions, etc. On Broadway, the case is different.
Broadway audiences tend to be filled with New Yorkers – and New York theater professionals at that. The level of criticism, observation, and expectation is very different. The audience response here is fantastic – audiences LOVE the shows, ensembles, and performers on board. I think people are generally blown away by the talent because they are not coming expecting Broadway-level shows, and for a lot of them, the level of talent and professionalism they seen on board is unprecedented.
The nice thing about playing on the ship is that we don’t have to play the same show 8 times per week. We do have to play each show twice per night – something that Broadway musicians only face (usually) twice per week – but the shows are only about an hour so it doesn’t seem like a hassle. And since it has been 7 days since I last played iBroadway, I’m always looking forward to playing it for a second time.
Also to my surprise, no one (NOBODY) has commented on my playing – in a positive or negative way. Not my boss, not my band mates, not the cast members. I’m coming from an academic setting, which is to say highly observational, critical, and progressive. As I mentioned, the audiences have been wonderfully responsive, but the standards to which I’m used to holding myself have disappeared. Let’s hope it’s not a culture shock when I get back to school!
Friday, August 6, 2010
Halfway There
Halfway there! I’m getting excited to get back to the city and start senior year (?!) – when did that happen?
Yesterday we had a FIRE. On board. It was very scary. I was checking my email in the crew dining room when the code word for fire came over the announcements: “Bravo, Bravo, Bravo – tween deck.” Thanks to my bazillion hours of training, I knew this meant there was a fire on the deck just below mine (Deck 0, basically). But, just like at school when a fire alarm rang and you assumed it was a drill, I thought it was a drill. BUT THERE WAS A REAL FIRE. As I finished my emails and tried to leave the dining area, they were blocking off the hallways and people were running to the fire in their fire gear and had oxygen tanks. I heard people saying that there was a person down there, but they had just evacuated him. The doorway to my corridor was blocked, so I went up to deck 2 and around to get to my room (smelling smoke the whole way). As soon as I got to my room I heard people knocking on doors furiously: “Who’s in the cabin? Is anyway in the cabin? Midship! Go midship!” So I frantically grabbed my bag and exited the area. There was a TON of smoke coming from the hallway just next to mine, and the officers evacuating us had bandanas covering their faces. As I made my way midship, I heard passengers commenting about the smoke smell. Some passengers I was with saw the crew running with their fire gear, and were understandably alarmed. I was concerned, but I didn’t know what to do or where to go. I got some tea, and by the time I had to report to play our set for the night, the cruise director made an announcement that the fire had been taken care of. That was definitely the closest I’ve ever come to a real emergency – luckily we were already docked, so the threat seemed less disastrous than if we were at sea. The hardest part was not knowing what to tell the passengers – we have these code words so as not to alarm the passengers, but so the crew teams can take care of it themselves.’
Last night was also the first night in port that I didn’t have a chance to get off the ship. We have to rotate giving everybody nights off, so the orchestra played 2 big band sets in the lounge. Victoria is my favorite port so I was disappointed! I’m happy to be back in Seattle though, heading off on cruise #4. I’m going to try to see Inception in one of our ports this week!
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