I Can See Alaska From Here!

Ok, so I actually couldn't see Alaska from St. Petersburg, but I squinted and you betchya I tried!

Anyway, Sunday and Monday the Century was docked in St. Petersburg, Russia. It was nice to not have the rocking and rolling for a little bit. I got out on a tour, I swear someone at shore excursions must really like me, and went on "City Highlights and Pushkin." I was a little afraid at first, with all of the formalities at Russian immigration, but they weren't so bad. I even got a new stamp in my passport! Not every port does that.

My tour was small with just 8 people. We got a nice little van to drive us around all day and a sweet tour guide named Eugenia. Our first stop was the Russian Cathedral right next to the statue of the city's founder, Peter the Great. The Cathedral had these giant red pillars that Eugenia said had all been lifted by man. I couldn't believe it. It always amazes me the things humans are capable of.

Our next stop was an hour outside the city. Pushkin was the entire reason I signed up for this tour. What could possibly be in Pushkin, you may be asking yourself. I would respond with an enthusiastic, Catherine's Palace! The palace of Catherine I was stunning. The most beautiful robin's egg blue you've ever seen, said to be modeled after their daughter's eyes. It was so bright and the white was so pure it looked sweet. If you had told me the whole thing was made of cake and frosting I would have believed you. I later found that to be true of much of old Russian architecture. It's all very elaborate. It all reminded me of the "It's A Small World" ride in Disney World. Never thought a place like that actually existed. In Catherine's Palace we toured the golden suite of rooms. I was completely taken with the whole palce. From the paintings on the ceilings, to the gold cherubs and angels on the walls all the way down to the perfectly wooden flowers decorating the floor. I just couldn't get enough of it. It was so bright and grand and elaborate.

Then the final golden room was the reason I wanted to come to Catherine's Palace. In my sophomore year of college I was assigned to do a short commercial for a documentary on the Amber Room. The minute I heard that the Amber Room was on some of our tours I knew I had to be there. We walked in and I couldn't believe how full circle everything had come. Just two years ago I was learning about this room and writing a creative commercial about it, and now there I was standing in it. It's just one of those moments where you stop and aks yourself, who knew? and how did I get so lucky?

Next we went to the Hermitage for a photo stop. Again, very It's-A-Small-World decadent.

Ok, so yes I loved St. Petersburg, but here's what I was not so crazy about: the food. Oh boy. Those of you that know me are well aware that I'm one of the world's pickiest eaters. When I travel, however, I think it's really important to stay open minded and try new things. So I promised myself I would at least try everything they put in front of me. First there was a rather dry vegetable salad. Pass. Then the waiter brought out champagne. Accept. He set a plate in front of me with two little pancakes, one topped with a sour cream like thing, and the other with caviar. Yes, caviar. I thought, wow, I have champagne and caviar in front of me, this is so classy. Well... I tried it. Let's just say the sensation of chewing fish eggs is not one I would like to repeat anytime soon. I did continue to enjoy the champagne, though.

Next we went to Peter and Paul Fortress and again I found myself feeling like I'd walked into yet another picture book. The cathedral in the fortress holds the graves of emperors and empresses of the past and the Romanov family. While looking at the tombstones I realized just how beautiful Russian girl's names are. Anastasia, Alexis, Tatyana, Catherine, and Elizabeth. So elegant.

Our final stop was the Church of the Spilled Blood. The sun was setting behind it, which made for some great shots, but the colors were not as vibrant without the sun shine on it. It was still breathtaking. It looked like some Russian princess should be walking out at the moment to address her subjects. The domes were decorated with mosaics and colors that made it look, again, like a fairy tale.

I use this metaphor a lot. I should explain so that no one thinks I mean the same thing each time. I have been to many places where I feel like I am "walking into a picture book." The first time was when I lived in Ireland. In my head those stories always involved peasant girls and and castles within the meadows. Geiranger is where trolls approach people gazing at the waterfalls - the same can be said for Olden. Alesund would be home to stories of young children with braids and suspendors constantly disobeying thier parents and learning valuable lessons. St. Petersburg, though, would be the place of grand stories. They would be of princesses dressed as stunningly as thier buildings. They stroll the streets and little girls admire them. White horses trot by carrying strapping noblemen. It is where fantastic dances would be held where everyone attended all night. The women would be twirled about with their colorful skirts flowing as if to make them look like they're floating on air. At least this is what I pictured on my day in Russia.

That night we were lucky enough to get another Wine and Cheese Night, but this time it was on the bow of the ship on the open air crew deck. It was beautiful. We had glasses of wine under the stars with St. Petersburg as the back drop. I felt so classy, then I remembered my encounter with the caviar and felt secure in the fact that I would never be too classy. I like that I maintain a bit of my unsophisticated nature.

Last night was our crew party. The theme was International Flag Night. Crew members came with their nations' flag around their neck. Some people got awfully creative. John had three ties on, one for each color ofthe Italian flag. Laura had a small Hungarian flag on her cheek, and of course we Americans never buy that tacky 4th of July stuff, and last night we really regretted it. We found one amongst the decorations and took turns passing it around for photos. It was simple since there are only 10 or 12 of us around.

Today we had a crew boat drill which left little time out in port. It's too bad, too, since Tallinn, Estonia is really cute. Next time I want to take more time to walk around and enjoy the little city. We are sailing towards Copenhagen now and we'll be there on Thursday. I really hope that this theme of fairy tales continues there. How could it not? After all, Copenhagen is the home of my all time favorite fairy tale - The Little Mermaid. Oh yea, you know I'm excited.

There's More than Meatballs?

So yesterday I was on a tour of Stockholm, Sweden. Bright and early (ok, 10 a.m., but I'm still in college mode) I went to the theater to collect my tour group. We had the sweetest girl as our guide and unlike most tour guides I've had so far, she was very interesting and even funny! We rode a bus all aorund new town and old town Stockholm and our major highlight was the Vasa Museum. This was really cool. The Vasa is a ship that sailed in 1629 but didn't really make it far from Stockholm before sinking to bottom of the harbor. It is as our tour guide put it, "Sweden's most famous mistake." In 1956, though, they were able to pull it out of the waters 95% intact. So I wasn't seeing some replica of an old war ship. This was an authentic ship from the 1600s. The wood carvings were intricate and they were even able to pull pigments from the wood to figure what colors certain things were painted. So there was a scale model in front showing how colorful she would have been. I have to say I was taken aback by the lion heads on the gun windows. It was pretty interesting.

After the tour I walked around for a bit with Val. We found the shopping centers and the spots where the young folk hang out and I began warming up to Stockholm. It's a nice city with its own charm, but Berlin is a tough act to follow. After walking through some more bustling parts of town I started to think I could really like Stockholm. Not to mention the Swedish people are really friendly.

Today I was in Helsinki, Finland on another tour. I'm getting really lucky being selected for all of these tours. A bus drove me around Helsinki, stopping at certain attractions. First we were in the Senate Square, which I thought was just beautiful, and we walked down to the open air market. I strolled around with the best mint ice cream cone I've had in a while. I'm finding I really love market places. Then we went to one of the most interesting churches I've ever been to. They call it the Rock Church. It's literally within a blown out rock with a copper dome top. The acoustics were phenomenal and I felt really comfortable there. It was non-denominational, which would explain my comfort. I said a quick prayer and headed back to the bus.

I found that I really liked Helsinki. Tomorrow I'm yet another tour in St. Petersburg, Russia. I'm glad I am, since it's really the only way we can get into Russia.

Berlin - who knew?

So Tuesday evening I got some very exciting news. I had been picked to be a tour escort into Berlin. Our ship docks in a cute little German town known as Warnemunde, which is about three hours away from the city.

The morning began on a train ride with Val and Sarah from the spa. We cracked jokes and talked about people and goings-on on the ship. We excitedly waved goodbye to the Century and felt great about the fact that we wouldn’t be seeing it for another twelve hours.

In Berlin I got on my bus for the “Berlin: The 20^th Century Experience” tour. Our first stop, naturally, was the Berlin Wall. I had my giant Panasonic video camera ready to take shots for the Voyage in Review movie I have to put together every cruise. I must say, at first I really wasn’t impressed with Berlin. We saw the outskirts and I thought there wasn’t much to it and a tad dirty – sort of like Londonderry. Our next stop was Checkpoint Charlie. At this point I was really wishing I had paid more attention to Mr. Crile’s World History lessons. Checkpoint Charlie was in a much more bustling area of the city, so it was starting to impress me, but I wasn’t sold yet.

After Checkpoint Charlie I had the most fabulous lunch. We walked into the dining room of the Westin to see giant salads waiting for us with the best feta cheese and mushrooms. The salad was followed by a breast of chicken enveloping spinach with carrots, potatoes, sauerkraut, and little German sausages on the side. Oh my gosh it was amazing. I don’t even like sauerkraut and this was delicious. Then for dessert, again I tried something I swore I didn’t like. It was apple strudel in vanilla sauce. I washed it all down with a great glass of German beer. Fantastic. I am more obsessed with food these days since the food on the ship is so awful.

Our next stop was the Reichstag and North Gate. It was very lovely. The North Gate reminded me of the Arc de Triomphe with a long, beautiful street leading away from it – just like the Champs-Elysees. The Linden Street was charming with elegant and trendy shops and trees with leaves such a bright green they looked like white magnolia leaves. I really wished I could get off the bus and just stroll around. I always thought of Germany as harsh and rough, but I was starting to see it had its charm. I was starting to see it differently.

We passed the Holocaust Memorial of concrete slabs. The guide explained that the red roofed buildings behind the memorial were old Nazi bunkers and that one was the sight of Hitler’s supposed suicide. I got a slight eerie feeling.

The day provided me many reasons to smile as we passed things on the bus. We passed a Lidl, the grocery store we girls frequented in Dublin. I was thrown back to my tiny Irish apartment and our pesto pasta. We passed people walking dachshunds and I thought of Tootse. I couldn’t believe I was seeing real German dachshunds.

Our next stop was the Allied Museum. Out front was a Berlin Bear (much like the Lexington pigs) decorated fro the candy-bombers. The bear begged for a photo with me. So I just had to. A giant plane was surrounded by two museums. The first was a museum converted from an old American soldier movie theater. It was filled with old artifacts from WWII. On the other side was more documentation of WWII, including an excavated spy tunnel which was really great.

Next we rode to one of the city’s main squares. I was instantly drawn to Emperor William’s Memorial Church. It was stunning. The original building stood between two new buildings. The original was bombed in the war and the two new ones were built as a symbol against violence and destruction. I strolled into one of the new buildings and it was easily the most beautiful sanctuary I have ever seen. Every wall is covered to the ceiling with small squares of stained glass. The color was the most brilliant blue. I honestly don’t have the words to properly describe this church. It was that moment I realized Berlin officially had a small piece of my heart.

The square outside had street vendors, entertainers, and a fountain with an outdoor café. It was so charming and wonderful. Our tour stopped at a few more memorials, and at the end of the day I was ready for a long nap on the train. Unfortunately my mind was racing with thoughts of the beautiful city that I am ready to visit again.

Today is a sea day, and we are headed to Stockholm.

If the Boat's A-Rockin'... It Must be the North Sea.

Yep, I’m getting used to this life at sea.

Last Thursday I went on a crew tour in Geiranger, Norway. It’s easily one of the most beautiful cities I’ve ever seen. This is where we docked for the 4^th and had our barbeque, but this time I got off the ship. It was great to spend the day with Val and Tina. The bus we were on took us to the top of Mount Dalsnibba – about 5000 feet above sea level. It was beautiful and freezing up there. There were patches of snow all over, enough for the crew to have a full on snowball fight in the middle of July. Priceless.

The next day I took another tour. This time it was with guests and my manager. We were out getting stock footage for corporate. Our bus took us to the Kjendallen Glacier. I am really grateful to see all of this beauty, but it’s almost overwhelming. I need a dirty gutter or graffiti alleyway in my life soon. Too much of a good thing, ya know? There’s only so many times I can have my breath taken away by a fjord.

The next day was Bergen. Bergen is definitely my favorite Norwegian port. I got to take a coach tour in the morning and spent the afternoon walking around with Karen and Val. We found a TGIFriday’s with free wi-fi and totally took advantage of it. I got the best burger of my life (maybe it’s just the fact that it’s not ship food) and had a nice cider. It was just what I needed at the time.

The next day was a sea day. What’s worse? A day in the North Sea. It’s so rocky and the theater is easily the worst place to be for rocking, and that’s where I do most of my shooting on sea days. Oh well, I’ll get it.

I’m making more friends and this place is starting to feel really comfortable. I still think of home daily. I have this habit of finding a window and being mesmerized by the waves. I stare at them and think of home, the future, my friends, my family, my life here, money, jobs, places to visit, places to live, just everything. In front of the waves, though, I don’t feel stress. I don’t feel sad. I don’t feel anything. I’m just there. Thinking and wandering my mind. It’s the best meditation ever.

The other night I began bonding with the Activity Staff and for the first time really felt like Kenzie. I laughed, made jokes, spoke up, came out of my shell, essentially. It was nice to feel like that again.

Today we were back in Amsterdam. I enjoyed it much more this time. I went out with a few British friends to and Irish pub. As we sat there talking about the ship and our jobs, I noticed how distinct my accent made me. It’s been a while since I was the token American. It always makes me chuckle. Again, the fact that it wasn’t ship food made that club sandwich the best one I’ve ever had. It was really good, regardless. And then, the best part of the meal, something I didn’t even realize I’d been craving until I had it again, a Magners. Now I know what some of you may be thinking – Kenz, you had Magners in the States. Not like this. I was right. They are different in Europe. They are a pint of Heaven over here and nothing can compare. I took that first sip and I was taken back to Dublin. I closed my eyes and in that split second of sipping I was back with Shaina and Em again. I was on the top of the Fitzsimmon’s bundled up and happy with my pint. It was a nice throwback.

Now I’m sitting in the broadcast as we sail towards Germany. One more sea day and I may have the opportunity to go to Berlin. If not, it’s Warnemunde, Germany. Either way I’m finally going to get to see Germany. As long as the North Sea waves don’t kill me.

I like Molde. It Grows on You. :)

Wine and cheese night in the staff mess was a great success. I met more people and as I looked around my table at the new faces all smiling and drinking I got my first content feeling on the ship. I still feel myself holding back sometimes. I’m not quite comfortable enough yet to let my guard down and really be myself. I don’t know why, I just don’t always act like Kenzie. They probably can’t handle it, anyway. ;)

Honningsvag was easily more fun this time than last. Last time we were there it was rainy/flurry, freezing and grey. Now this is not a big city by any means. I only say it was more fun this time because I could feel my toes while walking around. I strolled along with Tina for a while talking about work and the ship and our futures. Neither of us has a for sure stance on any of these topics. Then Tina went back to the ship to meet with her boyfriend and at that moment we ran into Val. So I just took Val on the same stroll. More chatting, more laughing, more bonding.

Life on the ship moves fast. People meet, they become close in a matter of weeks, sometimes even days, and then in a few months you’re gone. It’s not an environment that fosters mature relationship building. Maybe that’s why most people have a middle school mindset. In middle school it was perfectly normal to have a new best friend or boyfriend/girlfriend every few weeks or months. It’s really fascinating. Unfortunately, I’m not the type to rush things, and that’s one thing that won’t change about me.

Yesterday was a sea day. I’m not as fond as sea days. They’re really busy for me, but it’s busy like I have a shoot and then an hour, and then a shoot and then 45 minutes, and so on. It’s those awkward short breaks that are killer. I can’t really get much done and I certainly can’t catch a nap. What do you do? Well, I watch episodes of CSI: Miami and try not to fall asleep. I need to start reading. I will soon. Straight after college my mind wants a long break before another book is picked up. I did, however, finish “Who Moved My Cheese,” and I strongly recommend it to any and everyone. There’s something in there for everyone and it’s one of those books you’ll pick up at different points in your life and it will have a different meaning each time.

After work I went to the Rendez-Vous Lounge with Val and some new friends. I’m always amused at the eclectic nature of the people I’m surrounded by. Around the table last night was a Colombian, two Americans, an Australian and an Israeli. This sort of thing just wouldn’t happen at any other job. I had a couple cosmopolitans and watched the waves roll by as the Argentinean quartet played soft slow tunes. It was a new kind of sea night. I’m going to call them Tetris waves. The ripples in the water moved in such a way that they looked digital – just like the way the Tetris blocks move. Maybe it was the cosmos…

Safety training was early this morning. This should be the last one, though. I’m crossing my fingers. It was nice to see Cara again, though. I had lunch with her after and she gave me some great news. She’s going to try and get her boyfriend on the ship. It will make her happy and it will make me happy cause she won’t leave!

The biggest perks of the day were e-mails and ports. I’ve finally got my Microsoft Outlook up and running, which means I can simply spend two minutes sending and receiving and I can do my reading and writing of e-mails offline. It’s great. So anyway, this morning I received a bunch and they just really made me happy. When I get e-mails from people I can hear them reading saying the words to me in their voices. It really lifts my spirits. I could hear Haas’ voice telling me all about 4^th of July, and Glenn’s laugh as he jokes about being my favorite Jew. I can always hear Leigh and Tiff in their messages. It just makes me happy to know people at home haven’t forgotten about me all the way up here in Norway.

I spent the rest of the afternoon in Molde. It’s a nice little town and today we were lucky because the Molde Jazz Festival was going on. The streets were lined with vendors under tents for blocks. There were rides for kids, cotton candy and stages set up for different bands to play. Val and I walked around chatting about everything. We looked at jewelry and clothes, but as my loans are always in the back of my mind, I resisted the temptation to buy the cutest ohm earrings. We got ice cream and Val pointed out that it was the first time all afternoon that we weren’t talking. I guess once you put cookies and cream on a cone in front of me, talking about the silly dramas of the ship seem way less important.

I’m in the broadcast room now and things are starting to shake. We must be revving up to pull out of port. Tomorrow morning we’ll be in the prettiest of our ports, Geiranger. Val convinced me to spend the $25 for the crew tour. I’ve been told it’s worth it. I’m sure it is - I just wish I could get these loans off my mind for a second. This tour will be fun, though. I’ve heard it’s gorgeous.

Norway’s full of magical things. Fjords, trolls and ice cream that will keep two chatterboxes quiet for at least a few minutes.

Leading the Tour to Puppies

A few nights ago I discovered a new type of sea day. The grey day. It’s when the clouds, water and sky blend together to create this monotonous piece of scenery. Not my favorite day by any means, but last night was a silk night, which made up for it.

Alesund was a rainy day, so my roommate and I found a little café in town and had some of the best lunch I’ve had in a while. Maybe it was because it wasn’t ship food, maybe it was just that good, I’ll never know. The camembert was fantastic. I hadn’t had camembert that good in a long time.

Yesterday was mom’s 50^th birthday. She’s going to hate me for putting her age on my blog, but there it is. It was so wonderful to call home. After a good half hour chat with mom I tried to get a hold of a few other people, but no one seemed to be picking up that Saturday morning. Oh well, maybe next time. At least I got to talk to mom and wish her a happy birthday. That’s all I really wanted, anyway.

Before I called mom, though, I got to do something that really reminded me that my job is not like any other job. Our ship crossed into the Arctic Circle yesterday. So to commemorate this, the Cruise Director and Activity Staff staged a Viking take over of the Century. It was hilarious. All of a sudden Rich, the Cruise Director, comes storming on to the top deck where all of the guests are, in a horned hat carrying a shield. He was yelling that he and his Vikings had taken over the ship. The Activity Staff and dancers followed behind him, one picking up the Activity Manager and throwing her over his shoulder. They then began to baptize the guests as Vikings. First, Rich dumped ice water over their heads and then they had to kiss a dead fish before taking a shot of vodka. God, it was funny. So my afternoon’s work? Filming my boss wear a Viking helmet and shoving a dead fish in people’s faces. Most of my work that evening? Editing it into a video I dubbed “The Tale of Richard the Great,” which is currently airing on every television on the ship. I’m pretty pleased with it. Plus, I got to see the globe monument that marked the entrance to the Arctic Circle. That was really worth it.

Today I got to be a tour escort for the first time. Basically I hold a sign in the air that tells the guests which bus we’re getting on, I help the tour guide if he needs anything, and I get to go on the tour for free. So in Tromso, Norway I took a bus to the Polar Museum, and then to the Wilderness Center. I wasn’t so much a fan of the Polar Museum. It was full of artifacts from explorers of Svalbard and the North Pole, so it was cool to see a real ship’s crow’s nest, but I was really turned off by the sections on whale, seal, and polar bear hunting. It was all too graphic and sad for me.

After the museum was the whole reason I signed up for this tour. The Wilderness Center in Tromso is where they raise huskie sled dogs. I think these are possibly the world’s friendliest dogs. They had over 300 at the center and I fell in love with all of them. Some had striking blue eyes, others dark, and a few of them had one blue eye and one dark eye. The best part, though, was holding the puppies. There were three little girls on my tour and nothing warms your heart more than seeing a little girl holding a puppy. I grew particularly fond of the little French girl who was really surprised when I spoke to her in French. She held one pup for so long I thought she was going to try and keep it. I loved it. It reminded me of going to the Burlington Animal Shelter for stress relief at Elon. I didn’t care that I smelled like dog the rest of the afternoon, it was worth it to just be around man’s best friend.

So now I’m here sailing away from Tromso, off to Honningsvag. My work is mostly done until I go shoot some bands playing. I have shot the Daily Announcements with Rich, who pulled me on screen today. (I never realize just how short I am until I see myself next to other people) I shot the international daily announcements with my favorite International Hostesses. We read our horoscopes between takes, which got me thinking of Tiff. And on this smooth, silky sea night I anxiously await getting off work to go see my ship friends.

My Address

Since some people have asked:

Mackenzie Ames

Broadcast Operator

Celebrity Century

PO Box 019030

Miami, FL 33101-9030

:)

Oh Hey, There's the Seasickness...

Ok, first seasick day. The North Sea is not being very nice today. I don’t know what we did to piss off Thor, but I don’t ever want to do it again. In my cabin it’s alright, since I’m not very high up. The broadcast room is ok since it’s mid-ship, but of course the place where I had most of my work this sea day is the Celebrity Theater – deck 7 forward. It is one of the rockiest places on the ship and I’m trying to steady my shots and my focus, which makes getting sick easier. I’ll get by.

The days blur together around the ship. I work everyday, so there are no weekends. The only break up of the week is port day or sea day. Sea days I hate, port days are great.

Last Sunday we were in Olden, Norway and I decided to simply take a walk. It was a beautiful setting of fjords, little houses and a big lake. The flowers perfumed the air and it was a lovely walk.

I’ve been going to the crew bar at night with my new girl, Val. It’s nice and it makes adjusting easier. All these faces I see in the halls and at meal times are there, too. So I’m gradually making more friends. It is so fascinating to be surrounded by so many different nationalities. I live for it.

Last Monday we were in Bergen, Norway. This is easily my second favorite port, next to Alesund. There was a cute outdoor market with crafts, jewelry, trinkets, seafood and fruit. Then we took the funicular to the top of one of the mountains. Having such a gorgeous view while sitting on stone steps reminded me of Paris and being at the top of the Sacre Couer. The biggest smile came, though, when I saw multiple 7-11’s around the city that reminded me of Mikey and his enthusiasm for the chain. However, he would have been severely disappointed to find out that there were NO slushies…

Random cruise moment: As I was setting up for the debarkation talk on our last sea day, I struck up a conversation with two American women. They asked where I went to school and I told them I had gone to Elon University. I quickly followed that with, “it’s a small school in North Carolina,” as I typically due since no one knows Elon. Before I could finish one of the women turned to me and said, “I went to Elon.” I was shocked, I said, “No you didn’t!” She told me about how she and her husband both attended Elon and went to their 50^th class reunion last homecoming. She asked if I knew Dr. Danieley and we chatted about how the school has changed. It was so great to be able to talk to someone about Elon. It’s the little things from home that make me happy.

I had my first embarkation day yesterday. So I was back in Amsterdam on a less than stellar day. It was rainy and gross, but I spent the afternoon with Val and Tina, which kept me in good spirits.

Like I said, today is a little rough, but tomorrow we are back in Alesund, which I’m really looking forward to – mostly so this ship will stop rocking.

Choppy Night

Since I have written I have gotten more used to life on the Century.

Last Tuesday we docked in Tromso, Norway. Tromso isn’t exactly charming the way Alesund is. It’s more industrial and less Hansel and Gretel. It was also awfully cold in Tromso, though not nearly as freezing as Honningsvag. As I strolled through the Norwegian town on Wednesday afternoon, I was on a mission. I needed deodorant. The first piece of advice I give to anyone packing for a trip to Europe is bring enough stick deodorant to last you, because the Europeans don’t sell stick deodorant. So what did I forget to bring more of? Stick deodorant. I found a small pharmacy where I bought, you guessed it – roll-on deodorant. Yuck. As I left the store I rolled my eyes at the fact that flurries were falling on my wool cap and trench coat as my friends are probably gathering their beach towels and suntan lotion for a morning lounging in Daytona.

That night we had the crew party. I realized how it’s possible to feel lonely in a room packed where you’re standing elbow to elbow. I’m still really homesick. I’m growing closer to people everyday, like the Youth Staff girls Tina and Valeria, and the Spa girls Cara and Liz. I also really like my roommate Kellyn. She’s the trombone player in the Century Orchestra from Seattle. Making friends with men is almost out of the question. The European ones are pretty much always hitting on you. So I’ll stick with the girls. I still miss home constantly. There’s not a thing around me I don’t relate to someone back home. Kellyn’s from Seattle, which is where Zach is now. Val’s from L.A. which sparks thoughts of Evan and Ryan and then my other Late Night friends. The video of the activity staff member doing interpretive dance to “Time After Time” clearly brings images of a laughing Tiffany to mind, and “Drop Dead Gorgeous” was the crew movie the other night. If I have to explain that one you clearly don’t know me well enough.

Living in the cabins on the ship reminds me of college. There are less people than at Elon, but it’s a very college/study abroad mind set. Secrets are never kept, like in Moffitt Hall. Everything’s rushed like when studying abroad and time is so precious.

Yesterday we docked in Molde, Norway for a beautiful day of strolling the main street. I went out with my friend Cara from South Africa. She’s quiet and sweet. The more we chatted, the more I realized how much we have in common. We’re both 22, with younger sisters and divorced parents. I loved talking with her, but unfortunately she’s really not liking ship life and thinking of leaving at the end of the month. I know she’s not happy, but part of me hopes she finds adjusting easier so that I can keep my friend around.

It’s amazing the places all of my new friends are from. There’s a man from Chile, a man from Slavonia, a guy born in India and raised in Jamaica, friends from Canada, South Africa, Hungary, the Philippines, Germany, Belgium, Paraguay, Australia, and of course the US. There are people from everywhere. 54 nations on one tiny ship. It’s unreal.

Today, though, is the 4^th of July! So today I am even more proud of my accent. I love the States, and it’s sad that I won’t be there for the fireworks. However, if I have to be away, Geiranger Norway is not a bad spot to be in. This morning I looked out on deck and saw the beautiful surroundings.

We are really lucky that today lunch was a barbeque on the crew deck. Deck 7 is reserved for crew and it’s that coveted spot at the very front of the ship. It’s beautiful. I walked out to find burgers and hot dogs set out on the deck of tables and chairs. The ship was docked in the middle of these Norwegian fjords. It was breathtaking. I enjoyed my meal with my American friends, with Jamaicans, Australians and Chileans stopping by for a quick hello.

I had to run back to the broadcast room for some work, but then when the barbeque was cleared I went to the crew deck to write in my journal. It was an out of body experience. I saw myself sitting on this deck in this northern paradise. The water sparkling at the bottom of these fjords and there I am – a tiny girl on a ship with her little notebook. I am constantly astounded at this. Waterfalls cascaded down the cliffs. It’s so peaceful. The rock faces reminded me of riding through Pennsylvania as a child. In the mist there was a mountain with snow on the top. Seagulls sang as I looked up at the highest fjord. The clouds look like their touching it and the highest peak appears to be in Heaven itself. I can’t even fathom what it must be like up there. It’s all too beautiful to wrap my head around.

I really feel like my emotions are on 24/7 roller coaster. I’m stressed one second, then relieved and laughing at myself for being stressed in the first place, then homesick, then so peaceful after watching the waves. There are nights (and I use that term loosely since the sun never really sets in Norway) where the waves are calm and misty so it looks like we’re sailing on silk. Then there are nights like tonight. The waves are undulating and it creates the most awesome blue shades when looking off the side of the ship. The spray reminds me of the Little Mermaid and I just want to push off a rock and belt “Part of Your World.” It’s really awesome, though it makes walking in the ship really difficult. I don’t get too seasick but nights like these are rough. I can’t walk in the hall without accidentally bumping into the walls. Now I can hear the water crashing and slamming into the sides of my room and I’m thanking God above that I still haven’t been too seasick – just queasy every now and then.

Like I said, it gets a little better everyday.