I think on this blog i'm going to write backwards, because I keep forgetting to write a little every day.
It is now about 2:30am september 5th and I just left the crew bar where we had a black and white party. A buddy VJ did a drumming act with a DJ which was a great time.
Earlier in the day Matt and I got off the ship in Suva Fiji and did some shopping. I got a shirt, socks and jeans. Suva is a great place to go shopping because they have great prices and cool cloths. When we got off the ship, there were many locals trying to sell stuff to the tourist and some of them were not to nice. They would pretty much try to make you buy things and even get upset if you didn't.
Matt and I walked passed a man that was selling stuff and the man said boo-la (hello). He came over and asked our names and where we were from. When Matt told him his name the man immediately started to carve matts name in a piece of wood and then tried to make Matt buy it. And so the man won and Matt spent 20 Australian dollars (which is 45 fiji dollars) on three little pieces of wood. The man was pretty upset with me because he was trying to get more money from Matt and I was telling Matt that he already over paid the guy. Matt did not know the money difference of the country’s at that time. I was a little nervous that something bad could have maybe happened.. After wards when we got on the ship I was told that there was an announcement to not tell people your name and to just keep walking if you don't want to buy something. Some of the locals sometimes do get violent.
They day before which was sept 2nd, we ported at the coolest place ever which was Denarau, Fiji. The weather was gorgeous and we had such a blast. Cole, Danielle, Ged, Emmi, Ross and I went Jet skiing. We were hoping to be able to go where ever we wanted but we had to stay within certain boundaries. Emmi and I shared a jet-ski which was nice because it was cheaper and more fun. We took turns and all of us just messed around. At one time I took a turn and “accidentally” threw Emmi off the jet ski. Because of this I now have three big gashes on the side of my stomach from her claws trying to grip as she went flying. It was a lot of fun!! We then went to the Hard Rock Cafe in Fiji and had some drinks and then ate at Bone Fish where we had tons of sea food, burgers, and two huge towers of beer. Pictures are on facebook. That day, no one wanted to get back on the ship. I just made it back in time to play my sets. I was suppose to have IPM which means I would have had have stayed on the ship, but I was able to find someone to switch. When we returned to the ship I had just enough time to shower get dressed, grab my instruments and head to connections. Matt and I played 45 minutes and took a 15 minute break and then did that two more times, I love it. Then you do what ever you want, either chill somewhere on the ship or hang out with everyone in the crew bar.
I wrote this September 5th at 11:30pm
The ship: There are over 700 crew on this ship and over 30 different nationalities. Everyone has there unique job; electrician, maintenance, cooks, cleaners, Engineers, Photographers (photogs), Receptionists (Shoppies), Entertainment, and so much more. Some people people where uniforms with stripes on there shoulders which give them higher rank than other. Everyone is really cool.
As I keep going in reverse; on the 30th of August we went to port Vila and Zach and I hung out that day. Zach is the guitarist for the party cover band. As I was printing music the night before the 30th, he came in and asked me what I was going to do the next day. I said I didn't have plans yet and he said good, we are going surfing! I was so excited because that is one of the main things I've been wanting to do. Him and I got up and ate breakfast and then jumped into a taxi. The man drove us to the surfing area and when we got there the tide was really low. I think it is suppose to be a morning or evening sport sometimes. There was some waves but we decided to wait for better conditions. It was two shallow where the waves were breaking. We then got bake into the taxi and drove to the other side of the island of Vila which took about 20 minutes and went to the Cascade waterfalls. As we got out of the taxi we had to hike about a half mile up along water to get to the falls. It was the prettiest thing ever. It is definitely a place to take you significant other.. but it was still fun kicking it with Zach. I took a bunch of pics and videos, we jumped off some of the falls into pools of water and climbed the rocks and went into mini caves and stuff. It is a must if you go to Vila. Zach and I then jumped back into the same cab drivers car, because that is what the cabs do there. We then got dropped off at a pizza place in the city and ate some great food. After that we decided to jog back to the ship which was about a 25 min jog.
It is a craziness for the cab drivers to get someone in there car and when they do they will wait for you and take you back. We each paid 40 dollars for the cab for the day, and the driver waited 2 hours till we got back. When they get someone in there cab they try to stay with them for the day. When we got in the cab the drivers friends would be jealous or proud. I heard from someone that they went to get a cab and there were many drivers trying to get them and they were trying to get the cheapest price. One cab guy said 15 dollars and another said 12 and so the people went into the cheaper cab. The other man ended up walking over to the cheaper cab and started punching him in the face as they were leaving. Some people can be really pushy and really work hard for the money they make off us tourists.
The day before this day which was August we ported at Mystery Island. This was my second time there, but it is a really nice beach island. Matt came with and we laid on the beach with all the shoppies. We played football and drank some fruity drinks. Another guy named Matt (who I think is in a Shoppy), Chantelle and I went out snorkeling. We swam together and saw a bunch of cool looking fish. The fish in the sea are so amazing. There are so many different colors and you never know what you will find. I found a big blue star fish and I think I saw a tuna fish as well. It was big but had a weird looking mouth. Some other people said they saw a stingray. I love snorkeling!! We normally have to get on the ship about 3:30pm and normally don't get off till about 11am or so.
The first port on this cruise was Ilse of pines. Matt, Adam and I hangout this day and chilled. Matt read most of the day and I and Adam snorkeled and then sunbathed by Matt. This place had the whitest beaches and was also fun to snorkel. The only down side of this island was how cold the water was, so it took a little to get in.
Everyday on sea days, I try to get up at a “decent hour”(Between (9:30 and noon :)), eat, workout, shower and do what ever work is necessary for myself. I feel working out is very important on a ship because otherwise I would go nuts! Sometimes we are at sea for 3 full days and you see the same things and do the same things and it is so nice when you get off the ship. It is also so good to just go outside on the top of the ship and just chill, look at the ocean and breath the fresh air. That always makes me happy.
On a music stand point, I try to keep learning new tunes because we get sick of playing the same songs sometimes. It is also important because this cruise is 14 days long and play for some of the same people Id like to have lots of variety. I feel Matt and I are doing well with that, but the more the better. We have a lot of music but there are certain songs that the audience always likes and gets them going so we play those when necessary. I hope to start writing more music soon as well..
The night life is crazy for us entertainers.. well.. and for the shoppies, spa girls and photags. We all hang out pretty much every night in the crew bar. The crew bar is a big bar with a dance floor, intelligent lighting when its a dance night and chairs and booths all along the out side. We play foos ball a lot and hang with everyone. Sometimes before 3am we see who is dressed the most appropriate or who has there name badge with them and have that person go get pizzas. If you leave the crew area you need to be dressed appropriately with yorr name badge. We also would have pizza party's at someones cabin as well.
The entertainment staff sometimes can get ripped on because we only “work” 3 or 4 hours a day. Which in some cases I would agree with the “unfairness”, but as a musician I could not sing anymore than what I do. But I do feel bad for some of the other workers who really bust there buts for sometimes 11 hours everyday and do that everyday. The workers are all so cool and everyone is so nice. Its like a mini family/village. Everyone does there job on the ship to make it a float.
So far so good! I am doing well! Matt and I only had one argument but as men it gets worked out really quick. Neither of us have tried to through the other over board so we are good! Him and I are doing well and are loving our jobs. It sometimes gets repetitive but port days wash that clean. If anyone has any questions email me or facebook me. Actually I haven’t checked my email in about a week or more.. Ill get on that. Maybe I would blog about peoples questions.. hmm. It is now 11:45pm which makes it about 6:35am in the states and Im going to see whats up at the crew bar. Love and miss you!!
No comments:
Post a Comment