Forgot to put up the pics from MY Leavers Disco:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=bf232dhz.3ijv9297&x=0&y=z7vq5c&localeid=en_US
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Saturday, July 5, 2008
Friday, July 4, 2008
The Time Has Come
4 July 08
Heathrow Airport
AA Admirals Club (hee hee)
can you believe it???
I am sitting at Heathrow - all checked in; upgraded to Biz Class on American. Used miles to pay for it and it gave me a larger baggage allowance! Whew! Still had to get my large case under 32kg, so they gave me a box to dump things into. At least I didn't have to pay for that
So sitting all comfy in the Admirals Club for the next hour before they start to board my flight. Then I will get on and settle into my seat and chill out! Going to have a glass of wine and read my book ... YAY .. great way to end the contract if you ask me!
It was very tough to say good bye today .. lots of hugs and tears with Amie, Clare and Gemma. Poor Pierre, I think even he was close to it too! I am trying not to think about the fact that I am not going to be on the ship anymore. If I do, it just upsets me. I love that life and as much as I am excited to see my family and friends; it has become very routine for me. Cruising is something that has always made me happy, deep down inside. Yes sometimes being away was hard and crew life is intense at times as well. But I love the travel, I love the people (most of the time) and I have memories that I couldn't buy with all the money in the world.
.
Heathrow Airport
AA Admirals Club (hee hee)
can you believe it???
I am sitting at Heathrow - all checked in; upgraded to Biz Class on American. Used miles to pay for it and it gave me a larger baggage allowance! Whew! Still had to get my large case under 32kg, so they gave me a box to dump things into. At least I didn't have to pay for that
So sitting all comfy in the Admirals Club for the next hour before they start to board my flight. Then I will get on and settle into my seat and chill out! Going to have a glass of wine and read my book ... YAY .. great way to end the contract if you ask me!
It was very tough to say good bye today .. lots of hugs and tears with Amie, Clare and Gemma. Poor Pierre, I think even he was close to it too! I am trying not to think about the fact that I am not going to be on the ship anymore. If I do, it just upsets me. I love that life and as much as I am excited to see my family and friends; it has become very routine for me. Cruising is something that has always made me happy, deep down inside. Yes sometimes being away was hard and crew life is intense at times as well. But I love the travel, I love the people (most of the time) and I have memories that I couldn't buy with all the money in the world.
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Thursday, July 3, 2008
Ship Wish List
Ok, so here is my wish list for the Aug ships:
CCL Valor, NCL Pearl, CCL Conquest, Grand Princess, Star Princess, CCL Victory, P&O Ventura, CCL Destiny, NCL Dream, P&O Arcadia, HAL Zaandam, HAL Westerdam, HAL Rotterdam, HAL Maasdam, SS Whisper
Key:
CCL - Carnival Cruise Lines
NCL - Norwegian Cruise Lines
HAL - Holland America
SS - Silver Seas
The Valor might be a long shot since it is not available till later in the month of August; but who knows! Of those that are available in early Aug when I am due to go back, my preferences are Grand Prin, Star Prin, CCL Victory ...
So I sent in the list and I was told by Penny, our VP, that I will find out on Monday!! Woo hoo .. I will be in Philly then, but I will have my laptop and BB with me. Cross your fingers!
CCL Valor, NCL Pearl, CCL Conquest, Grand Princess, Star Princess, CCL Victory, P&O Ventura, CCL Destiny, NCL Dream, P&O Arcadia, HAL Zaandam, HAL Westerdam, HAL Rotterdam, HAL Maasdam, SS Whisper
Key:
CCL - Carnival Cruise Lines
NCL - Norwegian Cruise Lines
HAL - Holland America
SS - Silver Seas
The Valor might be a long shot since it is not available till later in the month of August; but who knows! Of those that are available in early Aug when I am due to go back, my preferences are Grand Prin, Star Prin, CCL Victory ...
So I sent in the list and I was told by Penny, our VP, that I will find out on Monday!! Woo hoo .. I will be in Philly then, but I will have my laptop and BB with me. Cross your fingers!
Ship list!!!
3 July 08
heading back to So'ton - and heading for HOME
I got the ship list today!!! woo hoo ... of course about an hour after it came in, the sat went out until just now and it is 8pm here!
We get to rank the list from 1 - 15 in order of our preferences. I will most likely be putting Grand Princess as #1 and Star Princess as # 2; they leave Aug 6th and Aug 3rd respectively.
From there on, not sure ... :) Still working that out ...
Only 29 hrs to go till I land .. at HOME!! I am excited to come home, but I have to admit I am very apprehensive about leaving the ship; what I know is so familiar to me; my little family and my good friends.
heading back to So'ton - and heading for HOME
I got the ship list today!!! woo hoo ... of course about an hour after it came in, the sat went out until just now and it is 8pm here!
We get to rank the list from 1 - 15 in order of our preferences. I will most likely be putting Grand Princess as #1 and Star Princess as # 2; they leave Aug 6th and Aug 3rd respectively.
From there on, not sure ... :) Still working that out ...
Only 29 hrs to go till I land .. at HOME!! I am excited to come home, but I have to admit I am very apprehensive about leaving the ship; what I know is so familiar to me; my little family and my good friends.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Last Port ... OH MY!
2 July 08
leaving Gothenberg Sweden
Wow, this was it! My last port .. and I didn't even go ashore LOL
I took IPM (aka In Port Tanning ha ha) for the morning, but then the Captain changed our sail time to 3pm, so it wasn't worth getting off for an hour. Especially since town was a good 20 min shuttle ride away.
So I worked this morning till 11.30 then went to an early lunch with Amie. Afterwards I didn't have much to do. So I could have done laundry (no), packed some more (nah) or read. I wanted to just chill out and read; but since it was a nice day out, I wanted to get some sun too. So I went up to Deck 4 and combined them both. Got a chair and a stool and sat out in a sleeveless tee and shorts and read. It was sooo nice. The weather was gorgeous! Was out there for a few hours, so I got some color (thank gawd) I was beginning to look as white as I am in the winter; no one would have believed I have been on a ship all these months if I came home that pale!
Just after 3 we started to sail so I went up and watched us sail away. I actually started to cry when I realized this was my last port. I won't be anywhere else in the world on this ship - maybe not *ever* again! :( So many great memories on this ship. I am going to miss it terribly!
Tonight is the Leavers Disco - Clare and I can't believe the time has come for it to be OUR Leavers Disco! Unfortunately it is the night before a sea day, so many people can't be out all night .. but we are going to party it up anyway. I don't have to get up in the am for work; I have to go down to the crew office by 10.30 and hand in my ID, collect my passport and things, as well as pay my onboard account (eek LOL) And then the rest of tomorrow will be intermittently checking in on Christine and packing everything else! Oy!
leaving Gothenberg Sweden
Wow, this was it! My last port .. and I didn't even go ashore LOL
I took IPM (aka In Port Tanning ha ha) for the morning, but then the Captain changed our sail time to 3pm, so it wasn't worth getting off for an hour. Especially since town was a good 20 min shuttle ride away.
So I worked this morning till 11.30 then went to an early lunch with Amie. Afterwards I didn't have much to do. So I could have done laundry (no), packed some more (nah) or read. I wanted to just chill out and read; but since it was a nice day out, I wanted to get some sun too. So I went up to Deck 4 and combined them both. Got a chair and a stool and sat out in a sleeveless tee and shorts and read. It was sooo nice. The weather was gorgeous! Was out there for a few hours, so I got some color (thank gawd) I was beginning to look as white as I am in the winter; no one would have believed I have been on a ship all these months if I came home that pale!
Just after 3 we started to sail so I went up and watched us sail away. I actually started to cry when I realized this was my last port. I won't be anywhere else in the world on this ship - maybe not *ever* again! :( So many great memories on this ship. I am going to miss it terribly!
Tonight is the Leavers Disco - Clare and I can't believe the time has come for it to be OUR Leavers Disco! Unfortunately it is the night before a sea day, so many people can't be out all night .. but we are going to party it up anyway. I don't have to get up in the am for work; I have to go down to the crew office by 10.30 and hand in my ID, collect my passport and things, as well as pay my onboard account (eek LOL) And then the rest of tomorrow will be intermittently checking in on Christine and packing everything else! Oy!
Catching up ... Copenhagen Denmark
1 July 08
I have to say Copenhagen is probably the nicest major city we have been to in the baltic. It is very pretty, very clean, very upscale and very European. Don't get me wrong, I loved St Petersburg, but that was different. Copenhagen seemed new, even if the buildings had older type architecture looks to them. Of course the weather was fantastic, so that always helps!
After a pretty late night out the night before (it was my "I'm Not Married Anymore" Anniversary party) we all planned on a lie in and then lunch at 12.30. There was no rush to get up and go anywhere since we weren't sailing till midnight from Copenhagen.
Amie, Pierre, Gemma and I had lunch then we all went down to get dressed to go out for the day. We planned to come back later to change since we wanted to go out that night as well. After wandering around by the pier looking for the mermaid (a Copenhagen icon) we took the bus from the pier to the city center and since Amie and Clare had been to Copenhagen on their first cruise, they knew the city. We got off on the main square and then walked down the shopping street. We had a nice wander around and up and down the streets. The girls wanted to shop, so I sat at an outdoor cafe with Pierre while the girls went into H&M. However, they got on a shopping fix, so eventually I left. I was not into shopping at the mo. And I was not about to spend silly amounts of money on things I could 1) get at home cheaper and 2) would have to carry home with me! I wanted to go back and shower before going out that night; so I took the bus back to the pier and did just that. I came up to work for a little bit to check on Christine to see how she was doing. She seems to be getting on well so I think she will be fine come tomorrow when I hand over all the keys, etc to her.
Once everyone came back to the ship - the next plan was to meet at 8 and go back into the city to the Absolut Ice Bar. Supposed to be like the one in Norway, but better; and it was! The one in Norway was in someone's warehouse. This was in an upscale hotel and a posh looking bar. It was pretty amazing. I didn't last too long in there; maybe only 20 or so mins. I really am not liking the cold as much as I used to. I will take the warm sunshine anyday! So one of the new girls from the casino (Marguarite) and I came out and warmed up in the courtyard. The weather was still so nice - even at 9.30pm. I think everyone was out by 9.45 or so. And since we had to be back on the ship by 11.30, we wanted to use our time wisely.
The girls (Gemma and Clare) had spotted a Scottish pub when we were getting out by the Ice Bar that was in the Tivoli Square, so they wanted to go there. Some of us were starving as we hadn't eaten since lunch (other than a hotdog - which are supposedly a popular item in Copenhagen) so we stopped at .. (insert drul roll here) .. Burger King! I tell you, I won't need to be looking for fast food when I get home!! I want home cooked everything .. beware parents!! :)
So after a quick bite we headed over to the Scottish pub where we spent the last hour or so until we had to get a taxi back to the ship. It was a great day!
Copenhagen pics:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=bf232dhz.84l4mzez&x=0&y=-drcuaj&localeid=en_US
.
I have to say Copenhagen is probably the nicest major city we have been to in the baltic. It is very pretty, very clean, very upscale and very European. Don't get me wrong, I loved St Petersburg, but that was different. Copenhagen seemed new, even if the buildings had older type architecture looks to them. Of course the weather was fantastic, so that always helps!
After a pretty late night out the night before (it was my "I'm Not Married Anymore" Anniversary party) we all planned on a lie in and then lunch at 12.30. There was no rush to get up and go anywhere since we weren't sailing till midnight from Copenhagen.
Amie, Pierre, Gemma and I had lunch then we all went down to get dressed to go out for the day. We planned to come back later to change since we wanted to go out that night as well. After wandering around by the pier looking for the mermaid (a Copenhagen icon) we took the bus from the pier to the city center and since Amie and Clare had been to Copenhagen on their first cruise, they knew the city. We got off on the main square and then walked down the shopping street. We had a nice wander around and up and down the streets. The girls wanted to shop, so I sat at an outdoor cafe with Pierre while the girls went into H&M. However, they got on a shopping fix, so eventually I left. I was not into shopping at the mo. And I was not about to spend silly amounts of money on things I could 1) get at home cheaper and 2) would have to carry home with me! I wanted to go back and shower before going out that night; so I took the bus back to the pier and did just that. I came up to work for a little bit to check on Christine to see how she was doing. She seems to be getting on well so I think she will be fine come tomorrow when I hand over all the keys, etc to her.
Once everyone came back to the ship - the next plan was to meet at 8 and go back into the city to the Absolut Ice Bar. Supposed to be like the one in Norway, but better; and it was! The one in Norway was in someone's warehouse. This was in an upscale hotel and a posh looking bar. It was pretty amazing. I didn't last too long in there; maybe only 20 or so mins. I really am not liking the cold as much as I used to. I will take the warm sunshine anyday! So one of the new girls from the casino (Marguarite) and I came out and warmed up in the courtyard. The weather was still so nice - even at 9.30pm. I think everyone was out by 9.45 or so. And since we had to be back on the ship by 11.30, we wanted to use our time wisely.
The girls (Gemma and Clare) had spotted a Scottish pub when we were getting out by the Ice Bar that was in the Tivoli Square, so they wanted to go there. Some of us were starving as we hadn't eaten since lunch (other than a hotdog - which are supposedly a popular item in Copenhagen) so we stopped at .. (insert drul roll here) .. Burger King! I tell you, I won't need to be looking for fast food when I get home!! I want home cooked everything .. beware parents!! :)
So after a quick bite we headed over to the Scottish pub where we spent the last hour or so until we had to get a taxi back to the ship. It was a great day!
Copenhagen pics:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=bf232dhz.84l4mzez&x=0&y=-drcuaj&localeid=en_US
.
The countdown is on!
2 July 08
62 hours from now and I will be landing at JFK airport in NY!! OMG, I just can't believe it; I am having mixed emotions about leaving the ship. This has been my home for the last 5 1/2 months. It will be very wierd being home, not working, living in NY. But I have missed my family and friends so I am glad to be going home to see them. I also have missed everyday things, like driving, going to the store, my dog, etc. Not to mention decent, non-british, food! :)
I have to catch up with my pics from Copenhagen yesterday .. I will post that in a little while. But I have gotten a few emails asking where I was .. so I am posting to let you know I am still here, working with my new girl to get her sorted for Friday and trying to get packed!
62 hours from now and I will be landing at JFK airport in NY!! OMG, I just can't believe it; I am having mixed emotions about leaving the ship. This has been my home for the last 5 1/2 months. It will be very wierd being home, not working, living in NY. But I have missed my family and friends so I am glad to be going home to see them. I also have missed everyday things, like driving, going to the store, my dog, etc. Not to mention decent, non-british, food! :)
I have to catch up with my pics from Copenhagen yesterday .. I will post that in a little while. But I have gotten a few emails asking where I was .. so I am posting to let you know I am still here, working with my new girl to get her sorted for Friday and trying to get packed!
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