Holidays With Dolphins...
Another Thanksgiving on board. It was an interesting one. We were docked in Aruba. I did miss the land amenities of the US where I could wake up in the morning in my pajamas; Turn on the TV to see the start of the Macy’s Parade while brewing some coffee on a cold day; Have some breakfast while lounging about watching at least the first portion of the parade that contains the Broadway tid bits; and then preparing for the evening feast before taking the rest of the day as relaxation while everything simmers. Instead I woke up and had to clean up and spruce up right away in order to eat breakfast. I sat in the library (working) for a few hours since we were short staffed on cruise staff and I was stuck on board that day. I had a little snack and then went to the gym. I got my hair clipped and went for a new look. We’re getting ready to leave the ship so I washed some costumes to get them clean for the next cast. That night the feast consisted of Northwestern cuisine. We had reservations at the Pinnacle Grill (which is the specialty restaurant on board) where I had smoked duck and a dirty vodka martini to start; Chicken marsala with sides of risotto, mushrooms, and scalloped potatoes with a glass of Reisling for dinner; And a slice of pumpkin pie for dessert with some cappuccino. The pumpkin pie was the only reminder that it was Thanksgiving. Oh well. Afterward we headed up to the lido deck party where one of our kind waiters gave us unlimited pina coladas in a pineapple for free. Now that’s what I call a treat. Needless to say I was extremely full. So that was another reminder that it was Thanksgiving.
We all missed D-Day the next day (and I’m kind of glad about that one). I always hated crowds and to be in malls or even in NYC that day would have been horrific. Especially since there were mad sales and stores opening as early as 4:30am! Instead I had a lovely morning in Curacao kissing and petting dolphins. It was an amazing experience. They swam right up to us and we learned all about their behaviors and got to touch them right there in the pool.
We learned hand signals that made them do different things and watched a show right after where they jumped, twirled, and demonstrated their swimming abilities. After that early excursion, we headed to Mambo Beach where we had 4 hours of fun in the sun. I got a little too much, but hopefully that’ll turn into a nice tan. I crashed afterward since the day started at 6:30am for me. Oy!!
We’re in the home stretch. Only 4 more days to go. I'm going through tons of emotions. In a cast you have this family of people. In a land show there's that sense of family too, but multiply it by 10 or more for a cruise ship. A ship cast is like a land family at first when you're in rehearsals. Although still slightly different because you live with most of them, but still have that space. On a ship, it's all blown up out of proportion. You live, eat, party, and work with your cast. The quarters are so tight that this intense safety and family feeling just grow. It can go in 2 directions. The extremely bad or extremely good. There's really no in between. We've been together for so long now, it's going to be hard to let go. This cast went in the direction of the extremely good. Oy!! This business is tough seeing people come and go sometimes. No wonder actors all have such tough skins or at least appear to. So, it's mixed feelings here. The politics of ship life make me can't wait to get home and see everyone, but my heartstrings are getting tugged by the thought of leaving this great family. We already began to take in the loss when one of our singers left us a month ago, and one of our dancers months before that, but to say goodbye is STILL going to be difficult. The acting business is a small one, so I'm sure to see SOMEONE again someday. I hope to stay in touch and see where life takes them as well as myself. I already know that so far I'll be working with Chris again. It'll be fabulous. I may even get to work with more from our group. Who knows? I hope I can. Right now we say goodbye to each show with a heavy heart (well, except H2Oh!! Of course) and a glass of champagne. Now that’s the way to end a contract.
We all missed D-Day the next day (and I’m kind of glad about that one). I always hated crowds and to be in malls or even in NYC that day would have been horrific. Especially since there were mad sales and stores opening as early as 4:30am! Instead I had a lovely morning in Curacao kissing and petting dolphins. It was an amazing experience. They swam right up to us and we learned all about their behaviors and got to touch them right there in the pool.
We learned hand signals that made them do different things and watched a show right after where they jumped, twirled, and demonstrated their swimming abilities. After that early excursion, we headed to Mambo Beach where we had 4 hours of fun in the sun. I got a little too much, but hopefully that’ll turn into a nice tan. I crashed afterward since the day started at 6:30am for me. Oy!!
We’re in the home stretch. Only 4 more days to go. I'm going through tons of emotions. In a cast you have this family of people. In a land show there's that sense of family too, but multiply it by 10 or more for a cruise ship. A ship cast is like a land family at first when you're in rehearsals. Although still slightly different because you live with most of them, but still have that space. On a ship, it's all blown up out of proportion. You live, eat, party, and work with your cast. The quarters are so tight that this intense safety and family feeling just grow. It can go in 2 directions. The extremely bad or extremely good. There's really no in between. We've been together for so long now, it's going to be hard to let go. This cast went in the direction of the extremely good. Oy!! This business is tough seeing people come and go sometimes. No wonder actors all have such tough skins or at least appear to. So, it's mixed feelings here. The politics of ship life make me can't wait to get home and see everyone, but my heartstrings are getting tugged by the thought of leaving this great family. We already began to take in the loss when one of our singers left us a month ago, and one of our dancers months before that, but to say goodbye is STILL going to be difficult. The acting business is a small one, so I'm sure to see SOMEONE again someday. I hope to stay in touch and see where life takes them as well as myself. I already know that so far I'll be working with Chris again. It'll be fabulous. I may even get to work with more from our group. Who knows? I hope I can. Right now we say goodbye to each show with a heavy heart (well, except H2Oh!! Of course) and a glass of champagne. Now that’s the way to end a contract.
posted by Chris | 1:55 PM
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