day 84 – at sea

we are sailing between yemen and somalia by the horn of africa… pirates recently nabbed a tanker the other day here, and now all the tankers are traveling in convoys with military ships leading the way… our captain let us know that according to all his recent intelligence sources that no unauthorized craft were anywhere in our comfort zone… whew!

there are the soul pirates, though (“argh! steal your soul!”)… i definitely am reaching the time in the cruise where i have to spend a little time below decks and make sure that in addition to working, prepping for work and maintaining positive daily interactions continually with guests and colleagues, there is some real self-care going on each day in terms of eating well, resting well, quality bob time, some quiet time, and some veg time… everyone who says hi or stops to chat is just being nice, and 90% of those i am fine with, because i like the folks in general… it’s the ones who come over while you are having lunch with your husband and want to ask about obscure tunes, or the people who corner you or get too close to you, breathing on you or touching you (i hate that), which freaks me out because i spend a lot of energy trying not to get sick out here in this closed container of germs that is a ship with 2000 people on it… i told bob today that tomorrow i was going to be a little bird in a shoebox under a lamp recovering my depleted chi and being serene since i feel a bit vulnerable…  when that little alarm in my soul goes off, i now go into semi-hibernation mode until i feel less sensitive and can give good energy from a sense of overflow, not because it’s a requirement… usually if i have enough rest, i will always be fine, so that is the first thing i amp up on when i feel a little fragile… and i really have to build up my psychic teflon for the last leg of this journey and not let anything or anyone get under my skin… the new people who have boarded recently remind me to treat the whole room and my longtimers as if it were my first night out, and when i am mindful of this, i always have a good night…

my theme tonight went with the dessert extravaganza upstairs tonight, i called it “how sweet it is”… they had a hedonistic orgy of chocolate at 9:30, which definitely took a chunk out of my room, but i still had some folks who came back… i was reflecting that with all the different theme nights and other general set lists i have prepared for this voyage, i will never have to do major prep for any smaller voyage again… i could now go out for a two week alaska cruise and never repeat myself and have a themed set for every hour of every night if i wanted… that’s a solid feeling!  i have kept adding some new songs and am going to do a major push in the next several days to add several of the requests i have gotten recently before the end of the trip… i can’t believe i am under four weeks to the end now… it will be very exciting to get home to nino and the fam, and also great to know that even though bob stays on board, he will be relocating to seattle for the alaska season, and i can see him on port days… i might scoop nino up to go on a quick cruise this summer if they have open space on bob’s ship… if we can find a way with our other adventures we’ll try!  cheers, mama

day 83 – salalah, oman

please know that blog and phone calls may be spotty... there is scrambling from naval ships nearby interfering, but be glad, as they are keeping the pirates away!  sorry i couldn't call nino and brett, as phones are out... i'll try again tomorrow...

bins of frankincense at the old souk

so bob had a mandatory training this morning, and i had not been chosen to do a crew escort spot, so i went to the shore excursions folks to see if there was any room left on a tour… they had space on a half day trip called “leisurely salalah,” so i grabbed it…. the bonus aspect of waiting ‘til the last bus, is that the last one isn’t entirely full, so i didn’t have to sit next to anyone.  not only did i have room to put down my bag and water bottle, but, being morning and all, i didn’t feel all chatty, i just wanted to enjoy the scenery…

the port is quite industrial and huge here… we finally got through it and headed towards the mountains.  our first stop was the tomb of the prophet job.  i didn’t realize that besides the jewish and christain faiths, he was also a prophet in the muslim faith, and they maintain his tomb site and a mosque in the place where he retired and lived out his days after the many tribulations he suffered.  i had no idea!  what a cool thing to see…  we had to remove our shoes and cover our hair to go inside to see… they claim to have cast his actual footprint, and we saw it and it was huge!  not only that, so was his tomb, and one guide said that, indeed, he was a giant of a man, and, that in biblical times, there really were some very large individuals you could actually categorize as giants… i was dubious about the footprint, but the tomb site was cool, as was the area where he allegedly prayed every day that they had maintained… the flowers around the grounds and the birds were amazing… on the way there as well as on the grounds, there are camels everywhere.  i had never seen a camel except in the zoo… they are like cows here, they wander and graze all day and head back to their respective barns at night, and they all know where they live… many people here drink camel milk and they also eat camel meat, so they are very much like cattle here.  they do have some cows and sheep, too, but mosly camels.  they also race camels at tracks like horses, but no one is allowed to bet… the sultan does a drawing and gives money away to tickets drawn, but you are not allowed to bet on the races. 

termite mounds

beautiful flowers near job's tomb

yellow bird in center and hanging round nests of grass

job's giant tomb

job's place of prayer

if you look closely, she's wearing camel panties and smiling

hard to see, but this is job's enormo footprint, allegedly

fig tree

after job’s tomb, we went to the town of salalah, and parked next to the palace grounds where there is a souk (market) which has been there for hundreds of years.  oman was a hub of the frankincense trade and it is still a huge product here.  i got some sandalwood incense and a censer and a cheap, but pretty, caftan style dress which many women wear here (sans head gear… and no one called me a whore today, by the way!)

after a quick market stop, we drove out to the coast and through some interesting areas… we saw homes and stretches of desert… caves where the bedouins used to live, government housing that has been built for them so they don’t have to live in tents, though they still like to in some places… gorgeous white sand beaches, and there were places where they have great ocean blowholes when the tides in, but it wasn’t in while we were there… still beautiful!  and no one is on the beaches… maybe because they all have to wear clothes.  seems a waste of amazing beach!  on the way back, we stopped to see a lone frankincense tree and heard how the resin is collected.  we gradually made our way back to the ship and i met back up with bob for a late lunch and to tell him about the day.  had to write my port song and take a rest, then it was time for another evening!

deserted white sand beaches of oman

faces in cliffs by the sea

lone frankincense tree in the desert... very tim burton-y 

we were invited to join a nice couple of my piano bar regulars for dinner, and had the best time.  they spent several years living in saudi arabia, so have some interesting tales about their life living in this part of the world, and their table mates were very entertaining as well… too many anecdotes to relate here, but the dinner was quite good and the company was great.  we skipped dessert to go to work; bob always walks me to work and carries my gig bag o’ technology for me (laptop, ipad, mic, paper and pens)… what a guy!  my theme tonight was “soft rock.”  it wasn’t really landing until i let them choose the groups, and then we hit a nice stride (eagles, fleetwood mac, carly simon, paul mccartney…).  then, big surprise, after another hot and sunny day of activity everyone folded up fairly early…  that’s okay, i went down the hall to catch the end of bob’s set… i enjoy it more from just outside the club since there is a late night table of about 8-10 people in there every night ‘til the end who talk loudly and constantly, seemingly all at once… i don’t know how any of them can stand it… i can’t! 

we have to get ready now for four days at sea… wish us strength!  i love the sea days, some of our folks out here get a little antsy (cranky) after that 3^rd sea day… hope it goes smoothly!  ciao, me

port song for salalah, oman

to the tune of “a horse with no name”

on the first part of the journey, we went driving into the hills
there were plants and birds. and termite bumps; there were camels with single humps

the first place we went was the tomb of old job and we saw his footprint in the ground
they never told me though in sunday school he was a sasquatch,

15 foot tall from the ground 

i dreamed, I've been through the desert on a camel with no name,

it wore underwear not ‘cause it’s ashamed

but to protect her milk from being prematurely drained

so that at days end for the owner some would remain
sa, la, la la la la, sa la la, la, la
sa, la, la la la la, sa la la, la, la

after coming down out of the desert, in town the bus driver stopped

we pulled up right next to the palace gates, and we went to the old souk to shop

and we had 30 minutes to buy everything in it, and we turbo shopped til we dropped 

after buying some stuff we drove down to the sea, but the blowholes we couldn’t see

but there were beaches and birds with no one there to enjoy 
didn’t see no girls and boys
we drove into the desert to a frankincense tree all by itself there it grew

and we saw the milky sap that makes the incense i bought

and we took some pictures too

i dreamed, I've been through the desert on a camel with no name, 
and i wished mighty hard it would rain
i bought a fanta by the seashore with it’s arabic name

and though the can was all different the soda pop was the same  
sa, la, la la la la, sa la la, la, la
sa, la, la la la la, sa la la, la, la

i dreamed i’ve been through the desert on a camel with no name

i saw a bigfoot prophet’s remains

i bought some souvenir crap til my allowance was drained

and the day was real cool and i’m so glad i came to

sa, la, la la la la, sa la la, la, la
sa, la, la la la la, sa la la, la, la

day 82 – at sea

today was lovely… some sea days are just better than others… i didn’t sleep much last night because our a/c wasn’t working properly… yikes!  considering that my room is right next to the gangway and gets a bit warmer than other areas with the open wall letting the 90-100 degree heat in, the a/c is kind of vital to my well being and ability to sleep… i put in a work order in the middle of the night with guest services to try and get the ball rolling as early as possible tho i’m s’posed to report repairs at 9 am to our human resource office… i wasn’t about to wait that long!  anyway, they did finally fix it - yay!  i can think again (and sleep!). 

in spite of being a bit sleepy, bob and i still had a great day, just enjoying the time together and trying to get as much as we can from this time we have together.  i find that the whole being at sea thing has helped me put a sharp focus on what really matters in life, and that is easy for me – my family, friends and music… not much else really matters!  when i am out here, i work hard at what i do and try and make myself irreplaceable, and with bob here, we enjoy our days together with the changing scenery and sights, sounds, smells and tastes… when i am home, i look forward to being completely home and hugging my babies, cooking, the comfort of my own bed, being able to chat with my folks on the phone or get out to breakfast with my dad… all the day to day normal things, like shopping and cooking, stuff many folks find irritating, become very enjoyable, and each dinner together is like a special occasion… the gift of having to miss the ones i love is realizing how lucky i am and how much i love them! 

it’s an interesting mix of people you find who work at sea, and one large subgroup is people who are either running from something or have nothing to go home to… that is very sad, and also underlines for me once again how lucky i am.  anyway, today has been another day that makes me know in a very deep and certain way just how blessed i am and how much i love my amazing kid, my folks and family members, my friends, my wonderful husband, my opportunities, music, my adorable dog… life is so good!

my theme tonight was a repeat, “in the garden,” with songs about flowers, trees, etc.  my cocktail and theme sets were good as usual, and once again, it was a lot of early nighters in prep for early arrival to salalah, oman, tomorrow.  i didn’t get picked as a crew escort for a guest tour, and since bob has a compulsory class to go to, and i don’t want to get extorted for major cab fare back from town (rumor has it you get a good rate to town and then they charge you 3x on the way back ‘cause you have no choice being 14 miles from the ship!), i am going to see if they have any extra seats tomorrow on tours and try to ‘fly standby.’  if i can’t, i’ll just chill with bob for the day, and that would be good, too!  more soon… xo, di

day 81 – muscat, oman

ceiling detail of panel at muttrah souk entrance

we docked in oman early this morning, closer to muttrah than to muscat, actually… the first thing we noticed was the cool landscape!  mountains, different than i’ve seen before, and i’ve seen lots of mountains… depending on where you are, they are so different, and just like the vegetation or wildlife changes, so do the mountains… these rocky peaks are dotted all over with forts from the 1500-1600’s… in the harbor, there was a huge swanky yacht, which belongs to the sultan of oman, and various cargo ships, tankers and police boats.  apparently, a navy ship intercepted a couple of pirate vessels off the coast of oman yesterday, and this area is well-policed and patrolled…

there was a free shuttle into muttrah, so we decided to take it and explore what there was to see.  oman is a bit more traditional than dubai, and we were asked to wear long pants and sleeves to the wrist.  if we wanted to visit any mosques, we would have to wear a headscarf as well.  i did take a scarf with me in my purse, not knowing if we would visit a mosque or not, and i dressed in a long white shirt with a collar buttoned to the neck and long sleeves, long pants and closed shoes… as we walked around waiting for the shops to open, a big black bmw drove by and the arab guy driving shouted “whore” out the window at me, presumably, because my head was not covered, or maybe that i am an american, or a little of both.  that was kind of a cool and unique souvenir!  i mean, that sort of thing doesn’t happen every day!  i wondered for a moment if i should put my scarf on, then on the main street noticed that not only were the other tourists not wearing them, even a few local women were not, so i was, like, “whatever!  it’s 90 freakin’ degrees at 10 in the morning!”  the rest of the day, most people were at least tolerant and a few even kind and gracious, so i didn’t want to judge the whole place by one asshole… but it’s not so neat, a place where the women are expected to cover themselves entirely in black, even their heads and faces, and the guys get to wear white cotton… i’m all about respecting other cultures and stuff, but, i’m sorry, that really sucks!

coast line with cool fort remains from 1600's on top

rooftops over marketplace

sultan's yacht and traditional wooden dhow in front

omani hills from deck of ship

monument shaped like incense censer

port scene with cargo containers

as to the best parts of muttrah, besides the rugged coastal landscape, they have a wonderful souk (marketplace) there… like a middle eastern pike place market… typical items you find in an omani souk: fragrant oils, fancy glass bottles to put them in (like the one you got me at christmas that came from egypt, nino!), various amazing raw incenses, in fact, frankincense is a huge thing here, and it used to be as valuable as gold… there’s also lots of rugs, quilts, fabric, hookahs, knives, gold and silver items, oil lamps, candle lamps, wooden and inlay boxes of every size, trunks and chests, religious icons, statues of animals, and so many other interesting trinkets… the shopkeepers are assertive but not overly aggressive, and you can bargain with them to get a fair price.  bob was a master yesterday, and got most all our souvenir items at a good discount… one candle lamp we picked up for nino took 3 trips to the same guy and had him finally following us a considerable way down the sidewalk to take bob’s final asking price (almost half off). 

inside muttrah souk

many hallways of shops

frankincense vendor - all bags behind him full of varying grades of this fragrant resin

hookahs, daggers and trinkets, oh my!

glass perfumed oil bottles

i didn't know if nino has ever seen an old school pop top 

we looked for a middle eastern restaurant, but could not find one people would recommend that was open, so we ended up at a very nice indian restaurant.  there is a fairly large indian population in the middle east, and lucky for us, it was a fabulous place with excellent food and very nice décor (and air conditioned!).  it got up to about 100 degrees, so we appreciated the cool break indoors with cold drinks and great indian food… thai was always my favorite ethnic fare, still love it, but i think indian has officially surpassed it now that we have sampled amazing examples of authentic northern and southern indian cuisines…

my theme tonight was “if i could talk to the animals,” but the whole night after 9 was scooped by the captain’s birthday party in the crow’s nest with half-priced drinks and free hors d’ouevres… needless to say, only my real hardcore piano bar constituents happened by for awhile and my house was pretty thin from 9-close… people who did come were a bit sun-dazed and didn’t know what they wanted when i asked for requests, so i drove the bus and played whatever i felt like based on what i knew of the people in there… we have several folks who just got on in dubai who are fun.  i do miss some of the cool peeps who have left (are you out there, jansen?  steve?  walter?  jean?  the rest of you, you know who you are!), too… i can’t believe how fast the time is rolling!  less than a month left… i can’t believe it!  hope you all are well… xo, me (imperialist american whore and happy to be so… i wouldn’t trade places for anything!)

port song for muscat, oman

(to the tune of “climb every mountain” from “the sound of music”)

i prefer the mountains

to buildings, you know

i’d rather be in oman sun

than dubai’s electric glow

find every bargain,

the souk, a haggler’s dream

the colors of the rainbow

in every storefront scene

my luggage won’t hold

all the treasures oman can give

but without all this stuff

how on earth will i live

frankincense and charcoal,

a censer and a lamp,

and a gorgeous caftan

all cheap because bob’s a bargaining champ! 

day 80 – at sea

we left dubai this morning, and since we were still docked here overnight, i gave myself ‘til this evening to do the port song… so today i had to write that, do my blog, meet with my friend brianna for a hang time before she goes home (some time soon, not sure which port) and bob and i had to clean our room for a cabin inspection tomorrow morning…

by the way, bob and louise have been seeing a bit of each other… you remember, louise, my ipad… bob is my tech wizard who takes documents from word and pdf files and puts them onto my ipad for me… he’s a genius, and he's awesome, and he does so much to make my life easier that i would certainly be stopped in my tracks without him!  he has really helped me to streamline my whole process out here so much; to get rid of stacks of papers and books and get them all onto this sleek little ipad… what a world!  what a husband!

my theme tonight was “the music of the beatles.”  everyone seems to love the beatles, and, for as controversial as they used to be, they sure seem pretty tame compared to a lot of what has come since… when people request the beatles, i ask if they want pretty beatles, silly beatles or rockin’ beatles… it all fits into one of those groups.  i had a really good 7-8 crowd and 9-10 was ok… it slowed way down after 10:30, and many folks have early tours in oman since we dock at 7.  here is the dubai port song… enjoy!  xo, me

port song for dubai, united arab emirates

(to the tune of hal kemp orchestra’s “with plenty of money and you”)

(note:  first four lines are original lyrics, not mine)

oh baby what i couldn’t do

with plenty of money and you

in spite of the worries that money brings

just a little filthy loot can buy a lot of things

and i would take you to shop at the dubai mall

cause there i am sure you could buy it all

we’ll just bring all our plastic, and it will be fantastic

oh i tell you honey, that life could be sunny with plenty of money and you

if fashion is what you are looking for,

they have four major world class dept. stores

and countless boutiques there of every kind,

whether east or west in style of dress you need to find

and if you need to take a break for some coffee,

there’s a starbux on each level 1 2 or 3

and if you want some diamonds, i’m quite sure we’ll find ‘em

oh i tell you honey, that life could be sunny with plenty of money and you

there’s all types of folks in this melting pot,

the have’s who shop here and the one’s who work who have not

i see women in burkha’s and plain flat shoes,

so who’s meant to shop for high spiked heels at jimmy choo’s

and that cute little wisp of a cocktail dress

from catherine malandrino, well i just can’t guess

who the heck’s s’posed to buy ‘em if they can’t ever try ‘em

this high fashion addiction’s in such contradiction with all their traditions it’s true

the biggest aquarium panel, the largest indoor gold souk,

dubai’s only indoor outdoor retractable roof

an olympic size skating rink to skate away,

the most spectacular water fountains and big light displays

and those are superlatives found here in just one mall

there’s so many more dubai wants to say they have them all

high rollers and sheikhs here in the tallest building peaks here

they hope tourism rolls on so they can be spoiled on after the oil is all gone

day 79 – dubai, united arab emirates, day two

in the big town...

today is some type of holiday here, and none of the smaller souks or markets will be open until late aternoon… we headed to a different larger shopping center that would be open, and it was pretty much like the mall of dubai yesterday, high end shops and designer duds, mostly… i found one indian designer clothing shop who also have a boutique in mumbai, and the clothes were absolutely gorgeous… i wrote down the names of the designers hoping my seamstress friend in seattle can look at some pictures on line and knock me off a couple of cool gig shirts… these were a bit out of my budget range ($500-$1000 for a blouse)!  there was a big hat show, and though i can’t wear hats well with my big, fat, irish head, i do enjoy looking at them.  nino wears hats well, so i don’t get how i missed that ability… we did find a beautiful date shop, however, where we got a few regional goodies, packaged dates with nuts, candied ginger, orange peel, and some other treats; some to bring home and some to enjoy right here!  we had a lovely breakfast that was more parisienne than middle eastern, but it was great! 

millinery madness

night sky on mall ceiling in the middle of the day... very harry potter...

they're everywhere!  

lovely dates!

really delicious...

i am just going to come right out and say that as big and expensive and grand as everything is here, something about the whole place just felt really off to me… it’s a weird energy, not sure how else to describe it… i didn’t dig it as much as i had hoped i might, but i have a sense that oman will be more interesting and historical and atmospheric… more… well, middle eastern!  this place was like some kind of dysfunctional, materialistic disneyland for sheikhs and high rollers.  las vegas has more soul, and that’s saying something!  if i had had the chance to do one of the tours to abu dhabi, i think that would have been more my cup of tea, sadly, i can’t do the really long day trips that return at 8 because i work at 7, so there you go… anyway, our next ports will be muscat and then salalah, both in oman.  i am optimistic that it will be more what i want to see about this region of the world. 

my theme tonight was a session of “name that tune.”  i stopped doing company swag prizes a while ago (keychains, coasters) and began picking up souvenirs from our ports… todays prize was dark chocolate from a chocolatier out of lebanon.  there was one lady who hardly ever comes in, and sat down til she discovered we were doing name that tune… she was upset about that, and implied that that is all i ever do there… i think out of the last 12 weeks, this was my 3^rd round of name that tune, so i was confused… i hope she’ll try to come more often!  we said goodbye to a few folks who disembarked here and hello to some new people.  i like getting a few fresh faces in the lounge, because it gives me a little shot in the arm to know that there is someone there who hasn’t heard my stuff yet…

on a sad note, the dave and diane trip might not pan out this time after all due to complex travel arrangements, but i am psyched that bob and i will be in northern europe in 2012 and will be closer if dave (or dave and fam!) want to hop on or even just come for a day visit when we are in helsinki… i will really look forward to that!  hope everyone near and far are doing well, and know that we are ok and staying out of the weirdness going on in our neighborhood of the world right now!  cheers, everyone!  xo, me

day 78 – dubai, united arab emirates, day one

burkha barbie dolls at mall of dubai

so, for all the warnings we had about dressing to cover ourselves, including a scarf for our hair, and no public displays of affection, the places we went in dubai were a bit more flamboyant and more excessive than america… true, some folks were dressed traditionally, and a few women wore burkhas, but other than that, we could have been in a beverly hills shopping district… and we didn’t see anyone smooching, it’s true, but some were holding hands or linking arms, and none of the security guards were freaking out, so we did hold hands where others did and no one yelled at us… my worst fear was mom and pop watching me interviewed by christiane amanpour about my terrifying ordeal in a middle eastern jail for holding hands with bob. 

it will actually be that strict in oman and jordan, but this was dubai… what a kind of weird and superlative-filled place… the biggest, the only, the tallest, the richest, the most modern, etc…  i found it (as approximately only a 50-year old city or so could be) to be without much warmth or charm, it was more like “look what we have! and look how big it is! and look how much it cost! and guess what, we have three of them!”  kind of a place… there is a sense of grasping or desperation or insecurity under the surface and so full of glaring visible contradictions… a woman in a burkha walking through a mall with missoni, jimmy choo, and countless other designer dress shops pitching tiny cocktail dresses and spike heels… then in the middle of all that, the haunting sound of the islam prayers over the mall loudspeaker (quite beautiful, really)… a shop with aladdin’s lamps and hookah’s right across from a subway… souks and starbucks… crazy!  definitely a mideast meets west kind of place, and a rush to build more man-made world-shaped or palm-shaped fake islands and floating hotels and a race to grab tourism and hold it tight because the oil is running out…

the burj khalifa, tallest building in the world

view of sandy city below

a gold atm: put cash in, get gold out

detail of fountains at burj al arab from above... same guys that did bellagio in lv

burj al arab hotel, iconic sail-shaped building

bob and i took a crew tour to go up the burj khalifa, the tallest building in the world.  one single elevator takes you most, though not all of the way to the top in less than a minute… the view is pretty amazing, and you can see that the city is, well, on top of a desert, and a lot of white sand between everything, not asphalt or grass… many water features and roundabouts and small garden patches with a few parks… from up there, our ship in the harbor looked like a toy in a bathtub.  it was parked across from the qe2 (which was purchased for multiple millions and meant to be turned into a floating hotel til the project money ran out…), next to the aida diva and just down from the sheik’s (emirate of dubai who ousted his father in a coup some years back) yacht, the 2^nd largest privately owned yacht in the world.  it used to be the largest til someone from russia had one made larger… the port is kind of grubby, really, gravel and sand pits, sand and trash… the city is full of interesting and fascinating architecture and a few older structures and some pretty mosques.  more tomorrow from the sandy land of excess!
ciao, me

reflection of burj khalifa in other building on ride home

day 77 – at sea

sad news about jerusalem… i am sure they will cancel our tours there at this point… it certainly is an interesting time to be traveling through the middle east, isn’t it!  i know they will cancel anything that is too close to conflict and push us on through to the mediterranean if they need to with an escort if necessary…

the happy news is my brother david was approved to come on board!  he will be able to come for the spain and portugal ports for a 4 day weekend or so… i know we can show him a fine time while he is here!  it’s nice that our days are free and that we can entertain him in the evening…

tonite’s theme was “just my imagination,” which featured songs like, well, “just my imagination,” “imagine,” and songs featuring daydreaming, wishing, etc.  we arrive in dubai early tomorrow morning, so everyone bailed a little early tonight… that’s ok!  more sleep for us!  the moon on the water is quite beautiful, and some of the boats flash their lights as we go by – not sure if that’s to alert us to their presence so we don’t hit them, if it is a greeting or a middle finger or what… anyway, more tomorrow when we actually get to dubai!  ciao!  -me

day 76 – at sea

i asked julie, our human resources lady (and a very nice gal), to check on my brother’s application to come on board for the mediterranean leg of our journey coming up… it will be so exciting if he can make it!  we haven’t had our birthday (april 17) together since i was pregnant with nino, i think… actually, we were close to it when my brother came for bob’s and my wedding 6 years ago, but that time was kind of all about the wedding (and for those of you who came, it was quite the production, so i was a little pre-occupied!), so this will really be quite special.  i am optimistic they will find him a spot as we have more folks disembarking in dubai and a few more in athens (where he would come on, probably), so i already know the ship is not full going back...

my brothers, dave and dan, both have gone on some epic adventures together, and, me not being the uber outdoors-y type, never fancied going down the yukon river with them or hunting caribou or moose or that sort of thing because that’s not how i hang out… i always did envy them that together time, though, and have wondered how i could spend a little meaningful time with my siblings in a one-on-one kind of way and have some adventure where i wouldn’t have to skin or gut anything…  i think this cruise ship angle i have worked out might finally do the trick and allow me, one by one, to abduct each of my siblings (with fam when possible) for awhile and hang out and have some quality time before we let too many years slide by not seeing one another…

don’t get me wrong, a big family get together would be cool at some point, but i think i like the idea of just connecting with the family in small increments!  so, dan, donna, mom n pop, aunts n uncles, and even friends, since i can get a great deal for you, your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to pick something out from any of the future itineraries i will send you and let’s hang out!  bob and i only work at night and our days are open to hang time and sightseeing and daytripping, so it could be a lot of fun.  i will get a link to my next itinerary and post it soon, and if you can make it anytime, that would rock!  if you want to bring spouse or kids, that’s cool, i just need 30 days advance notice to apply for space available… dave is the first one to come with, and i hope he’ll start a trend and bob and i’ll get to go with all of you eventually!  i used to be able to do the friend on board program, where you could share my room with me (that plan is free), and when i fly solo, that’s still cool, but as bob is sort of my permanent friend on board most of the time, we will slide over to friends and family program which is a cruise at a serious discount with your own room… i don’t even have to be on the ship you want to take, by the way, if there’s somewhere you want to go, i can get you a discount even if i am not there… a cool program!  it’s a litte like flying standby, tho, they can bump you for a full paying fare… the trick is to choose a route you know (or i know) isn’t fully booked…

tonite was indian formal bollywood awards night… all the women had bought saris or outfits or scarves in jewel tones, and some of the men had bought white or off-white indian men’s wear… everyone looked great!  one thing i love about india, even when driving by the regular everyday folks waiting for the bus, the array of beautiful colors in the clothing is incredible!  they think nothing of wearing an entire outfit in orange, purple, turquoise, chartreuse, and bangles or sparkles aren’t confined to evening or gig wear… i think this is a good cultural notion to borrow when i go back home… i think i’ll wear more color…

now, i don’t want to brag, but some of the awards show weddings or corporate parties that bob and i have produced were waaaaaaay better than what the entire event staff here came up with… even the décor was hollywood, none of the flair and color of bollywood, no great bollywood music blaring, they missed the vibe and concept entirely… anyway, since i don’t have a sitar or speak hindi, i myself was stuck to classic movie tunes for my theme night tonight called “at the movies.”  i also quizzed my bar about which movie each song was from… great crowds, and even with a formal ball at 10, i kept a pretty full bar all night… we go another hour back in time tonight, so we are 13 hours earlier, but in the next day, or 11 hours forward in the same day… the time thing still messes with my tiny mind!   

ciao for now, me

day 75 – mumbai (bombay), india, day two

happy birthday to my sister, donna!!!  nice to chat with you and brother dan on the ski slopes!

today i had in-port manning, so i didn’t plan on doing much… i had to write a little, i had arranged to have lunch with my friend, brianna, and i had to write my port song for mumbai… bob and i also wanted to spend a little quality hang time together, so i had a good day cut out for me.  my friend brianna is moving to china in june, to a town just out of shanghai about an hour.  she has her masters in chinese medicine and will be pursuing some further experience working in china for the next few years, staying in one place instead of being on the road so much.  nice to have a couch to crash on there!   she has a pretty fascinating life; i think i want to base a character in a screenplay on her!  i also had a nice conversation with a jewelry designer on board from india.  his dad used to organize a huge jazz festival here, and he suggested that an email intro to someone from the taj hotel chain might facilitate getting an audition for a gig there… since he seems well connected, i got his info, and if bob and i get a chance to pitch that chain and tour their 10 palace hotels through india, that would be alright with us!  both the ones i saw had empty pianos, and one on a busy sunday afternoon…

my theme tonight was called “all about the numbers,” featuring songs with numbers in their titles (“fifty ways to leave your lover,” “when i’m sixty-four,” “if i had a million dollars,” etc…),  my 7-8 and 9-10 were busy, but it died early again after two days of early wake- ups and adventures in mid 90 degree weather… people were just completely faded!

the captain addressed everyone on the pa and in a letter to assuage any anxieties about sailing into pirate-y waters… we have escorts in many places, scouts along the way and much security on board and in ports… we are also very high and very fast!  i noticed we are indeed clipping along at quite a sprightly pace!  usually they are slow enough to save a little money on fuel, but i know safety comes before expense, even to a dutch captain (haha), so we are sailing at frank speed towards dubai!  wheeee!!!  xo, mama

port song for mumbai

(to the tune of “one tin soldier”)

listen people to a story that was written just today

about a visit to an ancient culture and the people there this day

my friends and me from north america on a ship came across the sea

from a life of privilege more than most folks there whom we would see

we drove to town and to a hotel where hate and tragedy have been before

so the soldiers with machine guns guard the luxury hotel’s door

they’re posted at the elevator and here and there throughout the halls

no doubt that we were safe but ghosts of terrors past live within those walls

we made our way up to the top floor, the gateway to india there below

and feasted on the dishes of many lands who from the nightly news we know

like egypt, syria, libya, and jordan, israel and india were there

with flavors even more rich and complex than the troubles they all share

an indian daughter and her husband and her father brought out a cake for mom

a birthday song and smiles and clapping, and at our table we clapped along

and sending our birthday wishes over with a smile that was sincere

the daughter soon came to our table with birthday cake for us to share

go ahead and hate your neighbor, maybe you don’t have many friends

but relating to each other seems better, and is much sweeter in the end

instead of guns and bombs a blowing, there was cake and smiles this day

one happy afternoon after… at least one old sad ghost just flew away