My venture

So, yesterday was Koper, again my luck of the draw, i had 2hrs from 8 until 10 cause at 10:15 i had to be at work. So, first obstacle was to get off from the ship and why was that an obstacle because it took very long in customs to clear the ship, when it was finally cleared it was a mission cause everyone had to show original Passport... Now that was another mission for some of my friends.... Why? When you arrive on the ship, they take away your passport so that you cant just escape and to get your passport you can only go with a signed letter from management etc etc etc, so lucky me, i handed in my Swiss passport and exited with my American passport, no problemo for me. Koper was very tiny, but very cute at the same time, again the architecture is what i loved so much, the houses looked like they were falling apart but i guess that is the whole character. Of course we decided we have to try the cappucino....verdict.... Very nice.... Such strong coffee and foam was ok....... Still

So.... As you might know, the ship that i am on is called Norwegian Jade. On Saturday we are startibg with the proper summer itinerary... I will tell you about that next time. We will alternate teo different cruises every week, but always starting and ending in Venice. Today, we were in Split, Croatia. However, we anchored which means we had to tender guests on kand, and of course guests always take preference over crew so we have zo wait for open tender, which today was at 10am, i started shift at 11:15 so there was no way that i could get off the ship.... Oh well, seeing that the ship was almost empty, only 110 guests on boatd, yes we can check that, we are allowed to tan on the open deck where guests normally are and i didnt have to go to crew pool area. I took some pics from Split and from the outer deck... After my first shift, the ship was almost full again, but weather still perfect so i tanned some more, this time at the crew area though, which was fab, no wind, good view

WOW, WOW and WOW! So Julia and i were very lucky, we were both allowed to be escorts on the same tour, old Dubrovnik and village life. We left around 8:45 and returned just in time for my shift, arrived at 13:35 and shift was at 13:45. Im a master at time management, haha. So first we drove to the old town, which was 10min by bus, not bad. When we arrived, our guide took us around the old town, which is all surrounded by a fortress. She spent about an hour walking around and telling us some interesting facts, here are some: - only 1000 people live in the old town - Dubrovnik has about 30 000 - some roofs and houses had to be reconstructed, you will notice red and earth coloured tiles - To buy an apartment is very expensive, one square metre is between 3000 and 5000 euros.... Can u imagine.... Hell! Julia and i also found the local market, bought some dried figs and dried lemon peel, of course they are coated in lots of sugar and some sugared almonds, divine.... And then we had

So..... I think i mentioned when i got my schedule last week i thought i was gonna die... No chances to get off at ports and this at ports which i will NOT see again..... BUT where there is a will there is a way..... So here is my brief story.....So Messina timetable i had off until lunch, 12, then work until 4 and then work again at 7pm.... 2 big BUT's.... One, we had to be back on ship at 5 AND there was a crew drill at 10 which we are NEVER allowed to miss, roll call..... Also my supervisor informed me crew was NOT allowed to go ashore before a drill...that i thought was pathetic.... Me being desperate to get off in Messina, decided to call head of safety.... And he said, i am allowed to go off as long as im back for the drill.... Perfecto, so at 8am i left the ship and headed into town, i knew where all the sites were, there are not many in Messina itself(as there was def no time for Mt Etna volcano), I saw the clock tower which looks amazing and then i went to the cathedral

So this is a short blog.... Just some random info... Just got my new schedule and it sucks.... My shift is so bad that almost at no port i can get out, so please hold thumbs that when i get the new schedule on the 28th, it is better.... One positive which im really hanging onto though.... In dubrovnik, croatia, declated an UNESCO world heritage site, im only on at 2pm so one of the girls and i r gonna do a bicycle tour, and for us its free.... Yay... That i cannot wait for.... Something to get me through next roster Two more interesting things, yesterday i had russian chocolate for the first time, was actually good, better than belgium choc and a difficult german guest, who i helped, brought me a card and swiss choc, BONUS Last nite a couple of us went to the guest club/ bar to have a cocktail and dance, that was fun too.... So i guess i should not be complaining.... And of course there was finally sushi trying.....and it was great.... For the first time i tried edame beans... In

So... The first cruise is almost over... The Norwegian Jade, which is my ship, has been doing this itinerary run for about 4 months, i just did it this once, 9 days..... As u know it included Madeira, Santa Cruz, Areciff and Malaga.... But i havent talked about Malaga and Areciff... So here goes.... Areciff..... Hmmmmm...... Very cute to look at for a couple hrs but i would say that is it, funny enough i actually thought i was in Greece, lots of white houses with blue edges, some white with green edges, beautiful. Also went to the only high hotel in the town to take photos cause the coffee shop was on the 17th floor, that i was told by my roommate to go to... Good choice. And now lets be informal, my roommates name is Gina. Then of course today was Malaga, i was very excited, but i knew i had to get up early, we could go on land at 8 am but it takes 20min to walk into town and i had to be back at 1130, so a little bit rushed but well worth it. Gina took me which of course helped as s

So yesterday we were in Funchal, unfortunately we had a crew drill for safety at 10am and then i was on shift, so i didnt have a chance to go on land....A crew drill happens every cruise both for guests and crew, guests have it the day they embark the ship and cw has it at the first port.....i think it s very good cause then everyone knows exactly what to do and where to go...afterall we all have a duty and a specific assembly point....so seeing that i didnt go on land in Funchal i cannot tell u whether it is worth seeing or not, haha.....so i was so glad when i saw today i am off until 6pm and i actually get to place my feet on solid ground.....Santa Cruz is not very big, has a big main shopping street which i walked dead now and knowing me...guess wot i found...the market...was very cool, fresh meats and cheeses, nuts etc...but we are not allowed to bring any food items back on board...only nuts and crackers and chocolate...no fruit, wine etc.....cause obviously wine is so we buy on

so....now my ship venture has finally started, i slept at the Best Western the night before embarking the ship...embarkation day for me was chaotic....it all started with the area where we boarded the ship and the clearing guards ask for passport and pre-employment letter.....and guess who didn't have a pre-employment letter because of our very reliable post....yes me....so that caused the first delay, i at least knew some people from the night before (who were re-joining)...who were kind enough to wait for me while all the shit got sorted out....as we got on board we had to go for safety training, this is mandatory for everyone joining and re-joining, i was the only first time joiner...... this took a couple of hrs and then of course there was an exam at the end of the day...not too bad...one mistake...so i had 49/50...i am a good listener.....7pm the ship started to sail and i already had my first shift at work, 7pm until midnight.....i was introduced to the team etc...but i a

So....tomorrow i am going onto the cruise ship.... Im at the best western at the airport now, have received my letter... Will be fetched by shuttle at 6:30am but have to be in the lobby at 6:15 am.... Early start.... So here is what i have been up to mu last few days of freedom... Haha.... Eating, walking, eating, walking.... I have to say my shins are damn sore, i guess i wasnt wearing walking shoes.... So the big cathedral and the famous las ramblas street and finally i managed to have mu sangria.... The only reason i couldnt have it sooner was because nowhere they wanted to serve me a glass, was always a lite, thats just a tad too much.... Found this cool place sat at the bar and befriended this old argentinian grandpa who ensisted i try his tapas too.... So i managed to really try a large variety.... The funniest was that he only spoke spanish... So i tried a little with my italian.... So here is a pic of a section of the bar where i sat and one tapas pic.... And of course, not t