(some of the guys...just your average evening)
Okay, enough of me being sappy.
In the 2.5 weeks since my return I've been crashing in the spare room of my sister and her husband's house in Richmond, Virginia, USA. I've been sleeping late, eating delicious food, watching movies, and spending loads of time with my super cute 14-month-old nephew Giovanni (Gio!). I'll be doing a little domestic adventuring as well, visiting friends and family around the USA. Lately I've also been reflecting a lot on my travels, my work, my self, etc etc. Being a Production Manager on a ship is no easy task. When Maddie, the incoming PM arrived on May 26, it was like instant relief...the end was in sight. We talked and talked a lot about the stresses of the job, the good, the bad, the ugly, the pros, the cons, all of it. We jokingly referred to it as "Production Manager Therapy," but it was no joke... it's a tough job, a lonely one, so having someone to really (really!) talk to about it (after 5.5 months of nothing) made a world of difference. To Maddie I wish the best of luck: it's a big ship, a beautiful ship, with big shows and a lot of responsibilities. The work is tough but the people are good. Safe travels!
(Maddie and I in Warnemunde-- rock on, lady!!)
As for me, I didn't think I would miss it, but I do. Even after a few short weeks away I'm already rested and rejuvenated and have had time to think about a lot of things and how I would do things better--differently--if I were to go back to the Eclipse. What you may not understand is that when you are a Production Manager on a ship you don't get a day off. Ever. So on this contract I worked 5.5 months straight. Other PMs work 6-7-8 months. Straight. It's hard. But I must be crazy, because I've agreed to take another contract as a PM with Celebrity. This time on a different ship, a "smaller" ship, with a much different itinerary. While I was on the EC we spent 4 months in the Caribbean before sailing over to Europe, where before I left we did a Norway cruise, a Mediterranean cruise, and a Baltic cruise. It was pretty incredible. On my next ship, the Celebrity Infinity, we'll spend a month or so doing Alaska cruises out of Seattle, then make our way south to do Central America cruises for a while, then south again to South America. I may even see Antarctica (!!) before I leave. This will be VERY different from the last ship. Smaller size, different production company. Just very different. On the EC I had a number of people tell me that they could really see me doing "Millennium Class" ships (of which the Infinity is one), so we'll see how that goes. Believe it or not, I got a lot of crap about working too hard/too much while on the EC, so I'm hoping I can get rid of that label. Shouldn't be too hard-- I hope.
(rough day at the office...)
I'll admit, I did a terrible job of keeping this blog up to date while I was on the ship. I don't know how some people do this every day, or even multiple times a day! Yikes! That being said, I plan to continue (to the extent that I am willing/able) on my next adventure, so stay tuned.
In the meantime, I'm in the process of reviewing loads of photos and plan to upload many of those to my 'facebook' site, which is simply more accessibile to me and most people I want to share those with. Some may end up here too. We'll see.
That being said, I thank the folks who took the time to check in on me every now and then... Just know that if I wasn't writing then I was either working, sleeping, or adventuring in some amazing port.
(adventure time in Copenhagen, Denmark)
Talk soon,
D
what, MORE?? Oi !
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