More Cruise Stories

My recent post on stories from my year working on a cruise ship has inspired a walk down memory lane.  It's hard to believe it's been almost 25 years since I worked on the ship. These memories are so vivid. Even though I was away from my friends and family for a year with no cell phone, email or text (this was 1990-91) it was one of the best years of my life! Some of my friends back-packed around Europe after college but I couldn't afford that with student loans. I became an indentured servant of sorts:  scrubbing toilets in exchange for a year of travel. I thought I'd share a few more stories of servitude.

  

The Peanut

Clipper had very high standards for service and the appearance of the ship. But when the president came onboard, everyone was on their best behavior and we knew we had to bring our A game. He was known for placing a lone peanut on the deck (floor) and timing how long it took a crew member to pick it up. It might be slightly behind a door or under a chair as if a passenger had dropped it but it was our job to clean it up as soon as possible.

After he cruised with you the first time, you had a new awareness of the deck and you never walked past a peanut or piece of trash ever again. Honestly, I still do this today: in the office, at the mall, in the park. 

There is significant value here in this peanut. Think about Disney. Thousands of people flow through their parks every day and you never see trash on the ground. You want your customers’ memories to be filled with magical experiences not about walking through trash.

The Mountain of Meat (possibly embellished details)

At the beginning of one of our cruises outside the US we had taken on more stores (supplies of food etc.) than we normally did because the itinerary was more remote than usual. Our freezer walk-in (freezer room the size of a typical office) was stacked to within a few feet of the ceiling. The chefs had to organize the layout and stacking logic so we would be able to find the items as the menu was scheduled.

One entertaining exercise I was tasked with as a galley assistant was to climb the mountains of boxes to navigate back into the walk-in to retrieve what would become the evening’s entrees. Imagine a game of 3D battleship. The steaks were at H4, the fish was at B2 and the chicken at C9. I climbed the boxes like I was at Upper Limits. 

Once I reached the top I had to lie horizontally across several towers of boxes and then army crawl to each location. I remember at times it felt like I only had twelve inches between my back and the ceiling. Once I reached the beef section I had to lift and re-arrange the boxes to get to the specific cut of meat the chef had requested and then slide them across the towers to the waiting sous chef. These boxes weighed 30-50 lbs each and I am lying across other boxes of meat with no leverage from my legs. We are feeding 138 passengers so I’m lifting multiple boxes of each. Definitely an exercise to strengthen the core they should teach at Cross Fit! And don’t forget this is the freezer!  I was wearing a white jumpsuit borrowed from an engineer working in a hot engine room, not a freezer!

This might sound scary and physically impossible but at the time it was kind of hilarious and just another day in my adventure at sea. (The photo is from one of those meat gathering excursions.) I learned I was agile, stronger than I had imagined, not claustrophobic and a dependable team player with a great sense of humor.

The Erupting Volcano of Coffee Grounds

Stewardesses rotated out of the dining room service into early-bird.  This was a continental breakfast set up in the lounge (where alcohol was served later in the day). A full, custom-order breakfast was served later in the morning in the dining room. When working early-bird you were up by 4:30 or 5 am to set up fruit, breads, and most importantly: coffee.

I was not a coffee drinker and not familiar with the process. I am sure someone ‘trained’ me on how to use the grinder and coffee maker but at 4:30 am my first time in early bird, I was clearly not at my best. I ran the coffee grinder and loaded the grounds into the coffee maker and pressed the brew button. A few minutes later Peter Brady’s volcano was erupting wet coffee grounds all over the table. It was a hot mess and I was panicking because I wasn't sure what happened. Luckily my friend who was the full-time lounge manager and bartender had showed up and explained to me that I forgot the coffee filter. Coffee filter, coffee filter, coffee filter. He helped me clean up. It was funny and horrible but the early-bird breakfast was saved. 

I learned the value of making an embarrassing mistake is the lesson learned so it’s never repeated. It was also very humbling.  I was one of the older stewardesses and the only one with an MBA. None of that matters when you are cleaning up an eruption of coffee grounds.

Sheet Change Day a Little Early

I entered the room of two of my favorite 90+ year old passengers to clean their room. Usually the passengers were off on an excursion or out on deck when we cleaned rooms so they surprised me when both of them were still there. Mr. Favorite said they needed Mrs. Favorite’s sheets changed today. “I’m sorry but our laxative worked a little more quickly than we expected.”

Believe it or not, this wasn't a big deal, just part of the gig when you clean rooms. They were my Favorites. They were so sweet and loving. They ate at my dinner table as well so we had really connected.

I learned that no matter how much money you have or what you accomplish in your professional career, when you get older, you might $hit the bed!