Port Day in St. Thomas!

February 14, 2012

I will admit to being an addict. There, I’ve said it, and I hope those who have suspected it for years are satisfied. I am addicted to fast paces and always having plenty of work to do. For an addict like me one of the hardest things to do can be to simply relax when I need to. My mind is always racing to engage the ‘what’s next.’ So, you can imagine how life on the ship can feed that addiction. We work ten or more hours a day, seven days a week, for four straight months. Somehow the cycle of addiction must be broken.

And that’s, what I’m discovering, port days are for. In my first five weeks of my contract there have been only a few spare hours in which I have gone ashore when we reach port. (It goes without saying that going ashore without reaching a port is a far more difficult proposition.) However, after my time spent with Audra, Marcos, and Karolis in St. Maarten a couple weeks back, I realized that I needed to start building more of that into my schedule. This requires a clever allocation of time, first ensuring that I create a training schedule with sufficiently unencumbered blocks of time; and second, working to get ahead on the 101 administrative tasks that always seem to need to be done. But with that preparation, a few hours in port are vital to sanity and balance.

There is something special about US territories in the Caribbean. Not only do you get the beautiful tropical weather, but the convenience of calling home without extra charges on a US based cell phone is another distinct benefit. So, on Valentine’s Day, I took the afternoon to go ashore in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. I completed my morning class and few remaining daily tasks and agreed with my manager Laura that a burger and a beer sounded like the perfect antidote to the daily routine. After the prerequisite change into ‘real clothes’ that allowed us to blend into the tourists on the street, we walked a few short blocks to a local tavern which an outdoor patio to so dine. However, Laura is a bit of a cheese ADDICT (notice a theme, today) and when she saw fried mozzarella sticks on the menu that became the necessary first course. The cheese sticks quickly were followed by massive burgers and a beer each (drink responsibly!) as we enjoyed the warm weather and watching the world flow by. At the end of lunch Laura went to find the local post office and I decided to walk into ‘downtown’ St. Thomas.

With almost two hours left before I needed to be onboard, I chose to take the 25 minute walk around the bay to get to the main ‘shopping district.’ The bay is quite beautiful and provided a picturesque stroll. Along the way I had the chance to sit for a few minutes on a bay-facing bench, stare at my ship across the water, and most importantly, call home! In rapid succession I was able to talk with Rosie, my mom, and Brendan. Dani was not available when I called, being in class (what a surprise for a college student). After completing the calls, I found a local coffee shop to accomplish three things. First, to have a tasty cup of coffee, something not generally available in the Crew Mess (coffee, yes . . . highly caffeinated, yes . . . tasty . . . not so much). Second, to read a local paper to get to know what was important to the people of this small island. Third, to talk to people who really didn’t care what was happening on my ship. What a refreshing break that was!

All too soon, my time had elapsed, and I needed to briskly traverse the distance back to Silhouette. Along the way I stopped to offer to take a picture of a couple who was posing to take a photo with ‘their ship’ in the background. Sadly it wasn’t ours, but I snapped the shot, anyway. However, I did use the encounter to sell them on Celebrity Cruise Lines, as they walked with me for several minutes before the progression of numbers on my watch encouraged me to walk more briskly than my companions.

Just before reaching the ship, with only minutes to spare, my busy daughter was able to return my call. I postponed the call until I had proceeded through ship security (receiving the typical harassment I always due from my friendly security guards), and then went straight to my ‘backyard,’ Deck 6 forward the crew’s outdoor area. Not wanting to end my time outside I was able to complete my family calls for the day while enjoying a few more minutes of the tropical sun.

The time ashore may have ended, but the refreshment of my soul lingered. I returned to work with high energy, a clearer mind, and sharper focus. When you never have a weekend, you must find your Sabbath in short spurts in any way you can. This day in St. Thomas was definitely the blessing received for the non-stop work we do.

More afternoons like this one may lead to another, perhaps more healthy, addiction.

And the adventure continues . . .