Getting everything into order during your first few days onboard is always a rough ride, no matter how much you know what you’re doing; and considering that the ship just came out of dry dock and that we missed our first port of call (and I was so looking forward to the Bahamas!), everyone was a bit on edge when we pulled into the ABC islands yesterday morning. But as it turned out, the cure for everything – broken computers, corrupted files, and uncooperative satellites included, is fresh air and sunshine.
One thing that I always forget about these ports of call, is that they are hot. Me and heat are not the best of friends, more than once during our wanderings we had to stop into a store under the pretense of window shopping for the sole purpose of getting me out of the heat before I passed out. Even my usual purpose of a big floppy hat (LOVE big floppy hats!) did not do a lot to cut the intensity of the Caribbean; and it will only continue to get warmer as we proceed down towards Brazil. Thankfully there’s always a lot of sea air to be had when we’re moving which helps somewhat; and my cabin AC is being beautifully cooperative.
Since I have my own cabin – for real, no bunk beds in sight – for the forseeable future; I have an incredible amount of wall space, so for once the entire collage can go on one wall. I must say it looks pretty impressive!
A step into a lovely and relaxing Chinese-style shop in town yesterday (down a street we didn’t even intend to venture into), allowed us to purchase some much needed essential oils; which take the place of being able to burn sage onboard to cleanse the cabins. Obviously you can’t have an open flame anywhere on board, so we have to find other ways to smudge the space in which we are about to take up residence. I picked up two kinds – Jasmine just because I like the smell, and ‘Dragons Blood’ (which has a lovely cinnamon smell) for the purposes of clearing out anything that might be hanging around. Almost immediately the room started feeling better; and I’m finding I’m sleeping a lot easier since I put a few drops into my portable humidifier. Of course, it means that my cabin now smells a bit like a Valentine ’s Day candy but hey there are worse things!
It’s the little things that make it feel like home. While it’s true that I may not be in this particular position for long (jury is still out on whether or not I’m retiring completely from ships as planned, it depends on circumstances and I should have an answer to that in the next few weeks), I’m determined to do my best by it and get the most out of it for as long as I am out here. Otherwise what’s the point really?
So I put the computer back together, stitch the catalogue back into one piece and reassure IT that I will continue handling the internet’s ongoing temper tantrums as best as I can for as long as I can
And in the evenings I go back to a cabin that’s all mine, that smells of warmth and cinnamon and has door that –while I may not be the only one with a key – at least rarely opens for anyone but me.
Keeping it together, bit by bit…