Sailing with Mom

My Mom is onboard! The last 10 days of my contract are here! Where has the time gone???

There were a few things I realized while being a FAUX-PAX during the last cruise:

1) I knew a lot more people from the Food and Beverage Department than I realized. I ate with my mom in the PAX restaurants practically every meal (Guests first, of course! And if it was crowded I was super uncomfortable and tried to be invisible.... it is very awkward to eat and have your fellow crew members serve and buss for you.). Every time I went into a restaurant, the employees that I said hi to every day in the crew areas happened to be working! Which leads me to number two–

Mom playing the "log game" at Alpenglühn Night! She lost, unfortunately, and had to buy every player a shot of Jägermeister.

2) My mother is the most open and eager learner I know. Not only did she complete a cultural analysis of the German, middle-class cruise vacation experience, she managed to meet basically everyone and practice a little German, to boot. Though I know I have taken after Mom and usually get 110% in participation, I realized that I had put on blinders to get me through the contract. Thus, it was very interesting coexisting with my mother for 10 days as she bantered with other guests and crew, laughed loudly and freely, and noted things she found strange and unique.

3) Passengers on a cruise only interact with about a quarter of the crew. The 400 people that I usually saw filtering through Crew Mess were reduced to about 75 officers, servers, and bartenders, and security that I saw in guest areas. I met practically no one from the housekeeping, galley, electrical, and deck departments. And so, my readers, it became obvious to me how a passenger could take for granted what it means to run a ship.

4) A cruise ship is so much like a floating hotel. So. Much. Like. One. Our cabin was basically a NYC hotel room: tiny, but with all the necessities and some lovely decor. And, get this, the shower had walls! Like, the entire bathroom was not the shower! Oh, the luxury!

5) My mom got to see me dance pretty much every style, and this made me so proud and kept me working hard until the very end. I feel grateful that she was able to enjoy the places we went in addition to the experience of being onboard, which I was honestly worried about. I had a wonderful time with her and it made my final days on Cara lighter.

Fav Moments with Mom:

- Listening to Theo, our pianist, play in Lambada Bar.

-It wasn't fun in the moment, but losing my mom about seven separate times the first sea-day onboard.

-Eating breakfast every day at the same table with June, our wonderfully sweet server. He told us that he was saving up to start a business! This is the kind of thing that I love— learning about other people’s ambitions and dreams.

-Exploring the Swedish Royal Palace and meeting up with Jenn’s grandparents for a "fika" in Stockholm.

- Walking through Frederica, Denmark, finding a remarkable church, and then heading back to the ship along the beach.

-Mom kept saying over and over, "I am grateful to get to spend this kind of time with you. It is so nice not to have to do something, just getting to relax and talk." I am so happy that Mom got a proper vacation. She is so deserving of that.