Flying across the country to spend the summer as youth staff on a cruise ship in Alaska. Contrary to my usual hassle-filled journeys, I arrive in Vancouver early after two on-time flights, an incredibly short layover, and a good three hours of extra sleep. I’m at the luggage belt before our scheduled arrival time, and am so amazed by this sequence of events that I’m convinced my luggage is lost. Incredibly, both suitcases emerge within a few minutes.
Get the shuttle to the hotel and try to decide if it’s the same one I stayed in when I joined the same ship for my first contract four years ago. I remember the days when just flying to Vancouver was a big deal and how four hours seemed like a huge time difference. It looks a lot better but the hideous carpet seems oddly familiar. I decide to take a swim in the outdoor pool, and realize I’m carrying a little winter chub and am ridiculously white. I attempt to correct this by lying in the sun. Wonder why there are only seven sunloungers for the entire hotel. Get sick of annoying tourists who are giggling, splashing, and hogging said sunloungers. Go back inside in search of food.
I sit alone in the hotel restaurant and remember how totally awkward that is. Try to just think about the free food. Order a chicken and brie panini and try not to die of starvation while waiting for it. Realize only food all day was yucky Sbarro in Ottawa. Panini is good at first, but becomes saturated with cheese and excessive honey mustard sauce. Get frustrated trying to figure out what’s in my fry dipping sauce and realize that years of catering plus Top Chef have turned me into a raging foodie. Try to figure out if any of the other diners are passengers. Watch Filipino crew members eating their dinner and realize this is the only time passengers and crew are ever on the same level. Wonder how passengers would feel about this if they knew.
Stumble back upstairs. Think about going to sleep but can’t resist free wireless. Write down my thoughts and hope it’s at least vaguely entertaining. Think about the 6 a.m. pick-up. Go to sleep thinking about how far I’ve come between that first contract and now, the places I’ve been, people I’ve met, and experiences I’ve had, and how much they’ve shaped my life and changed me for the better. Smile. It’s going to be okay …
