Fourth of July

I celebrated the Fourth of July in Canada this year, but I celebrated Canada Day in the US so it's okay. It was a pretty low key day, which made me sad in a way because I love Independence Day (I love any excuse to celebrate). The buffet served a barbeque for lunch complete with hamburgers, hot dogs, grilled chicken, bratwurst, corn on the cob, salads, strawberry cupcakes, blueberry cupcakes, vanilla cupcakes, candied apples, and Spanish rice. Yes, Spanish Rice, I the think the chef may have gotten his holidays a bit confused. After work and the show I headed up to the Crow's Nest (the dance club) to celebrate, but the place was DEAD. I think there was maybe ten people up there, and eight were crew members. Apparently it was “rockin'” earlier, but everyone was at the Dessert Extravaganza. We ended up retreating to the OB shortly after our arrival. In a was it was kinda sad. I am proud to be an American. My country is not perfect, I realize that, and there are a lot of things that need improvement, but we are still a great country with a lot to be proud of. Even though there was no big party, several of us dressed up for the occasion.

Book Review: Anne of Green Gables

I arrived on ms Maasdam to find that the library has over ten copies of Anne of Green Gables. You may think that this number is a bit high, and I would have agreed with you when I first arrived, but there are times I wish I had a few more copies. As we stop at Prince Edward Island and many tours visit the very homestead that inspired this beloved classic, people are seen all over the ship with copies of the book (and it's sequels).

My first week aboard we had a few copies of Anne of Green Gables sitting on the shelf so I picked one up. I read the book as a child, I believe I was in fifth grade so it's been over fifteen years, and I adored it. For those of you who have never read the book or seen the movie, the story is about a young orphan girl, Anne (with an e) Shirley who is adopted by an elderly brother and sister in the town of Avonlea on Prince Edward Island. Although Anne always has the best of intentions, her active imagination often leads to mischief. That is a very shallow synopsis, but you'll get the idea. I have to say, I loved the book just as much this time as I did as a child. Quite simply, the characters are charming, the setting is charming, and every chapter made me smile. Sometimes it's nice to relive your childhood through a book.

 My friend Daniella and I trying to look like Anne at a themed store in PEI.

ms Maasdam

New ship, new resolve to be better about posting. It should be easier because this is a repeating itinerary, so I am in the ports every week so I don't feel like I have to see everything in one day. I joined the Maasdam on June 16 in Boston and we are traveling up and down the coast to Montreal stopping in Bar Harbor, Maine; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Sydney, Nova Scotia; Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island; and Quebec City. We will take a respite from this itinerary on July 14, when we begin our thirty-five day “Voyage of the Viking” cruise which travels from Boston, up through Greenland, Iceland, and Norway to Amsterdam, then down to England, Ireland, Iceland and Greenland again, and back to Boston. Don't expect from July 14 through August 18. Once we return to Boston, we resume the Boston to Montreal run until October when we travel down the coast to Ft. Lauderdale and embark on a forty-two day round trip Mediterranean Cruise which includes ports in the Canary Islands, Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Morocco. I will finish my contract when we return to Ft. Lauderdale. Needless to say, I am super excited about this contract because it is the best of both worlds: Easy, seven day cruises with beautiful, repeated ports and one sea day combined with two long cruises with amazing, exotic ports of call. I look forward to seeing what the next five months bring.