Day 16 – May 15, 2010 – Flooding in Venice

Today called for light rain all day in Venice, but I was determined to get out and about. Pieter and I went out first in search of Zara, which was rumored (through Google) to be located not far from our ship’s dock. First of all, trying to use a map in Venice is just about insane enough – most streets are 2 blocks long and there are just as many river streets as regular streets, so we had quite an undertaking on our hands. After some careful navigating, we made it to the street address – to find NO Zara! They moved apparently and Google doesn’t know that yet. So, we ended up just walking around, umbrella-less, mind you, in a new district that I hadn’t seen yet. I mean, it wasn’t all that different from the rest of Venice, but it was the hotels district, so it was very touristy and had lots of interesting looking small hotels.

We found a great store – Tezenia – which had some great casual clothes and I picked up a nice tshirt and underwear for really cheap. Then we headed to eat lunch somewhere with indoor seating (not too common in Venice) because we were soaking wet! We had the worst service, but the best food so far, so it was all good for me! The caprese salad was amazing….the best mozzarella I’ve had by far and the artichoke pizza had the best crust and cheese I’ve had yet! Definitely worth the rain to get to eat there!

I had found one other café online that was supposed to be some sort of gay spot, so we went on another adventure to find Paradiso Perdute (Paradise Lost, which I thought was such a great name). We walked into this really great, almost country-style restaurant with old dark wood and a giant bar with all of the day’s specialties out on platters for viewing. There was a young and friendly relocated British woman who I’m pretty sure ran the place as well. She served us cappuccinos and this incredible strawberry tartlette…mmm…. It wasn’t really that gay, so the search continues…. There are tons walking around Venice and they’ve gotta go somewhere for some fellowship!

After we were overstuffed with amazing food, we braved the rainy weather once again to find that the streets were beginning to FLOOD! I guess that’s part of the risk of living in a city that has canals as streets. It doesn’t take very much either, as the water level is almost at sidewalk level to begin with. It was creeping up the steps that serve as docks and the entryways to people’s waterfront homes. I was curious, but also wanted to get out of there before there were any real issues! (I heard later that day that St. Mark’s Square was actually flooded, in parts, up to a foot! Glad I wasn’t there!)

On the way back to the ship, I really wanted to walk through the Jewish Ghetto, which was a neighborhood where Jews were confined to during WWII and eventually deported from Venice to the concentration camps. There are giant walls with a main gate, a memorial, synagogue and various other cultural and historical centers around the area. I’d like to go back when it’s not crappy outside to really check it out.

We got back after another rainy day in Venice, ready to tackle some Harry Potter movies in the marathon queue after a stop at the Crew DVD rental library, where we stocked up on Little Britain, Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Running with Scissors and Guys and Dolls. FUN!

Day 15 – May 14, 2010 – At Sea and Tofu!

Today was a big laundry day for the show…lots of up and down stairs with baskets of costumes, competing for machines and lugging wet non-dryer-able ones back upstairs to air dry.

We were at sea today and it was the end of a very long week! I also had training at 1:30 that I thought would be the standard 20-30 minute lecture…. Turns out it was a 2 ½ hour training on Crowd Management! Ahhh! It was so tiring but I got a certificate for completing it, lol! I thought I earned that working for years at Blake’s on the Park! Now I know how to manage the passengers if we ever had to abandon ship! Aye….

Tonight, I went to the sushi restaurant on ship, Orchid Garden with Eric and Pieter and found the only Tofu on the ship!!!! I was SO excited, but it actually turned out to be pretty awful. :( It was just really soft and in this weird tomato-based chili sauce with a couple carrots and that was about it. It was a cross between spaghetti-o’s and well… spaghetti-o’s with tofu cubes.

Ah well… next time, back to the Avocado Roll! I did get a chance to try the supposed best dessert on the ship – the Banana Pancake – a pancake with sliced bananas, some warm honey-type sauce and vanilla ice cream. MMM!

Day 14 – May 13, 2010 – Rest, repairs and World Beat

Not too much to report today… slept in after a few exhausting days of activities and back to work today with lots of repairs to get done, one load of undergarment laundry for the show tonight, tech rehearsal and two great shows. We were in Iraklion, Crete in Greece today for a few hours this morning, but I needed rest badly and it was a short trip anyway. I’m sure I’ll see it in a couple weeks! After the show tonight, I was so tired I couldn’t even make it to the White Hot Party that the dancers do each week. I made a pair of shorts for one of them to wear for it today, which was actually a lot of fun. I haven’t had a chance to actually construct a garment since I left LA, so it was a nice treat! Off to bed early tonight for a huge laundry day tomorrow!

Day 13 – May 12, 2010 – Mykonos and Get Down Tonight

Today I got to go ashore to the famous gay destination, the island of Mykonos. The weather was perfect – hot and sunny and clear. Pieter and I decided to just tour around the town and save a trip to the beaches for next time. We tendered today and got over to the island with plenty of time to take in the sights.

We decided to hit the famous windmills first and walked through the iconic white, cubic-style buildings – restaurants, boutique hotels, specialty shops – along the waterfront towards the massive old structures. The style of architecture was very similar to Santorini. The stores were just a bit more modern and chic and clearly catering to a young, jet-setting type of tourist – celebrities, gays, fashion-forward travelers who are looking for an exciting atmosphere and vibrant nightlife. It was my kind of vibe for sure!

The next things I noticed were rainbow flag stickers all over the place – in the windows and doors of many of the businesses on the island. It was a sort of welcoming committee of stickers…very nice. Ship life in that respect has been interesting. I haven’t personally felt any sort of hostility, per se, but it’s definitely a very straight world and especially amongst the crew, a macho attitude prevails. I’ve met lots of great people though, of course most of the gays and also a bunch of open straight people. No worries here!

Anyway, the layout of the town in Mykonos was designed to confuse the pirates who would regularly ransack the town. The streets are narrow walkways that twist and turn and basically form a really complicated labrynth. It makes for a tough time trying to find specific places! Then again, it allows for all these completely unique alleyways and mini-blocks and corners and pockets filled with all sorts of treasures.

The windmills were stunning – really huge and the thatched roofs were giant bird nests with some pretty loud residents! The view of the town from the windmills was perfect – the water was sooo blue and all the cafés along it looked so lovely.

We turned inwards to explore all the side roads and more of the residential areas, which I am always way more interested in than the tourist areas. We found more and more beautiful Greek gays, gay bars and restaurants and it made me want to stay the night to party with them all so badly! I know I will one day soon I’m sure!

I took lots of pictures and stared at the brilliant bougainvillea climbing all over the buildings here, thinking I can’t wait to show Mom! Pieter and I got to bond some more, talking about our lives, loves, and dreams while meandering through the maze of Mykonos. The afternoon sun was beating down and baking us, so we leisurely made our way back to the tender, making note of the bus depot in the town center. That’s where you take a shuttle to the beaches.

After getting back on the ship, we had tech run for “Get Down Tonight” and I spent the rest of the afternoon in the dressing room, doing repairs and getting ready for the show. The show went well tonight, but two of the boys forgot their wigs upstairs in the dressing room and didn’t realize until right before going on for that number, so I had to run up, grab them and get them to the dancers with about 3 seconds to spare. Whew!

After so many days of packed schedules, I was just done after the show! I came back to my tent (the bed in my cabin has like a wrap-around privacy curtain, so I feel like it’s a tent, lol) and passed out!

Day 12 – May 11, 2010 - Laundry and Santorini, Greece.

I started my day today with a lovely training on Environmental and Corporate Responsibility at 9:30… it was fifteen minutes I can only wish I had back in my life. Ug… then it was operation Show Laundry time. We were set to arrive in Santorini at 4 pm, so I was determined to get all laundry and some repairs done in plenty of time to get the most amount of time on the island as I could. Completely wiped out from the day before, I did the 5 loads of laundry in a daze… we have to wash in the crew laundry facilities, which means fighting for machines and watching your stuff like a hawk so it doesn’t get mysteriously put into a dryer when it’s a non-dryable load. :) Oh the tiny smidge of drama in my life…. How awesome is that?

I finished all my duties and got some food and made my way off the boat for the most anticipated stop in our itinerary. Since I first saw a picture of this incredible place when I was a kid, I wanted to not only visit, but live there. Anytime anyone has ever asked me where I would go if I could travel anywhere in the world, I would tell them Greece – and specifically, Santorini. This is the iconic island that is covered in white-washed cubic buildings with bright blue accents, cobble stone roads and walkways, stray cats and views of the cerulean blue Aegean sea. I didn’t know exactly how I would feel arriving at a place for which I longed to experience as long as I could remember.

I took the tender over around 6 pm once crew was cleared to go and watched the cliffs covered in white near. I got into the port at the base of the mountainous island. There are two ways to get to the top – to the town of Santorini – up the donkey path, on a donkey – or via cable car. Crew only has to pay one Euro to take the cable car and I wouldn’t smell like donkey for the rest of the night, so my decision was easily made. :)

I got to the top, took a deep breath and headed out into the town. There are lots of meandering walkways filled with jewelry shops, clothing boutiques, restaurants, and souvenir stands. Of course I took a brief walk through the mess of tourists on my way to see more important things…like the famous Orthodox Cathedral in the centre of town.

Santorini is part of a group of islands called The Cyclades and they are known for the white-washed, cubic style of architecture. The Cathedral, topped with it’s stunning white dome is a perfect example of this style. To my right was the stunning ocean with the late afternoon sun reflecting a blinding white off of the buildings that lined the cliffs. The boutique hotels and restaurants made their home along this prime location. The Cathedral came up on my left and was open to the public. It was actually rather small inside, with a place to light candles, a modest sanctuary and brilliant frescos covering the underside of the massive dome. Something about being inside a place that has been recognized in pictures for millions of people around the world for so long made a huge impact on me. I sat inside overwhelmed and well, wept for a while. All that I’d experienced so far on this trip came to me in a wave of extreme gratitude and appreciation. It hadn’t fully struck me yet what this opportunity has allowed me to do and see and feel – and this was the perfect way to realize it’s meaning.

I pulled myself together and hit the “streets” again, heading off the tourist track out into the actual town area. I saw the town’s Cultural Center and there was a traditional dance class for teenage girls going on the outside area of the center, which was so cool to see. I went down a dirt road that lead towards the water and got some amazing pictures there. I snuck onto the side of a hotel to snag the really good shots!! The hotels were very quiet, as we’re at the very beginning of the season, so it was nice to not have tons of people around.

I walked around the main town a little more and made my way up to my perch to watch the sunset. I was so excited, I couldn’t stand it.

I went into a Café on the cliff’s edge and got the best table before they started filling up with viewers. I ordered a glass of the local white wine and got my camera ready. It was a beautiful, meditative experience staring at the sun for about an hour. I have the most brilliant photos of the sunset to remind me of this life-changing evening. I’ll post a couple here, but the full set will go up on my facebook pages.

I explored the rest of the hotel area at dusk and was even further moved by the sights in this light. The white buildings glowed and all over the town, tiny little lights came on to illuminate the walkways. I saw the cutest cat walking along the wall and got a couple shots before it jumped away.

The night ended with a ride back down the mountain to the ship and such incredible memories of visiting a postcard that truly looks JUST like that in person. The best part is… I get to do it all again in two more weeks.

Day 11 – May 10 2010 – Corfu, Greece, Doc’s bday

One of my favorite things to do is make someone a birthday present. Those of you who have been lucky enough to receive one from me (KIDDING!) know how much I like to personalize and put a lot of thought into it. Last night, I found out that it was my friend, Pieter’s birthday today, so it was emergency mix cd time! I busted one out yesterday and I have to say it was one of my best birthday mixes yet. The doctor (Pieter) was scheduled off for the whole day and Eric and I had lots of plans made to make it a fun 44th on the ship.

First stop was Corfu, Greece – a small city on the west coast with a quaint bazaar district and beautiful fortresses.

We walked from the port to the bazaar and headed pretty directly to one of the restaurants that offers crew a discount. :)

On the way through the streets, I had my first sight of the famous bright crimson bougainvillea hanging between two colonial buildings. It was stunning against the pastels of the architecture.

Lunch was delicious! I had my first authentic Greek Salad – tomatoes, cucumber, onions and feta with olive oil and herbs. The feta was especially divine, but I have to say…. I really was missing some good old American Greek dressing! Haha… Eric tipped the waiter off that it was a birthday lunch, so they brought out some fantastic fruit and pudding-type of dessert.

After lunch, we walked around some more, walked past the Palace of St. George and St. Michael… LOL. We walked slowly along the water on our way back to the ship, taking in the remains and influence of colonial rule.

Once back on the boat, we only had a short break before the evening’s festivities began. Once of the nurses, Sydney organized a birthday Tea in the medical center and invited Eric and I to join them in celebrating. We had a really wonderful cake there that was sort of a spice cake with buttercream icing. Rich and yummy… Then we all quickly changed and literally ran to the Theatre where there was a Magic Show. On our production show off nights, there are various special guest entertainment and the Magicians were here this week. After seeing lots of really great magic this past year at the Magic Castle and related events, I guess I’ve been a bit spoiled when it comes to seeing quality acts. This duo was not the best I’ve seen, but it was only 45 minutes of the night.

After the show, we had dinner reservations at the ship’s steak house, where I had the most amazing chopped salad and a Saffron Vegetable Casserole – basically mixed vegetables in a squash and saffron puree. We had the third birthday cake there and headed to the Spinnaker Lounge where the dancers were about to start their weekly Dancing with the Gem Stars competition. Guests get to volunteer and choose a dancer from our cast. They have to do a series of dances (The Chicken Dance, a Salsa, the Cupid Shuffle…) and they are judged by a panel of one of our male singers, the asst. cruise director and a hostess at reservations. It was actually a lot of fun and the guests and crowd really get into it.

As if we hadn’t done enough, we had one more stop on the birthday train… BOWLING! Eric got us the VIP room at Bliss and we had a 4th cake and the whole cast came over from Spinnaker and we bowled one huge game…WHICH I WON! It’s unheard of, I know, but I did!

I was so exhausted by the end of the night and had a very full day of show laundry and SANTORINI ahead of me!