Mauritius and Ship Life

Mauritius and Ship Life

Mauritius, a small island connected to Africa was our next stop after Cape Town. It was only for a day but it was definitely worth the stop. We had about 8 hours from when we docked to experience what the island had to offer. Because of the limited time and my inability to fully research the activities or sights to see I signed up for an organized trip through the program. Initially I signed up for the hike and beach tour but due to significant amounts of rainfall our tour company for Mauritius cancelled our hike, Instead, I had the option to pick another trip and chose to do the Adventure Park and Beach trip. Adventure Park may sound a bit touristy and could have had the potential to be hokey but it was a full on ropes course with 2 parts. The first course were primarily bridges and then another hike up to the 2nd course led us to a more difficult course which started with a small hike. It was definitely a challenge but I am happy to say that I did all 14 courses. The zipline, which was promoted to catch the eye of the participants was the most underwhelming – we have video of me doing the zipline and some courses and the courses were definitely the highlight. After the ropes course we were provided with lunch and then we were off to Flic and Flac Beach, one of the best beaches in Mauritius. After a couple hours at the beach we headed back to the ship for on-ship time. After we got everyone on board we headed off to Chennai, India.

I realized that I have been blogging a lot about the ports we dock in and what I do while on land but don’t really talk about ship life. At first, I felt that ship life was not as interesting to write about but considering that half of the time we are at sea, it was important to write about ship life for my own reflection but also to provide some snapshots for you so that you can also visualize what I am actually doing on a day to day. Also, so I can dispel any misconceptions of what we do on board. Many people may misinterpret our roles on board as cruise ship life… but in reality I think I work just as hard or possibly harder on a day to day on board than I would on a campus. My day pretty much starts at about 7am and ends around 11pm depending on the day. Some days we will have programs and activities that go until 11pm and some days there is alcohol service nights (AKA Pub Night) on board where our duty shifts end at 11:30pm. Without going into more detail about work – the other parts of ship life is fun and interesting. For example, we had a Curry Night for the faculty and staff last night where there was special catering from the ship Hospitality staff. I guess a lot of the adults were getting tired of the dining hall food and this was definitely a special night – also because it was Faith’s Birthday. We got to celebrate with an amazing dinner and a huge ice cream cake… couldn’t have asked for a better night – and then right after I was a judge for The Ultimate SASser competition – more than a pageant it was a competition that mirrored a pageant but with appropriate and tasteful categories and it was a duo, not individual, competition. I was pretty honored and happy to judge the competition alongside some other shipboard staff members, including Randi Sue the Nurse on board and 2 other adult, lifelong learners who are on the Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Ice cream cake seems to be a common theme when we celebrate things. Our lead security officer, Savio, who has been an awesome source of support and a great team player is also leaving in Chennai, India… so we got him an ice cream cake and surprised him the night before we docked in India. I just think how things like an ice cream cake are so valued because of the limitations we have while at sea… anyway… so ship life.. definitely something I am very used to by now and it seems like I can do this for a while… the only thing that is holding me back from applying to every other semester is the fact that I don’t have a job and income and the many other life moments that will be happening in the future, such as weddings and oh yeah… my own graduation. LOL!

I have also reflected on the multiple communities I have on board and I am quite happy with the many people I have interacted with on the ship. Some include my extended family, who are a group of students who are assigned to me as their honorary “older cousin”… most others go by “mom and dad” but that just freaks me out and I am not old enough to be called that, especially by a college students, so I just told them that I would be the extended family member that is an older cousin that gets them ice cream and hangs out with them than giving any type of sage advice… although I think I have a lot to give… lol… and then I also have weaved together a pretty tight group of smokers on the smoking deck… as usual they are the students who are unique, have their own issues, but are as tight as glue because of all the time we spend together… and its funny to see a new face as the group is cemented and when we find a new person smoking on the deck at this point in the voyage we have to double take but do welcome them to the circle of smokers….The professional staff are awesome and I love hanging out with any of them… although we have a hierarchy of positions it really feels communal and team oriented and I love the fact that we are in close quarters and the culture of the community here is that everyone is a community member that is valued and has something important to contribute…The faculty are hilarious and a bit quirky which I love as well because I understood the presence of faculty and their importance in the development of a rich community within an educational setting but their presence and visibility on the ship is totally different and fun.

More on ship life to come...