This was written in The Bahamas at 24 35.9107′ N, 76 02.5875′ W
The first day aboard my first cruise has come and gone. Somethings surprised me and some totally met my expectations.
The moment people get on board the ship they enter into vacation mode. Just walking around after I put my bags away, I saw the pool area already full and guys were already half way through a bucket of beer bottles. There is no need to wait for the ship to pull away. I sat next to one guy in a bar who wanted to try all 52 martinis on the menu before the cruise was over.
I’d say at least half of the people on the cruise are of retirement age. The rest is a mix. I saw one guy during the mandatory fire drill which took place before we left, who said he was 89 years old. This part pretty much met my expectations.
I sort of assumed I’d be eating at buffets most of the time which sort of scared me. I enjoy a buffet as much as the next guy, but eating them all the time didn’t appeal to me. The first dining area I found walking around the ship was the buffet which had the smell of buffet in the air. Thankfully, the dinner I had was at a sit down restaurant and was actually pretty good meal. I think I can totally avoid the buffet while I’m here. In fact, given that you can eat for free anywhere, I don’t get why you even need to have a buffet on the ship. The whole ship is a buffet.
This cruise is sponsored by Princess Cruise lines and is their attempt at reaching out to the social media world. I’ve never felt so much like a rock star. In reality, at least the check in procedure was the same as what you’d get if you were a member of their “frequent cruiser” program.
The staff-to-passenger ratio seems high. The restaurant was crawling with staff. They seem to be everywhere. It is also extremely international. Since I got on board I’ve been keeping a list on my iPhone of the home countries where the crew members I’ve met live:
I suspect that list will grow over the next few days.
The ship moves and the fact that you are on a moving vessel is obvious, but it is not enough to make you sick….at least not me. I get motion sickness very easy. I puked on a boat in the Great Barrier Reef and another in the Red Sea. So far nothing here. The ship is just too big.
Speaking of big, I’ve never even been on a boat close to this size. It is enormous. You can easily get lost on it.
Today the boat stops at Princess’s private island in the Bahamas. The agenda today is just sitting on the beach, which is something I usually don’t do very well.
