Thursday, September 29, 2005

Screaming Turtles need Singing Lessons

Yeah, weird title I know, but when trying to think of things to type they kind of came up together!

SCREAMING: 2 weeks ago most of the Ents Department went to Porta Vantura and had a fabulous day screaming (well the singers were being slightly more restrained (I say SLIGHTLY!) and getting soaked on some cool rides. Laren and Louise got drenched by the Capoirea boys (Andre & Gilberto) ON THE FLUME, Alice (ACD) and Geta (from the Salon) went on their first ever rollercoasters and most of scared the bejeezus out of ourselves by going on the tower drop type thing - It drags you up aout 300ft and then drops you, nuff said!

TURTLE: Well only one, but we were doing lifeboat drill last week and I saw a turtke off the side of the ship, it must have been massive and it was all by itself...ahhh.

SINGING LESSON: Well, not really, but Richard (CD) sat down at the piano with me ´cos I aked if he would give me a lesson/some help. Mostly I just wanted to see if I could still sing, seen as it´s been about 7 years (WTH??!!!) since I sang properly. (I was Liesl in the Sound Of Music for Alcester Operatics)
It was cool. Didn´t really sing a whole lot, but he worked out what my range was (2 1/2 Octaves if I actually warmed up!) and where the breaks were in my voice and what key I should sing in. Turns out I´m almost the same has him only an Octave higher and I´m a Contralto (It means I can sing Soprano but am much happier singing alto ..I think!) which was good to know as usually I was put in whatever section needed volume so I never actually found out what I was!
I was asking about the singer´s ranges and Lauren (so talented it would make you ill!) has a range of...3 and 1/2 Octaves - that´s like Julie Andrews standard - scary!

So, only 4 weeks to go before I can stop setiing the Alarm clock, stop changing the language I speak to people in shops with everyday, eat real chips, drink water out of the tap, and do all those other things that you miss when you´re away from home for ages!

Things on board are more settled now, Fel has almost stopped making a nuisance of himself; there´s a few bits of equipment that, quite frankly, would be better off in the Sea and folks are getting a bit tetchy due to the fact that it´s nearly time to go home but all in all, not bad!

Oh, and yesterday I climbed to the top of the Sagardia Familia in Barcelona - amazing!!!

Thursday, September 15, 2005

"..So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish.."

We have a new batch of movies (Films, I´m English, come on brain sort it out..) and at the moment the one that contains the above quote is my favourite. Think I might go and buy the CD!

Well, no entry last week because, quite frankly, I´ve been too busy and my head is spinning trying to remember all the things I´m supposed to do!
We were supposed to get a new technician this week. The it turned into one of those is he/isn´t he situations which resulted in Richard (CD) frantically tring to find a tranquliser/ some syanide and me and the boys not really caring anymore! So we are still three and things are just about fine.

Noone is officially Stage Manager. I´m doing all the paperwork and the lights for the shows but I can´t be SM because if we get a new tech then he´ll be doing lights so I won´t be on the shows (although I fell it has more to do with keeping Felino happy) and Fel can´t be because, well, he barely does the work he´s supposed to so getting him to do more is just an impossibility. He has spent the time since Dante left trying in everyway possible to take advantage of the fact that noones officially in charge and trying to get out of as many duties as possible.
Also he keeps suggesting changes that would "make all our lives easier". However me and Sebi are hardened to his tactics and now everytime that phrase leaves his mouth we try and figure out why his suggestion would be advantageous to him (usually meaning less work) and what we´d have to do to cover him. So basically he´s not getting away with as much as he could with Dante and it´s p*****g him off. Me and Sebi however...well....couldn´t care less!

Apart from that I´m enjoying the new level of responsibilty, the fact I´m involved in the shows and that I get to do sound for the group Cabaret´s and that Sebi is getting a chance to do loads of new stuff!

In the last 2 weeks I´ve been to Rome (although I´m going back for a closer look!) and wandered around Cadiz. I went on a tour to the Alhambra Palace (thought to be the fabled Hanging Gardens of Babylon) and it was gorgeous (although getting up for 7am was NOT!).

Also we went to Gibraltar this week. It was their National Day so everything was shut, but man, do these people know how to do a national day. And they were all fighting to stay British - Governments take note. Here is a picture of people united - I would like to give it the title "Spot the Tourist"

Thursday, September 01, 2005

DJBex has hung up her headphones

No, No, I haven´t quit.

Dante had to go home this week because his wife is ill and his family need him so I have sort of been promoted to Stage Manager. I say sort of because TPTB won´t say on way or the other who is now Stage Manager (and don´t think that Felino isn´t taking advantage of that!) but I am doing all of Dante´s work. So the role of 4 tech´s is split into 3, but we´ve pretty much sorted it so that the daily duties are fair.

It means that I am now doing the lighting for the shows etc in the CCL, the sound for the group Cabaret´s in the OKL and stuff on the pool deck for deck party´s. But I am no longer DJing. Instead Sebi is now the only DJ and me and Felino are sharing all the morning duties. It´s going to be a shaky couple of weeks but we´ll get there.

I need to rant now.

Richard (CD), Alice (ACD) and I went with Dante to the taxi to see him off and the Port Agent in Barcelona was such an A**H***. He was really racist towards Dante, I wanted to thump him. He assumed that Richard was going and that Dante was his porter. When he eventually understood that (it is beyond me why they employ port agents who can´t speak more than one language!)he was generally rude and derogatory towards Dante, the nicest, calmest guy on the planet, who just took it. This treatment is just because Dante is Filipino.

Now I´m sorry but Dante probably has more brains and compassion in his little finger than this arrogant g*t has in his body. Dante can speak at least 3 languges, he´s in a management position, he´d probably have to work twice as hard as the g*t to earn the same money so deserves some damn RESPECT...OK.

It baffles me how countries can be admitted into the EU when they have such a disdain for an entire nation (Greece as a particular example, if most of this officers on this ship are anything to go by) because of their own superiority complex.

These guys work damn hard, and they enjoy it. That gives NOBODY the right to treat them like a lesser species. They should in fact be thankful for them and treat them with respect as they work twice as hard as the b******s who treat them so appalingly.

There was a similar incident on the Spirit with the Captain and the Sound Tech, Anthony and the Capatin weasled out of it. Me and the team were fuming, he didn´t even apologise. I´ve also had comments from Greek officer´s etc because they think it´s wrong that an English person should be working for as Filipino boss. Well excuse me for not being racist and realising that he´s actaully far more qualified!

So I wanted to ask if when you read this you could pray/send mojo for:
Dante and his family (wife and 3 small kids)
and the team on here to stay calm and sorted
and me to have patience with everything!