Update... THINGS ARE GREAT!

So.... suppose you're wondering how my first week on the Monarch went... well, i shouldn't say first week, but my first four day cruise!

Well, so far so good my friends! I'm slowly slowly settling into this place and i've made a ton of friends already. Like I said before, i have THE COOLEST roomate ever who is so easy going and and soooo considerate. Considerate to the point that she will wake up 15 minutes earlier than me so she can shower before MY alarm goes off and so I can sleep in... how nice is that. Anyway, it was her birthday yesterday so she held a "free hugs" party on the back deck. It was a great night with lots of dancing and drinking. Lucky for me, I didn't have to get up at 5:30am this morning and do debark so it was nice to be able to party and not have to worry about that.

So yeah, my first four day cruise went really well. The guys I'm working with are really really cool and I get along with them so well. Dexter, my supervisor signs off in a a week or two and he said that he wishes he could take me with him to his next contract on the Mariner of the Seas. Also, Radcliffe, who is the other sports staff but also the Assistant Sports Director of Royal had been around for a long time and I think he's actually going to work on the Oasis (the biggest ship in the world). He's going there to bascially set up the sports program and run it, till things are running smoothly as it will start cruising for the very first time in November. He too wants me to come and work for his team. Anyway, needless to say, I'm doing good on the work side of things. Female Sports Staff are very hard apprently to come by so, i'm out to prove myself. Apparently most of the chicks get on board and have a hard time dealing with all the testosterone of all the male staff, but seems I get along with them really well and have no problems.

Anyway, i'm enjoying my new schedule here on the Monarch. There aren't as many late nights and I don't have to do a couple of the shows which is nice. I had a fun time yesterday on the sports deck as the Monarch have a Crew vs Guest dodgeball tournament.... the Cruise Director and a bunch of staff get together and play the guest and it was hell fun. It was a great way to spend the afternoon.

I went out shopping today in Port Canaveral and bought a bunch of things to make my room homely. A cheap dvd player, a nice big donner and a few other things. Unfortunately the weather wasn't that nice so I wasn't out for long but all good. Raining and wet... yuck! We dock in Nassau again tomorrow and I have a sweat schedule. I work from 9am till 1pm and then literally have the rest of the day off.... totally unheard of on the Majesty. 'All Aboard' isn't until 11:30pm at night so it's going to be nice to hang out in Nassau for the afternoon/evening and get a good night's sleep.

Other that that... not much to report. I can't believe how time is flying. It's getting close to 2 months now that i've been on ships and feels like an enternity.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO SANDI FOR THE 2ND OF FEB!!! Hope you have a blast watching the superbowl on your birthday weekend. I wish I was there to enjoy JR's famous chilli :)

Mum and Dad, so good to talk to you today. I'll do my best to get that info for you.

My girls.... miss you guys heaps. I can't wait to (hopefully) rip it up with you in NZ when i return home in July for vacation.

Much love to all who read this.

xxxxxx