Cruising The Seven Seas: Something Tells Me I'm in the States...

Something tells me I’m in the States…

1st February 2012

...Could it be that nothing in this country is done on a small scale? Everything is massive and every over the top. A complete contrast to what I’ve experienced recently in Uruguay, a tiny country with an even smaller population. The enormity of it all hit me while in transit from Orlando International Airport to the Best Western hotel on Maingate Lake Side Resort. It’s an alien world!

Going back to the airport quickly; there was a bit of an episode at customs. Mainly because I didn’t have a return ticket out of the United States. Of course, I’m a crew member so it shouldn’t have mattered, I had everything I needed. After answering a series of questions fired off by Customs I was taken to one side and left in a small waiting room. The officer told me that he had to get my occupation, visa and letter of employment verified. So I waited, waited and waited some more. Forty five minutes later I was handed back my paperwork and told I was free to go, but not before having to tell another officer what my next ship was and that I was a photographer for Image.

The directions Image provided for the shuttle bus to the hotel were brilliant and I found the place with no troubles whatsoever. Handing the hotel address over to the lady at the counter she sneered at the information provided by Image, commenting “well, I don’t know who gave you this, but the shuttle bus hasn’t been $17 for a very long time”.

“That’s okay, how much is it nowadays?” I asked. Hernan has told me it was $21 last week so I was hoping it hadn’t gone up again.

“$21 one way, $32 return”. I’ve found somewhere that charges more for transportation than London does at peak times!!!

I ordered a single. Again the lady seemed peeved. She asked why I didn’t want a return, I’d have to leave the country at some point. The words “mind your own business” sprang to mind. Instead, I simply told her I was a crew member and therefore only needed a single. That single ticket was then printed and thrown in my direction. The $21 was launched in her direction, a smile plastered on my face.

Outside I handed my ticket over to another lady, who was telling people which shuttle bus they needed to get on. I was handed a round electronic device and told “when it lights up, come find me”. Even a brunette would have been confused by this! Thirty minutes later, I was packed onto a shuttle bus and on my way to the hotel.

To be fair, the whole of Orlando seems to be revolved around Disney World. While waiting for the shuttle two Disney Cruise Line buses drove past.

Some of the hotels are absolutely immense! A couple of kids on the shutter bus were put out about not staying in "one of those hotels". There was even a Nickelodeon hotel! I was flabbergasted!

The Best Western Hotel is a dump, putting it nicely but hey, I guess it’s better than the cabin beds I shall soon be sleeping in. Dumping my cases on the floor, I brushed my teeth and headed out with my camera. There’s very little around the hotel, mainly Disney gift shops and fast food joints.

In the end I found a supermarket (and no Dad, it wasn’t a Walmart) and got some bits and bobs for the ship. Finally, after months of unsuccessful searching in Uruguay, I found black and white trainer socks. My uniform is now complete!

Back at the hotel, I managed to contact a few people to let them know I'm alive. The parents are out. Later on I found out they were at the hospital getting my mom prepared for her chemotherapy, which starts very soon. Today she had something inserted into her chest to allow the doctors to pump medication into her without her veins collapsing. It’s located near the tumour which I’m guessing is a bit of a bonus.

With nothing else to do I headed out in search of food. Travelling really does give you a case of the royal munchies! You don’t have to look far. The smell of fast food is rich in the air. Walking along the pavement there were towering signs for McDonalds, Denny’s, Burger King, Taco Bell, Wendy’s and so on.

A few people have commented on how awful Wendy’s was… so I thought I’d go for it. It wasn’t actually as bad as I thought it was going to be. I think I was gearing myself up for the worst. Having said that, whatever was in lodged in between the two bed buns vaguely resembled and tasted chicken!

Thinking of the hotel, I remember Hernan calling me from there last week. He’d commented on how dingy the place was and that it was a ghost town. He was right, there was no one around. I felt sorry for him and guilty that I couldn’t speak to him longer at the time. To be honest, I’m a bit down in the dumps since arriving here in Florida. I never thought I’d use the words “Florida” and “feeling down in the dumps” in the same sentence, yet here I am, putting it into writing. I guess it’s the whole new country, new surrounding and you are completely on your own, not knowing what to do or where to go. The thought of hiring a car popped into my head but had to be dismissed within seconds.

After getting in the shower I’m starting to feel a bit more relaxed about things. It’s now 9pm here in Florida (2am GMT) and I’ve not heard a thing from Image or Disney about training tomorrow. Slightly worrying as it does feel like no one knows that I’m here. Speaking to the voice of reason, aka my Dad, he told me to wait until the morning (as it was by then 8pm here) and give Image a call, see if they can shed some light on things. If I get a call at a random time in the morning saying I’m late for training, it can’t be helped, I knew nothing on the subject.

Maybe I’m just being a ratty tart because I’m shattered from travelling and my body clock is completely out of sync?

Looking on the bright side of things, I’m in the States again, preparing for another contract, going to see more of the world and things can only get better… right?