On Board!

HI Everybody,

Just got an extra hour break, so I have time to write you about my first few days on the ship!!!

They told me I had to go to Rouen, but I got a ticket to go to Paris instead. Going to Paris by train is a lot faster, but since it was all booked in the last minute, the ticket for the Eurolines bus was a lot cheaper!
Eurolines is a Dutch buscompany that can get you to pretty much everywhere in Europe for a reasonable price.

Downside was that I had to get up early and that is was going to take longer to get there too! Taking the train from Amsterdam to Paris it will take only 3 hours, this bustrip took me 7 hours. Not counting the hours it took to get to Amsterdam from Arnhem!!

But I managed, I was on the bus in time. My aunt and uncle came to the busstation in Amsterdam to say goodbye!! That was a great surprise! They live in Diemen, which is not far away, but I didn't know they were coming, so that was very sweet!

I arrived in Paris at around 3, had to take a taxi to where the ship was on the river Seine...I had taken a map with me to show the driver and at the busstation I saw a map of the entire city. It didn't look that far away, but getting there with the taxi took quit a long time...so I think I have been played as they say!!
But the good news is that he took me to the front door, so I wouldn't have to drag my heavy suitcase all the way to the boat!!

So far things are pretty hectic!! I started rigth away on Thursday!
They had asked me to bring a uniform, but I don't have one, so I just brought my black pants and a white shirt from my dad.
And when I had unpacked everything, had dinner I could come and sit at the reception, where Jayson is the Senior Receptionist. Which is really nice, it means I'll not be alone all day!

I'm his second and then there's a nightreceptionist, who I think is trying to hit on me already!!!haha
So far I have taken in a lot of information, I have helped with a disembarkation (loading people off the boat) and an embarkation, getting a new group of people on board.

We have traveled to Les Andelys and are now in Rouen. And that is basically all that this ship is going to do, from Paris to Rouen and back again...not sure what to think of that yet, but we'll see what happens!

i feel like I need an extra brain to take it all in, but everybody here is convinced that I will learn all soon enough and then it will be easy..we'll see!!

The crew consists of people from the East mostly, Romania, Craotia, Hungary and there are a couple of people from Indonesia and the Phillipines. I'm the only Dutch person, but one of the chefs has worked on a Dutch cruiseship, so every morning he asks me how I'm doing in Dutch, that's the only thing he knows!!haha
It's okay, but when they start talking in their own language it is..not hard, but it's not easy either.

I have a roommate from Bali, she will share a cabin with a friend starting tomorrow, so that will mean I will have a new roommate.

The people we have on board now are German, which means I can practise my German with them, they are vey glad that I can help them in their language and don't mind that I don't know everything!

So, so far all is well and things will get better once i get the hang of things!

I'll write more when I can!
Love
Linda