I do not remember when this bad weather started. All I know is I woke up around 4am after the Caribbean Princess hit a huge swell and well the ship landed in the water with a huge shudder. Our cabin was creaking quite a bit. The hangers in our closet were quiet, because I remembered to squish them all together with clothes hanging on either side. So no jingle and jangle. Just creak and more creak.
Hubby opens our balcony curtains just slightly and mentions to me that he sees lightning. Sleepy-eyed I grab a GoPro and my iPhone (because I have it conveniently nearby) and try to document the adverse weather we are going through. Hubby was not kidding about the lightning and failed to mention about the thunder which made me jump when I first heard it nearby. Wow…free entertainment on the ship. This is another first for us experiencing the “thunder and lightning” on a ship.
We were lying in bed and you could feel the ship swaying to and fro and side to side. Sleep hits us with a vengeance and then we wake up when the ship hits a swell. We go through this several times and eventually wake up around 8am. Extremely tired. We grab a quick breakfast at the buffet and head down to IC for some coffee. Fellow passengers are out and about. Like us, many are walking around trying to keep our balance and not run into each other.
Back in our cabin, safe and sound, we are camping here for the rest of the day. By 11am, the Captain is talking to us in our cabin (you know it’s a must hear announcement) and talks about the adverse weather condition we are experiencing. No kidding! We are sailing around 17 knots with winds of 45 knots across the upper decks. The seas are “rough” (translation: 8-12 foot swells). We will be going through this for the next 10 hours. He is telling us to hold onto railings and be careful when opening and closing the exterior doors. Yes, the heavy doors will slam shut quickly. I have first hand experience with this 3 years ago on the Caribbean Princess when we were in the Gulf in bad weather. I was coming inside from the Promenade deck and the door almost slammed into my DSLR. Lesson learned…take pictures from the safety of our balcony.
The Captain continues with his talk and tells us he will be back with an update later today and enjoy your day on the Caribbean Princess.
Well, I know for a fact that the weather will get worse before it gets better. Before the Captain made his announcement, my stomach was starting to feel queasy. I did not say anything to Hubby. I kept myself busy with blogging, reviewing the hundreds of pictures taken, watching “chick flicks” on TV, and tidying up the cabin a bit. My queasiness left after awhile and my hunger pains began. That’s when I looked at Hubby and noticed he was a bit out of sorts. I made two trips down to IC and brought back to our cabin, ginger ale and tuna fish sandwich. Hubby was not interested in the sandwich. Really? He did take the ginger ale. So I ate his sandwich.
By mid-afternoon, I am cranking out the blog posts in a chatty sort of way. Hubby is lying down on our couch and watching the rough swells go by. The weather is getting worse. I decide to take a break from sitting and swaying and head down to mid-ship deck 5 to see how the ship is moving. Trust me when I say I had a hard time walking down the stairs from deck 9 (our cabin) to deck 5 (Plaza). I know I do not like touching the banister (other people's germs), but I had to…to avoid slamming against the stairwell wall. For that matter…slamming into other people on the stairs. By the time I get down to deck 5, I am laughing and giggling. You’ve heard me say, that I enjoy the ship’s rocking and rolling. I am enjoying this ride!
Mid-ship is no better than forward or aft. Deck 5 (the lowest we can go without being in the crew’s quarters or medical center) is no better than our cabin deck. In summary, there is no place to go in the ship where you will not feel the motion. There were still people milling around. Like me, I suppose they were feeling claustrophobic in their cabins and hoping things were better on deck. I make my way up to Deck 7 (Promenade) to chat with Carmen (South Africa) in the Effy jewelry shop. She and another lady are manning the shop. Usually there are four of them, but the other two were turning blue and had to go back to their cabins below. I can not imagine that decks 4 or 3 are any better.
Where is everyone?
I make my way over to the Photography Shop and see only two Princess photographers manning their venue. I ask a technical question and get an answer for our GoPro Hero5. The young lady was talking so fast and I assume she was not feeling too well herself. I leave her alone with her misery. I had mine earlier and did not want to participate again.
As I make my way around the ship, I was expecting to see “up-chuck bags” placed around the ship. Not that i need one, but I remember reading a friend’s blog as she described traveling across the Trans-Atlantic. I guess crossing the Atlantic into the Caribbean Sea does not count.
Hubby and I are feeling the worst part of the ship’s movement by now. (Remember I mention go through the worst before it gets better?) The swells are huge and I’m guessing 15 feet. The ship would hit the swell and for 5 seconds you could feel the “float in air” motion, and then the huge shudder when the ship lands in the water. This motion and feeling goes on every few minutes. We are half way through the 10 hours.
The Cruise Director makes an announcement. The Caribbean Princess dancers have postponed their show tonight and reschedule for tomorrow night. Interesting. Tonight is formal night. No high heals tonight. Since we’ve started our B2B (back to back) adventure, this is our third try to get dressed up and actually participate in formals. What do we do? Nothing. We are in t-shirts and shorts and flip-flops. I make a mental note to not bring formalwear next year. That’s 20lbs (clothes and shoes) of wasted space in our luggage that could be used to bring back Tortuga rum cakes (vanilla, coconut, chocolate, lime, chocolate chip). I know I’m forgetting other favors. This is what happens when you are in cruise mode…forgetting things.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention something. See? During my mid-afternoon (walk like a drunk without the alcohol) trips around the ship, I noticed the Captain was having a busy day. He had three (3) weddings he officiated! Yes, he was busy marrying young couples off the ship. The first one I came across in the Piazza. Naturally, I stood on Deck 7 and took a shot while the couple was on the atrium stairs. The bride was wearing a full and flowing white gown. It was more of a “street photography” moment. Then I noticed the Princess Photographer stood in the same spot I was just at and started taking pictures. I wonder….
I was walking by Crooners Lounge and saw another bride chatting with her attendants. This bride was wearing a light colored non-traditional gown.
The next bride I saw was walking down the hallway on deck 9 (Dolphin) near our cabin. She was wearing a gorgeous slim fitting gown covered in embroidered lace. Really beautiful.
I’m not sure how the Princess Photographers took pictures during formal night. Especially if they are posing folks on the stairs in the Piazza (atrium) or posing cruisers on a stool with a pretty backdrop. I forgot to buzz or take a walk around the ship in the early evening. I was thinking of them.
Around 9pm, the weather was taking a noticeable change for the better. The seas were calming down and so was the wind. Again, I have no idea how long we endured this adverse weather, but it was at least 18 hours from our 4am wake up shudder.
I will be back to post pictures for this post when I can. In the meantime, I need to get blogging about our Western Caribbean ports. Stay tuned!
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