Below is the video we sent to our agent in April for our audition. It is a little rough compared to how we are playing together now, but it gives an idea of what we can do. I have also finally added all the photos I have taken so far to my flickr site.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
June 11, 2008
Juneau, Alaska. I had an omelet with reindeer sausage for breakfast.
As of today, I have officially been on the ship for 1 month.
I had a life raft drill this morning. This is my 2nd official drill, but I missed my first one (I didn't know about it until after it happened). I was anxious to make it to the drill because after missing my first one, I had to go to the Chief Officer and tell him why I missed it. I was told to tell him that it was my first ship and my first contract and that I missed it because I forgot to look at the schedule. All true except for the tiny fact that nobody told me to look at the schedule in the first place. He wrote "no excuse" on his paper and told me to go to a make up drill the following week.
On a happier note for me, I have now seen many of the animals that I wanted to see. Just over a week ago, I saw humpback (I think) whales jumping out of the water. There were probably 6 or more whales and they were having fun jumping out of the water over and over again. The ship was moving, so it only lasted for a few minutes and I was unable to run down to get my camera.
On Saturday, I was walking on the deck with Alison from my quartet and I had my camera with me, when we spotted several porpoises. They were chasing the ship and jumping out of the water over the waves made by the ship. I tried to snap a few pictures (even with the continuous shooting feature on my camera), but they were so fast that I am only able to see faint outlines in the water and the splashes they made.
I also took a trip to the Alaska SeaLife Center. I was able to see some sea lions, some puffins, and some other birds and fish.
I am trying to send the pictures to my flickr page now. I have been having trouble with the ship's internet connection, so I found the public library in Juneau and I am using the free internet connection here to catch up on some things.
All for now,
-Paul
As of today, I have officially been on the ship for 1 month.
I had a life raft drill this morning. This is my 2nd official drill, but I missed my first one (I didn't know about it until after it happened). I was anxious to make it to the drill because after missing my first one, I had to go to the Chief Officer and tell him why I missed it. I was told to tell him that it was my first ship and my first contract and that I missed it because I forgot to look at the schedule. All true except for the tiny fact that nobody told me to look at the schedule in the first place. He wrote "no excuse" on his paper and told me to go to a make up drill the following week.
On a happier note for me, I have now seen many of the animals that I wanted to see. Just over a week ago, I saw humpback (I think) whales jumping out of the water. There were probably 6 or more whales and they were having fun jumping out of the water over and over again. The ship was moving, so it only lasted for a few minutes and I was unable to run down to get my camera.
On Saturday, I was walking on the deck with Alison from my quartet and I had my camera with me, when we spotted several porpoises. They were chasing the ship and jumping out of the water over the waves made by the ship. I tried to snap a few pictures (even with the continuous shooting feature on my camera), but they were so fast that I am only able to see faint outlines in the water and the splashes they made.
I also took a trip to the Alaska SeaLife Center. I was able to see some sea lions, some puffins, and some other birds and fish.
I am trying to send the pictures to my flickr page now. I have been having trouble with the ship's internet connection, so I found the public library in Juneau and I am using the free internet connection here to catch up on some things.
All for now,
-Paul
Saturday, May 24, 2008
May 24, 2008
Hello everyone,
We have visited every port that we will visit this summer, and I've gotten a pretty good idea of how the next 12 weeks of my life will go. We get to Vancouver tomorrow, completing our first round trip.
I am able to withdrawal money that I've earned before my paydays, and I can bill anything I buy on the ship directly to my account. It is hard to not buy any little thing that I want, because I usually do not see the money changing hands. I already bought some sunglasses, and I want to buy a nice watch. When I say nice watch, I am aiming for the $100 range, but nice watches on the ship go from several hundred to several thousand dollars. One of my friends has a watch whose hands turn into several things including a compass, a barometer, a thermometer, and several things I don't remember. He paid $500 for it and I am super envious. I have goals for my earnings this summer, and I don't want to get sucked into frivolous spending. I want to pay off a large part of my credit card debt, and I need to buy a new phone when I get back home (I want an iPhone). I need a watch, but I don't need a $500 watch.
I'm still trying to exercise regularly, but I've only actually made it to the crew gym 3 times in 2 weeks. Walking on the Lower Promenade is easier to do, but probably doesn't do as much for me. It is too easy to sleep super late since I don't need to do anything until 7:00 pm. The biggest motivation to get up before noon (yes, I know I have a rough life) is breakfast. I also felt very guilty when I was napping at 2:00pm and my cabin steward opened the door. I don't want my shipmates to be angry because I work so much less than they do.
Speaking of my shipmates, I have met people from US, Canada, Indonesia, Philippines, Hungary, Jamaica, Scotland, England, Jerusalem, Holland, Macedonia, India, South Africa, Italy and Australia. Almost everyone working on the ship has a smile on their face. Sometimes, I'm sure that it is forced, but most of the time, I believe that people on the ship are happy. It's also really fun to meet people who want to talk even if they don't know you very well. Everyone has a story and it's always interesting.
My playing is not always the most exciting part of my day, but there was an interesting moment earlier this week. We were playing a quartet arrangement of the Largo from Dvorak's New World Symphony, when several people jumped up and ran to the window at the side of the ship. I guess that whales were jumping out of the water just a few yards to the side of the ship. I didn't get to see much because I was playing and people were standing in the way, but the music we were playing seemed to go with the situation very well. Because of that moment, I have a new association with this piece that I will remember for a long time.
I just purchased a page of postcard stamps, so I need people's addresses! Send me an email with your address if you want a postcard. Also, I want to know what is going on with everyone that I don't get to see this summer. Please email me to let me know what is happening. Because I have to pay for my Internet by the minute, I am slow to respond (if I do at all), but I read everything I get.
We have visited every port that we will visit this summer, and I've gotten a pretty good idea of how the next 12 weeks of my life will go. We get to Vancouver tomorrow, completing our first round trip.
I am able to withdrawal money that I've earned before my paydays, and I can bill anything I buy on the ship directly to my account. It is hard to not buy any little thing that I want, because I usually do not see the money changing hands. I already bought some sunglasses, and I want to buy a nice watch. When I say nice watch, I am aiming for the $100 range, but nice watches on the ship go from several hundred to several thousand dollars. One of my friends has a watch whose hands turn into several things including a compass, a barometer, a thermometer, and several things I don't remember. He paid $500 for it and I am super envious. I have goals for my earnings this summer, and I don't want to get sucked into frivolous spending. I want to pay off a large part of my credit card debt, and I need to buy a new phone when I get back home (I want an iPhone). I need a watch, but I don't need a $500 watch.
I'm still trying to exercise regularly, but I've only actually made it to the crew gym 3 times in 2 weeks. Walking on the Lower Promenade is easier to do, but probably doesn't do as much for me. It is too easy to sleep super late since I don't need to do anything until 7:00 pm. The biggest motivation to get up before noon (yes, I know I have a rough life) is breakfast. I also felt very guilty when I was napping at 2:00pm and my cabin steward opened the door. I don't want my shipmates to be angry because I work so much less than they do.
Speaking of my shipmates, I have met people from US, Canada, Indonesia, Philippines, Hungary, Jamaica, Scotland, England, Jerusalem, Holland, Macedonia, India, South Africa, Italy and Australia. Almost everyone working on the ship has a smile on their face. Sometimes, I'm sure that it is forced, but most of the time, I believe that people on the ship are happy. It's also really fun to meet people who want to talk even if they don't know you very well. Everyone has a story and it's always interesting.
My playing is not always the most exciting part of my day, but there was an interesting moment earlier this week. We were playing a quartet arrangement of the Largo from Dvorak's New World Symphony, when several people jumped up and ran to the window at the side of the ship. I guess that whales were jumping out of the water just a few yards to the side of the ship. I didn't get to see much because I was playing and people were standing in the way, but the music we were playing seemed to go with the situation very well. Because of that moment, I have a new association with this piece that I will remember for a long time.
I just purchased a page of postcard stamps, so I need people's addresses! Send me an email with your address if you want a postcard. Also, I want to know what is going on with everyone that I don't get to see this summer. Please email me to let me know what is happening. Because I have to pay for my Internet by the minute, I am slow to respond (if I do at all), but I read everything I get.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Ketchikan, Alaska
Hello everybody,
The past few days have been busy, but fun. On Sunday, the quartet took a cab from the hotel to the ship. The cab driver was a nice lady from Iran and the drive through Vancouver was exciting. Once we got to the ship (after the security guys decided we were really supposed to be on this ship) we found our rooms and I met my cabin mate. After I moved my stuff into the room we had a security and safety meeting, took an environmental course and quiz, got some food, and played our first set. There were two passengers who recognized us from our flight from Chicago.
Yesterday, we had a follow up security meeting in the morning. I started to feel a bit queasy from the motion of the ship, so I slept most of the day up to our set.
Today I'm in Ketchikan, Alaska. There was a meeting at 6:30 (the ship just switched to Alaska time) to be screened by US immigration to get on and off the ship in US ports. I got off the ship to buy a few sundries that I forgot to bring. Things here are really expensive.
I'm still trying to figure out the details of my daily life - finding my way through the ship, meal times, time changes, where I can and can't go, and remembering my ID (which opens my cabin).
All in all, everything is going as well or better than I had expected. The views are incredible, the crew is friendly and helpful, the passengers are excited to hear what we are playing, and the pay ain't half bad. I got over the first bout of seasickness, and I hope it doesn't come back. I can still feel the rocking of the boat, and I do run in to the occasional wall here and there, but it doesn't look like it will be a lingering problem.
All for now,
-Paul
The past few days have been busy, but fun. On Sunday, the quartet took a cab from the hotel to the ship. The cab driver was a nice lady from Iran and the drive through Vancouver was exciting. Once we got to the ship (after the security guys decided we were really supposed to be on this ship) we found our rooms and I met my cabin mate. After I moved my stuff into the room we had a security and safety meeting, took an environmental course and quiz, got some food, and played our first set. There were two passengers who recognized us from our flight from Chicago.
Yesterday, we had a follow up security meeting in the morning. I started to feel a bit queasy from the motion of the ship, so I slept most of the day up to our set.
Today I'm in Ketchikan, Alaska. There was a meeting at 6:30 (the ship just switched to Alaska time) to be screened by US immigration to get on and off the ship in US ports. I got off the ship to buy a few sundries that I forgot to bring. Things here are really expensive.
I'm still trying to figure out the details of my daily life - finding my way through the ship, meal times, time changes, where I can and can't go, and remembering my ID (which opens my cabin).
All in all, everything is going as well or better than I had expected. The views are incredible, the crew is friendly and helpful, the passengers are excited to hear what we are playing, and the pay ain't half bad. I got over the first bout of seasickness, and I hope it doesn't come back. I can still feel the rocking of the boat, and I do run in to the occasional wall here and there, but it doesn't look like it will be a lingering problem.
All for now,
-Paul
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Travel and Vancouver
I am in Vancouver. Our flight ended up leaving 2 hours late, but arriving almost 4 hours late. I flew from Chicago with 2 of the 3 girls from my quartet. We caught the hotel shuttle from the airport and rode with 3 Filipino guys that will also be working on our ship. One was the head baker, one was the provisions manager and the third was a mechanic. The provisions manager has been working on cruise ships for over 20 years.
When we got to the hotel, we met up with quartet member #4. The rooms are big with 2 double beds. We went to a Japanese restaurant, and had sushi and other stuff. The hotel has free internet, but we are leaving at 9 to head out to the ship. Ship, not boat.
Internet on the ship will not be free, but rumor says it will be around 10¢ a minute. Either way, I hope to be putting up some pictures soon.
When we got to the hotel, we met up with quartet member #4. The rooms are big with 2 double beds. We went to a Japanese restaurant, and had sushi and other stuff. The hotel has free internet, but we are leaving at 9 to head out to the ship. Ship, not boat.
Internet on the ship will not be free, but rumor says it will be around 10¢ a minute. Either way, I hope to be putting up some pictures soon.
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