“You from
Uruguay?“
“Not
really. I'm from Germany. Where are you from?”
“From
Indonesia. Gotta go. See you later.”
I admit, a
rather weird conversation, but not so weird when you work and live on
ships. This just happened to me on my way to work when I got into an
elevator. A short Asian looking guy pushing a cart with dirty linen
was already inside and was trying to read my name tag. Those are
placed on the left side of the chest and trained eyes can check in
only few seconds all the information a name tag gives. I'm not a fan
of those eyes because I'd rather have people ask me for my name, my
nationality, and the place I work, directly. Those who know me also
know I'm not shy to answer, haha. These types of conversations are
not rare. Quite contrary, there's hardly an elevator ride where
nationality doesn't come up. The uniform already gives away the area
you work in, and the name is usually the last thing people are
interested in. In the past couple of weeks my nationality became
quite known on the ship due to the world cup. Every time Germany won
a game people would ask me, “Are you happy?” and my reply would
usually be, “Why not? I'm always happy...” By the way, I didn't
watch a single match and Germany still won! After winning the world
cup, especially people that didn't know my name, would holler “Hey,
Germany!” in my direction. Not sure I've ever felt as German as
then.... Thankfully the hype around the world cup has died down now
and people have gone back to calling me simply Anna.
It's been
eight weeks now since I've joined the amazing Radiance of the Seas
and I must say I'm really happy here. The ports are truly amazing. I
get to see a lot of wild life and nature, breathe the freshest air
ever, and I'm just so proud to be in this part of the world. Though
Alaska has never been on my bucket list, I'm very glad I was given
the chance to come and see it for myself. Photos don't do justice to
the beautiful views I get after hiking seemingly invincible
mountains. God made the world such a beautiful place, and Alaska must
be one of the top ten most beautiful places I've ever seen.
hiking in Skagway
Hubbard Glacier
Exit Glacier in Seward
glacier in Juneau
hiking Mount Roberts in Juneau
hiking in Ketchikan with Jess
