NAVEGANTE

by Valeria Reneé Ledesma (Mexico)

A leap into the unknown USA

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Imagine sailing through the Pacific Ocean heading Alaska, crossing under the most impressive bridges in Canada and the United States, sailing for days and nights and suddenly taking a big breath of air in the middle of nowhere when losing yourself in the vastness of the ocean when everything that surrounds you are different shades of water until you reach the most beautiful beaches in Hawai, it was something that i stopped imagining because at that moment the sea breeze on my face and the sound of the waves breaking the thick metal of the huge boat i was standing on was real. After surviving and literally surviving in Vancouver (my embarkation port) for 2 months since i had traveled only with money in my pocket for one week maybe less (clearly it was not in my plans to stay that long) but sometimes things don't work out as you plan. I was packing again within a few hours of heading to the jetty because a steel giant was going to arrive at Canadian port in the morning. Walking alone through long corridors i could only watch people registering and boarding the huge boats (which i remember to look at with too much amazement while i was going alongside them). I knew that going up the ramp in front of me there was no going back. I was, crossing the doors of what was going to be my home for the next 7 months, surrounded by different nationalities crew while my bags were passing through the security machines. I had 240 days of work ahead with no idea what it would be like to work on a cruise ship. Uncertainty, fear, excitement and a room that now i had to called “cabin”, smaller than many would have imagined even me and in addition to that i had to share with a perfect stranger (definitely goodbye to the comforts that you have at home or ashore). But as people say "after the storm, calm comes." I managed to adapt to the pace of work quickly i also made good friends but it wasnt easy at all at the beginning because at times dizziness did not allow me to perform my tasks. During the first days it was definitely a big challenge, i couldnt stand for more than 5 minutes because on certain routes the movement of the boat was very intense. At that time i started to believe that the job was not for me, however it was all a matter of time, gingerale, green apples to control dizziness, practice in my work area and the support of some colleagues who did the exhaustive work, day by day a more pleasant experience. If I remember something about all the incredible routes and landscapes i saw, it was during the Alaska season in the middle of nowhere looking from the 5th floor of the boat, i had lost myself in that color and texture that the sea had. I had never seen such a silver color dancing in each smooth movement of the ocean, even the slight almost zero movement of it was unreal. I still could not describe its texture, it simulated being quicksilver but at the same time it had silkiness, simply one of the most magical and beautiful moments that nature gave me during my journey. You might think that being a "small" place where you will be living for 7 months you couldnt get lost, that you could easily find your cabin, that you will perfectly know when you are walking towards the bow and not the stern or maybe the other way around but honestly it took me almost 5 months to get used to the ship. Parties at night, serving guests and visiting new ports by day, sometimes the fatigue was bigger however i could not miss the opportunity to put my feet on the ground and discover new ports. But the fatigue disappeared every morning when I woke up in a different place and it was worth it. Now I know that on the flight I took on April 15th, I started a journey with no return to what we usually call "home".