#1: Thanks for Joining Me!

Hello Friends and Family!

Greetings from Holland America Line’s MS Veendam!  I am so thankful that you all want to stay in touch and up to date on the happenings of my life at sea. To be honest, I was overwhelmed at the number of you who responded with interest in receiving these updates! I thought to myself, “Shoot!  People actually want to read these?!  I guess they'd better be good!” (No pressure, right?!) But as a result, I decided it'd be easiest for all if I just went big and committed to periodic blog posts.  So welcome to my new blog!  

I am writing to you today all from the breathtaking islands of Bermuda.  It is "Bermudaful" to say the least!  I have now been on the ship for about two and a half weeks and SO much has happened. These first few weeks have begun our Installation Period as Cast Members onboard. This consists essentially of all-day rehearsals where we install each of our 6 shows one by one onto the stage for the first time with full lights, sound, sets and costumes and then later perform them in front of a live audience. We usually spend 1-2 days rehearsing each show on stage before performing 2 evening shows for the guests onboard.  It has been a very full schedule each day as we worked hard to prepare our shows and ensure each was performance ready, but as of a couple of days ago, we have FINALLY debuted all 6 of our production shows! We are exhausted as we haven't had a day off since Memorial Day, but we've finally completed Install, so our days will soon be much more free!

In a later blog post I will share a bit more detail about the shows we'll be performing over the next 7 months, but for now I’ve decided on a format that’s a bit of a classic. In the Wheeler family when we go on vacation, we often close out the day’s events around the dinner table with a round of “Best/Worst” where we each share the highs and lows of our day. Ship life is much like Summer Camp where the days are long but the weeks fly by, so a lot can happen in a short amount of time.  Since coming onboard, I've kept a little journal at my bedside and have been jotting down a few Best and Worst moments of each day before going to sleep.  Here are the Bests and Worsts of my first 2 weeks onboard:

BESTS	WORSTS
Day 1- Sat. June 2	Montreal, Quebec, Canada
·       I got all my luggage onto the ship!  (all 125 lbs. of it!) ·       I won’t have to touch these suitcases again for another 7 months! ·       Got settled into my new room with my roomie, Morgan, and I got to sleep in my new bed, cuddled in my old comforter from my NY apt.  And Morgan let me have the bottom bunk J ·       Reconnected with Agung, a Crew Member from my first ship, ms Noordam, who used to work in housekeeping cleaning the gym on the ship.  I haven’t seen him for 2+ years, and he was so excited to see me again and asked about JJ!  Nice to see a familiar face onboard.	·       Teeny Tiny Shower!  No space to spare in our tiny corner shower.  If you lean too far one way you hit your head on the wall.  If you lean too far the other way, you’re in the toilet!  Shaving our legs will be interesting! ·       Additionally, there was a bit of drama with the room assignments within our cast.  We have a cast of 10 members- 4 singers, 6 dancers.  Typically the singers always get their own rooms and the dancers all have to share a room- I know…don’t ask.  But somehow on this ship there were extra rooms, so our Dance Captain and Asst. Dance Captain each get their own rooms.  However, they got in a bit of a tiff about who should get which single cabin.  Interesting problem to have...  Meanwhile Morgan and I are getting cozy in our bunk beds, brainstorming design themes and décor for our room J
Day 2- Sunday, June 3	Quebec City, Canada
·       First Breakfast onboard which means…MUESLI! (Basically overnight oats soaked in a sweet, heavy cream- the best!) ·       2 full runs of our show onstage with set and lights	·       SO TIRED!  Maybe because the rocking has begun, but I could barely keep my eyes open last night.  Thankfully, I go tot go to bed early, but it was hour forward so early rise tomorrow! ·       9 to 5 = 8 hours of rehearsal onstage
Day 3- Monday, June 4	Sea Day
·       Coffee & Library Date with my girls (Morgan and Yasa- the other female dancers) ·       Show #1: Atlantic Crossing- opening night!	·       Costume change issues led to a bloody finger ·       The creative team was still undecided about my hairstyle and as a result, I had to redo my hair 4 different times- the last time being 10 minutes before showtime!
Day 4- Tuesday, June 5	Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, Canada
·       Lobster Roll, Shrimp & Lobster Mac & Cheese and Mussels at dinner J ·       Stairway Guide Training! (i.e. Q; How many lifeboats do we have onboard? A: 20 lifeboats, 41 liferafts) – sat next to a very friendly and nice girl Suné who I learned is from South Africa! ·       Early to bed J ·       Saw Dedi- my dance partner from when we did a crew show on Noordam years ago!	·       Very cold on ship due to local temps in CA ·       Morgan sick w/ cold and I am starting to get sick too L
Day 5- Wednesday, June 6	Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
·       Slept in ·       General Crew Drill ·       Afternoon movie time with the girls (Guardians of the Galaxy)	·       Really missing JJ- think of him every time I walk through the gym to the Lido ·       Laundry issues- didn’t know you had to stick the same quarter in the machine 4 times to trick it into thinking you’re paying a dollar when you’re really not…
Day 6- Thursday, June 7	Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
·       Coast Guard Inspection- we scored 100% ·       Bill Prince (Director of Entertainment for Holland America Line) came onboard to speak with us about exciting changes in Entertainment ·       Opening Night of Show #2: Classique! ·       Fun social night in the Officer’s Bar (the OB) w/ new friends (& sausage rolls! YUM!)	·       Internet Plan sucked dry by my phone’s iCloud….300 MBs in15 mins- who knew?!
Day 7- Friday, June 8	Bar Harbor, Maine
·       Hour Back- we gain an hour of sleep! ·       US Customs and Border Protection inspection because we’re back in US territory ·       I FINALLY HAVE CELL SERVICE AGAIN!	·       Hour Back panic- ran into a couple other cast members early in the morning who had the time wrong and then it made Morgan and I think that we had the time wrong- can be very confusing! ·       Reviewed choreography at night in the gym for our upcoming show Droom, which was a very humbling experience
Day 8- Saturday, June 9	Boston, Massachusetts
·       First day off the ship! ·       Shopped for essentials at Target w/ Morgan- (Snacks, Plants, Shower shelf, etc.) ·       Opened Show #3: Listen to the Music! ·       New TV in our room since our first one was broken and guess what! Pretty Woman was on!	·       Didn’t get to eat seafood yet off the ship
Day 9- Sunday, June 10	Sea Day
·       Formal night outing with the girls in the Crow’s Nest ·       Very light day of rehearsal (only 2 hrs!)	·       Hour Forward- womp womp…
Day 10- Monday, June 11	Hamilton, Bermuda
·       Enjoyed Fro-yo off the ship ·       Relaxing Night Cap in the Oasis onboard under the stars ·       Warmth & Palm Trees & Pastel Bermuda Buildings	·       Stressful Costume Changes during dress rehearsal for Droom ·       Exhausted!
Day 11- Tuesday, June 12	Hamilton, Bermuda
·       Opened Show #4: Droom!- I immediately burst into tears after exiting bows due to pure exhaustion and relief of getting that one over with! ·       1st Crew Party in Crow’s Nest- fun dancing with Yasa & Morgan ·       Canadian Beer! J	·       EXHAUSTED from costume changes- my legs were giving out on stage!  This reminds me of the final Saturday night TI recital show back in my days at Young Dance Academy
Day 12- Wednesday, June 13	Hamilton, Bermuda
·       Chef Guru gave us a surprise treat of chocolate truffles! (to congratulate me for my hair piece not falling out during the show last night like it did during dress rehearsal) ·       Harbor Nights Street Fair off the ship in Bermuda- saw a fun cultural dance performance in the street ·       Relaxing movie night in my room w/ Morgan & Yasa watching “The Help”	·       Immediately back to work, party’s over- 8 hour tech rehearsal of Dance in heels = DOGS BARKING! ·       Falling asleep at the dinner table
Day 13- Thursday, June 14	Hamilton, Bermuda
·       Opened Show #5: “Dance”- what I think is our most difficult show	·       SO SWEATY!
Day 14- Friday, June 15	Sea Day
·       Hour Back! ·       Easy party in OB/Crew Mess w/ our stage hands and our Cruise Director, Becca since it was her last night onboard	·       Broken up rehearsals made the day drag on ·       Late night rehearsal til midnight! ·       FEET SUPER SWOLLEN! Missing my bathtub L
Saturday, June 16	Boston, Massachusetts
·       Sunny Day in cute coffee shop, Café Nero ·       2nd time performing Listen to the Music ·       New cruise director onboard- Jorge	·       Time off the ship today didn’t feel long enough- ran out of time to launch my new blog! ·       Internet on the ship was not working- feels very isolating to not have any connection to outside world!
Sunday, June 17	Sea Day
·       GORGEOUS SUNSET at sea ·       Formal Night Fun w/ Morgan- (photos, ocean bar, music trivia, magic show)	·       Missing Father’s Day festivities with family at the Campground L
Monday, June 18	Hamilton, Bermuda
·       Opened show #6: “Heat” to complete our Install! Finally! ·       Celebrated w/ full team in OB & then in port at The Dog House w/ loud, but good music!	·       Last minute dress run w/ lots of costume difficulty
Tuesday, June 19	Hamilton, Bermuda
·       First Day off since Memorial Day! ·       Enjoyed great sunshine, sand, beautiful ocean, nice drinks (The Swizzle and The Dark & Stormy at Rum Bum Beach Bar) and good company at Horseshoe Bay Beach!	·       Awoke to unknown, incessant clanking on pipes…ship maintenance, I guess. ·       A little sunburnt, but hardly complaining!
Wednesday, June 20	Hamilton, Bermuda
·       Went exploring at the Bermudian Crystal Caves- so cool!	·       Day off interrupted by a mandatory costume meeting back on the ship

I hope you enjoyed a small taste of what life is like at sea so far.  More photos and details to come, but I would LOVE to hear any questions you may have about daily life onboard, so please leave a comment below or shoot me an email!  Thanks for reading!

Brooke