8.22

Impending doom in San Juan...

Tropical storm Irene has been looming since Saturday. On Sunday the Coast Guard actually closed the port of San Juan, allowing no ships to enter and we were told we had to leave as soon as possible. Typically on Sundays we arrive in San Juan at 800 and set sail with our new guests at 2000. However, this time we weren't allowed to keep to our normal schedule. Apparently the captain negotiated with the Coast Guard and worked out that we could stay in port until 1700. While we did get to stay a few extra hours, we still had to leave some guests behind because of our early departure. I'm told about 200 guests missed the ship. Major bummer for them.

It was pretty cool to literally watch things go from a semi sunny normal day to a super windy clouds of death type of day over just a few hours. The wind started to really pick up in the afternoon and it started to rain on and off for the rest of the day. The crew was instructed to secure anything that could move on the ship as we were expecting 20 foot seas that night (we typically have 4 foot seas).

At the beginning of every cruise we hold a mandatory guest safety drill in which guests have to go to their assigned assembly stations. Some of these assembly stations are located outside on decks 5 and 6. It was actually so windy that the captain turned the ship off course so the wind was blowing into our stern while the drill took place so it was easier to stand on the decks!

I help seat people in the theatre during an emergency. I stand at the top of the theater and ask to see guests Sea Pass cards as they enter, which have their designated assembly station on them. We have four different zones in the theater and often you get guests that aren't even suppose to assemble in the theatre. As I stood there it was pretty funny to watch guests walk as the came down the hallway into the theater. Everyone was zig zagging back and forth and it looked as if they were marionettes all connected by the same string!

The good news is we are now about 150 miles from Irene, which actually turned into a hurricane. The seas are smooth again and everyone is happy!