Life in this ulterior universe was also a little strange. Uniformed people living in small cave like cabins served the inhabitants of this planet. I am of course referring to the guests on the yacht. Sometimes, it could be as few as two or three, but other times we had as many as nine guests. There was a relentlessness to it. For most of the last three months we worked seven days a week, often ridiculously long hours. It seemed a never ending stretch of making beds, cleaning bathrooms, serving meals, laundry, ironing . . . All of course done with a smile.
Living in close proximity with your colleagues, never actually leaving the job, is a recipe for potential tension. And that cauldron certainly did bubble over many times. One crew member in particular caused unnecessary tension between all. But eventually, as we knew that there was an end in sight, tensions subsided and we all looked forward to our return to mother earth and normality.
I can't honestly say it was all bad. We certainly did get to travel to interesting places and had a good bit of fun in between. We left Palma for our first port, Brindisi, Italy. From there we took our first guests to Croatia. It was my first visit to the magical coastline of Croatia. It is a rugged, rocky coastline with many little island. The little village like ports had an old world charm with cobblestone streets and terra cotta tiled rooftops. As we where at anchor in isolated locations more often than not we cherished those rare opportunities of a few hours on shore. We would wander around the touristy little shops and buy little trinkets.
After two weeks we returned to Italy. Venice turned out to be everything I have always imagined. I think one can easily spend a month there exploring the little lanes and canals. Taking random bridges and making new discoveries. Enjoying the large well known plaza's and lesser know alleyways. Taking a million pictures. Unfortunately we only had half a day to explore the beautiful city. I used it well and walked miles on end. T
aking pictures, watching the gondoliers with their striped shirts, straw hats and beautiful boats navigating the canals. I popped into the stores and like a good tourist came home with small venetian glass ornaments and jewelry. I even bought watercolor paintings from an artist on the square. By sheer happy coincidence there was a fabulous fireworks display one evening during our stay in Venice. I saw enough to hope that I can go back and see more of Venice and Italy one day.
But all good things must come to an end. New guests arrived and we where back to serving mode, soon departing once again for Croatia. Another month and a half we sailed up and down the coastline from one remote anchorage to the next. Of course cel phones and internet did not work in these remote anchorages, and we seldom had the opportunity to get off the boat apart from the occasional afternoon swim. The water was however beautifully warm and crystal clear. It was a great release after feeling so cooped up on the boat.
My favorite time was early in the morning before the guests woke up. There was a general quietness on the boat and I could enjoy the morning air on the deck as I was setting out the silver for their breakfast with my little white glove. Their seems to be a special, different quality to the light that time of day in this part of the world. The sun already out, but the light soft, dancing on the still morning sea. The distant mountains would be a soft hazy blue. A lone fisherman would quietly throw his fishing net out rhythmically, plying the shoreline systematically and not seeming overly interested in the expensive yacht anchored nearby.
The rhythm of life on board continued relentlessly. The two little worlds operating separately but side by side. In one world the guests, with their luxurious cabins, and delicate care and service. Behind a door they where not welcome to go through, the other world. Our crammed little cabins. Much less formal meals around a u shaped table in the crew mess. An area where we could banter with one another, watch telly or just plain hang out. So, between these two worlds we would endlessly travel. The more mundane tasks like laundry and ironing of course being done in our world, and venturing often into theirs to make sure their every need and whim is being fulfilled. But outside these two worlds we seldom had the opportunity to venture. We where stuck. From this the sense of being cut off from the rest of the world.
The chef managed to break the routine in a humorous way one afternoon. I w
as on the aft deck, serving lunch to the guest when my eyes where drawn to a rather unusual sight. The guests turned too, and saw the chef, standing in his full uniform, hat included, on the boats surfboard. He was gracefully steering it like a gondolier. The guests actually abandoned the table to go and take pictures with their cellphones. I think even they found his hilarious stunt a welcome relief from the routines on board.We saw off the guests in Croatia and returned this time to Naples, Italy. We stopped at Lepary islands and the crew got a much needed breather. We swam, some went diving, wake boarding, just generally relaxed in our own respective ways. Naples in many ways was disappointing to me. It is a city with an air of neglect. However, the deck hand and myself did take the opportunity to go and explore the ruins of Pompeii. The opportunity to get off the boat for the day was in itself worth a lot. But it was also truly interesting to explore the ruins of the village. Since we had taken the time to visit the museum that housed many of the discovered artifacts and art a few days earlier, we could imagine the buildings and temples in their full splendor. Occasionally we would end up behind an English speaking tour guide and get bits of fun info. The gentleman was describing the brothel he was about to show to the assembled tourists. Standing behind this group, the deck hand vocally pointed out the the brothel was apparently operating to this day as he pointed to a female tourist emerging from the building. He did get a few giggle's.
Alas the guest returned one last time. The last two weeks where the longest of all the summer. We had been resigned before that there remained a long summer ahead and plodded along. But, now, knowing the end was in sight, we chafed at the bit. We would return to "our world" and quietly murmur to one another how many days where left. The workload itself had decreased, but so had our communal energy reserves. Where where running on fumes.
And then, magically, the day came that we waved goodbye to the Mercedes taxi containing our last guests for the season . . . That evening we uncorked some champagne and did a happy dance on the deck of the boat. My quality of life improved instantly. I had permission from the captain to move to a guest cabin the moment they left. I took him very literally to his word. Their taxi had barely left the marina before I was carrying the first basket of my possessions from my cramped quarters to my new, more spacious abode for this winter. Right now, I am comfortably snuggled in my bed, laptop on my lap. Within a day, God willing, we will be back in Palma. And I can send greetings with this letter to my fellow earthlings to tell them, I'm back!
