Have you read the report re: what it's like to be a CM on DCL?

[kke]

In Feb I took a couple of bags of the mini Hershey's bars or mini mars bars. i put them in a gift bag and would take them down to the Oceaneer's Lab a couple nights apart. They loved them and I didn't have to worry about how many to have.

That's a great idea! Thanks!!

 

[cruisinluver]

I couldn't help but come away from Ms. Button's articles with a sour taste in my mouth - that she is nothing more than a complainer who perpetuates the American worker stereotype that our foreign neighbors most likely have. .

I soooo agree with you. She sounds like nothing more than a complainer. She was on the innaugaral of the Wonder what eight years ago in 1999? I hope Disney is happy this CM is no longer on their ships. I have heard nothing but praise about the crew mess from CM's. I guess either they are lying or things have changed quite a bit since "Her" time on board.

 

[Vanvmom]

We noticed on our first DCL cruise that the same CM was always at the drink station keeping it clean an well stocked. We made it a point to give her a thank you bag at the end of the cruise just like the one we gave to our cabin steward. After all, with the amount of trips my family took to the beverage station, we probably saw her more than we did our cabin steward!

 

[CM_Mom]

I will second Chipfan's comments on the thank you cards. When DD was in the Club, she mentioned that a homemade card with a lollipop inside was great because it showed that someone recognized the work they do and how hard they try to make the kids have a great time.

I've suggested before that making homemade thank you cards is a great pre-cruise activity for your kids. It sets them up to have a great time because you don't thank folks when you have a bad time. It also builds the excitement and teaches your kids to appreciate the work people do.

I think the idea of little gift bags of candy with a thank you card is a fantastic idea to go with your tip for room service. What a thoughtful idea. Of course, it validates my idea that people who are thoughtful of others are the ones who have the best time because they expect others to be thoughtful of them. Attitude makes all the difference.

The two pound bags of assorted wrapped candy, such as Hershey's bite size, or Twix are great to give the CMs in the kids programs. They can be shared with the whole team and they keep well. And if you're sailing in October or later you can get great deals on Halloween candy. Besides if you take two or three large bags of candy and give them away you have empty space in your bags for souvenirs!

About the CM food, DD has more of a problem not GAINING weight. She exercises daily while on the ship to stay trim so there must be something edible. Not the gourmet stuff they feed the guests, but definitely plentiful and nourishing and there is a good variety. However since over half of the crew come from cultures where rice is a staple and eaten at every meal, it makes perfect sense to me that it would be available all the time. Getting to know and work with people from other cultures is one of the reasons she enjoys working on DCL. She's always thought the variety of nationalities was a plus. I know when we cruised another line to Alaska, it seemed strange to me and to her too, that the crew were mostly Indonesian men. We missed the diversity on DCL.

 

[LadyZolt]

I have to admit, it made me a feel a little guilty about all the fun I'm having while they're going through all of this. Thoughts?

When I read the blog, I thought "hey, it sounds great!" I'm a Navy vet, and my husband is, too. When I joined, there were very few billets for women on ships, so I didn't get to serve on one, but my husband did, and here's how he describes it:

Only officers had quarters with only two people in them. Most of the sailors slept in a room with anywhere between 30 and 120 people. Bunks are stacked in threes. They were slightly over six feet in length and maybe 26 inches wide. The mattress was foam rubber about two inches thick. The top of the bunk lifted up and you stored your stuff under the bunk, maybe 8 to 10 inches deep. The bunks had curtains and each had a reading light so you could read in your bunk if you wanted to, but you had to listen to headphones if you wanted to play music so as not to disturb others. Not everyone had the same shift, and you had to stand duty at regular intervals in addition to your normal work hours. Each sailor had one hanging locker that was the height of a man's suit coat and about six inches wide. You had shared bathrooms and you took Navy showers -- turn on water and get wet; turn water off; soap up; turn water on and rinse off. You weren't supposed to run the water for more than about a minute in total. They were at sea without hitting ports for three months at a time. My husband actually was off the coast of Iran during the hostage crisis in 1979.

No swimming pool for the crew. Chow hall serving Navy food and you eat what they serve. No TV's in the sleeping space. There was one in the eating area, some work spaces, and lounge areas.

It's even worse on submarines. And these Navy sailors live like this all the time, at war and at peace. I know of no Navy sailors who wouldn't be ecstatic at the conditions this young woman's blog recounts. It's a cruise ship, for Pete's sake, filled with people who can afford to cruise (not like the Pakistani refugees my husband's ship picked up at sea and nursed back to health.) It's all about perspective. I agree with the poster who wrote about how entitled people feel. She wasn't willing to try foods from other cultures, but I think if she got hungry enough, she would have. At least it wasn't C-Rats or MRE's. And just try living in the field with all your possessions carried on your back and sleeping on the ground every night. Sorry, no, I do not feel guilty about the fun I have on a cruise, nor do I feel the least bit sorry for any of the crew members. If this is the worst experience the crew members ever have, they've led a blesssed life indeed.

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)

 

[dmi188]

Chipfan, can you tell us if the food is still (or really) as bad as the blogger said? Is there so little that an American would find edible? (personally, I love to try foods from other countries, but might find it hard to never have my own comfort foods.)Thanks!

 

[Chipfan]

I personally have no problems with the food on board. There is always white rice and some sort of chicken as well as another type of meat a soup and veggies. There is a sandwich station at lunch and different special nights throughout the week like taco night or a pasta station. Breakfast is just you standard breakfast buffet and around 10:30 each night we get the left over guest food. Honestly I dont mind the food but I do enoy being able to get off the ship in port and get something to eat. Usually end up getting Chinese in St. Thomas and Cozumel go to the Greenhouse restaurant in St. Maarten, Jimmy Buffet's in Grand Cayman not because the food on the ship is bad but you get used to the same things every day and you want something different. After a while you need a break from turkey sandwiches for lunch and chicken and rice for dinner. And yes there are foods that cover each nationality and that is one of the things that I truly enjoy about the mess is the fact that I can try things that I never would have tried if I was still at home.

 

[cruisinluver]

Where do you get Chinese in St. Thomas and what do they serve at the Greenhouse on St. Maarten?

 

[Chipfan]

Chinese in St. Thomas is at a place called the Great Wall its at the back of one of the rows of shops at the Havensight Mall its pretty good (really like the sweet and sour chicken) and its very quick. The Greenhouse tends to have burgers salads and I would definitley recommend the Chicken Parmesean Sandwich it is really good its Chicken Parm on Garlic Bread its the one thing I always get when I go there and comes with two sides of your choice. Greenhouse also has good drink specials for Happy Hour. Usually buy one get one depending on when you go.

 

[dmi188]

Thanks, Chipfan! Sounds like things have improved since the first cruise in 1999, as they should.

 

[Mjasp]

Thanks for posting this. Let us know when the next installment is written.

I have trouble finding it on all ears

Thanks