New Zealand

As ever, a wonderful time was had by all in New Zealand. The time was too short, but we had four great ports to visit in our four days there. Auckland, Tauranga, Napier, and Wellington. In both Tauranga and Wellington we got to go on short hikes up small mounts near town, for some amazing views. Also in Tauranga, Nick and I slipped off the ship very early, as soon as the gangway was down, for a very cheeky breakfast in town before a 10:30am All-Crew meeting. It was so early that security hadn't yet realized they shouldn't grant crew shore leave until after said meeting, so we were among a lucky half-dozen who got off before they caught on. We didn't misbehave, and after a lovely coffee, walk, and breakfast we went back for the meeting before coming back out for the rest of the day.

In Wellington we had the chance to meet up with two girls that I became friends with two years ago while visiting my friend Hayden. Hayden himself was out of town, unfortunately, but Kate and Zoe gave us a great day of hiking and enjoying the cafe-hopping lifestyle of Wellington, in some hidden gem locations.

I'd also like to give a shout-out to some amazing Kiwi guest entertainers we have had on board over the last few days. Tim Beveridge was a great singer with some stunning charts written by Russell Garcia, a guy who used to write for Louis Armstrong and all the greats, and had retired to New Zealand. By far and away the most fun act we have had was the Ladykillers. Four incredible female vocalists who sang some really killer harmonies, were complete professionals, and were hilarious. All of the comedy was a result of them just being themselves, being relaxed and letting all their quirky personalities shine through on stage. The jokes just happened naturally and were completely different the second show. "We're the Ladykillers, because we are all ladies.....unless provoked..." "A ukelele is an instrument given to every Kiwi child on their 16th birthday...". "Suzie is the token blonde in the group, while I repesent the brown in this town". Just funny stuff. I'm sure its hilarious just hanging out with them, and I really enjoyed their show as a result. But not only that, they really were amazing singers, who have obviously put in a ton of detailed work into the preparation, with perfect cut-offs, harmonies, tempo changes, everything. They really knew what they were doing and were a joy to work with.

So now we bid farewell to lovely New Zealand and its lovely people, and being the long crossing back to LA, which will take us 21 days and only 4 ports. Yikes! Bring on the South Pacific! And please don't let it get too bumpy.
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South Pacific

Its been so long since I posted I can't remember what I last wrote about. Today we finally arrived in New Zealand, and I was hoping for some good internet time to catch up blogging, but didn't end up having enough time.

Nick and I had a lovely Valentine's Day, which we were lucky enough to celebrate in Pago Pago, American Samoa. We made a pilgrimage to Tisa's Barefoot Bar, a favorite haunt of cruise ship musicians for many years. It was my first time there, as last year I had taken a tour of the island. Nick had been before, and our musical director Dusty has been so many times that he is famous and known by name to all of the owner's family. It is a real beach bar, in front of the beach, with a gorgeous view of the lush green hills of the island. We ate some plantain "chips" and a dip made of locally grown herbs and coconut milk, had pina coladas, did some snorkeling, and just enjoyed floating around in the warm, clear waters. What a Valentine's Day! It was our first one together, which made it even more special.

We have been slowly making our way down to New Zealand for over two weeks now, with most of those days spent at sea. We have really settled into a routine of being on board all day most days, getting up for breakfast, me practicing a bit, having a workout in the afternoon (Nick, Vlad our guitarist and I are in our 4th week of the Insanity program! So proud of us!), and then having a shower and heading to work. Work has been interesting as well. Being on a "world voyage", we never repeat any guest entertainers, so we get a huge variety. Unique ones have included a Paraguayan harpist named Fransisco Yglesia, who managed to dance a bit while playing and wore a big poncho, and Ben Makisi, a very large Samoan-Kiwi classical tenor. We also had an Australian lady who does a Shirley Bassey tribute show, who I remember playing for a couple years back on a different ship, and who is famous among musicians for giving all of them little stuffed Koala and Kangaroo key chains that say "I love Australia."

Since I joined in Florida, we have had a wonderful run with the incomparable Ray Rouse as cruise director. He is a huge personality who brings so much positive energy to the ship, laughs to the stage, and runs things so well. He left us today and will be greatly missed. Goodbye to a true professional in the business!
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