Somewhere, Across the Sea...

So this letter will have been composed over a matter of 2weeks...thanks blogo! This week begins our journey to Asia. We begin in Vancouver. Make our way back through Alaska one last time. Then it's 7 WHOLE DAYS AT SEA! I am not sure how I feel about it yet, but by the time this newsletter is read by you, you will certainly know how I have handled it all.

We are still in rehearsals here on the ship. Thankfully, we will only have to do 2 of our 5 shows in the coming week instead of 3 and hopefully, that will cut our work load down from 6 days of shows. Whew! I forgot what is was like to work this hard;) LOL! But really, it is definitely a lot of hard work that is well worth it. Again, I can't say enough about my fantastic cast who are all amazing people in their own right, but we certainly put on a great show together.

Yesterday, we were kept from our port in Ketchikan by inclement weather that lasted well into the late hours of this morning. The waves were splashing up at my window on deck 7! Thankfully, I don't get seasick and just enjoyed the show. Fingers were crossed that our performance that evening would be cancelled...but we know how that goes...the show WILL go on! And it did. Let me tell you, it's very interesting walking uphill on a usually flat stage because the ship is in a permanent list to the left;) LOL! Definitely makes for some comedic moments.
So here's a final piece of Alaska for you. You know you are REALLY stretching when one of the highlights of your history museum is the photo to the left.

Sunday, September 27, 2009
Today we are in Muroran, Japan. First I have to say...OH MY GOODNESS!!!! I am in FREAKIN' JAPAN! Ok, had to get that out of my system. LOL! Alright that was the morning...next I spent 4000 Yen (which is about $40) to do nothing! However, I DID have the best KFC I have ever had in my LIFE! It really was quite a comical day where the highlight happened when we got back to the ship and watched from deck 7 a group of young Japanese girls dance on the dock for free as we sailed away! LOL! Here are some pictures of our adventure:

The View From My Window:

WE'RE HERE!!!! And they have a band just for US!

Where is that train!:

It's a bit fuzzy, but this Japanese toilet will warm your bum...LITERALLY! It will also wash and dry it for you! I WISH that I was joking!

Umm...it's a rock. I have no clue what it says, but it sure is pretty:)

And the most exciting thing of all...Japanese candy!!!! Ok, it's like American pop rocks candy, only the green on has some kind of powdery stuff in it and it made my mouth foam. I was scared but ate it all anyway. Thankfully, I survived the experiment to be able to write this newsletter.

Soon to come:
Letters from Russia...

Until next time...Love to you all from across the sea.

The Reasons Why I Sing...

So I love it when people send me pics of our encounters. Here are a few of pics one of my youngest fans sent me when she and her fam sailed with us on the Zuiderdam earlier this year. It's definitely in my top 10 of reasons why I sing:) Thanks, Rosie!

Touch your knees...

Y.M.C.A!

It was definitely a good night!

And now here's one for old time sake! This pic is from WAY back when...my very first cruise experience! I'm the one down in the front with the blue dress! Good ol' Disney Days!

Ok, so no new pics...but...

So here I am sitting in my FANTABULOUS cabin...with NO internet. Well, you win some, you lose some, I suppose. I am having a great time on the ship that I am on now, though. I am on the Diamond Princess (for any who may not have known). I am back doing shows again, only now...I'm a Guest Entertainer! WOOHOO!!! I am rehearsals with my cast now and we have 5 shows to do! WHEW! Back to those good ol' days. It's nice to be with a cast again. Even though I had a great time, I missed singing in shows while I was with Holland.

Our ship is currently still in Alaska. I am not actually sure when we begin our crossover to Asia, but I'll be sure to keep you all posted.

The group of people that I am here with are absolutely wonderful. I am enjoying each and every one of them. One of the dancers is actually from Nashville and attended Belmont for a bit. REPRESENT! And all 4 of us Guest Entertainers (the singers) have worked for Disney at some point in time. We have all been brainwashed by the mouse;)

We have named our cast the "Happiness Brigade." One of the singers pointed out that even when we start a little whining session, one of us still finds a way to put a positive spin on it. In fact, the other day I was having a tough time in rehearsal and was a bit down. The whole cast rallied around me and one of the new dancers (a young girl who has never been on ships before) said to me, "Remember the other day you told me to keep my spirits up and not let this get me down. So keep your spirits up!" LOL! We all laughed and one of the singers said, "See your sayings always come back to haunt you!" I couldn't help but smile then.

This is just a test...

Alright, I am continually looking for an offline publisher that works for Mac so that I can work on my newsletter and publish it later when I have an internet connection. Let's hope this one works!

Something New...

Wow, this year has already been one that has proved to be amazing and full of wonderful new things. I have learned so much about myself in these past few months. Some things I am still changing...while others I am learning to embrace.

Many of you know that I was sailing on the Zuiderdam these past few months. That journey helped me to learn so many things. I grew in ways that I didn't expect and I can only hope that this new contract will bring more exciting changes my way.

Currently, I am in rehearsals for the Diamond Princess. I am really excited to be in a cast again. I love the comradery of the singers that I am working with. Already the energy of our group is wonderful. I can't wait to put our shows up together.

So where will I be this year? First I will be back in Alaska until the end of the season which is around September sometime. Then...THEN!!!! I will headin' on over to a little continent called ASIA...and then AUSTRALIA...AND THEN NEW ZEALAND!!!!!! WOOHOO!!! Yes, I am beside myself with glee! I cannot WAIT for my new adventure. And yes, I will be taking more pictures;) For those that can, check out my pictures on my Facebook page. I have a lot of Alaska pictures there because it was much easier to load them there than here.

Anyhoo! I hope that this finds you all well. I miss ya...I love ya...and I love hearing from you:)

Please do continue to email me. I may not always respond, but I read every single one and I truly appreciate hearing from you all.

Love

Hello, All!

Ok, this will be very short. I completely forgot to bring my hard drive up here to the top deck of the ship, so this will be a pictureless newsletter:( POO! It's been so long since I have sent you all anything, I figured I had better just say hello at least...HELLO:)

Things are going well out here on the Zuiderdam. My contract is nearly over and the food is still...well...ok it's not as fabulous as it was my first week, but it's still in passenger areas. I will say about the food, my compatriats and I find ourselves complaining about the food every once and a while. Then I take a moment to bring it all into perspective for us, "Guys, we are complaining about eating Duck A L'Orange and SALMON everyday!" Clearly! LOL! Then we remember that we could be down in the cew mess eating fried fish heads and rice EVERYDAY!

Alright everyone, it's time for me to get ready for boat drill! HOORAY FOR BOAT DRILL!!!!

Love you all!

That didn't work:(

Alright, that didn't work:( I will have to try again later...

Sailing...Sailing Away! Wo Wo Wo Wo!

Hello, All! I hope that is finds everyone doing quite well:) Currently, I am sitting in Arrruba where I can get free internet at a small cafe on a pier:) This is my 4th cruise, I think, with the Zuiderdam and it's the first week that it has not been sunny EVERYDAY:( It's a bit overcast now, but I definitely cannot complain because I am still in ARRRUBBBA!!!

Oh, some of you asked about my itenerary. I am on a 10 day cruise that leaves from Ft. Lauderdale until April 18 and then we go on a 21 day repositioning cruise through the Panama Canal where I will leave the ship on May 6th in LA.

So here are my current points of call:
Orenjestad, Aruba
Willemstad, Curacao
Cristobal, Panama
Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

I am so glad to be in a different part of the caribbean...I know some of you may hate to hear me say it, but I was TRULY tired of Nassau! LOL!


So I got a few pictures, over the past couple of weeks, of my travels so far. Let's go in order:)



That is my ship the Zuiderdam. It was the very first day I got on the boat (February 17)...which was pretty hectic. I should have taken a picture of all the stuff I had with me. It was absolutely hilarious! Unlike with Royal Caribbean, there were no stagehands to help me take my luggage on board. If only I had known that BEFORE I packed;) Also, this is the FIRST time I am out to sea and don't have my parents to mail things back and forth to:( Sadness:( Truth be told I always had 4 suitcases worth of stuff on board, I just never had it all there at one time since I mailed everything back to my parents all the time...COME BACK TO AMERICA MOM AND DAD!


This beautiful lady was one of the first people I met on the ship. She was one of the guest that came to EVERY SINGLE performance I had. She and her husband (who I unfortunately do not have a picture of) were celebrating their 65th wedding anniversary!!!! They were absolute dolls!














Next up, yes, there are young people that sail on 10 day cruises;) I found them:)















ARRRUBAA!!! I still can't NOT pose without posing Disney!
















And the final pic is Curacoa. It's a beautiful island.




Well...that's all folks:) Until next time:)

Out to Sea

HI, Everyone! I promise the next letter I will add pictures of my travels. My 'puter is almost dead, but I wanted to try and get something out before the end of my 3rd cruise aboard the Zuiderdam. I am currently sailing with Holland America as a singer for the HAL Cats. I am the lead singer for this INCREDIBLE band...and the ONLY singer;) I have my own cabin and I get to eat guest food ALL THE TIME...which means I ACTUALLY have to work out now;) LOL! I miss you all. Please do keep in touch and I will have more to write about this amazing experience next time.

Until then...