You may recall the music video we showed you as we got ready to board the M/S Expedition for the repositioning cruise. Our friend Katherine showed it to us right after we found out we were going, and we jokingly sang “I’m on a boat!” to each other as we waited for our trip to start.
Once we got onboard, we spent a couple of weeks getting to know the crew. It is a completely different environment than being a passenger on a regular cruise. Everyone wears casual clothes, a lot of work is being done around the ship in preparation for a new season, and you get to see a less formal version of everyone’s personalities. For the most part, they even stopped calling us “Ma’am” and “Sir” after we told them it made us feel old.
We started out having dinners all by ourselves in the formal dining room with one waitress/waiter assigned to us each week. It was a little odd at first, but we started talking with our waitress Julita during our meals the first week and realized she had a wicked sense of humor in addition to some pretty savvy business skills. We laughed a lot and got to know each other over comfortable topics like food, family and career.
During the second week, Jonalyn told us a pretty amazing story from her own life, and I doubt there is anyone’s courage I admire more than hers. We hung on her every word, even more so when she talked about the people she thought had it tougher than she did. It was beautiful to see such compassion in a person who could have easily focused on her own sorrows. I’m not sure I could be as honorable as her in the same scenario.
By the time week three rolled around, our waiter Louie was pulling up a chair to share coffee in the morning, dessert after meals, and to talk about his home and plans for the future. Slowly but steadily, a few crew members would come by to say hello and share a drink or a dessert.
In between meals, we sought out interactions with the other crew members, at first asking them about their jobs. We learned about housekeeping and engineering and navigation and cooking.
In between all that we learned about the people themselves, their families, their dreams, what makes them laugh, and the hobbies they like in their downtime. We also learned some new words in Tagalog, Russian, and Polish and tried several Filipino dishes. We sang “Happy Birthday” in Portugese.
Then Jerry loaned us a bunch of movies. Pilar invited us to karaoke. Alessandra shared her birthday party with us. Garnet invited us to band practice. We were starting to make friends. It felt good to start fitting in, and it was a good reminder that it takes boldness and effort on your part if you are the new kid in town.
What you just read is an accelerated version of making friends in a new place.
Warren and I are pretty experienced at this because we lived a somewhat mobile lifestyle even before the trip, with a few big moves and job changes over the last 10 years. In every new place - town, neighborhood, or job - we walked in not knowing anyone and always left with lasting relationships. It wasn’t without effort, though, and we share this story with every person who tells us how hard it is to meet new people or why they are scared to relocate or travel.
It takes boldness: Seeking out groups of people with similar interests, asking questions, becoming the hostess, and being really good at followup and thank you. We just proved it again on board this ship in just 3 weeks, and we are looking forward to long relationships with many of the people we have met - even visiting a few of them in Poland and the Philippines during our travels. It can be a little bit scary to put yourself out there, but the reward is well worth it.
Speaking of boldness and effort, this is where Warren takes center stage.
He’s been branching out more with his photography, and we’ve already talked about his gift of “the ask.” If you combine those with his newfound love (thanks, Katherine) of I’m on a Boat, and you can see where this is headed.
I’m not sure how it happened, but he convinced this crew of mellow, beautiful people to turn into cursing rock stars - ON FILM! For three days Warren wandered around the ship with Garnet, the bartender and co-director, shooting scenes of crew members lip-synching the song. He convinced them to do things that would make their mothers faint, and to have a good time doing it.
Everyone really got into it, and some of the shyest people really went all out. It was so much fun to make, and even more fun to watch everyone’s reactions in the Discovery Lounge on “Premiere Morning” - a mere 4 days after shooting began.
We hope you enjoy the music video and see the personality of the crew come through. (Please not we used the “clean” version of the song, though you can still tell the curse words. If you are at work, you may want to consider using earphones.)
If you don’t see the video below, click here.
About Betsy
OHHHHHH MY GOOOOOOOSH!!! That was fabulous! Made me smile from ear to ear…thanks so much! That should be going viral! Mickey
Mickey, you wouldn’t believe how many times we’ve heard the video playing on board since it was made. It just makes you smile to see everyone having such a good time. Glad you liked it!
Great !! I loved it…. looked like lots of fun
We probably didn’t have as much fun as the people in it, but it was damn close, Joyce!
Looks like you guys are having such an awesome time!!! What an awesome experience. And I agree that video s/b going viral. Great job!
Hey, Pete. In a game of “would you rather…” - would you rather direct a music video or be in it?
(for those who don’t know, we did a fun interview with Pete and Dalene on their blog by playing the game “would you rather…” - you can click on Pete’s name to find it)
Hey Betsy, that’s an easy one for me. Totally would want to be in it. You should check out my killer moves, just ask Dalene
Absolutely marvelous work !
Some of your stars are indeed quite shy, so that ‘gift of the ask’ is definately magic.
Bart, we’ve come to realize that the shyest people are holding back some serious talent! Mom always told me “still waters run deep” and she was not lying.
Love Love Love it! Really great!
Thanks, Amy!
This may be the funniest thing I’ve ever seen. I predict a viral distribution. Well done Warren!
We decided it would be a much better video with the crew than with us as the stars, Joe. Though Warren actually made that decision *after* watching me dance.
G-O-L-D!
Thank you for sharing this! It is a wonderful way to start my cubicle-bound Monday!
Cheers!
We agree - how can you not love starting your day by watching a bunch of people having a really good time on a boat?
and now you are filmmakers - perfect!
Gotta keep adding to the resume, you know. We aren’t sure what kind of jobs we’ll need in the future, so we are training for several.
Loved it guys! Gang signs a flyin’! Yo Yo! Word Up! Mutha-F#$%er!! (And all that hip-hop sort of rot) lol!!!
Oh, Tranque. It was so funny to see such a polite bunch of people sling the dirty words for the sake of “art.” Such good sports!
That was amazing
Watched the whole clip with a big smile on my face, funny to see the crew in this way
Hey, Maarten! It’s a good thing you weren’t on board for the making of this video. I’m pretty sure you and Warren would have tried to talk the crew into skinny dipping!
(For those who don’t know, Maarten is one of the guys who ran naked into the Southern Ocean with Warren while we were in Antarctica. It was Maarten’s birthday, so I guess it was appropriate that he swam in his birthday suit!)
Awesome!!!! So glad Warren asked for you guys to ride along so that we can see all of this! High five Warren! Thanks.
Paz, it is amazing to see how decisions like that spiral into countless other adventures. It really is the gift that keeps on giving. Big high five to Warren!
We can’t wait to read more about the adventures from your decision to move to China.
This is so funny! Meeting new friends is one of the most fun parts of traveling! I’m curious…what do you all eat for 5 weeks at sea?
Kate, we eat so well that we are both getting fat again! Chef Tony and his team make delicious food every day just like when we were on the cruise. Every meal is salad, soup, main course, and dessert. We have lots of fruit and veggies, and there is a baker on board who makes delicious breads and desserts. We’ve been trying a few Filipino dishes as well (most of the crew is Filipino), but there are still many nights of fish, steak, duck, lamb, etc. It really is the best food we’ve ever eaten! We are going to interview Chef Tony for the blog next week to see if he will spill some of his secrets of cooking such great food at sea.
OK, we’re at a coffee shop so will wait to watch the video.
It really is incredible to see the friendships that can develop. When we have similar experiences, we always find ourselves saying “I can’t imagine NOT having met this person.”
Guys, you have to see the video.
I can’t imagine visiting a place and never interacting with the people who live and work there. It makes a huge difference in the experience and understanding of a place, doesn’t it? When I think about our favorite moments on this trip, they always include other people.
I have tears. Crying. From laughter!!
I’m on a MUTHA….boat!
That was pretty awesome. Best blog post ever.
Thanks, Dalene. It is easier to write/blog/photograph/video your travels when you are surrounded by interesting and fun people!
This video rivals the original! Such creativity here; you can tell the crew really embraced the idea and got into it. So much fun!!
Damn! I wanna be on a boat!! That looked like so much fun. Great idea folks — thanks for sharing!
Hi guys, great memories you bring up! My husband and I did the Antarctica Classic cruise on the Expedition last December. The trip was beyond words, the ship was great and the crew was AMAZING. I think fondly of them all, with a special place in my heart for Jonalyn, Garnet and Russelle. We want to go back for South Georgia in two years - hope they will all still be working on the ship, as I would love to see them again.
Happy travels from Canada! Gina XXX
Hey, Gina. All three of them are still on board, so I will tell them what you said. In fact, Garnet was the co-director of the music video we made on board. He’s quite the clever guy.
We would not hesitate to take another Antarctic trip with Gap, and the South Georgia one sounds incredible. There is just so much to see there, I think you could go multiple times and never get tired of it.