The Plague has arrived!

Despite the best efforts of the crew, the dreaded Norovirus has hit the ship.
This is not good. I was really hoping that we would avoid this plague and after 2 weeks of no problems, I thought that we might be able to squeak by. Unfortunately, we were not that lucky. While not nearly as bad as the outbreak on my last cruise, things are really getting miserable. Because the disease is spread from hand to hand:
- there are hand sanitizers positioned all over the ship
- the jigsaw puzzles have all been put away
- tai chi, dance classes and bridge games have been cancelled
- the crew is scrubbing every part of the ship (walls, floors and everything in between)
- we've even been kicked out of our cabins so cleaning crews can disinfect every single cabin
- passengers can't touch anything at the buffet
- cutlery, as well as salt and pepper, have been removed from the tables
- crew members are going around in masks and wiping down everything in sight

While this is no picnic for the passengers, I can assure you that things are even worse for the crew. In fact, if you have ever thought about working on a cruise ship, one bout of the Norovirus will change your mind. Because they can't call out for extra crew members, the healthy staff have to do all their work plus the work of their sick colleagues. This means that the staff have been working like dogs and everyone is expected to pitch in. The captain makes lots of announcements about washing your hands and staying in quarantine if you are infected. The healthy officers, musicians, dancers, casino workers, spa consultants and office workers are all working in the restaurants because their comrades are sick.

Everyone is hoping that this will go away within the next couple of weeks and I am keeping my fingers crossed that it does or this trip will really be a disappointment. So far, I have managed to avoid the plague, but I haven't been able to dodge seasickness.

Warning – be wary of upgrades. My original cabin was supposed to be down in steerage someplace with no windows, deep in the bowels of the ship. Right now, I would be glad to get that room . My current cabin is up on a high deck and right at the very front of the ship. We have hit some rough seas lately and my cabin is pitching up and down like a roller coaster. That was fine and dandy for all of 30 seconds until my stomach started pitching out its contents. Since I eat like a pig, it was not a pretty sight. If you're thinking about medicine like Gravol, well I tried that. It came flying out of me with the rest of the stuff!