The Ascent (2)

Hello dear fellow human beings,

Wow, it's been another week since my last post.

It's incredible what I've experienced since then. Last time, I promised to tell you more about my preparation week in Hamburg and my story of the first day.

Let's look back on a very nice week with great people in Hamburg. Four weeks before my ascent, I went to the seamen's mission in Hamburg Altona. The week was a prerequisite for my ascent. The week included the basic knowledge of all safety, health, and environmental aspects that must be observed on the ship.

As mentioned in the last post, every crew member must be able to initiate all safety measures, as it is not always guaranteed that the safety officer, doctor, firefighter, or lifeguard is immediately on site. We learned how to read ship plans, which involve dividing the ship into different "fire zones". In case of emergency, we need to know where we are on the ship or where we can find rescue options.

In the second step, we learned how to escape into a life raft through an evacuation slide and what utensils must always be present in a lifeboat or life raft. A former safety officer told us everything about security. In case our ship is attacked by terrorists or one of the guests becomes aggressive.

As you can see, one week is quite short for all these topics. We extinguished controlled fires together with a firefighter and learned how to extinguish different types of fuel. We jumped into the cold water together with a lifeguard and had to pull ourselves up into a life raft. On the last day, we discussed the whole topic of first aid again and conducted a simulation of a ship evacuation.

Each individual topic was completed practically as well as theoretically. On Friday afternoon, we had to take our "final exam". I successfully passed it and nothing stood in the way of my ascent.

Not only the professional aspects, but also the people I met in Hamburg have enriched me. I got along particularly well with Pius. Pius is in his early thirties, trained as a cook, and has previously worked as a cook on a ship. After the ship, Pius served in the German army as a mountain ranger and has been able to see many parts of the world. Pius lives by the motto: "I only work for things that really give me pleasure!" He will join the ship as a biking guide. This means that he will offer guided bicycle and mountain bike tours for our guests. This is an area that would also bring me great joy. Unfortunately, Pius and I are not on the same ship. But we have already arranged to go on a road bike tour in Germany and will definitely exchange all the experiences we had in the six months.

Now let's take a big leap directly to the ship. It's April 16th. My first day. After successfully checking in, Laura took me by the hand and showed me the ship. First, we went to my cabin (Berlin Road). The ship is divided into decks and streets. There are a total of 14 decks and countless streets. I couldn't imagine beforehand how big such a ship actually is. Luckily, I got an officer's cabin for the first three days because my shared room was not yet available and I couldn't move in yet. I had a single room waiting for me with a cozy bed, enough space for my clothes, and a bathroom that I had to share with the neighboring cabin. After storing my suitcase in my room, Laura took me to the tailor. The tailor is responsible for the entire uniforms, bedding, towels, and tailoring. After receiving my uniform, bedding, and towels, we continued towards the crew mess. The crew mess provides food for the entire crew. Breakfast is from 6:30 to 8:30, lunch from 11:00 to 13:00, dinner from 17:00 to 20:30, and night snacks from 23:00 to 01:00. So we went from deck 1 to deck 3, and then back to deck 1 and then to decks 9, 10, and 11, and finally back to deck 3. Laura showed me all the restaurants, the crew bar, and the garbage station. At the end of the tour, I didn't know where to go anymore because I had completely lost my orientation. It felt like a big labyrinth. After having lunch in the crew mess, friendly colleagues helped me find my way back to my cabin. Take a breath. Is this the right thing for me? Am I slowly getting too old for this kind of adventure?

Will I ever feel "settled" here? I miss my friends, family, and Anne.

My gaze rose to the ceiling, in a cabin where no daylight can be seen, behind a door where I don't know where the paths lead, without friends. The only place where I felt comfortable in that moment was my cabin.