Second day at sea

The Relativity of Time

Time seemed more ordered and correct in Maryland. Days were punctuated by regular appointments, choir rehearsal on Thursday for example, and regular shows on television. Weekends were set aside for visits with friends or dinners in restaurants. We have been on the cruise for only two days, and already we are starting to ask each other which day of the week this is. On previous cruises, days at sea were rare, and you could tell the days of the week by the ports you visited. Crossing the Pacific Ocean, with many days at sea between ports, the significance of particular days of the week lose their meaning.  We figured out it’s 2 pm on Monday and realized we haven’t been at sea for even 2 days (we boarded at 4 pm on Saturday).

The Super Bowl “started” at 3:00 PM yesterday, another time distortion. We missed Madonna and the second half  of the game to attend dinner. The program was shown with lots of ESPN ads, but not the usual ads that amuse one during the lengthy delays between bits of action. I guess time distortion and reality distortion go hand-in-hand.

To be sure there is a daily schedule on the ship. But the schedule is voluntary - nothing is required - and time shifts as we move westward. The clocks will be turned back an hour tonight. (I remember being on one cruise where they had a different carpet in the elevator for each day of the week. You could always orient yourself in time by changing floors.)  Perhaps the distortion of time is also affected by the duration of the voyage. On cruises that are only a week or two in duration, you need to plan carefully to catch the events on the ship before they are gone. With more than 80 days at our disposal, there’s no pressure to plan.

To quote the captain, the seas have been lumpy. Fifty knot winds this morning, made for creaks and moaning, with some bouncing about in the front of the ship. The Pacific Ocean has not been living up to its name.  We met the captain yesterday afternoon at a reception for those taking a World Cruise, and he said the weather was going to get rougher.  Jean said, Oh, good, because she doesn’t like just to be on a ship that, with the modern stabilizers, doesn’t feel as if one were at sea.  Be careful what you wish for!  As we write this, there were just a couple of loud bumps, but the ship is still intact.