Yoga and Partying

My apologies for the lack of postings this week, but for some reason I’ve become quite the social butterfly this cruise. I think maybe it had something to do with the close quarters we all had to share during code red, which I am happy to report ended on Tuesday in Cadiz.

Monday night we had our first Entertainment Department corridor party in the dancer’s hallway and partied until 5:00 a.m. – you have to create your own nightlife when stuck on a small floating village. I spent another beautiful day at the beach in Cadiz with some dancers and band members. The water is warming up quite nicely and the weather has been extremely hot and humid this past week.

The other activity I’ve started is Yoga. Caitlyn, one of the dancers, has started teaching a class about 5 days a week and I can’t believe how intense it can be. My body was numb after my second class, so hopefully I’ll do better after the third class today. I have noticed that it really helps my playing by opening my chest up. Oh, the added bonus is taking the class with 5 gorgeous dancers!

Wednesday night, the Entertainment Department hosted a Black and White themed disco party which was quite the bash. Those of you who have seen me dance before can imagine how much I tore up the floor! Let me just say there was also some “worm” action happening. That was another early morning as I wasn’t in bed until 4:00 a.m.

Thursday night saw a break in the action and a bit of recovery time, but I did have quite a feast with my roommate, David. He found the most delicious olives I have ever tasted in Cadiz. He’s a very big olive connoisseur and has introduced me to several different varieties, including a Majorcan bitter. The Cadiz ones are heavenly – there’s absolutely no way to have a better olive – they’re so silky and buttery – it’s incredible! We also had Boursan (sp?) cheese and crackers and I found a very delicious dark chocolate with pepperoncino in Italy – mmmmmm.

So that brings me to last night (Friday). I partied once again until 4:00 a.m. and am now nursing my hangover and preparing to go lay in the sun. I feel bad that all my social activities are interfering with my daytime port time, but we’re in Italy today and I’ve been there done that – what an audacious statement! Sorry, I’m digressing and losing my focus. I’ll leave you with another affirmation that I read in my introspective book:

“Self-creation entails imagining ourself in other ways. Instead of thinking of ourself as a fixed nugget in a shifting current of mental and physical processes, we might consider ourself as a narrative that transforms these processes into an unfolding story.”