After 24 plus hours of rocking, swaying, and the occasional shimmy, I was looking forward to docking in the not-to-distant port of Juneau, Alaska.  The captain did what any good captain would do, slow the ship, and employ the stabilizers; however, when you’re up against Mother Nature, you are at her mercy.   The evening was to have been “formal.”  Women passengers dressed in their finest gowns and cocktail dresses with bling bling more dazzling than the recently shined stem ware gracing the tables.  Being myself, I rolled with laughter at the sight of one after another tip toeing across the hallway as we made our way to dine.  Many of us giggling like we’d had too much to drink with the sea as our bartender; we’d pass each other and smile, nod, and then attempt to go about our ways.  “Doing well!”  I told myself.  I met up with friends at our designated dining table.  Looking to the right where the seat was empty, I explained to them why my husband couldn’t make it.  “He’s had too much fun riding the waves and didn’t want to share his experiences with us.”  (thankfully) 

We couldn’t have had better service and entertainment from our stewards.  Every part of the four course meal was excellent.  Occasionally you would hear the crash of breaking stem ware and plates, then laughter and applause.”  Of course, you would also feel a swell sweeping side to side as the ship once again handled what the sea was dishing out.  Face it.  Life happens whether you’re stateside or aboard any type of transit.  Trains, planes, automobiles, and water vessels are all designed to take us where we’ve never been before and we have reasonable expectations that we will arrive there safe and sound.  Incidentally, there will be times when no one has control of outside influences.  In this case, it was the weather. 

Recently I wrote a piece on “How to Prepare to Cruise.”  Let me say the subtitle of this piece should be “How to Prepare Yourself on a Tossing Sea.”  First and foremost, keep a good attitude.  You’ll be surprised how much better you’ll manage the unpleasant portion of a cruise on high seas.  Laugh, laugh, laugh.  Share with your neighbor a grin or smile as you each attempt to get to the next party.  Hopefully, you planned for the unexpected by obtaining a prescription for a Scopolamine patch or bringing along the Meclizine/Dramamine, which incidentally is over the counter.  Eat light.  This is not the time to descend upon the Crème Brule or ice cream bar, cheese cake or cookies!  Heavy creams and sauces rich in butter just don’t mix well with high seas.  The ship’s chef will usually recommend chicken or beef broth, steamed chicken with steamed rice and vegetables, crackers, dry toast, and occasionally sipping on a coke, sprite, or seven-up will help.  One Head Steward shared with me to always have a little something in your stomach.  Small bland meals help with the nausea.

Remember if you are diabetic and not able to keep food in your stomach, you may need to make adjustments in your insulin dosing or oral hypoglycemic medicines.  Each cruise line has available medical assistance aboard.  Look for the medical information number and talk with a nurse or other healthcare specialist before making any changes on your own.  Help one another.  Sometimes just the assistance of placing a cool wet cloth on your forehead feels tremendous!  Of course, if you can get into bed and ride it out, do that!  Stay as relaxed as you possibly can.

During this maiden high sea voyage, I was very amused at 3:00 A.M. when I called room service to order “ten crackers” (in my mind I was ordering saltines).  Crackers are universally known as a remedy for calming a stomach.  Well, when room service arrived, I removed the stainless lid off of the plate and behold twenty packages of dark rye crisp crackers began sliding and cascading down onto the bed and floor as I frantically dove to catch my elusive “crackers.”  On top of the pile, there sat a package of light colored sweet crackers with ten layers stacked perfectly.  Even with nausea, I laughed.  What a communication error.  What am I going to do with fifty crackers – not the saltine flavor I looked forward to?  Needless to say, I’ve still got a few of those packages with me.  Yes, they made the trip onboard, on airline, and in vehicle, right back to my kitchen.

Why the reason for this short story of “cruising the high seas?” Don’t let one experience keep you from trying a cruise again.  On my next cruise I’ll share my crackers with you,  if you bring some peanut butter along!  Happy Traveling!