Life at Sea / Winter 2020

When my grandmother, the great Mary Elinor, was a young woman, she dreamed of being a singer and a dancer on a cruise ship.  She made the cut, but her family thought the ship was just not the place for a young lady from Greenville, South Carolina, so she didn’t go. She raised us and cared for us instead, becoming the woman who instilled in me the values behind this project.   

As a child, I dreamed of what her life might have been like on that ship, and when I grew up, she and I travelled on every ship we could take—exploring the world from the water and meeting the gypsies and the curious who choose to see the world this way.

In 2020, the kindness of the cruise industry is alive, well, and meeting the naysayers with a controlled smile.  From December 2019 through mid-March 2020, several members of the Clever Chicas project boarded two Princess Cruise lines ships in search of Clever Chicas and Compañeros.  Finding these special people changed us, and we are proud to share their stories.

From Los Angeles to Hawai’i, then back again and down to French Polynesia, returning to Los Angeles, down around Mexico, to Nicaragua, Costa Rica, through the Panama Canal, and up to our home state of Florida, Clever Chicas and Compañeros were there to greet us, in shops and on beaches and on sidewalks and in moments when a friendly faces is really needed and appreciated.

But nowhere is kindness more profound than aboard the ship itself.  Whether a sea day or a day on land, the dedicated staff aboard the Emerald Princess are hard at work.  They make sure the laundry is running and that the 15,000 meals per day are served with excellence and precision. These same food service professionals also attend to every food allergy or limitation, which means they must learn the preferences of the thousands of faces who pass in front of them day after day.  And those public areas that everyone walks through on the way to be photographed or served or disembarked don’t clean themselves, right? And they are always spotless, cleaned and maintained by professionals who pride themselves on giving quiet service that most often goes unnoticed and, too often, goes unappreciated and undervalued.

Living on board for weeks on a ship happens more frequently that most folks likely realize, and the voyage enjoyed by the Clever Chicas project was certainly not unique.  On this voyage, our little crew was surrounded by people fleeing cold in Canada and taking advantage of proximity from Australia or California and folks from far reaches of the world who were just curious about far-away places with strange-sounding names.  In the winter travel season, few children are on board, as they are sequestered in classrooms. Cruisers are looking to relax and to meet like minds and to discover new ideas and new ways of doing things—all while only unpacking one time.

What we find during meals on the ship or during ukulele lessons from Compañero Thomas, the Brit Boy Wonder who plays bass in the ship’s Club Band, is that the professionals who run and operate cruise ships for those who like to travel by sea are fascinating, accomplished people who are willing to work long hours in crazy time zones just to stay at sea and to see the world by sea.

Clever Chica Nans makes sure that you are never asleep too long in the steam room, but she can also teach you about what to expect in South Africa when a ship lands you there.  And Clever Chica Eileen, muscling her way through her first contract while missing her home in the Philippines, can guide you to the best beaches near the ship, as she has quickly learned how to get to the good water and get back on the ship before her window of recreation ends.  For dining, the seasoned veteran and consummate gentleman, Murat, hailing from Istanbul, with his dark, knowing eyes and impeccable presentation and decorum, stands among a varied and talented cast of professionals—some with whom he has worked since 1993.  Gluten-free diners are tended to with ease and grace—no food allergy or concern is too small to garner attention and respect from the dining room team.  And please keep in mind that they are serving formal meals while the ship is moving.  Remember that every staff member on board lives at sea, sometimes for days upon days, depending upon his or her country of origin.

Immigration and movement are central to a life at sea.  Despite what some news outlets proffer, The United States is not the only nation with immigration issues. Part of what makes life aboard a cruise ship so compelling is the fact that the staff on board hail from all over the world.  But for that staff, not every nation allows them to disembark when the ship arrives. For example, one nation might allow US citizens in but not allow the crew from nations on their ‘do not enter’ list.  We encountered several ports that limited entry for several nations. And in America’s own Los Angeles, a sanctuary city, few crew members get to leave the ship regularly, as all crew must pass identity and immigration checks every three months, regardless of their nationality, and yes, that mandatory check includes Americans.

The Clever Chicas Project is not here to decide who can immigrate where or what happens to people who choose not to be kind to those who help them.  This project is here to recognize those stellar people in the world who lead with kindness every day.  We are here to connect people who go that extra step for strangers every day, no matter the cost—not because there’s something to be gained but because there’s something to be lost when kindness is not at the center of life.

To the crew of aboard the Star Princess, December 2019 and the Emerald Princess, February and March, 2020, we salute the Clever Chicas and Compañeros who leave family and friends and homelands behind to make the innocent grandeur of travel by water possible for thousands of passengers each year.  Your quiet smiles as you place candy on the pillow—your warm eyes when you recognize us in the steam room again today and welcome us back—your charming comments about our discoveries for the day in ports that are well worn favorites to you---we thank you for all and salute the pride you exude in keeping the world moving from shore to shore. We at the Clever Chicas Project feel quite sure that the great Mary Elinor salutes you, too, as you take the stage, particularly, perhaps, in one of the latest productions involving sign language in the well-received new show, Rock Opera.  Bravo, and be well.