* * *
By half three in the afternoon Denise was waiting for Sofia outside the gangway wearing comfortable clothes and walking shoes like she had been instructed to do. There was a big mystery about where they were going and Denise couldn’t get a single clue of what they were supposed to be doing in Sydney. She hoped they would be spending time outside because the day was beautiful and she wanted to enjoy the sun.
Sofia arrived a few minutes later wearing jeans, runners and a green top. She smiled and waved as she walked down the gangway.
“Hi. Can you tell me now where we are going?” Denise enquired.
“Not yet. Patience is a virtue my dear. Follow me.”
Denise obeyed and they walked side by side to Cumberland Street in The Rocks, which she recognized as being the place where the famous Bridge Climb started. She stared at the door incredulously for a moment.
“Are we going to do the bridge climb?” She asked, following the metal line of the Harbor Bridge above with her eyes twinkling in excitement.
“Yes, that’s exactly what we are going to do. Get ready for a very thrilling afternoon.” Sofia affirmed with a joyful smile.
“Do you know how afraid I am of heights?”
“I’m afraid of heights too. And in four hours we’ll both be very proud of ourselves because we beat our fear.” Sofia answered with contagious confidence.
They went in. Sofia had purchased the tickets online. They were welcomed by a nice and visibly happy guide and met the rest of the group. Everyone was sent to a separate room to have a preparation for the climb.
First of all they all had an alcohol test. Anyone with more than 0.05% blood-alcohol level would not be allowed to do the climb.
“That would put off at least 75% of our crew.” Sofia observed and Denise chuckled.
After passing the test all their personal belongings, including the cameras, were stored in secure lockers. Before the climb started everyone had to go through a metal detector.
Next it was time for the climbing gear. Apart from the specially designed suit, everyone received a radio headset receiver for communication, the safety harness, a head-mounted caving lamp, and lanyards for the sun glasses. The guide told them that the climb suit had been specially done with a fabric that camouflages the climbers and avoids distracting the traffic bellow.
“I feel more like I’m going to explore a cave or something.” Denise observed.
They were given some extra information and before the climb started they all went on a simulator to give them a feel of the conditions they would experience on the top of the bridge. The group was introduced to ladder and stair procedures, which Sofia and Denise knew well from working on the ship, and told how to use the harness. For the duration of the climb everyone was attached to a static line on the Bridge to ensure safety and comfort. This was very welcomed by those who were not particularly keen on heights. After almost one hour of preparation Sofia no longer remembered she was afraid of heights and Denise wasn’t sure if she was shaking with fear or excitement.
The guide was very entertaining, the comments were stimulating and funny and as they started going through the catwalks, ladders and steadily to the summit the view only got better and the enthusiasm increased. It was windy but not too bad and the sun had started it’s descending towards the horizon line. By the time they went through the upper span of the arch and walked up to the summit at 134 meters above Sydney Harbor, it was almost sunset and the sky was turning into glorious shades of orange and red.
Just like they had been told, after walking along flat and inclined mesh catwalks, going up four flights of stairs, climbing 465 steps on the arches and step over, duck under and squeeze through girders, there they were on the top of the world’s largest steel-arch bridge with a 360 degree view of Sydney, the ocean to the east, the mountains to the west and the harbor spreading before their dazzled eyes.
Denise and Sofia got the staff to take several pictures and it was with great satisfaction that Sofia saw real happiness in her friend’s eyes. That alone had been worth the experience and the soreness of her legs.
“I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like this before.” Denise said, trying to express her joy and personal achievement.
“I’ve been in some spectacular places, but this is truly unique.”
Denise hugged Sofia and thanked her again. “I’m so glad we did this. For as long as I live I will never forget this day. I feel that I can do anything.”
Sofia smiled. “Who says you can’t?”
They stayed up there for as long as they were allowed and the guide told them a few more stories and Australian jokes to keep them entertained.
In the end Sofia and Denise purchased a number of pictures and one t-shirt each to take with them and remember that day.
When they made it back onboard it was almost time for the ship to sail. It was completely dark and instead of taking another couple of hours to sleep Denise went with Sofia to watch sail away and have some food on deck 15. “This day was just perfect.” She observed.
“I’m really glad you enjoyed it.” Sofia answered, spoiling her diet with two slices of greasy pepperoni pizza with extra cheese.
“I just honestly never thought that I could still have such a wonderful time on this ship. It’s been a really great surprise. I was so afraid to get seriously depressed when Diego left and look at me now, all happy after climbing the Harbor Bridge, having fun, spending time with good friends...” Denise confessed.
Sofia giggled. “Sometimes all you need to be happy is to tell yourself you can. I’m happy to have someone I love, but I’ve always believed it’s wrong to make our happiness depend on other people. It’s wonderful to have someone but if Diego didn’t want to be that person, why would you have to be miserable? He already punished you, there’s no reason for you to punish yourself. You have ten days left. Make the best out of them.”
“You don’t need to say that again.” She replied with a wink.
28
Denise followed Sofia’s advice and made the best out of her cruise. It was likely the last time she would be on a cruise ship and she wanted to enjoy it before it was all over.
In those remaining days of her contract she went to the beach and visited the highlights of Melbourne, went on a tour of Port Arthur following her friend’s recommendation, spent hours on the open decks in Fiordland admiring the stunning landscape and talking to crew and passengers and felt truly relaxed. She also visited some places in Dunedin and went to the Willowbank Wildlife Reserve in Christchurch where she finally had the chance to see a kiwi bird. To close in beauty she went to Rotorua when they docked in Tauranga.
Her nights went as well as it could be expected and during those ten days she didn’t feel too pressured or overly tired, only sleepy sometimes. Chris made her life easy and Leah didn’t see her enough to give her a hard time. She hadn’t even sat eyes on Elaine and Kate for most of the cruise and that alone was a gift.
When she went to the crew office the day before Auckland to sign off and receive her flight details it still felt like she was dreaming. After four years on ships Denise knew what it was like to have to say goodbye by the end of a contract. There were always mixed feelings of happiness for finally going home after so many months working every day, with the sadness of saying goodbye to so many friends and the conscience that it could be a very long time before they saw each other again, if they ever did. This time the feeling was different. She didn’t have any sadness, only sheer joy.
The friends Denise had made onboard were almost all gone with the exception of Sofia, Ian and Tom. Sofia was going home the same day as her, Ian one cruise later and Tom wouldn’t be less of a friend when they had half the world between them. She was going to miss him a lot but he would always be a dear friend no matter how far away he was.
She started packing her bags and tried really hard to make everything fit inside. Six months was a good period of time to collect stuff. After takin
g things out and put them back in again three times she made up her mind to leave her uniforms behind. If she didn’t come back for another contract she wouldn’t need them, and if she returned, the shop keeper would have them for sale and they weren’t that expensive.
Sofia knocked on her door just before eight to pick her up for dinner with Ian and Albert. They had organized a farewell dinner for both of them and Ian who was due to leave the following cruise.
“How’s your packing going?”
Denise gave her friend a desperate look. “A nightmare! How did I manage to collect so much stuff?”
Sofia giggled. “Six months is a long time.”
“I’ve already decided to leave my uniforms here.”
“That should give you a good extra space.” Sofia observed.
“That was what I thought, but it doesn’t seem to be working.” She moaned sitting on one of the suitcases in an attempt to close it.
Sofia took a camera from her pocket and made a few pictures of that moment. “You look so comical sitting on that bag.”
“And what about you help me instead of making fun of my dramas?”
Sofia gave a hand and they eventually managed to have everything packed and neat.
“Did you notice we have the same flights to Kuala Lumpur and London?” Sofia asked happily.
“Yes. We can get seats together. That’s so cool. I couldn’t think of better company.” Denise said sincerely.
“Nice! It seems that we have to go to the airport at twelve and our flight is not until five. They better have a good book shop and some decent restaurants there.”
Denise sighed. “I have a friend in Auckland, a girl I worked with on my first contract. We used to be roommates. She invited me to spend the day with her tomorrow. She would pick me up as soon as I finish work and drive me to the airport at three. I asked Leah to let me go as soon as my shift is over but she said no.”
“Why? That doesn’t make any sense.”
“She said I need to do handover with my replacement, so I have to stay after I finish work. I checked the arrival list for tomorrow and my replacement has been in this job longer than I have. He doesn’t need me at all.” Denise answered disgruntled.
“Once a bitch, always a bitch, isn’t it?” Sofia concluded.
“The woman spent the last four months making my life hell. Why would she miss another opportunity to show me she’s in charge and I have to do whatever she damn well pleases?”
“Why don’t you just leave then? They can’t force you to stay.”
Denise looked around and opened all the drawers to check that she was not forgetting anything.
“Because if I decide to do one more contract that will go on my record. Even if we aren’t on the same ship, Leah has a lot of influence, she knows many people and I’m sure she could still cause me problems. That’s why I’ll do what she wants one last time.” She explained.
“The backstabbing on your department never seizes to surprise me.”
“Yes, it’s pretty bad over here. I’ll just try to remember the good people I worked with, the ones that were a good example and motivated me. I’ll always remember Amy. She’s the kind of person I want to be like.”
“Keep positive, right?”
“Absolutely.”
The cabin looked almost empty, apart from the two suitcases packed in the corner and a few bits and pieces Denise was going to need the next morning.
“Aren’t you going to take that picture of the wall?” Sofia pointed at a photo of Denise and Diego taken in the atrium on a formal night.
Denise put her hands on her waist and looked at it for a second, remembering perfectly of that particular night. It was right after they had started dating and they looked very happy.
“I don’t know. I don’t want to leave it there but I’m not sure if I want to take it with me. I don’t enjoy looking at it anymore. It makes me sad.”
Sofia yanked the picture out of the wall. “Put it in your bag and keep it safe. It’s part of your life.” She suggested handing it to her.
“It’s a part of my life that didn’t end very well.” Denise observed.
“It’s part of your life nevertheless and when it doesn’t hurt anymore you will like to look at it again. Remember the good moments.”
Denise kept the picture but made a mental promise to get rid of it when she was completely over him. She didn’t want to think about him ever again.
After a fun dinner where Denise had to drink water because she couldn’t have alcohol and soft drinks didn’t go well with the scallops, it was time to go back to the office for one last night on duty.
Sofia was sorry that her friend had to work until the last moment and then go straight to the airport without getting any rest, but Denise didn’t mind because that way she would be very tired and could sleep on the plane. It wouldn’t be the first time she finished work in the morning, got her bags and went to the bus that took the crew to the airport every turnaround day. That had happened on previous contracts and it was a normal thing for crew members.
The front desk was only busy until midnight with many passengers lining up to get printouts of their accounts but nothing serious happened afterward. Denise closed the accounts once Chris had checked the last details and together with Melissa they printed the final statements for the passengers. By four o’clock everything was in order and ready to distribute through the cabins.
Tom came by with one last plate of cookies and he sat in the back office with Denise talking for as long as they could get away with it.
“I’m going to miss this.” Tom said taking a bite.
“I’m sure my replacement won’t mind if you bring him cookies.” She observed.
“It won’t be the same thing. What’s next for you?”
Denise revolved the chair childishly. “I don’t know yet. I think I’m going to take some time for myself to decide. I might go and visit a friend in Italy for a while. She lives by Lake Como, it’s a great place to relax and think. Then I’ll see.”
“Are you coming back?”
“I don’t know. To this ship, never again, to another one, I would have to think about it very seriously. I’m not sure if there is anything left for me on cruise ships.”
Tom nodded, knowing how hard that contract had been for her. “Well, if you decide to stay ashore, you’ll have to promise to come and visit me in Vancouver some time.”
She laughed. “Only if you promise to come to Zurich, or wherever I am.”
“Deal.”
By five thirty Leah and Kate arrived in the office. Turnaround started very early for them, with a lot of work to do in order to get the passengers out of the ship and all the accounts settled.
At seven Leah called Denise to give her the appraisal that everyone received by the end of a contract. Considering the circumstances, the night manager wasn’t expecting anything good, but surprisingly, she was wrong. Leah’s comments were small and with little detail, but they were positive. Denise signed, made a copy for herself and thanked Leah with a cold smile before going back to her computer to make a list of the credits that still needed to be applied to some passenger’s accounts. Denise would never be able to understand how Leah recognized her skills and professionalism and still gave her such a hard time.
Twenty minutes later she was called to Elaine’s office and when she entered the first purser and Kate were waiting for her.
“Denise.” Elaine started straight away. “I’m afraid I have some bad news. I just received a call from head office. Danny had an accident and he’s not badly injured but he won’t be able to join us today. We need to ask you to stay with us for another cruise.” Elaine said with an unusually kind tone which she only used when she was after something.
Denise looked at her and then at Kate. Several images of unpleasant events flashed through her mind. “I’m sorry. I can’t stay.” She replied dryly.
“Why? It’s just one more cruise.” Kate said like it
was not a big deal.
“I’m afraid I already made other plans.”
Elaine looked seriously upset and Denise enjoyed the moment discretely.
“What are we going to do now? We can’t stay without a night manager and there’s no way we can get another assistant purser onboard today.” She said, hoping to make Denise change her mind.
“I guess you will have to find another solution.” Denise replied. “Now if you excuse me, I need to help Ian.”
She left the office with her head up and her pride restored. Although no explanations were given, the two of them were smart enough to read between the lines and they knew the only reason she wasn’t staying was because they didn’t deserve that from her. For months Denise had been treated like a nobody and didn’t get any consideration or recognition from them. Now she had the satisfaction to pay them back. Had they been fair to her in the past she would have gladly stayed onboard.
Just as expected, by nine o’clock Denise was ready to go but Leah didn’t allow her off the ship before twelve. Humbly, she obeyed and didn’t complain. Instead she took the time to have a proper last meal onboard and say goodbye to some people.
She paged Tom and met him in his cabin. He made tea for both of them and they talked until there was no more time left. They avoided talking about goodbyes but it became inevitable when it was time for her to leave.
“Looks like I’m going home…”
“Yeah, looks like it.” Tom mumbled not excited about that fact. “Denise, there is something I would like you to remember.”
“Tell me.” She looked in his big blue eyes.
“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. I read that somewhere and it makes a lot of sense to me.”
Denise felt her voice starting to shake. “Thank you so much for everything, for being such a great friend. You have no idea how much that means to me.” She said with her arms wrapped around his neck on a very tight hug.
Tom watched as she walked away in the direction of the dining room where the leavers were gathering.
It was the second time in less than a month that Denise cried someone goodbye, only this time she didn’t regret her tears. Tom deserved them.
She joined the group and took a seat near Sofia who had a glorious smile on her face. Together, they waited for the order to go ashore and get on the bus to the airport.
Denise told her friend about the request to extend her contract.
“What are they going to do now?” Sofia asked.
“Not my problem!” She answered with satisfaction.
“Payback time?”
“I didn’t look for payback but since the opportunity fell on my lap, it would be stupid not to take it.” She replied happily.
“How will they manage without a night manager?”
“They won’t. They will have to put Ian back on nights and get him to train Chris. He can be promoted and when Ian leaves next cruise he’ll be ready and the person replacing Ian can take over front desk supervisor. That’s what I would do.” Denise explained.
“What about this cruise? Who would be front desk supervisor?”
“They can give some of the tasks to one of the most experienced receptionist and Leah can split the rest with Kate. It won’t kill them if they do it for a cruise. I don’t care. I’m going home!” Denise sang happily.
The crew office manager, John, arrived with the box of passports and distributed them together with the documents that had to be given to the local authorities. In half an hour the bus was full and on the way to Auckland International Airport.
From a distance, Denise looked at the Ocean Pearl one last time, happy not to be there anymore. Sofia on the other hand felt a bit sad. Unlike her friend, her time onboard had been wonderful and she was going to miss it. Being with Kieran again was going to make her beyond happy, but she knew she would always remember those four months on the ship as a fabulous time of her life.
When the plane took off later that afternoon Denise waved goodbye from her window seat, happy for taking with her the biggest treasure she ever found onboard: great friendships.
She hadn’t made a decision about returning to cruise ships or finding a job on land, or about living in Switzerland or somewhere else; she didn’t even know if she wanted to make music an important part of her life again. But whatever happened next, she was determined to stop dwelling on unnecessary misery and find a way to be happy.
As for Diego, it still hurt a lot, but eventually the pain would fade away and he would become just a memory.
“Are you okay?” Sofia asked.
“I’m tired. I think my lack of sleep is catching up with me.” She replied looking at the clouds beneath the airplane.
“Get some sleep then. I’m going to watch a movie. Should I wake you up when the food arrives?”
“Sure. We can have one last meal together.” Denise smirked.
“Airplane food. That should be memorable.” Sofia replied and they both laughed.
* * *
Back on the Ocean Pearl, the calm azure waters of the Pacific Ocean parted majestically, the bow leaded the rest of the ship on its outwardly never-ending voyage. As the beautiful panorama that was the east coast of New Zealand passed seemingly within grasp, Tom walked the promenade deck of the ship and marveled at the stunning vistas passing on the starboard side of the vessel. It was one of those days that made everything worthwhile; calm seas, pleasant temperature and a view that he wished could be frozen in time. As he made his way towards the bow of the ship he looked off again to the shoreline of New Zealand and what he saw brought images of all sorts of beauty to his mind. A small rain shower passing over the rolling green hills combined with the sun, created one of the most beautiful rainbows Tom had ever observed.
His mind circled back to Denise, his good friend who was somewhere on a plane, flying home. He felt choked up. How would this look, he thought, a big tough security guy close to tears on the deck of a ship?
He really didn’t care what anyone would think. Life at sea offered many things. The coming and going of friends was the hardest part of it. It was heartbreaking.
As the water slipped by with Tom hardly noticing anymore, his attention was drawn to something swimming close by. A dolphin had come to play. Tom watched as it swam effortlessly by the ship and in that moment he couldn’t help but feel the warmth overcome him. Everything is going to be alright, he thought, and he took one long look at the beautiful scene.
He missed Denise already. She had always been a great person and a close friend he had enjoyed spending time with. Seeing how unhappy she was had pained him. She deserved better and he hoped she found whatever she was looking for.
Looking one last time at the water, Tom wondered if he would ever see Denise again.
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