Tony's Blog

 

 

All right people , Since I found CNN has a Blog ,Joseph & Mary Have a Blog etc etc, I thought it would be a good idea

if me , myself . I , started my own blog and tell to some colleagues and friends a bit of what's going on in my life.

I know you don't care , but then again , if you are reading this then at least you are curious about it and...

Don't Forget...curiosity killed the cat...!!!!

Therefore.

As some of you know , for the last 4 years and a half and due to the great UK recession (it's not new believe me)

(for us Musicians the recession started long ago)

But like I was saying , since 4 and a half years ago I started to do a lot of cruise work. Some Good , Some very bad , Some ok , and some very good.

It is  a great life ,some of my friends say , all right !!!

I have been around the world for the last 4 years from The Baltic to the Caribbean Islands ,Panama Canal , and now doing the Beautiful and freezing  Alaska ,that's an undeniable fact , But...(and there is always a But...) What about the months I spent away from the Family? , I know I have to thank God for Having a Job (specially in the times we are in) but not everything are roses...there are some thorns as well....but I guess that comes with the Job.

All right , Let me start.

 

 Royal Caribbean:

Great company to work with (specially if you have guest entertainer status) , they really take good care of you ,from Miami head office to the people in the ship ,99% of the times they are amazingly good taking care of your problems.

Salary's are ok however and due to the recession don't expect any salary rises for the next 3 years , but they pay not bad , and let's be honest , the perks are ok.

You are entitled to a good Cabin with Broadband,fridge,tv,Video ,and some ships DVD player, Also as a guest Entertainer you are also entitled to room service (don't forget to tip the guys otherwise you are in trouble) and the work environment (schooner Bar or Promenade Pub) is very good with one day off per week , and that helps to charge batteries.

The passengers are 90% Ok , you also have the right to have a tip jar , and therefore make some extra bucks per week.

You can also bring your family or friends for free 3 weeks per contract if you are a entertainer with a single cabin . So.... it's not that bad.

You do have  the Weekly crew drill , and although it is necessary (safety is everybody's business) it can be  a pain in the back side when you are awake until late hours the night before as the drill's are always at 9.30am , but , like I said before , it comes with the job and after all you need to know what to do if something goes wrong.

So...9 out of 10 to Royal Caribbean , it was a pleasure working with them.

 

Princess Cruises:

Well , I was only there for 2 weeks (short contract) but with the exception of the cabin being a bit spacious its almost like RCI.

Guests are nice , you got all the privileges I mention before but... (ha..there is always a but...) you are not entitled to a tip jar....However , they pay a little bit more the RCI and that helps to forget the tip jar.

 

Thomson Cruises:

I had a bit of bad luck on that one , I worked in the smallest and oldest ship of the fleet doing the Med and to be honest with you all , I wouldn't recommend it , very bad conditions to work ,dreadful sound etc, the cabin was a joke and the money was even worst , don't get me wrong ,it's a job , and its better then nothing ,but if you can go to any of the other companies I mentioned before ,do it ,and forget Thomson.

 

Celebrity Cruises:

Celebrity cruises belongs to RCI , however , it is done  by different people with very different ideas about entertainers.

You see , although you are an entertainer in Celebrity Cruises you are crew , and that means crew treatment , you are not allowed to almost anything , 1 day off every 2 weeks (with luck) depending on cruise director , when you go to public areas you are not allowed to wear a t shirt or jeans (even if they are Versace jeans) , The work environment (Michael's Club) is dreadful ,bad sound, bad piano location (it looked like a mortuary...!!!) and the treatment from the officers is almost a Guantanamo bay style , they just don't torture you , so far , we never know in a future...!!! (just joking)

They say they cater with ''Crystal Cruises'' quality and RCI prices...Well , the guy who invented that one must be crazy , the service is dreadful , the food with the exception of the Grand Restaurant is really bad , after 3 pm all you can eat in the buffet are cakes, small  sandwiches and at night Pasta and Stir Fried , give me a break , did they ever heard about the Windjammer in Royal Caribbean?????.... C'mon lest get real in here...!!!!

Celebrity Cruises is a chapter of my life to forget , I had the worst time of my professional career there ,and I have been around for long time , believe me.

Better go to Thomson ,at least there you are treated as a entertainer not a bar server (I got nothing against bar servers) but , I am not one of them ,and with all due respect to bar servers , I am an artist and I like to be treated accordingly.

Two words of advice:  FORGET IT.

 

NCL (Norwegian Cruise Lines):

I never heard of this guys until a month ago , I am working with them now ,

and all I can say is THEY ARE VERY GOOD

And I am not saying this only with regards to myself but also to the guests , this company has a scheme called ''freestyle cruising'' where you as a guest can choose between 14 restaurants to eat (most of them free of charge) ,

You don't have that stupid Formal Nights where people have to wear a tuxedo in the Caribbean islands just to take a photo that sometimes they never go to the photo shop to get,

You don't have this silly 1st and 2nd seating in the grand restaurant .

The service is super.

And the entertainment is very very good ,  the cabins are super (including mine) ...!!!

This are the only guys so good as RCI , don't get me wrong , some people like to wear a tuxedo to go for dinner one night per cruise ,but even that ones can do it on the second day of the cruise when the attire is ''dress up...or not'' giving you the choice to do whatever you like , well...after all you paid good money to be here as a guest , so ....why not ?

10 of 10 to NCL

 

In my next blog i will talk about the 5 star hotels i have been working and after that i will have a chapter with regards to ''some''  musical agents i worked with....

Until next time , and be good to each other .

Tony Cruz

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