Dancing on the Bay

In many religions the Sea is very often connoted with a female Goddess, and it sure has to do with beauty and fascination. However, on a day like this one could remark ironically that things like "change of mood", or "wicked temper" also spring to mind: Whereas this morning saw a mild ocean all around, us being the centre of a vast expanse of grey, our brave ship is riding bigger and bigger waves now like a cowboy on a rodeo horse that gets more and more angry by the minute.

It all started so peacefully, with morning lectures, breakfast at a mild 18 degrees and ample time to read, have a coffee upstairs (or a Sverre, which is a Norwegian waffle speciality, the equivalent to the French Gaufre). Time also to take a little sneak peak behind the scenes, into the tally for example, where every day the huge task is tackled to keep 231 guests well fed and happily digesting. A sea day is also the occasion for the crew to practice the necessary procedures for emergency situation, so a fire drill was carried out, of course curiously ogled by many. The glance into one of the lifeboats, however, is not one you get very often, so here you go, this is how these things look like from inside.

After lunch there was a slight change in the ship's movements, people in the lecture theatres were sitting with their legs more apart in order to have a better hold. Hm. Maybe just a short stretch.
That was three hours ago. Now we are in the middle of big (and beautiful!) waves that shake the floors and move the plates on the table. The Bay of Biskay shows its (her?) angry face, we have to cancel the program in the Observation lounge tonight - the higher you're up, the stronger the shakes (if you spill your drink up there - right, would be a Shakes-Beer… ok,ok - not funny!) The ship got quieter, the appetite is sinking, the galley staff is fighting with pots and pans.
That is what makes the sea so unpredictable. And so beautiful...