Chronicles of a Cruise Ship Crew Member: Answers to All the Questions Every Passenger Wants to Ask

I had lots of irons in the fire as they say. It just goes to show you that you never know where your ship will take you when you unfurl the jib and let a little wind into your sails.

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My book begins from the point in my life when I received that life-changing call to the sea. Before I went to work as a drummer in the orchestras, jazz trios, and lounge bands aboard cruise ships I attended college in Florida and earned a degree in journalism with an emphasis in biology. Throughout my time at Pensacola State College I worked for the campus paper, the Corsair , winning several awards for the writing I did at that time. I also started freelancing for magazines and newspapers as a travel writer mostly covering outdoor sports locations throughout Florida and the mountain regions of the Carolinas.

Outdoor exploration and sports, particularly backpacking and back-country navigation skills, have always been a passion of mine. The focus in biology studies throughout college helped facilitate a career in wildlife biology that I still enjoy today. From the time I was 19 I have spent most of my summers working for the Forest Service and National Park Service as a back-country wildlife biology technician. During these periods of employment I have:. The time I spend in the outdoors hiking through the mountains of this beautiful country gives me the much needed time to think and formulate my book ideas.

It also keeps me rather curious about the world around me, which lends itself well to a writer. The fourth book that I published this year is titled Following Mowgli: This book tells the true story of what happens when I attempt to hike the 2,mile long Appalachian Trail with my lovable, eccentric, but destructive German shepherd named Mowgli. When you return from working on a cruise ship everyone around you is always asking you what it is like.

They want to know every aspect of ship life, from the outrageous crew bar parties to the pork-knuckle soup and other wonderful culinary treasures that we enjoy so much in the crew mess. I felt I had an interesting and fun story to tell, one that I thought people would enjoy reading. I see my time on the cruise ship through a comedic lens and I thought my perspective would translate well to the page.

Also, I am a writer. It just seemed like the most sensible next step to process what I experienced through writing about it and then publishing it and sharing it with everyone else. Ultimately though, I must be honest, I needed the money.

Nothing motivates you more to write, or do anything else for that matter, than not knowing exactly where your next meal is going to come from. However, the book was really just an experiment. I knew I had a hilarious story to tell about what it is like to work on a cruise ship from the perspective of a musician that spent more than 5 years on a cruise ship. I had no idea how it would sell or how it would be received. I figured my one friend and a few of my family members would buy a copy and that was about it.

The book has to date spent more than 6 months as the 1 selling book in the Cruise and Caribbean categories on Amazon. Have fun and live life to the fullest while you are out at sea, but try not to become too destructive at least on your second contract. There are no boundaries in ship life.

You can for the most part become as destructive or constructive as you want while you are out at sea. A lot of crew members spend their contracts drinking at the crew bar and sitting in their rooms watching Downton Abbey episodes over and over again. They miss the opportunities to experience every port and ship life to the fullest. Then before they know it they are sick of ship life and back on land. They missed these great opportunities to experience all of the places, people, and cultures around their ports. This all depends on the job that you are applying for and what type of personality you have.

Not everyone is cut out for ship life. Having said that, the best part of the job is the free food and the travel. The biggest reason to stay away is if you have a problem with authority. The ship after all has a hierarchy with a captain and officers. This means there are people who are in charge of you. Nov 10, Michael Gravener rated it really liked it. Enjoyable A somewhat dark look at life working on a cruise ship. I'm sure it isn't quite as bad as author describes but his take is probably much closer to the truth than anything a cruise line would tell you.

I admire the crew onboard these floating vacation cities and make an effort whenever I cruise to tip generously and great the crew with kindness. Jun 06, Joyce A. Wendeln rated it it was amazing.

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What is it like to be a crew member? Not the glossy brochures that the recruiters hand out, but the truth? This book gives you the good, the bad and the ugly. Feb 05, Jan rated it liked it. Feb 24, Marion Marchetto rated it liked it Shelves: I have been on numerous cruises on numerous cruise lines and made many friends among the various crews. So I was interested to see how the crew members in Mr. Kinser's book see life aboard ship. While I already knew that crew cabins and crew areas are not like the ones we passengers luxuriate in, I was also surprised to learn some the lingo the crew members use.

If you want to know what "red alert" means you must read the book - I won't give it away. The author covers five years of working on bo I have been on numerous cruises on numerous cruise lines and made many friends among the various crews. The author covers five years of working on board various ships and I was laughing out loud at the descriptions of what some cruise ships try to pass of as decor, reference the Kitty Lounge in this book.

Descriptions of food served to the crew is fairly accurate although I have personally heard it isn't as bad as the author would have you believe. But now I know why some of the crew have asked me to smuggle them something from the passenger buffet. Although six months might not seem long, when they are spent working on a ship they can be the source of cabin fever or something similar. The fun descriptions carried the book for me and although I also believe a published work can be an author's voice when speaking for the downtrodden crew , I felt as though it detracted a bit from a 'light-hearted' book.

Editorial Reviews

This book would be a perfect gift for the cruiser in your life. Nov 22, Barbara M rated it liked it.

True story of Joshua, a musician, who spent 5 years as a crew member of a cruise ship. He tells the story of what it is like to be a member of the crew. He reports that while passengers and officers are enjoying excellent food, crew members are served lesser food.

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He also notes that while everything is done for the passengers comfort - air conditioned suites, etc. He talks about a very diverse crew - coming from all over the world. He True story of Joshua, a musician, who spent 5 years as a crew member of a cruise ship. He notes that many of the crew work very long hours and are grateful for the work - they come from parts of the world where there is no work.

They spend long periods of time away from their families. He included numerous funny stories about incidents aboard the ship. I was surprised to read about how strict the rules are for the crew. Joshua was once almost fired for taking a roll with his hand at a buffet instead of using tongs. A guard reported him. The book was a bit repetitive at times - I think some of it could be edited out. I learned what it was like to work behind the scenes on a ship reading this book. Oct 19, J.

Cruise Ship Crew Work Stories | Crew Member Chronicles Review

It says this is the 3rd Edition and revised - I can't imagine what the original must have been like. It is probably petty on my part but I also don't consider the entertainers on a ship "crew members. Someday I'd love to read a boo It says this is the 3rd Edition and revised - I can't imagine what the original must have been like. Someday I'd love to read a book written by an author that did extensive interviewing with various crew members to give a rounded experience of what working on a ship is like. I love to cruise for many of the positive reasons given in the book for working on a ship but I will agree with Mr.

Kinser on a lot of the passengers; it's like scraping the bottom of the barrel of humanity. Service staff should all receive angel wings at the end of their contract if they avoided pitching a passenger overboard ; This is a really fun book about that eternally interesting topic: The author dispenses a lot of good information, but the passages in which he waxes philosophical are my favorites. In particular, his observation that it is impossible to dwell on the past on a ship in motion struck me as particularly cogent.

But mostly this is a very, very funny book. The author has a true gift for hyperbolic description I never saw raccoon snouts used in quite this way This is a really fun book about that eternally interesting topic: The author has a true gift for hyperbolic description I never saw raccoon snouts used in quite this way and can write like an angel at times. And his lament about the loss of the horn section in cruise ship show bands will have you angrily filling out your next cruise comment card. He deserves chicken fingers with honey mustard sauce three days in a row for this wonderful book.

I just got off a Canadian cruise and this book continued the fun once I was back on land. Sep 14, Julia rated it it was ok. A little repetitive Interesting to read, but would have greatly benefited from some thorough editing. In addition to some typos, the author is simply repetitive. Why say it in two sentences when you could say it in forty? I'd give three stars for material, but 1. Jan 13, Brandon rated it really liked it. I enjoyed the book. I'm booked on a 7-night cruise in June, so this was particularly interesting to me.

Makes one think about and appreciate the men and women who work hard on cruise ships to make your experience as safe, pleasant and enjoyable as possible. Feb 18, Nancy rated it really liked it. This was a fun read and lets you know just what they other of what is happening with the crew while you are enjoying the cruise from the topside.

He writes very straight forward but with humor.

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Feb 24, cat rated it it was ok Shelves: Totally silly and quick read. Don't have to wonder anymore May 18, tbears rated it it was ok. The book could have been half as long with so much repetition.

Chronicles of a Cruise Ship Crew Member: Answers to All the Questions Every Passenger Wants to Ask

What I got out of it is that he had a love-hate relationship with being a crew member. All in all, this was an interesting book. If you can get around the misspelled words and bad grammar, you can find out a lot about being a crew member. Jan 02, Barb rated it it was ok. Contains some behind-the-scenes info on how cruise ships operate, but was repetitive and didn't get into too much depth. I enjoyed reading this book, especially while I was on a cruise ship.

I did learn a lot but still have many unanswered questions Mar 21, Ed rated it liked it. Okay behind the scenes look at cruiseship life. I liked Cruise Confidential better though.