Expat Tales: When at Home is a Cruise Ship

As a former soldier, it took a little while to get used to the sports coordination of a major American cruise company.

One day, Byron Blane participated in the defense of the nation within the New Zealand Army. the next day, he organized tournaments and parties on board, and taught passengers everything from trapeze to zipline to indoor skydiving and the conduct of a surfboard simulator.

Well, not quite the next day. He trained as a fitness professional and worked as a Fitness Director at Carnival Cruise Line for a year before landing the position of Sport Coordinator with Royal Caribbean International. But it was still a big fit.

"I remember my first trip as a nervously excited experience," said Blane, a native of Tokomaru Bay on the east coast.

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"I had gone on a five day cruise four years earlier, which helped me.But I had just spent eight years in the army and changing the environment was a shock. "

Working seven weeks a week, changing time zones, living and working with people who speak multiple languages, and getting used to providing customer service were some of his biggest challenges, but Blane quickly found his feet again. water.

Currently working as an iFLY instructor for Royal Caribbean, where he teaches passengers to "fly" in a skydiving simulator on board, Blane simultaneously spends three to six months at sea. After which, he brings it back to New Zealand for a break. .

His newest floating ship – the world's largest cruise ship, the Symphony of the Seas – took him on a tour of the Mediterranean, including Barcelona, ​​Palma de Mallorca, Marseille, La Spezia, Civitavecchia and Naples.

The best thing about this job, of course, is to be able to "see different parts of the world while being fed and housed," says Blane.

"You live many different things and work every day with people from different cultures."

The worst thing to do is "stay away from family and friends for long periods of time".

The limited space on a cruise ship also requires some adjustments, he says, as does having to eat the same food every day for months, especially when you're a fitness professional concerned about nutritional content. of your meals.

"It's not good but it's not bad either," he says. "But it's free and you can not really complain."

And the crews get discounts in the restaurants on board, but many prefer to hold the harbor day to be able to search for anything they want.

Blane said that life on board was very social, with human resources teams hosting games, competitions, parties, themed gourmet nights and visits to ports of call.

"But at the same time, many crew members work very long hours.You have so many different nationalities living together in a confined space that get to know each other."

Blane spends a lot of his free time on board at the gym, using the 12 meter long FlowRider surf simulator (being an East Coast boy, he's surfing in his blood), practicing "flying", studying, playing billiards and table tennis, and socializing.

Long hours, time zones, high call rates and wi-fi make it difficult to maintain regular contact with people back home, he said.

"But you find ways to get around it – most crew members will disembark from the ship on a harbor day, find a restaurant with Wi-Fi, eat a meal and chat with friends or family."

Having the habit of traveling regularly to New Zealand is a bonus, he says, but "most of the time, it does not correspond to vacation periods".

Blane would recommend a career in the cruise to anyone "young, single and ready to mingle" who loves the idea of ​​being able to travel for a living.

"I'm really grateful to be able to travel the world, do a job that I love and get paid to do it, I hope that more Kiwis will do the same, because I've never had any regret."

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