Crossing the Aleutian Islands into the Bering Sea

Today is day 3 of 6 sea days, for being ship-bound, as we traverse a long stretch of water to get to
northern Japan. Most of our trajectory is through open water so we have all the Dramamine moments
you’ve ever longed for. In fact, the reception desk hands them out to anyone in need. Luckily, Jerry and
I have not required them. Yet.

All morning I’ve been thinking about how to describe the nearly incessant ship’s movement to you.

• A sideways sloshing with no pattern nor predictability,
• Riding a horse in slow motion that is jumping over a stretched-out set of hurdles, sometimes clipping a hurdle and stumbling, sometimes knocking a hurdle and awkwardly regaining balance,
• Walking a narrow hallway with a railing on one side and finding myself with my feet near the opposite wall as my handholds, drunkenly grinning as someone tries to come toward me with mirrored effects,
• Waking in the night to a THUD somewhere and trying to discern if it’s 1) important, 2) in our room, 3) in the hallway, and then carefully setting foot on the floor, testing the motion and balance.
• Navigating the myriads of stairways is the best aerobic work-out of all. Often, as the foot rises for a step, the ship lurches in any direction it wishes, and the foot either finds the step with anti-gravity force or stubbornly stomps back to its original place. Sane people use the elevators.

At noon every day the captain speaks on our ship-wide intercom system to inform us of navigational
information. Most days, the waves have been 8-9 ft. with winds at about 40 knots. This explains the
rolling and also allows some lurching with rogue waves that sometimes plaster the windows on the 10th floor. 

Yeehah!!!!!