Home :: Journey with Gina
:: Missing Marrakech
April 30, 2000
Missing Marrakech
Casablanca, Morocco
I awoke to what should have been my first stop on dry land.
Instead, I steadied myself inside my cabin against a rollicking
vessel at sea. I didn't need to consult the ship's bulletin, "The
Daily Explorer," to learn that we would not stop in Morocco.
The M/V Riviera was beset with commercial challenges
preventing it from leaving Cadiz, Spain on schedule. Its next
stop, Casablanca, was 14 hours away. At breakfast I learned that
only a mere five hours earlier the ship had departed the Spanish
coastline. Although this world itinerary boasts numerous exotic
ports, I had my heart set on Marrakech.
The regret at missing this North African city quickly faded to the
background as my first day in a tiny ship on a swelled ocean took
its toll. I was so green-looking - a repeated observation by my
shipmates - I had to be escorted from the dining room.
Mary Lou, a new travel buddy, positioned me on chair on the
top deck and instructed me to wait until she returned with
Meclizine, a sea-sickness medication available in abundance on the ship.
Jan dashed to her cabin and then reappeared with Scopolamine
patches while Betty consulted the doctor's office, which informed
her that an off-hours visit required a fee.
I opted for the Meclizine as Mary Lou and I sat poolside in
the open air. After encouraging me to look up instead of at the
ship's bobbing stern, Mary Lou asked if I'd read any books by
Isabel Allende, which I hadn't. She first discovered the Chilean author
during a convalescence when a visitor from the Philippines
brought her one of Allende's books. "I stayed up all night
reading the first one and then told my friends to bring me books
two and three of the trilogy. It's a wonderful story of a woman's
coming of age in Latin America."
I wanted to learn more about Allende, but as if reading my
mind, Mary Lou said, "Ready to go down?" No sooner had I
reached my cabin and settled into my bed than I needed the empty
bucket Mary Lou quickly placed in my hand. She dumped it, sat
next to me, and applied a cool wet towel to my forehead and neck.
"You'll feel much better now," she assured and then promised to
check in on me that afternoon. When I awoke three hours later, a
fresh fruit plate, silverware and napkins lay on the bed opposite
me.
"Did you get our care package?" asked Gail, Mary Lou's travel
companion, when I appeared later that evening. I thanked Gail and
told her it was exactly what I had needed.
I'm accustomed to relying on myself and less on others for
what I need from life. Self-reliance is not a trait I relinquish
easily. I chose to cruise vs. fly around the world largely to
keep transportation and lodging hassles to a minimum.
Unfortunately, due to major logistic, operational and customer
service problems with this ship, I've endured the complete
opposite. And having my stomach on the ceiling and my face in a
bucket for 24 hours hasn't helped.
What has helped is living in a community of go-with-the-flow
adventurers enamored with learning and discovery and who believe
that in the end, memories of destinations like Easter Island,
Petra and Seychelles will live longer than any disquieting
aspects of our journey. What's also helped is the comfort of
knowing that while I've chosen to travel independently, I'm not
alone.
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