Overnights Galore

We had three overnight stays in ports in ten days. Overnights are excellent opportunities to get to know a place.

It’s been months since I’ve been on land after dark. Night time is no longer a phenomenon in my world. Once the sky is dark, I draw the curtains, and think no more about the outside world. I work in a theater, which is a big dark room. I see sunshine as I walk to and from my cabin, but when it’s dark, I don’t really notice the windows. I get outside in ports during the day, then go back to the artificial lighting of the ship for night time.

Overnights shake you out of that rut. They’re an opportunity to experience a place’s night life, a chance to get off and go to a real bar, or go to a real restaurant for dinner. A chance to not run a show every single night of your life.

We overnighted in Hong Kong, Shanghai and the closest port to Beijing, Tanggu (Tianjin’s port). I mostly took advantage of being in the same place for two days running. There are always things to do on the ship and shows to run, although I tried to delegate. I got off the ship in Tanggu at night, but in Hong Kong, I stayed mostly in the mall, and in Shanghai I caught up on sleep. It was nice to have internet available in the terminal. Lots of crew went there at all hours of the night to talk with relatives and friends from home.