Monday....

Well its only a few days til my birthday.... just gonna have a few drinkies not a big one, after all I am well old now.. xx

Justine´s Joke of the Day....

Q: What do you call a judge with no thumbs?
A: Justice Fingers.

woohooooooooo

happy happy me, hungover as hell, had a great day on Shoshanna, a 22 mt private MY. The owners are absolutely lovely and want me back next season..... in the bag! Stayed and drank and sang-a-long to 60´s songs... and fingers crossed with the guest who took my card as he is the skipper on U2´s yacht and they may need a crew chef... how about that? I moved into my pad, got my own bathroom and the couple are really nice... got sky tv, and a swimming pool... very happy.. so that will be cool while I am looking for work... I thought it looked vaguely familiar when I was carrying my stuff in and then it dawned on me that its the same apartment block that i went back to with mr.October.... oh well, apparantly I just missed him in Key West where I went for a drink after i left the yacht... and Edddy the bar man there said that Mr.October has a girlfriend... not that i care as I didn´t know, but he best hope that he doesn´t bump into me when he´s with her as I´m not going keep my mouth shut... I can´t believe Ross is here and I haven´t met up with him, missed his email yest inviting me to a bbq, he´s at the dry dock by the cathedral back in Palma...have given him my number so can hopefully catch up soon... its my 26th next Friday, I really want to go to Puro, that cool bar in the sea with a black pool... have a look http://www.purohotel.com/ then click on the puro beach pic... thats the place, you can see why I love it so... right off to get a lollo rosso´s gamba and spinach pizza, thats prawn to you english folk... haha... need to cure my hangover.. ciao... xxx

Woohooo got a home AND day work....

Well good news... went back to Peurto Portals today as got a call from an agency for day work 2mrw as a chef on a 22 metre private motor yacht. So off I went, had a chat with the skipper, really nice English chap, he´s a yachtmaster teacher person, used to work in Amble near UKSA. The owners are English too and spoke to the wife, its them and their friends on board 2mrw BUT they are Jewish. So no, pork , thats proscuitto out the window then... no meat unless kosher, so no... and no seafood... but they do eat salmon but only cold, but as they have guests they will have it hot if its a pain... er too right.. well anywhere the yaacht is lush and the skipper lovely... ironically he took out the Nando´s partners on a trip a few years back...pissed heads the lot of them! He said... not wrong.. Not only is it just 3 courses for 4 of them but I will be getting 150 euros for the day! Very good rate as average is 80-100... if it goes well too they are looking for someone for the season next year.. so thats cool. Well my other news is after spending so long doing the dockwalk and getting my cv out I ended up getting rightly hammered in the corner bar which is the yachty haunt to network and get drunk, met some cool people and swapped numbers with 2 kiwi chicks who were great fun and been in the industry a while so lots of tips... anyways they both said they scrapped the hostel thing as was too expensive, i am spending 30 euros a night and i donñt have cooking facilities so having to eat out etc, plus washing i have to do elsewhere as they don´t have a service for it.. yes its been great as its rustic and has a bar... but practically... nope... anyway, told that i would pay about 100 a week for a flatshare so looked at the boards today and called a few places and viewed two but bit damp and grotty, didn´t feel too safe and would be leaving my stuff daily and sharing with complete strangers... well, went to portals to see this skipper and popped in to see Linda, the chick at the internet cafe who i know quite well from being on Gemini and using her shop often.. told her I was looking and she made a call to her friend who has a spare room... she just called me now to say , you can move in 2mrw, drop your stuff here before you go for your daywork and you can stay there up to a few weeks... she is English and in her 40´s so can trust her... plus this is the area that Sid Owen lives so increasing my chances of seeing him again.... Rickaaay!! The only negative is that it means getting a bus into Palma town each time to see agencies and do the dockwalk but I guess thats not the end of the world...

Dockwalk

Off to do the dockwalk as thats how I got my job on day one, gonna stop feeling so sorry for myself... the cool job I went for yesterday with uber cool itinery looked like a pirate ship, they spoke hardly and inglis... and it may only be til Dec as they have no definate charters booked in....er... crap to that. I have to be on for a full season. Waiting to hear froma chick called Megan in St.Martin for a position starting Nov 6th...private yacht... but til I hear anything gonna go crazy today and get my cv and cards out everywhere including the dry dock where all the yachts are in the yard for repair before leaving to the Carribean,.... wish me luck!!!

Panicking a little....

Running out of cash fast, and my hostel closes in one week.... been going like the clappers today to email prospective employers.... going to do the dockwalk from tommorrow in the hope of finding a perm position on a yacht in Club de Mar... need to remain positive but obvsiously panicking a tad as don´t wish to be coming back to U.K.... got an interview for a yacht going to India but it won´t be leaving for a few weeks yet... got to find a positon that allows me to move on board asap... cross your fingers for me, I know I landed on my feet on day one , lets just hope I can do it again. Finding it harder as for some parts of the carribean you need a B1B2 visa which I don´t have, long, complicated and expensive to get... and too late for most boats to arrange for you. So having to try for ones which don´t need, also catch 22 really as much bigger yachts so need people with more experience but happy to be a crew or 2nd chef instead of a sole one.. watch this space. xxx

Justine´s Quote of The Day!!

There are no strangers.....just friends you haven´t met yet.... xxxx

Me with what looks like black moon above my head?

My Cabin, top bunk... got used to it...

The shower bit for us was a few holes, and a shammy and wiper to get the water down, we would wrap a shower curtain around us and pop it to wall...meanwhile the guests had proper showers and double beds etc

Me and My crew....

me consuming more vino....

Sun,Sea,Sand.............

My Galley

Pics of inside Gemini

Skype

http://www.skype.com/

Allows me to call any land line for FREE.... bloody brilliant, look into it, its fab.... xxx

Hostel Corona

http://www.hostal-corona.com/

This is THE BEST hostel ever....clean, simple, great hospitality, they have a bar and restaurant, you can rent bicycles for the day and they have the most legendary Halloween party every year, watch this space for pics... gonna be a geisha after seeing Memoirs of a Geisha... but an evil vampire one... hehehe....

Off the yacht now...

Just been taking in Palma, getting mas drunky... and being a naughty sailor... well there was Mr.August at the UKSA, (Will aged 20... never again) Mr. September on my 2nd day in Palma, and the day I passed my cooking interview... ( Dan, 24 Aussie...boy n hostel room) and Mr.October (Andrew, 34, the Hugh Grant lookilikey) on my lat night in Portals... hehe... ahem.. and November isn´t far away....

Palma

YACHT LIFE IN PALMA

Arrived on Sunday 10th September at about midnight, checked into my smelly hostel which was at the top floor and filed with 4 smelly boys... went dockwalking on Day one and within 2 hours had rung the bell, yes they have doorbells some yachts.. on a boat that came out with a number to call of someone looking for a temporary chef for the last month and half of the season.. so I called, ended up meeting the current chef and Captain for an interview. Called back that night and had a cooking interview the following day! Given a spec of seafood starter, meat main and light dessert.... I did king prawn tempura, green thai chicken curry and mini fresh fruit pavlovas for dessert... it wen down a storm and was offered the live on board position on M.Y Gemini, 94ft Ferretti Customline based in Peurto Portals.

The Yacht

My reference´s

After spending many weeks at UKSA...

I passed my Marine cookery qualification, Day Skipper Theory & Practical and my STCW95... all trained up and ready to go...