I'll be surprised if I can finish this entry without being sick. We're on the ferry crossing the Cook Strait to the S island and the boat is pitching up and down on very large swells. Very large. For the first time in my life I'm seasick. It's better not to look up and look out the windows, as the horizon line is moving about pretty drastically. One minute you see blue skies and clouds, the next - green waves and whitecaps. It doesn't help that there are mirrors on the walls, further distorting the perspective. We just took such a big dive that plates slid, cutlery crashed and 2 people fell down. Even the crew had quick looks of "yipes" or "oh no!" on their faces.
Does not make me want to take to the seafaring life. Evan just went to make sure he knows where the bathrooms are - our runny scrambled eggs and toast are not sitting that well at the moment, and he just came back and announced he's going to go sit in a "more comfortable" chair with his eyes closed. Ari, having walked around the ship with us both earlier (lurched like drunken sailors more like) and remarked "this isn't what I thought it would be," seems to be fine watching Cars on the portable DVD player and ignoring the big seas.
Yowza. I want to get off this ride. It brings to mind the time when my sister was about 9 and went on the Zipper ride at the County Fair without first watching it all the way through its multi-twisting course and began screaming "Daddy I'm dead! I'm dead!" as their passenger cage began some somersaulting descent. It's definitely a stomach churner - much worse than airplane turbulence.
We've opted for the lower-priced Bluebridge Ferry this trip instead of the tonier Interislander. I'm thinking it's the right choice. No amount of amenities, childrens' playground, whatever, is going to make anyone less seasick. Evan has just come from throwing up and reports that many people are also being sick - vomiting in the bathroom as well as over the side. Lovely. Now I've just returned from a trip to empty my bladder, and I was treated to the sound of violent heaving from the toilet cabin next door. The crew says the worst is over (we're about half way) but that didn't help the little girl of about 4 who just tossed her cookies all over herself at the table here in the cafe. Her parents are helping her change clothes - thankfully they seem to have some extras on hand, as passengers are not allowed on the car deck while at sea. We have plenty of fresh air blowing in from somewhere - it's quite chilly where we're sitting. Let's hope that nothing else blows our way. . . .
I'm sure I could find something else to write about. We're on our way to warmer, sunnier weather and our first experience of the " other half" of New Zealand as Evan put it this morning. But my thoughts are definitely scrambled by my mild nausea, and I can only think of topics related to barfing. Like how thankful I am that I never had morning sickness during pregnancy. Or how sick I was with some stomach and inner ear disruption when we arrived in Wellington. Or the number of high school and early college drinking episodes that ended with my getting sick all over the floor of some bathroom. Ah the sea! It is apparently not my muse.
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