What? Holy crap! Moment got hidden from passengers on a cruise ship. A water pipe burst in a

storeroom and soaked all of the spare toilet paper. This was on day two of a 14-day voyage

to Antarctica. The cabin stewards had to swap around rolls of paper between low-use and high-use

guest cabins, and it came right down to the wire.

None of the guests found out or realized. Now, toilet paper is hidden in every cabin instead of a

centralised location. Ship just arrived in Huitia, Alaska, the port for Anchorage, and an elderly

passenger dropped dead while walking down the gangway. A conflict ensued, the port for Anchorage, and an elderly passenger dropped dead while walking down the

gangway. A conflict ensued between the port security and the ship's medical team. The port

security didn't want the ship's medical team to get involved because it technically happened off

the ship, and the local authorities had jurisdiction. There really was no saving the guy,

but the ship's medical team at least wanted to try,

but the local authorities wouldn't even allow the chief medical officer to start CPR.

The coroner had about a six-hour ETA, so the port authorities bagged up the body and stuffed it in

an X-ray machine storage container in port, guarded by local police, until the coroner could arrive to take the

body to Anchorage. The wife of the deceased continued on to finish the vacation for the seven-day

rail trip to Denali. It was a 14-day gimmick, you know, seven days at sea, seven-days scenic rail.

My understanding was the cruise line comped her entire vacation, arranged for the remains to be returned

home at no cost to her, and provided a personal escort and assistant for the remainder of her

vacation. My oh crap moment was when I was hired for a ship on a two-day notice as a trombone player.

When I got on the ship, I found out I was replacing the guy who'd just passed away in a jet skiing

accident in Nicaragua. Everyone in the crew knew it, and the last cruises passengers knew it,

and the entire band that I was joining was obviously traumatized. In the end, it became one

...