star princess crossing the equator party

[waverider117]

Recently disembarked from the star princess sydney to LA cruise and just a quick question and thought on the crossing the equator party

For those of you who were on that ship and watched the event, did you like it.

Personally I thought it was totally stupid and you would think there would of been some concerns from ship personnel about the bacteria that may have been introduced to the pool area from all the raw eggs, liver,fish, sausage etc. used to christen those unworthy souls.

To top it off it was a really warm day and that just made it stink down there.

I know the pool was out of use and drained and cleaned.

Taking the major pool out of service from about 10 in the morning on such a nice sea day was nuts.

Call me a party pooper if you like but this event was goofy as hell

My 2 cents worth on this

[paul929207]

I have made several crossings of the equator, all on Princess ships. I went to the first "ceremony" and found it kind of tacky. Haven't gone to any others.

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

Agreed!! I think it is a really stupid ceremony and would never attend again.

[boat tay]

Totally Agreed!! I think it is a really stupid ceremony and the smell after is horrible I wanted to puke:(

[Toto2Kansas]

We have crossed the equator numerous times in the past. This last time on the Pacific only about a month ago. If you think it was bad putting the main pool out of commission, try putting the ONLY pool out of commission.

 

Is it tacky? Well, yes IMHO, but some look very forward to their first equator crossing. I did notice on the Pacific though that they really didn't go to a lot of preparation for this one. In the past, it has been very colorful and comical, but this last time, the crew seemed to have more fun with it then the passengers. Again IMHO!

[dforeigner]

It is a Naval tradition to apeace Neptune, named for the Roman god of the sea. Does it go overboard, I believe so. But there are some who enjoy the tradition.

[ShipsAreTheBest]

Crossing the Line is a long maritime (and naval) tradition. There is a prescribed method for it, and it is observed by naval ships (and passenger ships) the world over. Is it a little corny? Yes, I supppose. But like all things nautical, it's tradition. I will say that I have not seen it personally (thus, I am not a Shellback, but a Pollywog). However, I have talked to many in the navy who have done it, seen videos (both naval and cruise ship), and while not identical, many of the features you describe are fairly typical. You don't have to participate to earn your Shellback certificate, but it is something to watch and experience once, I suppose.

 

As an aside, if you cross the Arctic Circle, you are a Bluenose and a Rednose if you go below the Antarctic Circle.

 

While I'm not a huge fan of Wikipedia because the articles can't always be verified, this one goes into a lot more detail that explains the ceremony and the tradition behind it.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line-crossing_ceremony

[cruzendude]

It is a Naval tradition to apeace Neptune, named for the Roman god of the sea. Does it go overboard, I believe so. But there are some who enjoy the tradition.

 

Overboard???? hardly....its quite tame compared to the Navy's ceremony....at least prior to the Navy putting women on ships as well as the PC police stripping it down to frankly being a joke of what it used to be...:eek:...ahhhhh....the good ole days! :p

[California Native]

For those that haven't done the crossing the line ceremony

I have pictures on our personal travel website...

along with other info...

such as the history and the certificate you would receive

http://ourpassportstamps.com/Crossingthelineceremony.html

[jetwet1]

Overboard???? hardly....its quite tame compared to the Navy's ceremony....at least prior to the Navy putting women on ships as well as the PC police stripping it down to frankly being a joke of what it used to be...:eek:...ahhhhh....the good ole days! :p

 

Exactly, heck even on the liners it used to be a lot more out there. The hazing stuff I do not agree with, however on a modern cruise, it's a fun event, come on people, let your hair down a bit.

[Thumper69]

For those that haven't done the crossing the line ceremony

 

I have pictures on our personal travel website...

 

along with other info...

 

such as the history and the certificate you would receive

 

http://ourpassportstamps.com/Crossingthelineceremony.html

 

Thank you, I had no idea this happened. Very interesting but I think I'll just watch on my first Equator crossing next year. At least there are many pools on Sapphire.

[Pam in CA]

I've crossed the Equator several times on cruise ships in both the Atlantic and the Pacific. There are many people who look forward to it and consider it fun. I'm not into it but that doesn't mean it isn't a lot of fun for a lot of people. The last time I attended one was on the Sapphire Princess in May 2008, and it was a ball since I knew several of the people participating (we had 187 members on our CC roll call and several were in the ceremony.)

 

I have nothing against people having fun, which is what it's all about, ancient maritime tradition or not.

[Mom33]

I've crossed the Equator several times on cruise ships in both the Atlantic and the Pacific. There are many people who look forward to it and consider it fun. I'm not into it but that doesn't mean it isn't a lot of fun for a lot of people. The last time I attended one was on the Sapphire Princess in May 2008, and it was a ball since I knew several of the people participating (we had 187 members on our CC roll call and several were in the ceremony.)

 

I have nothing against people having fun, which is what it's all about, ancient maritime tradition or not.

 

I agree with this post. We were on this cruise and a lot of people had fun at the ceremony. Anyone who didn't want to participate or watch had three other pools to use.

[Genghis Khan]

You can't be a Trusty Shellback without first kissing the baby! The rest of you will remain slimey pollywogs and of that, you will remain to the shame of true sea-farers everywhere.

[paul929207]

You can't be a Trusty Shellback without first kissing the baby! The rest of you will remain slimey pollywogs and of that, you will remain to the shame of true sea-farers everywhere.

A veteran of the crossing ceremony!!!

[California Native]

A veteran of the crossing ceremony!!!

 

 

Yes, but is he Emerald or Golden???

and kissing the baby.....now, now... all those pollwogs out there will think it's an actual baby!

oooppps? was I not suppose to mention that part

I was a little intoxicated throughout my initiation

[senior lady]

Recently disembarked from the star princess sydney to LA cruise and just a quick question and thought on the crossing the equator party

For those of you who were on that ship and watched the event, did you like it.

Personally I thought it was totally stupid and you would think there would of been some concerns from ship personnel about the bacteria that may have been introduced to the pool area from all the raw eggs, liver,fish, sausage etc. used to christen those unworthy souls.

To top it off it was a really warm day and that just made it stink down there.

I know the pool was out of use and drained and cleaned.

Taking the major pool out of service from about 10 in the morning on such a nice sea day was nuts.

Call me a party pooper if you like but this event was goofy as hell

My 2 cents worth on this

 

I was on the same cruise and thought it was a fun day. I enjoyed the pool activity. I think that they cleaned the pool very well. There were 3 other pools to use on that day!!! The hot tubs remained open.

 

The main pool was closed more than it was open on this cruise anyway, due to rough windy weather. The only pool that remained open the whole cruise was the terrace pool.

[dforeigner]

Overboard???? hardly....its quite tame compared to the Navy's ceremony....at least prior to the Navy putting women on ships as well as the PC police stripping it down to frankly being a joke of what it used to be...:eek:...ahhhhh....the good ole days! :p

 

Well, we are comparing enlisted to paying customers here? Yes, the navy goes way overboard (which is what I was referring to as I am not familiar with the one the cruise ship does). Guess I should have been more specific. And it does not matter if you are an Officer or Enlisted personnel.

[dforeigner]

Yes, but is he Emerald or Golden???

 

and kissing the baby.....now, now... all those pollwogs out there will think it's an actual baby!

 

oooppps? was I not suppose to mention that part

 

I was a little intoxicated throughout my initiation

 

Confirmed, the cruise ship ceremony is rather lame compare to the Navy.

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

And I love tradition! But I also love good production value! :D

 

I was all excited to participate in the ceremony as I was a pollywog. But half way through, I was thinking, this stinks! Couldn't they have rehearsed it at least once!?! You would have thought that all the crew was doing it for the very first time!

 

Would I recommend it to any new pollywogs? Absolutely. You need to do it once.

 

But would I ever attend again? Never.

[Colo Cruiser]

Sorry but its an age old tradition tacky or not. :D

[cleavesteam]

Be thankful you are not beaten with rubber hoses, be forced to wear your underwear over your head, and crawl around on a non-skid deck on your hands and knees for three hours among other things. And it gets worse once you have to meet King Neptune himself.

 

I don't know if they still do that in the Navy, but they did when I was in. I know this firsthand.

 

So this is no big deal. But I think the sight of a bunch of cruise passengers having to go through the ritual as it should be would be quite amusing. And since I'm already a shellback, I would get to watch and even partake in the festivities. :D

[GeeDunk]

Be thankful you are not beaten with rubber hoses, be forced to wear your underwear over your head, and crawl around on a non-skid deck on your hands and knees for three hours among other things. And it gets worse once you have to meet King Neptune himself.

 

Sounds like you crossed the Equator on a Carrier also.

 

You forgot about crawling through the "garbage tunnel":eek:

after it sat in the Sun for a day.

[Pirkko]

OP - Yes, I'm calling you a party pooper. Party Pooper.

[cleavesteam]

Sounds like you crossed the Equator on a Carrier also.

 

You forgot about crawling through the "garbage tunnel":eek:

after it sat in the Sun for a day.

Ah, yes. The garbage tunnel. And when you were in it they would close off both ends so you would be stuck in it forced to smell the stench. And then you come out of it only to get a balut smeared all over your face. If you did a WESTPAC you know all too well what a balut is.:eek: