Concerned Daughter - Trying To Get In Touch w/ Mother Currently on MSC Divina - Please Help

[concerneddaughter]

Hello, I hope this finds you well

 

I am reaching out, out of concern for my mother who's ship left port in Miami yesterday evening. The last we spoke was around 3pm-ish on the phone, but we reached out to wish her a happy send-off at 7:30 and haven't heard from her since.

 

I am not familiar with cruises so I am sure there are things I'm missing here, but as she's someone recovering from a surgery I am just concerned for her safety and was hoping to find someone that could confirm she's alright since I cant reach her and calling the ship directly seems impossible (I've exhausted many options today). I am assuming she is just having trouble connecting to ship wifi as she's not the most tech savvy in that regard, but her FB shows her as active at 11pm last night which is very weird since that would imply she does have wifi and could have reached out too us. I know my mom and it's very unlike her to not reach out too any of us, especially with traveling for 2 weeks to different countries. We communicate frequently day-to-day, and even moreso when vacationing so we can make sure we're safe/okay, hence the almost 24hrs of radio silence being unnerving. From what I can see the ship has been docked most of the day so she should have had an opportunity to ask someone for help with wifi or etc right? So I just wanted to see if anyone here is on the ship (Divina) and would kindly reach out too Customer Service on the ship to see if they can check on my mom. I don't know her room number, but her name is Tracey H. (will give full last name if you message me directly if that's a thing on here) and I am her daughter, Amira H.

 

Thank you very much for reading and sorry if it's a bit jumbled, I've been worried all day and I'm also working so if there's any more detail or info that'd be helpful that I missed please let me know

[butterfly4108]

She may not have turned off her fb acct and her phone was "roaming" (hope not!).  It's very hard to reach anyone's cell until they arrive in a port usually so if you have her itinerary I would try at the first port she's scheduled to stop at. That being said since you show her docked right now she may have forgotten to turn it back on....I hope someone on the ship sees your message!  Good Luck!!!!

 

Edited December 6, 2021 by butterfly4108

[concerneddaughter]

6 minutes ago, butterfly4108 said:

She may not have turned off her fb acct and her phone was "roaming" (hope not!).  It's very hard to reach anyone's cell until they arrive in a port usually so if you have her itinerary I would try at the first port she's scheduled to stop at. That being said since you show her docked right now she may have forgotten to turn it back on....I hope someone on the ship sees your message!  Good Luck!!!!

 

Thank you very much! This is helpful, the roaming thing makes sense since 11pm would be an odd time for her to be up and using her phone anyways. Forgetting to turn it back on would also make sense- I guess now it's just a matter of trying to reach someone on board that can reach out too her. She's alone for this- particular part of the trip hence my heightened concern. Lesson learned for future trips, that's for sure! Your positivity was much needed, appreciate the response dearly🙂

[karmamule]

One other thing that I hope can ease your mind: when providing info to MSC for a cruise they ask for an emergency contact. Are you or one of your family members listed as her emergency contact? If so then you can rest assured that the cruise line would reach out to you if, heaven forbid, anything serious did happen.

 

It's so easy to get swept away in the moment on a cruise, and truly disconnect from your everyday life while you're on a ship at sea and in various ports. That's part of their charm, and I'm hoping your Mom is having a wonderful time and not realizing how much time is passing as she sails the high seas. ☺️

[styles27]

I was just going to mention the emergency contact thing as well. 
@italyforme is currently on board Divina as she just responded to me in another thread.  
You could also check the Roll Call for your mom’s sailing to look for some other CC member names who are on board. 
 

Is your mom a member here?

I’m sure she’s fine but I can understand your concern as I would probably be the same. 

We were on Divina last month and while we were able to get on WiFi ok I can definitely see how someone who isn’t tech savvy could have a problem connecting. 

[Fla Mike]

The direct dial number to the MSC Divina is:

0088 1677100955

 

This was listed on the front of my cruise card as the "Ship Emergency Telephone" from my recent Divina sailing

It is obviously an international number so not sure how one would dial it.

 

On edit I found that the code "88" is the Iridium Satellite Network

This link may help with dialing

 

Edited December 6, 2021 by Fla Mike

[Fogfog]

For certain the ship will be in touch with whomever is on the emergency contacts if its necessary.

Your mom is likely having a blast.

Relax, she's an adult

[Essiesmom]

Is your mom an experienced cruiser?  Is she savvy about airplane mode, etc?  The ship was at Ocean Cay today, not sure if there is cell service there, it would be international roaming.  Sea day tomorrow and then Jamaica.  If she was on FB, why don’t you try messaging her there?  EM

[publicpersona]

You should relax. There's no indication that your mom is in any kind of trouble.

 

Yes, there are people on board who can assist her with wi-fi. There's a number in large text on the back of her stateroom door for medical emergencies. There is an unusual abundance of staff per passenger on her cruise. Her stateroom attendant will almost certainly open her stateroom door if she hasn't emerged from it.

 

She's fine. It's just hard to communicate from sea. That doesn't mean anything is wrong.

[shipgeeks]

Daughter, I hope you won't think I am unsympathetic, but here's how I see it, as a regular cruiser of perhaps your mother's age.

From your picture, you appear to be fairly young, which says to me that your mother is not a frail 98-year-old, but perhaps in her 40s, 50s or 60s.  Even if she is in her 70s (like us), she probably did not grow up carrying a cell phone around.  When we went away to college or on a trip, we might not talk to our parents til it was time to say what day we'd be home for Thanksgiving.  

Even though phones are pretty universal now, I still find it odd to see people at the rail of a ship, as we sail away, talking to someone back home.  But even then, they usually say "We'll talk when we get back".

Getting onboard a ship is so exciting, and so busy, that the outside world just disappears.  It doesn't mean that she has forgotten you.

We've been accused of neglecting to even say Thank You to our son who dropped us off at the port.  We were There!  Life begins!  Yippee!

You mentioned that she had surgery recently.  I assume she didn't just sneak out of the hospital before she was released.  Presumably she was cleared, medically, to do the cruise.

So, although it might all seem puzzling to you, not calling you seems perfectly normal to me.  Apart from the tech side of things, many people just disconnect mentally once they board a ship.  Being out of reach is one of the things we like best about cruising.

As others have said, I would not worry in the least.  She is in good hands, with good backup systems if anything should go wrong.

I hope you can put your mind at ease.

 

[dexddd]

12 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

Is your mom an experienced cruiser?  Is she savvy about airplane mode, etc?  The ship was at Ocean Cay today, not sure if there is cell service there, it would be international roaming.  Sea day tomorrow and then Jamaica.  If she was on FB, why don’t you try messaging her there?  EM

There is cell service there as well as wifi.

[Morgsmom]

19 hours ago, Fla Mike said:

The direct dial number to the MSC Divina is:

0088 1677100955

 

This was listed on the front of my cruise card as the "Ship Emergency Telephone" from my recent Divina sailing

It is obviously an international number so not sure how one would dial it.

 

On edit I found that the code "88" is the Iridium Satellite Network

This link may help with dialing

 

Yes, you can call the ship directly.  It is VERY expensive to do so, however.  I'm going with the fact that mom is having a blast and everything is fine.  

 

[shipgeeks]

26 minutes ago, Morgsmom said:

Yes, you can call the ship directly.  It is VERY expensive to do so, however.  I'm going with the fact that mom is having a blast and everything is fine.  

 

And being told that she has a call might make her panic that something is terribly wrong at home.

The ship is a very safe place, as is her itinerary.

I hope you can relax and wait til she is home to talk with her.

[Fla Mike]

30 minutes ago, Morgsmom said:

I'm going with the fact that mom is having a blast and everything is fine.  

 

Agreed

[styles27]

1 hour ago, shipgeeks said:

And being told that she has a call might make her panic that something is terribly wrong at home.

YES THIS! 
 

The one time my son called the ship when we were on a cruise was to tell us my FIL had passed unexpectedly.
I knew something was terribly wrong when we were told we needed to call home immediately (on the ship’s phone)

 

OP please spare your mom that feeling of dread and don’t call the ship. 

[Homosassa]

I have to agree with Shipgeeks.

 

Those of us that did not grow up with and still do not see the need for instantaneous 24/7 communication find it a nuisance to be bugged by the younger generation about "checking in" when traveling.

 

Your mother is fine.

 

LOL - I have told my adult daughter that it is a good thing that her generation will never have to set off to explore a new country without any communication except for the iffy chance that a letter might might be delivered after a long period of time. 

 

You all wouldn't last for three hours into the journey.

Edited December 7, 2021 by Homosassa

[concerneddaughter]

Hi All, 

 

I was able to get in contact with her! You were correct in that the service was just very spotty and her messages to us, along with ours to her, just weren't going through.

 

If I may be a bit honest here- my anxiety stemmed from this weird concern I have for my parents now that I'm "older" (25, lol) and they're in their late 50's, similar to how I assume they must have had for me as a child. I've begun to have friends with parents that pass away unexpectedly, and it's a growing fear of mine that I won't be there, or be unable to help, or just- something, you know? I love my mom & dad more than life itself, and with every year that passes I grasp the gravity of their limited time on this earth more and more. So, I just wanted to make sure she was ok, was all. I'll leave her be for the rest of her trip, I just wanted to make sure she could connect if she wanted and didn't feel alone. I appreciate the honesty in your answers and will try to reign in my anxiety, in a general sense(: Have a lovely day everyone and thanks so much for helping this Concerned Daughter become a Relaxed One.

[shipgeeks]

Thank you for coming back and bringing us all up to date.  I'm glad all is well.

 

[Homosassa]

Only in their 50s?

 

They are young'uns and plenty of good years ahead (written by someone in her 70s who is treated like an old lady by her 38 year old daughter. Now if only she would join me on my one hour 10-15 mile daily bicycle road or the Zumba class or the pilates or yoga or ....)

[BermudaBound2014]

1 hour ago, concerneddaughter said:

Hi All, 

 

I was able to get in contact with her! You were correct in that the service was just very spotty and her messages to us, along with ours to her, just weren't going through.

 

If I may be a bit honest here- my anxiety stemmed from this weird concern I have for my parents now that I'm "older" (25, lol) and they're in their late 50's, similar to how I assume they must have had for me as a child. 

 

Full disclosure, I did not read all the responses in this thread, but I think it's lovely you were concerned. I'm sure your mother finds it comforting also. No one prepares us for the time when we must become the caretakers for our parents. It was, by far, the hardest thing I have ever done. With any luck you have a long long long time before that becomes a reality, so in the meantime you can ease into the change in family dynamics. No doubt your mother is a caring lady to have raised such a concerned daughter. 

[styles27]

Okay suddenly this 55 yr old is feeling very old😩

 

@concerneddaughterjust kidding! 😉
You my dear are a gem of a daughter! Your parents are very lucky! 
Glad all is well!