Mom's Story (part 2)

You can read part one of my mom's guest posts about her time aboard the cruise ship Triumph, while adrift in the Gulf of Mexico by clicking here.

Tuesday

2nd day adrift

We slept out on deck chairs under the stars.  It was very uncomfortable, but so much better than our rooms. We made our own little tent apartment to shade us from the sun. We found out they were planning on towing us to Progresso, Mexico to get flights home.  Some people didn't have their passports so they were nervous.  

By this point we had met a lot of people from all over.  Everyone seemed to coping all right.  We were all getting tired of walking up and down seven flights of stairs, numerous times a day.  My legs felt like they were on fire every time.  

I had no tennis shoes, so at night I would put on socks with my sandals.  By this time nobody was caring what we looked like.  

We had two sister ships deliver us food and supplies, Carnival Elation and Legend.  They removed a passenger onto one of these ships.  This person was on dialysis, so it was an emergency.  

This day passed by slowly.  They didn't give us much information during the announcements, so we just waited.  People were still hoarding food.  We were only eating once or twice a day, because we didn't feel like waiting in line for two hours for a sandwich and piece of fruit.  

At the end of this day we once again climbed into our deck chairs.  After sleeping in them the night before I already felt bruised.  It was still better than sleeping in our rooms.  They had become unbearable from the heat, and the smell made us gag. 

Wednesday

(3rd day adrift)

This day was pretty much the same as Tuesday.  I think we ate one box of cereal.  I can't remember lunch or supper.  

The crew was amazing.  They worked so hard.  They were in the same position as us, stranded and not able to communicate with loved ones.  They kept smiling and trying to make us comfortable.  

I think this was the day that I was in line for food and I saw a young man give up his spot in line for an elderly person.  It made us all feel good to see such kindness.  Most people we met and talked to were very friendly and in good spirits.  

There were some who were very critical about everything.  We tried to steer clear of those types of groups.  We wanted to stay positive   At this point we hadn't talked to our families since Monday.  We kept our phones charged at charging stations set up with power strips and extension cords.  There would be at least 15 phones hooked up at one outlet.  It was amazing to see.

Wednesday night we were really starting to get tired.  No one was sleeping very well.  It ended up raining and it turned so cold we had to move our cots inside.  It smelled and was very stuffy.  We just wanted to be home.

Stay tuned for the final installment of my mom's first hand account from aboard the Triumph.