Hello Everyone,
So here is a little bit about me!
I enjoy working with people and creative 2 and 3 dimensional elements; like images, colour, texture, pattern, volume and space - hence I have a degree in Graphic Design & Photography.
I also have a passion for fitness and balanced nutrition and I am a qualified Pilates teacher.
The best advice I’ve ever received:
‘Carpe diem’ or translated ‘Seize the day’ from my Portuguese soul mate and mentor. The origin source for this Latin phrase is from the writer Horace (in Odes Book I) which translates as: “while we’re talking, envious time is fleeing: seize the day, put no trust in the future!” It simplifies life considerably!
Sea or Land?
My passion and curiosity for the wide expanse of salt water covering most of the earth’s surface started with this small girl exploring the beaches and rock pools around the Southern tip of Africa! Now I am grown up and exploring the beautiful blue aqua marine expanse on a superliner! I hail from a gene pool of Dutch and French seafarers that once sailed the Indian space trade route and decided to make wild and sunny Africa their home, grow vineyards and produce excellent wine!!
My place of residence when I am not on the High Seas?
Mother Africa! I am proudly South African and live in the beautiful & friendly Cape Town, the most southern city in Africa. My second home is Hermanus, a small rustic sea side village about a two hour, scenic coastal drive from Cape Town. I live 5 minutes away from the beach and the old harbour where the traditional whale crier blows his long kelp horn alerting everyone in town that there are whales in the bay. Hermanus hosts an annual Whale Festival to celebrate Southern Right Whales visiting the shallow and sheltered bays around Hermanus from June to November for mating, calving and nursing their young!
My favourite port/city?
Well I have been around the world and it’s a draw between St. Petersburg (Russia), Stockholm (Sweden), Reykjavik (Iceland), Mumbai (India) and Lisboa in Portugal! I am a very visual person (“colours, shapes and the quality of the light talks to me”) and these places were all a feast for the eyes! St. Petersburg is a city of great contrasts on all levels, Stockholm’s scenery, cultural and maritime heritage is awesome, Reykjavik with its surreal Icelandic landscapes, glaciers, Gulfoss waterfall and numerous geysers – any photographers dream, magical Mumbai in India for shopping and lunch at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel overlooking the Gateway of India. Lisboa with its Mediterranean cuisine and friendly people, is where I will be heading for my next holiday.
My favourite food/drink?
Fish, fish and more seafood. I am a bit of a health fanatic hence my love affair with Mediterranean food and fresh dishes like salads and tuna tartar (a signature dish from chef Luke Mangan and our own Salt Grill restaurant onboard). My favourite drink includes a variety of great red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz or Merlot or when my sweet tooth is calling ……a Dom Pedro with Kahlua & vanilla ice cream!
Dinner party guests I would invite if I could choose anyone?
I always wanted to be a time traveller and historian, so my dinner party guests will be variety of people from very different backgrounds and eras. A few names on the guest list will include famous seafarers and explorers like Thor Heyerdahl (the Kon-Tiki expedition), Ernest Shackleton, Frederick Cook, Roald Amudsen, Sir Francis Drake, Christopher Columbus, a few famous Vikings and off course our ship’s Captain, Captain David Box. For artistic inspiration I will invite Michael Angelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, Picasso, architect Antonio Gaudi, photographer Robert Capa and actor Hugh Jackman for very obvious reasons!
That’s it for me, please keep checking the blog for more hints and tips on cruising the Pacific with P&O, updates on our excellent entertainment, real stories of passengers and their time onboard Pacific Dawn, crew and officer’s bio’s, celebrity visits and heaps more!
Can’t wait to meet you on board.
Your friendly, helpful blogger
Janita
