Crew describes life on board

Like the U.S. Navy ships over the Fourth of July, the dormant cruise ship Riviera has been drawing many people to Eastport since it arrived early in the morning on June 14. While onlookers can view the vessel and the ship's crew can look over the city from where it is docked at the downtown breakwater, neither can speak to the other, as the crew are not allowed off the ship because of coronavirus precautions.
The cruise ship, owned by Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, is only a medium-sized ship at 785 feet in length, but it towers over the downtown and could hold the city's entire population in its passenger cabins and suites, which can host 1,250 guests. The captain and six of the ship's multinational team recently spoke about their life aboard and what is happening back in their home countries with the ongoing pandemic.
Captain Maksym Melnikov, who is from Ukraine, says the normal crew size is 700. Approximately 570 have been able to go to their homes, leaving only a skeleton crew of 131 on board now. The crew members have been on the ship anywhere from four months to a year. Normally, crew are on the ship from between 90 days and six or seven months, with a regular schedule being four months aboard ship and two months at home, for administrative staff.
The ship finished its last cruise on March 16 and has since then been either in the Bahamas or Florida, having been off Miami for the past two months.
The captain notes, "We're healthy. None of us are in isolation." At a general crew meeting on June 21 he briefed the crew on the current situation. "We keep an open dialogue with the crew. So far, so good." Crew members see each other at least twice each day, to help ensure emotional health, and temperatures are checked twice a day to make sure that there are no outbreaks of COVID-19.
All the crew are still working, with reduced hours. They can also exercise on the decks, use the library and have access to the Internet, television and movies.
Loris Cucaz, the staff captain, says morale is good among the crew, with everyone cooperating and working together. "We're all waiting for news" about what will happen in the future, whether they can go ashore or go home at some point. "People keep on working" and are "responding very well in this situation."
Dalia Santana, the crew administrator and night auditor, notes that the crew aboard the ship are "a close-knit community," similar to Eastport. "We see each other every day. We keep each other hopeful." They keep busy reading or taking online courses. Usually they are able to explore the surroundings off the ship but are now not able to, which poses a challenge. However, she says all of the crew "are curious by nature," which is why they survive and adapt quite well to the present circumstances.
The chief purser, Miguel Céspedes, notes that he's spending his additional time taking online courses related to leadership and team management. "It will help me with my current position," he says. Ryan Chamberlain, the stage manager, says he too is taking online courses to improve his skills. Chamberlain is in charge of the day-to-day running of the entertainment aboard the ship, including shows, band sets and lectures. A broadcast manager makes sure that TVs and movies are loaded, so the crew can choose what they want to see. Chamberlain is looking at being able to offer crew karaoke, and he notes that the crew are maintaining social distancing, as a precautionary measure.
Life on the cruise ship when there are passengers aboard is rather different. Chamberlain explains that the ship normally has four production shows, a resident seven-piece band, a string quartet, a cocktail pianist and a late-night party band. There are also guest entertainers, along with an artist-in-residence and a culinary school on the vessel. Lectures are either by destination specialists, who provide information and history of the areas they are visiting, or of general interest on different topics.
Michael Arilla, the junior head waiter from the Philippines, notes that the crew and guests have different menus, which range from Asian to Mediterranean cuisine. A recent Grand Dining Room menu for the guests lists appetizers like salmon tartare, porcini and forest mushroom timbale and serrano cured ham, entrées such as lobster pad thai, traditional coq au vin and roasted veal rack and desserts of grand marnier soufflé, molten tanzanian chocolate cake and strawberry romanoff. While the meals for passengers are rather indulgent, the crew eats simpler meals.

Coronavirus back home
Captain Melnikov has spent 40 years at sea and been captain of the Riviera since 2014. His wife, son and son-in-law are all seafarers, so his family is used to being away from home. Life back in Ukraine "could be better," he notes. An armed conflict in a region of the country has led to a need for humanitarian assistance, the coronavirus has overwhelmed the healthcare system, and a second wave of COVID-19 cases is feared, but he says Ukrainians are used to living during crises.
Cucaz, who is from Italy, notes that he has not seen his family since January 24. However, he says his family is lucky, since they live in the northeast corner of Italy with just a few people contracting coronavirus and most having recovered. "It's not a bad situation."
However, Céspedes says the pandemic situation back home in Peru "is not very good. It's quite challenging." Peru is sixth in the world in terms of number of COVID-19 cases and deaths. The virus has hit the country hard, despite a strict lockdown. He says the pandemic has exposed the government's lack of investment in healthcare for the underprivileged. "I think it will be changing after this," with the government providing more funding for public health.
Santana, who is from the Canary Islands off Spain, says the cooler weather in Downeast Maine is "a nice change" from the heat in the Canaries, which she notes have no active cases of COVID-19 and have been able to reopen for tourism. The islands are "quite isolated," which helped with limiting the spread of coronavirus. The virus, though, "caused a lot of strain" on the public health system in Spain, but the country is now "almost completely out of lockdown" and in the recovery process. Data collected during the virus outbreak will help the country "be better prepared" if there's a second wave.
She was able to spend two weeks at home in February and is looking forward to seeing family again, but she notes that she's able to hold Zoom chats regularly, as are most of the crew.

Impressions of Eastport
As for their impressions of Eastport by looking over the waterfront, Captain Melnikov says, "It feels like back home. It's very similar to the area where I grew up." The crew on the ship are used to visiting areas like Alaska and Maine, so the Quoddy area "is not new to us." He says he can see "a little church" in the city and that some of the crew would like to go there.
Eastport pilot Bob Peacock provided the ship with information about Eastport, so the crew know some about the city. The ship has bicycles aboard, and Captain Melnikov says he would like to ride around to see the sights. "We're waiting for permission to step on land and discover the area." He is also hopeful that someday the ship, when it again has passengers, will be visiting Eastport.
Santana comments, "We're looking forward to the chance to get outside and to see the town." She notes that they can see that a lot of families have come to Eastport to view the ship.
The captain says he has only one complaint about being in Eastport -- he tried fishing off the ship but has not caught anything. "I know there are plenty of fish, but they don't want to come on my hook." He notes, though, that the ship still has plenty of food aboard so the crew won't go hungry -- although they may not be feasting on the Grand Dining Room cuisine. Santana says she'd just like to be able to get off the ship and "have a lobster roll and blueberry pie" while they're here during the summer in Downeast Maine.