It doesn't really feel like Christmas time to me or anyone else. Being in dry dock for the two weeks leading up to the holidays is definitely not the way to bring in the holiday spirit. The a/c is off and, unlike the old ship the Anastasis, the most of the Africa Mercy's portholes can not be opened. So down on deck three where I live is miserable! But we are trying to be grateful and remember what the "reason for the season" is (but sweating profusely does not help).
One night we had a Winter Wonderland on board the ship. I think the idea comes from holiday markets that are held in Germany (but it could be another part of Europe). All around the Mid-ship Lounge and in Town Square various crew members decorated booths and sold crafts (such as Christmas cards, jewelry or tree ornaments) and baked goods (like fudge, cookies, banana chips, and donuts). Christmas music played in the background and the cafe handed out popcorn. The best part was that everything was homemade and even the children got involved by selling items to raise spending money for holiday trips and toys.
The saddest part (and it's funny how much this affects everything) is that there are barely any decorations up around the ship. The ship is desperately in need of another deck or more closet areas and to save on space all of the decorations from the Anastasis (trees and garland, lights and ornaments) were left on the old ship which is now in a shipyard in India since it was sold for scraps! So while this saved on space it definitely left a hole for the crew that holiday decorations use to fill. Just poor planning and short sightedness but life goes on and it gave us all a chance to create homemade decorations!
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