Back in the game...

Well, I landed a new job and as of this morning, I'm the chef aboard a 112 foot Westport Motor Yacht.

I'm one of four crew and the owners use the yacht for about two weeks a month. It's private and doesn't charter, but the owners like to entertain a lot so I should be pretty busy! The galley is gorgeous, I have tons of counter space, granite counters, huge refrigerator and a six burner stove (electric, unfortunately - but gas is rare on a yacht). The kitchen is open to a small dining room, but when the owners are on board they will usually eat out on deck or in the formal dining room.

Currently, we’re in Fort Lauderdale but as of December 10th we will be heading down to the Bahama's where we will stay through the New Year. After which we'll be going down to the Caribbean for the remainder of the winter - all over, the BVI's, West Indies, Eastern Caribbean, wherever the owners want to go. Sometime around June we'll be heading back up to the Bahama's where we'll stay for a couple of months before working our way the East Coast of North America to Nova Scotia, where we’ll be spending some time in Prince Edwards Island (which I hear is gorgeous)!

A few perks of the yacht: Although this was not a deciding factor (although I’ll have to set my standards higher now and make it a requirement on any yacht I join), we have TWO VESPA'S!!! YEAHHH!!! We also have two glass bottomed canoes, a 20 foot tender, two jet ski's and we tow a 32 foot Boston Whaler! Oh, and let's not forget the jacuzzi... Oh, and scuba equipment for six, how could I forget that?!

Oh, and did I mention, our deck hand is a dive instructor so I can work towards my scuba certification while I'm on board (everyone on the yacht are big divers and the owners want the crew certified!).

The downside? Well, I'll be sharing a 7 foot by 4 foot cabin with the stewardess and I have one tiny drawer for my belongings - which, honestly, is not even enough space to fit my shoes... But I'll make do. I’m sure we can tow another yacht along side for my belongings…

Anyway, I'm really excited. The crew are all relatively young (I'm actually the oldest - I'm really going to have to start lying about my age). There are three Americans (including me) and an Aussie. And yes, the cards are in my favor, the boys are all CUTE! Yeah me!

The boat has a really excellent reputation for working aboard and the owners, although quirky (who isn't?) are supposedly really nice people. They allow the crew a lot of liberties and they make sure that all the crew get off the yacht in any ports that we are in so that we can see the place...

So, finally, I'm back on water and the next post will be from the yacht!!! The next adventure of the Wayward Chef has begun ladies and gentlemen!!! Stay tuned…