The Not-So-Glamorous Side of Life on the Global Mercy

Let’s talk about the not-so-glamorous side of living on the Global Mercy.

First of all, this is definitely not a Carnival Cruise!

There is no steward who comes into my room every day to make my bed or tidy things up. I have yet to find the Lido Deck, and despite my best efforts, I have not discovered a 24 hour soft-serve ice cream machine anywhere on board!

In fact, there are very few “services” provided to you while you’re living on the ship. In conversations with other crew members, we all seem to agree on one thing: living on the GLM is a lot like going back to the dorms during university.

The common areas are cleaned, but your cabin is your responsibility. You make your own bed, clean your own bathroom, take out your own garbage (which is a whole process because you have to separate your trash into different bins), and generally try to keep your little corner of the ship presentable.

Every week, there are cabin inspections in a different section of the ship. Thankfully, my cabin has not been inspected during this stay! I will, however, have a final inspection before I leave on Saturday. I’m responsible for cleaning the room before I go, and someone will inspect it the night before I leave to make sure I’ve done a proper job. So apparently, my final exam on the GLM will be cleaning my cabin!

The cleaning caddy I had to pick up to clean my cabin.  I lugged this and a vacuum all the way from deck 9 forward to deck 6 aft . . . only to find out later in the day there is another cleaning cabinet with all the supplies I needed on deck 6!  I am leaving the ship soon but still learning things about it daily!

We don’t move ANYWHERE!

Unlike a cruise, where you wake up each morning to a different tropical paradise, beautiful beach, or fascinating city, I wake up every morning in the port of Tema!

I have actually enjoyed watching the activity in the port while living on the GLM. There is always something happening —from the ship, it’s fascinating to watch all of the activity around us.

But after a month, I have to admit that the dirt and grime of the port have started to get a little old!

Tema is very much an industrial city. There are certainly some nice areas, but overall, it isn’t really a city where you head out the door and enjoy a leisurely walk around town. There isn’t a whole lot to do nearby other than perhaps head somewhere for dinner or make plans to explore farther away.

That can be especially difficult for those of us working in the OR. We’re working all day and then often taking call at night and on weekends, which doesn’t leave a lot of time or energy for getting off the ship and exploring. I’ve noticed that crew members who aren’t working in the OR have been able to get out and see a lot more of Ghana than my colleagues in the OR. By the time we finish a long day in the hospital, sometimes the idea of going anywhere sounds exhausting!

It’s definitely one of the less glamorous parts of life on the GLM — we may be in Ghana, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we have a lot of time to experience Ghana outside the hospital and the ship.

The Two-Minute Shower

But perhaps one of the hardest adjustments to ship life is the two-minute shower.

Water is a precious resource on the ship. The GLM can make its own water when it is out at sea, but while we are in port, we rely on receiving water from Ghana.

Fortunately, it is currently the end of the rainy season, so water is plentiful. Apparently, however, there have been some much leaner times on the ship.

Whenever I ask long-term crew members about those times, I get essentially the same response:

“It was really bad.”

And then they refuse to give me any more details.  Honestly, I’m not sure I want to know.

So, I have learned to appreciate my two-minute shower. You turn the water on, get wet, turn it off, soap up, turn it back on, rinse, and get out. There is no standing under the warm water contemplating life. You have two minutes, and you’d better make them count!  

Thursday Drill Day

Another part of life on the GLM that you quickly get used to is the weekly emergency drill.

Because there is a constant turnover of crew, with new people arriving every week, drills are held regularly to make sure everyone knows what to do in an emergency.

On Thursday afternoons, the alarms sound and the drills begin.

Most of the time, it’s a simulated fire somewhere on the ship. Everyone reports to their assigned muster station. For me, that happens to be in the operating room, so most of the time I simply continue working while someone comes by, counts me, and moves on.

Occasionally, the drill progresses to an abandon-ship drill. Then things get a little more interesting. Announcements come over the loudspeaker telling everyone that certain stairways are unusable, and everyone has to follow the designated emergency procedures.

Again, my experience is a little different because I work in the hospital. While the rest of the crew leaves the ship and gathers in designated areas on the dock, I remain in the hospital.

If there were a real emergency and I wasn’t working, I would report to the hospital. If an abandon-ship order were actually given, I would be part of the crew responsible for helping get patients safely out of the hospital.  The hospital even has its own gangway, separate from the rest of the crew, which would make that process easier.

It’s one of those things you don’t really think about until you’re here. You go about your day, hear the alarms, listen to the announcements, and practice what you would do if something went wrong.

Hopefully, all of these drills will remain just that — drills.

Definitely Not a Cruise

So, no, life on the Global Mercy isn't exactly luxurious.  But I would call it comfortable. 

There’s no room service. No one makes your bed.  No soft-serve ice cream machine and definitely no relaxing in a long, hot shower.

Instead, there are cabin inspections, two-minute showers, weekly drills, shared responsibilities, an industrial port outside your window, and PLENTY of rules.

And somehow, I’ve come to really enjoy it.

Maybe that’s because living on the GLM isn’t about being pampered. It’s about being part of a community where everyone has a job to do, everyone contributes, and everyone learns to live with a little less so that we can serve the people of Ghana.

Right now, everyone who has served on the GLM is being asked to fill out a survey about their experience here. Since they’re asking for feedback, I think I’m going to make one small suggestion: install a soft-serve ice cream machine! I think everyone deserves dessert and a little luxury!!