Education at Sea

When I was first certified as a nail technician two years ago, it never occurred to me that it would eventually lead to a cruise to the Mexican Rivera. As a relative newbie to the business, I’ve been exposed to a variety of classes and discussions with respect to sanitization and disinfection, not to mention various methods of application, technique and nail art. But I was curious when I first learned about the Nail Those Profits at Sea Cruise hosted by Vicki Peters. The more I read and learned about it, the more determined I was to do it. It seemed to be the best of both words: a great education and more—an actual vacation! When considering eight days in the Mexican Rivera versus eight days in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, in the middle of winter with sub-zero temperatures, well, it was a “no-brainer!”

We shared a ship with industry leaders such as Dr. Kenneth Gerenraich (Dr. G.), Dalonnie Preato (more affectionately know as Loni), distributor for Akzentz Jessica Hoel, Young Nails distributor for Las Vegas Lina Hernandez, Christine Turner, editor of Swedish nail magazine Naglar Anette Classen and, of course, Vicki Peters! We spent the mornings at sea as a group and had the afternoons free to lie in the sun, explore activities on the ship and get ready for dinner. While we were in our ports of call—Acapulco, Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa and Manzanillo—we were free to go into the town and explore the local atmosphere. I found this to be a nice balance between nail tech education and vacation activities. One day I would be listening to Dr. G. talk about the ins and outs of sanitation, and the next I was walking in the surf of Ixtapa with a glass of wine!