How on earth I ended up here.

For those who don't know me, my name is Emily Adair. I'm 24 years old and thought I had my life pretty planned out. I was always that really driven kid who knew exactly what I was going to do, how I was going to get there and when it was going to happen. Before you say anything, yes people made fun of me and yes I probably deserved it because yes I was VERY annoying. I knew from about six years old that I was destined to be a performer. I was born to be on stage, and so naturally I made plans my whole life on how to get there. High school, university, become an actor. That was my plan in its entirety.

In high school, I was in all the arts clubs, committees and auditioned for everything. I did singing lessons outside of school, I took part in competitions and won them. Everything and anything to add to my CV. Then off I went to university to study acting. I worked hard, managing to graduate on the Dean's list and just loved every moment. I was in my element. I was even lucky enough to book my first professional job the day after I graduated, walking into rehearsals for my first professional musical as a lead. I was ecstatic, thinking 'My goodness my plan is actually coming to life'!

Until six months later everything just stopped. I was coming down off of such a high, what with ending this musical, having the time of my life, then nothing. No castings, no auditions, no work. I would wake up every day depressed because I had nothing to do, stressed because I didn't know how I was going to make any money to survive and had a general sense of what now?

I was working 5 jobs, all of them combined just about got me through for the month. But as a twenty one year old, who has a degree that seems useless and is babysitting, dressing up as princesses on weekends, doing tedious promotional jobs, teaching singing a couple of times a week and script editing, you often wonder if you're going to do this forever and that is scary as hell. I just couldn't be a 40 year old Tinkerbell, can you imagine?

In between runs of my musical I met my current boyfriend James, we dated for three months when he dropped the bomb that he was going to work on the boats. I had no idea what this meant, all I understood was he was going to be leaving me to go to this place called Antibes for God knows how long. Which was also terrifying, I just met this wonderful man and now he's leaving me and doesn't know when he's coming back. Wow, life was really on my side at this point.

One especially depressing day, I was talking to James- no wait scratch that- I was probably complaining to James about missing him and not knowing how I was going to pay my bills. When he said as a joke 'well you should come and join me here on the boats' I laughed it off and we carried on talking. Although the thought never left my mind.

A few months later I started doing the courses to legally be allowed to work on board and become a stewardess. I had just about finished the courses when James called me from the Caribbean asking me how quickly could I get to Antigua? The boat he was working on needed a temporary stewardess to help take the boat from the Caribbean to the Mediterranean. Which meant epic work experience for me and something I couldn't turn down.

Basically, I had one week to organise flights to Antigua from Cape Town which meant flying through New York. I needed a ESTA visa, a hotel and a two layover flight. But I also needed to finish up a project for the script editing company I was working for, pack up the apartment I had been living in for four years because my parents were going to sell it, say goodbye to all my friends and pack for a trip I didn't know the length of. Stressful much?

Needless to say I did it, I got there completely drained, jet lagged and emotional. It's pretty scary walking into the unknown like that, being so young and naive, still not having a secure job and on top if it all moving to a foreign country where they don't speak English.

It's actually so interesting reflecting on how I got here. Remembering the girl I was and how much I've grown in those three short years. I am so proud that I took such a scary leap of faith because it got me to where I am today. A permanent stewardess on that same 50m superyacht I met in Antigua three years ago.