Poppy Bilderbeck
A man who's lived onboard Royal Caribbean cruise ships for 23 years has revealed the odd side effect he's developed.
Mario Salcedo first started living on Royal Caribbean International cruise ships in 2000, after leaving his corporate role as an international finance director at a multinational corporation on land in the US.
Apart from some minor 15-day breaks per year and a 15-month hiatus during the coronavirus pandemic, he's lived on the sea for a whopping 20 plus years.
However, Mario's love of cruise life - the voyager nicknamed 'Super Mario' - has had an impact on his health and he now experiences a truly bizarre physical side effect.
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Salcedo's decision to live onboard cruises was no easy feat.
He first began his 'cruising career' in the year 1996, telling YouTuber Alannna Zingano he tested out 10 different cruise lines and a staggering 150 cruises on 'approximately 70 ships' before deciding which one he'd eventually live on.
Mario eventually selected Royal Caribbean, noting the introduction of the 'game changer' Voyager of the Seas in late 1999 really won him over.
"This ship was made for me," he adds.
The ship may've been 'made' for Mario, but it turns out the human body isn't probably best made for being onboard a ship for over 20 years.
As a result of spending over 9,000 nights - as of 2022 - on cruise ships, Mario told Condé Nast Traveller in 2016 his legs now don't adapt too well on the rare occasion he steps foot on land.
He revealed: "I’ve lost my land legs, so when I’m swaying so much I can’t walk in a straight line."
In an interview with All Things Cruise Mario added: "I’m so used to be on ships that it feels more comfortable to me than being on land."
In his lifetime, Mario has hopped aboard an impressive 1,100 cruises he predicts and reached 10,000 points in Royal Caribbean's Crown and Anchor Society, according to the Royal Caribbean blog.
The price of life onboard has gone up, Mario telling Zingano he pays $82,000 a year to live in an inside cabin onboard Royal Caribbean cruises.
He tells Royal Caribbean blog: "With so many friends and memories made out at sea over the years, I plan to continue cruising indefinitely so long as I’m in good health and having fun."
UNILAD has contacted Royal Caribbean for comment.