Position: 27 December 12:00 18°48.9′ N 050°37.7′ W, 865 miles N of French Guiana
Weather: Rough
Wind: ENE 8-5 BF
Sea + swell: moderate to high
Crossing from Cabo Verde to Martinique (Part 2)
In our previous update, we were looking forward to the Christmas dinner. It turned out to be an enormous success. The galley delivered an outstanding performance, the quartermasters handled service flawlessly, and the helmsmen and other crew members assisted as dishwashers and steersmen, while the watchstanders were excused from duty. And all this, sailing on port tack over a tempestuous sea.
The day began with a Christmas breakfast at a beautifully set table. When a boiled egg was also served, a debate arose about whether it was Wednesday or Sunday. When the majority voted for Wednesday, we let it be. On a crossing, one quickly loses all sense of time.
We were unable to follow the King’s Christmas speech here, but our captain addressed the crew in his own meaningful way, which moved us. After dinner, we lingered at the table playing a few games. The “Polar Bear Club” gained several new members. “Lepeltje tik” with ten cards remains a mystery to many; they do not believe in the telepathic connections between people, especially not between different watches. Chopsticks are still on the agenda, perhaps for New Year’s Eve.
The recipe for preparing flying fish is lost. Therefore, it was decided to give the fish a sailor’s grave. With the sounding of the “Last Post,” the fish was returned to the sea from the aft deck, flag at half-mast, where it was awaited and devoured by a hungry barracuda.
The welcome letter from the director promised us a surprise when we cross the equator. However, just before the equator, the captain ordered a tack, causing us to miss that surprise.
Serving meals remains a challenge in these seas, but table service is of a high standard. Some crew members have peculiar requests: coffee with a sweetener and milk, stirred clockwise four times, and then “propped.” It doesn’t get any stranger than that.
Anyone who has sailed here knows the problem of plates sliding out of the cabinets on port tack without warning. The second boatswain, with his background as a (ship)carpenter, solved this problem simply yet effectively.
In the Asterix and Obelix books, the feast always ends on the last page with the village minstrel Abrara Sourcix tied to a tree. We have a similar character on board. It has not yet been decided to which mast he will be tied. The boatswain has already made duct tape available.
Meanwhile, it’s the second day of Christmas. The wind is stronger than in previous days, and the ship is rolling significantly from starboard to port and back again. Rob Kemps of the Snollebollekes would be envious. Water is in the gangway. The porthole frames in the cabins sway as if you are watching a washing machine: a Miele on port (rotating clockwise), a Zanussi on starboard (rotating counterclockwise). Curious little fish peer inside.
We are sailing full speed toward Martinique. We will arrive on schedule. The agent has been warned and promised that the fanfare will meet us on the quay.
Greetings from the White Watch