SUNDAY 12TH FEBRUARY 2006
Well we have completed our first month on board the Rickmers Jakarta, and we are now faced with the big decision; do we change beds? Much discussion ensued and the consensus was that it was time for change; we will change beds now, and at the end of each calendar month. Gee, so glad that’s over.
Another decision was made this morning, but it was done for different reasons. Much of the reading and research we have done in respect to this trip indicated that many of the passengers who had compiled stories or logs of their journeys, battled to come to grips with the enormity of the complete around the world voyage. Whilst the majority of them had nothing but praise for the overall experience, there seemed to be niggling undertones that hinted of things not quite to their likings. Some of the tales described things on the ships that got on their goat, or, as seemed to be the most prevalent theme, other passengers that really p****d them off. One has to appreciate that a ship is a huge environ, but the accommodation section is only a small part of the whole scene. Unfortunately, it is in this section that most of the interaction between officers, crew and passengers takes place. We are talking of many different ethnic, social and economic backgrounds and in some (many) cases there exists a degree of one up manship displayed. This is not always intentional, but you can see quite easily how dissent can creep into a workplace or social relationship quite easily. Food, noise, choice of music, dress, position in the food chain, duration at sea, length of stay in port/shore time, etc., all takes their toll on some peoples minds. So having painted this picture, the other big decision is that we have decided to put our own thoughts of the preceding month in print. When this journey is all over and we are back in the land of Oz, we hope to be able to look back and see just how our perceptions of what we wanted out of this trip, and what we have enjoyed/endured for 4 months in an environ we have little control over has played with our minds. So to the first monthly summations;
JUDY:
Even though I had read everything I could get my hands, in reality, I had no idea of what to expect. In respect to the way we usually travel, this is so out of the norm for Doug and me, so I certainly had no idea how much I would enjoy the trip. We never go away with preconceived ideas when holidaying, as we find that we enjoy ourselves more this way. I can now say it is much more enjoyable than I could have ever imagined! By researching as we did, we packed a lot of items that were suggested, but to date most of these things are just taking up space in our cupboards. We still have along way to go, so time will tell us whether we have brought some of the other things along for the ride. I think we did a good job on guessing what toiletries, coffee etc. we needed to bring to get us to USA. We are just over half way there, and have used just on half what we packed.
Internet communication has turned out to be a problem. We organized for Doug’s mobile phone to be used as a modem with the laptop when we had reception near land. It lasted until about one week ago and now Telstra can not work out why it is not working. To be honest Telstra has proved to be much less than helpful. It now means that some of our shore leave time has to be used up looking for internet cafes to check our email and download the blogger. Thanks Telstra!!!!!!!!
I have found out that it is not about doing the tourist thing when shore leave permits that I enjoy most, but it is more to be able to live, work (or should I say, watch everyone else work!) and experience life on board the ship as the officers and crew normally do. Just the way that the day to day workings of the ship have engrossed me is almost too hard to fittingly describe. I am glad it was not just for one month as I know I would have been disappointed and missed out on a lot of the experiences, if that was all that we had decided to do. The month has gone very fast and the days do not seem to drag either. I am enjoying it immensely, much more then I thought I would. The seas, for most of the time, are very calm and it is like being in a plane or a car. It is nice to get ashore for a change, walk the streets, stay in a nice motel and go out for a meal, but if you are not onboard at the Ports, you miss the goings on of the stevedores loading and unloading the ship. Can’t be in two places at once, so we try and do a bit of each. Our experience has been enhanced by the great Captain and Crew we have, they are all friendly and find time to answer any questions about what they are doing, or for that matter, find time just to have a general chat.
We have two other passengers on board, and they certainly add to our experience. After the first two experiences of going ashore with the other passengers, we try and go our own way. All of us like and do different things, so the chat around the dinner table is quite enjoyable when we each add our own tales. The other thing is, if you don’t want to see or talk to them, you can just keep to yourself, and that is not all that hard to do. The Captain is showing very obvious favoritism towards us. He does things like putting the up-to-date shipping dates on our door but not anyone else’s, or giving us up-to-date schedules and not to the others. I guess they have both upset him in some way during the 3 months since they boarded at Houston, and it certainly shows at times.
We normally watch a movie each night, and this was one of our good ideas. We brought 100 DVD’s along (special thanks to Zed for getting them while he was stationed in Malaysia), and this helps to fill in the evenings after dinner (remember, there is no TV or Radio out here). Other than that, when we are on board we read, do puzzles, play on the computer or just walk around and look at everything. We have been in 6 ports, with Shanghai and Dalian being visited twice, and all but one being in China. We are looking forward to spending 3 weeks straight at sea while we cross the Pacific Ocean between Japan and the Panama Canal.
As mentioned earlier, there are two other passengers, and both are Canadian. Don can be a pain, and is very vocally opinionated. He believes that the best country in the world is Canada, and he is entitled to his opinion. What bugs me is his insistence that the USA and all things American are no good, and that all of the worlds troubles have or will be caused by them. It is nice to see patriotism, but he pushes things to the limit. I don’t know if it is intentional or not, but when he starts USA bashing you only want small doses of his company, but on other subjects he is very interesting to talk to. On the other hand, Cam is always good company. He is very intelligent (recently retired doctor of microbiology or similar) and sometimes his topics can be a bit long winded (maybe just over my head) but most of the times they are interesting to listen to and discuss. No real problems with either of them. Doug seems to be having a great time and enjoying all facets of the trip.
DOUG:
I spend a few minutes (hours!) each day jotting down notes about our trip, or touch typing my way through this blogger to put those notes in some sort of order for all to read. In reality, words fail to describe how much I am enjoying myself. I am out of my comfort zone; I am not in control here. This whole ship board thing is something that if the chance presents to you, DO IT!
You all probably realize that I need to know everything about everything, and that I don’t mind a yap if there is a spare ear to grab hold of. This is just the perfect arena for both of these pass times. I have a captive audience to pester for information on the ships workings. I have a captive audience to pester for one-on-one guided tours of whatever takes my fancy on board. I have a captive audience to discuss all worldly events. And also for those who know me, I don’t have to listen to anyone (and I obviously mean misguided souls) rant and rave about how good Collingwood is. It’s heaven!
I have always been up for a debate, especially if I know I am right or am an expert (my perception) on a particular subject. One month on board this ship and I can now sit at a dinner table with others and just listen to how wrong they are and not comment. Gee I have come a long way. Must add that I have a sore shin from Judy’s under table kicks to remind me to shut up!
The other two passengers are somewhat different from ourselves. Both a bit older (Don in his late 70’s, and Cam in his early 60’s), both now single (Don widowed, Cam divorced), and both Canadian. They are good company most of the time, but Don certainly pushes his own thoughts on a lot of subjects, to far for my liking. I have no problem with people having their own political or social views, but I think it is quite rude to expect everyone else to subscribe to them, or for that matter, to try and force them on everyone else. This is the only way for this chap, and as long as Judy keeps kicking me under the table, I guess I will just have to accept that he will just keep on ranting and raving about his own views on all subjects, with narry a word of reply from me. S**T it hurts being gagged! Oh well I suppose it is for the good of all, he really isn’t that bad a fellow when he just engages in general conversation, in fact he has many a good story to tell during these times. Cam, on the other hand, is a really likable fellow at all times. He is very learned, but down to earth as well. I have found discussion with him scintillating to say the least. He sometimes gets a bit too in depth when you cross over into his field of expertise, but generally his worldly travels and experiences make great listening.
Like Judy, I am enjoying myself immensely. The ship board life is a real buzz, and by far and away more exciting than I could have dreamed possible. The Captain, Officers, and Crew are fantastic, and they go out of their way to make us feel at home. And what a home! The cabin is fantastic, and the meals and service is superb (don’t think my GP is going to agree when I get on the scales). To have so many people assist in making this a really enjoyable trip for us, and to do so with out any prompting, makes us feel very special indeed. The shore trips have been great, but I must admit, I really need to be up top supervising the comings and goings of the cargo. I mean, that’s what I came for!
The next 3 months will tell just how well Judy and I can step back from our daily lives without worrying too much about the businesses, but it will also tell if 4 months is too long a voyage to undertake. I don’t think so, things would have to take a dramatic turn for the worst to change my mind!
Now for some news from home.
Rowan is doing lots of flying himself, but at the same time, he seems to be relishing the challenges faced by a 22 y/o managing three busy companies at the same time. He is doing a great job, and we are so proud of him. Just where all of the Queensland aviation industry leads to, time will tell, but we think our baby is on the right track and all will be good. Can’t tell you much about rowans lovely girlfriend Rachel, she is so busy doing a double degree at uni; we don’t always get the news about her as up to date as we should. Knowing Rach, she will be hard at it and only interrupting her studies when rowan visits for Valentines Day.
Stretton seems to have settled into his new position as a Transport Supervisor at an Army Reserve barracks in Ringwood East, Melbourne. He has conned the army again and just had a week diving in Sydney. He needed to be re-qualified/current to dive with other troops if needed during the Commonwealth Games. He is manning our office after he gets home from work in the afternoon, and he is dealing with the accounts and problems that are occasionally occurring. His hand is fully recovered, and he spent a large part of his rehabilitation time helping Rowan in Townsville before moving down to our place. Stretton's girlfriend, Erin, has also moved in to our apartment, and she has found a full time job as a pharmacist in a chemist shop not far from home.
Jayden enjoyed his weeks break in Malaysia whilst in transit to Japan, and from his latest news, all seems great with him over there. He has started work teaching spoken English, and appears to be enjoying the job as well. We hope to catch up with him next week, for the day, when we berth at Kobe. He is in Osaka which is only a 20 minute train ride away from our port.
Briony and Adam have rented their house out, and have moved back into our place to save some money to go to England in early July. Their tickets are booked and paid for (by dad!), and they hope to stay away for a year or two. Good on them, go for it while you are young. Both Briony and Adam are working with Stretton and Erin to keep the caravan parks in check, and it looks like they finally realize how big a business it is!
Just like Rowan, we are so proud of all of our children and their respective partners, and also what they do with their lives and how they help us all of the time.
Thanks kids, we couldn’t be here writing this without you all.
Now back to the blogger.
We awoke this morning to complete silence. No stevedores and no action. Immigration was due on the ship at 10am and we expected to be given permission to go ashore not long after. Stevedores started about 9am and it was all systems go for them. By now some guys had come on board selling CD’s, DVD’s, electrical goods, shoes, and taking orders for anything else that the crew or any of us wanted. This did not last long because immigration came the heavy hand and they had to pack up and leave. We were told at 11am that immigration had cleared us and we did not have to be back on the ship until 4pm on Tuesday. We decided to have lunch and then head for a hotel in the afternoon. Cam thought he would hitch a ride into town with us, so we agreed to meet at 1.00 at the top of the gangway. Things went down hill from here! As this was a navy port, lots of submarines and other navy ships etc, the Chinese had placed a soldier in a portable guard house beside our ship. It was his job to check everyone that came and went. There was just no way that he was letting us ashore within a shore pass. As we are not crew we do not get issued a shore pass and only show our passports when needed. Not good enough for this guy. Our driver who was a regular attendee at Rickmars ships in this port, lent the soldier his phone to ring his superiors. Still no go. We went back onboard and spoke to the captain, and he was incensed. He in turn spoke to the supercargo, who in turn spoke to the agent, and all agreed that we did not need shore passes. The agent said he would come down and try and sort it out. Three hours later, same guard, same phone call, same passports, everything is ok now and off we went.
The driver took us to the 5 star (in China!) Shangri-La Hotel, about 15km from the ship, where we booked in for two nights. After we got settled in, we grabbed a taxi and headed to our favorite Carrefour shop to get a few things for ourselves. These shops are popping up everywhere in China. We came back to the hotel and had an absolutely superb meal in one of the hotel Restaurants. They certainly know how to make Peking duck over here.
The bed beckoned.
MONDAY 13TH FEBRUARY 2006
After a good night’s sleep and a good breakfast we decided we would catch a bus into the old town and walk the sights. “No way” said the concierge; all the buses are only in Chinese so best you get a taxi. This we did and duly arrived in the main street of old Qingdao. It was freezing cold and quite foggy but we were determined to take in what we could. Qingdao is one of Chinas most popular summer destinations with several swimming beaches. We headed down the main street to the No. 6 bathing beach and walked out on a pier to the Huilan Pagoda. This Pagoda is the model for the logo of famous Tsingtao Beer. There was hundreds of people in the area and the tide was so far out the beach was just rocks. There were people all over the rocks chipping off every shell fish they could find. Sea fish is the go in Qingdao. We headed along the breakwater to some of the older areas of the town, and just generally enjoyed mixing in with the people going about their business. Qingdao has a strong German influence and this is evident in a lot of the architecture. After walking the town for around 2 hours we headed back down to the break water and ran into the only other Caucasian in the place. There was Cam, camera in hand again. After a yap we left him and headed to the Tianhou Temple, which is dedicated the sailors and the sea. Then to the Qingdao Yong Binguan, the former Governors Residence and a replica of a Germany Palace. We decided we would walk all the way back to the hotel along the breakwater even though it was so cold our fingers, toes, nose, etc were ready to fall off. Low and behold, as we approach the No. 1 Beach here were three or four older guys in their Speedos going for a swim in the almost frozen ocean. Boy did we feel cold then. By the time we reached our hotel we had walked somewhere between 20 to 25 k and our feet needed a rest. We headed for the lobby café shop for coffee and an afternoon snack. This was followed with another trip to Carrefour. This time we walked there and walked back. It wasn’t too far, only about 2k. Jayden needed some shirts, ties, etc and we thought we could get them at a reasonable price for him here. We arrived back at our hotel and headed for the business centre to catch up on some work and other emails.
After this it was room service and a sleep.
One thing that we have not mentioned is that Qingdao is the location of the sailing events for the 2008 Olympic Games. They have started to print some signs and tourist books for this (think we got the first tourist book – lots of English descriptions but map in Chinese!) but in general terms English is not well spoken in this town. The taxi has a set minimum fee of 7 yuan but there is no way westerners know this as it is only written in Chinese characters. Knowing the Chinese as we now do, we are sure they will pull it together in time.
TUESDAY 14TH FEBRUARY 2006
Good nights sleep and big breaky again. Another session in the business centre and we were ready to continue our journey. We took a taxi to the Tsingtao Brewery to see their beer museum. This was much better than we could have anticipated as they had displays covering more than 100 years of their history. Part of the way through the tour we were handed a glass of beer each and at the end we finished in a beer hall where they sat us down to a jug of beer and two boxed souvenir glasses. While we sucked on the beers two lads who had just taken the same tour were seated, with their jug of beer, behind us. It did not take long to work out that they where from the land of OZ. One was from Brisbane and the other from Adelaide and they had been teaching spoken English to the Chinese for the past 6 months on a volunteer basis. They had just gained 6 month paid contracts to teach in Dalian. We swapped stories for quite awhile.
We headed back to the ship and arrived at about 3pm. On arrival we were told that shore leave had been extended until 8am tomorrow morning. This time was given by the agent but the captain questioned this as they had taken 2 and half days to load just half of the cargo and certainly were not going to do the rest in just over half a day.
Most of the cargo from this port was pipes bound for New Orleans and they do take a long time to load these small bundles.
Dinner was interesting on the ship tonight, as all us passengers had gone our separate ways, we all had different stories to tell. Spent a while up top watching the stevedores but cold got the better of us and we headed off to watch a movie and then bed.
WEDNESDAY 15TH FEBRUARY 2006
By the time we got to breakfast we were told that shore leave had now been extended until 3pm today, and the ship was due to sail at 6pm. Immigration had requested that our passports be in their hands 3 hours prior to sailing for checking.
Cam had told us about a shop that sold globes of the world on stands that were quite neat, so Cam and us got the driver to take us to this shop. The driver did some negations for us and now we have a fancy globe of the world to bore everyone with back on Oz. We can’t wait to show you where we have been! We took the globe back to the ship and the driver waited while it was put in storage in our cabin. We headed back into town and just started to walk again. Well this turned out to be one of those special days that you get when traveling. In the back streets we found kerb side vendors, one of which was a boot maker who took minutes to fix Judy’s shoe and only charged 2 Yuan (32 cents). Around the corner from him, we came across the only dirty street we had seen Qingdao. It was muddy and full of rubbish, but not as much rubbish as it was full of people. It was an awesome street. It was a genuine Chinese food market street. We walked, talked and photographed, and even purchased pineapples, strawberries and bread rolls. This street and all those around it for many blocks was a special experience we will not forget. It was good to see butchers cutting up their meat on the street and at the same time playing with their dogs that were picking up the scraps. It was good to see oyster’s fresh out of the sea laying on the muddy pavement before being cleaned for sale. It was just superb. We headed back to the ship on foot and arrived 15 minutes before shore leave was due to finish. Immigration came and went and we set sail at 5.15, 45 minutes early, and that is a first. We should arrive in Dalian at 9am tomorrow morning and go straight into our berth. That remains to be seen!
At dinner we sensed that there was about to be a crew revolt, as half the crew where due to finish there 9 month contracts and leave the vessel in Japan, and it appeared this was not going to happen. The problem was in Japan they had only been on board for 8 and a half months but if they stayed on board until the USA, it would be a week and a bit over the 9 month contract. You have to remember these guys work 7 days of the week for 9 months and are desperate to go home by this time. We will just have to see what transpires in the next few days; maybe we will have “Mutiny on the Jakarta”.
Movie and bed.
THURSDAY 16TH FEBRUARY 2006
We decided to skip early breakfast and have our own tucker in our cabin mid morning. Sometimes it is better this way, as we just get to do our own thing and chill out.
We headed for the bridge to see what the latest was with our arrival and the captain told us that we where just about to anchor. It was now around 10am and our direct entry had obviously been changed. The pilot was due at 11am to take us to our berth. This did not happen. The next call was 12.20pm, this also did not happen. At 2pm we finally got underway. It was a very tight berth and extremely windy. We had two tugs working very hard to maneuver us into our spot. We tried to watch it from the pilot deck (just realized I have been calling this E deck, and that is not correct) but the very strong winds were blowing from Siberia, and it was more cold than you could possible imagine. Anyway between hiding out of the wind in the upstairs bar room and sneaking out to take the occasional photographs we managed to tough it out and watch the stevedores lift and place the one piece we had called in to collect. This piece of cargo weighted 86 tonnes and was delivered on a low loader. It was huge but not as huge as the banter and pantomime put on by the dozen plus stevedores doing the job. You can’t help but laugh until your sides hurt listening to, and watching these guys. We were due to leave straight after loading, but once again plans changed, and it was after 7pm before we were underway. Our next stop is Masan in Korea and we should drop anchor there sometime Saturday morning.
Back to the expected mutiny, Freddie the steward, arrived to freshen up our cabin around 10.20a.m, and it was obvious that he was the bearer of good news. He was singing and as chirpy as could be. Word had come through that the half of the crew that was changing would leave the ship at Kobe in Japan. We really feel for these guys as it must be hard to be away from your family for so long, and in Freddie’s case he was going home to see his new son born mid December last year. All is now well.
FRIDAY 17TH FEBRUARY 2006
Well we rocked and rolled, bumped and thumped, all night long. The 2am piddle really needs some concentration! Thank goodness there is a handrail beside the dunny. Not to hard to sleep during the night, but we certainly moved around in our beds. It is not uncomfortable but certainly a different sensation that needs to be experienced to be understood.
We did not do much in the morning, just read and bludged, and there was still a fair amount of rocking and rolling going on.
As we finished lunch the captain told us that our arrival time in Masan was at 2am, but that we would have to anchor until 5am as the pilot did not start work until then. We will soon see if Korea is as slack with their times as China was. We are due to be in port until Sunday morning, when we head for Japan.
One other snippet was that, due to all the stuffing around in Chinese ports, the agent had requested that the captain make full speed all the way to the USA. In effect this meant another 5 to 6 revolutions per minute of our huge propeller. This may not seem much but to do this requires burning an addition 6 tonnes of engine fuel a day. At US$250 per ton for 20 days it certainly burns US$30,000 pretty easy.
Not much more to add for today except I did 15 laps of the deck to burn up some of the far too many extra calories I have been eating. Judy had a nap as she had felt a bit lethargic all day. It is now 8.30p.m. And we are still rocking and rolling so a funny sleep again tonight. One extra thing is that we have to advance our clocks by one hour tonight so that means even less sleep. Thank goodness we are on holiday.
Well we have completed our first month on board the Rickmers Jakarta, and we are now faced with the big decision; do we change beds? Much discussion ensued and the consensus was that it was time for change; we will change beds now, and at the end of each calendar month. Gee, so glad that’s over.
Another decision was made this morning, but it was done for different reasons. Much of the reading and research we have done in respect to this trip indicated that many of the passengers who had compiled stories or logs of their journeys, battled to come to grips with the enormity of the complete around the world voyage. Whilst the majority of them had nothing but praise for the overall experience, there seemed to be niggling undertones that hinted of things not quite to their likings. Some of the tales described things on the ships that got on their goat, or, as seemed to be the most prevalent theme, other passengers that really p****d them off. One has to appreciate that a ship is a huge environ, but the accommodation section is only a small part of the whole scene. Unfortunately, it is in this section that most of the interaction between officers, crew and passengers takes place. We are talking of many different ethnic, social and economic backgrounds and in some (many) cases there exists a degree of one up manship displayed. This is not always intentional, but you can see quite easily how dissent can creep into a workplace or social relationship quite easily. Food, noise, choice of music, dress, position in the food chain, duration at sea, length of stay in port/shore time, etc., all takes their toll on some peoples minds. So having painted this picture, the other big decision is that we have decided to put our own thoughts of the preceding month in print. When this journey is all over and we are back in the land of Oz, we hope to be able to look back and see just how our perceptions of what we wanted out of this trip, and what we have enjoyed/endured for 4 months in an environ we have little control over has played with our minds. So to the first monthly summations;
JUDY:
Even though I had read everything I could get my hands, in reality, I had no idea of what to expect. In respect to the way we usually travel, this is so out of the norm for Doug and me, so I certainly had no idea how much I would enjoy the trip. We never go away with preconceived ideas when holidaying, as we find that we enjoy ourselves more this way. I can now say it is much more enjoyable than I could have ever imagined! By researching as we did, we packed a lot of items that were suggested, but to date most of these things are just taking up space in our cupboards. We still have along way to go, so time will tell us whether we have brought some of the other things along for the ride. I think we did a good job on guessing what toiletries, coffee etc. we needed to bring to get us to USA. We are just over half way there, and have used just on half what we packed.
Internet communication has turned out to be a problem. We organized for Doug’s mobile phone to be used as a modem with the laptop when we had reception near land. It lasted until about one week ago and now Telstra can not work out why it is not working. To be honest Telstra has proved to be much less than helpful. It now means that some of our shore leave time has to be used up looking for internet cafes to check our email and download the blogger. Thanks Telstra!!!!!!!!
I have found out that it is not about doing the tourist thing when shore leave permits that I enjoy most, but it is more to be able to live, work (or should I say, watch everyone else work!) and experience life on board the ship as the officers and crew normally do. Just the way that the day to day workings of the ship have engrossed me is almost too hard to fittingly describe. I am glad it was not just for one month as I know I would have been disappointed and missed out on a lot of the experiences, if that was all that we had decided to do. The month has gone very fast and the days do not seem to drag either. I am enjoying it immensely, much more then I thought I would. The seas, for most of the time, are very calm and it is like being in a plane or a car. It is nice to get ashore for a change, walk the streets, stay in a nice motel and go out for a meal, but if you are not onboard at the Ports, you miss the goings on of the stevedores loading and unloading the ship. Can’t be in two places at once, so we try and do a bit of each. Our experience has been enhanced by the great Captain and Crew we have, they are all friendly and find time to answer any questions about what they are doing, or for that matter, find time just to have a general chat.
We have two other passengers on board, and they certainly add to our experience. After the first two experiences of going ashore with the other passengers, we try and go our own way. All of us like and do different things, so the chat around the dinner table is quite enjoyable when we each add our own tales. The other thing is, if you don’t want to see or talk to them, you can just keep to yourself, and that is not all that hard to do. The Captain is showing very obvious favoritism towards us. He does things like putting the up-to-date shipping dates on our door but not anyone else’s, or giving us up-to-date schedules and not to the others. I guess they have both upset him in some way during the 3 months since they boarded at Houston, and it certainly shows at times.
We normally watch a movie each night, and this was one of our good ideas. We brought 100 DVD’s along (special thanks to Zed for getting them while he was stationed in Malaysia), and this helps to fill in the evenings after dinner (remember, there is no TV or Radio out here). Other than that, when we are on board we read, do puzzles, play on the computer or just walk around and look at everything. We have been in 6 ports, with Shanghai and Dalian being visited twice, and all but one being in China. We are looking forward to spending 3 weeks straight at sea while we cross the Pacific Ocean between Japan and the Panama Canal.
As mentioned earlier, there are two other passengers, and both are Canadian. Don can be a pain, and is very vocally opinionated. He believes that the best country in the world is Canada, and he is entitled to his opinion. What bugs me is his insistence that the USA and all things American are no good, and that all of the worlds troubles have or will be caused by them. It is nice to see patriotism, but he pushes things to the limit. I don’t know if it is intentional or not, but when he starts USA bashing you only want small doses of his company, but on other subjects he is very interesting to talk to. On the other hand, Cam is always good company. He is very intelligent (recently retired doctor of microbiology or similar) and sometimes his topics can be a bit long winded (maybe just over my head) but most of the times they are interesting to listen to and discuss. No real problems with either of them. Doug seems to be having a great time and enjoying all facets of the trip.
DOUG:
I spend a few minutes (hours!) each day jotting down notes about our trip, or touch typing my way through this blogger to put those notes in some sort of order for all to read. In reality, words fail to describe how much I am enjoying myself. I am out of my comfort zone; I am not in control here. This whole ship board thing is something that if the chance presents to you, DO IT!
You all probably realize that I need to know everything about everything, and that I don’t mind a yap if there is a spare ear to grab hold of. This is just the perfect arena for both of these pass times. I have a captive audience to pester for information on the ships workings. I have a captive audience to pester for one-on-one guided tours of whatever takes my fancy on board. I have a captive audience to discuss all worldly events. And also for those who know me, I don’t have to listen to anyone (and I obviously mean misguided souls) rant and rave about how good Collingwood is. It’s heaven!
I have always been up for a debate, especially if I know I am right or am an expert (my perception) on a particular subject. One month on board this ship and I can now sit at a dinner table with others and just listen to how wrong they are and not comment. Gee I have come a long way. Must add that I have a sore shin from Judy’s under table kicks to remind me to shut up!
The other two passengers are somewhat different from ourselves. Both a bit older (Don in his late 70’s, and Cam in his early 60’s), both now single (Don widowed, Cam divorced), and both Canadian. They are good company most of the time, but Don certainly pushes his own thoughts on a lot of subjects, to far for my liking. I have no problem with people having their own political or social views, but I think it is quite rude to expect everyone else to subscribe to them, or for that matter, to try and force them on everyone else. This is the only way for this chap, and as long as Judy keeps kicking me under the table, I guess I will just have to accept that he will just keep on ranting and raving about his own views on all subjects, with narry a word of reply from me. S**T it hurts being gagged! Oh well I suppose it is for the good of all, he really isn’t that bad a fellow when he just engages in general conversation, in fact he has many a good story to tell during these times. Cam, on the other hand, is a really likable fellow at all times. He is very learned, but down to earth as well. I have found discussion with him scintillating to say the least. He sometimes gets a bit too in depth when you cross over into his field of expertise, but generally his worldly travels and experiences make great listening.
Like Judy, I am enjoying myself immensely. The ship board life is a real buzz, and by far and away more exciting than I could have dreamed possible. The Captain, Officers, and Crew are fantastic, and they go out of their way to make us feel at home. And what a home! The cabin is fantastic, and the meals and service is superb (don’t think my GP is going to agree when I get on the scales). To have so many people assist in making this a really enjoyable trip for us, and to do so with out any prompting, makes us feel very special indeed. The shore trips have been great, but I must admit, I really need to be up top supervising the comings and goings of the cargo. I mean, that’s what I came for!
The next 3 months will tell just how well Judy and I can step back from our daily lives without worrying too much about the businesses, but it will also tell if 4 months is too long a voyage to undertake. I don’t think so, things would have to take a dramatic turn for the worst to change my mind!
Now for some news from home.
Rowan is doing lots of flying himself, but at the same time, he seems to be relishing the challenges faced by a 22 y/o managing three busy companies at the same time. He is doing a great job, and we are so proud of him. Just where all of the Queensland aviation industry leads to, time will tell, but we think our baby is on the right track and all will be good. Can’t tell you much about rowans lovely girlfriend Rachel, she is so busy doing a double degree at uni; we don’t always get the news about her as up to date as we should. Knowing Rach, she will be hard at it and only interrupting her studies when rowan visits for Valentines Day.
Stretton seems to have settled into his new position as a Transport Supervisor at an Army Reserve barracks in Ringwood East, Melbourne. He has conned the army again and just had a week diving in Sydney. He needed to be re-qualified/current to dive with other troops if needed during the Commonwealth Games. He is manning our office after he gets home from work in the afternoon, and he is dealing with the accounts and problems that are occasionally occurring. His hand is fully recovered, and he spent a large part of his rehabilitation time helping Rowan in Townsville before moving down to our place. Stretton's girlfriend, Erin, has also moved in to our apartment, and she has found a full time job as a pharmacist in a chemist shop not far from home.
Jayden enjoyed his weeks break in Malaysia whilst in transit to Japan, and from his latest news, all seems great with him over there. He has started work teaching spoken English, and appears to be enjoying the job as well. We hope to catch up with him next week, for the day, when we berth at Kobe. He is in Osaka which is only a 20 minute train ride away from our port.
Briony and Adam have rented their house out, and have moved back into our place to save some money to go to England in early July. Their tickets are booked and paid for (by dad!), and they hope to stay away for a year or two. Good on them, go for it while you are young. Both Briony and Adam are working with Stretton and Erin to keep the caravan parks in check, and it looks like they finally realize how big a business it is!
Just like Rowan, we are so proud of all of our children and their respective partners, and also what they do with their lives and how they help us all of the time.
Thanks kids, we couldn’t be here writing this without you all.
Now back to the blogger.
We awoke this morning to complete silence. No stevedores and no action. Immigration was due on the ship at 10am and we expected to be given permission to go ashore not long after. Stevedores started about 9am and it was all systems go for them. By now some guys had come on board selling CD’s, DVD’s, electrical goods, shoes, and taking orders for anything else that the crew or any of us wanted. This did not last long because immigration came the heavy hand and they had to pack up and leave. We were told at 11am that immigration had cleared us and we did not have to be back on the ship until 4pm on Tuesday. We decided to have lunch and then head for a hotel in the afternoon. Cam thought he would hitch a ride into town with us, so we agreed to meet at 1.00 at the top of the gangway. Things went down hill from here! As this was a navy port, lots of submarines and other navy ships etc, the Chinese had placed a soldier in a portable guard house beside our ship. It was his job to check everyone that came and went. There was just no way that he was letting us ashore within a shore pass. As we are not crew we do not get issued a shore pass and only show our passports when needed. Not good enough for this guy. Our driver who was a regular attendee at Rickmars ships in this port, lent the soldier his phone to ring his superiors. Still no go. We went back onboard and spoke to the captain, and he was incensed. He in turn spoke to the supercargo, who in turn spoke to the agent, and all agreed that we did not need shore passes. The agent said he would come down and try and sort it out. Three hours later, same guard, same phone call, same passports, everything is ok now and off we went.
The driver took us to the 5 star (in China!) Shangri-La Hotel, about 15km from the ship, where we booked in for two nights. After we got settled in, we grabbed a taxi and headed to our favorite Carrefour shop to get a few things for ourselves. These shops are popping up everywhere in China. We came back to the hotel and had an absolutely superb meal in one of the hotel Restaurants. They certainly know how to make Peking duck over here.
The bed beckoned.
MONDAY 13TH FEBRUARY 2006
After a good night’s sleep and a good breakfast we decided we would catch a bus into the old town and walk the sights. “No way” said the concierge; all the buses are only in Chinese so best you get a taxi. This we did and duly arrived in the main street of old Qingdao. It was freezing cold and quite foggy but we were determined to take in what we could. Qingdao is one of Chinas most popular summer destinations with several swimming beaches. We headed down the main street to the No. 6 bathing beach and walked out on a pier to the Huilan Pagoda. This Pagoda is the model for the logo of famous Tsingtao Beer. There was hundreds of people in the area and the tide was so far out the beach was just rocks. There were people all over the rocks chipping off every shell fish they could find. Sea fish is the go in Qingdao. We headed along the breakwater to some of the older areas of the town, and just generally enjoyed mixing in with the people going about their business. Qingdao has a strong German influence and this is evident in a lot of the architecture. After walking the town for around 2 hours we headed back down to the break water and ran into the only other Caucasian in the place. There was Cam, camera in hand again. After a yap we left him and headed to the Tianhou Temple, which is dedicated the sailors and the sea. Then to the Qingdao Yong Binguan, the former Governors Residence and a replica of a Germany Palace. We decided we would walk all the way back to the hotel along the breakwater even though it was so cold our fingers, toes, nose, etc were ready to fall off. Low and behold, as we approach the No. 1 Beach here were three or four older guys in their Speedos going for a swim in the almost frozen ocean. Boy did we feel cold then. By the time we reached our hotel we had walked somewhere between 20 to 25 k and our feet needed a rest. We headed for the lobby café shop for coffee and an afternoon snack. This was followed with another trip to Carrefour. This time we walked there and walked back. It wasn’t too far, only about 2k. Jayden needed some shirts, ties, etc and we thought we could get them at a reasonable price for him here. We arrived back at our hotel and headed for the business centre to catch up on some work and other emails.
After this it was room service and a sleep.
One thing that we have not mentioned is that Qingdao is the location of the sailing events for the 2008 Olympic Games. They have started to print some signs and tourist books for this (think we got the first tourist book – lots of English descriptions but map in Chinese!) but in general terms English is not well spoken in this town. The taxi has a set minimum fee of 7 yuan but there is no way westerners know this as it is only written in Chinese characters. Knowing the Chinese as we now do, we are sure they will pull it together in time.
TUESDAY 14TH FEBRUARY 2006
Good nights sleep and big breaky again. Another session in the business centre and we were ready to continue our journey. We took a taxi to the Tsingtao Brewery to see their beer museum. This was much better than we could have anticipated as they had displays covering more than 100 years of their history. Part of the way through the tour we were handed a glass of beer each and at the end we finished in a beer hall where they sat us down to a jug of beer and two boxed souvenir glasses. While we sucked on the beers two lads who had just taken the same tour were seated, with their jug of beer, behind us. It did not take long to work out that they where from the land of OZ. One was from Brisbane and the other from Adelaide and they had been teaching spoken English to the Chinese for the past 6 months on a volunteer basis. They had just gained 6 month paid contracts to teach in Dalian. We swapped stories for quite awhile.
We headed back to the ship and arrived at about 3pm. On arrival we were told that shore leave had been extended until 8am tomorrow morning. This time was given by the agent but the captain questioned this as they had taken 2 and half days to load just half of the cargo and certainly were not going to do the rest in just over half a day.
Most of the cargo from this port was pipes bound for New Orleans and they do take a long time to load these small bundles.
Dinner was interesting on the ship tonight, as all us passengers had gone our separate ways, we all had different stories to tell. Spent a while up top watching the stevedores but cold got the better of us and we headed off to watch a movie and then bed.
WEDNESDAY 15TH FEBRUARY 2006
By the time we got to breakfast we were told that shore leave had now been extended until 3pm today, and the ship was due to sail at 6pm. Immigration had requested that our passports be in their hands 3 hours prior to sailing for checking.
Cam had told us about a shop that sold globes of the world on stands that were quite neat, so Cam and us got the driver to take us to this shop. The driver did some negations for us and now we have a fancy globe of the world to bore everyone with back on Oz. We can’t wait to show you where we have been! We took the globe back to the ship and the driver waited while it was put in storage in our cabin. We headed back into town and just started to walk again. Well this turned out to be one of those special days that you get when traveling. In the back streets we found kerb side vendors, one of which was a boot maker who took minutes to fix Judy’s shoe and only charged 2 Yuan (32 cents). Around the corner from him, we came across the only dirty street we had seen Qingdao. It was muddy and full of rubbish, but not as much rubbish as it was full of people. It was an awesome street. It was a genuine Chinese food market street. We walked, talked and photographed, and even purchased pineapples, strawberries and bread rolls. This street and all those around it for many blocks was a special experience we will not forget. It was good to see butchers cutting up their meat on the street and at the same time playing with their dogs that were picking up the scraps. It was good to see oyster’s fresh out of the sea laying on the muddy pavement before being cleaned for sale. It was just superb. We headed back to the ship on foot and arrived 15 minutes before shore leave was due to finish. Immigration came and went and we set sail at 5.15, 45 minutes early, and that is a first. We should arrive in Dalian at 9am tomorrow morning and go straight into our berth. That remains to be seen!
At dinner we sensed that there was about to be a crew revolt, as half the crew where due to finish there 9 month contracts and leave the vessel in Japan, and it appeared this was not going to happen. The problem was in Japan they had only been on board for 8 and a half months but if they stayed on board until the USA, it would be a week and a bit over the 9 month contract. You have to remember these guys work 7 days of the week for 9 months and are desperate to go home by this time. We will just have to see what transpires in the next few days; maybe we will have “Mutiny on the Jakarta”.
Movie and bed.
THURSDAY 16TH FEBRUARY 2006
We decided to skip early breakfast and have our own tucker in our cabin mid morning. Sometimes it is better this way, as we just get to do our own thing and chill out.
We headed for the bridge to see what the latest was with our arrival and the captain told us that we where just about to anchor. It was now around 10am and our direct entry had obviously been changed. The pilot was due at 11am to take us to our berth. This did not happen. The next call was 12.20pm, this also did not happen. At 2pm we finally got underway. It was a very tight berth and extremely windy. We had two tugs working very hard to maneuver us into our spot. We tried to watch it from the pilot deck (just realized I have been calling this E deck, and that is not correct) but the very strong winds were blowing from Siberia, and it was more cold than you could possible imagine. Anyway between hiding out of the wind in the upstairs bar room and sneaking out to take the occasional photographs we managed to tough it out and watch the stevedores lift and place the one piece we had called in to collect. This piece of cargo weighted 86 tonnes and was delivered on a low loader. It was huge but not as huge as the banter and pantomime put on by the dozen plus stevedores doing the job. You can’t help but laugh until your sides hurt listening to, and watching these guys. We were due to leave straight after loading, but once again plans changed, and it was after 7pm before we were underway. Our next stop is Masan in Korea and we should drop anchor there sometime Saturday morning.
Back to the expected mutiny, Freddie the steward, arrived to freshen up our cabin around 10.20a.m, and it was obvious that he was the bearer of good news. He was singing and as chirpy as could be. Word had come through that the half of the crew that was changing would leave the ship at Kobe in Japan. We really feel for these guys as it must be hard to be away from your family for so long, and in Freddie’s case he was going home to see his new son born mid December last year. All is now well.
FRIDAY 17TH FEBRUARY 2006
Well we rocked and rolled, bumped and thumped, all night long. The 2am piddle really needs some concentration! Thank goodness there is a handrail beside the dunny. Not to hard to sleep during the night, but we certainly moved around in our beds. It is not uncomfortable but certainly a different sensation that needs to be experienced to be understood.
We did not do much in the morning, just read and bludged, and there was still a fair amount of rocking and rolling going on.
As we finished lunch the captain told us that our arrival time in Masan was at 2am, but that we would have to anchor until 5am as the pilot did not start work until then. We will soon see if Korea is as slack with their times as China was. We are due to be in port until Sunday morning, when we head for Japan.
One other snippet was that, due to all the stuffing around in Chinese ports, the agent had requested that the captain make full speed all the way to the USA. In effect this meant another 5 to 6 revolutions per minute of our huge propeller. This may not seem much but to do this requires burning an addition 6 tonnes of engine fuel a day. At US$250 per ton for 20 days it certainly burns US$30,000 pretty easy.
Not much more to add for today except I did 15 laps of the deck to burn up some of the far too many extra calories I have been eating. Judy had a nap as she had felt a bit lethargic all day. It is now 8.30p.m. And we are still rocking and rolling so a funny sleep again tonight. One extra thing is that we have to advance our clocks by one hour tonight so that means even less sleep. Thank goodness we are on holiday.
posted by Shipmates on a world journey | 1:00 AM
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