We have boarded our ship !
explanation: Now we have shipboard email, sent via satellite. Charged by the word and very, very expensive! For the rest of this voyage I shall be posting very very brief accounts. Sorry :-( I will write my usual War & Peace -- and post a summary. Either that, or the cost of this trip could easily double :-)
So where are we now? This should show you: http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=09XGihbkW0buf71zL6xAnH4ScMu7yzrGW
9pm: That was fun :-)
We are out on deck to watch the ship leave. Gangplank raised and stowed. Various ropes unhitched. The boat pushes itself away from the wharf, swinging round on the final, stern rope. That rope is cast off -- and we're sailing.
The pilot boat moves closer, almost touching the Shokalskiy. The pilot appears... steps easily from one boat to the other... A round of applause... and we're on our own: clear of the port and sailing under the Captain's orders.
A man coming down outside steps slips, falls. Shaken but unharmed. Warning noted and heeded.
Dinner. Sitting opposite the Department of Conservation rep. He makes sure that we follow all the rules. He's glad to be here. He also has to take back a photo of his son's (toy) penguin "visiting his relatives".
Other people at our table include the Russian who works in Japan. What do you do there? someone asks. Work, he replies. Not sure if that's a cagey answer, or due to his limited English. Next to Deb is a man who likes to explain things. (No, not me.) There are two men over 70 y.o. And a man who sits at the end, too far away for me to be able to hear anything that he says.
By about 1am, we will be out of the shelter of Stewart Island. If the sea is rough, that's where we will first notice it.
"If"...
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Sent via Satellite Phone using RedPort Email
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