By Kate “Bob” Addison
1st July 2013
It’s Monday the 1st July, so Picton Castle would like to wish a very happy Canada Day to all our friends back home in Lunenburg and across Canada! We plan to celebrate this evening with a nice BBQ mahi mahi, ice cream for all hands and maybe even some fireworks… We are due into Rarotonga in just a couple of hours – Avatiu harbor is only 11 miles away and we’re motor-sailing directly towards it, though mountainous Rarotonga is not yet visible because of clouds on the horizon.
Yesterday was the first proper Sunday at Sea of this Cook Islands cargo voyage, and we had a very pleasant Sunday. There’s no ship’s work on Sundays, you just stand your watch and clean your own living space, and the cook gets the day off too. Yesterday Matthew, Nolan and Shaun did a great job of feeding us all, and despite some initial trepidation there was an excellent roast chicken with mixed veggies and roast potatoes for supper, and Matthew’s homemade bread and butter pudding after pasta for lunch. Bread and butter pudding – so English it made me nostalgic for the green fields of home!
Then at 4pm we had a little Sunday Soiree with popcorn, South Pacific musics, the party hatch cover on and everyone dressed up nice. The sun was out and the sails set and the crew and passengers were in good spirits. It’s amazing to look at the crew and realize what a team they have become in such a short time. It’s an incredible achievement to join a ship right in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and then with just a week’s orientation set sail and make a go of cargo and passenger operations under sail. But that’s pretty much what these guys have done, and they should feel very proud of what they have learned and achieved in such a short time.
For a handful of trainees it’s already time to say goodbye as we reach the end of the first leg of this short voyage. It’s sad to see them go, there are some great characters leaving who we will miss aboard. But we also have new crew arriving today, and of course we are excited to meet out new shipmates and start to show them the ropes. As I think the crew aboard sailing back into Rarotonga will tell them: there’s an incredible adventure waiting for them!