Small discomforts

26 February 2014

Update by Rob:
“I am 1,95 meters, 6 ft and 4 inches. On the ‘Oosterschelde’ that brings some discomfort. She was built around 1920, when people were a little shorter. In my cabin the ceiling has two levels, I hit my head several times a day and bumps grow on my head. Still better than the first cabin I was in, when the daily rate was hourly. The stairs have the same effect and on different places on the boat my scalp has scraped something that was too low to the ground.
On top of that today brings few challenges. There is a lot of wind and the waves cause the ship to roll on the water. On my watch, which was from 4 to 8 am, the wind blew the rain in our faces. The raindrops felt like little hailstones and could not be avoided. When steering you have to look at the sails and the horizon. Waves lift the boat and ocean water hits the deck. The water doesn’t care if there is anyone in the way. What was dry is now wet and for me the water didn’t stop on the outer layer of my clothes. In the galley pots and pans make the noise of the proverbial elephant going through the porcelain cabinet. The boat is slowly going west towards Uruguay.
I find myself sitting on the hind deck next to the steering cabin. I look at the water, I feel the wind in my face. The boat keeps going at a speed one can easily follow on a bicycle and with the pace of a freight train. I think of and look for the albatrosses and storm birds that followed us for a little while and played in the wind and with the waves. I saw dolphins. On clear nights I saw the Southern Cross and lots of other stars. For the second time this journey I get this feeling that I don’t quite understand yet. It’s a feeling of happiness, of fulfilment. In the days to come I will slowly learn to live with my small discomforts and pity challenges. I wonder where I am going.”