MILA SMID & SCHOOL AT SEA
A quick reminder about School at Sea.
This is the third and final travelogue from me (Mila Smid) about my life on board the Thalassa. Just to remind you, School at Sea involves sailing on a large tall ship to discover the world over six months, while following the School’s programme on board. We crossed the Atlantic via Tenerife to Dominica, Curaçao, Panama and Cuba. My story, which you are reading now, is about the last part of the (return) journey via Bermuda, the Azores, France and our arrival in Den Helder.
TRAVELOGUE - PART 3
On our way to Bermuda
From Cuba we sailed across the Atlantic to Bermuda, which I am very much looking forward to. We have had another cabin change, new watch arrangements and kitchen duties and I really like them. We have the 12-4 watch and we were all a bit scared of that watch because everyone said it was a bad watch because you do a lot of cleaning. The lounge, the bar, the corridor, the dining room and the stairs. But it’s not too bad, we just make it cosy ourselves, so it’s very nice.
The waves and swell are a bit more now, so when you are on your knees mopping the floor and a wave comes, you slide from one side of the saloon to the other. I wake up at 11.30 in the evening and then we have watch until 04.00. During that watch we spend about an hour and a half cleaning. And when we finish cleaning, we have the watch snack. Then we sleep from 05.00 to 11.30 in the afternoon. After that we have another watch at noon and have lunch first and then clean again. Then we have watch until 04.00 and then school from 04.30 to 07.00. We end the day with a dinner and then we sleep until 11.30. That is two days and then two more days of school.
Life on board
As Thalassa tears across the sea at 10 knots, waves crashing over the deck, three SaS’ers battle it out in the kitchen. It is business as usual in the kitchen, even though there is a lot of back and forth. After all, the 47 people on board have to eat.
Because of the high waves, all sorts of things fly around the kitchen. The contents of the bowl of soy sauce that had just been used for breakfast is now all over the kitchen floor. The kitchen becomes slippery, and the organic waste bin and another SaS’er fall over. Moments like this are more common during kitchen shifts in these conditions. As a kitchen shift, you are almost more concerned with getting things seaworthy and cleaning than actually cooking. Things that flew around the kitchen for the rest of the day included: a pan that was thrown out of the sink, a bowl of vegetables, half a pan of stew, a container of cheese sauce, a pitcher of water over a SaS’er, the bio bin three more times (with rotten contents, of course), empty pans from the stove and half the contents of the fridge. And even then, the kitchen staff still manage to put some goodies on the table, and the floor is just about clean at the end of it all. Respect!
After several days of sailing we arrived in Bermuda, the waves were very high. The night before, the waves were the highest we had experienced so far. As we got closer, the sea got bluer and bluer (the bluest water so far). When we arrived, a few people were allowed to go up the mast and the rest had to do other things. I was allowed to go up the mast and I went to pack the bottom ram (which is the second top ram) which was really fun, it was blowing so hard. You almost blew out of the mast.
In the afternoon we had some free time without a phone. But with money. We went to the city to chill a bit and it was very nice. On our way back we had a look at the boat next to us. They were from Germany and were also a school project and it was nice to exchange experiences. We also did a lot of rope skipping on Bermuda, which is necessary as we get very little exercise on board in such a small area.
The next day we toured the island, which is very beautiful. We also went swimming, which was very cold as the temperature has dropped quite a lot by now. We also put on long trousers and jackets again.
In Hamilton we walked around and looked at the city. A little later we went out for lunch. But it was very expensive. We were just about to order and then a man came over and said “I’ll pay for it”. We were stunned that he wanted to pay for us but he really wanted to so we thought it was OK. When we had all ordered, he put his debit card down and paid $85 and said goodbye and walked away. We were stunned, but apparently that’s the way it works here.
The next day one of the students had organised a sports day. Finally some sport and maybe our trousers would fit again. We were divided into groups and off we went: relay races, football and volleyball. It was a very successful day! We did some more skipping rope until dinner and then we went to prepare for Casino Night. We had organised a Las Vegas Casino Night. With all sorts of fun games and music. I was one of the bartenders. I danced and poured drinks and had fun all night.
The following days we had school days and had to do tests, which went quite well. We also went to secure our cabins for the next day.
Arrival in Azores
What stands out as you enter the port in the Azores are all the frame paintings. Today, we also chose our own frame painting, the winner will start painting tomorrow. So soon, our frame painting will also be among them! We sailed the last 300 miles to the Azores under a different captain. In fact, there was another ship takeover. Like the two previous ship takeovers, we again had to apply for a role. I knew immediately that I wanted to apply for machinist. I had already handed in my application letter but then a problem arose. There was no kitchen team yet. And without a kitchen team, there could be no ship takeover. Since hardly anyone wanted to except two others, we decided to set up a kitchen team. Our team consisted of a kitchen chef and three kitchen helpers and I was kitchen assistant. We had made a very (too) elaborate plan according to our captain so it was rejected and we had to delete a few things. After that, it was approved.
On the last day we had French toast and bread for breakfast. During breakfast someone from the watch called down that there were lots of dolphins hunting. We came up and there were fins all over the place and at the top they were swimming along. It was really cool. For lunch we had hamburgers and delicious fish. It was a very successful ship takeover and everyone thought it was the best kitchen team ever!
The next day we have free time after arriving in Faial! We are back in Europe, so luckily we no longer have to beg for WiFi everywhere, as our data just works here at the prices we are used to in the Netherlands. We can also pay in euros again, we’re less afraid of the exchange rate going against us (Dominica, Panama, Cuba) and a bag of crisps doesn’t cost $8 (Bermuda). So everything is much easier. In our free time we all went to Peters Sport Café. This is a café where many
sailors come after crossing the Atlantic to or from Europe. It also has a shop with all kinds of merchandise and at the end of the day all the SaS’ers are walking around with it. So it was a successful day for everyone. The next day we set off for our final destination, Den Helder!
Last leg
On the last leg of the voyage there are 2 more ship takeovers and I have become a boatswain. This means that I am responsible for hoisting and lowering the sails. I also make sure that all the work is done properly and I get to do all the fun stuff myself. For example, I have already packed and unpacked a few sails. We make one last stop in France at the port of L’Aber Wrac’h. Lots of people come to look at the big ship that’s suddenly there. Then we head for the English Channel, so we have to be careful. We are now in the middle of the Channel. It is very busy, there are lots of ships. Keeping a lookout is an important part of the watch. We do this by looking outside, at the radar and at the electronic chart. On the electronic chart you can find all sorts of information about ships, such as how long they are, how fast they are going and where they are going. One very useful piece of information is the (T)CPA. This stands for (Time to) Closest Point of Approach, or how close we are to each other and how long it will take us to get there if we both stay on course. This can sometimes be quite close, half a mile or even a few hundred metres.
That sounds like a lot, but of course in shipping you have a lot of huge cargo ships with huge masses and therefore much longer stopping distances. You make decisions about how to deal with this well in advance, based on previous experience and learned theory.
I am still enjoying the last moments as we only have one week left. We also had a solo bivouac in France. We had to sit on the beach for 2.5 hours, all spread out. We were not allowed to talk and we had to think about the last six months and about coming back. It was quite strange to be alone for the first time in six months. I actually thought it was quite cool to be alone for a while. But I’d much rather be on board with all the people, where it’s cosy. On board we NEVER run out of things to talk about. If I’m not sleeping or at school, I’m talking all day. You don’t have that at home. Then sometimes you’re alone and I’m really afraid of that.
Back in the Netherlands
In the middle of April we arrived in the Netherlands. We arrived in Den Helder, the last destination of SaS 2022-2023. The Netherlands looked grey and dreary. Some of us have been looking forward to it for ages, others just want to do another round of the Caribbean. But I think for most of us, the closer we get to our old lives, the less we feel like it. Everyone was on deck as we sailed in, through the lock and under the bridge. The owners of Thalassa were waiting for us on the quay. They even surprised us with a cake!
In the evening we had some free time, but no phones. For the first time in almost six months, we were able to go to a real Albert Heijn. We loved the liquorice and the Dutch speciality: frikandel.
Saturday was the last day. All our parents, brothers, sisters and grandparents were waiting on the quay with banners. It was an emotional reunion, very nice to see your family again, but terrible to say goodbye to your SaS comrades and crew. So there was no end to the hugging. We had a lovely closing ceremony with songs, stories and speeches and then it was really time for everyone to go home in their own cars.
I look back on this as the best experience of my life, I would never have wanted to miss it. I have learnt so much and made friends for life. I am also thinking of going sailing for a year after my graduation, although I still have to get some diplomas for that, but it seems really fantastic. And now I have to get used to being back home and, above all, keep in touch with my new friends.
I look back on this as the best experience of my life