November 19, 2015 – The crew is complete!
Yesterday morning Gerard and Nicoline arrived in Las Palmas. Few days before
Herman and Inge had already welcomed Daan and Mariette. The four of them have been
super busy with the preparations for the crossing & the fun stuff that
comes along with ARC. So were they part of the ARC 2015 Opening Ceremony by
carrying the Dutch flag in the midst of all other 36 nationalities that are
joining the ARC 2015. On Monday they’ve rented a car to explore a bit more of
the island and see the views of Gran Canaria. Last Tuesday there was an
inspection on the rigging on board and Herman and Inge have joined several ARC
seminars. Every evening there is the ARC Sundowner where the Shiva crew and all
others that will do the ARC crossing (in total around 1250 people) can go for a
drink and a chat which is great for hearing each others stories and getting
more and more excited to actually sail away for Saint Lucia! What’s more, Inge
and Mariette have been provisioning the non-fresh food already. In other words,
stuffing the boat and filling all its empty cupboards and corners with pasta,
rice, eggs, pepernoten, olives, chocolates, chips, etc. etc. The last empty
spaces will be filled this Friday and Saturday with the fresh food. By the way,
speaking about eggs, finally it has been decided that we bring 90 eggs on board
and Daan has been numbering the eggs so that we can see which ones to eat first
with respect to the shelf life. Smart thinking! We have removed the packaging
material of all food and things for as much as possible so that we can minimize
our share of garbage during the crossing. But to safeguard ourselves from cockroaches
and other unwished animals and situations all is neatly packed in cover boxes. A
well-structured and thought-through system of food we have now on board!
The arrival of Gerard and Nicoline yesterday was
perfectly timed so to join as complete crew the ARC “ 80s Films” Costume Party.
It felt as if we just walked out of the Crocodile Dundee film set! We didn’t
win the best costume prize (perhaps because we were late!?) but of course that “didn’t
kill the fun”.
After a good night sleep we started the day
today with several tasks: we turned the boat so to lay out the anchor chain on
the pontoon that enabled the Shiva men to mark the chain after every 10 meters
(handy when anchoring in the Caribbean); we’ve marked the mainsail with tape to
indicate where to put the reefs; we’ve washed the main deck and all its accessories;
hung out the laundry; installed the Watt&Sea that will generate the
electricity on board; and Daan and co bought the last fishing gear – the
fishing preparations are REALLY getting serious…! And then it was time for us
to join the life raft practice in the pool. With life jackets on we experienced
what it is like to enter and exit a life raft and we got some good advices just
in case we might come into such a situation. We don’t expect it at all but it’s
good to be prepared for everything (that is what we will be) and it was also
interesting and fun.
It’s beautiful weather in Las Palmas (happy I
just brought 1 pair of jeans) and the atmosphere is great with so much people
around that are all getting prepared for an ocean crossing.
Only 2 more days and then we will be taking
off!!!
So what is it that we expect & dream? The
skipper’s dream is to make a very beautiful and, if possible, quick crossing to
Saint Lucia. The goal for Herman is to do it in 16 days. But most important is
that everyone makes it to Saint Lucia safely and healthy and that the boat
remains in good shape so that Herman and Inge can continue sailing for another
few months after having arrived in Saint Lucia. So, safety first! Herman is
also curious to get water from the water-maker and has all faith that Gerard as
our Chief Engineer can repair it (anything) if needed. Furthermore with the
wasabi, soya and ginger already on board he expects Daan to catch tasty dorades
and tuna fish. And finally with daughter Mariette teaching him yoga and the
view on the beautiful ocean he expects to feel very Zen (which is so popular
and much sought for these days).
For Inge it’s a dream come true! In the 70s
Herman and she found in a book shop the book “in 4 jaar de wereld rond” (in 4
years around the world) from Claes and Welmoed Honig and together they knew
that’s what they wanted to do! And now it has become reality and will the dream
start… With an enthusiastic crew we will be crossing the ocean and will enjoy
many, new sailing areas. From the Caribbean Islands to the Bahamas, then along
the American east coast to New York and perhaps even to Maine. Inge is very
much looking forward to this adventure and all new encounters.
Gerard is also very much looking forward to the
adventure of crossing the Atlantic Ocean. It’s great to use the Parasail
together with the rest of the crew and of course he’s a little bit proud to be
the handyman, ahum Chief Engineer on board. Hope it won’t be needed but if so
we are in good hands!
Mariette is mostly looking forward to the yet unknown
adventure of the ocean with wind and water being the most important topics of
the day. It could even become a philosophical journey where it’s possible to
reflect on the small and big things and choices in life. But let’s first get
into the habit of living on a limited space with 6 people!
Daan expects to catch so much fish that he
needs to stop fishing because people get nauseous of it! And mostly he dreams
of the phenomenal views at sea like dolphins, flying fish, sunrises and
sunsets, and night skies.
Myself, I’m super curious to experience what it
is like to walk, sit, sleep, live on
a constantly moving vessel but also looking so much forward to this. Over the
last weeks, but mostly last night laying in my cabin, I was already picturing
it in my mind and feeling it slightly due to the little sway that is around in
the harbour. I expect to be very very happy and enlightened, I will tell you in
a few days if this expectation has come true (or if it appears to be the
opposite...!).
Next blog that we’ll post will be on Sunday or
Monday when we’ve actually taken off! From then on we aim to post every day an
update on the ARC log website. Don’t worry; they won’t be as long as this one!
And please also don’t worry if a blog comes 1 day later, I could be just very
busy reading, chilling, sleeping, cooking or just enjoying doing nothing …