Back in Spain

I love Spain. It reminds me and several of my shipmates of

South Texas, near Corpus Cristi. Wind, sand, trees, signs in

Spanish...

We broke up the band yesterday. Staff dispersed and flew back to Naples or to their respective homes and NASHVILLE headed out to sea. Last time I saw her, probably forever, was as I walked off into the night at the base in Rota. But the people I met will be what I remember the most. Some more than other to be sure. It was pretty emotional...somebody get me a tissue...

But if you ever get to Rota, stop by O'Grady's Irish pub near the lighthouse. I know, what does an Irish pub have to do with Spain...no idea. But it's outstanding. And look for the dollar with the Texas Tech logo on it behind the bar. The pic enclosed is right around the corner, that arch leads right to the church in one direction, or the beach in the other.

Last stop, Italy (then home).

Fun in Funchal

About 500km southwest of Europe, out in the open Atlantic, lie the Madeira Islands. They were colonized by Portugal in the 1400s. The largest city is Funchal (pronounced ‘foon-chal’), and it seems like heaven on Earth compared to where we’ve been.

They are very European islands. Fashionable people, great food and they have an outstanding local Madeira wine. Very sweet, like a Port vino. Lots of UK, German and Portuguese tourists here as well. The place is overrun with SmartCars, seeing as space is at a premium (the island is 35 x 14 miles...or km, I forget). But I did see a PT Cruiser also. Funny what you notice sometimes.

They are volcanic islands, like Hawaii. A hot spot formed them over time and then slowly drifted away with the tectonic plate. So no fireworks now, but the change in elevation from the past volcanic activity is pretty dramatic. We rode a gondola car to the top of the island to take it in…wow, very cool. Up in the clouds (about 1000 meters), you go from sunny to cloudy and rainy.

A lot of famous folks have been here as well (we took the tour). Columbus practiced navigation here about 20 years before his epic voyage. Napoleon stopped by here on his way to exile after Waterloo (not exactly by choice), Charles Darwin and the HMS Beagle resupplied here before heading towards history, and Churchill spent time here painting the local scenery after WW2. Like I said, the place has been on the map for a while…

Our next stop is or last one; Rota, Spain. The staff (myself included) gets off and travels back to Naples, Italy or their respective homes. NASHVILLE heads west for the last time to Virginia. She is to be decommissioned in September. Many folks have already left. But that’s life in the Navy.

Thanks Funchal, we needed that!

Out of Africa

Left our last Africa port a few days ago. My last view of the continent was similar to the first view…the harbor in Dakar, Senegal. We stopped back there for a short engagement before we put Africa in the rear view mirror, so to speak.

We knew what to expect this time around, so the visit was more enjoyable. Besides a lot of work (which still isn’t done) we hit the good restaurants, fruit stands and the like. We even plunged in head first into the street bizarres that we avoided the first time around. Imagine a flea marked on crack, and that’s where we were. “My friend, my friend, come see my store!!” More African stuff I don’t need, (how many wooden elephants does anybody really need?) but bought some anyway. It was almost fun the second time around. Check that, it was hysterical. A friend of mine purchased a very nice wooden bowl for just north of two tubes of Chapstick and a ballpoint pen. Nice. Bring on the used car dealers in the States…

On to Funchal!

000 N, 000 W

Find a map, or a globe of the Earth. Locate the equator and then trace your finger along its length. You’ll find a point where zero degrees longitude meets zero degrees latitude, just south of Ghana, Africa. It’s the meeting of the equator and the prime meridian. The intersection of those two lines is where we were recently. An abstract point on the surface of the ocean perhaps, but some consider this location the center of the planet. Wrap your mind around that for a moment…
Actually, there is a buoy that marks the location. Takes temperature and salinity readings for NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). But it has more meaning than that to the sailor. For this is the realm of King Neptune, Davey Jones and the royal court. It’s here that land-lubbing pollywogs are transformed into Trusty Shellbacks; actually Emerald Shellbacks due to the location. Oh yeah, time for the ‘Crossing the Line’ ceremony.

I can’t really go into specific details, and pictures are right out due to political sensitivities. But we have a very ‘spirited’ ceremony to make sure our new Shellback brothers and sisters are worthy of the title. It’s changed from days gone by, probably for the better, and it is in good fun. Lots of exercise, singing, seawater, ‘acting’ and the like. And it’s definitely better to give than to receive. Those of us who have gone through it before make sure the event is memorable for the newer folks. I had no idea that the ‘SpongeBob Square Pants’ song had so many new verses…and it’s really hard to call for Flipper the Dolphin, and green dye doesn’t look good on anyone…but I digress.

So goodnight from 000N, 000W. Or is it 000S, 000E?

Duty

One of my favorite quotes comes from a book titled ‘Startide Rising’ by David Brin. The book is Sci-Fi (stay with me), and is set in a shipboard environment with military/ civilian interaction, sort of like this mission.

Ok, it’s also set in space with evolved dolphin military officers, killer spiders, etc. but I digress…

One of the junior officers (a human) is feeling overwhelmed by his work, and his senior mentor (a dolphin…yes I am a dork but stay with me on this) reminds him of his role, his job. The quote, “Duty, duty, brave shark-biter, what reward could taste sweeter?”

Keep in mind, in the wild dolphins have been known to attack sharks when the pod is threatened, their instinctive ‘duty’ in a way. Sometimes they win; sometimes they end up as food…

The point of this blather is that duty can be difficult (especially in a military environment), but duty is its own reward. Sometimes you have to stand up and be counted, support your people, your shipmates, when you know the repercussions will be unfavorable. But support you must, because it’s your duty, and duty is its own reward. And when that person, whom you supported when most other folks have given up on, turns it around and comes out swinging, shows the other folks up…damn. That’s the stuff.

Military life is not easy, even on this little jaunt we’re on. It’s a lot worse in other, sandier places. But this career has its own unique rewards. And duty, performed well, is one of the best.

Thus endeth the lesson…now somebody do your duty and go have a beer for me.

The Southern Cross over Gabon

Spent the last two night at sea, and they were amazing. The constellation known as the ‘Southern Cross’ was clearly visible. You can only see it near and below the equator, and I haven’t seen it in 21 years. Very cool. Looks more like a kite to me, but that’s not the name of the ‘Crosby, Stills and Nash’ tune, so we’ll stick with cross.

Saw several satellites pass overhead as well. One of them may have been an older rocket body, looked like it was tumbling. You can tell by the way they reflect the sunlight. This one would flare in a repeating pattern. Also, very cool. I was pointing this out to one of the Nigerian officers on our staff who had never seen satellites before. He was truly amazed.

I love the sea at night, especially when it’s dark with good friends to share it with. Nothing like it that I've found anywhere else.

Libreville and Port Gentil (pronounced ‘John-T’) are our port stops in Gabon. Libreville was nice, and very, very expensive. Comes from the former French colonial presence here I'm told (and there are still a lot of French around). I’ve paid less for food and drink in Manhattan. Went to a self proclaimed Mexican restaurant…where the menu was pasta and hamburgers…sigh. But the Malibu rum was good.

Port Gentil is a working port. Lots of commerce: oil, timber and container cargo. Not really a tourist town, but that’s OK. We’re not here to be tourists…OK maybe a little. It is hot. Like August in Houston hot. Like steam out of a bag of microwave popcorn hot, like …you get the picture. But we’ll turn back north soon. And cross the Prime Meridian at the Equator. Can’t wait.

Fair winds…

Jurassic Cameroon

From a distance, Limbe, Cameroon looks like a scene right out of Jurassic Park ™. Mountains covered in jungle come right down to the sea. The higher elevations are often obscured by clouds, rocky islands in the bay, the occasional T-Rex stampeding thru town…(just seeing if you are still awake)

Mount Cameroon is the largest in the local chain (go figure), 4000+ meters. Dormant volcano, last erupted in 1999, or so the locals say. It dominates the region. The forest/jungle around the slopes leading down to Limbe is all shades of green. Palm trees making up palm oil plantations are in wide abundance. All kinds of tropical fruit are also available (mangos, bananas, plantains as big as my forearm, etc.). Wow.

The town proper is pretty small. We have to anchor out and send boats ashore because NASH is too big for their harbor. Speaking of boats, got my first ride on the LCU today. That’s Landing Craft Utility for you non-amphibious types. Think a semi-modern version of the landing craft you saw in “Saving Private Ryan”. We flood half of the ship (always a weird sensation, isn’t that a bad thing??) open the stern gate on the back of the vessel and out comes the LCU. Short trip to the fleet landing site. The LCU can run up to the beach, or rocks in this case. No we weren’t invading Cameroon, we were actually delivering a ton (literally I think) of donated goods to hospitals, schools, and an orphanage. Good stuff. Not quite the ‘swords into plowshares’ thing, but close. I added to that load with toys my boys sent (good job guys) and candy…always a hit with the kiddos.

Wish I could post pics, but with the internet issues we’ve been having I’m lucky to post anything. Goodnight from 4 degrees North.
-K