Captain's Diary ... A Word to the Wise.

A British Cadet says he took up the seafaring career, to see the world, and it was said to be very high paying, too. But he has been at sea now for four months and so far all has seen is a concrete jungle in Jubail, Saudi Arabia and a Chemical terminal in Kuwait! He also says the wages are not what he expected and the conditions are better in a prison in the UK!

Oh! That sounds very bad.

There is something this young man appears to have missed, he is still an apprentice. Therefore, he is not entitled to all the luxuries on a ship. He will eventually get everything on his way up the ladder when he is certified and gains more experience.

I fully agree with him, working conditions at sea are very difficult, just like any other job in the world. But for a start he must endure and be tenacious. During my time, there was nothing called mandatory rest hours. The Chief officer got most of the work, we (cadets) had to do the work so that his crew did not have over time. In spite of all that I stayed the course and did my job and I am here today, a ship's Captain. I must also mention, most of the work that I did then I have since put into practice and it is what I learned from the Captains and Chief Officers that I worked under.  So,it goes both ways!

So, young man hold on.