Vessel arriving at Port of Cork

On the 25th, Christmas morning at 6.00 a.m., the pilot boarded the ship to take it to Cork. The Port of Cork was situated up River Lee. Whilst proceeding along the river he showed us his house; it was well lit and decorated. The ship was berthed around 8.00 a.m. Paul, our purser, was busy in the first hour or so because he had to attend to inward clearance formalities.

Thereafter, the Christmas celebrations on board began! All officers and the ratings joined. The chief cook had prepared an excellent Christmas cake to go with breakfast. Around 10.00 a.m., while the party was going on, a Reverend Father boarded the vessel and joined us. He was Fr. Lennon, a Catholic priest from Cork. He had come to invite all on board for the Christmas Party in the Stella Maris Club which was also called "Anchor House”. Anchor House was the Seafarers’ club in Cork. There were many Irish girls there who worked as volunteers. It was a nice evening.

I started talking with Rose Healy one of the girls who was there. Thereafter, I met Rose a few more times until we sailed. She became a very good friend of mine. At that time, I was planning to go to the United Kingdom to Join a Nautical College, and study for my first professional exam. During those days, it was called the Second Mate’s (Foreign Going) exam. As I came from a Commonwealth country, it was necessary for me to do the exam in one of the following countries, the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand or Canada. I discussed the matter with Rose, as the Irish Nautical College was situated in Cork. One day, Rose took me to the Nautical College where I met the Principal who was kind enough to advise me on how to enroll as a bona-fide student. I collected all the necessary forms and left the college. Rose drove me around in her little Fiat 500. Thanks to her, I was fortunate enough to see some interesting places in Cork.

Voyage from Mumbai to Cork

The next voyage was from Mumbai to Cork in Ireland. It was the month of December and as the ship crossed the Suez Canal, we were beginning to feel the winter in the Mediterranean Sea. The sea was very rough. We came out of the Gibraltar straits and crossed over to the Spanish coast. Thereafter, we enjoyed good weather until the ship reached the Bay of Biscay. There we experienced precarious weather which lasted for about 18 hours. It was the 21st of December 1976, I asked the Captain, "Sir when do you think we will get to Cork?" After pondering for a few minutes, he replied "On the 24th at 24:00 hours". He said it quite confidently. True enough, the ship anchored off Cobh river entrance, exactly at 24:00 hours on the 24th of December. I still remember when the Captain ordered to drop anchor, from the dim Compass light he looked at me to say something like, "How was it, son?" It was truly a great feeling. I respect all my Captains for teaching and helping me to have a great sea career.  

                                                                 Port of Cork

River Lee - waterway to Cork 

We had a good entartainer on board.

The Third Officer on the ship was Richard Rodriguese, a Goan from India . He was a very entertaining person. The ship was on it's way to Mumbai from Kisimayo. One night at sea, he handed over to me the navigational watch at midnight and went down. After he left the navigating bridge, I heard he was playing the guitar and singing, "HONEY, YOU ARE THE REASON THAT I DON’T SLEEP AT NIGHT." I enjoyed the music and especially the song because it was very relevant to me at the time. The brief, but passionate affair with Erina was haunting my mind, specially when I was alone on the bridge during watch keeping.

I shouted out to Richie, as he was called by the Captain and other officers on board, and requested him to sing that song a few more times, just the way I had heard it. He obliged. He was truly a fantastic singer.

Great Justice!

Quite different to the JAWS OF A SHARK as found in our Courts

An Indonesian judge by the name of Marzuki was sitting in judgment of an old lady who pleaded guilty of stealing some tapioca from a plantation.

In her defense, the old lady admitted to the Judge that she was indeed guilty of the crime because she was poor and her son was sick while her grandchild was hungry.

The plantation manager insisted that she be punished as a deterrent to others.

The judge going through the documents then looked up and said to the old lady, “I’m sorry but I cannot make any exception to the Law and you must be punished accordingly”.

The old lady was fined Rp.1 million (USD 100) and if she could not pay the fine then she will be jailed for 2 1/2 years as demanded by the Law.

She wept as she could not pay the fine.

The Judge then took her hat and put in Rp.100,000 into the hat and said, “In the name of justice, I fine all present in the Court @ Rp.50,000 (USD 5.50) each as dwellers of this City for letting a child starve until her grandmother is compelled to steal to feed her grandchild.

The Registrar will now collect the fines from all present.”

The Court managed to collect Rp 3.5 million (USD 350) including the fine collected from the plantation manager, whereby the fine was paid off and the rest was given to the old lady!

Will we ever see such a thing happening in our courts ?

I've learnt.....that being kind is more important than being right.


(Copied from a circular email)

Must a Captain Be the Last One Off a Sinking Ship?

Moral Code

The Titanic's captain went down with his ship

Accounts of captains leaving their sinking ships are extremely rare but not unique.

In 1991, Yiannis Avranas, the captain of a Greek cruise liner, was also strongly criticized after leaving the ship as it started to sink off the South African coast. He said he supervised the rescue effort from a helicopter. All 561 people aboard the Oceanos were eventually rescued.

In 2000, the captain of a Greek ferry, the Express Samina, which sank killing more than 60 people, was accused of failing to help passengers flee the sinking vessel.
File photograph of the Titanic The Titanic's captain went down with his ship

A court will ultimately decide whether the captain of the Costa Concordia broke the law by leaving the ship when he did, but he certainly seems to have acted contrary to many people's ideas of how a captain should behave.

Dr Laura Rowe, a historian at the University of Exeter who specializes in naval history, says the expectation that a ship's captain would stay on board until everyone has been evacuated developed in the mid-19th Century.

"At that point, the captain is expected to have a very close affinity with the ship itself. Captains are fully expected to be the last one off, if not to go down with the ship. They are known as the 'father of the ship'," she says.

This relationship was necessary to help enforce discipline, she says.

"The sea is a treacherous place and the crew have to have faith in the captain - if discipline is undermined or breaks down, then the ship becomes a less safe place, and more people risk being injured."

Captain P.S. Barve - 40th National Maritime Day ( Repeating)

Captain P.S. Barve,(center) Former Nautical Advisor to Government of India and the Chief Examiner of Masters and Mates. I was examined for my First Mate’s orals by Capt. Barve.

PUNE: The need for a full-time Indian Maritime Service (IMS) was moderated by Captain P.S. Barve, former nautical advisor to the government of India, in his speech on 'The Maritime Vision 2027', delivered on the occasion of the 40th National Maritime Day function organised by the Indian Maritime Foundation (IMF) in the city.

According to Barve, a separate IMS was needed because the present Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers lacked sufficient maritime knowledge and expertise. Barve was of the opinion that a separate cadre of officers would help the growth of maritime activity in the country.

AND

Mrs. Kiran Dhingra, Director General of Shipping, Govt. of India, delivering her keynote address, appealed to all stake holders of the industry to be open to the idea of recruiting more girl cadets and to give up the apprehensions related to gender issues regarding the suitability of girls for an arduous career. She advised girl cadets to get into management jobs and also shore based jobs.

A panel discussion was arranged to make the seminar more interactive where in the the panelists included Mrs. Kiran Dhingra, Mrs. Anu Aga, Director Thermax Ltd, Vice Admiral (Retd) A. S. Krishnan, Mrs. Jyotsna Deshpande, Chairperson, The Institution of Engineers, Pune and Mr. Vijay Handa, VP Reliance Shipping discussed various issues and was well moderated by Capt. S. G. Deshpande of TMI.

Principal B. K. Saxena summed up the seminar and Vote of thanks was paid by Capt. P. S. Barve, Chairperson, Academic Council. 

Ship sailing out of Novoryssisks

I was happy that I could go ashore again, and meet Erina. It was a great evening, and captain, too, enjoyed the company of Erina and her family. As we were walking back to the ship, Captain said to me, "Aye Johnny boy, you are a lucky fellow, she is a good girl, and very pretty, too." When we came on board, he invited us for a shot of brandy. While having the brandy I asked if it was possible to take Erina along with me. He started to laugh and Peter joined him. He said "definitely not this time," but that he would check with the Port Immigration Officer regarding the procedure to follow in such situations. Unfortunately, it did not happen since the Captain became busy, as the ship was completing the cargo operation.

During our last meeting, Erina gave me a self addressed envelope and told me to write to her. A day after that the ship sailed from Novorossiysks. I thought the ship would return to Novorossiysks the next voyage, as well. Unfortunately that was not the case.  

I was left with Golden Memories and Silver Tears.

Meeting with Erina

When Erina said she wanted to meet me the following day; I was startled and surprised at this! It was a welcome invitation too. She was a very pretty girl. The following day, I went to the Hotel Leningrad with Peter. As we were walking up to the entrance, I looked back and saw Erina and her sister-in-law were right behind us. Erina was left with us and her sister-in-law advised me to bring her back home. I was so happy with this girl, but the problem was, Peter got bored and frustrated. That day I found him drinking much quicker than usual. He danced with Erina once and suddenly decided to leave. He told me that he would go around and look for some other place, a restaurant or a night club for a change. I remained with Erina. I took her home around 10.30 p.m. but we continued to talk while in the house. She had brought a Russian-English dictionary. From time to time she dipped into it.

The company was so good that I did not feel the time pass. It was around 11.50 p.m. when I left her and came up to the road. I started to run as I did not want to be late. Then I saw a jeep following me at slow speed. When I stopped, the jeep also came and stopped near me. There was an Army Officer seated in the front seat. He asked me where I was going. I told him "I was going to the port, to my ship." He asked the name of the ship and I said "Regent Reliance." He told me that I was going in the wrong direction and, asked me to get into the jeep that he would take me to the ship.

When I reached the ship I was 10 minutes late. The time was 12.10 p.m. The Army Officer said something to the  guard and the guard signaled me to go on board. I thanked the Officer and the two other soldiers who were in the jeep and quickly went up the gangway. As I was going up, the Army Officer told me, "In future do not get late and you must know to respect and comply with the regulations of this country." I apologized and assured him that it will not be repeated. They left and I went into the Accommodation. The Third Officer, who was on duty met me and said that the Captain was waiting for me, as I was the only person who had not returned to the ship at midnight. I knew that I was in trouble but went into the captain’s day room, anyway. When he saw me, he called me in and reprimanded me for returning late. Thereafter he showed me a form that he had signed, assuring that all the crew would comply with rules and regulations whilst in the port. The Captain took my shore pass and said "No shore leave for you until departure." He then, told me "John, you kept me awake all this time and now you must have a drink with me." It was a long drink, just like what we were used to with Capt. Willie (former Master of the ship). While having the drink with Capt. Turner, the current Master, I told him exactly what had happened. I mentioned Erina, too. When I finished with him it was around 2.00 a.m.

I stayed on board the following day and sent a message to Erina through Peter. Peter returned to the ship early and that was welcoming as I was waiting for some company. We started our evening session when the captain’s steward came and told me that the Captain was looking for me. I went up and he asked me what I was doing. I said "I was just about to have a drink with Peter." Then he told me to invite Peter also to join us. The three of us had a small party and it went on till about midnight. At that time the Captain checked with the Duty Officer about the crew who had gone ashore. The Duty officer reported that all were on board and with that we called it a day.

Captain Turner called me in the morning and returned my shore pass and said that he would be joining us in the night. That evening again we met Erina, her brother and sister-in-law at the Hotel Leningrad. I introduced them to the Captain, and he invited them to join us; they accepted his invitation.

Music was good as usual and we danced. Erina whispered to me and asked if we could go and sit somewhere else as she wanted to talk to me. Since it was difficult to do so, we continued to be in the company of others until all of us had dinner and left the place.

Meeting with a Russian family at the Hotel Leningrad

Peter and I were seated at a table on the mezzanine floor of the Hotel Leningrad. From where we were seated, we had an excellent view of the band stand and partial view of the dance floor, below. The stewards and stewardesses were coming to us, one after the other, to check on our order. Peter was getting restless; we couldn’t order anything, because we did not have the local currency with us, to settle the bill.  After a little while, we found that we could exchange Dollars into local currency at the Hotel but the rate was not so good! We needed the money, so we exchanged some dollars anyway. We had money for the evening, and definitely some extra, too.  

We were relieved, and I was happy now, as we had enough money to settle our bills. Without wasting time, we ordered for a bottle of Vodka with grapefruit juice and, guzzled down a few, very rapidly. A few minutes later, two young ladies and two men came up. As there was no table for all of them to sit they were standing near us and was watching the band playing and the people dancing downstairs. Peter told one of the men, if the ladies wished, they could occupy the vacant chairs of our table.  The ladies, before the man could even decide, turned around and sat with us. One of the ladies was smoking, and Peter offered cigarettes to the other. She declined, but the lady who was smoking asked if we had Marlboro cigarettes. I immediately gave one of the Rothmans. She was delighted and started examining the sides of the packet.

Now that we were rich with local currency, we offered drinks to the ladies and the men. One of the ladies who smoked, poured a drink and gave the bottle and glasses to the men. With that, the bottle was almost over and Peter ordered another one. The young lady was given a cup of coffee. After having about two drinks Peter and I started talking with them. The young girl who was seated next to me introduced herself as Erina. The other lady was her sister in law and one of the men was her brother and other one was a family friend. A little while later Erina’s brother called his wife and Erina to go downstairs to dance. Soon after, they left the table and I too went down to the restroom. When I was walking up, Erina’s brother signaled to me to come down. When I went up to them he said, "This is my sister, you dance with her but do not try to be funny." I understood his message and said "Yes" and joined them in dancing. When we finished and came up, Peter had been wondering what had happened to me! After another round of drinks Erina's sister-in-law invited us to their house. We left the place after settling the bill.

After about a 20 minute walk we entered a housing scheme. We continued drinking and eating the sandwiches offered by them. Peter was in good spirits and started singing Sinhala pop songs and I too joined him. It was about 11.30 p.m and it was time for us to leave as we had about a 30-minute walk to the ship.

As we were leaving Erina told me that she would like to meet me, the following day at the same place.