Farewell Nansen
I don't normally write this blog when I'm at home but this story just feels incomplete without including my last weekend with the vessel.
On Friday morning I managed to dragged myself out of bed to watch the ship entering Walvis Bay. It was freezing cold on the deck and a fine drizzle made it even more uncomfortable but it was worth every moment. Walvis is certainly not Cape Town but I still loved seeing the lights in the dark early morning.
We were eventually alongside around seven am and then there were immigration formalities to get through and then a few of us deserted the ship to go for a legitimate drink at the Seaman's Mission. We wanted to go into town but some of the rest of the scientific group first wanted to have lunch on the ship so those of us who needed to stretch our legs took the long walk to the harbour gate, had a drink and then returned to the ship for lunch. After lunch we got our act together and went first to the Seaman's Mission for another few drinks and then walked all the way to the lagoon to see the pelicans. There was only one pelican there and a couple of flamingos and the weather was not great but the walk was good.
We stopped off at the Raft and the Yacht Club for refreshments before walking back into town to go to the Spur for dinner - we were dying for steak again! From there the plan was to go back to the ship but some of us got side-tracked into returning the the Seaman's Mission and from there moved off to a really dodgy nightclub. Eventually I pulled the plug on the evening and made the long walk back to the ship.
On Saturday, eight of us went through to Swakopmund for the day. It was a very relaxed day and we each did our own thing roaming around the town looking at the shops and the buildings and then met for lunch at the Lighthouse pub and restaurant. Swakopmund is such a beautiful town especially compared to Walvis Bay. It feels like a little piece of Europe dropped into the desert and I love the architecture. It also has a lovely walkway along the beachfront lined with palm trees.
After lunch everyone decided that there was a need to go back to the ship to have a rest before going out to dinner in the evening. We did have a quick stop on the way back next to the dunes to say that we had felt the desert sand. It definitely wasn't enough desert time so one day I will have to return again.
There was a dinner at the Raft on Saturday night for everyone on the ship. It was a fantastic evening and the food and company were superb. After we left the restaurant, some of us went to a night club because all of us women wanted to go dancing but the club's music wasn't all that appealing so then we moved onto another club but that was just plain dodgy so we took the long walk back to the ship and called it quits.
Eventually the time came for me to leave the ship on Sunday and it was a very sad day. I can't believe how quickly the last month passed. It was hard work and I loved every moment of it and I made some amazing friends who will be in my life forever. So thank you to everyone for the absolutely awesome experience and to those onboard, you all made it such a pleasure. Now I am trying to find a way back onto the ship so beware I will be back :-)
Next blog will most likely be on Sunday from Zanzibar when I get back into thinking about small-scale fisheries.
On Friday morning I managed to dragged myself out of bed to watch the ship entering Walvis Bay. It was freezing cold on the deck and a fine drizzle made it even more uncomfortable but it was worth every moment. Walvis is certainly not Cape Town but I still loved seeing the lights in the dark early morning.
We were eventually alongside around seven am and then there were immigration formalities to get through and then a few of us deserted the ship to go for a legitimate drink at the Seaman's Mission. We wanted to go into town but some of the rest of the scientific group first wanted to have lunch on the ship so those of us who needed to stretch our legs took the long walk to the harbour gate, had a drink and then returned to the ship for lunch. After lunch we got our act together and went first to the Seaman's Mission for another few drinks and then walked all the way to the lagoon to see the pelicans. There was only one pelican there and a couple of flamingos and the weather was not great but the walk was good.
We stopped off at the Raft and the Yacht Club for refreshments before walking back into town to go to the Spur for dinner - we were dying for steak again! From there the plan was to go back to the ship but some of us got side-tracked into returning the the Seaman's Mission and from there moved off to a really dodgy nightclub. Eventually I pulled the plug on the evening and made the long walk back to the ship.
On Saturday, eight of us went through to Swakopmund for the day. It was a very relaxed day and we each did our own thing roaming around the town looking at the shops and the buildings and then met for lunch at the Lighthouse pub and restaurant. Swakopmund is such a beautiful town especially compared to Walvis Bay. It feels like a little piece of Europe dropped into the desert and I love the architecture. It also has a lovely walkway along the beachfront lined with palm trees.
After lunch everyone decided that there was a need to go back to the ship to have a rest before going out to dinner in the evening. We did have a quick stop on the way back next to the dunes to say that we had felt the desert sand. It definitely wasn't enough desert time so one day I will have to return again.
There was a dinner at the Raft on Saturday night for everyone on the ship. It was a fantastic evening and the food and company were superb. After we left the restaurant, some of us went to a night club because all of us women wanted to go dancing but the club's music wasn't all that appealing so then we moved onto another club but that was just plain dodgy so we took the long walk back to the ship and called it quits.
Eventually the time came for me to leave the ship on Sunday and it was a very sad day. I can't believe how quickly the last month passed. It was hard work and I loved every moment of it and I made some amazing friends who will be in my life forever. So thank you to everyone for the absolutely awesome experience and to those onboard, you all made it such a pleasure. Now I am trying to find a way back onto the ship so beware I will be back :-)
Next blog will most likely be on Sunday from Zanzibar when I get back into thinking about small-scale fisheries.
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