Saturday, February 12, 2011

sailing at last!

"Attention all crew:  This is a drill, this is a drill, this is a drill."  The captain's voice sounds out over the loudspeaker as emergency teams rush to their muster stations and gear up.  Our team assembles as well, ready to respond to a medical emergency should the need arise.  It's a familiar sound, and a familiar action.  We've been drilling on and off since our arrival back on ship, preparing for the sail.

Except finally, we're done with preparation...it's time to sail!  After a muster with head-count, crew paused their jobs to line the rails on deck 7 and 8, and wave goodbye  to a city that has sheltered our ship for the last few months.  With the rest of the medical team, I also got to watch as our South African pilot was picked up by helicopter.

Our sail has been frequently joined by large pods of dolphins, and pilot whales, who seem very talkative and more than happy to show off and entertain the children (and adults) on board.  I'm looking forward to seeing some larger whales and flying fish as well :-)

First stop...Cape Town, South Africa!

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