Thoughts at sea

Friday 16th April

We still have three weeks to go but we are aware now that the end of this voyage is near. When I heard the words 'We're more than half way through' last year I felt enormous regret. this year I had mixed emotions. Who could possibly turn down the opportunity to be part of such an amazing journey, almost around the world? Well certainly not George or me. We were both born wanderers, He from a very early age of moving from school to school and town to town because his father was a policeman in Essex and myself because my father was an accountant whose Bank had branches in exotic places. So we became both independent and, more important I think, adaptable. We can, to quote Joyce Askwith, (who can too), wash in a tea cup, sleep almost anywhere, (myself with the present proviso of a tolerable temperature) talk to almost anyone, eat almost anything, tolerate most bugs (except bed bugs and fleas) and actually enjoy ourselves. As one creeps unwillingly into old age some unpalatable truths become evident: we can't stay up as late as we used to or climb as many mountains (or for me 'hills'), we can't play as many sets of tennis (at least I can't), these set backs we have to accept. However, on these voyages at least we always have a comfortable, cool cabin to come 'home' to, a place to rest, a place to hide out!

Why hide out? Because I know for certain that every human being needs space to breathe, to think, to dream, to look at the sky and listen to the sea and wind and feel alone and unencumbered. To be always surrounded by people and voices and noise is, for me, to be overwhelmed. I cannot relate to every person I meet for there are some who are not kindred souls and I know it in an instant. Yet there are others I sense who have been around in my past lives, kindred spirits in dialogue and humour....those are like manna from heaven!

On a voyage like this you are facing yourself each day, you learn new things about yourself because you are a blank page to everyone else and they draw a new you, one you haven't met before and one who you don't necessarily like much. Strange but true. I have thought that perhaps the popular "reality" shows must be similar. Stick us in a community of strangers in a confined space and all sorts of warts and pimples emerge to surprise us.

One more thought....why have an internationally known Linguistics prof. on a ship and never once ask him to speak about the languages of the places we are to visit in the Global Studies class? We have discovered that language, our primary method of communication, is not valued as one of the 25 things one needs to know about when visiting a foreign country. Amazing isn't it? He was once asked to speak about the Andoman Islands....which we sailed past but did not visit...but only because someone told the person responsible that she knew 'George Thomas knows about them' when no one else did! He was asked to give a 5 minute presentation! I do wonder sometimes....

Enough said....time for bed.