From Deck Boy to Master Mariner... one of my ambitions was to sail on a Square rigger. I met Capt Lichfield in Penzance and secured a sailing as I could splice wire. I sailed on her twice before she sank, both passages on the south coast of UK. I met some lovely people and learned to be a foretopman. A memory I will never forget: We all hid our duty free beer, submerged in the bilges to avoid the customs. It wasn't until the coast was clear and whilst drinking the beer somebody pointed out that the vessel had also been a slave ship and thoughts of what had been in those bilges over the years quickly came to all of our minds. We all awoke with a hangover of course......
|