Welcome FOM 17!
Location: Darwin Habor, Australia
Hi everyone, and welcome to the Argo Fall Oceanmester Trip Log. After many hours of cleaning, provisioning, and prepping, the staff of Argo is happy to welcome 26 new shipmates to Argo. I am Lindsay, and I teach Marine Biology as well as manage the trip log and social media posts. Every day, you'll be hearing from our Skipper of the Day, who is in charge of making sure everything runs smoothly as well as documenting what we did during the day.
Just after lunch, our students started to arrive. Some have been in Australia for weeks, some have just arrived, some came with family, some without, but all enjoyed a dinghy ride out to the harbor where they boarded their new home/mode of transport/classroom/etc. After unpacking, shipmates wandered around, learning the layout of the boat, and chatted with their future friends. What does a bunch of people who have never met talk about? Why the Game of Thrones finale, of course!
The first day is always exciting if a bit overwhelming. For many, this is their first time living aboard a boat or living in such close quarters with this many people. There certainly are plenty of names to learn! Things we take for granted on land, like using the bathroom or opening the fridge, now require a whole new set of instructions. The first day is just about learning the essentials of how to survive your first night. Tomorrow we will go through most of our introductions, and hopefully, some of it will stick.
Our new group of shipmates certainly is a diverse group. We have students from all over the United States and one from Mexico. Students who are still in high school to those who have left college. Students who are studying Marine Biology, Communications, Engineering, and beyond. Students who have been sailing all their lives to those who have never stepped foot on a boat. Students who are scuba instructors to those who are about to discover a whole new world. We've got some of everything with these students, and each one makes this crew that much more amazing. We can't wait to get to know everyone and see how they will contribute their own unique selves to what is bound to be a fantastic trip.
SY Argo with 33 souls on board wishing us fair winds and following seas. Keep an eye out on Facebook and Instagram, as well as here on the Trip Log for updates.