Location: Underway to Palau
What a day. Today we left our second home in Denarau and set sail for Palau! As excited as we are to finally be on our way and get the passage that we’ve been anxiously awaiting, leaving Fiji was a bit sad for some of us. For the staff, Fiji has been a home for over three months, and for the students aboard, it’s been home for 49 days. We’ve fallen in love with the country and are so grateful that they let us in, especially when times are so tough with COVID still running rampant. We’re also hugely thankful to our friends Geoff and Waqa for everything they’ve done for Argo and her crew over the last few months!
Shortly after breakfast cleanup, a Fijian customs agent came aboard and gave us the go-ahead to leave the dock and, ultimately, Fijian waters. The highlight of my day was Tim allowing me to take Argo off the dock and kick off our three-week passage. I loved every second of it, so much so that when I started to feel a sunburn developing, I wouldn’t move the five feet to the other side of the cockpit to grab sunscreen because I didn’t want to give up the helm just yet. As we rounded the channel, a Disney music singalong ensued, led by Ky and E. Max, the Disney enthusiast that he is, was also a big contributor to this party, serenading us all with his lovely, lovely vocals.
Next on our agenda was lunch. Cole was head chef, and he made some delicious English muffin pizzas. While these were truly scrumptious, he has instructed me to write about a meal he made exactly 25 days ago. He has requested that I compliment him on the cheese he made. As impressive as it is to make cheese from scratch on Argo, no one was more impressed nor as pleased as Cole was with himself…
Mid-afternoon, as the swells began to get a bit bigger, many of us began to fall ill. Release our innards to the sea, per s. The staff warned us from day one that we’d all get seasick, but I didn’t believe them one bit. I thought I had a stomach of steel and an unbreakable determination to ward off the nausea. I thought wrong. Very wrong… While many of us were feeling a bit worse than subpar, there was one brave soul among us who shone the brightest. Caleigh Thompson: The walking talking definition of a boot and rallier. She was among the first to succumb to the motion of the ocean, but amidst the bouts of chundering as Tim would put it, she did a BOAT CHECK! For those who might not know what a boat check is: it is potentially the worst thing you could do in terms of seasickness, and therefore the most impressive. You have to complete a checklist requiring you to go to the salon, the galley, the heads, and worst of all, the engine room – all while trying to convince yourself that seasickness is merely a mental game. As a well-seasoned college student, it means something when I say I’ve never seen such a valiant display of a boot and rally.
While many of us were drowning in self-pity, the rest of the crew showed real team spirit and selflessness as they picked up the slack by taking extra jobs and helping us folks who sought refuge at the cap rail by bringing us water and bland cookies. Watch Team 1 took over the deck as their watch began and set us rolling on our three-week-long rotation of long watch shifts. After just one day at sea, we’re already a more tightly-knit group. We’ve got such a solid group here on Argo, and I’m beyond grateful to be a part of it. I wouldn’t change a thing, except maybe I would’ve taken a bit of Dramamine this morning…
Side note – HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ALLIE BEANS!!! 24!! I love you to the moon and back and back again <3
Also! We miss you, Bridget!
Current position:
1736.97’S
17644.32’E
Pictured:
1. A polaroid that Kylie took of the crew in Denarau right before we left port
2. Steph, Annie, and E working on charting for Nav Master
3. Tim coaching me through getting Argo off the dock and starting our passage!! (Look for this photo in tomorrow’s blog!)