Location: Cocoa Point, Barbuda
Greetings, avid blog readers. I have returned as I promised to write you another blog. However, I must warn you that this will be my last one on the trip. Please allow yourself a few minutes to process that thought, maybe get yourself consoled by a nearby loved one, some cuddles with your pet, eat some chocolate, however, best you see fit……..okay that’s enough time let us start. It’s day 69. Let me tell you some fun facts about the number 69. It’s a semiprime, that’s about it, really.
Right here we go, so Barbuda is where we are, Cocoa point, to be precise, however after nearly 48 hours here, I’m yet to see any Cocoa. Hopefully, it will arrive soon as my personal chocolate stash is diminishing by the day. Let me tell you about Barbuda, though. It is Flaaaaaaaat, imagine the flattest thing you can, then make it even flatter, then times that by 10, and well, that would be as flat as the Earth at that point. I strongly believe if we were to venture the other side of Barbuda, that would in fact be the edge of this big flat world as we know it, so for the safety of the crew, I have decided to anchor on the side we sit currently, no falling into space for us. It’s also home to the largest frigate bird colony in the western hemisphere.
So here goes, finally the day and what we got up to. It was a shockingly early morning wake-up for the crew of Ocean Star, and a sneaky rescue scenario was set up. After the announcement by Zoe to the crew that we had a missing diver, they began emerging out on deck to kick start the action plan they had in place. Ash was out on the surface panicking, Calum was nowhere to be seen, and Isabel was, well, floating around. Once the plan kicked in and divers were kitting up and entering the water, I decided more was needed, so I went into a role I play rather well, a role that has been described as “That Guy is a Pain in the Ass” it’s a role that honestly I have heard people suggest I should win an Oscar for, anyway after a brief search for Calum and helping the rest of the injured divers back to the boat we managed to get on with breakfast, which was a delicious treat of pancakes and smorgasbord of fruit, quite delicious.
The day then splits largely into groups of Navigation practice and diving. The Navmaster Exam looms just over the horizon for the shipmates. Will their set be off, or even the drift, a meer degree off could spell disaster for the imaginary Ocean Star on the Chesapeake Bay, only those who studied hard will be award the title of Supreme Navigation Commander, Nah it’s just called Navmaster but mines better. The dive groups proved a rest-bite from the last-minute Navmaster practice. Those that ventured out to the chocolatey point were rewarded with a plethora of life, including eagle rays, stingrays, parrotfish, trunkfish, shrimps, crabs, and so on. Lunch was a usual affair, as we all laid out in the baking sun eating our chip butties, well I made a chip butty, for those who don’t understand that it’s simply french fries in a roll/sandwich type concoction, quite delicious.
Dinner time was business as usual. The chefs finished, the gophers gophed, the meal was briefed, the starting pistol went off, and the herd began feeding, truly a beautiful sight to behold. After dinner, people went about whatever they saw fit; some studied, some went to sleep, some stayed awake to chat. All I know for sure is we have reached the end of my blogs for this trip.
Goodbye, farewell, see ya, all the best, laterz, cheerio, ta ta and have a nice day.
Caption 1 – The End of the World
Caption 2 – All thumbs up from Will
Caption 3 – Mike receives his divorce papers. Finally, he’s free from Luke
Caption 4 – Luke Preparing ratchets in order to get Mike back
Caption 5 – Dinghy full of people informing me they wish to ascend.