Besides being labeled "Pretzel Day", the big event was to be sailing towards Null Island, which really does not exist. Go figure…… This is the so- called location where the latitude and longitude are at zero degrees or where the Equator and the Prime Meridian intersect. Obviously, this occurs in the ocean where it cannot be marked, although there is (or was) a weather monitoring station called Soul Buoy that was here a few years ago. It used to stand out of the water by 4 meters or over 12 feet, but is no longer seen. We did this same exercise last year with the same results. Now the humorous thing is that we watched many folks come outside to look for this buoy. Captain Friso slowed the ship down around 2pm, and warned all of us that we may feel some abnormal vibrations in the ship caused by waves pounding the sides of the bow. He was right. Around 2:15pm, we heard him sound the horn, assuming he had stopped at the exact co-ordinates. Those guests with GPS devices would be able to track the progress we think. In addition, last year Captain Frank was able to center the ship at the exact intersection, putting us in 4 different zones so to speak.
The bow was opened prior to the stopping of the ship, which must have been oppressively hot, especially with no breeze. There was a Lido Poolside bit of fun where guests who were willing could have the chance to partake in the "Null Island Pool Jump". This would be a celebration of becoming Emerald Shellbacks, of which we are already members. Now we have two certificates each to prove it. Captain Friso admitted that it took him 22 years at sea before he became an Emerald Shellback. Perhaps there are two ways to look at this "adventure". It could be viewed as a once-in-a-lifetime experience or much ado about nothing. If nothing else, it was something different to do on another day at sea. It was entertaining watching the ship spinning 360 degrees to achieve the 0/0 degree markings before we went back to the designated direction towards Ghana. The good news was that we picked up more of a breeze again as it was blistering hot today.
The other news from Captain Friso was that Ghana has been having a heatwave with hot and humid temps over 90 degrees. There is a 5% chance of thunderstorms as well. Rain would probably be welcomed. The swells would remain at 5 to 6 feet with winds the same as today. Yesterday, the Captain mentioned that there were some windy conditions in the area of The Gambia, our next port. He was worried that it may give them problems getting into the dock area. Perhaps he was just thinking out loud, as he sometimes does.
So here is a bit of info on Ghana. The capital of the country is Accra and the population is 28 million. It is nick-named the African country for beginners. Known as the west coast's golden child, Ghana has a historic culture and natural attractions. The Europeans powers discovered that this country would be good for dominance of the trade industry of the Gold Coast and the Gulf of Guinea. So the Portuguese, Dutch and Brits built coastal forts in the 17th century. Or should we say, the Portuguese built them, then the Dutch and Brits took them over. There are also nice beaches, diverse wildlife, and rich culture, not always good history, but so be it.
The coastline where Takoradi is located is near forests of cocoa and rubber plantations. During the right season, you can see turtles, humpback and sperm whales from the windswept Cape Three Points. A town called Busua is near Takoradi and is a magnet for backpackers where they frequent bars, cafes, and the beaches. Surfing is a big draw with schools for beginners. On the negative side, this country is also known for the slave holding sites of the past – a horrifying history.
Food and drink include fiery sauces on everything with oily soups being the norm. It is served with a starchy rice, cassava, plantains and yams. Chinese and Indian cuisine are popular in the restaurants. These days, sushi and hamburgers are served everywhere. The most common dish is a spicy stew of groundnut paste, ginger cooked with fish or meats. Common ingredients of tomatoes, ginger, garlic, chili peppers, onions and palm nut are used in stews and soups. Add rice, beans and fermented corn meal and you have a meal.
A few more tidbits were added with Kimberly's lecture on Ghana. The port of call, Takoradi, has a sister city 11km away called Sekondi. Between the two cities, the population is 250,000 people that speak some English, but many other dialects as well. The local currency is 13.51 Ghanaian Cedi which equals $1 USD. The most common credit card accepted is Visa, and the vendors and taxi drivers will take US dollars. The largest industries are fishing, timber, cocoa, plywood, ship-building and crude oil. And probably tourism.
Besides taking our usual walks and a visit to the Seaview Pool, we did not do very much today. It was just too darned hot, so we caught up on TV news, reading, and relaxing on the veranda drinking sodas. Lunch turned out to be snacks and apples, because we wanted to be hungry for dinner in the Pinnacle Grill at 8pm.
After a hidden sunset with some after color, we headed off to dinner. For a change, most of the tables were full. We understand there was an African dinner pop-up last night, which usually fills this venue better than a regular evening. Perhaps there are folks like us that have complimentary dinners to use. Anyway, we had our usual wedge salads with clothes line bacon served with the salads. We like to cut it up and eat it on top of our salads. Really good. Our entrees were the rib eye steaks once again, but they kindly cut one in half, so our serving size was more manageable. We added one large serving of skinny fries to share. Dessert was ice cream and sorbet with some fresh berries. Perfect.
What was also perfect was the fact the clocks went back one hour tonight. We'll gladly take that. On the World Stage was an instrumentalist, Gary Sletcher, with deep blues on the high seas – a journey from Africa to the music of New Orleans.
Bill & Mary Ann
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