Day 162

23rd September - Sailing the Indian Ocean

01 View from the bridge

Today I watched some movies. Oscar winning "The Departed" was the pick. While going up the stairs I crossed the Chief Officer. He's second in command and the crew had told me he was the most talkative/friendly one of the officers. He asked me why I hadn't been up to the Bridge yet. I was a bit embarrassed that I hadn't ventured up and arranged on the stairs to go up at 4pm when he was back on duty. I had been right up to the door of the Bridge before but declined to go in because of the frosty reception I'd felt from the officers. I suppose I was just being daft but there we are - that's why.

02 Video - 180 degrees panorama at the horizon

I got into the Bridge and had a good look around at the instruments and maps they had in there. It was very high tech and I enjoyed asking questions about the route and our progress. The Captain was listening to a radio in the corner and I asked the Chief Officer what it was. It was news broadcasts of shipping and weather. That prompted me to ask about the fire I'd seen yesterday. "Passenger Ferry, six dead, hundreds rescued from a fire on board" he told me in his Russian/English accent. I was shocked as I'd originally mistook it for something more innocent. I've just googled it and I'm afraid it was more than six dead (see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/6384859.stm for the full story). Incidentally, if we had been first on the scene then we would have had to join the troubled boat and aid the rescue. I'm glad that was something I didn't have to experience.