Goodbye to calm sea
The sea was generally calm as we sailed through the Straits of Malacca. As we approached the tip of Sumatra, I could feel the slight gentle roll of the ship. I observed some swell on the sea. A little balancing was required. The old sea hands had mentioned about ‘sea legs’. Some birds were still flying around especially at the ship stern. There were still some ships in sight.
The emptiness of the vast ocean.
As the ship passed the northern tip of Sumatra, she turned port on westerly heading towards Colombo. The land disappeared from the horizon as the ship entered the Bay of Bengal. For the first time in my life, I understood the meaning of the emptiness of the vast ocean. I thought of those brave ancient mariners who sailed into the unknown. All they had were some rudimentary navigational equipment but abundant of courage and hope to fulfil and prove the theories were correct.
2nd day Bay of Bengal.
The sky was overcast with grey clouds and the ship sailed alone in the Bay of Bengal. The sea swell had become larger with ‘white horses’ and the ship rolled even more. Not only that, when it hit a big swell, the ship pitched up and down. Increasing, it became difficult to walk on the deck without the balancing act. My stomach was upset and loss my appetite completely. The discomfort get worst by the hours. Soon, I was running to the heads to puke. I lost count of the number of times I puked. I wasn’t alone suffering. Most of my mates suffered the same fate and wondered why we choose the navy to suffer.
The sea was generally calm as we sailed through the Straits of Malacca. As we approached the tip of Sumatra, I could feel the slight gentle roll of the ship. I observed some swell on the sea. A little balancing was required. The old sea hands had mentioned about ‘sea legs’. Some birds were still flying around especially at the ship stern. There were still some ships in sight.
The emptiness of the vast ocean.
As the ship passed the northern tip of Sumatra, she turned port on westerly heading towards Colombo. The land disappeared from the horizon as the ship entered the Bay of Bengal. For the first time in my life, I understood the meaning of the emptiness of the vast ocean. I thought of those brave ancient mariners who sailed into the unknown. All they had were some rudimentary navigational equipment but abundant of courage and hope to fulfil and prove the theories were correct.
2nd day Bay of Bengal.
The sky was overcast with grey clouds and the ship sailed alone in the Bay of Bengal. The sea swell had become larger with ‘white horses’ and the ship rolled even more. Not only that, when it hit a big swell, the ship pitched up and down. Increasing, it became difficult to walk on the deck without the balancing act. My stomach was upset and loss my appetite completely. The discomfort get worst by the hours. Soon, I was running to the heads to puke. I lost count of the number of times I puked. I wasn’t alone suffering. Most of my mates suffered the same fate and wondered why we choose the navy to suffer.
Cure for sea sickness.My Inche assigned us ship duties to keep us mentally and physically occupied. He told me that I must continue to eat even if I was going to puke. As I was helpless, I took his fatherly advice. I ate and puked. The sea conditions got worst and there was also rain. The ship rolled as much as 30 degrees on both side and the pitching become more violent each time when the bow hit big waves. Staying in the cabin was the worst. The best place was to remain on the main deck with fresh air. Some of my colleagues were now totally a mental wrecked confined to the bunk listlessly. I continue to stay and did my assigned duties, ate and puked. The feeling was really terrible and really regretted joining the Navy.
3 days of puking
Yes, I puked for 3 full days and then miracle happened. The sea sickness just left me and I was back to my old self. Most of my peers too recovered. In spite of the pitch and roll, I realised I had found my 'sea legs'. I never got sea sick again in my entire NS. By now I could console my sea sick friends and also disturbed one very arrogant mate who used to boast of his martial arts experience. I remembered teasing him and he begged me not to disturb him. Sea sickness is such a helpless ordeal. Going through it was like the end of the world. There was no escape from the high seas. This compound the mental agony of helplessness.
The Ocean
By now, I was able to appreciate the vastness of the ocean as well as the power of nature. At night, I could see more stars than anytime I had at home. On board the ship, I appreciate how important each crew was to the ship. Working in cramp environments especially getting to the engine room through the shaft was dangerous. At night, if any crew fell overboard, it was as good as saying permanent goodbye. So it was very important for the crew to observed safety seriously and looking after one another. As officer, the safety of the ship and crew are paramount with no compromise. That was the training and exposure we the midshipmen were supposed to appreciate and learn.
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