A glance over the Register of Marriages reveals how often during those "days of yore" passengers took the opportunity to celebrate the start of their new lives at sea. Nowadays, however, it is fashionable to get married or renew marriage vows on a relaxing freestyle cruise on a mail ship, ocean liner or tramp steamer.
(PRWEB) December 6, 2004 -- Centuries ago freighters were the only ships offering travel overseas. A glance over the Register of Marriages reveals how often during those "days of yore" passengers took the opportunity to celebrate the start of their new lives at sea. Nowadays, however, it is fashionable to get married or renew marriage vows on a relaxing freestyle cruise on a mail ship, ocean liner or tramp steamer. On the following photo (1) Captain Dieter Zengel officiates the golden anniversary vows between Wally and Christine Beard of Marietta, GA, USA aboard the German freighter "P&O Nedlloyd Hunter Valley" off the coast of Western Australia, March 21, 2004 while sailing around the world.
Often, a simple reason for some people to travel by freighter is the stimulus these voyages provide for their work on various projects. Photo 2: Opening his around-the-world tour, during which he wrote "Following the Equator", Mark Twain with his wife Olivia, daughter Clara and their friends Major and Mrs. Pond, aboard the 3,528-ton "Warrimoo" of the Canadian-Australian Royal Mail Steamship Company on the day of departure from Victoria, BC to Australia, August 23, 1895.
And the following story from the same ship, but a few years later, will certainly entertain you this holiday season. If you are one of those people who thinks New Year's Eve is a bit of a bore, why not avoid it? Like the Captain who missed the party! All you need to do is steer a ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, close to the International Date Line. This way you can begin the New Year in a hurry, forgetting about New Year's Eve altogether. Its been done often!
The night was warm and inviting and the stars shone in all their tropical brilliance. Captain Phillips relaxed in a dark corner of the bridge, quietly puffing a cigar with all the contentment that comes to a sailor when he knows the voyage is half over. His ship, the "Warrimoo", was gliding through the waters of the mid-Pacific on her way from Vancouver, BC to Australia when the navigator brought him their ship's position.
It was latitude 0 degrees 30 minutes North and longitude 179 degrees 30 minutes West. The date was December 30, 1899. First Mate Dayldon exclaimed, ‘Captain, do you know what this means? Were only a few miles from the intersection of the Equator and the International Date Line.
Captain Phillips knew exactly what it meant, and he was enough of a practical joker to take advantage of an opportunity to achieve the navigational freak of a lifetime. While an ordinary crossing of the Date Line is confusing enough for passengers, the possibilities he had before him were sure to confound them for the rest of their lives. He immediately summoned four more navigators to the bridge to check and double-check the ship's position every few minutes. He altered course ever so slightly to bear directly on his mark. Then he carefully adjusted the engine speed so that he would strike it at just the right moment.
The calm weather, the clear night and the eager cooperation of his entire crew worked very much in his favor. On the dot of midnight local time, the "Warrimoo" lay precisely on the Equator, exactly at the point where it crosses the International Date Line! This has a number of very interesting consequences. If the Date Line is crossed just as midnight strikes, December 31 never really happens. The date immediately jumps to January 1.
In addition, as with the "Warrimoo", once the Date Line is crossed at the Equator, for a moment the bow of the ship is in the Southern Hemisphere, where it is summer, while the stern is in the Northern Hemisphere, where it is winter. On this occasion the ship was not only on two different days, during two different months and two different years, in two different seasons, it was also in two different centuries - all at the same time! Captain Phillips said later: "I have never heard of it happening before and I guess it won't happen again for another one hundred years."
By traveling the other way, of course, party-goers can enjoy two New Year's Eve Parties." said Capt. Ranko Zunic, President of Maris Freighter Cruises, "On a freighter, even the routine is extraordinary. The pace is relaxed. The mood is informal. And passengers feel as if they were sailing on their own private yacht, in control of their time on board and in port."
About Maris Freighter Cruises:
Maris Freighter Cruises, since 1993, incorporates The Freighter Travel Club, since 2002 (established 1958), is the market leader and one of the most successful independent freighter cruise specialists. Visit their website or ask for their magazine, and you'll learn how to:
· Get on a 40-day freighter cruise to South America this winter for US$60 per day.
· Sail on a Royal Mail Ship or tramp steamer.
· Travel on a modern containership around-the-world, east- or west-bound at any time during the year.
Maris Freighter Cruises
215 Main Street
Westport CT 06880
1 203 222-1500 or 1 800 996-2747
www.freightercruises.com
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