12/23/08 Malacca Strait

We are still trudging our way to Singapore. I finally got to see a little land today. We should pull into port around 1500 Christmas day.

There seems to be a little light at the end of the tunnel here. I am not sure if it is an exit or a train, but there is light there. Our hours have improved. I only work my mid - 4am and then again from 0800 - 1200. So, now I have a little work out time in the afternoons. If we only had a gym....

There is also the story that we will be reducing our manning in February. That will mean a slightly increased work load, but it will also lead to us having our own rooms! It might not sound like much, but those little things go a long way to improving quality of life issues.

Back tracking to my wanderings in Diego Garcia; There is quite a bit to do if you look around. It was very nice to get off the ship in the mornings and go for a run. A real run, not a few flights of stairs and and walk up and down the deck. And there is a world class gym there. The saying goes that you return from Diego either drunk or in shape. There are ample opportunities for both.

I went down to the Marina and checked out the boats. A kayak rental was first on the priority list. $2 for all day! LOL. I paddled up wind and then drifted back over the coral reefs. A very nice way to see the marine life. Hopefully, my pics came out. I will pick those up when we return.

The 2nd Officer that I work with, rented a Hobie Cat sail boat. We took a run out into the lagoon on it but kept that pretty short. That day was used mostly as a familiarization day. Plus, lunch time was rapidly approaching. We sailed for an hour and returned. Our tab came to $6.25! $2.25 for a beer, $2 for a coke and $2 for the sail boat! Beer more than boat. LOL Gotta love it.

They also have bikes that you can rent for $2/day or $8/week. We will hit that next time and do a little more exploring next time.

There are still many safety issues here. Today I had to go down a ladder that had approx. 35% of its steel missing! I took a couple of pics before I climbed down, just in case. ; )) Tomorrow, I am supposed to finally be able to replace some of the condemned fire extinguishers. That will help ease my mind somewhat.

Well, it's almost 1600 (4pm). Getting close to my bed time. Ciao