13 May 1999
Here I am on my third ship, the Ntabeni. We flew to Durban on 13 May to join the ship. I went to visit my parents and Gav went to the ship.

We came to the ship on Sunday 16 May with my two nephews. What an experience for them to be on the ship while it is shifting from one berth to another. On the Monday night we went to a braai at the second engineers (Eric) house in Durban. It is such a pity that his wife is not on the ship too.

We eventually left Durban on the 18th at 22h00. Gav only got to bed at about four in the morning. I had my first swim in the pool and it was rather nice. I don't think that I will be able to run on the deck this time as the ship has much narrower decks than the Cape Infanta and they are oily, so will be slippery.

19 May 1999
We had our first fire drill today. So at the sound of the bell it was to the bridge for me with my bulky life jacket. Nothing else very exciting to report. Tonight we had a bar supper, i.e. help yourself and eat in the officers lounge and socialise a bit with everyone - what a nice change form eating by ourselves all the time.

23 May 1999
Yesterday we had our weekly fire drill and then a demonstration on how to work some fire safety equipment. On the way to the meeting place I slid down the stairs and today have rather stiff arms from the unexpected work that they had to do to keep me from falling - oh how clumsy I can be, stupid, silly me. We watched a taped rugby match in the captain's cabin last night and I think that the guys enjoyed themselves very much. Tomorrow we are having a lunch time braai and a supper one too.

24 May 1999
Today is the first day of not such great weather. But it isn't really that bad. The braai yesterday was very pleasant. It is so nice to have so many people onboard to talk to. There are six cadets (one of them is female) and the electrician and the second as well as the third mate are also one of us, this all makes for a more fun filled time and more people to talk to.

So far we have been having a really pleasant trip. The ship is a thousand times nicer than the Cape Infanta. I have used the pool twice and both Gav and I have been in the sauna every day so far. The pool is fresh water and heated so gives a really pleasant swim. The only problem is that it has waves due to the rolling of the ship. So I have to be careful about swallowing the water as I breath while doing freestyle. There are also a few exercise things on the ship - but are all broken.

Food is just the same. I think that all the cooks learn their bad habits from each other. Our cabin is really smart and a lot cleaner than the last ship. There are no other wives on the ship but there is a female cadet - better than nothing. There are six cadets on the ship in all. Gav is really pleased that his second engineer is South African. He says it is really nice to work with someone that knows what they are doing and understands instructions. Not like the non English speaking engineers. There seem to be so many people on the ship. Twenty-eight in total. Gav says he hasn't seen so many faces on a ship in a very long time.

At the moment Gav is building his model plane. I have started a paint by number (cheating I know, but I really enjoy it all the same.) I have also made a pair of pants on the over locker and read one book. I plan to begin some fabric painting in the next few days too. There are nearly eight hundred videos on the ship - that is six everyday if I want to see them all - no thanks. There is also a fairly big selection of books to read. So I'll have plenty to read at least.

Our first port of call is Jakarta in Indonesia. I think that we are due to arrive there on the 2nd of June. I think that we will be there for about two days. Then it is on to Korea to a place called Busan and then Inchon, Pohang and Ulsan. It takes about a week from Indonesia to Korea. We also start pirate watch about two days before Jakarta. It seems as if piracy is a really big problem in the east. Apparently two of the crew patrol the decks all the time. The fire hose is laid out on the deck to spray a pirate with the high pressure water if they attempt to get on the ship. All rather scary in my opinion.

25 May 1999
Not really that much news, we have rolled like mad today and it doesn't look as if it is going to clear up at all tonight. I thought that we would have a tropical sea voyage, boy was I wrong. Apparently there are huge hurricanes to avoid when we get closer to the east.

28 May 1999
The weather has been so bad that we are now only due in Jakarta on the 3rd rather than the second. The ship rolled the whole night last night. At one time I counted 36 roller coaster rolls in a row and then a short break and it all started again. The ship is still rolling and it is quite difficult to type when the chair is sliding towards and then away form the keyboard. Yesterday we went to have a sauna and the pool was so rough that the water was getting thrown out in huge waves. I have decided that I'll have to get an exercise video as I can't run and when the weather is bad swim either. So I will finally be bopping to some model's exercise tape.

31 May 1999
We are still experiencing rather bad weather. But it has improved a little. Maybe tonight we will even be able to sleep a little bit. Yesterday being Sunday we had a bar lunch. It was really nice. I sat with everyone in the lounge all afternoon and had a lot of fun (and only two Cokes). I have only ever had one hangover in my life and it was so horrible that I never intend having another one ever again.

We are still rolling like mad. Can't wait to get to Jakarta and get a night's sleep. At times we have been rolling at more than a 30 degree angle. It feels as if we are going to roll right over. I am having a really nice time with all the extra people on the ship. Unfortunately they will all be getting off in Richard's Bay.

6 June 1999
It seems as if ages have gone by since my last entry. We arrived in Jakarta on the 3rd of June and only spent a day and a half there. We arrived at about midday and of course this was too late to try to get ashore. But like so many other places the hawkers set up shop on the deck near the gangway. I think they must be the first to rush up the gangway once it is lowered. Gavin and I went to go and see what they had to sell. When we stepped onto the deck they immediately surrounded us and began with "madam look at this - genuine, good price." But of course whatever they are showing you is not genuine and they are asking about three times the correct price. They continue to harass you in this way until you are so claustrophobic that you have to get back into the accommodation to get away from them. The types of things that they are selling are what looks like carvings of dolphins and other animals in a darkish wood, but when you really examine them they are made of some kind of plastic and very cleverly varnished. Other things for sale are jeans and shirts as well as shoes. Then there are paintings done on velvet. They also have perfume and watches and CD's - of course all of them are copies. I bought a few of the paintings, with the usual bartering and arguing about the prices. According to the travel pamphlets I found in the cabin one should not pay more than half the original asking price of these things.

Gavin and I went ashore on Friday to try to get some video machines for the ship. A rather scary experience going on the streets. There is traffic everywhere and it seems as if there are no rules (every person for themselves, this means lots of hooting and weaving in and out). There are millions of cars, trucks and motorbikes all spewing out exhaust fumes so that you can hardly breathe. I think that I would have a nervous breakdown if I had to drive with all these maniacs. The other really disgusting thing is the open sewers that wend themselves to the sea. The children (and adults I am sure) simply squat at the riverside and a couple of metres down someone is swimming or washing clothes - how disgusting. The place really smells and to top it all off it is really hot. We were taken to a shopping mall first and found absolutely nothing to buy - just the usual shopping mall type things. The only thing of interest was an exercise machine. But the guy wanted us to pay and then he will deliver to the ship. We were worried that we would not ever see the machine and we would sail away with 300 dollars less and no exercise machine. We then went to a market to see what they had to offer. This was a much better shopping bet, but by now Gavin was getting a little worked up about getting back to the ship. So we rushed into a few shops and then back to the ship. We did manage to get a pair of slops for me as mine broke the other day.

Once back at the ship I went back to the hawkers to see what they were selling. Because the ship was due to sail in three hours the prices had dropped considerably and so I bought some batik shirts, socks for Gav and some CD's. We left at about 22h00 (not to the displeasure of anyone).

We are now about to cross the equator (we are in the South China Sea at the moment) and the weather is very calm and very hot. It is Sunday today and so we are all having a quiet and relaxing day. I think that we are having a bar lunch today - yay. All that is different from ordinary lunch is that you eat on your lap in the lounge. What is nice is that everyone gets together and has a rather merry time of the rest of the afternoon.

10 June 1999
Only three days until we arrive in Inchon. Apparently we will be there for about four days. I really hope so because then Gavin can go ashore without too much stress about leaving the ship. Not really that much news today. The weather is still hot hot hot, and the sea still very calm. Apparently the water is about 31 degrees - like having a bath.

13 June 1999
We arrived in Inchon this morning (Sunday). We went to anchor until mid morning. Of course the fishing gear appeared and Eric (second engineer) caught two stone fish, both of eating size. The pilot arrived and took us to anchor just outside the lock. We eventually went through the lock at 7pm. We have not been ashore yet - I am hoping to go tomorrow. I think it is going to be nicer than Jakarta - hopefully a little cleaner. There is a big American military/navy base here so we get a little bit of US television in the evening. It is not as hot here as we are a lot further north than Jakarta was. So the temperature is rather pleasant - not too hot and not too cold.

The eight days here we very nice, with calm and warm weather. I wish it could always be like that. Gavin showed me what is called the gallery. This is a long passage that runs from the accommodation to the front of the ship alongside all the holds. So this passage is underneath the deck and literally underwater. I got the opportunity to go into the holds from here. Gav says that they used to play baseball in an empty hold while at sea. I wish that we could too, but these days no one seems interested.

A ditty I found in the cabin:

Today I went ashore with Louise (cadet), Mark (cadet) and Hellmut (third mate). After the 3 km walk to the gate and changing some money we went into a small restaurant to get some lunch. Of course no one can speak English and don't even think of trying to get an English menu. So we looked at what everyone else had to eat, pointed at something that looked nice and ordered that. We ended up with a big pan filled with all sorts of goodies to cook at our table on a single gas burner. We were each given a small bowl of rice and some other small bowls of other unidentifiable things, one was brinjals, and another pickled cabbage called kimchi (very hot). The pan had noodles, chicken, and other things that are totally foreign to me. But all the same the meal was very nice. We sat on the floor at one of those very low tables and had to take our shoes off - hee hee. After lunch we went shopping in what is called the subway. This is a maze of stalls underneath the main road and stretches on forever. At the end is a huge department store which is sort of like a hypermarket. I think that Korea is rather expensive so didn't buy anything other than a CD. When we had finished looking at all the shops we walked to the seaman's mission, phoned home and caught a bus back to the ship.

When I arrived back at the ship I went looking for Gavin. He was on the poop deck having a beer with some of the others and was just getting ready to go ashore with the captain and the second engineer. So after a quick shower it was back to the long walk to the gate (no taxis are allowed into the harbour and you can't contact the mission bus to fetch you. There is a small shop just inside the gate. We stopped here and had a drink and a chat. After about two hours the captain came back to the ship and Gav, Eric and I went into town for supper. By now it was about 9pm and the shops were beginning to close. We found a place to eat, again no English so we have no idea what we ate. One of the things was disgusting. It looked like a slice of raw potato dipped into something - it was really foul. We then walked around a bit more and began the long walk back to the ship. I think that I should mention I have a big blister on each foot.

15 June 1999
Today I went ashore again. The captain gave me 150 dollars to buy videos. So the galley boy and the two Namibian cadets and I went to get some movies for the ship. The captain had also given them 150 dollars for movies (heaps of videos to buy). The video shop is in the subway, the agent gave us a lift to the subway so at least we did not have to walk all the way there. I must have taken about two hours to choose all the videos. I then left the videos at the shop and walked around a bit, then fetched my bags and went to the mission (not to mention I got lost and no one could help. Luckily I had a map with me and I eventually found the place). The mission bus was only going to the harbour at 3pm so I had an hour's wait. I read the newspaper and a magazine while I waited. While I was there the Koreans had a prayer meeting. They started off with some songs and then prayed. They all said their own prayer (in Korean) as loud as they could. One chap was playing the guitar. The louder they prayed the louder and faster he played. All rather noisy. I eventually got back to the ship and spent a quiet evening on the ship.

16 June 1999
I went ashore again today, but this time with Gavin - yay. First we took back some of the videos (ones we already had) and then we had some lunch. We both had a rice dish, with other bits in and a bowl of soup. Not to bad in the taste department. We wanted to buy an exercise machine for the ship, but it is impossible to ask anyone where you can find such a thing. After walking in the rain we decided to go into the subway and look at all the shops. When we were making our way to mission we saw a camping shop with exercise equipment. We went in a bought a pedal treadmill, i.e. you run but with your feet on a flat bicycle pedal and so your legs go round and round without your feet leaving the pedal (hope you got that). Now the problem was getting the thing back to the ship. The man at the shop said he would deliver it, so while we were waiting to get that organised I asked if I could use the toilet - big mistake. The man shows me a dingy alleyway with a door at the end. I go to the door and inside is a very smelly room is a hole in the ground and NO flush hence the pong. Well, I really needed the toilet so I took a deep breath and clutched all my clothes and used the toilet. Yuck, hope I never have to do that again.

We were loaded up now and ready to go with our new exercise machine. When we got to the harbour gate the guards would not let the shop man in. So we had to unload the machine. I think the guards were going to make us carry the thing all 3kms. We bummed a lift from someone and got to the ship without having to carry the machine one step.

17 June 1999
Can you believe it? I went ashore again today. After buying the last exercise runner the captain said that we should have got the bike as well. So today we went and got the bike. It was most amazing, yesterday the bike was 30 dollars less than it was today. But we bought it all the same. We got the agent to take us to the shop and then take the bike back to the ship rather than going through all the hassle of getting through the customs gates ourselves. Gav and I then walked around a bit - and bought a pair of goggles for using when swimming in the chlorinated pool.

18 June 1999
We left Inchon at 01h00 this morning and are now on our way to Pohang to collect the pitch. We will be there tomorrow (Saturday) at about 15h00. We will only be there for about 24 hours. Gav will not be able to go ashore because he has to see to the pitch being loaded. He has to make sure the pumps are all working as the pitch has to be kept at the temperature of 200 degrees. If it gets cooler it goes hard. So whether I will get ashore will depend on how far it is to go and if I can get someone to go with me.

20 June 1999
We have been and left Pohang already. It almost seems as if it was a waste to even go there. We arrived at 3pm yesterday and left at 01h00 this morning. We did not go ashore as it is a taxi ride and for such a rushed time it doesn't seem worth it.

We are now drifting outside Busan. The pilot is only coming at 5pm (now 1pm). The captain does not want to take the ship to anchor as it would take an hour to get there and anchor, we would then be anchored for about and hour, then it's lift the anchor (about an hour) and go to the pilot station. So we are going to drift until it is time to get the pilot. I went to the bridge a little while ago, Thys (captain) said I could steer the ship and so I turned it 360 degrees. Then he told me to line up with another ship and follow it - I feel rather smart having done all that with only one mistake turning to the starboard side when told to go to port).

Korea has a lot of hills (all covered with greenery) this of course is rather beautiful. The three towns that I have now seen don't have many high rise buildings. Both Pohang and Inchon are very clean and the authorities are very worried about pollution. The Korean people are also dressed very well - makes one feel rather sloppy at times. I have seen very few beggars or bums. Except for the language problem I think it is a rather nice place.

21 June 1999
We arrived in Busan yesterday evening. We did not go ashore as it was Sunday night and we thought that things might be closed. This also gave the electrician and the second engineer a chance to go ashore while Gavin held the fort here.

Today we got a lift with the agent to town. First we went to a place called Texas street. All this really is is a street full of shops. I was stunned to see lots of white prostitutes. Gavin says they come from Russia. It must really be bad in Russia for them to come to a place like Korea. I didn't really enjoy Texas street - felt far too uncomfortable with all this around me and the shopping wasn't good either. We then decided to walk around the town for a while, we had a chicken burger at McDonald's. Then we went into the subway to see what the shopping was like there. It was much the same as the subway in Inchon - maybe a little cheaper. We bought two bamboo car seat covers, a flowering little cactus (I have never seen a flowering one before) and some Ginseng tea (supposed to be very medicinal). After having our fill of looking at the westernized things for sale we decided to head back to the ship. When we were looking at our seat covers we realised that one of them was missing a clip on it, so I decided to take it back tomorrow.

22 June 1999
We are leaving Busan today so Gavin didn't want me to go ashore this morning. But then he heard that we were only due to sail at 2pm. I decided to go ashore and change the seat cover quickly. On the way to the subway I saw a tourist information place and discovered that you can take a one day bus tour of Busan and the surroundings. So next time we are here I think that I will do that. I eventually got the lady at the seat cover stall to swop the seat cover. I then had a little stroll around the subway and bought a little Korean brass gong. It was now time to head back to the ship as it was 12h00 and shore leave was up. I could see Gav pacing the deck waiting for me to arrive. When I got up the gangway he said he thought that the ship was going to sail without me as he had told me not to rush and after I had left the sailing time had changed from 2pm to 1:30. Anyway I am rather upset to discover that Gavin would sail with the ship and leave me behind if that were ever to happen.

23 June 1999
We left Busan and we are now on our way to Richard's Bay. We should be there on about 12 July. At the moment we are now not going to Durban - ahh. But we will be going to Port Elizabeth - as usual this all could change long before we get there. It is a nice day outside, but very windy so the ship is shuddering a little.

27 June 1999
We are still in the South China Sea. The weather has been perfect - not a single roll of the ship in sight. Still no change in the ports we are scheduled for, but still hoping that things will change to Durban.

Gavin is sick at the moment - flu. A few of the men have been sick with a rather nasty (strong) 48 hour bug. It has really knocked them for a six and "these big strong men" are dead to the world for two days, and a few more milked for the sympathy. So far I have not got the bug - probably won't get it.

2 July 1999
Well we are now in the Indian ocean and rolling our way home. Still not sure which ports we are going to so we'll just have to wait and see. Not really that much news at the moment.

7 July 1999
I haven't written for a while and I am sitting here racking my brain to think of what has happened in the last week. I have organised a table tennis competition on the ship. There were 14 people who entered and so far all is going well. Gav and I both got to the second round. Gav has since been beaten and I am playing my next match today (I will definitely be beaten by the fitter as he is really good).

On Saturday we had our usual fire drill. The captain on this ship really takes it very seriously and has scenarios that happen each week. For instance this week everyone had to pretend that we had been hit by another ship and there was a hole in the side of the ship as well as men overboard. Last time we had an "oil spill." If the crew doesn't take it seriously the captain gets rather cross. I think it must be quite hard to pretend but at least this way when the alarm goes people aren't so slap dash about the whole thing.

We had a braai on Sunday. I was a little nervous as the cadets have been saying they are going to do horrible things to me for my "crossing the line" (equator) initiation. It probably sounds really silly of me but I refuse to have anything vaguely like a Mickey Finn, other than that I will be their victim. But luckily for me it seems as if they have forgotten about it all - whew.

11 July 1999
Well today (Sunday) we had another bar lunch - which turned into a big landfall party. Most people got hopelessly smashed. It is the first time I have ever seen Gav sing a whole song (Karaoke). He had everyone in hysterics because he also did the whole singer display routine. I think everyone couldn't believe that this was the quiet retiring chief that they are used to. He tells me that he was not drunk just acting. I am not so sure that I believe him. Louise decided that I was going to down a beer through a funnel and a straw. I said that I was not going to do it unless I had a few demonstrations first. So of course there were lots of willing demonstrators for me to watch. I eventually had my funnel of beer too and fortunately did not feel sick from it. I cannot even begin to describe what that room smells like after that party.

We have had a few days of rough weather, but it seems to have calmed down now. The rolling was so bad that the captain altered course to go over the top of Mauritius to try to avoid some of the weather (we were meant to go round the bottom of the island). We passed by Reunion and so I got a rather nice view of this island. It is much steeper than I expected with cliffs leading to the sea down below.

We are not getting the captain that was supposed to come to this ship - what a relief, apparently he was not so nice. Instead we are now getting one that I have met before and the little I know he is one of the good guys. Gav asked if he could do an extra round trip on this ship. He said to the office that he had done a favour by coming to the ship early and so would like to do the extra voyage. The answer, when we finally got it, was no. Gav had to send an extra message to ask them to confirm that they had received his request - really disgusting that they don't have the manners to reply to a question. Anyway I now feel so angry because we did them a favour by coming back to sea early and they tell us to jump when we ask for a favour - so no more back scratching from us to them.

13 July 1999
We are now at anchor off Richard's Bay. We arrived here early this morning. I am hoping that we will only come in later this week as all the extensions of time mean an extended time on the ship and the more chance of getting Christmas at home. We had another day of rolling but now all is relatively calm.

21 July 1999
Well Richard's Bay has been and gone. I managed to video the pilot being hoisted up to the helicopter yesterday. Unfortunately no photo, but I will get one next time.

We set sail yesterday (Tuesday) at about 3pm. So it is back to the normal routine of things. I have caught up with all the laundry and ironing. Today I started with the aerobics videos that I borrowed from Sally and this afternoon I also rode the bike and ran on the machine. We also had a fire drill today (we always have one on the first day out of port. Tonight is bar supper so no uniform for Gav, and generally filling up on chips and beer (very little supper is actually eaten). I am missing the cadets a little. I never realised how much noise they made around here.

24 July 1999
It is steak night tonight - I wonder what we are going to get to eat? I have now done two days of callanetics and am really stiff. The video says that after nineteen days there should be a marked difference in the body shape - well we'll see if it is true or not. I cannot believe how difficult some of the stretches are. On the video there is a 76 year old lady who does them better than I do - rather pathetic. Gav is doing the callanetics with me and the two of us get the giggles every time the instructor tells us to relax as we are both holding on for dear life in the position that we are meant to be in, and there is no way we can relax when our bodies are in agony.

So far the weather has been good. It seems to be getting worse now, but so far the rolling is not bad at all. We are taking aluminum and empty containers to Korea. I don't really like the containers because they block the view, of the sea, out of the forward portholes. But I think they might keep the ship more stable - not really sure about this theory.

31 July 1999
I cannot believe that another week has gone by already since my last entry. Nothing much has really happened. The weather has been its usual rolly self and yesterday evening was the first really nice evening. Today is not too bad and hopefully this means that only good is too come. We have just had our weekly fire drill and now everyone is watching the pirate video in preparation for getting to those waters. We are not going through the Sundra strait this time - so won't get the chance to see the volcano. We are going though the Malacca Strait this time. Apparently this is where there is a big pirate problem.

Gav and I are still exercising madly each day, at least I am not stiff anymore. We are having a braai tonight, hope that the weather holds. The only problem is that the new captain loves to talk ship. This gets rather tiresome after a while - I would like a bit of variety in the conversation where at least I can contribute. But he is not a bad guy all in all.

2 August 1999
Well another weekend gone. Tomorrow we are going through the Malacca Straits. The weather is really good at the moment. On Saturday we had a braai in the evening - rather nice and on Sunday the usual bar lunch - the usual stuffing oneself with chips and fizzy drinks. This evening we had a doubles table tennis round robin and then taught the Filipino's to play donkey. I was on the team that came second - not too bad except that I cannot return a smash so everyone takes delight in hitting this kind of ball to me. Today has been an exercise filled day. This morning it was one hour of callanetics and then this afternoon 20 minutes on the bike and 20 minutes on the running machine, and to top it all off about 2 hours of table tennis tonight.

5 August 1999
Last night we came through the end of the Malacca straits. The straits are like a bottle neck and there are hundreds of ships around. So there might be an emergency in which the engine needs to be slowed or put off. I was up at 2:30 am to see us coming out the end of the straits. I tried to video it, but all that you see on the video is twinkling lights in the dark - not very spectacular. I also got up early to see us entering the straits the morning before and because it was light I managed to get that on video. We are now in the South China Sea (with glorious weather). We are arriving in Inchon on 12 August (back in SA 20 September). I think I mentioned that we are not going to Jarkarta anymore. So at the moment it is just Korea with the ports of Inchon, Busan and Pohang. There has been a typhoon there and I am hoping that the mess will at least delay us a little. Although I must add that I am still hoping for some other ports.

I finished a cross stitch cushion cover today. It consists of nine different coloured squares each with a cross-stitch design on it. It is meant to be a cushion but it is much bigger than I anticipated so I might make a whole lot of squares and turn it into a quilt. I am not really sure - will have to think about it. I think that it is rather pretty, not bragging, just being totally humble (hee haa). I have brought so many things to do no the ship and haven't even touched half of them. But I will eventually get around to all of it one day.

7 August 1999
Still in the South China Sea. The wind is howling but the sea is relatively calm - just choppy so no rolling - whew. Gav called me to the bridge a few days ago to see some dolphins. I rushed up, camera in hand, to see not a single dolphin. He says they were dancing on their tails - I'm not sure whether to believe him or not. If it is true I really wish I could have seen it.

13 August 1999
We arrived in Inchon yesterday (Thursday). We went to anchor at about 09h30 until 13h00. The pilot then arrived and he took us into the bay - just outside of the lock. We went to anchor again and waited until six in the evening to go through the lock. I videoed us going through the lock, but it was dark so I hope that it comes out well enough to see. Gav and I went ashore tonight. We went to a pub called "Marine City." It was quite the yuppie place to be or so it seemed. It was what is called a beer bar, i.e. you have to order beer. So we ordered and also ordered some chicken. It turned out to be smoked chicken - very nice. We then walked around Inchon for a while, bought some ice-cream and headed back to the ship.

15 August 1999
Yesterday I went to Seoul - ON MY OWN. I caught the train and got off at a stop called Chongno 3-ga (a central station in Seoul). I then transferred to the purple line and went to a place called Tapshmini and went to see a what I was told was a huge antique market (Changhanp'yong curios). I couldn't find it so tapped a lady on the shoulder and pointed at my bilingual map book. This lady told me to follow her and led me right to the place I wanted to go. I was rather disappointed because the shops didn't really have anything interesting to look at. They had a couple of bowls and some planks of carved wood and a bit of stone wear. All rather disappointing. After this I caught the train back to the central spot and changed lines to the red line and went to Tongdaemum. Here there was a big market (East gate market), selling all sorts of things. I bought a pair of night binoculars for Gav - very cheap (only 25000 Won or R125). I also saw the local baseball stadium. Baseball is very popular here and there is always a game on the TV.

After having had a look at all of this I got back onto the subway and went back to the central station and changed to the orange line to a place called An-guk. Here I got a sandwich and coke for lunch and then went looking for the antique market called Insadong. Again I couldn't find the exact place and did the tapping on the shoulder bit. The lady couldn't help but a man was walking past. He asked if I spoke English and then again led me right to the spot that I wanted to go to. Really amazing that people will go to the effort of showing you where to go. Maybe they understand the importance of tourism a great deal better than us South Africans. The Insadong market was really great. Lots of curios and antiques. I saw the most beautiful jewelry box. It was quite big and had all the right grooves and places for all types of jewelry. The box was made of elm wood and had brass etchings on it. Really very beautiful and very expensive. I wish it had been cheaper so I could have bought it.

After looking around for a long time I walked back to the station past the Ch'angdokkung, Biwon (Secret Garden). A place that was home to generations of Korean rulers. It all looked very Buddhist and had that Japanese feel to it. I caught the train back to the central spot and changed to the red line which would take me back to Inchon. I got back at around 17h00. I went into the department store and bought a costume and then went to the mission to wait for the bus to take me back to the ship.

Once back at the ship Gav and Eric wanted to know if I wanted to go out for supper. So with aching feet I set out again. Fortunately the seaman's bus arrived as we were going down the gangway. So we got a lift into town and found a place to eat. We ordered a variety of things. A type of fried potato on a skewer and something that looked like spinach but wasn't. We also had a prawn each and some other foreign stuff that I am sure was gecko. After this we went to another restaurant and had crab that looked a bit like fish fingers - very nice. By now it was late so we started back to the ship. On the way we had ice-cream and bought a CD.

I was very grateful to get back to the ship as I had been walking since 9am and it was now 11pm so my feet were very tired.

We are leaving Inchon this afternoon for Busan. It only takes a day to Busan so I don't have that much time to recover - hee haa.

18 August 1999
We are now in Busan. We arrived here last night (10pm) after the 28 hour voyage from Inchon. Today a diver is coming to the ship to have a look at the propeller. When we arrived here one of the mooring ropes got caught in the propeller and so a diver is going to cut it off.

This morning I went ashore in hopes to take a tour of the city. I went to the tourist centre that I saw the last time I was here. I asked how to go on a bus tour. Unfortunately they wouldn't commission a bus just for me and to hire a tour guide for the day would cost $45. So I decided to get around on my own. I went to the station and caught a bus to a station called Onch onjang. This was 10 stops from the station I got on Nampa Dong. I came out of the station and began the hike up the hill to Kumang Park. There was a cable car (too scared of heights to go on it). But a steep and pretty walk - a bit on the boiling hot and soaked with perspiration side for comfort. After this hot experience I bought the strangest tasting ice-cream (literally iced cream) and headed back to the station. Eric (second engineer) had asked me to get his photos developed if I saw a place to have it done. I found a place, dropped them off and then went to McDonald's for lunch and to wait for the photographs.

I caught the train back to Nampa Dong. While on the train I met a young Korean girl who could speak rather good English and so had someone to talk to for a short while - we even exchanged e-mail addresses (not bad for shy old me hey). Once back in Pusan I walked through the subway shopping place. Then to McDonald's to get some chicken burgers for Gav and back to the ship. On the way back I saw what I think was a bomb being taken out of a building. Lots of police, fire engines and men in funny gear. Then I saw two of these men run out of the building with a box and the fire engines sprayed water all over the building. I suppose that it could have been a demonstration. There were lots of people watching, but typical of a South African I was making haste to get as far away from potential danger as possible. Once I was through the harbour gates it began to rain with monsoon force. I decided just to get soaked and enjoy the rain as there really was no point in trying to run. So I was a soaked chicken by the time I got to the ship - rather nice actually as I haven't had a good swim in an outside pool in a couple of months.

19 August 1999
We are now in Pohang. We left Busan at 2am this morning and arrived here at about 8am. Apparently we will sail tonight after eight sometime. All rather rushed. I got a lift with the agent to the gate this morning and then caught a taxi to the nearest town. The town is much the same as Busan or Inchon. I walked around until I found a photo shop to make some copies of Eric's photos. I bought some juice and two shirts and an element less kettle (cheaper than home). I then fetched my photo's and caught a taxi back to the ship. It takes about 20 minutes to the harbour gate and is only $5 which isn't too bad. The worst part is the 30 minute walk from the gate back to the ship. Especially when you have a heavy load to carry.

20 August 1999
Well we are now on our way home. Only 22 days until Gav is on leave. We had another fire drill today. This time we were meant to lower the lifeboats. Neither of them worked. A fat lot of good that will do in an emergency.

27 August 1999
We went past the active volcano Krakatau today and are now in the Indian ocean. So far the weather has been great. I taped it but it didn't puff any smoke to make the video more interesting. I have organised another table tennis competition, just to entertain us for a little while on the crossing.

1 September 1999
Only about eight days to go until we arrive in Richard's Bay. Gav has been told that he will be relieved on the 10th. We are rolling around a bit at the moment but hopefully it won't get too bad.

4 September 1999
Only about 5 days to go. Nothing really happening here. It is Saturday today so we will be having fire drill as usual. The bad weather has improved a bit and the rolling is not too bad. At least we got a fairly decent night's sleep last night. Gav and I have started making a list of all the things that we want to do at home this time - it is already long so as usual we will be busy fixing and maintaining things.