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MV Greenpeace / PC 8023
Lat 29.59's Long 154.00'e 1100hrs
Day 8
05 23
Thursday 23rd May
Awoke this morning to a gentle orange , dawn sky. A quietness in the harbour before the hustle and bustle of the city waking up, a cool nip in the air but the promise of sunshine. It was a normal working day, preparing for departure at noon and trying to finish jobs easier down alongside than at sea. `Smoko' time at 10 o'clock and as I sat and drank my coffee, I thought to myself that Bob and Mark (2 of our engineers) looked rather grumpy.
Being such a brave deckhand that I am, I enquired if my observations were correct. Bob, who is very eloquent in his descriptive, cynical way, feigned surprise, but had to admit the morning before (for obvious reasons) his brain cells were not connecting and this had reflected in his cable work. The job in question had been to weave a couple of cables from the salt water filter (that carries a electrical charge to help stop corrosion) to the switchboard, through a labyrinth of pipes and other cables in the deckhead of the engine room. Balancing precariosly on a stepladder a few metres above a multitude of machinery you wouldn't want to fall on. Only to discover this morning as he went to connect them up he had put the wrong cables through! And had to repeat the whole episode again this morning.
As planned we steamed out of Sydney harbour today under a sunny Sydney sky and good wishes of many friends. A gentle swell rocked the ship as we passed out through the rusty orange, pancake layered cliffs of Sydney heads. Altering course to north, the sea and sky already having a tropical look about it. Onto Manilla and still unsure what our reception from China will be.
Tanya Popp
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