twelfth ship- brilliant corners

This was my second ship with Eurasia and this time also I had to join a Cape Size Bulk Carrier in Japan. After completing the formalities like signing of contract and getting my ticket, I flew to Singapore and from there to Tokyo-Narita Airport. The agent’s representative had come to pick me up and this journey to the port, Kawasaki took about 2 hours. The ship was discharging coal there. After part discharging there, the ship discharged the balance cargo in Fukuyama, which is about 36 hours away, in Japan Inland Sea. After completion of discharge, we went to Australia for loading. The load port was Newcastle.
Loading was very fast here and loading was completed in 40 hours. This ship had a maximum cargo capacity of 106,000 MT. The discharging used to take about 3 to 4 days and we used to discharge the entire cargo in one port or two ports, which depended upon the grade of the coal. Since the ship was 25 year old, there were problems here and there but being a Japanese built ship, the ship was good for her age. It was on a regular run from Japan to Australia. During the sailings, we used to have repairs carried out to renew steel which had rusted and thinned down. Since the ship was long and old, we used to stop the ship, in case of any typhoons in the Pacific Ocean and let it pass through.
Once during discharging, I was ballasting the ballast tanks. The seaman on deck noticed water inside a cargo hold and I stopped the pump immediately. Upon further investigation it was found that a welding had given way and water had started leaking inside the cargo hold from the tank. Luckily, the crack was not very big and we managed to weld it.
Transiting the Japan Inland Sea was every seafarer’s nightmare, since there were many fishing boats, passenger ships and various other small boats crossing the ships. There were so many small islands as well, which we had to keep clear. A pilot used to be there to guide us, but it required extra effort from the navigators on board.
After 3 loading operations, we went to dry dock, in Nantong, which is a port in China. We had to sail in the river for about 8 hours to reach the port. This river has so many ports along both the sides. Shanghai lies near the place where this river and sea meet. We went to the ship yard and our ship docked. As the ship was 25 years old, there were many rules and regulations which had to be followed. Many surveys had to be conducted to ensure that the ship was in sea worthy condition.
A team of technicians had been specially flown in from India to measure the thickness of the various plating in the ship, using ultra sound. If the thickness was less than that allowed, then that portion of plating had to be cropped and renewed, after which it is tested to ensure that everything s in order.
The technicians were working throughout the day so that they could complete the gauging of the entire ship in time. In the dry dock, surveyors from classification society inspected the ship and checked the thickness and recommended renewal in many parts inside the cargo holds and inside the ballast tanks. We had to ensure that the works were carried out as required and proper welding was done. So during the dry dock, it was our job to inspect each and every place every day, take photographs and take measurements of the steel being renewed.
It was a pain going inside the cargo holds, inside the tanks and various other spaces in the ship, everyday. Checking the dimensions and welding was a bigger pain. This was not needed to be done by us, but we were instructed by the superintendent. We had to take photos as well.
I went out on days when I had night off. It was a nice city, but food was a problem. So, I preferred to eat in the ship before going out. Language was another problem in China. But the shopkeepers near the port spoke some English. I used to go out, buy some chips and peanuts, make calls to home and come back.
The time in dry dock passed like this and soon we were out of dry dock. We sailed out to Newcastle, in Australia for loading. After completion of loading, the ship came to Mizushima (Japan), where I signed off along with the Captain’s family, Electrical Officer and Fitter.
All of us left the ship and reached Tokyo in the night in a car. Since our flight was in the next day morning, all of us were put up in a hotel for the night. Next day morning, we reached the airport and boarded a flight to Hongkong. From there I came to Bombay and stayed overnight there. I had my flight to Madras the next day early morning and reached home.
This was my last ship as second officer and also with this company.

TOTAL TIME SPENT ON BOARD: 6 months and 17 days
PORTS VISITED: IN INDIA- none
FOREIGN: Fukuyama, Mizushima & Kawasaki (Japan), Nantong (China), Newcastle, Hay Point, Dalrymple Bay& Gladstone (Australia)