Stories

 

…I wonder how many more of these stories will return to my memory?
It seems that one story leads to another.

 

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Many are strictly personal, or the subject is not to the point.
But some are still nice for a willing ear.
With all these stories, I have tried to create an image of what life was like on board an ocean-going tug.
Sometimes we were away at sea for weeks, working closely together, always trying to achieve the highest standards of work that we could.

 

The only relaxation we had, was when we went ashore somewhere in the world.
If we went ashore, anything was possible, it was an adventure.
Dunkirk, Penzance, Gibraltar, Venice, Bermuda, La Plata, Piraeus, Durban, Belfast, Dakar, Valletta, Holmsund, New York, Singapore, Tarragona, Catania, Kaohsiung…….. the list of ports was long.
All these names evoke memories of exciting events or I might hear a melody that recalls to me a certain incident or a moment that is best kept to myself.

 

The loss of the Dutch Ocean towing service hurts; we were proud of our work but the big names have disappeared from the seas.
I become envious or sad whenever I see photographs of foreign shipping companies that do towing these days with larger and more powerful ships than the ones I ever sailed on.
Especially when these Shipping companies were no match for us back in the day.

Sometimes I was surprised by the living conditions in other countries, but also by the conditions on board foreign vessels, but we went along with it.
That was the adventure.
Many of the stories were created right there, sometimes now a bit exaggerated.
But for the present it seems that it is enough as I still need to keep some stories for myself.
I enjoyed reliving them in my head and writing about them.

The job had its hardships and its downside but often these memories are conveniently erased.
Above all, it was a time of work, with many remarkable moments.
So, these are the ‘tall tales’ but for now the lid of my box of memories goes back on.
A part of my life I have described, it is enough so.
The storie has ended: acta fabula est.

Lectori Salutem