Picto Diary - 13 December 2018 - Null Island
Above: Suite TV Screen. Regent Seven Seas Explorer. 13 December 2018.
NULL ISLAND...sailor lingo.
Equator intersection with Prime Meridian...close enough for government work. 15:20 Hours. GMT.
Missed Togo today due to local insurrection. Security guys joined ship in Dakar as a precaution should tour goers go ashore at Lome (Togo capital city).
In the end Regent nixed the Togo stop altogether.
Captain ordered this impressive diversion to Null Island to soften the resistance of Togo denied cruise goers. For whatever reason the ship could only get within three miles of the buoy that is Null Island. The buoy was three miles distant and could be seen with binoculars.
For me, this place gave new meaning to ground zero.
Above: Deck Five. Regent Seven Seas Explorer.
At NULL ISLAND. 0 degrees latitude. 0 degrees longitude.
Deck Five NULL ISLAND power walk....
Manhattan
Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
Shaky Davey's got a twelve gauge in his hand
It's sawed off to the limit
He's got a vague plan
There's this liquor store on Madison
There's another one down on Washington square
He's pretty sure no one's ever seen him
Down around there
The first one's bird shot the next four are double aught buck
The last one's a slug just for good luck
He's got his works in his pocket
He wants to score as soon as he's done
He can't wait to get straight to get long gone
He puts on his long coat scribbles off a short note
Sits himself down and waits for the sun to go down
It's right around midnight and there's still too damn many people on this street
He's walked all the way from Battery Park he's got sweaty hands and burnin' feet
He's desperate for a fix
His body's screamin' "Get me high"
He bursts through the door and lets one fly
Sunrise in the park and Davey's cold as stone
He got some bad merchandise and he was all alone
Two more unsolved mysteries a iot of paper pushed around
Most folks are just wakin' up in this great big town
Above: Singers. Regent Seven Seas Explorer. Constellation Theater. 13 December 2018.
Super talented 25 somethings belt Broadway.
Very good.
Regent theatrical company does auditions around the country. Kids that get accepted sign contract to sing, dance and see the world. Rehearsals take place in Tampa FL and take six weeks precedent to up to six months at sea.
Addendum:
Floating Steve:
Some xenophobic/jingoist reader ripped into a small USA motorcycle publication's editor for even mentioning having seen Che's image numerous times on their guided motorcycle tour of Cuba. I sent the editor an "Attaboy" with the attached picture I took 2-3 years ago in Thailand. Che and the Stars and Stripes - an oxymoron or 21st Century art?
BTW, I was not "panning" your touristing choice of transportation mode - even came up with a marketing jingle, like the guys who have the patches "Ride to eat, eat to ride:" Your patch: "Float to eat, eat to float," or similar to the one Honda had: "You meet the nicest people on a boat." LOL
Have fun out there - and don't believe your tour guide carrying the flag on the top of the tall stick for you to follow when he/she says at the Cape of Good Hope sign that you've reached the furthest point south on the African continent. AMA's Greg Harrison did that on one of the AMA motorcycle guided tours some years ago, saying later it was the "thought" that counted for the people on the tour, not necessarily the fact. If you've the time and inclination, rent a car and roll a little further down the coast to Cape Agulhaus, that's the real southernmost point and where the Indian and Atlantic Ocean meet - only about 1 kilometer of hard pan off-the pavement, an easy day adventure and very scenic.
Best,
Dr. G
Professor of Motorcycle Adventure, on sabbatical researching adventurous affairs on the road around the globe
Thanks Steve,
Read the piece on the Motards. The traffic scenario sounded very much like India. Glad to know that these unbelievable traffic maneuvers happen in other countries as well.
This one looks like a great cruise. If possible please share your entire itinerary of this cruise with me. I would like to do this some day provided I can afford it.
Cheers.
Mohan,
New Delhi, India
Hope both of you are enjoying your adventure, Dr. G's T-shirt is very cool maybe we will wear them next year at Hillclimb ? Happy Holidays to all -
MR Z3
Ojai, CA
Hi Bishop Steve:
These are custom T's that I did the Indian artwork on, not screened like the yellow Pit Crew shirts, nor an off-the-rack $10.00 product. I had six made. Will wait until closer to my departure time in the spring tosee if they can find 3XL blue by then. I'll hand carry it (them) in my allowed luggage to the USA an XXL for you and any others wanting one...too expensive to mail across The Big Waters.
It was a whim to order them - maybe when done "10 of a kind" in the world. In July I was wearing L sized T shirts - now back up to XL and back out two notches on my belt. Ugghhh. No longer "lean and mean," just mean :-)
Did a little "third world" shopping last week up in Myanmar area, pics attached:
1) A knock-off of a Belstaff jacket (maybe before your time?) - but the hot ticket in the 60's. Original was waxed cotton, a great spooge collector friends would not let you wear into their house and best left outside a restaurant. Saw this one and couldn't pass on "the deal." Label even says it is original LOL
Second item was a knock-off of WD-40, BS-40. BS-40 was .66 cents, another deal this frugal Quaker could not pass up. I'm not sure what is inside the BS-40 can but the outside was pretty cool looking.
Regards,
Dr. G, Professor of Motorcycle Adventure, on sabbatical researching adventurous affairs on the road around the globe
