A final word from the Captain..........
Neroli
Charles Tongue
Tue 16 Dec 2008 16:27
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A final word
from the Captain.............
We are now
installed in a very smart waterfront apartment in Rodney Bay. Neroli is berthed
at the bottom of the garden and my dream to sail across the Atlantic has come
true.
 However
before this Web Diary comes to an end, I would like to say thank
you...........
Firstly to Neroli for bringing us safely across an ocean in
reasonable comfort and at a respectable speed. I know she enjoyed
the voyage enormously, particularly the last six and a half days during
which she covered over a thousand miles.
I would
like to thank the crew for making the trip such an enjoyable and memorable
experience. Without exception they were magnificent.
I would
particularly like to thank Graham not only for his considerable sailing
experience which enabled us to sail Neroli faster and more safely than
would otherwise have been the case but also for his amazing Web Diary. His
relaxed and amusing writing and wonderfully
appropriate photographs combined to produce a great record of our
adventure. For three weeks he gave considerable pleasure to a large number
of the crew's friends and family ashore. From all of us a very big thank
you!
I
would also like to thank Lou for her considerable contribution. Her
experience gained during three previous ocean crossings was invaluable in
sailing the boat and in setting our on board routines. She regularly
produced wonderful meals from unlikely ingredients and as a practising
vet was an enormous comfort to the rest of the crew even though fortunately
her skills were never seriously put to the test.
Finally my
thanks go to Henry the Cabin Boy for not only keeping us permanently
amused for three weeks but also for provisioning the ship and providing us with
a deliciously varied and nutritious diet without drama and without running out
of anything. He made the trip enormous fun and for that we are all
extremely grateful.
May
I thank everyone, paid and unpaid, who during the last two years or so have
helped to prepare Neroli for the crossing.
On behalf of
the crew I would like to thank our spouses for allowing us to 'come out to play'
as well as all our friends and relations on shore who have, in one way or
another, made the voyage possible. I
would like to thank whoever produced the vast ocean on which we
sailed. For most of the time it was ours and ours alone, apparently only shared
with a few solitary sea birds, some flying fish and various pods of
dolphins who came to pay their respects and to remind us what playfulness and
freedom really mean. Thank you also to whoever produced the sunrises that marked the
beginning of each new day and the sunsets that so quietly but emphatically
told us that another day had ended. Thank you for the magnificent night
skies which on so many occasions were filled from horizon to horizon with a
million stars. Thank you for the soft beauty of a moonlit sea.
Finally I
would like to thank you for sharing this adventure with us. We hope you have
enjoyed the experience and that one day we may set sail again to cross an ocean
together.
 Tuesday
16.12.08
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