Dear Captain and Fleur Davies

My computer crashed or I would have written earlier.

The Tahiti and Society Islands Voyage 200 on June 6th was simply wonderful. It exceeded my expectations and satisfied all my objectives for this adventure. The captain and professional crew were always considerate and understanding. They are pros not only in the various aspects of ship handling, but are skilled in dealing with the guest crew. They clearly enjoy what they are doing and I felt welcome. My only regret is that I didn’t bring an air or foam mattress so I could have slept on deck.

A special word of thanks to Captain Tod Thompson for spending extra time with me sharing his navigational skills, and for Engineer Bobby for answering all my questions about that beautiful old diesel and its controls. The professional crew always willing to answer my questions about the handling of a square rigger – which is one of the highlights of this cruise since I previously sailed only on sloops, cutters and schooners. Multiply all the effort required to wear ship by three and I now have some insight into what is was like to sail a full rigged ship. The imagine engaging an enemy at sea. Also, think about weighing anchor without a donkey engine!

In appreciation , I have enclosed some photos for the crew members – I wish I had good shots of all of them.

I wish you fair winds and following seas.

Alan McKie