The crew is rushing around Delos with anticipation rife in the air. The reason?
We leave today. We’re securing everything down in sight, putting things away and searching for anything that could fall, break or roll.
South Atlantic
After departing the beautiful Skeleton Coast in Namibia, we left Africa and started our passage across the Atlantic to South America. On the way, we stop in St. Helena, and more!
The Delos Diaries: Part 15 “Time Machines and Peanut Butter.”
It’s day 6 aboard Delos on our passage to St Helena. I’m getting more and more excited by the day. I don’t know whether it’s because the currency is English, the history, or the fact that a bunch of British people live there, but it’d be nice to get a taste of home- even if it is on a random island in the middle of nowhere.
I creep through the darkness, swaying with the motion of the boat as I attempt to head silently to the snack cupboard. It’s 3am, everyone is asleep and I.am.hungry.
I open the cupboard and rub my hands in glee. I pull out an oat snack bar to hear a rustling to my left.
“What are you doing?”
It’s 3am and my watch isn’t for another hour. But there’s a commotion on Delos and I’m grumbling to myself why people can’t be quieter.
Don’t they know I’m sleeping?
I then realise that there’s only one reason why the entire crew would be up at this moment.
St Helena.
We’ve been here just over a week now in St Helena. I knew when I landed here that I was always supposed to come to this place and I deeply feel that more than anything. But I am already feeling the stirrings of restlessness to be back on the ocean.
We’ve explored the land and I’ve felt a shifting of allegiance in my heart.
The Delos Diaries: Part 19 “Napoleon, Hiking and the Delos Story.”
We’ve been in St Helena now for two weeks. It’s been a wonderful time with a lot of amazing adventures. We’ve even made some friends. On Friday, Lisa our Austrian managed to do a DJ session at the radio station. We had bought a bottle of rum for us all to share whilst we played songs, danced and laughed to our heart’s content.
saturday 17.06.2017, 21:54, st.helena
it’s the last night here on st.helena. karin, brian, lizbef and i just came back from our farewell drinks at the muleyard – a local “hang out spot“ for the saints and stranded cruisers.
There have been many ways I have thought about starting this sentence. I’ve started in so many ways and in different places, scenarios, maybe at the start- maybe at the end. But I had always had in my mind to start in the middle.
The Delos Diaries Part 21: “The French Do Everything Better.”
It’s the morning after the night before. I wake up to find myself wrapped in warm arms and I smile.
Wow, this feels good, I think.
It’s Alex’s birthday.
The next morning on Malin was beautiful. Tucking into freshly made bread and honey, I sat in the cockpit contentedly with a cup of tea.
The Delos Diaries Part 24: “The Green Mountain and Lizbef’s Hangover from Hell.”
I woke the next morning with a groan. It was early and I could hear the rest of the Delos crew moving about. I prayed to God that they wouldn’t wake me. That they would leave me in bed so I could rest up from the past five days of partying, staying up late and basically being a bit of a vagabond.
The wind whips the hair from my face as I stare over the cliffs, over crashing waves and the spraying of foam below. I watch the ocean eat away at the rock little by little, ravenous, insatiable and undefeatable.
We’re off early this morning. We’re heading to an amazing dive site called Bird Rock. It’s nice to get away from the island to be honest. I love Ascension, but already I know it’s time for us to leave. We’re here for another week and we’ve got a lot more adventures to be had, but whenever I look out into the ocean, I feel a restlessness.
It’s the morning of our departure. I wake, my body burning for movement as we excitedly prepare Delos to leave Bird Rock. Yes, that’s right-we did return to that amazing place. After spending another week on Ascension Island, we decided we had no choice but to escape back to its protective rocky embrace. It’s been an incredible couple of days diving, relaxing and sunbathing, but now it’s time.
I sigh as my alarm goes off under my pillow, my headphones wrapping around my neck as I fumble to switch it off before it wakes anyone else up. It’s 11:45pm and my night shift on the second day of passage is about to start. I always give myself fifteen minutes before to get myself sorted.
I woke up the next day still feeling tired. I wanted to go back to sleep but Alex and Brian were in the lounge discussing a project. Sighing, I pulled back the curtain and swung my legs over the side.
Everyone is enjoying this time at sea. A lot of us aren’t ready for land just yet. I think the thing I’m going to miss the most when we near the island are the night watches.