# Leaving Port on Friday



## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

I'm about to start implementing my new retirement plan. Which is to get to someplace warm at least once a month during the winter until Spring outfitting starts. While trying avoid going through Airports as much as possible. So Friday I'm jumping on a Cruise Ship out of New York City heading to the Bahamas. It was a very reasonably priced cruise so I jumped on it. The only negative is that is leaving on a Friday which also happens to be Friday the 13th. Which may explain why it was so cheap.  I was trying to remember why it was bad luck for sailors to leave port on a Friday? Let alone on a Friday the 13th. Wish me luck!


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## PhilCarlson (Dec 14, 2013)

mbianka said:


> ... The only negative is that is leaving on a Friday which also happens to be Friday the 13th. Which may explain why it was so cheap.  I was trying to remember why it was bad luck for sailors to leave port on a Friday? Let alone on a Friday the 13th. Wish me luck!


Not to worry! It's almost a day after the full moon!


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

The “no departure” on Friday thing has a sorted past. In fact, I even understand there was a time, when it was preferred to begin a voyage on a Friday. The real myth is that the Royal Navy named a ship the HMS Friday to prove it wasn’t an issue to depart on a Friday and it sunk. Never happened. 

I think these superstitions are like frat rules. They don’t make sense, nor have any real relevance, but we follow them in solidarity. There is always a ritual to receive forgiveness or absolution that involves alcohol.


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## MarkofSeaLife (Nov 7, 2010)

Wow! Short retirement!


Can to post photos as you sink, please?


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

Have a great “eating expedition” and wash your hands frequently


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

Jump on a cruise ship???? It's not like jumping on a bus or a train... So good luck with that...

I assume we will hear from you as you make your way south.

What I want to hear for starters is how much time and the details about what it took from you to get from your home to your cabin and when the ship was underway.... What was the fare? Will you take the ship back or is the cruise the whole deal?


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

I turned 13 on a Friday the 13th and I'm still around.

I think Friday the 13th is only bad luck if you are Templar Knight from Oct 13, 1307. Nothing to do with boating.


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## MarkofSeaLife (Nov 7, 2010)

Don L said:


> I turned 13 on a Friday the 13th and I'm still around.


You *think* you're still around.

Go watch Sixth Sense again....


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

When I left Frisco on my circumnavigation, 7-7-70, I heeded a lot of the superstition stuff, like leaving port on a Friday, never put a hat on a berth and later the banana and catching fish one. Never knew the background for these and disproved the fishing one solidly. I even went so far as to acquire a gold coin to put under Seafarer's mast with the double eagle that was already under there, when I restepped the mast in NZ.
My wife brought it up a month or so back and I realized I'd completely forgot all about the Friday one, probably because when you are chartering you don't get to choose your departure day. However, to this day, I go to great lengths to see that there is no hat on a berth. Haven't figured out if it's bad luck for the boat, hat's owner or the hat, but there it is.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

MarkofSeaLife said:


> Wow! Short retirement!
> 
> Can to post photos as you sink, please?


I paid extra to have a high speed Internet connection so I might actually be able to post a video. 
I'm also bringing my floating VHF handheld with GPS just in case too.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

Minnewaska said:


> The "no departure" on Friday thing has a sorted past. In fact, I even understand there was a time, when it was preferred to begin a voyage on a Friday. The real myth is that the Royal Navy named a ship the HMS Friday to prove it wasn't an issue to depart on a Friday and it sunk. Never happened.
> 
> I think these superstitions are like frat rules. They don't make sense, nor have any real relevance, but we follow them in solidarity. There is always a ritual to receive forgiveness or absolution that involves alcohol.


Interesting. I thought that one of the reasons leaving port on Friday was that Jesus died on a Friday. So he would not be out there protecting the mariners on that day.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

chef2sail said:


> Have a great "eating expedition" and wash your hands frequently


Indeed. I'll be scouting out which restaurants are having Prime Rib which nights. Planing to swim twice a day and use the stairs as much as possible to work some of it off. As for the hand washing they have crew at the entrance to the buffet restaurant singing: "Washy Washy! Good for you good for me." as a reminder.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

SanderO said:


> Jump on a cruise ship???? It's not like jumping on a bus or a train... So good luck with that...
> 
> I assume we will hear from you as you make your way south.
> 
> What I want to hear for starters is how much time and the details about what it took from you to get from your home to your cabin and when the ship was underway.... What was the fare? Will you take the ship back or is the cruise the whole deal?


Getting on the LIRR into Penn Station and then a quick cab ride up to the Cruise Ship Piers. So nice not to have to go through an airport for a change. Fare started at $649 for a balcony stateroom. But, with paying a single supplement, taxes, tips it ended up around $1500. But, I get to dine free at three of the specialty restaurants on board. My choice. They also threw in unlimited drink package. I'm not drinking much these days but, even a few mocktails like an LLB can add up. But, I expect I'll be stopping at the Mojito bar or one of the seven others on occasion.  Maybe enjoy a double Baileys on the balcony at night keeping a eye out for any red flares. Got a few other perks too. Ship is coming back to New York (at least that's the plan) where I will then jump on a train to Washington DC for the holiday.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

capta said:


> When I left Frisco on my circumnavigation, 7-7-70, I heeded a lot of the superstition stuff, like leaving port on a Friday, never put a hat on a berth and later the banana and catching fish one. Never knew the background for these and disproved the fishing one solidly. I even went so far as to acquire a gold coin to put under Seafarer's mast with the double eagle that was already under there, when I restepped the mast in NZ.
> My wife brought it up a month or so back and I realized I'd completely forgot all about the Friday one, probably because when you are chartering you don't get to choose your departure day. However, to this day, I go to great lengths to see that there is no hat on a berth. Haven't figured out if it's bad luck for the boat, hat's owner or the hat, but there it is.


I was aware of the coin under the mast. The hat on a berth is a new one for me. I certainly violated that when sometimes taking naps.


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

mbianka said:


> I was aware of the coin under the mast. The hat on a berth is a new one for me. I certainly violated that when sometimes taking naps.


I never considered it to include if you were wearing the hat. lol


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

MarkofSeaLife said:


> You *think* you're still around.
> 
> Go watch Sixth Sense again....


"I see Aussie sailors"


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## MarkofSeaLife (Nov 7, 2010)

Don L said:


> "I see Aussie sailors"


Awwwww shucks. And I haven't even combed my hair :angel :angel :angel


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## Chas H (Sep 6, 2013)

mbianka said:


> Interesting. I thought that one of the reasons leaving port on Friday was that Jesus died on a Friday. So he would not be out there protecting the mariners on that day.


Jesus died on Friday and rose on Sunday 2000 years ago. He is now available to answer your call 24/7.

"Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved."

Remember that as you enter the Bermuda Triangle.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

Chas H said:


> Jesus died on Friday and rose on Sunday 2000 years ago. He is now available to answer your call 24/7.
> 
> "Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved."
> 
> Remember that as you enter the Bermuda Triangle.


Good to know. So far we were delayed two hours getting underway because the currents coming down the Hudson River were exceptionally strong. At the muster the Captain came on the PA and said there is a strong system coming off of the U.S. near Cape Hatteras. He expects strong winds and seas starting at 9 AM tomorrow until 12 midnight. I checked on Windy.com and it looks like 30 to 40 knots. Should be fun on board and expect there will be less people at the Buffet due to sea sickness. BONUS!


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

mbianka said:


> I paid extra to have a high speed Internet connection so I might actually be able to post a video.
> I'm also bringing my floating VHF handheld with GPS just in case too.


Scratch the VHF. Went to the boatyard to do a check on the boat and pick up the VHF. Got the VHF but, picked up the wrong incompatible charger. Note to self: Always put on glasses and verify when picking up things.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

Captain said we had 4 meter seas and 35 knots of wind. Ship was doing 20 knots hugging the continental shelf according to the Navionics program on my phone. Ship was comfortably rolling along good for sleep last night with wind off the bow. Eased up as we are now pointed into the wind. May be delayed getting into Port Canaveral tomorrow because of it. Watching the ocean waves I can't imagine how anyone could be spotted in such a sea state. Tip my hat to the Coast Guard rescue teams who do.


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

mbianka said:


> Scratch the VHF. Went to the boatyard to do a check on the boat and pick up the VHF. Got the VHF but, picked up the wrong incompatible charger. Note to self: Always put on glasses and verify when picking up things.


Does it have a regular battery option?


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## MarkofSeaLife (Nov 7, 2010)

mbianka said:


> Captain said we had 4 meter seas and 35 knots of wind. Ship was doing 20 knots


Fun! :grin

Pity about the vhf. That would be interesting to have on.

I take it you are using the ships internet? Last time I was on a ship it was ridiculously expensive.

Would be great to have ais receiver too


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

chef2sail said:


> Does it have a regular battery option?


Not this one. I just wanted to bring it along for monitoring any ship traffic and port operations.


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## RegisteredUser (Aug 16, 2010)

Is there a topless pool deck on top
For research purposes, of course


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

MarkofSeaLife said:


> Fun! :grin
> 
> Pity about the vhf. That would be interesting to have on.
> 
> ...


One of the cruise deals was they gave me 250 minutes of free WiFi on the ship. For another hundred bucks I up graded to unlimited high speed streaming WIFI. I planned to do some video editing/cataloging of some of my video's from the past year. I'm also using it to make phone calls with Skype to my gal back on land.


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

Can someone explain the economics of charging for wi fi and so on...seems like a cash cow to me.


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## RegisteredUser (Aug 16, 2010)

Duh


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

Well the adage about not leaving Port on Friday seems to be holding up for this cruise. We are not sinking but, things are not going as planned. 

We were delayed three hours leaving New York because of strong currents in the Hudson River.

The pool was closed all day because of the rough conditions. I was hoping to work off some of the food with a couple of swims. The sloshing sounds nice though. 

Tonight the Captain gets on the PA and says due to the late start out of New York and the stormy seas and strong head winds we would be late getting into Port Canaveral tomorrow. So we are staying at sea tomorrow and stopping in Florida on Monday instead. Ship speed has been cut back to 12 knots from 20. Smoothing out the ride a bit. 

They also scrapped the beach visit to Great Stirrup Cay because the swell conditions make the tender operations unsafe. So no swimming there either. Heading straight to Nassau to spend two days there instead. 

After dinner tonight I ordered a double Baileys and wanted to take a walk on the outside deck. But, it was closed off due to the high winds. So I ended up on my Cabins balcony which is on the lee side.

I'm not disappointed since the trip was really all about just spending some time staring at the sea and getting some place warm. Which is still going to happen. It was never about the destinations.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

We finally got to land after two days at Sea docking at Port Canaveral about 5:30 a m. After my morning breakfast I went for my morning swim only to find the pool occupied by about 20 crew members in life jackets and a large survival raft that was at the other end of the pool. Apparently there was a training survival course going on for some members of the crew. including how to turn over a upside down survival raft. that was an interesting demonstration and I may make a video of it. They left after 20 minutes and I got my swim in. 

I didn't leave the ship. I watched the port operations from my balcony. I was impressed with the security precautions. I watched as a dog was let around all the assembled luggage carts sniffing for explosives before they were allowed to be loaded on the ships. Also any vehicles that traveled on to the dock the drivers had to leave leave the cab and be wanded by security guard checking for metal objects. This included all the regular line handlers who arrived in the pickup trucks with the Port Authority logos on the side. Only then were the crash barriers lowered and they were allowed to drive onto the docks next to the ships to release the dock lines.

After the ship left the dock I went for my evening swim. They started showing It’s a wonderful life on the big outdoor screen. I was able to watch from the pool, Then all of a sudden I heard a commotion and people started running to the stairs to the upper deck. They sent up a rocket from nearby Cape Kennedy and I was able to watch it streak across the sky right from the pool. A great way to end the day.


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

mbianka said:


> I'm about to start implementing my new retirement plan. Which is to get to someplace warm at least once a month during the winter until Spring outfitting starts. While trying avoid going through Airports as much as possible. So Friday I'm jumping on a Cruise Ship out of New York City heading to the Bahamas. It was a very reasonably priced cruise so I jumped on it. The only negative is that is leaving on a Friday which also happens to be Friday the 13th. Which may explain why it was so cheap.  I was trying to remember why it was bad luck for sailors to leave port on a Friday? Let alone on a Friday the 13th. Wish me luck!


It's bad luck to be superstitious.


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

mbianka said:


> I was impressed with the security precautions. I watched as a dog was let around all the assembled luggage carts sniffing for explosives before they were allowed to be loaded on the ships. Also any vehicles that traveled on to the dock the drivers had to leave leave the cab and be wanded by security guard checking for metal objects. This included all the regular line handlers who arrived in the pickup trucks with the Port Authority logos on the side. Only then were the crash barriers lowered and they were allowed to drive onto the docks next to the ships to release the dock lines..


Amazing.
For the last ten years or so all of us who work on the docks (including truck drivers) or operate or work with/on vessels that tie to the docks must have a TWIC card. TRANSPORTATION WORKERS IDENTIFICATION CREDENTIAL. It costs us money and those of us licensed by the USCG must have one or our license is not valid.
It was expressly put into use to avoid what you described. I guess, like most government certifications, it has become a just revenue generating device, not a security aid. As they say, "Security is but an illusion..."


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

capta said:


> Amazing.
> For the last ten years or so all of us who work on the docks (including truck drivers) or operate or work with/on vessels that tie to the docks must have a TWIC card. TRANSPORTATION WORKERS IDENTIFICATION CREDENTIAL. It costs us money and those of us licensed by the USCG must have one or our license is not valid.
> It was expressly put into use to avoid what you described. I guess, like most government certifications, it has become a just revenue generating device, not a security aid. As they say, "Security is but an illusion..."


Don't know if they were checking the TWIC card too I suspect they were. Too far for me to see from the balcony.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

I’ve been back on land for a week after my cruise to Nassau from New York on the Norwegian cruise ship Bliss. Thoroughly enjoyed the time at sea. Spent time trying to figure out the Beaufort scale conditions from looking at the waves and sea conditions. A couple of take-aways of my trip

1) We were two hours late departing from New York because the currents coming down the Hudson River were still very strong from the full moon the day before. interesting that the captain of a ship like the Bliss with its powerful engines and bow thrusters and tugboats standing by to assist still does not depart the docks until the conditions were right. Something to keep in mind when embarking with one's own boat.

2) Because of the late departure, strong headwinds and 4 meter seas it delayed our arrival into Port Canaveral Florida. So plans were changed to remain at sea for an extra day and arrive in Port in early morning. Also the stop at the Private Island was canceled due to the swell conditions there making tender services dangerous. Once again the Captain would alter the plans when conditions changed. No “got to got to” mentality on this Captains bridge. All passengers got a $30 dollar credit because of the changes. Cost to the cruise line about $140,000.

3) Sitting on my balcony at night nursing a double Bailey’s after dinner. Watching the breaking waves and staring into the darkness of the lonely sea has totally removed any desire for ocean crossings from my list. I can’t imagine being out there in a life raft much less just a life jacket. Without a working EPIRB the chances would be mighty slim to be rescued. We had near gale conditions at times and I could not imagine what it would have been like on a smaller cruising boat. Especially those single handers.


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

I crossed the North Atlantic in November on a liner when I was a kid and it did the same - I've never had any real desire to cross an ocean on a small boat. :cut_out_animated_em


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

SloopJonB said:


> I crossed the North Atlantic in November on a liner when I was a kid and it did the same - I've never had any real desire to cross an ocean on a small boat. :cut_out_animated_em


In my younger days I would think about it. But, work and limited vacation time never made it possible. Now that I am retired and have the time the desire for making such a passage has certainly faded. Don't think I would enjoy the boredom and bouncing along on some of the seas I observed. That's just if nothing goes wrong.


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## outbound (Dec 3, 2012)

If it wasn’t for how ridiculously expensive Europe is to cruise and the 3 month deal to work around I’d be up for it. It used to be on my bucket list but no longer after talking with people who have done it.


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