Hello fellow travelers,
I hope you are doing well. Today, I’m going to talk about the tradition of sailors crossing the Equator and what we do during this special event.
We travelled in a rally of 40 boats, but only a few decided to stop on the equator, crossing the equator was a pretty big chapter for us since we had spent all of our time in the Southern Hemisphere and we were now going to spend lots of time in the Northern Hemisphere.
One noticeable effect for us sailors is that we have to read weather systems differently. In the Southern Hemisphere, storms move clockwise, while in the Northern Hemisphere, they move counterclockwise. This might not seem significant, but it can play a major role in how we avoid storms and navigate to our destinations.
Crossing the Equator for the first time is a special experience marked by a fun tradition called "Baptism on the Line" or "Equatorial Baptism." As our ship got close to the Equator, we took part in this playful ritual, where passengers and crew who hadn't crossed it before got a water baptism. It's a light-hearted ceremony that welcomes us into the legendary court of King Neptune, the mythological ruler of the seas. This memorable and entertaining rite of passage made our journey even more exciting and connected us to the seafaring tradition.
Since we were new sailors, this was the first time we ever crossed the Equator, marking a new chapter and allowing us to reflect on the things we have learned and achieved on this journey.
We had a fantastic time and even had dinner with the sailors on a small island that had just one restaurant. There wasn't enough food initially, so we watched as many people hopped on their motorbikes to buy rice and chicken to feed everyone. It was quite an adventure!
I hope you enjoyed this little blog, let me know if I should delve into more detail, I could easily make another the Equator. Please leave me some feedback on what I can improve. If you want to see similar content check out my profile.