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Thread: Ellerman line City of Ely.

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    Don't think we did that with water, but i have just looked at the date i signed on her, and it was Feb 1960, so the Med would not have been that warm, in fact i think it was the trip we took Belgian steel through the Med in to the Black sea, and a port called Varna. Bloody freezing, and the last sling coming out of the hatch slipped and shot a hole in the deep tanks, so were delayed departure for repair. Bulgaria was a miserable place and did not get ashore, armed guards on the gangway etc.
    R689823

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    I was on board about the middle of 1962 Keith, and got home for Christmas. So maybe we were not the first UK crew to replace Lascars as we had been told?

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    Hi All,
    I’m really pleased to read about Ellermans as I started with them in 1965 and left in 1971 as the ships were being sold each time we returned to the UK. With the benefit of hindsight, it was the start of containerisation that as we know, changed the world – literally!
    There were 4 cargo/passenger liners on the Cape run: the City of Durban, York, Exeter & Port Elizabeth, but many other company ships would call at Cape Town and even more into Durban while the Suez was closed in 1967.
    They operated a 10 week run from the UK to South Africa and Mozambique and return.

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    Your experience on City boats sounds good Peter. After my bad trip on the City of Ely, I turned down every city boat they offered at the pool, thinking they were all the same.

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    I suppose it's not fair to just describe the bad things about a ship, or trip. After thinking about all the things that made that trip a bad one, I racked my brain to think of something good that happened. It took a while, but suddenly it appeared in my distant memory of the City of Ely.
    The happiest moment for myself, and the rest of the deckhands, was on the morning we entered Le Havre and daylight lit up the forepart of the bridge, and everything else visible on the ship. As we stepped out onto the foredeck, we were greeted with a fantastic vista. The whole ship was covered in a kaleidoscopic beauty, due to the ship being freshly painted on our return trip.
    As we crossed the bay and entered the channel, a huge storm, lasting four days battered the ship unmercifully. The paint locker and everything in it, had burst open at some time during the storm. Nobody could see anything but flying, foamy, seawater in all those four days.
    What a wonderful site it was, the end of the trip almost, and our wonderful ship splattered with every colour imaginable.
    We all went ashore that evening, and had a good drink to celebrate this wonderful event. Although they attempted to clean the paintwork, nobody made any effort to succeed.
    On paying off, everyone had a good look from ashore, and there were plenty of smiles and loud comments passed to the officers. My dad even picked me up in his car, and commented that it was a funny colour to paint a ship.

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    The people on a ship make the ship. I’ve been on some old bangers but depending on the mindset of the crew she may be one of the happiest ships of your time at sea. One of the slogans of my old council school houses was manners maketh man. It also makes ships one could say. JS
    R575129

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    DOC

    This is the CITY OF PORT ELIZABETH in Cape Town with Table Mountain covered in cloud in the back ground.
    For the engineers when entering the upper engine room ,the sight of twin 6 cylinder LB DOXFORDS pounding away was a sight
    to behold.

    COLIN

    - - - Updated - - -



    COLIN
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    Last edited by Doc Vernon; 5th May 2022 at 08:58 PM.

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    Quote Originally Posted by j.sabourn View Post
    The people on a ship make the ship. I’ve been on some old bangers but depending on the mindset of the crew she may be one of the happiest ships of your time at sea. One of the slogans of my old council school houses was manners maketh man. It also makes ships one could say. JS
    Totally agree.
    You only need one bad apple, as I believe the CO was on this ship. I became good friends with the apprentice, who often told me how the CO bullied him. He also said that the CO hated having UK crew on board.
    I never experienced another bad ship, or trip, before, or after the City of Ely.
    I think it was a wonderful experience, that youngsters don't get much chance of these days, seeing the world and getting paid for it.

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    How could you think that boring. I know it must have been bad at the time but reading now its unbelievable and in parts quite funny. Of course I.m just an old woman but I did 'sail the seven seas' even if it was in the more luxurious ocean liners. Wish some other female ex 'sailors' would write. I can't be the only one, well I know I'm not - I was a telephonist first on Pendennis Castle then Oriana and various others. Anyway thanks again for the post - I enjoyed it

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    Default Re: Ellerman line City of Ely.

    Glad you enjoyed reading it Anne. Just to add some flavour to it, I'll tell you of another little event during that trip.
    On going ashore in some remote village in Borneo, we were met by a British soldier that escorted us to the market where there was a bar. We saw a group of Dyaks with spears, and very sparsely dressed. The soldier told us they were land Dyaks (or something like that) and not to stare at them, because they didn't like being looked at. I spotted a teenage girl with them and immediately fell in love with her, I just stared and stared, she was lovely, and dressed the same as the men. Suddenly, the guys with spears turned on us, shouting and pointing their spears. The soldier pointed his machine gun at them and told me off something rotten, and made me look away.
    After they calmed down, he came over to tell me off some more, and added that "these people eat people like you, so watch yourself around these parts".
    After that, whenever we saw a young lady, the others always told me "avert your eyes" and had a great laugh about it.
    Oh to be 17 again.

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