Those Trips Ashore

[Russ Kennedy]

A comment made on a photo that was recently posted to the gallery reminded me of a couple of little trips ashore when I was on the Ibadan Palm. We had docked in Dunkirk to pick up cargo enroute to the West Coast of Africa. Three of us went ashore for a few scoops, on the way back, a little worse for wear, we happened on some road works. The triangular "men at work" sign was just the right size to hide under my mac. The gangway watchie was wasn't around so no bother, one sign deposited in the Engine room and hung above the tunnel water tight door (later). Can't remember how I (or we) got down below!! Next morning there were whispers that the Gendarmerie had been on board looking for a missing road works sign......I think the sign was still on board a couple of years later. On the return trip, in Antwerp, a similar situation. part of the docks were being re-furbished. On the way back to the ship, we managed to acquire a street name sign. Big mistake because this time we posted it on the bulkhead of the cross over alley in our accomodation. When we came to sail it was noticed by the port officials and confiscated.................funny how nobody knew how it got there. Happy days!!

[Dennis McGuckin]

Often woke up with strange things by my bunk[sometimes in it ha ha]
Street signes were fairly common, but once I woke to see this Voodoo like carving staring back at me.
It had chicken feathers sticking out all over it and ugly faces carved on it.
No idea where it came from. Where the hell had I been to get that thing.
Cant remember what I did with it.
Either chucked it over the wall or gave it to someone I didn't care for.
Den.

[John Gill]

Sounds like you had a run ashore in Haiti and upset a member of Papa Doc's Ton Ton Macoute- the undead security arm of Mr Duvaliers thugs. Nailing a dead chicken to your door usually meant a visit shortly after and a disappearance. Seems you managed to avoid that experience Dennis- or maybe an excess of Cuba Libras in the First and Last contributed to that strange experience.
gilly

[Peter F Chard]

Not quite a trip ashore but my leave after my first trip as junior engineer -- I went pot-holing, one of my pastimes before going to sea. Deep underground in Gaping Ghyll pot in the West Riding of Yorkshire we came across a sign at the entrance to a passage which read :-- Central Criminal Court of the Old Bailly, an arrow pointing the way and the words " Judges and Barristers Clerks only " A good place for them I thought. Regards Peter in NZ.

[Lou Barron]

When the ship i was on (SS Aldington Court) we went to Ceduna to load wheat for NZit is only a small place but big enough to get on the booze any a few of us went ashore and got stuck into the beer whilein the pub some Aussies came in with a snake it was dead they said it was a tiger snake after a very good few beers the Aussies left the snake with us so back aboard the ship we put the snake into one of the ABs bunk he was one of the guys who did not drink and that night all turned in then Screams from this guy when he found the snake he threaten to go to the captain but thisbig Geordie AB stoppe him
by the way it was a good place to have a dance it was in a tin shed the band was a piano player a drummer and a guy on the fiddle Oh what a night

[Frank Appleford]

I can remember a run ashore in Montevideo, being well anebriated and walking up the street in the bar area with a young lady (fondling my private parts). I still remember most of the juke boxes in the street at the time, were playing, 'and the concrete beneath my feet begins to crumble ...etc. Unit plus 4 the group I believe. Yes over my 9 years there were many great runs ashore and I would love to hear more from you old salts tales of your runs ashore. They were great days. I feel sorry for the younger generation of today, they will never experience those days for themselves. Sometimes the runs ashore were not the sort of thing you would write home to your mother about lol. But we kept the British end up didn't we?

[Keith Tindell]

Some of the things we got up to were quite frightening, while on the St Merriel in the late fifties and the run ashore in Rio, a group of the deck crew plus the 2nd cook were in the usual dockside bar, the 2nd cook had been ashore all afternoon pi***** it up, and joined by the rest at 5oclock. During the course of the evening the 2nd cook passed out at the bar and hit the deck with a crash, and started snoring, the helpful boys put him in a chair, and proceeded to carry him from bar to bar for the rest of the evening, eventually took him on board and into his bunk, still snoring. It was only on turn to time in the morning they twigged something not right, and called a Dr, the poor guy had a fractured scull where he hit the deck. I know we got him down the gangway and into the ambulance, but cannot recall the outcome, or if we were informed, KT

[alf corbyn]

three of us went ashore in schidam and down the hoog straat? stayed in the one bar alnight and came out well pi**ed. made our way back to the ship and i nicked a big wooden sign with schidam on it. we got back to the dock area and decided to move all the steeln barriers and block off the docks. made a very nice job of it, then this big fat dutch copper decided that they were better where they were originally. we all shook hands with him, and i picked up my sign. he didn't say anything just waved us goodnight.
we went ashore in panama and aquired a small palm tree about 8ft high, went back to the ship put it in a room we used for relaxing in, fixed three chairs round it and by the time we had been round nz it was well decorated with ladies underwear.

[Russ Kennedy]

My 21st, 1961, Hamburg, ship the St Essylt. Cannot remember much about the night except it was a heck of a good one. I can remember getting back to the ship and continuing with the a few more scoops and then crawling to my cabin, the next thing I remember was waking up with a fire extinguisher in my arms....sort of. Luckily it was the type that you had to strike, not the type you turn upside down to activate!!!! Sailed with some very considerate people!!!

[leratty]

memories of Rotterdam, a milder memory (: ship was on moorings we went ashore in a boat had a right old time then in a interesting state staggered back to where we were to get a boat back to the ship & there were some others there from another ship. Anyway we all wound up chatting away in Braille as you do, then the first boat came in it was for us & I said good bye & 'you guys speak English well for Scandinavians' well did the excreta hit the f..... wall they started belting into us saying they were Geordie s ): Ah laugh, you gotta in a situation like that.
Another time ashore in Valpo & we had this dog, a pup we called Yacko after a well known bar there. Anyway we were drinking elsewhere with Yacko in tow & there were some Germans down the other end of the bar, Yacko kept walking up to them on the bar looking at them wagging his tail, they were getting more & more pie eyed then started making most ungenerous remarks about our parentage along with countries of origin. Being pleasant chaps we kept quite except for the occasional aside, sotto voice of course as to their loosing the war. Then Yacko trotted off down to them & did a huge slash all around their beers much to our hysterical delight, oh dear it was on for young & old.