Cat in a sock filled with cucumbers Vol. 1

Day one: February 28th, 2024, Suriname

Time: 7.00 in the A.M

Got woken up by my friend, breakfast time. I decline, I sleep.

Time: 7.45 in the A.M

Got woken up by my friend, muster time. I try to decline, my decline gets declined, I muster.

During the mustering, the captain tells us about today and tomorrow. No work today, work tomorrow. Students from the school we visited the other day are arriving at 9.30 in A.M. They, in fact, did not.

Time: 9.45 in the A.M

Students start arriving by bus, they all look like impoverished Irish children in a candy store for the first time, seeing the ship. We start taking them on tours around the ship, answering questions to the best of our abilities.

Time: 10.00 in the A.M

Tried to explain to a Surinamese person what fika is whilst another Surinamese person bombarded me with questions, such as why they make you work in the rain. Would not recommend, contemplated hiding until they left. I did not.

Time: 10.30 in the A.M

The first group of students left. I tried to take a nap, lost a fight to my solitaire addiction, played solitaire on my phone until the next group came. I should have slept.

Time: 11.10 in the A.M

The next group arrived. I did not try as hard with the second group, that is on them for not being in the first group. A student took a picture of my tattoo, we gave them Djungelvrål, very entertaining.

Time: 12.00 in the P.M

Lunch got served, sausage with potato salad. I felt like a truckdriver going through a divorce. I felt the need to shower leave my body. I felt free.

Time: 12.40 in the P.M

Taxi boat took us to the other side of the river. When looking down into the river I felt like the ferryman was taking me over the river Styx and I saw my life flash before my eyes. When sitting at the bow of the boat, the risk of river water splashing into the mouth of the person sitting and conversing is inexplicably high. As a drop of brown water from the river positioned itself on my lips I saw myself getting stomach pumped in a Surinamese hospital so I promptly closed my gob.

Time: 1.00 in the P.M

Taxi boat arrived on the other side, we gave the man 3 USD each and left the boat. The group split, majority to a nearby pool to slowly melt into the tiles of the pool. The group I was in went to the city to hunt for fridge magnets and other chachkas. At the souvenir store I tried to find a postcard to send to my poor aching family.

Time: 3.15 in the P.M

My party and I arrived at a café. Goal? Smoothie and Wi-Fi. Succeeded with both. My trusted henchman Edvin was too lazy to go into town to download playlists, so I was tasked to do so for the both of us. Spoke to my father and stepmother, asked about if everyone is safe from the storm I have heard as been wreaking havoc on the city. My father was not impressed by the storm. I do not really know if that says something more about my father or more about my source of information who made me believe that it was the end of days. Peoplewatching is very interesting as a foreigner. Especially when the people around you are Dutch people on vacation. Many neanderthals were observed. Extremely harsh facial features on Dutch people, maybe it is the colonialism? Or all the rain in the Netherlands? Perhaps the German ancestry? I am putting my vote on the first and last speculation.

Time: 6.25 in the P.M

The groups have gathered back where the ferryman left us hours before. At exactly 18.30 the ferryman appears with his red stallion soaring across the river, just as agreed. He takes us back to the ship, smiling like the Cheshire cat with his cold tooth shining like the sun as we give him the fare for the trip over the river.

Time: 7.10 in the P.M

I have in my possession 1 coconut, husk, and all. With the help of a screwdriver, club, vise and brute force the nut gets ripped from its comforting shell. The owner of the coconut drank the water, it was not delicious, contrary to popular belief. The meat was promptly removed and discarded after tasting, this also not delicious.

Time: 7.40 in the P.M

Ate 1 orange, shared.

Time: 8.30 in the P.M

Ate 1 lollipop, not shared. While opening the wrapper to consume my lollipop I speculated over revolutionary ideas for lollipopwrappers. Such a hard fight to eat a lollipop. I have never seen someone open a lollipop without getting frustrated. I was too tired to continue the train of thought that was my candywrapper invention, it will have to wait for another day.

Time: 10.15 in the P.M

Crawled into my chamber. Fell into slumber.

Day two: February 29th, 2024, Suriname

Time: 7.00 in the A.M

Got woken up by my friend, breakfast time. I accept and eat porridge while listening to music.

Time: 8.00 in the A.M

Mustering. I only work for four hours today even though it is my watch day.

Time: 10.00 in the A.M

During galleywatch I chop cabbage and prepare for lunch. A floor drain gets cleaned and the galley smells like a warm outhouse. My respect for the earlier galleywatch slowly drops as the rank smell of fecal matter enters my nostrils.

Time: 12.30 in the P.M

I get off galleywatch, I am sweaty. I have carried 6 water carafes at the same time á la Octoberfest. I feel strong and a bit German.

Time: 12.45 in the P.M

I bring a book, headphones, glasses, and my phone to the forecastle to tan. I decide to not use sunscreen. I later regret this decision. Truly and deeply.

Time: 1. 30 in the P.M

I gave up on reading. The sun being too bright to open my eyes made focusing very difficult. Went to my bunk and took a nap.

Time: 3.00 in the P.M

Ice cream for fika topped with fruit cocktail. Vanilla and pistachio, one scoop of each no discussion. Don’t like pistachio? Too bad. Chew, swallow, chew, swallow. Ate ice cream then took a nap.

Time: 4.00 in the P.M

Got woken up by my friend, muster time before departure. We do a headcount then head back down and I continue my nap.

Time: 5.00 in the P.M

Got woken up by my friend, dinner time. At this point, I am very irritated. Sleeping for 50 minutes and then waking up several times is not very effective for a high-energy occupation. Dinner is chicken with potatoes. I eat then watch my friends arm wrestle.

Time: 6.30 in the P.M

My arm-wrestling friends and I take our business up to the forecastle to watch the ship slowly leave the Paramaribo harbour, Kuldipsingh Port Facility N.V.

Time: 8.00 in the P.M

I take to my cabin to go to sleep before my night watch. The watch starts at midnight, and I get off at 4 in the morning. Sleep is needed.

Lea Schmidt Stryhn Starboard SA2124