Leaving Miami

For the first time I was excited to wake up early, because today we were finally going to set sail and leave the port. After a week stay in Fort Lauderdale I’m sure everyone were just as eager as me to finally set off. Me and some friends were finishing up our chemistry assignment when one of my classmates announced that Gunilla was now leaving the port.

The air filled with chatters of excitement as everyone rushed up on to deck to capture the ship drift away from the port. Many stod leaning over the gunnel, sticking their heads out to catch a better view of the disappearing landscapes. On barboard side, multiple apartment buildings on the shoreline only stayed in view for a few minutes while on starboard side all that could be seen were skyscrapers assembled far away on the horizon.

We all hurried up to the upper deck to capture the front view. We were finally out on the sea now. Gunilla now faced the wide open sea with no land in sight. The horizon was almost completely empty giving an inviting feeling. The blue waves rushed towards the ship crashing up against the front and rolled back along the sides creating a repeating roaring sound.

To get out of the harbour we had to use the engine first. Then later as we got further out from land we had to let down the sails. Since barboard was on watch at that time, they were in charge of unfurling the sails. The sight of the large heavy sails falling down and catching the wind was absolutely incredible. A few years ago, I never would have imagined that I would be sailing on Gunilla.

As I started my watch at four in the afternoon I went up on deck and was shocked by the unfamiliar appearance of the sea. As we had gotten further out on the now much deeper water the sea was now a much stronger blue colour. The shockingly deep blue colour of the water made it look almost fake.

During our watch we got to unfurl the middle sail. At first I was so caught up in trying to get the right knots that I almost didn’t notice the beautiful view that was right in front of me. I looked over as far as the eye could see. The large sea was shimmering in the sunshine reflecting the light up on my face as I peeked down. The setting sun created beautiful pink and orange strokes along the sky. We watched the sinking sun being cut off by the horizon before climbing back down continuing our watch.

Maja Å, Midskepps