Where might one locate a lifeboat called President Truman? In Missouri?
Mais non! One starboard and one port midships on the APL President Truman, of course, who just happened to pass by as I gallivanted along my favorite waterway.
Notice the crewmen near the bow, the one wearing dark blue and pointing toward Manhattan, where he never made it during this too-short 18 hours or so turn-around in Port Liz. I wonder about these crew and what their thoughts are of this and other ports they cruise in and back out of on their unnatural schedules. What are the joys, pains, and community of the global mariner?
The topmost white number on the stern is marked as 13 meters 60. A dear friend suggested I do more stern fotos. Hmm!?
More on the orange tug pushing the barge and passing alongside President Truman‘s portside tomorrow. And after that, more APL.
For now a final thought related to a word I’ve learned through researching my other blog Henry’s Obssesion. The “Henry” is the one for whom the major sixth boro river is named. That word is “retourschip,” meaning a large treasure ship that brought the goods to the metropolis from the colony, goods in the VOC’s case being spice. Here’s some info on “retourschepen” albeit on a numismatic site. So, my final thought is that these containership are the retourschepen of our society, our key to getting cheap and not-so-cheap goods from abroad. And yet, large as they are, they enter and leave the port with no fanfare, no ceremony. No revelry and story-swapping really happens with crew who’ve sailed from the other side of the globe, and all ports are quite similar both in their equipment and their being off-limits. There might be good reasons for all that, but what’s lost is the excitement of our stuff coming in and the prospect of meeting folks with very different experience and unique perspectives to share.
OK, ’nuff said. But drop by our Henry site. Bowsprite and I would like some feedback on our creative non-fiction/illustration project.
Photos, WVD.
tugster: a waterblog 
4 comments
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February 19, 2009 at 10:24 pm
bowsprite
ORANGE!!!!!!!!! my lieblingsfarber! (don’t you love that word? so much more exotic than our ordinary ‘favorite color’). Beautiful Fotos, Tugster!
February 20, 2009 at 9:30 am
Mage Bailey
Cadmium red medium…….I didn’t say that. LOL Love the APL schiff…..but oh, the rust.
February 20, 2009 at 2:23 pm
New Yorker
Nice photos Tugster… have you thought about uploading to Flickr.com? A lot more people would see them… regards,
March 25, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Allen Baker
Seeing the images of the “President Truman” compelled me to write about some time I spent sailing in one of her sisterships, “President Kennedy”.
Officially, they are classified by the Maritime Administration, C-10 class. 4,400 TEU capacity and just a little over 900 feet in length.
Five of these brutes were built by HDW Shipyard in Germany during the late 1980’s.
These were some of the first ships designed for trans Pacific service and were built to exceed the dimensions of the Panama Canal as they are all 129 feet wide. In the trade, called “post Panamax”.
For a containership, they are outfitted very nicely inside. Queen sized bed, recliner chair, refrigerator and settee as well as individual head/shower. Right down to the ordinary seaman’s room.
Very, very powerful ships and truly, a beautiful ride.
There is more to this story but, I will leave it there.