At Sea
Today was the first of two well-deserved relaxing days at sea after several very active days exploring Madeira and the Canary Islands. Both the sea conditions and climatic conditions were just about perfect as the National Geographic Endeavour explored southward, crossing the Tropic of Cancer and entering into tropical waters in the early evening. The waters were maybe not glass smooth, but the wave action was slight and we all marveled at the deep blue color of the sea. That is an indication that there is very little suspended material within the water column and as expected, this is a region of the Atlantic Ocean in which we don’t usually encounter much marine life. Even so, we did see a few interesting animals, including a Leach’s storm petrel which came aboard early in the morning, some distant dolphins, a probable beaked-whale sighting, a long-tailed jaeger, and lots of flying fish. It's worth noting that directly east of us, where there are upwellings along the African coast, one finds incredibly rich fisheries.
Yes, the day was definitely relaxing, but we continued with our lecture program and started a series of workshops. Mike Greenfelder gave us considerable insight concerning digital cameras and offered some helpful suggestions on how to compose pleasing photographs. Apparently, there is more to it than just owning a really good camera. Jim Kelley introduced us to the impressive natural history of the Cape Verde Islands (including our next two ports-o-call) and prepared us for the activities awaiting us. Since we have managed to observe cetaceans every day so far on the voyage, this was a good time for Richard White to tell us more about whales and dolphins. Roff Smith, our National Geographic writer, began his workshop with some astounding examples of seriously bad writing (not his own, I might add) and gave our aspiring writers an assignment.
It’s hard to believe, but there are still a few people who don’t believe the Green Flash is real, so Jim explained the Sun’s horizon-oriented phenomenon in scientific terms for everyone to understand. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the chance to see it for ourselves at this evening’s sunset as the horizon was covered with clouds, but no one was disappointed as we were all out on the Aft Deck dining on a wonderful tapas dinner at the time.
We ended the day with a delightful live performance by Geoffrey Haydock and Penny Smith-Haydock who presented a clarinet and piano duet of musical selections from around the world.
Today was the first of two well-deserved relaxing days at sea after several very active days exploring Madeira and the Canary Islands. Both the sea conditions and climatic conditions were just about perfect as the National Geographic Endeavour explored southward, crossing the Tropic of Cancer and entering into tropical waters in the early evening. The waters were maybe not glass smooth, but the wave action was slight and we all marveled at the deep blue color of the sea. That is an indication that there is very little suspended material within the water column and as expected, this is a region of the Atlantic Ocean in which we don’t usually encounter much marine life. Even so, we did see a few interesting animals, including a Leach’s storm petrel which came aboard early in the morning, some distant dolphins, a probable beaked-whale sighting, a long-tailed jaeger, and lots of flying fish. It's worth noting that directly east of us, where there are upwellings along the African coast, one finds incredibly rich fisheries.
Yes, the day was definitely relaxing, but we continued with our lecture program and started a series of workshops. Mike Greenfelder gave us considerable insight concerning digital cameras and offered some helpful suggestions on how to compose pleasing photographs. Apparently, there is more to it than just owning a really good camera. Jim Kelley introduced us to the impressive natural history of the Cape Verde Islands (including our next two ports-o-call) and prepared us for the activities awaiting us. Since we have managed to observe cetaceans every day so far on the voyage, this was a good time for Richard White to tell us more about whales and dolphins. Roff Smith, our National Geographic writer, began his workshop with some astounding examples of seriously bad writing (not his own, I might add) and gave our aspiring writers an assignment.
It’s hard to believe, but there are still a few people who don’t believe the Green Flash is real, so Jim explained the Sun’s horizon-oriented phenomenon in scientific terms for everyone to understand. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the chance to see it for ourselves at this evening’s sunset as the horizon was covered with clouds, but no one was disappointed as we were all out on the Aft Deck dining on a wonderful tapas dinner at the time.
We ended the day with a delightful live performance by Geoffrey Haydock and Penny Smith-Haydock who presented a clarinet and piano duet of musical selections from around the world.
