November 30- Day Two At Sea

Last evening the sunset as we sailed along was lovely. At last the weather seems a little better ad the sea is not rocking so much.

Today the DBD (dreaded boat drill) was repeated. The International Maritime Law or SOLAS (Safety on Land and Sea)  means the boat drill has to be repeated every 14 days. Now wouldn’t you think folks were smart enough to remember how to put on a life jacket, where to go for the muster station and what the ship’s signal sounds like, but I guess not.

I asked Samuel this morning what was his job during the boat drill and he told us all the Butlers make up the team of people who are available to assist people who need special assistance. Since the elevators don’t work in a real emergency, they have to carry those people down the inside crew stairwells on stretchers. He said they had special training in how to lift people up so they don’t hurt themselves.

The DBD- second time around- was similar to the first in that we had to take life jackets, march into the balcony of the theater via one door but walk all the way over to the other side to sit down. I guess it gave more control checking the role. We heard the same stuff including the demonstration about putting on a life jacket. Then we were done. We- thankfully- didn’t have to go outside to the boats.

William Bligh

Jim went to the lectures about William Bligh and learned some things about this story that are different than the popularized stories about the mutiny on the Bounty.  First, Bligh was not the tyrant he was made out to be, in fact he was generally kind to his men and actually used the lash as punishment less than Capt. Cooke.  When he was sent on his mission to gather breadfruit trees and transplant them to the West Indies, his ship was mainly staffed by impressed sailors, who were unruly and poor sailors.  And unlike many expeditions, he had no marine guards for his protection or to protect the crew. However competent Bligh was, he was not a natural leader and was not respected by his men.  He tended to play favorites.

When they got to Tahiti, the crew was allowed to do as they pleased for 6 months and became even more undisciplined.  They loved the life in Tahiti and the women of Tahiti.  Moreover, some of them became addicted to laudanum (an opiate), especially Fletcher Christian.  Christian was not the swashbuckling character portrayed in the movies he was a basic sailor who was not the leader.  The crew, upon sailing from Tahiti, basically decided they loved the life in Tahiti more than their lives in England.  So they mutinied, sent Bligh and 18 others adrift in a 23 foot boat, and sailed back to Tahiti. The most remarkable thing in the whole saga is the voyage Bligh accomplished in returning to England with no charts an only a sextant.

Some other basic facts learned are: William Bligh (September 9, 1754- December 7, 1817) was born in Plymouth to Francis Bligh and his wife Jane. He was signed for the Royal Navy at age seven, it being common to sign on a "young gentleman" simply to gain experience at sea required for promotion. In 1770, at age 16, he joined HMS Hunter as an able seaman, the term used because there was no vacancy for a midshipman. In September 1771, Bligh was transferred to the Crescent and remained in the ship for three years.

In 1776, Bligh was selected by Captain James Cook for the position of sailing master of the Resolution and accompanied Cook in July 1776 on Cook's third and fatal voyage to the Pacific. Bligh returned to England at the end of 1780 and was able to give details of Cook's last voyage.

Between 1783 and 1787, Bligh was a captain in the merchant service. Like many lieutenants he would have found full-pay employment in the Navy hard to obtain with the fleet largely demobilized at the end of the War of American Independence. In 1787, Bligh was selected as commander of the Bounty. He rose eventually to the rank of Vice Admiral in the Royal Navy.

A historic mutiny occurred during his command of HMS Bounty in 1789; Bligh and his loyal men made a remarkable voyage to Timor, 3,618 nautical miles (4,164 miles), after being set adrift in the Bounty's launch by the mutineers. Fifteen years after the Bounty mutiny, he was appointed Governor of New South Wales in Australia, with orders to clean up the corrupt rum trade of the New South Wales Corps, resulting in the so-called Rum Rebellion.

Since it was rated only as a cutter, the Bounty had no officers other than Bligh himself (who was then only a lieutenant), a very small crew, and no Marines to provide protection from hostile natives during stops or enforce security on board ship. To allow longer uninterrupted sleep, Bligh divided his crew into three watches instead of two, placing his protégé Fletcher Christian—rated as a Master's Mate—in charge of one of the watches. The mutiny, which took place on 28 April 1789 during the return voyage, was led by Christian and supported by eighteen of the crew. They had seized firearms during Christian's night watch and surprised and bound Bligh in his cabin.

Despite being in the majority, none of the loyalists put up a significant struggle once they saw Bligh bound, and the ship was taken over without bloodshed. The mutineers provided Bligh and eighteen loyal crewmen with a 23 foot launch that was so heavily loaded that the gunwales were only a few inches above the water. They were allowed four cutlasses, food and water for perhaps a week, a quadrant and a compass, but no charts, or Marine chronometer. The launch could not hold all the loyal crew members, so four were detained on the Bounty for their useful skills; they were later released at Tahiti.

Tahiti was upwind from Bligh's initial position, and was the obvious destination of the mutineers. Many of the loyalists claimed to have heard the mutineers cry "Huzzah for Otaheite!" as the Bounty pulled away. 

Bligh and his crew first made for Tofua, only a few miles distant, to obtain supplies. However, they were attacked by hostile natives and John Norton, a quartermaster, was killed. Fleeing from Tofua, Bligh did not dare to stop at the next islands, the Fiji islands, as he had no weapons for defense and expected hostile receptions.

Bligh had confidence in his navigational skills, which he had perfected under the instruction of Captain Cook. His first responsibility was to bring his men to safety. Thus, he undertook the seemingly impossible 3,618 nautical miles (4,164 miles) voyage to Timor, the nearest European settlement. In this remarkable act of seamanship, Bligh succeeded in reaching Timor after a 47-day voyage, the only casualty being the crewman killed on Tofua.

From May 4^th  until May 29^th , when they reached the Great Barrier Reef, the 18 men lived on 1/12 of a pound of bread per day. The weather was often stormy, and they were in constant fear of foundering due to the boat's heavily laden condition. They landed on a small island off the coast of Australia, which they appropriately named Restoration Island, May 29^th, 1660 being their landing date and the date of the restoration of the British monarchy. Over the next week or more they island-hopped north along the Great Barrier reef- while Bligh, cartographer as always, sketched maps of the coast. Early in June they passed through the Endeavour Strait and sailed again on the open sea until they reached Coupang, a settlement on Timor, on June 15^, 1789. Several of the men who survived this ordeal with him soon died of sickness, possibly malaria, in the pestilential Dutch East Indies port of Batavia, the present-day Indonesian capital of Jakarta, as they waited for transport to Britain. Bligh returned to Britain and reported the mutiny to the Admiralty on March 15,  1790, 2 years and 11 weeks after his original departure. In October 1790, Bligh was honorably acquitted at the court-martial inquiring into the loss of the Bounty.

The British government dispatched HMS Pandora to capture the mutineers, and Pandora reached Tahiti on March 23, 1791. Four of the men from Bounty came on board soon after her arrival, and ten more were arrested within a few weeks. These fourteen were imprisoned in a makeshift cell on Pandora's deck. Pandora ran aground on part of the Great Barrier Reef on August 29, 1791, with the loss of 31 of the crew and four of the prisoners. Of the 10 surviving prisoners eventually brought home, four were acquitted, owing to Bligh's testimony that they were non-mutineers that Bligh was obliged to leave on the Bounty because of lack of space in the launch. Two others were convicted because, while not participating in the mutiny, they were passive and did not resist. They subsequently received royal pardons. One was convicted but excused on a technicality. The remaining three were convicted and hanged.

To this day, the reasons behind the mutiny are a subject of debate. Many believe that Bligh was a cruel tyrant whose abuse of the crew led them to feel that they had no choice but to take over the ship. Others argue that the crew, inexperienced and unused to the rigors of the sea and, after having been exposed to freedom and sexual license on Tahiti, refused to return to the "Jack Tar's" life of an ordinary seaman. They were led by Fletcher Christian in order to be free from Bligh's acid tongue. This view holds that the crew took the ship so they could return to comfort and ease on Tahiti.

The mutiny is made more mysterious by the friendship of Christian and Bligh, which dates back to Bligh's days in the merchant service. Christian was well acquainted with the Bligh family. As Bligh was being set adrift he appealed to this friendship, saying "you have dandled my children upon your knee". According to Bligh, Christian "appeared disturbed" and replied, "That, Captain Bligh, that is the thing; I am in hell-I am in hell."

The Bounty's log shows that Bligh resorted to punishments relatively sparingly. He scolded when other captains would have whipped, and whipped when other captains would have hanged. He was an educated man, deeply interested in science, convinced that good diet and sanitation were necessary for the welfare of his crew. He took a great interest in his crew's exercise, was very careful about the quality of their food, and insisted upon the Bounty's being kept very clean. He tried unsuccessfully to check the spread of venereal disease among the men.  J. C. Beaglehole has described the major flaw in this otherwise enlightened naval officer: "[Bligh made] dogmatic judgments which he felt himself entitled to make; he saw fools about him too easily ... thin-skinned vanity was his curse through life ... [Bligh] never learnt that you do not make friends of men by insulting them."

Seas are a bit calmer for us as we sail along toward Nuku Hiva. The Captain promises good weather tomorrow as we cross the equator. Really glad to be sailing in these modern times and not back there with William Bligh or James Cooke.

November 29- A Day at Sea…again

The sunset last evening as we sailed away was really unusual. The weather had been overcast and

cloudy all day- not to mention drippy, rainy and gray. So we were surprised to look out and see the brilliant red topped by the almost gray and white cloudy sky.

All night the ship rocked and made strange noises as the wind blew. We both slept well except for occasionally being awakened by sudden movement or sound. Nelma, our cabin stewardess, said she couldn’t sleep last night because of the extreme rocking. She is a very nice person from the Philippines who has a 9-year-old son at home living with her sister. I guess when one family member goes to work for the cruise industry it becomes a total family project.

Samuel, our Butler, is from Goa, India and is counting the days until he goes on vacation on January 20^th. Each of the ports in Hawaii he was off doing shopping for gifts for his family  whenever he had a break. All of a sudden yesterday afternoon I  got something painfully wrong with my hip. I knew I couldn’t make it to the dining room for dinner given the rolling of the sea and the pain in my hip. I was just going to do room service, but Jim had the bright idea of calling the Butler for a wheel chair. Sure enough here came Samuel with his perpetual smile and a wheel chair. Frustrating for me but so thankful for his help.  After dinner they called him and he came to take me back. I said I was sorry to be a bother since I knew he was so busy in the evenings and he said his job was to take care of his passengers and he was happy to do that. Nice to be pampered. We enjoyed watching the movie "Maleficent" and went to bed at about 10:30.

This is the first of four days at sea before we reach Nuku Hiva on the Marquesas Islands. Hoping for clear skies and smoother seas.  

This is a time to be really lazy. I am getting a massage this afternoon and hoping for great results on this pesky hip.

Jim went to hear Dr. Sobey lecture about The Equator. Seems a timely talk since we are about to cross that line in the water.

November 28- Hilo

What a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration we had. We gathered in the Atrium at about 5:30 and suddenly the sound of trumpets heralded the Thanksgiving mini-parade. The Atrium was filled with people armed with cameras as the band appeared. Music was a New Orleans style jazz and the marchers walked by in their variety of costumes. Twice around the Atrium on the 5^th  deck. Twice around the Atrium on the 6th level and then the parade went down the hall to the Horizon Lounge for pictures. It was great fun.

Our parade had everything that Macy’s parade had- a band, a baton twirler (Lorraine the Cruise Director), lovely young women with sparkly outfits and balloons, men in crazy wigs and even Batman was there.

Today is Friday, November 28 and we sailed in Hilo, Hawaii in the pouring rain after another rocky night of sailing.

Hilo is the largest in Hawaii County, Hawaii, which encompasses the Island of Hawaiʻi. The population was 40,759 at the 2000 census. The population increased by 6.1% to 43,263 at the 2010 census.

Hilo is the county seat of the County of Hawaiʻi and is located in the District of South Hilo. The town overlooks Hilo Bay, situated upon two shield volcanoes; Mauna Loa, an active volcano, and Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano and the site of some of the world's most important ground-based astronomical observatories. The majority of human settlement in Hilo stretches from Hilo Bay to Waiākea-Uka, on the flanks of Mauna Loa. Kilauea is the youngest and most active Hawaiian shield volcano, located on the southern part of the ‘Big Island.’ At present, Kilauea is still having one of the most long-lived eruptions known on earth, which started in 1983. This is the volcano that has so recently been in the news with lava running down and destroying homes and grounds.

Hilo is home to the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, ʻImiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaiʻi, as well as the Merrie Monarch Festival, a week-long celebration of ancient and modern hula which takes place annually after Easter. Hilo is also home to the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Corporation, one of the world's leading producers of macadamia nuts.

Circa 1100 AD, the first Hilo inhabitants arrived, bringing with them Polynesian knowledge and traditions. Although archaeological evidence is scant, oral history has many references to people living in Hilo, along the Wailuku and Wailoa Rivers during the time of ancient Hawaii.

After Kamehameha gained control of Moku O Keawe (the Hawaiian name for the Island of Hawaiʻi), Kamehameha celebrated the Makahiki in Hilo in 1794. The village and area of Hilo was named by Kamehameha after a special braid that was used to secure his canoe. Hilo in Hawaiian means to twist.

Kamehameha’s son, Liholiho (Kamehameha II) was born in Hilo (1797). Kamehameha’s great war fleet, Peleleu, that was instrumental in Kamehameha’s conquest, was built and based at Hilo (1796–1801). After uniting all of the islands under his rule, Hilo became Kamehameha’s first seat of government. It was in Hilo that Kamehameha established his greatest law, the Kānāwai Māmalahoe (Law of the Splintered Paddle). One of Kamehameha’s most favorite things to eat was the sweet mullet that came from Hilo’s Wailoa fish pond. Kamehameha is also known to have visited and practiced cultural protocols on Moku Ola (literally "healing island") in Hilo Bay.

Originally, the name Hilo applied to a district encompassing much of the east coast of the Island of Hawaiʻi, now divided into the District of South Hilo and the District of North Hilo. When William Ellis visited in 1823, the main settlement in the Hilo district was Waiākea on the south shore of Hilo Bay. Missionaries came to the district in the early-to-middle 19th century, founding Haili Church, in the area of modern Hilo.

Hilo expanded as sugar plantations in the surrounding area created new jobs and drew in many workers from Asia, making the town a trading center.

A breakwater across Hilo Bay was begun in the first decade of the 20th century and completed in 1929.

On April 1, 1946, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake near the Aleutian Islands created a fourteen-meter high tsunami that hit Hilo 4.9 hours later, killing 160 people. In response an early warning system, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, was established in 1949 to track these killer waves and provide warning. This tsunami also caused the end of the Hawaii Consolidated Railway, and instead the Hawaii Belt Road was built north of Hilo using some of the old railbed.

On May 23, 1960, another tsunami, caused by a 9.5 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Chile the previous day, claimed 61 lives allegedly due to people's failure to heed warning sirens. Low-lying bayfront areas of the city on Waiākea peninsula and along Hilo Bay, previously populated, were rededicated as parks and memorials.

Hilo expanded inland beginning in the 1960s. The downtown found a new role in the 1980s as the city's cultural center with several galleries and museums being opened; the Palace Theatre was reopened in 1998 as an arthouse cinema.

Closure of the sugar plantations during the 1990s led to a downturn in the local economy, coinciding with a general statewide slump. Hilo in recent years has seen commercial and population growth as the neighboring District of Puna became the fastest-growing region in the state.

Jim went on tour and the tour today took him to several really interesting spots. First he visited Liliʻuokalani Park and Gardens, a 30-acre park with Japanese gardens, located on Banyan Drive in Hilo on the island of Hawaiʻi.

The park's site was given by Queen Liliʻuokalani, and lies southeast of downtown Hilo, on the Waiakea Peninsula in Hilo Bay. Much of the park now consists of Edo-style Japanese gardens, built in the early 1900s, and said to be the largest such gardens outside Japan. The gardens contain Waihonu Pond as well as bridges, koi ponds, pagodas, statues, torii, and a Japanese teahouse.

Next stop was Rainbow (Waiānuenue) Falls, a waterfall that is 80 feet tall and almost 100 feet in diameter. The falls are part of the Hawai'i State Parks. Quite a sight to see!

He stopped to see another Kamahameha statue which resides on Hawaiʻi Island. It stands near downtown Hilo at the north end of the Wailoa River State Recreation Area, where it enjoys a king's view of Hilo Bay. The 14-foot statue was sculpted by R. Sandrin at the Fracaro Foundry in Vicenza, Italy in 1963 but was not erected on this site and dedicated until June 1997. The statue was originally commissioned for $125,000 by the Princeville Corporation for their resort in Kauai. However, the people of Kauai did not want the statue erected there, as Kauai was never conquered by King Kamehameha I.

Hilo, however, was one of the political centers of King Kamehameha I. So the Princeville Corporation donated the statue to the Big Island of Hawaii via the Kamehameha Schools Alumni Association, East Hawaii Chapter.

Learned today the the statue in Honolulu was originally lost at sea following a shipwreck near the Falkland Islands. The government had insured it for $12,000 so another was begun. The statue was recovered and sold back to the government for $850.