A fun event and a sad notification marked the third of our five days at sea. First, the sad notice. During his noon briefing, Captain Markus let us know that an onboard medical emergency will require us to miss our stop in Bora Bora. We are now sailing at full speed toward Papeete, the capital city of French Polynesia, where medical services are available. Although some passengers may grumble, Viking puts the overall wellbeing of its guests first, and medical issues have priority. Besides, if one can’t go with the flow and accept itinerary changes, a person may not belong on a cruise.
While all this was going on behind the scenes, Viking Sky put on its traditional Equator Crossing Ceremony. This ceremony is an initiation rite that commemorates a person's first crossing of the equator. Although crossing the equator may seem like a routine event for any modern-day ship, navies have celebrated this time-honored tradition for centuries. Back in the days of wooden ships, Crossing the Line ceremonies were designed to test young sailors on their first cruise out in the open sea.
Today’s ceremony was just for fun, but the crew members who had never crossed the line were singled out for initiation. They bowed down before King Neptune (I’m not sure anyone kissed the fish), heard Cruise Director Matt charge them for their crimes, and got the justice they deserved by plunging into the pool fully clothed. These former Pollywogs were now eligible to receive their official “Order of the Shellback” status. and could celebrate with a shot of Aquavit.
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| Equator Crossing Ceremony |
Many guests also participated, although I think all wore swimsuits. Afterwards, some of the other officers, and Matt and Tara, also took the plunge. I heard later that Matt took the plunge three times. One of those was when he was pushed into the pool by a passenger! I hope his jacket survives, although he did admit that he has 24 others with him as spares. It was a fun time for everyone.
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| Officers and Matt Taking the Plunge |
In addition to all that fun, today was another good day for lectures. Patrick Goodness gave another great talk on “The Ancient Religions, Rites, and Rituals of the Polynesian Islands,” Simon and Lisa Thomas delved into “Shutter Speed Demystified,” and Captain Paul Eschenfelder spoke about “The King, Duke, and Commander Rodgers” and their place in Hawaiian history.
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| The Ancient Religions, Rites, and Rituals of the Polynesian Islands |
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| Master Shutter Speed |
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| Kamehameha, Duke and Commander Rodgers |
When we returned to our room after dinner, our “Crossed the Equator” certificates were waiting for us. We’ll probably cross the equator at least one more time before the end of our cruise.
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| Our Certificates |
With the change in course, Viking Sky actually crossed the equator shortly after 11:00 pm. It's now officially Summer!
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| Viking Sky Crossed the Equator Today |
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