Day 118 – Sail the North Atlantic Ocean

The North Atlantic Ocean was amazingly calm when we woke up on our fifth of six days at sea.

The Ocean Was So Beautiful This Morning

Tim and I once again began our morning with a lecture by Dr. Malloy on “The Benin Bronzes.” The Benin Bronzes are a group of thousands of objects that were stolen by British soldiers from the Kingdom of Benin during a large-scale military expedition in 1897. Most of the objects now rest in the British Museum.

Legacy and Collection: The Benin Bronzes

What interested Tim and me the most about Dr. Malloy’s talk was her presentation about the repatriation of cultural artifacts. She discussed the pressure that is now being placed on museums and other institutions to return such objects to their country of origin. It’s an issue that Tim dealt with during his career, and we hope to continue the conversation with Dr. Malloy over tea.

Lunch on sea days almost always involves a special event. Today’s was a Baklava Station, and the chefs had prepared this traditional dessert in many different ways. I limited myself to just one and ultimately decided on the classic one.

Baklava Station

In the afternoon, Tim and I decided to watch one of Dr. Malloy’s lectures that we had missed. Her “History of West Africa” explored the heritage of ancient empires, slavery, and colonialism in contemporary West Africa, and gave us a great overview of this part of the continent.

History of West Africa

Key Dates in West African History