TEAM SA LOGBOOK - 30th April - St Helena to Ascension

Thursday, 30th April 2009 - 19:20pm - Felix Kleinwort

3rd sail leg from St. Helena to Ascension

Our position at noon was: Lat 12 ̊ 21.3208
Lon 9 ̊ 30.7872
Our speed at noon was: 5.00Kn
The course is 313
the following sails were set:
JoJiC TL TU TG R Ms Tgs Rs MZ Mzt M MT

Today the wind came from south by east but it was not strong.
I had navigation watch with Shane and Rachelle for two hours today that is a bit challenging atone point because it is hard to concentrate that long because all you can see is just ocean.

We set all the staysails today and the topsails, because the wind was not strong enough.

Today was the first time that I got enough sleep. I had galley yesterday and decided to go to bed earlier, which was a good idea, because I wasn ́t tired during the day.
The food today was acceptable, it was not good but better than normally.
For breakfast we had pancakes with strawberries

Lunch was pizza and for dinner we had fries with meat and cabbage and apple crumble with cream for desert.

Bryan and Brandon were relaxing on the mizzendeck most of the day. This evening Marx had his hair straightened, which I would never do. I have not seen much of the other team members today.
I liked the day because of the nice food and on my watch from 12:00 to 02:00 I was on standby, so I could sleep during the watch.

Radio Interview with Marx on RSG

This interview was made on the 6/4/2009.

Click the link below to get to the RSG site and the follow the instructions....

Marx - RSG Radio Interview

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - 29th April - St Helena to Ascension

29th April 2009 - Brandon Schoor
3rd sail leg from St. Helena to Ascension

wind speed....4ebn
speed.....5.7 knots
temp.....25c
latitude.....16 26.4,S
longitude....008 21.0,W
nautical miles....131

Today there were a lot of suprizes for me... the first was everyone had to change watches which means changing cleaning stations, day watch, nav.day and our night watch... and another big suprize was that the weather changed which means the wind was on our side, so instead of going slow all the time we picked up some speed, we went up to 8 knots and after a while we slowed down again... Later in the day so between 1 and 2pm we did a man over board practice which took 1hour...when that was done, it was off to clubs.

There was four types of clubs, Xhosa, fitness and ropes and knots but me and a few others made our own club which was the eating club which we all enjoyed. Our last suprize was that at 8pm tonight the time will go back 1 hour, so when its 8pm it will actually be 7pm which means more time to sleep... After we all set our times back the SA team had a media meeting where we discussed who would do what e.g video camera, photo camera and so on. I asked the team how was there day and they all enjoyed it and so did I...

The Big Issue article - April

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - 28th April - St Helena to Ascension

28th April 2009 - Monde Sitole
3rd sail leg from St. Helena to Ascension

Today is academic day 2 , Tuesday, its a sunny day the sun is crimson, the day is going fine, the only problem is the speed we are below 3 nautical miles. Its our first day on sea again sailing, our nearest port is St. Helena, we are 620 miles to the next port Ascension island. Other than that everything is going fine. Today we had a fire drill, everyone took hold of their possessions and we closed it up with sailing maneuver. Today was one of the best days I had in months. I had a lot of fun on galley. My galley is the best, they really cheer me up, they always know when I'm not on my best day and invigorate my day.

I feel the team is also growing a lot in knowing the sails. I personally enjoy the navigation watch , i love learning about the different dynamics that influence the choreography of the ship , from the sea, to the vessel and its different mechanisms of the ship. I now even enjoy helming , thats when i get to meditate, i have found to be a good helmer, you must be really in tune with your senses.

In conclusion i would say we are really growing both as team SA and also as Class Afloat students. By now everyone from us has gone aloft, we are learning the different knots .
Yeah we are getting there...

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - 27th April - St Helena

27. April – Port St. Helena - Asekho Mdaka

Today it is port day three and we are still in St. Helena.In the morning, we were called for swimming at 7am for fitness, most enjoyed the swimming, but I did not swim as it was cold and and I did not feel like it. Others did not like the fact that they were not allowed to jump in. At 7:30am it was breakfast and we ate and went to colours, where we were told that we will be going at 9am but we end up going at 10am.
When we arrived on land we separated as group of fours or more. As we arrived people started going in different directions.`Some went to Napoleon's tomb and his house which is interesting because of the history, while me and my group gathered next to the beach because of Felix enjoying his time snorkeling in the water. He even took pictures under water.
At 12pm we went to eat at Ann's place where we had nice meals, but we did not stay long because Felix could not wait to go again inside the water. So we went for swimming and then we had to go back to the ship because we were going to leave at 4pm. As we arrived at the ship we were called for a meeting with the Captain, telling us what sails will be set for our departure.

After the meeting we went to set the sails and that took about two hours. We went to dinner, straight afterwards Evan called us for another meeting about the position change of different security maneuvers. It looked like it was a day for meetings as we were again called for team S.A meeting that was about feed back about the port days and how do we feel so far. The meeting was helpful as we told our team leaders that we don't like to be called team S.A when we are with the whole Concordia crew and to do separate team SA pics because it makes us excluded from them. For the future we agreed that we will stay behind so that we can take our own pic and they should call us just South Africans.

I enjoyed that day because it was my last day on the Island.

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - 27th April - St Helena

WEBLOG ST.HELENA – Chrismarie Braun

Monday the 27th April was our last day in St. Helena. We got about 5 hours of shore leave before we had to be back on the ship. Most people did their last grocery shopping or went up the 699 stair staircase and had a picknick. Gustav, Brandon, Bryan, Hilary and I went on a tour with Marx to visit the boer graveyard where some of his ancestors were buried. After that we went out for lunch and on our way back to port jumped into the water and went for a swim.

All together we had a fabulous time in St. Helena. It is an amazing island with all kind of nature, a very interesting historical background and friendly people who welcome you into their hearts wherever you go.

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Sunday 26th April

26. April – Port St. Helena

I went camping last night with my watch group in St. Helena, well actually on a mountain. It was so cool, we spent the night under the stars and we saw even three shooting stars!!!

Well that was yesterday, let me write about what happened today.
This morning my watch group and watch group 1 went down from our camping spot to Jamestown to meet with the rest of the ship's inhabitants to go on a hike. After we got transport down to town again, we meet the up with the others at the harbour at 10am. Two busses arrived to take us back up again to the hiking trail. The whole group split up in two to fill up both of the busses. It started to rain as we rode up the ever winding road and we finally made it. We had to wait our local guides before we could start our hike, when they pitched up, we began a scenic but wet and dirty route that we would follow for the duration of hike. I think, that the hike was not so gruelling as the one we did up Table Mountain, but I enjoyed it. After the hike, we all went to have lunch at Ann's Place, I had a hamburger and french fries. Hilary gave as additional 10 Pounds each, and I personally needed more, because I had to phone my parents. After we all had our lunch, some students went on their separate ways to go swimming or further explore Jamestown, while the rest stayed behind. Later, also this group went to go swimming at the landing place, where we were waiting for the Zodiacs to take us back to the ship. And oh yes, we saw dolphins on our way back to the ship in the darkness. I enjoyed the day!

Shane Barnes

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - 25th April - St Helena

WEBLOG ST.HELENA – Chrismarie Braun

On the 25th April we got shore leave. Despite all the excitement we were all really upset to have to leave Gustav, Bryan and Brandon behind at the ship due to them having gotten port suspension. I really hoped to see them at least at the hike the following day but whether they were let off for the port programm or not was not yet decided.

The Island was beautiful and the people were really friendly and welcoming. Most of us were really excited to meet some of the people there as we were informed about their cultural background: half the population was from African descent, a quarter European and a quarter Chinese when the island first got settled. The people had a very British accent with a Chinese tone and they looked African although they had Asian features. It was definitely a very interesting culture to get to know.

Some of us spent the day going on a tour to see Napoleon’s house, his tomb and giant turtles at the governors house. Others went around Jamestown with their watchgroups and explored the city. Watch 1 and watch 4 had a watchcamp planned for St. Helena that night, which means that the watchgroup ( the group of students you have nightwatch with – 7 in each group + a teacher responsible for the needs of his/her wathchgroup kids) spends time away from the ship for a day and a night to bond. Watch 1 and watch 4 shared the same camping spot but were further away from each other which gave each watchgroup separately the time to get to know one another better especially with the new watchgroup members just having joined.

Watchgroup 4 ( Patrick, Shane, Kyra, Chrissy, Claire, Dylan, Johanna and Mr. Hurley) explored the camping place which was in the middle of the mountains/ forest and to all of us the most beautiful place we had ever seen so far. Although it was far away from shore (about a 40 min. drive ) we could see over the ocean and could even see the anchored SV. Concordia.

We all had a lot of fun. We ate kaktus, had potatoe sack races, made a fire over which Mr. Hurley made us Pizza for dinner and later we gathered at the fire, and ate cookies while Mr. Hurley told us horrorstories. Although we had a tent, we did not use it, the night was way too warm and the stars were too beautiful to not sleep directly under the sky. The next morning we got woken up by a rooster which belonged to a family that lived close to our camping spot but despite the cookericoo, we got up at 8 a.m ( It felt really good to sleep in). We got picked up half an hour later because Mr. Hurley had arranged for us to eat breakfast at a very nice restaurant.

Later we met up with the rest of the crew to go on a hike in the foresty mountaint of St. Helena. I was really happy to see Bryan, Gustav and Brandon joining us for the day and was glad to hear that due to their very hard work they were let off the rest of their port suspension. Although it was very rainy and wet, we enjoyed the hike a lot. The nature was beautiful and the 3 hour hike was not as strenuous as expected. When we got back, we got a couple of hours shore leave before curfew and most of us used the time to phone our parents, eat lunch, buy groceries or to go swimming.

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Saturday 25th April

Logbook entry – 25 April 2009 arrival St. Helena

This morning we woke up and stumbled, half asleep, onto deck to be greeted by a most welcome sight: land. We had reached St. Helena. But before we were allowed on sure we had to do cleaning stations and room cleans as usual. Then we ad to get the Zodiacs (the rescue rubber duckies) ready to take us ashore because instead of docking the Concordia, we had anchored her in the bay. Each Zodiac could only take 7 people so it took a few trips for all of us to finally get ashore.

We had docked just outside of Jamestown, the capital of St. Helena so it was only a five minute walk from where we were dropped off by the Zodiacs to the town itself. We entered Jamestown through an arch and waled up the main road which has beautifully facaded buildings on both sides. The town has a very English feel to it and the people too have English accents.

Our first stop was the bank and then the tourist office where a few of us booked trips to see Napoleon's Tomb and the house in which he stayed when he was exiled on the island. Our friendly taxi driver took us up through the small winding roads of St. Helena, up into the mountain. St. Helena is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. There is green everywhere you look. Green trees, green grass, green moss, green ferns. The clearing in which the tomb is situated is unbelievably quiet, still and breath takingly beautiful.

We then moved onto Napoleon's house which was very interesting to see. After that we went back into town to explore, make phone calls and swim in the unbelievably clear water. We then met the Zodiacs at 8 to be taken back to the ship. All in all an amazing day.

Helen Worthington-Smith

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - 24th April - St Helena

WEBLOG ST.HELENA – Chrismarie Braun

On the 24th April, we were finally able to see land again – St. Helena. We anchored at about 8 p.m which was the delayed time due to the wind having droped 2 days earlier. All together we had a nice and exciting sail behind us during which we did not make use of the engine once – we sailed out of dock and into anchor which is a great achievement, not many sailors nowadays could have reached so successfully.

Concordia Ships Log Entry 24th April

24-April-2009
Latitude: 16.10 s, Longitude: 04.01 wSpeed: 6.6 kn,
Course: 275 deg. 146 nm in last 24 hours 19050 nm from Lunenburg 1147 nm from Walvis Bay 103 nm to St. Helena
Sails set: ji,c,tl,tu,tg,ms,tgs,m,mz Wind: ese, force 4 - moderate breeze Sea state: 4 - moderate1/4 cloud coveragepressure: 1018 hpa=763.5 mm hgair temp: 22 deg. C=71.6 deg. F

Concordia Ships Log Entry 23rd April

23-April-2009
Latitude: 17.38 s, Longitude: 02.13 wSpeed: 6.5 kn,
Course: 280 deg. 181 nm in last 24 hours 18904 nm from Lunenburg 1001 nm from Walvis Bay 249 nm to St. Helena
Sails set: ji,tl,tu,tg,ms,tgs,m,mz Wind: e, force 5 - fresh breeze Sea state: 4 - moderate Full cloud coverage pressure: 1018 hpa=763.5 mm hgair temp: 22 deg. C=71.6 deg. F

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Thursday 18th to Tuesday 23rd April

Team logbooks from Walvis Bay to St. Helena

Logbook Entry, 18th of April 2009
Our current course is 310(HDG), -3(c), 302(COG), speed 9,01, the sails are out, wind is 5 south and the temp 18c, closest coast is Namibia

We had pancakes and bacon for breakfast, I personally thought that the bacon was not so good but I think every one enjoyed the pancakes. Colors was at 8 as usual, no big announcements. After colors we went to our cleaning stations ,Bryan and I went aloft to the royal sail. It was cool being way on top, we untied the gaskets on both sides of sail. I felt so free being aloft, the fear of falling was not a factor for me. And the day went on as usual, I was sea-sick most of the time. I tried to keep myself occupied as to not throw up, and it worked!!.I think that Marx was in that state of being the most sea-sick of us all. Felix and I was at the helm for our navigation watch, it felt great steering the ship on the right course to St. Helena even though it was just for 30mins. We had a meeting in the mess room to discuss and go over our budget that we got. Apart from that the day was just as any other day out at sea sailing.

Shane Barnes


Logbook Entry, 19th of April 2009
Today was our second full day out at sea on our way to St. Helena.
Our course today is HDG: 290, COG: 294, C: +4 (20:00), our speed is 8,3 knots, the wind speed is 6 from the SSE and the temperature is 20 C.

Today was like any other day at sea, nice weather, intensely blue water and equally blue sky. Unfortunately, some us have been hit by seasickness again. Poor Marx got terribly seasick again but I'm sure he'll be good again by tomorrow. Since Namibia we've all had a chance to take the helm. Everyone seems to enjoy it although its not that easy.
The highlight of today must be the dolphins. Although we've seen dolphins before today was special because they put on a show for us. Everyone got very excited, especially when the one dolphin leaped high into the air...

Gustav Allmann


Logbook Entry, 20th of April 2009
Current Position: 19°01’ S
4°38’ E
Temperature: 22° C
Miles sailed in last 24 hours: 180 NM
Wind speed: force 4
Wind direction: South Easterly

Today at colors we found out that we have travelled almost half the way to St Helena. A journey that was scheduled to take 6 days we have covered in three. We may reach St Helena in three days time!
Today Gustav and I went up in the Bosun’s chair. The bosun’s chair is a device which looks like a swing which can be raised or lowered with the use of pulleys. It is used when you need to paint the side of the boat or, like in the case of Gustav and I, to get pulled up into the rigging. Gustav and I were painting tar on the stays (metal ropes which hold up the masts) and then putting baggy winkles over the tar so that the sails wouldn’t get tar on them. It was very scary to be so high up and what made it even scarier was the fact that the wind makes you swing around so you find yourself holding on for dear life.

We had our first proper sail training lesson today with the bosun, John. He took us around the ship and told us what each of the lines was called and what they were for. There are about 150 working lines on the boat so this was very overwhelming but at least now we have a better idea of what everything on the ship does. At this point it still seems unlikely that we will EVER learn all the lines but according to the Canadians we will learn them all in no time. Hmmm, we’ll just have to wait and see.

We found out some exciting news this evening. If we continue at the speed we've been travelling then we may be able to fit in some extra stops at Ascension Island and Fernando. We were all very excited to hear this and are holding thumbs that the winds will hold up.

Helen Worthington-Smith


Logbook Entry, 21st of April 2009
Our day today started off with a round of boys fitness. While the guys got to sweat by doing jumping jacks, running on the spot sit-ups, push-ups etc., the girls got to sleep for an extra half an hour. Tomorrow the roles will be switched. After fitness the boys and girls (which were up by now) filled the mess (dining room) to have breakfast which consisted of pancakes, sausage and melon. Right after, we had colors (our daily assembly) at which one of the students announced our position for today, which is a latitude of 18 degrees 36.65` South and a longitude of 002 degrees 55.80` east. Our current wind speed is 7.8 knots and our nearest coast is, since today, finally St. Helena. After the captains announcement last night about the possibility of making a surprise stop in ascensions and Fernando due to our fast and steady wind speed, we are all hoping to be able to stop at these islands which are said to be very nice. With our current wind speed, there seems to be a very good possibility of this happening.

Not much has happened today, except for our daily routine and a few tiny highlights to brighten our day, like seeing flying fishes and Bryan going aloft in a rope construction where he puts his feet in. He thought he was so cool, sitting up there until the lunch bell rang and he panicked he would not get any food. So after colors, we all went to our cleaning stations and did a half an hour boat clean, including our rooms which we got to clean at the end of the half an hour because they had to be ready for our daily room checks. A little later in the morning we had an hour of class followed by day watch or navigation watch for some and free time for others. The people on galley duty had to be in the kitchen at 12 to prepare for lunch, everyone else was called to lunch by the bell at 12:30. Today’s lunch consisted of Tomato soup, bread and potatoe salad and we got crepes for dessert which were made by Ms. Fouchers French class. After lunch most of us had about an hour to relax before some had to go to sociology class and some to their watch. In sociology class, we discussed the movie Sarafina which was actually part of the cultural exchange in South Africa but we did not have the opportunity to watch it until a few days before docking in Namibia. After that, we had another 2 hours of class which were followed by dinner.
Today’s sea was a little rough, the sky cloudy and dark and the sun set relatively early but all together it was a good and relaxing day.

Chrissy Braun


Logbook Entry, 22nd of April 2009

The information for today is:
COG: 252
HDG: 249
Sails set: JoCTlTuTgRMsM
Weather Conditions: SEbs 5
Seas: 3
VIS: 5
Pres: 1018
Temp: 22

I am sitting in the mess room and the boat is 300 sea miles away from St. Helena.
We had all woken up a little bit earlier for Dayana's birthday. The SA team had planned to wet her with buckets of water for her birthday. So at colors we got our water and she was soon soaked wet. It was very enjoyable for us for different reasons.

It was a hot sunny day, but day 5 means that most of team SA had a very busy day.
We started our day with classes, which most of us had to go straight to, after that we went either to day watch or navigation watch.

There was nothing on the horizon the whole day because we are in the middle of nowhere.
On day watch myself and Asekho have started re caulking the deck and servicing some of the blocks of the boat.

We also had sail training with John again who went through the sails and their names. He also showed us a new way to tie our shoe laces. The team also raised the fore stay sail for practice.

Everyone is ready for St. Helena. We have been out at sea for 6 days and we are all missing land. We should arrive by the 24th.

Marx Mohr


Logbook Entry, 23rd of April 2009
latitude 17.0748m
longitude 2041.47m
speed 6.9
We have travelled 163 miles in the last 24hours
our nearest coast is 189miles away and that coast is st Helena
wind speed 4seby e
sea condition 3
point of sail is broad reach
weather out look is sunny and cloudy

We started our day with boys fitness. While busy with the fitness we were called to give a hand to the people on watch with setting sails which did not take long. We continued with our fitness and then we went to balance things by eating breakfast. We did not do much as we just had our daily routine. When we were on day watch, Marx was busy vanishing the blocks while Helen was caulking with Axel (bosuns mait). After that we got sail training with John and he showed us how to anchor. After the training we had a short meeting as team South Africa to talk about what have we done so far and what do we think about the trip and food. And many were not happy about the food because its not good even worse when you feel sea sick. Afterwards others went to their watch and I went to rest for 2hours. At 6pm I had class in anthropology and listened to a presentation about the history of St Helena and then went to dinner. The food was not that good but as the Canadians says its better than what they had during their long voyage to Cape Town. Tomorrow we will be arriving at St Helena and people can not wait to reach there so that they can go to a nearest restaurant.

Asekho Mdaka

Concordia Ships Log Entry 21st April

21-April-2009
Latitude: 18.46 s, Longitude: 03.57 eSpeed: 6 kn, Course: 270 deg.
188 nm in last 24 hours 18556 nm from Lunenburg 653 nm from Walvis Bay 597 nm to St. Helena
Sails set: ji,fs,tl,tu,ms,tgs,m,mz Wind: ese, force 4 - moderate breeze Sea state: 3 - slight 3/4 cloud coverage pressure: 1020 hpa=765 mm hgair temp: 19 deg. C=66.2 deg. F

Concordia Ships Log Entry 19th April

19-April-2009
Latitude: 20.51 s, Longitude: 10.10 eSpeed: 9 kn, Course: 290 deg.
196 nm in last 24 hours
18179 nm from Lunenburg 276 nm from Walvis Bay 974 nm to St. HelenaSails
set: jo,ji,fs,tl,tu,tg,ms,tgs,m,mz
Wind: sebs, force 5 - fresh breezeSea state: 4 - moderate3/4 cloud coveragepressure: 1017 hpa=762.75 mm hgair temp: 18 deg. C=64.4 deg. F

A message from the Head of School, Class Afloat, based on the report of Matt Allmann Shipboard Director.

Dear Friends and Families,

After another busy port the Concordia and her crew set sail this afternoon from Walvis Bay - they are leaving Africa and are headed back across the ocean once more ... but this time we don't foresee any 29 day sails! The vessel remains on schedule to arrive into St. Helena on April 27th.

I received a lot of positive feedback on the port programs in Namibia - exploring the moonscapes and dunes, a cultural trip into the townships and the student-led C.A.R.E. (Class Afloat Ripple Effect - a garden project) project. The CARE project in particular was a success - it had its moments and challenges but we're very proud of the effort and energy of the students and of all their work. This was a wonderful learning experience for all and though tiring, very worthwhile. It was wonderful to see our South African Floaties join the C.A.R.E. project, of which they only became familiar over the past sail, with enthusiasm.

This next sail will serve to help solidify group norms for our expanded crew. The first days in any new community can be challenging as everyone adapts to new faces and new dynamics. Seasickness for our newer crew will hopefully subside on this passage and Class Afloat expectations (being on time to class and watch, pitching in as part of the community when needed) will start to become second nature. It is sometimes difficult for our longer-term students to remember what it was like when they joined in September or February, before they became a "crew" and our way of life became "normal" for them, but I am very impressed with their energy and enthusiasm to integrate our new Floaties and to see the positive aspects of a growing family. I hope that our South African families have heard positive reports of the first leg of the journey from their students and that they are enjoying themselves to date!

Have a great weekend!

Best,
Kate

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Wednesday 17th April Day 10

Log entry 17th April
Day of departure from Walvis Bay/Namibia.

At colors in the morning we were granted shore leave which every one was very thankful for, because we had not had a lot of it since we arrived in Namibia.
We all went to town for our last minute phone calls and groceries. We were short on time because we had to be back by 12pm.

When we got back to the ship, the new captain Bill called us into the mess to explain what was going to happen next. He told us his goal was to sail out of Walvis Bay without using the motor, not even to get of the dock.
It happen as followed. The pilot of the harbor boarded the ship. He was asked if what we wanted to do is okay and he gave us the thumb up. We had people at all stations ready for action. We set the outer jib, the inner jib and the four stay sail. We set them in the opposite side of the boat what would normally be. This pushed the boat of the jetty and swung us around with the view of Walvis Bay behind us. The last port were we had a chance to still take the bus home...

Now we are in it for real - there is no turning back!

Marx Moehr

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Wednesday 17th April Day 10

Weblog – port Namibia – Gustav Allmann 17.4

We arrived in Walvis Bay on the Sunday the 13th of April. After docking we were granted shore leave till 7:30pm which was also our curfew. Everyone immediately left to explore Walvis Bay. I think everyone was a little disappointed because compared to Cape Town, it was dead. The harbor was nothing compared to the Waterfront because one had to walk at least 20min to get into the quite town. There were a few shops and a few things to see but otherwise it was pretty boring.

The second day, everyone went to Swakopmund, 30min drive from the harbor, which was a lot more exciting than Walvis Bay because it was more touristy with more shops, restaurants and interesting things to see. A lot of us also spent some time on the beach which was really cool because most of us were in desperate need of a swim.

The third day was one to remember because we had some unique port activities planned. Half the boat signed up for the cooking activity and the other half for the gardening as part of the CARE (Class Afloat Ripple Effect) project. From what I heard everybody had an awesome time helping out and making a difference in a few peoples lives.

The second last day at our first port must've been the most enjoyable. We went dune boarding. Now that was an amazing experience for everyone. The dunes are extremely beautiful. Wherever you looked there was sand and most likely somebody rolling down a dune and eating sand.

On our last day in Walvis Bay we had just a few hours of shore leave because we were leaving soon after lunch so everyone rushed into town one last time to buy the last few necessary groceries.

All in all I think everyone had a great time especially because after Walvis Bay we are closer to the Canadian team. Namibia is very beautiful and two differences that I noticed is that instead of having a huge variety of green plants everywhere they have sand everywhere. The second difference must be the cleanliness of the areas. A lot cleaner than Cape Town...

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Thursday 16th April Day 9

16. April – Walvis Bay/Namibia - Monde

The day started with the normal routine galley, colors, cleaning station,and afterwards we were allocated in groups of 9 each group. We met Mr. Allman and he then told us what was expected of us for the day, and the events ahead of us. We then drove for some time to the desert until we reached two unique plants one of them was the dollar bush,which is one of the water supply for desert life force, it has a salty taste, and the other plant is 2000 years basically its self sustained ,and we drove again and wallah we saw the most beautiful mountains ever , no wonder the call them the moon ,the are splendid we stayed there for an hour or so observing the breath taking scenery,we again drove for about 50 km,until we reached the sand dunes again,we were greeted by two guys and they took us through the whole process of sand boarding , and we resumed it was fun really fun some also had their time to speak with nature to inter- act with mother nature. The day ended with some team sand boarding with Felix defeating us all he was a natural on the board.

We again went back and showered and next day we left, we had the best of our lives in Namibia though at first we were land sick, but Namibia is very interesting its enigmatic at one point its like abandoned town , at one point its so exotic to describe it will be almost be quixotic to define.

Hermanus Times Article - Week of 16th April

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Wednesday 15th April Day 8

Wednesday, 15th April 2009, Day 8 – Getting involved with community work

Today was pretty an awesome day! Everyone really enjoyed themselves. We had to do something for the local community called the CARE project which was largely organised by one of the locals, Charlotte, and the rest of the Class Afloat team on board the Concordia.

We started off with a really early morning...breakfast was at 6.45!! No one looked particularly awake, especially the teachers! J then we departed the port we are at to have a tour of the local township called Mondesa, which everyone found very interesting, we even got taught a bit of the Nama language, which in a word is HARD! After our tour and making great friends at one of the pre schools (especially Monde and his little brother!) we were driven to begin with the actual project.

Three groups assembled for gardening, cooking and games. The cooking group worked all day long in the kitchen with 19/20 yr olds, while the gardening and game groups went to a primary school. Now, the games group had it easy, all they had to do was play with the kids all day long, while the gardeners had to dig a hole, 6×6m, fun stuff! Eventually, at about 5pm, all of us met up again and showed off what we had accomplished, including some great looking and tasty food, an awesome greenhouse and some really happy, exhausted children!!

Finally we left to go back to the ship... dirty, tired and hungry. But after speaking to everyone, everyone had great time and taken away some amazing memories (and Kate even got a picture of her new friend!)All in all, a hugely successful and fun day!!

Bryan.

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Tuesday 14th April Day 7

Tuesday, 14th April 2009, Day 8

Today was the day we arrived in Namibia. People could not wait to get to feel Nambian land, as time goes we finally went of. People were rushing to go to the malls only to find out all stores were closed besides a supermarket because it was Easter Monday. Now many were disappointed.

We then bought refreshments and went to a bank nearby ,when we were there we saw two minibuses and ask how much will it cost to take us on tour but they offered to give us a free ride to the beach. We could not stay for long there as we were supposed to be back at 19:30. Me and my group started walking while we left others who were swimming. As we were walking we got lost and had to start from the place we got drinks at the supermarket as that was a long walk we again bought us refreshments and head straight to the ship and we ate dinner ,watched a movie and went to bed.

Asekho

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Monday 13th April Day 6

Monday, 13th April 2009 – Day 6 – Exploring Walvis Bay and Swakopmund

Port Walvis Bay, Namibia

It was 7am in the morning when everyone had to wake up and get done for and exciting day ahead of them. We went to Swakopmund, we arrived there at 12:30...when we got off the taxi and we had 6 hours free time to explore the town which was great cause we got to see the whole town....our first stop was the bank, where some of us drew money and some exchanged money... once all the money problems were solved everyone went straight to the internet cafe to write e-mails to their parents to found out how the family is doing....we spent about an hour and 30 mins just writing messages to our families... which was sad and good, sad cause we all miss our families and good cause we got to hear from them.....once everyone was done writing to their family, we went off to go find somewhere to eat and we found the perfect place right in front of the beach and we got a table with a perfect view of the beach... the name of the place we ate at was the lighthouse and their food was great and enjoyable....when everyone was done eating...we went to the beach and took a nice refreshing swim to cool us down, once everyone was done swimming we all just sat on the beach and watch the sun set which was every nice and once the sun set it was time to go home........well for me today was great and enjoyable because we all got to know each other more and more...

Brandon

Concordia Ships Log Entry 13th April

13-April-2009
Latitude: 22.56 s, Longitude: 14.20
eSpeed: 5 kn, Course: 54 deg.97 nm in last 24 hours
17886 nm from Lunenburg 836 nm from Cape Town 14 nm to Walvis Bay
Sails set: fs,c,tl,tu,tg,msWind: sse, force 4 - moderate breezeSea state: 2 - smooth (wavelets)Clear skypressure: 1014 hpa=760.5 mm hgair temp: 18 deg. C=64.4 deg. F

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Sunday 12th April Day 5

Sunday, 12th April Day 5 – Easter with Walvis Bay on the Horizon

Today is Sunday morning the 12 of April, academic day 5.

Last night we have traveled 128 sea miles.
We are on the SV Concordia south from Walvisbay and our nearest cost is Namibia.

We are traveling at a speed of 1.9 kn and the following sails are set:

Course
Lower Top
Upper Top
T-Gallant
Royal
Main

Our course is 55 ̊, the wind is coming from south-east and it is wave movement 1 on the scale.
The water temperature 17C.

Today everyone of the South African Team felt fine, none of us where seasick

I am in Watch 5, which is from 22:00-24:00.
On my watch I could already see Walvisbay on the horizon.
Later we had to do sail manouvers, where some of the South African team members climbed aloft up to the T-Gallant. We took the sails in, to prepare them for anchoring in front of Walvisbay.

Felix

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Sunday 12th April Day 5

Sunday, 12th April Day 5 – Easter with Walvis Bay on the Horizon

Today is Sunday morning the 12 of April, academic day 5.

Last night we have traveled 128 sea miles.
We are on the SV Concordia south from Walvisbay and our nearest cost is Namibia.

We are traveling at a speed of 1.9 kn and the following sails are set:

Course
Lower Top
Upper Top
T-Gallant
Royal
Main

Our course is 55 ̊, the wind is coming from south-east and it is wave movement 1 on the scale.
The water temperature 17C.
Today everyone of the South African Team felt fine, none of us where seasick

I am in Watch 5, which is from 22:00-24:00.
On my watch I could already see Walvisbay on the horizon.
Later we had to do sail manouvers, where some of the South African team members climbed aloft up to the T-Gallant. We took the sails in, to prepare them for anchoring in front of Walvisbay.
Felix

Concordia Ships Log Entry 12th April

12-April-2009
Latitude: 24.04 s, Longitude: 13.56
eSpeed: 4.3 kn, Course: 330 deg. 120 nm in last 24 hours
17789nm from Lunenburg 739 nm from Cape Town 106 nm to Walvis Bay
Sails set: c,tl,tu,tg,r,mWind: sbe, force 4 - moderate breezeSea state: 3 - slight1/2 cloud coveragepressure: 1013 hpa=759.75 mm hgair temp: 15 deg. C=59 deg. F

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Saturday 11th April - Day 4

Saturday 11th April 2009 - Day 4 – On the bow sprit

This morning we had the most amazing sunrise so far, it was a burning red, painted over our heads, breaking through the dark and cloudy night sky. The air was cold and there was hardly any wind. Later, during coulours (assembly) at 8 a.m, the boot stood in a position from which we could see the full moon in all its elegance on the one side and the beautiful, majestic sun on the other side. Our information for today, which was announced at colours was that we had a Latitude of 25 ̊09.25` South, a Longtitude of 04 ̊ 23.7` East, that we were travelling at a windspeed of about 20 knots and our nearest coast is Namibia.

For breakfast we finally had cereal, for the first time on this voyage - kellogg's frosties and papaya. It tasted very good and everyone enjoyed the homely breakfast. We had about 2 hours of free time before an hour of class time started in which we first discussed how everyone is feeling and then worked through as much of our schoolwork as we could. After class we had about an hour of free time in which some of us went to the bow to look at the popouses which we first mistook for dolphins but a few people from the more experienced crew explained to us that dolphins would have been twice that size. It was still very nice to watch the porpouses move through the water gracefully though. As we kept watching we also saw bright orange jelly fish swimming through the water right next to our ship. As we were observing these extraordinary animals, we heard the bell to call us to lunch. When we went outside to do our day watches, some of us got the opportunity to work on the bowsprit, which is the part right on the front of the boat. The air was still very chilly but the sun rays warmed us as we attached hanks to the sail. It was a lot of fun, but also quite hard work. After that, some of us had sociology class for one hour, with one of the class afloat teachers and other class afloat students. In this class we spoke about the generalizations of countries and how we feel about charity and why society or individuals feel that it is important to give something to others which are less privileged in their eyes and improve their way of life. It was a very interesting discussion in which all students participated and expressed their point of view. Right after, we had two hours of class in which each of us worked through their schoolwork with Hilary’s assistance.

Before we started our announced movie night for this evening, we had supper. Our plate filled with mashed potatoes, meat and pumpkin was a very filling and satisfying meal for most of us. The brownies as dessert were very good and a few people were hoping to get seconds and thirds. After cleaning the tables and letting galley finish their duties, we started Twilight, a movie which many of us had seen before and others were waiting to see in anticipation. All in all, today was a very fun and exciting day and we went to our rocking beds with smiles on our faces.

Chrissy

Concordia Ships Log Entry 11th April

11-April-2009
Latitude: 25.49 s, Longitude: 14.15
eSpeed: 7 kn, Course: 7 deg.204 nm in last 24 hours
17669 nm from Lunenburg 619 nm from Cape Town 181 nm to Walvis Bay
Sails set: c,tl,tu,ms,mWind: sse, force 5 - fresh breezeSea state: 3 - slight1/2 cloud coveragepressure: 1015 hpa=761.25 mm hgair temp: 14 deg. C=57.2 deg. F

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Friday 10 April – Day 3

Friday 10 April 2009 – Day 3 - Dolphins are our travel mates …

20:15 pm
Current position: Lat: 26 ̊ 13'
Long: 14 ̊ 13'

Weather: clear skies, sunny
Speed: 7,7km
Miles traveled (12-12): 210nm

Today was our third day at sea. Most of us have recovered from our seasickness except for Marx who was still feeling very sick. The day started out very cloudy and cold but by midday the cloud had disappeared and the sun made a brief appearance.
We started the day as we normally do with breakfast followed by colours and then the South African crew had an hour of class after which we all went either to our separate watches or free time.
Gustav climbed on the bow sprit for the first time today to douse the outer jib. We had pizza for lunch which was received with great enthusiasm from all the students.
Tonight we saw the most amazing thing; dolphins swimming with us and playing around the bow. It was amazing and indescribably beautiful to see these majestic creatures swimming along with us and surfing the bow wave without loosing pace with the boat. We all ran out and just watched them paying in the water, not wanting to move away and completely in awe of these amazing creatures. We are all unbelievably lucky to live in a place where you can start your homework, run outside to watch dolphins swimming alongside you, then go back inside to complete your homework.
Helen

Concordia Ships Log Entry 10th April

10-April-2009
Latitude: 29.11 s, Longitude: 14.13
eSpeed: 8.1 kn, Course: 3 deg.189 nm in last 24 hours
17465 nm from Lunenburg 415 nm from Cape Town 385 nm to Walvis Bay
Sails set: jo,c,tl,tu,ms,mWind: sebs, force 6 - strong breezeSea state: 3 - slightFull cloud coveragepressure: 1022 hpa=766.5 mm hgair temp: 18 deg. C=64.4 deg. F

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Thursday 9th April Day 2

Thursday, 9th April 09 Day 2 - Signs of Sea Sickness

Today was the second day at sea. Like every day, it started at 7:30 for breakfast. Some of us were still really sick especially Marx but Chrissy felt better than she did yesterday. Then came colours and the daily announcements.

The information for today is:
COG: 013
HDG: 020
Sails set: JoCTlTuTgRMsM
Weather Conditions: SEbs 6
Seas: 3
VIS: 6
Pres: 1022
Temp: 2010

Some of us were asked to help John on the bowsprit with the sail. This was really cool because one only has a net between yourself and the rushing ocean and if you are sitting there and you look back you can see the whole ship.

Bryan was the first one of the South Africans to climb all the way to the royal, he says it was awesome. I'm sure all of us cant wait to do it as well.
Gustav

Concordia Ships Log Entry 9th April

09-April-2009
Latitude: 31.48 s, Longitude: 14.51
eSpeed: 8.2 kn, Course: 314 deg.
196 nm in last 24 hours 17273 nm from Lunenburg 223 nm from Cape Town 577 nm to Walvis BaySails set: jo,c,tl,tu,ms,m Wind: sbe, force 5 - fresh breeze
Sea state: 3 - slight 1/2 cloud coverag epressure: 1021 hpa=765.75 mm hgair temp: 19 deg. C=66.2 deg. F

Incredibly, more Press - Vukani 9th April

Coverage in the Sailing magazine

Another great article in the April 2009 edition of 'SAILING' magazine.

TEAM SA LOGBOOK - Wednesday 8 April

Wednesday 8 April – First Day on Sea

Our first day out sea! The morning started off at 7:30 for breakfast and then at 8 o'clock all of the students and Concordia crew have to meet on the bow for colors, raising of flags and daily announcements.
The course we are on is 310(HDG), 5(C), 315(COG) and our speed is 7,6. The sails were not out yet, the engine was running at 1550/5. Wind direction 55W and the temp 17 degree.
After colors team S.A members were all feeling sea-sick especially Marx and me. But through it all we did sail maneuvering which was actually a bit grueling. Setting up the main sails, fore sail, ,main sail and the other sails I do not yet know the names of but I will certainly do in due time.
By now we were still feeling sea-sick and we spent most of the day sleeping on deck and throwing up.
During the late afternoon Felix and me were on navigation watch, the first mate allowed us to take control of the helm which was very awesome! We had another class after nav watch on deck where all of us discussed our journals and how each one of us are feeling.
And the day concluded with dinner and night watch.
Shane

Press Coverage Galore - Athlone News!

The Tygerburger on 8th April

And yet more Press for our Team!!

Concordia Ships Log Entry

08-April-2009
Latitude: 33.36 s, Longitude: 18.06 eSpeed: 7.9 kn, Course: 310 deg.27 nm in last 24 hours
17077 nm from Lunenburg27 nm from Cape Town773 nm to Walvis Bay
MotoringWind: s, force 2 - light breezeSea state: 1 - calm (rippled)1/4 cloud coveragepressure: 1015 hpa=761.25 mm
hgair temp: 12 deg. C=53.6 deg. F

A fantastic article in the First Ascent Newsletter.

For the full web-letter and to subscribe to the First Ascent Newsletter, follow this link:

First Ascent Newsletter

08 April 2009Tall Ships Sailing:

Incredible opportunity awaits Cape Town learners

Ten lucky learners from the Western Cape aged between 15 and 18 will soon be making history as they spend 10 weeks of this school year attending class on board a tall ship on a voyage to Namibia, St Helena Island, Brazil, Trinidad and Bermuda – a first for the African continent. The South African team under the guidance of two adult female team leaders, will include 4 youngsters from disadvantaged backgrounds on the Cape Flats.

The team will join 25 Canadian students onboard the S V Concordia when it docks in Cape Town harbour on 2 April and will set sail on 7 April. The SV Concordia is one of two tall ships operated as part of the Class Afloat project, a Canadian shipboard classroom and university programme initiated 25 years ago. More than 200 sea education projects in 25 countries affiliated to Sail Training International (STI) operate on all other continents, but this is a first-time opportunity for young people from the African continent. The 10 youngsters have been selected by the Cape Town-based Cape Windjammers Education Trust (CWET) formed in 2005 as the first offshore sail- training programme on tall ships for youth leadership and life skills development on the African continent.

Dr Antje Nahnsen, CWET programme coordinator, praises Terry Davies, CEO of Class Afloat, for making this unique opportunity available to young South Africans. In addition to providing school curriculum and environmental education on board, the voyage will also offer the youngsters instruction in sail handling, navigation, passage making, safety at sea and ship management. She explains that Cape Windjammers and the SA Sail -training for Life-skills Association (SASLA), both affiliated to the STI, are cooperating to promote the empowering sail training experience mainly as a means of helping young people learn about themselves, discover hidden strengths and talents, and understand the value of others and of working as a team.

“Sailing is generally seen as an exclusive luxury for the wealthy. Our mission is to make the life-changing experience of sailing on a tall ship accessible to young people from all communities”, says Nahnsen, who herself was given the opportunity of a 10-day sails training experience when she was 16. Ten years later she trained and qualified as a crew member. “My sail- training experience as a teenager helped me to gain confidence and taught me how to face and overcome small fears like climbing up the tall mast. I also learned how important it was to work in teams, that every project needs to be planned beforehand and that the plan needs to be executed step-by-step. These are life lessons of great value for anyone.”

According to Nahnsen, Cape Windjammers is run by a team of volunteers who are all committed to the idea that an intensive experience has a great impact on learning - the more intense the experience, the greater and more sustainable the learning effect. Says Nahnsen: “For the Concordia voyage Cape Windjammers was able to find two highly motivated and skilled voluntary team leaders, Dayana Dreke and Hilary Ambrose. While Dayana has a background in youth life skills development, conflict management, intercultural education, marketing and fundraising; Hilary has a background in formal school education and sailing, and has successfully run her own consultancy firm many years. Together they form a brilliant team, each of them bringing their own area of expertise. Without them the facilitation of such a huge project would not have been possible.”

Watch this space for their voyage report. Shane Barnes (16) from Hanover Park, Asekho Mdaka (18) and Monde Sitole (16) from Khayelitsha, and Brandon Schoor (16) from Kuils River are the four youths from disadvantaged communities looking forward to the experience of a lifetime. Barnes is a Grade 10 learner at Christel House, a special school supporting families to break the cycle of poverty in an area often referred to as Cape Town’s ‘gang heartland’. A member of his school’s first soccer team, he enjoys reading and playing chess, and dreams of becoming a surgeon. “This experience will inspire me to learn to navigate my life through the many challenges that I may face in my family and my community”, he says in his application, ending with the assertion that “…I’ll be very willing to pass on my knowledge and skills to others”. Mdaka, whose parents are both currently unemployed after his mother was injured in a recent car accident, is in matric at Masibambisane High School at this year. Like Barnes, he plays for his school’s first soccer team. He is also an active member of the debating society and has volunteered as a peer educator for the past three years. He wants a career in law enforcement one day and sees the tall ship trip as a way of fulfilling his dream of interacting with people from different countries and communities and developing his leadership skills. Sitole, who passed matric last year, has been raised, along with his two siblings, by his mother, a domestic worker. His knack for poetry prompted him 3 years ago to join a group of young volunteers known as ‘Mayibuye Hip Hop Azania’. Among his many other interests are archiving black history dating from ancient times and learning ancient languages such as Sankrit, Aramic and Nama. He dreams of one day being a motivational speaker focusing on youth development. Schoor is in Grade 9 at Bellville High School and extreme sport is one of his passions. His parents’ divorce divided the family, with him living with his mother and sister, while his brother lives with his dad. The other youngsters who required bursaries are Chrismarie Braun (16) from Hout Bay, Cape Town and Bryan Winston Castle (16) from Stanford in the Overberg region. Chrismarie, who wants to become a psychologist, experienced great hardship while living for 18 months with her mum and younger sister in a safe women shelter during her parents’ difficult divorce process. Bryan, who was chosen as head boy of his school in the UK during his family’s 5-year stay abroad, is now in Grade 11 at Hermanus High School. He has been a winner in public speaking competitions, is a keen sportsman and the top swimmer at his school, as well as an avid musician who plays the electric guitar and the alto saxophone.

This project has been made possible by the generous donation in kind by the Class Afloat project. Furthermore a generous donations by the Bermuda Sail Training Association, CSM Consulting Services, Rotary Club Pinelands and the great team spirit amongst parents and team members has helped to raise the necessary funds to pay for travel and preparation costs of also those deserving team members, who would never be able to pay for themselves. Other donations in kind were made by CSM Consulting Services, City Sight Seeing, Township Tours SA, Cape Rainbow Tours, Sense of Taste and last but not least First Ascent, who equipped the second South African team with some high quality outdoor gear. Nahnsen appeals to sponsors to support Cape Windjammers and SASLA to establish a bursary fund that would allow to send many more South Africans on similar sail training voyages in the future. Potential donors can visit the website http://www.capewindjammers.org/ for contact details. To follow the team’s progress and experiences aboard the SV Concordia, please feel free to visit the blogsite http://windjammers09.blogspot.com/

Cast Off!

7 April 2009 – Cast off

7:45 pm – the sun has set, it is dark already, enough tears have been shed - finally the S.V. Concordia casts off – what a sight … - with 2 pilots on board the Concordia’s little dinghie pushes the Concordia off the jetty … off they go …

Fair winds S.V. Concordia, fair winds Team SA – enjoy every single day of this amazing adventure!!

Many many thanks to the whole Class Afloat Team for making this opportuntiy possible for South Africa! It has been such a pleasure to wrk with you thus far - and we hope there will be many more opportunities to work with you in the future. To find out more about Class Afloat click here.

… Next time we will hear from the team will be around the 15th of April, when the Concordia arrives in Walvis Bay Namibia, and we will receive the team’s log …

So keep checking this log …

Out and About in Capetown!

6 April 2009 – Out and About in Cape Town

5:30 am: Today some more physical exercise for the whole Concordia crew … hiking up Table Mountain at 5:30 am in the morning for a beautiful sunrise --- But uuh, once on top there was the “Table Cloth” and instead of great views walking in a big cloud was on the agenda … J

Many thanks to Deputy Mayor Cllr Grant Haskin for sponsoring the Cable Car for the whole crew to come back down … after weeks on the ship, some muscles are just not fit enough to cope with the steep Platteklip Gorge ….

And many many thanks to Alvin and Suki from Cape Rainbow Tours to sponsor the shuttle service of the whole crew to and from Table Mountain!!


After a quick sandwich for lunch – South African history was on the agenda: a visit at Cape Town’s famous District Six Museum telling the story of this once so very lively and diverse inner city community that has been demolished during the height of Apartheid … anybody who has not been there yet, should definitely do so very soon: go to www.districtsix.co.za/ for more info about the museum and the story of District Six.

7:00 pm – The day may have been exhausting but no time to rest as yet – tonight the S.C. Concordia crew and Cape Windjammers are hosting a small reception to give in particular families and friends of Team SA members, sponsors and those to be (?) a chance to visit and tour the ship lead by the trainees … time to dream on for all those, who have to stay behind this time … And then finally also the last speeches … by the Concordia Captain and Shipboard Director, the Class Afloat Head of School, the Cape Windjammers president and of course Team SA 2009 – well done Chrissie and Bryan – cool speech!!

Thanks to the Cape Times for this article

6th April 2009 - Cape Times