We are now approaching the halfway stage in our sail from Tenerife to Togo. The first couple of days were pretty eventful, as we came across the remnants of a cold front far ahead of us. And although the skies were blue, the seas were far from calm! The dissipating low pressure system left really big swells which caused the Africa Mercy to rock and roll, and bounce along our route!
We had the worst rocking late on Monday night, when the ship rolled to over 25 degrees! This caused major chaos in many areas of the ship, including the galley and even the Purser's office (where a chest of drawers had fallen and one of the desks had slid across the office). Reception fared a little better, although I still had to secure many things that had the potential of becoming hazards. I also joined one of our Third Officers in going around the ship and securing some of the public areas.
Thankfully we have now changed course and are heading south along the coast of Africa. The seas have calmed down and the bow is now open for general crew to go and enjoy some dolphin-spotting or sunset-watching. Last night I found myself up on the Bridge and snapped a few photos of crew members enjoying the sunset.
The Cross leads us onwards.
The sun sets as the AFM sails into the night.
Sunset from the Bridge.
Crew members enjoy relaxing on the bow in the gloaming.
The shimmering sun sinks beneath the waves.
Another shot of the bow.
Discovery Channel Canada are sailing with us. They are profiling the AFM on their 'Mighty Ships' series!
