Pirate Alley

20 August – Dubai, UAE

After a brief stay in Jeddah (where we as infidels were not allowed to disembark), the Vela headed further south to where the Red Sea meets the Gulf of Aden, the beginning of “Pirate Alley”.

We’ve learned a little about the modern pirate situation, at least from the point of view of the cargo shipping companies.

The reason we could not stay on the Rickmers New Orleans from Europe to Asia is that they refuse to take passengers through this corridor that has been the focus of piracy incidents over the last 15 years or so. The Vela has no such restriction, as the mammoth container ships run too fast and ride too high in the water for the pirates to board. As a precaution, however, we went through three full days and nights of enhanced security measures – portholes and windows were blacked out with sheets of cardboard or curtains; external doors were kept locked at all times; monitoring of approaching ships was enhanced, and nearby police vessels were tracked as well. (I hadn’t realized that the Somali pirates so closely resemble Minions!)

High-pressure water hoses were connected and on stand-by at a number of locations on the outer decks.

We were only briefly counseled on emergency procedures – basically to listen for announcements and go to the bridge if an alert were to sound. We heard there was a “safe room” on board, but were not informed where it might be…Captain and crew seemed pretty comfortable that we would not be threatened, but it was nonetheless stimulating – and a little scary – to pass through the scene of many crimes where victims have been so shockingly helpless.

On to trivial shipboard matters. ….. The crew refers to each other both directly and indirectly not by name, but by position. The Captain is always “Captain”; the Chief Engineer is “Chief”; the cook is “Cookie” (here he is);

the Steward is “Stewie”, and the third officer is (unfortunately when addressed in an Eastern European accent) “T’ird”. Presumably this practice makes it easier to transition from one ship to the next, where the individual crew members have contracts that expire at different ports, so the faces change relatively frequently. I think we are probably just referred to as “the passengers”. Who sometimes get apple pie and ice cream when they clean their plates….

As we approach Dubai’s port of Jebel Ali through the Strait of Hormuz and facing the Persian Gulf, the air has thickened, full of heat and sand. Air conditioning on board the ship has….. well, not completely given up, but is preparing a white flag.

Transport through immigration and into Dubai has been arranged for us while we are here for a short stay. May be cooler in town than on the ship!