02-10-2022: Marretje left as a biologist on a trip to Puerto Madryn in Argentina. You can follow the trip via the

follow-the-ship link: https://www.barkeuropa.com/follow-the-ship 

It is expected that journey of the bark Europa will take approximately 6 weeks, depending on the winds.

On this page I will keep you updated on the status of the trip and the adventures of Marretje (based on messages I hope to receive).

You can also follow the logbook on bark Europa site: https://www.barkeuropa.com/logbook

18/11/2022: Marretje arrived in Puerto Madryn

(this morniong she send a first message:"Ik ben in Puerto Madryn")

15/11/2022: Note from captaion Arian Poortman:

"This morning at around 11:30hr bt land was sighted by the crew in the mast, changing the foremast topgallant sail back after repairs. At the time no wind at all. In the afternoon a light breeze from the Northeast.
A last time trawling for plastic and plankton. Channel fever starts already a bit. Our intended anchorage bay tomorrow is cancelled, due to restrictions. What a cracker, now we will anchor off Punto Cracker tomorrow afternoon."

14/11/2022: Note from captaion Arian Poortman:

"Well, the roaring fourties seemed to have swapped location with the doldrums.
This morning after coffeetime the fog disappeared, as well as the light breeze.
LOD and after under engine.
Weather forecast says a bit of the same next 24hrs.
We have some spare miles, so hopefully during daytime we can sail somewhat.
We decided definitely today that we will anchor in the Golfo Nuevo the 15th in the late afternoon, for a BBQ and the "bonte" evening."

13/11/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Seawater temperature 14 degrees celsius, whole day gray skies with drizzle and fog.
Chilling weather.
Not "to write home about"
Besides that no wildlife exept a few birds.
There is good news too, the central heating is working and the- we are almost there mood- too.
Poker evening in the deckhouse."

11/11/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Well, the first Penguins are spotted.
As well as the first light pollution of some towns/cities in Argentina.
Tomorrow we will have to go through an area with little wind, after which it will pick up and veer to the east again for the coming days.
The last eight persons not murdered yet are entering the final round."

09/11/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Distance we won over the past days, we lost today again.
VMG in 4 hours same as yesterday in 1.
Very light NE winds. Even the stuns'ls came out of the closet.
Overnight it should pick up somewhat.

On the other hand it was a sunny day and perfect for the eggsperience. 
During diner a small seal swam along some time.
Movienight and popcorn for those who chose to miss the bright full moon."

08/11/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"We had some good days distancewise. 171 the last 24h.
Now full moon, clear skies, backing and decreasing wind.
The day was filled with sealife around us.
Many oooohs and aahs.
Still not everyone is murdered and the eggsperience a topic of conversation."

08/11/2022: message Marretje - "insights into the deckhouse life"

"There is this magical place called the deckhouse.
Just like the ocean changes all the time, so does the atmosphere in the deckhouse.

In the morning, it is empty until ten - coffee time - when it's suddenly filled with people crawling out of their beds for a drop of this magic potion and, probably regarded as even more important, the cookies.
Then on a rainy or stormy day the next moment of life is around lunch.
At this time, it is more of an acrobatic show with people trying to get their plates, cutlery and drinks safely to a table.
I always like to be early so I can have a good seat to observe this, and I am sure others in turn enjoy observing my acrobatic endeavours as well.
We have been at sea long enough now for most of us to realize you cannot carry all this and soup at the same time.
The overly confident will meet the bartender, who will sweetly tell them she will prepare a bowl while they already bring their plates and drinks away.

Most of us also learned (sometimes through making mistakes first) that you cannot fill your cup fully and that you can definitely not leave it on the table unattended.
We have been very lucky with the weather on this trip; the ocean allowed us to get used to life on a ship slowly.
Days with a very rocky ship have been scarce and only few cups have fallen over.

Then after lunch the deckhouse becomes lively.
Most people are awake now.
This is the time of chess tournaments or other games, painting, workshops, knot-practicing, lectures, reading books and chitchatting.

Then after dinner things get interesting.
You will never know what happens in the room now.
It could be filled with songs and live music -guitars, banjos, violins, whistles and ukuleles have all been present so far.

This is also the moment of movie nights with popcorn, conversations or thrilling poker games.
At midnight there is the change of shifts and suddenly there are people everywhere; the hallway stuffed with people putting raingear on, sleepy faces with coffee in their hands trying to wake up for their next shift, or going for a warm bowl of soup.

The middle of the night is one of my favorite moments.
This is the time of weird conversations, funny stories and nap time - given away by the sounds of snoring and feet sticking out of the benches.
Sometimes, after 2.00 at night, I find people sitting spread out over the room just blindly staring in different directions with no apparent interaction or active brain cells present.
I wish I could explain to you how funny I find this, but this is one of those moments you just have to experience.

This is all until enthusiastic crew-members come in to announce sailhandling; a welcome distraction for some, or a moment where sleepy souls try to hide ("The trick is to not make any eye-contact" I have been told).

Some of us never want to go to bed, because you never know what could happen (emphasis on 'some of us', I think many are also very attached to their sleep).
One might just miss that group of dolphins, that nice conversation, the thrilling storm or beautiful sunrise.
Every hour of the day is a new experience and everyone has a different trip.

I know I will be up again tonight for the eclipse of the moon.
To then see it disappear into the ocean as the sun rises, all under the watchful eye of the stars still flickering in the purple sky.
What will you be doing?

Marretje, Researcher"

07/11/2022: message Marretje - "Southern hemisphere sailing"

"We have crossed the equator.
We satisfied Neptune with our sacrifices and I can now enjoy even shorter showers with less hair to wash or brush.
To even please Neptune more, self-written songs and acts have been performed.
Our efforts have been received well and rewarded with good wind.

Our first day in the Southern Hemisphere was celebrated with a visit to the islands of Fernando de Noronha.
I woke up extra early to get a first glimpse of the islands, and the shape we encountered on the horizon was unexpected.
It can be described as beautiful, but I think weird, Jurassic Park-like or the movie set of Indiana Jones would more accurately describe the scene.

Next to the island we dropped anchor for a swimming stop. For a few hours the windy rough ocean was forgotten and we had a glimpse of a normal holiday.
Nothing to worry about; no towels flying away, no sails to attend to. Just swimming, sunbathing and some snacks.
Except that nothing about this ship is normal.

We attract a lot of curiosity in the form of little boats, kite-surfers and a zodiac completely stuffed with officers, just in case they could not check on us with only two.
All was good and in the late afternoon we set sail again, on to new adventures.
Without our bird friends, who probably found a new home at the island.
No more photos of these beautiful birds, but also less deck washing to do.

Next to being proficient relaxers, we also got a long way on the sailing part; we know the names of all the sails and can find most of the lines.
Many are also proficient climbers and when you look up high in the mast, it’s not only experienced crew you’d see there.
The main reason we can now find almost all the lines is thanks to the famous pinrail-chace.

During this race, the team knowing most lines could win eternal glory.
There are apparently many competitive spirits on board, as you could find people studying all the pins (and the lines that are made fast on them) days, nights and hours and even minutes before the race.
This competitive spirit is also used for the extensive games of chess being played on board.
When asking people how their day was, it can happen that the answer would be “Very good, I beat [insert name here] today”.
But back to the pinrail-chase; because group spirit is an essential part

of being a sailor, one extra point was awarded to all the teams that dressed in their team colour for the occasion.
This was also the only point the team of new crew members managed to finish with.
I would like to tell you in my defence, as this was my team, that the judge at the start of the game already announced that he was not going to be fair.

Third team probably agrees with this, as they came in after us.
But I must say it was all very exciting with every team (ok, maybe except mine) taking the lead alternately.
It was not clear who would take the win until the last thrilling assignment.
Of which I will not give more away, so that no reader will have an advantage in future games.

Another reason for us starting to feel like we are almost worthy sailors is that we have days where we can practice a lot.
As in: we hoist a sail, to bring it down an hour later, to then shortly after hoist it again.
And this is not because the captain or mate are trying to annoy us or keep us busy, it has more something to do with the wind not making up its mind in what it wants to do.

Luckily it occasionally also behaves exactly as we would like to.
These are moments we can bring out the gorgeous stunsails.
They do not only look beautiful on pictures; it is also quite something to behold in real life.

Not too long ago I helped with the furling of some jibs at the bow in the night.
There were some lights on, to help us work.
This lit up the sails behind us, including the stunsails.
It was a magical sight I will not forget any time soon.

We have been gone a month and I keep rediscovering the ship; as the wind changes, so do the sails and their angles and as the sky changes, so do all colours on board. No day is the same.

Marretje, Researcher"

04/11/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Seastate calmed down, wind is backing in our favour and temperature dropping.
Luckely the no wind area did not reach us yet, nor did we reach it.
Presumably somewhere tomorrow.
Dungeon tours have started as the whole inside of the ship finally cooled down.
Water temperature still 20 degrees.
Half the crew murdered and the eggsperience explained."

03/11/2022: message Marretje:

"Ik heb mijn hoogtevrees inmiddels zo goed als overwonnen en kan op veel plekken in de mast comfortabel werken (er zijn uitzonderingen). Het is gezellig aan boord, maar na een maand op zee veranderen er ook dingen. Sommige verse producten raken langzaam op, maar het eten is nog goed. Af en toe hebben mensen nu een slechte dag of geen zin meer, maar ik ben eigenlijk nog steeds heel gelukkig. Afgelopen dagen wat ruiger weer door zuiderwind, maar dat was ook wel een leuke ervaring.

Ik heb een vlucht terug naar AMS van Buenos Aires op 21 DEC: KL702 21 DEC Buenos Aires EZE - Amsterdam 1635 0945+1. Hoe en wat ik in de tussentijd doe moet ik nog uitzoeken.
Groetjes!"

02/11/2022: Marretje wrote in the logbook - "Under the sea"

"Since we left the coast of Tenerife and the proximity of the Sahara, dust has cleared from the sky.
The foggy clouds around us have made space for a clear blue sky with some occasional clouds.
This makes forgreat photography, especially during sunrise, sunset and moonrise.

In a span of 24 hours, we come across endless variations of blue, pink and orange.
In the doldrums the water became flat as a mirror, reflecting the light beautifully.
On clear nights we can finally observe the stars.

We are lucky to have Ali on board, who knows many Arabic stories on the stars and constellations.
Next to the beauty of the physical, we still very much enjoy the animals we are surrounded by.
For example, our hitchhiking friends “Claudia Bunt & Thomas of the Foremast”.
It has been spectacular to see them catch flying fish straight out of the water or to observe them from up close, which we luckily can if we climb up the masts.
Since then, our bird army has expanded to a flock of 7, all from different species.
Some of them enjoy the possibility to occasionally sit on our masts for a little break, something we enjoy a little bit less.
Especially those of us who have been in the wrong place at the wrong time when the birds did their number 2.

Furthermore, we recently got a very good view of a group of bonitos swimming along with the ship at incredible speed.
As could be expected, there were some who wanted to have an even closer look, so the fishing rod was taken out of the closet.
Two bonitos were successfully caught, closely observed and later eaten in a delicious salad.

Regarding fishing, we have also been fishing for science.
We have a net on board which we can use to catch plankton, and a ‘manta troll’, which we are using to research the abundance of floating plastic.
Next to the research on plastic, we find a lot of life in the nets as well; the diversity has been incredible.
At night, we found fish capable of bioluminescence, common for species that spend their days in the deeper darker twilight zones of the ocean.
For some of the voyage crew this raised a lot of questions: what else is living underneath us?

To understand a little better what is going on below the surface, I organised a lecture on the deep sea.
Next to deep sea fish, we also found a lot more plankton in our nets at night.
The difference has been mind-blowing and can be explained by the phenomenon diurnal vertical migration.
Many species live at depth during the day (varying from 200 to 800 meters) and swim to the surface at night to feed.
In terms of biomass, it is the largest synchronous migration in the world.
I find it amazing we can see this first hand during our trolls.
It is quite special in any case; for an organism that is 2 mm long, a 200-m migration is the rough equivalent of a 200-km swim for a human!
To be fair, they are good swimmers. But still: why do they do this?

Our voyagers can tell you all about the possible hypotheses when they get home.
And when they get home, they will probably also tell you about Neptune’s visit.
I will not give anything away in this blog, but we I can say we have crossed the equator.
More on our adventures in the southern hemisphere will follow soon!
Marretje, Researcher"

02/11/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"The strong winds and rough seastate are gone.
Slowly setting more and more sails throughout the day.
Closing in on the centre of the high pressure area with light winds.
After we expect to set course southwest again.
1490nm to Puerto Madryn to go.
A singing contest in the lounge this afternoon and chicken Madagaskar on the menu.
Half the crew is murdered already, luckely it is a game.
For quit some time there has not been any malfuntioning technical item.
It has been a sunny day in many ways."

01/11/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Over the weekend we had a small 7bft from NNE. Pushing us nicely about 150nm per day in the direction we like to go.
Seastate was somewhat rough, so wet feet on the middeck.

Tomorrow morning we expect south winds.
Because of the seastate (and rolling) the halloween party is postponed, but the murdergame ongoing."

30/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Already two days with a lot of sun. Nevertheless , we left the tropics and are now in the sub-tropics. On a large scale chart it looks like we are "just popping around the corner" of Cabo de Sao Tome. In real it takes some three days. Because of civilisation (oil rig field) we have to pop around that too. A restricted area.

At the moment dead downwind presumably for another 48hrs. Then wind will shift south. Hopefully it will not be too long. 1830nm to go on shortest distance.
The entertainment department is doing overtime. All well on board.
A lazy Sunday, enjoy yours."

27/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

" Windspeed this afternoon 1 kts. That does not bring us fast towards where we want to go, but gives time for science. Trawling Atlantis for plastic. Some was found, along with tiny fish, but not a lot. A drone was launched and footage put on the library pc.
Movie night tonight, Orbit part two.
All in all a easy going day at sea, with only very light rain.
At this moment full and by, speeding up somewhat. Still on schedule." 

Joost: I assume Marretje used her drone she took with her to take some footage of the bark that day.

25/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Today we were as far from Tenerife as we are from Puerto Madryn. So halfway.
506 hours underway, 168 under engine. 66-33% up till now.
Consumption: Used fuel 8600ltr (9 pppd).
Used water 58.241ltr (61pppd).
180kg potatoes
45kg butter
40kg sugar 
40kg cheese 
125ltr homemade yoghurt
25ltr cream
100ltr juice
200ltr milk
500beers
125kg onions 
850 eggs
Weather is fine, no moon, good winds and the latter will stay like this for another 6 days at least presumably." 

23/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"We left the equatorial current coming in from port and now sailing nicely downstream. Drift reduced considerably. Still close haul for now. 
About 1500 miles easterly winds ahead of us. I heard the words "nice sailing" quite often today. Smooth is maybe a better word." 

21/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"This morning we dropped anchor on the roads of Ilha Fernando de Noronha.  A swimstop planned.  After coffee we sailed off the anchor and are good underway now. As we see it, this will be the tack for at least 10 days. Neptune and a plunge in the sea gave all crew renewed energy needed for the 25 days to come." 

20/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Last night at 23:25hr UTC we crossed the equator at 030'58W. Crew taking photographs of an electronic device and a long blast on the horn to inform Neptune we have arrived and await his arrival. Today we shifted time and are now on UTC -1. Winds are not really in our favour, but the outlook in abt 130nm or friday pm seem to be good. Weather is fine, no showers and seawater temperature 27 degrees."

18/10/2022: bericht Marretje:

" Hoi (pap!)
Het gaat hier goed aan boord. Ik weet nu waar de inspiratie van het schommelschip vandaan komt: bij het raken van een golf schommelen we omhoog, om vervolgens weer naar beneden te storten. Dit valt vooral op als ik in bed lig. Maar we hebben ook veel rustig water gehad en ik ben niet zeeziek. Ook de hitte valt mee door de vele wolken en kleine regenbuitjes. Ik kan inmiddels lopen als Jack Sparrow: het is rete-effectief.

Ik heb op verzoek een lezing gegeven over de diepzee, en in het proces daar veel over geleerd. Het is waar wat ze zeggen, als je doet wat je leuk vindt, voelt het niet als werk. Ik werk wel veel. Maar ik ontdek ook veel over de oceanen en ben in een kleine obsessie rondom de biologie van vissen gestort.

Leren zeilen gaat goed, maar langzaam: je moet aan zoveel denken. Het schip is heel foto-geniek en de nieuwe camera is fantastich! Het vangt de kleuren ook heel mooi.

Het eten is heel erg goed en aan boord is het heel gezellig. Veel verschillende typetjes maakt een mooi schouwspel. Meer verhalen ook in de blogs die ik schijf op de website.

Hopelijk gaat alles daar ook goed. Groetjes en veel liefs!" 

16/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

" Finally we found the south easterly's. Took some time. Full sails close hauled underway sailing again.
The first sunset in clear skies a fact(before it was covered by sand haze and/or clouds).
1850nm done this 14th day out.
Tomorrow is bathroom day, watch hours change day and hopefully change course day." 

16/10/2022: Marretje wrote in the logbook:

"We encountered our first storm recently. I fortunately and unfortunately did not wake up and therefore didn't have the slightest idea about the epic adventure happening on deck. Nonetheless, I am happy that Robert is able to report how he experienced the morning:

Waking up at 3.30 AM to start the 4.00 AM shift sounds painful and unpleasant but is made up by the chance of seeing the sunrise. However, to be woken up and told to wear all of your wet-gear on removes any shred of potential joy. The rain started at 4.02 AM. Two minutes respite were followed by close to 4 hours of rain. Night-time shifts are normally pleasurable opportunities to see the stars and be entertained by a bright moon.

This night the sky was covered with the blackest of black clouds one could ever imagine. From horizon to horizon a black self-sustaining squall encompassed the ship. The ship was engulfed with torrential rain set within a bag-drop of sheer blackness. All on watch were called to swiftly remove any sail. Unbelievably, some of the permanent crew were required to climb the mast. Others removed the staysails.

If anyone had any doubts about gender difference within the crew such false pretence was immediately removed. One incredible female member climbed out onto the bow-sprit. Those on watch on the foredeck immediately lost sight of her as she climbed out into the rain and squall. Her task was to untangle a twisted line and block. Close to 30 minutes of battling in force 9 winds enabled the ship to reduce its sails to safely travel through the squall.

What may sound like terrifying early morning was in fact the highlight of our journey so far. Cecile, one of the 'heroes' that day reflected on this act with "I was just putting gaskets around the outer jib". When asked to some permanent crew members if they enjoyed the thrilling morning as well, reactions varied from "It was just a bit wet and windy" to "exciting" and "another day at sea". The size of the "storm" will remain unknown for me, and for all the others that were asleep. Nonetheless, I am very  grateful that the red watch who, as they describe it themselves, saved our lives.

Apart from this adventure and some occasional squalls we have entered calmer water. Where we just grew accustomed to checking every big wave potentially hiding a potential whale, we can now enjoy the luxury of not having to worry about loose objects rolling of tables or benches. For a few days we did not need our freshly obtained sea-legs anymore. A relief to some, although seasickness has not been a problem so far. The wind is picking up slowly, so who knows what the next few days will bring us. And to be honest, the squalls were wonderful from a refreshing perspective, as the sun is growing stronger as we are getting close to the equator.

At the time of writing we are exactly in the middle of the ocean, about 750 miles from Africa and 750 miles from Brazil. The doldrums make it hard to estimate our exact moment of crossing, which made a great opportunity for a ship-wide-betting-competition. Furthermore, Neptune is close and the first little signs of his proximity have already been spotted on the ship. In tension we are waiting for his arrival, speculating on what it will bring us.

Marretje, Researcher" 

11/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

" Rain, a lot of water pouring down out of showers that come over in a tropical wave.
Shifting winds, but not that strong, in fact even welcome, so we can make some way.
Later we could do some plastic trawling, all for science. 
Not much visible plastic however. Maybe under the microscope.
Windwise the forecast does not look too good. Very light winds if any. 
Most likely we will hear the caterpillars coming days.
For the first time this trip. Hopefully not too long." 

10/10/2022: Note from captain Arian Poortman:

"Clear sky (the sahara sand haze is gone), full moon and the movie of the Peking on deck. Everything you might imagine for a warm area crossing is there.
We just touched the 1000nm this afternoon, which is in our opinion not bad at al for the first week.
Painting and varnishing started."

9/10/2022: Marretje wrote in the logbook:

"Previously I mentioned that the crew has set out to master the Spanish language; however, a more pressing matter is learning the language the crew is speaking.
While they claim to speak English, it can better be defined as “Sailor”, as their jargon is unique and unlike anything I have encountered on land.

Some members of the voyage crew have dedicated themselves to learning the names of the lines and their locations.
I think we all feel some sort of pride when we remember a new line, but then the next step is to also know what to do with the lines.
Some can by now comprehend theinstructions, often given in “Sailor”.
Yet outside these select few, the majority of us are on a slower learning curve.

This leads to humorous interactions as the permanent crew is ready and the learned crewmen run to their stations meanwhile the rest of us stare blankly at the 240 ropes hanging from above.
Distractions arise easily as crew members are caught in chatty conversation standing around lines that need to be pulled.

This occurs to the occasional impatience of the permanent crew as many tasks must be completed in quick succession of one another.
However, do not worry, they are always very kind when we have no clue what is going on or make mistakes.

An additional side effect of sail handling is the vast quantity of rope which accumulates on the deck.
These piles of tangled rope have come to be known among the crew as the “spaghetti monster.”
With an overwhelming number of ropes to be sorted it has become necessary to learn how to properly stow the ropes and keep the spaghetti monster at bay.

At first, the arrival of the spaghetti monster was overwhelming but I can proudly inform you almost all of us have become worthy warriors who can swiftly defeat the chaos of lines on deck.
We are getting more comfortable with sailing, but also on the ship.
We now understand the routine, where we can find things and have settled in.
Voyagers are getting to know the members of their shift better and conversations are slowly going more in depth.
The adrenaline levels have been falling and it is not an uncommon sight anymore to see people taking naps all over the ship.
It is also not uncommon to see a book on their lap which they were attempting to read.
We have found peace.

And occasionally,  adrenaline levels rise again, when we climb.
Almost everyone has attended climbing instructions and some can be regularly found somewhere in the masts helping out by furling sails or assisting in maintenance tasks.
But we also go up for fun; to get a good view and shoot some nice photos.

While we focussed our attention on learning to sail, we made speed towards Cape Verde.
After having no land in sight for a week the lookout was finally able to report “land ahoy” to the skipper on deck.
What began as a dot on the horizon slowly grew into a long chain of barren islands.
We dropped anchor off the coast and spent the afternoonswimming beside the ship.

Standing seven meters above the sea, the bowsprit of the ship provided the perfect high dive.
The more advanced swimmers among the crew were able to wow us with acrobatics and impressive dives, while the rest competed in cannonball and belly flop competitions.
After our afternoon on the water, we set the sails and turned towards the open sea.
The evening concluded with birthday party for our crewmate Sarah as we watched the islands sink back into the horizon.

Life is good.
Marretje, Researcher"

08/10/2022: Note (in the logbook) from the captain Arian Poortman:

" Today was a good day. Early morning we passed Sal island on the east side and sailed on towards the west side of Boa Vista.

Nicely before lunch we dropped anchor in the bay of Sal Rei. A swim stop as surprise. After coffee heave up again and set full sails.

We are going to need them, as the forecast is telling us light winds ahead.
Till now we sailed abt 900nm, of which 859VMG. No engine needed yet. " 

08/10/2022: Marretje wrote:

"The last days have been all in the theme of making connections.
Firstly, connecting with each other. Next to all the sailing activities there has been plenty of time to talk and get to know one another. Someone even mentioned that all the stories shared between the voyagers are among his favourite moments.

Next to that, the practice of sailing shows us everything is connected. When you want to hoist a sail, it is not just about pulling lines: all lines are indirectly connected to other lines, that have to be attended at the same time. Sailing is working together closely, and learning how all the parts of the ship are interconnected and work together.

One of the shifts on board is "the Helm". At the helm, you steer the ship. As easy as it sounds, it has been a process for everyone to get the hang of it. The ship never moves in a straight line, but responds on the wind and the waves. Accordingly, it takes time to get to know the ship and estimate how to correct for the direction of the wind and waves.

Dirk, one of our voyagers, noted that sailing has tought him to look beyond the destination, beyond staring at the compass only. He has been on board now for a month and says he notices he looks around more to observe the waves and the wind. He feels more rooted, gaining more overview over the ship and all that the forces influencing it. 

Disconnecting to the buzz of normal life has brought space for new things and thoughts. As we are all slowly settling in and calming down, we tend to have more space to let our environment really connect with us. And as we look around, it becomes visible how much life there is. Sometimes we feel like we are alone on the ocean, with no building or ship in sight. But 
we have been visited by many animals varying from butterflies and birds hanging around on the ship for a day to a group of flying fish accidentally jumping on the ship in the middle of the night.

Many animals seem to be interested to see what is happening and come to take a closer look at the ship. This morning a group of orcas was spotted just a meter away from the railing, a unique and exciting sighting for everyone awake. One of the most magic moments was a night full of bioluminescence. As the bow of the ship cuts through the waves, it triggers bioluminescence which can still be seen as a long trail behind us. To top it off, a group of dolphins played in these bioluminescent 
waves.

Life just seems to keep on giving, not just with wildlife, but also with great food, great conversations and even occasional self-made music. It is hard to imagine what else could be heading our way, but since we are all utterly content in the present, we don't really think about it. What we do think about, is our level of Spanish for when we do reach land again.

The first Spanish afternoon has already been organised and everybody was welcome: those who speak 3 words of Spanish and those who master the language of using hands and feet. I am sure we will have learned to sail by the end, but I will have to come back to you on the Spanish part.

Hasta luego!

Marretje, Researcher" 

07/10/2022: see logbook on "the promise on Europa": https://www.barkeuropa.com/logbook/detail/a-word-on-the-seas-special-magic

07/10/2022: see logbook note on "gnomes" from Ninja: https://www.barkeuropa.com/logbook/detail/a-word-on-the-seas-special-magic

18/11/2022 (08:00):  The Europa has arrived at the harbor of  Puerto Madryn 

The barque "Europa"