Old Sailor's and old traditions

 Dear Bloggers,

 

I am not a very superstitious guy, but some old traditions are still very alive on many new ships and somethings have surprised me. In my early years of sailing, I did not know much about these old habits the only thing that I knew was that were laying a coin in the keel for good luck and that new ships are christened with a bottle of champagne.

Traditions dating to seafarer days centuries ago to bring good luck remain alive and well with coins for "divine protection," godmother blessings for new ships, no whistling in the wheelhouse and spilled rum for Neptune. And for good measure, step aboard the ship with your right foot first.

Mariners tend to be superstitious. They do not like to rock the boat, so to speak.

So even in the 21st century, with modern cruise ships sailing guests around the world in extraordinary comfort and guided with the latest in navigational equipment, some traditions linger, dating back to rugged early seafarer days.

Some Captains when they enter a brand-new vessel, said one of the first things he looks for on a ship is a certain bottle of water. "When a ship starts to float, the water that first touches the ship is caught in a bottle and it's sealed. Later it is typically displayed in the captain's office near the bridge. You walk in and think, 'Ah, there's the bottle. Everything is good,'" the captain explained. "If I would walk on a ship and it's not there, I would find that odd."

The captain gets the bottle when the ship has been launched and goes from the shipbuilder to the company – during a traditional handover ceremony attended by all the hot shots.

Other construction milestones are also celebrated with pomp and circumstance based on time-honored maritime tradition.

A steel-cutting ceremony signals the start of a cruise ship's production. A keel-laying ceremony marks the first completed section being lowered by giant cranes onto the building dock. The float-out ceremony takes place when a ship first touches water.

Good luck coins are often involved. For instance, two commemorative gold coins were welded in place to mark the float-out soon afterward of ultra-luxury brand Seabourn's 600-passenger Seabourn Encore. The coin tradition dates to Roman times when coins were attached to a ship to provide "divine protection." On modern ships they are typically on display on the radar mast. Next time you are aboard a ship, head up to the top deck to try and spot the coin or coins.

The most popular present day maritime ritual, developed in the 20th century, is having a notable godmother say a blessing and oversee the smashing of a bottle of champagne across a new ship's hull. The tradition dates to ancient times when wine was used and men did the duties and perhaps, it is said, spilled the wine on purpose to check for cracks in the hull.

When the Koningsdam was christened in Rotterdam on May 20, a Holland America Line tradition was upheld – the Pinnacle-class ship was the 12th in the 143-year-old line's history to be launched with the participation of Dutch royalty. Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands did the honors.

Specific ships have their own traditions. For instance, there may be a bridge mascot.

Always positioned on the starboard side of the bridge on Holland America Line's 1,432-passenger Volendam is Flat Eric, the yellow puppet who starred in Levi's jeans commercials (directed by French musician Mr. Oizo) in 1999, the year the ship debuted. Officers presented the puppet, which they call "Oizo," with a 15-year service award in 2014.

A tradition unique to Cunard's Queen Mary 2 ocean liner is for officers to "mark" the distance of a transatlantic crossing between Southampton, England, and New York with a toy ship that sits on top of a monitor on the bridge. Each day, it is moved a bit further to symbolically coincide with how much distance has been sailed.

Based on longstanding tradition, the crew bar on Cunard ships is always called "The Pig and Whistle," named after the nearest pub to where Cunard ships historically docked in Liverpool.

Other traditions on ships of the venerable Cunard Line include calling the back-of-the-house crew thoroughfare the "Burma Road." On Carnival Cruise Line and Holland America Line ships, the long crew passageway is known as "I-95," in tribute to the highway that passes through Carnival Corporation's home base of Miami.

Other nautical superstitions are more universally embraced. Here are a few examples:

It's considered bad luck to step onboard a ship with your left foot first.

If dolphins follow your ship, it's a sign of good luck.

There is no whistling in the wheelhouse (today's bridge), because you might whistle up a storm.

Toasting with champagne will assure a Bon Voyage.

On world cruises, trans-Pacific voyages, and South America sailings, such as those of Princess Cruises, a favorite maritime tradition is a ceremony for guests as the ship crosses the equator. Originally a hazing ritual for sailors, Pollywogs (newbies) are summoned by King Neptune and his court and ordered to do things such as crawl, kiss a fish or jump into the pool before being able to claim status as experienced Shellbacks.

Never worry if you spill wine overboard at your ship's Sail Away party as it brings good luck – considered an offering to the gods. According to tradition, Neptune also does not mind an occasional shot of rum.

Red sunrise

Sailors are taught if the sunrise is red to take warning. The day ahead will be dangerous.

"Red Sky at night, Sailor’s delight; Red Sky in the morning, Sailors take warning." It may also be said as; "Red at morning, Sailor’s warning; Red at night, Sailors delight," or "Red sky at night, Sailor's delight; Red sky at morn, Sailor be warned."

This saying actually has some scientific validity, although it assumes storms systems will approach from the west and is therefore generally correct only at mid-latitudes where, due to the rotation of the Earth, prevailing winds travel west to east. If the morning skies are red, it is because clear skies over the horizon to the east permit the sun to light the undersides of moisture-bearing clouds. Conversely, to see red clouds in the evening, sunlight must have a clear path from the west, so therefore the prevailing westerly wind must be bringing clear skies. This means if there is a red sky, Sun, or clouds at morning, it might mean there will be a storm, or severe winds will come. Although, if there is a red sky, Sun, or clouds at night, there will be clear skies, soft or no winds, and you have a good day ahead of you.

Albatross

The Albatross as a superstitious relic is referenced in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s well-known poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. It is considered very unlucky to kill an albatross; in Coleridge's poem, the narrator killed the bird, and his fellow sailors eventually force him to wear the dead bird around his neck.

Bananas

Having bananas on a ship, especially on a private boat or fishing yacht, is considered bad luck. The origin of the superstition is unknown.

Sailors have had several patron saints. According to his hagiography Saint Nicholas calmed a storm by prayer. In the Dutch tradition he still travels on a ship.

Brendan the Navigator is also considered a patron saint of sailors and navigators, due to his mythical voyage to St. Brendan’s Island. Erasmus of Formiae, also known as Saint Elmo, may have become the patron of sailors because he is said to have continued preaching even after a thunderbolt struck the ground beside him. This prompted sailors, who were in danger from sudden storms and lightning, to claim his prayers. The electrical discharges at the mastheads of ships were read as a sign of his protection and came to be called “Saint Elmo’s Fire”. Thus, Saint Elmo's Fire was generally good luck in traditional sailor's lore, but because it is a sign of electricity in the air and interferes with Compass readings, sailors sometimes regarded it as an omen of bad luck and stormy weather. The mariner cross, also referred to as St. Clement's Cross, is worn by many sailors to bring blessings.

Sailor tattoos

Sailor tattoos are a visual way to preserve the culture of the maritime superstitions. Sailors believed that certain symbols and talismans would help them in facing certain events in life; they thought that those symbols would attract good luck or bad luck in the worst of the cases:

Sailors, at the constant mercy of the elements, often feel the need for religious images on their bodies to appease the angry powers that caused storms and drowning far from home.

Another example of superstitions is the North Star (nautical star or compass rose) sailors had the belief that by wearing this symbol it would help them to find his or her way home. Sailors designed mariner motifs of their own, according to their travel experiences in the ocean.

The anchor is commonly used in sailor tattoos, which were supposed to prevent a sailor from floating away from the ship, should he fall overboard. The words 'HOLD FAST' tattooed on the knuckles would prevent a sailor from falling from aloft.

In an awkward position

The phrase over a barrel; meaning to be in a dilemma or in "a weak or difficult position", may refer to the first aid practice amongst sailors of placing a drowning  victim's head over a barrel, and rolling his body over it, in an attempt to remove aspirated water from the person's lungs. However, this etymology is challenged, and may come instead from the custom of punishing a prisoner by flogging or paddling him while he is strapped to a barrel; there is no documentary evidence it was actually used specifically as a nautical phrase. Either way, the image created in the mind is that of total helplessness and loss of control, which is a common anxiety of sailors in fear of corporal punishment.

 

The Old Sailor,