Five Days at Sea and St. Helena

Prepared January 31, 2012, South Atlantic Ocean, en route to Walvis Bay, Namibia

January 24 to 28, 2012, At sea South Atlantic Ocean, bound for St. Helena Island:  All At Sea

Five continuous sea days is a long at-sea period for a cruise ship.  In most cases, the ship is in port or anchored almost every second day.  Probably  the cruise lines don' t want the passengers to run out of things to do and get restless or bored.  However, longer periods cannot be avoided when crossing the vast majority of the South Atlantic Ocean bound for Africa.

Excluding eating and sleeping, the daily routine varies from person-to-person.  J & E play bridge and trivial pursuit.  Other passengers take to the sun on deck chairs near the pool deck bar, and still others attend "enrichment lectures" on wide-ranging topics from astronomy to international affairs.  While the younger and friskier passengers have international affairs!   Anyway, everyone stays occupied, and there are very few complaints about days at sea.

The crossing from Rio to St. Helena is not a heavily-trafficked sea route.  We did not see a single vessel the entire time, and any small thing, a bird or fish, causes great excitement.  An example of this was the sighting of Illas Martin Vaz, an exposed rock situated along the mid-Atlantic ridge.  Under normal circumstances, this rock would not have elicited as much excitement, but having not seen anything but water for two or three days, the rock became an object of great interest.  The cruise director announced its sighting, and the masses rushed forth (digital cameras in hand) to photograph one of the most uninteresting rocks ever sighted by sailors.  Only if you are a bird could you like this place!

Illas Martin Vaz -- Birds Wanted!

Illas Martin Vaz's only claim to fame was a minor role in one of Patrick O'Brian's Master and Commander novels, when Maurtrin is stranded on the rock while bird watching, and Aubury has to return with HMS Surprise to rescue him.  Well, it is a sort of fame.

As we began the last sea day before St. Helena, there was a noticeable increase in enthusiasm for going ashore.   The cruise equivalent of rock fever had not set in, but some early symptoms were seen in the passengers' eagerness to visit a slightly larger rock on the eastern side of the South Atlantic -- St. Helena.

January 29, 2012, at Anchor off Jamestown, St. Helena:  Visiting Napoleon's Last Abode and His Friend, Jonathan


Sunday Morning and land ho, anchored off Jamestown, St. Helena's largest town, capital, and only port.  From seaward, St Helena gives the impression of an arid island with high cliffs dropping directly into the South Atlantic.  At sea level, the island is dry, but at 1,000 feet and above, it becomes a wet, semi-tropical landscape of green trees and flowers.

St. Helena and Jamestown from Seaward

Once we have been tendered ashore, the "tour" buses are waiting.  Actually, every wheeled vehicle that could be considered a bus is waiting, and so we pick a 16-passenger van for the tour to Napoleon's tomb,  Longwood House, Plantation House, and other local sights.  The paved roads are one lane, with turnouts for down hill traffic (up hill traffic has the right-of-way).  They consist of a series of switchbacks leading up from the port and Jamestown to the relatively flat, moist tablelands that make up the Island's green (cropped, pastured or forested) interior.

The Landscape on Top

Jamestown and James Bay from the Top

After several stops along the road for explanations by in-place, local guides, and opportunities for photos of Jamestown, James Bay, and the Silver Whisper, we arrive at the site where Napoleon was buried before his body was shipped to Paris and reinterred.  His original tomb is about 3/4 of a mile down a grass lane from the paved road where we disembarked from the bus.  The downhill walk to the tomb is a pleasant morning stroll, and the tomb itself is well maintained.  All-in-all as fine a place as any to be buried.

The Sign Says It All

Napoleon's Original Tomb
Note the Flag -- Not the Union Jack!

The local groundskeeper was busy removing large needles fallen from the nearby Norfolk Island pine trees, which were planted near the tomb.  Norfolk Pine needles kill all other plant life underneath their branches, as J & E can attest from their experience with the Norfolk Pine that formerly grew in their back yard! (Big spot of bare soil!)  With the groundskeeper was his 2-year old, tethered Border Collie, whose interest in pine needles was minimal, but who wanted his master to play with him.  Border Collies are not big on things that don't move.

Got Sheep?

After the leisurely stroll down to the tomb, the real challenge was the plod UP to the bus.  It was touch and go, with lots of mind talk about how did I get in this bad shape, etc., but we made it back to the bus only slightly out of breath.  Then we were off to Longwood House where Napoleon lived during his exile on the Island from 1816 to 1821.  Longwood House is no palace, but it was a very comfortable house in the subtropics with extensive gardens.  Not prison-like at all, except that Napoleon could not leave.  Photos were not allowed inside the house, but a tour guide was available in most rooms (about 10) to explain their function and furnishings.

Longwood House

The Usual Suspects in Longwood House Garden
Note the Matching Bags -- How Hilo Hattie!

After Longwood House, we went to visit Jonathan, according to locals, Napoleon's only living friend.  Jonathan is an approximately 200-year-old Seychelles turtle.  He may (or may not) have actually seen Napoleon.  One suspects that Jonathan doesn't really care one way or the other.  He and his 3 younger relatives live in the garden of Plantation House, which is the residence of Her Majesty's Governor.  St. Helena is still a self-governing territory of the United Kingdom.

Hello, My Name is Jonathan

Jonathan's Friends

Our final stop was at the top of Ladder Hill, where the upper portion of Jamestown is located 700 feet above the lower, sea-level portion.  The two parts of the town were once connected by a tramway, but all that is left is the step-like concrete structure that was under the track.  This forms a 699-step walkway known as Jacob's Ladder.  Several of the younger guests and crew members walked down (still hobbling two days later aboard), but to our knowledge, no one walked up!

Jacob's Ladder
Yes, it is a long way down!

Finally, it was back to the Main Street of Jamestown.  Even though a Sunday, all along Main Street the shops were open to celebrate the semi-annual cruise ship.  However, we only had time to walk back rather quickly to the port area and tender at Wharf Steps.  Returning to the Silver Whisper for lunch (no missed meals), up anchor, and sail-away to Walvis Bay, Namibia.

Main Street, Jamestown, St. Helena

The Archway
Entry to Jamestown from Port 

M/V Silver Whisper at Anchor,
James Bay, St. Helena