21 April 2011; Ashdod, Israel.

We just made it on time to the pilot station by running full out all night. The whole route from Port Said is through recommended tracks that regulate the flow of ships in this corner of the Med. This time it is not as much the safe navigation that has resulted in these routes but the security concerns of the countries of Egypt and Israel. By having all the ships following recommended sailing tracks they are much easier to follow by radar than when they are all over the place.  The tracks for approaching Israeli ports are perpendicular to the coast and that makes it very easy for the Israeli navy to track you when coming in. There are various calling in points and they do answer with alacrity when called, so they are really on the ball. Thus we sped full speed through this recommended approach lane towards the port of Ashdod which is one of the major Industrial ports of Israel. Ahead of us was a container ship which was at the pilot station earlier than us, but he had to wait for the Prinsendam to go in first. In this case I was very happy that I was given preference because for once we needed it.

Due to the political situation in the area, Israel has very strict clearance procedures and one of them is that each guest and each crewmember has to present themselves personally for the clearance. Normally the submittal of passports and or seaman’s books are enough but not in this case. It works a little bit the same as what the United States Custom and Border Inspection does, only in this case there is not a focus on visa but to see if the passport belongs to the person who claims to be so.  That procedure takes time and thus the more reason for me to docked on time and if possible even earlier.

The whole dock area had been blocked off with a perimeter of containers.  This was about the only visible security measure visible. There was a lot more but nicely hidden from view.

The port of Ashdod has a very wide entrance and it only takes a 90 degree turn to line up with the pier and sail in. The pilot had made a little drawing to show were we were supposed to stop with the bow and with the chief officer counting down the meters we were alongside in no time. We are staying in this port until 11 pm tonight to ensure that all the tours can make it back and to facilitate local entertainment for an evening show. Apart from the guests going ashore, we have several crew tours going and that means that the ship will be very quiet today. So apart from dealing with the un-relenting stream of emails, I had the chance to observe a nearly empty ship and make an extensive inspection round. Followed by a good and long nap, as three nights with only 4 hours sleep in a row is not sustainable if you do not catch up in the afternoon.  I train my officers to do the same. If there is a chance, take a nap for a few hours. Every serviceman will agree with this. You never know what tomorrow will bring and thus prepare for it today. That is why you often see photos of sleeping soldiers while in convoy. It is not that they are lazy; it is because experience has taught them to store up some sleep whenever they can.

Loading “sea salt” in bags.

Ashdod does not have a dedicated cruise terminal. We dock alongside a cargo shed that has been “cruise modified” but on non-cruise days is still used for regular cargo work. That meant that all around us we could see cargo loading and unloading in action. To the portside of us, there was a small Russian coaster, with the beautiful name of Swarosvski 121 that was loading dehydrated carnalite. As none of us had the faintest idea what that was, we had to ask Mr. Google. It turned out that it was a sort of Magnesium harvested from the salt of the Dead Sea and that was loaded here for I assume export to a Black Sea port. It was loaded as white powder in big white bags. Occasionally one burst and then a big white plume spouted up from the hatch. This particular stuff can be used for various products and one of them is the white metal of which the housings of  many silver colored pocket cameras are made.

We pulled out as soon as the local show was off the ship. Tonight we will sail along the coast of Israel to the North. Again through a recommended track that runs exactly parallel along the coast at a distance of 4 miles. No doubt we will be under close scrutiny during the whole passage. I feel at little bit sorry for my navigators in the dog shift as each night since approaching Alexandria,  they have been asked several times for the full first name and last name of the captain. And that takes awhile to spell out. Especially when the other side is not familiar with the marine alphabet and the whole thing has to be repeated a few times.

The weather for tomorrow is uncertain. The forecast on the internet calls for dry and overcast, the locals talks about rain, lots of it. My chief officer keeps dreaming about a big downpour to clean the decks but I hope his dreams will only come true after Haifa. Tomorrow the tours are more important.