“Sørlandet” tied up at the dock in Galisbay on Sunday.
MARIGOT--The magnificent Norwegian tall ship Sørlandet, a Caribbean Sail Training (CST) member vessel, received an estimated 750 visitors including VIPs for the evening reception, during the ship’s open day for the public at the Galisbay commercial port on Sunday.
Pictured at the evening reception for tall ship “Sørlandet’s” open day for the public on Sunday were, from left: Second Vice President of the Collectivité Bernadette Davis, Captain August Jansson, President of Caribbean Sail Training (CST) Jan Roosens, Marigot Port Director Albéric Ellis and Dutch-side independent Member of Parliament (MP) Ludmila de Weever. (Robert Luckock photos)
Souvenir photos of “Sørlandet”, printed and sponsored by Trakx, were presented to Port Director Albéric Ellis (left), Barbara (second left), wife of Deon Weweje (far right) and Captain August Jansson (second right).
Built in 1927, Sørlandet is the oldest fully-rigged tall ship still in operation, sailing continuously throughout the year as a teaching faculty for high school students, ages 15 to 18. Some 60 students are on this particular voyage. All in all, there are nine different nationalities on board. Professional crew on board are 20, half maritime crew and half faculty teachers.
The 64-metre-long Sørlandet started the school year in Norway, before sailing to France, Spain, Madeira, Canary Islands, Cabo Verde, then crossed the Atlantic to Grenada, Guadeloupe, Saint-Martin, and Puerto Rico, before making the return trip to Norway via Bermuda, Azores, and the Netherlands.
Captain August Jansson, the ship’s captain for the past five years, expressed what a wonderful experience it is to be in charge of this tall ship.
“She sails beautifully,” he enthused. “And that’s because she was originally built as a sailing vessel only, without an engine, and that makes her sailing ability incredibly good. Most of the tall ships during those days were built with an engine, our sister ship Christian Radich was for example, and that makes her beamier. Sørlandet has an engine now but from the beginning she has a sharp hull which makes her really good for sailing.”
With a continuous sailing itinerary, there are very few windows to carry out major maintenance for an extended period at a dock, but maintenance is regularly carried out on board as the ship sails, Jansson explained. “We have to do maintenance all the time”, he said.
As a sailing faculty, the ship enjoys an excellent academic success rate. Subjects taught are the same on board as they are on land: maths, chemistry, history, languages, and so on.
Student Ruben Nissen Molvaer from Oslo, Norway, said he was in his middle high school year.
“I’m enjoying every second of this experience. I feel lucky every day that I was given this opportunity, thanks to my parents. It’s my first time on a tall ship and it’s very special. By the time I get back to Norway I will have passed my second year of high school, then I will be starting the third year.”
President of Caribbean Sail Training, Jan Roosens, expressed his sincere thanks to Captain and crew of Sørlandet, Dean of the faculty and students, Marigot Port Director Albéric Ellis (the port is record-holder as “Most Caribbean Sail Training Friendly” port), businesses that have supported CST over the years, and to Deon Weweje whose company DPYS collects waste oil, oil filters, bilge water and other waste from CST member vessels without charge.
Roosens presented a souvenir photo of Sørlandet, printed and sponsored by Trakx, to Captain Jansson, Port Director Albéric Ellis, and to Deon and his wife Barbara; the latter two are on the CST’s advisory board.
Second Vice President of the Collectivité Bernadette Davis and Dutch-side independent Member of Parliament (MP) Ludmila de Weever, also a CST advisory board member, were among some 50 invited guests for the evening reception.
Other notable guests included captain of mega yacht Falco Moscata, Patrick Netten and Captain Albert Lunenberg from superyacht Sherakhan.
