Oxleys' Adventures

As passengers we are merely relaxing and enjoying the Caribbean Sea as we travel by Cancun and Cuba and into the Gulf of Mexico. On the other hand, our seamen are ‘flying high’ above us in the dangerous work of keeping the ship’s maintenance in tip top shape. Or they are down underneath in the hull of the vessel assuring that all of the engineering and systems are fully functioning.
If there is anything that we have learned to value and appreciate, it is the dedication and skill of these artisans of the seas. It is very, very dangerous work requiring immense skill and dedication, over and above the loneliness of being on the seas and separated from loved ones months on end.
Here’s just a glimpse of some of their challenges….

We now know for sure that we will not ‘make it home’ for the holidays! The freighter trip continues to go well but over the course of time has been delayed by about eight days for various reasons that are all part of the adventure into the unknown.
We want to take a moment to wish you a very blessed and special Christmas!!! Our greetings come from the shores of Costa Rica. We pray that you are all sharing in great holiday moments and creating memories that will last a lifetime!!
We will celebrate Christmas with the crew of the Rickmer’s Shanghai, somewhere in the seas of the Gulf of Mexico, as we travel our final leg of the journey ‘home’ towards Houston. The crew is thrilled as Christmas will be a VERY rare ‘day off’:-)! The plan is for “Bingo with Bud” and then the infamous ship BBQ!!

The crews warm smiles will never be forgotten, nor the difficulty, challenges, and sacrifices of their lives on the high seas all for the betterment of their families. They miss their loved ones terribly. They spend months and months at sea, in order to provide a better life than what they might be able to provide in their home countries. Very special blessings also go to those families of the seamen who are following the journey of their loved ones….

Have a wonderful and blessed Christmas!!!

It is December 22, 2012, around 4:00 am. We are just entering the first of three locks which will take us through the Panama Canal. The entire Canal runs though Panama for over 50 miles as it connects the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Even though we are beginning the passage at night, we are able to see the 24 hour a day process of creating yet another canal for the maritime needs of the world.

As dawn broke we could clearly view the exotic and beautiful jungle area that lined the waterway. Birds chirped to mark the excitement of our passage. Eagles soared overhead and parrots put on exhibitions of gliding for our personal viewing pleasure:)! The alligators lined the sandy beach area to spy on possible prey.

To top it all off our family went on http://www.pancanal.com and WATCHED our ship LIVE as we made the passage!!

It was certainly an experience that exceeded our expectations!

We successfully made the 7,000 nautical miles to cross the Pacific Ocean! In our 21 days at sea we experienced about a week of ocean ‘rolling’…..thank goodness…..NO seasickness and great ‘deck weather’ on the southern route across to Mexico!
We transported 63 million dollars worth of cargo in 21 days…..
We are now in a beautiful Mexican harbor/port of Manzanillo, Mexico :)!!
Any of you who know Bud knows that he LOVES Mexico….so this port competes with all the others as an ‘ undiscovered’ Mexico destination!

Making an ocean passage on a freighter requires a tremendous amount of leadership, decision making, and teamwork. All the officers and seamen work together to make sure that safety is paramount. Our Pacific crossing has found us with beautiful blue skies, relatively warm weather but very rolling seas. One never knows when a rogue wave might hit and suddenly everything is flying! You begin to learn the walk and talk of the brave men of the sea.

Keeping the spirit alive in their dedication to their careers, that will ultimately provide their families back home a living, is a paramount task. Crew talk of sending their checks home to provide educational opportunities for their children or needed dollars for extended family members. One seaman proudly spoke of his daughter’s ability to secure a nursing degree only because of living his life at sea and the financial stability it afforded for that educational opportunity for his children. The stories of the seamen are heart wrenching and very dedicated to sacrifice for their loved ones!
They are an inspiring group of men and always ready to lend a hand to help a fellow mate or passenger:)!

BBQ’s become a great release and an opportunity for the men to relax and enjoy each other’s company, while such a long way from their loved ones.

It is hard to believe from the middle of the Pacific that it is December 1st and the global celebration of Christmas is so close at hand.

Here are some pics that kicked off the holiday season for the Rickmer’s Shanghai crew:

The cargo is loaded to the hilt and hopefully secured, the food stocked, and the prayers on the increase as we prepare for the 21 day crossing of the Pacific! This is our final leg of the freighter journey which will lead us to Manzanillo, Mexico –the Panama Canal –Costa Rica –and then full circle back to Houston, Texas:)!

We are hoping to return to the life of travel blogging upon our port entry in Manzanillo. So, it will be AT LEAST twenty one days before any posts on the Pacific Ocean crossing experience!!

We are praying for calm seas and the winds at our back…

See you soon:-)!!!

I thought you might enjoy seeing that Christmas is certainly a celebration virtually around the world!! Here is a quick glimpse of their decorations; I think you will find it all fairly familiar:)!!!

Of course, it is all to bring a smile to the children:

We certainly pray that all of you are enjoying many blessings this Thanksgiving 2012! We want to take a moment to say thank you to the officers and seamen that have made us feel so very welcomed and ‘at home’ on the ‘Rickmer’s Shanghai. Many of you have inquired as to the the nationalities of the seamen. They are Romana, Lithuanian, Chinese, Ukrainian and Filipino. Here are some pics of their warm smiles:

Our travels in Japan have introduced us to a culture of organized, meticulous, and gracious hosts! Even the taxi car drivers wear white gloves and cover the seats with freshly ironed lace doilies:)!
The port of Yokohama (minutes) from Tokyo allowed our ‘berthing spot’ to be virtually ‘downtown’ in a beautiful bay/walking area with easy and immediate access anywhere!! We spent time walking the area and particularly enjoyed the irony of Yokohama hosting one of the largest Chinatowns in the world. This area called “Chukagai” has intricate “Pailou” gates which mark the entrance to the area, as seen pictured above! The port of Yokohama is one of the absolute favorites of our seamen. It was a delight to see them have an opportunity to get off the ship and relax a little before the challenging work of an ocean passage!!

Here was our spot for the final ‘toast’ for the night and our new Japanese friends:)!

Well, we have finally made it to Nagoya, Japan! Of course, the first thing I wanted to do was catch up the Travelblog by ‘posting’ all of our stops from China (so those of you who still may be following would know that we were among the living and still speaking to each other:)!!!!
I was thrilled when the the text and pictures all indicated they had ‘posted’…..only to discover that no one can see them and the pictures never came through!! So, please, never doubt YOUR techie skills; I just need to attempt to ‘crack ‘ through the “missing China pictures” from this end!!!

So, from Nagoya I am hoping to send a picture of one of the most architecturally interesting buildings we have yet to experience!! Plus, here are two GREAT Japanese men that ‘loaned’ us Japanese currency to get to an ATM in Nagoya!!

Thanksgiving Day we set sail for Yokohama, Japan, and then we head across the Pacific. Just in case I am not able to ‘post’ anything again… please know that the Pacific crossing will be a minimum of 21 days with NO internet/WiFi possibilities….ie. NO travelblog opportunities!! I will try to catch you up on the ocean crossing experience when we reach Manzanillo, Mexico.

Here’s hoping for calm seas!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!