Shipboys from Skipper Bontekoe

De Scheepsjongens van Bontekoe.
In 1924 Johan Fabricius did write the book about -the shipboys from Skipper Bontekoe- on the Nieuw-Hoorn. a sailing vessel from the VOC.Based on true journals from the VOC (Dutch East India Company) three boys (Hajo, Padde and Rolf) are sailing to the East and learning to stand up for themselves on board. As youngsters the crew is trying them out, but they learn quick. After an explosion on board they had to survive on a raft and have to find their own way from Sumatra to Batavia. Meeting tribes, unknown dangerous animals and a lovely native Oriental girl.

coconuts and a nipa hut
This week the film was first showed in theaters nationwide. When I was young I have been reading this book dozens of times. And again and again I was part of the crew and experienced scurvy, storms and had to survive the humidity of the tropics.

Oriental Flower, ByebyeButterfly
The VOC was the first multinational in the world. More than 10000 journeys were made to the East to load profitable spices and pepper.
The Batavia replica in Lelystad was used to make the recordings for the movie.. Also recordings were made in Australia and Litouwen.
The real Batavia did shipwreck in Western Australia. And years ago when I was in Fremantle I saw the remains of it in the Maritime Museum.

My father was also a Skipper/ Captain most of his life. Starting as the early age of twelve, he first went to sea. Later on he became a master and did sail all around the Globe for over forty years.
Just like Bontkoe he did took many nice and sometimes strange things home: Parrots, a monkey, Molders of an elephant, spears and a club from Africa, boomerangs, turbans, snakeskin, ivory statues, opals, gold, tiger-eyes, paintings, clock's etc.

souvenir Gerrit, over 40 years part of the family
Those little things I love the most. It reminds me of him and of the nice time when I was still small and we went almost every holiday to the ship and discover new worlds.
Later on I did travel myself with my backpack all over the world: Ireland, Indonesia, a year Down Under, a few years in the Philippines, etc.

Cooking the cook
I don't know what did influence me the most: the situation at home or the skipper from the Bontekoe. COBBER is my Batavia and I am the main character in my own book named "Once upon a time in a Kayak".

Philippines: As long as it will float

BananaBoat

Island of Siquijor

The Philippines is a archipelago with over 7000 Islands in Southeast Asia. Famous are the Badjao people, the tribes who live on the sea and from the sea.
Nowadays there habitat is badly effected because of (over) fishing.
And the beautiful corals are destroyed by using explosives to make catching fish easier.

With so many Islands there is always water around. Beautiful beaches and not yet discovered bays for the Kayak. Little villages where fishing man are going out with their Banca to provide the family with a decent meal.
I have been living for a few years over here. The first few months I traveled around Mindanao and the Visayas, before I did stay for a long time in Negros. The Sugarcane Island of the Philippines.
In between the Islands are many forms of transport; the big passengers' ship, fast ferry (catamaran) , outrigger boats or a Banca.

pumpboat
Outrigger boats or Pumpboats are the cheapest means of transport in between Islands. Made of plywood, bamboo and a old car engine. This all hold together with nails, rope and nylon wire.
Bancas are most of the time used by fishermen who go out and you can see along the coast. Sometimes near the beach but more often far out of sight. Often they use a paddle or a little triangle sail.
banca
Last September I went back for 5 months to Negros. We did take a fast ferry from Cebu to Dumaguete. A heavy wind and storm did appear. People around me were vomiting and crying. A passenger beside me was sometimes one meter above her chair. And her thighs were all black and blue from bumping up and down.
Oh, I wish I was in my kayak. For me the most seaworthy boat there is. A lot of accidents take place in these waters. Heavy seas can occur in narrow passages and overloading of ships is a common problem.
We were the last boat that departed from the port of Cebu.
Airplanes did not fly and a Typhoon (Bagyo) did strike.
After the Storm
Sitting in my kayak I feel always comfortable. My PFD and everything I need is close at hand. For me it's the most trustworthy boat there is.
The fisherman in the Philippines do not all have access to internet and see the weather forecast, neither do they use PFD's or carry flares with them. They are just happy to catch some fish again for dinner.
They say; Bahala na…..it's up to God!
Silliman beach, Negros