English Voyages

摘要

In 1956, Mr Cox, the kindly gentleman at the Blue Star Line office who gave mates and deck cadets their sailing instructions, knew I was newly married so, instead of appointing me to one of the many ships working the far flung trade routes, said to me "English Star old boy, she's having her refrigerated cargo capacity increased at the old Palmer's yard, Hebburn-on-Tyne. Should get you home at nights for another three weeks or so." English Star's 'reefer enhancement', involving the installation of extra refrigeration machinery and the insulation of former general cargo spaces, enabled her to carry the increasing amounts of bananas being shipped from Santos, Brazil, to London. Further good news for me was that after completion of her refit she was going on the South American run. Compared with the five-month voyages to Australia and New Zealand, I would now be on the eight-week run from the UK and northern Europe down to South America.