WHAT MAKES A GREAT SEAFARER?

Words by E/C John Henry S. Sombong

It is easy to define what seafaring is, and many definitions could be found on the internet or could be read in books. Maintaining and operating the ship, a high-paying job, traveling the world for free, without charges for food, accommodation, income tax, and many more—these were the perceptions of a tenderfoot like me back in college, but the realities and life within them were different.

Yes! Correct. You get to travel the world and visit places like Busan and Seoul in South Korea, California in the USA, China, Brazil, Turkey, and Singapore for free, but the taxi fare from the port to the city center is not. Your breakfast, lunch, and dinner are indeed complimentary. Steak, Lechon Manok, Adobo, Pork Sisig (an all-time favorite), and many other delicious dishes are also available, but you need to spend 7 dollars for bottled water unless you want to be dependent on the “water fountain” onboard. You may receive a monthly salary of 8100 USD for approximately 450, 000 PHP as Chief Engineer or 410 USD for approximately 20,000 PHP as an Engine Cadet like me and be exempt from income tax, but you are not spared from other government taxes and processes, onboard responsibilities, pressure, risks, and expectations.

I joined the 210-meter, 46-ton, 295-GT general cargo vessel in August 2022. For almost 3 months of working onboard as an engine cadet, I have realized and observed one thing that makes a great seafarer: EXPERIENCE. Experience is the result or sum of years of vessel stay. You will become knowledgeable about your duties and responsibilities, as well as familiar with various machines in maintenance and operation.

As you become an experienced seafarer, knowledge and diskarte kick in, and you will be considered borderless.

For months of tambay after my three-year academic completion, my life revolved around five things: social media, world politics, mobile legends (kumpleto ko skins ni Estes. HAHA) , sleep, and eat. It was just a comfortable life for me. This routine changed drastically when the office called me at 10 in the morning on August 16 to ask if I had already finished my medical and other documents and to travel to Manila on the same day or on the 1st flight of the next day for the COVID swab test and quarantine isolation. Out of excitement and mixed feelings, I said “yes.”

“Kung cadet ka palang or 1st time nga manog sakay, indi puwedi ka pang indi o mahulat ka naman pila ka bulan,” as they say.

Wala kabakal essentials, kulang nga medicine para sa allergy, kag mga kulang nga gamit ko. My sister booked a flight on the same day, and I arrived in Manila at midnight. I slept on the chair at the airport terminal with my baggage; it was a draining experience.

Unfamiliar with the world of the seafaring industry, I was unprepared and scared of what would happen to me. After spending days in Manila, I joined the vessel at 2 AM in Santos, Brazil, together with my fellow crewmates. With a lack of sleep and rest from a 27-hour flight (Philippines to Korea, then Turkey to Brazil), the off-signing engine cadet and I had our “turn-over” at eight in the morning.

Here, life is different. Obligated to get up before 8 a.m. for day work; limited cell phone use; no Mobile Legends; and a monthly data allowance of 250 mb. Yes! 250 MB lang ang internet allowance namon in a month, but you can buy a sim card worth 20–40

USD in port. I know this kind of situation is comparable to the experiences of past seafarers or vessels, but as someone who is used to the internet, it was very frustrating. Having only basic knowledge about bunkering, tools, machinery, and ship documents, I told myself, “Makalampuwas kaw guid kaja, cutie.” Despite keeping myself motivated and inspired, I struggled big time. Awake for 24 hours because of bunkering (or patughong sa aton) and mahalin na sa port, unfamiliar with tools like special tools for fuel oil purifiers and wrenches and their location in the engine workshop. At the same time, saka-naog sa hagdan permi what to press or prepare to provide power, valves to open and close during pumping in and out. Together with chemicals to use for cleaning, manuals and diagrams to read and memorize, pressure from finishing your Training and Assessment Record Book (TRB), and a daily journal. I also experienced vomiting for 2 days because of balod, or extreme rolling, with a 25-degree reading on the clinometer due to bad weather conditions in the Pacific Ocean. In the strange conversation with engineers about overhauling a variety of spare parts and rectifications, I realized that seafaring is not for someone like me.

Despite the motivations, words of wisdom, and encouragement of Engineers and fellow crew members, I kept on saying, “Indi guid para sa akon kag diri lang guid asta, Sirs.” I don’t see myself staying in this profession for a long time. Maybe 3 to 4 years only. You need to have a strong body, in which I possess a weak and sick one. Skills that are different from theoretical knowledge and diskarte, which I lack. Yet, I still believe in the saying, “Wag mag salita ng patapos.”

THESE WERE NOT WORDS OF DISCOURAGEMENT, BUT MY MERE PERSONAL OPINION AND REALIZATIONS.

If you want to be practical or save enough money someday for a better or more comfortable life, have a passion for engines, like to manipulate machines, and love breakthroughs and innovations.