The
ship cast off from Bremerhaven on 16 Aug 15 and commenced its passage towards
Amsterdam. On
17 Aug 15 ship received a gale warning from the sail organisers. All
Tall ships were instructed to enter Ijmuiden Harbour on 18 Aug 15. Ijmuiden is
a fishing Harbour 12NM short of Amsterdam. Ship was able to reach off Ijmuiden
on 18 Aug 15.
All Ships Being Lined Up For an Early Entry into Ijmuiden
View Inclement Weather
Finally
the ship entered Ijmuiden harbour on 18 Aug 15. The time alongside was
used by the ship to prepare the ship side and the ship for the sail parade on
the following day. Sea Trainees rehearsed manning the yards while alongside
Ijmuiden.
Preparing for Sail Parade on the Next Morning
The
sea trainees made a safety net for the lost door and presented it to MCHSSI.
Sea Trainees Handy Work
On 19 Aug 15 the ship cast off from Ijmuiden and entered the locks along with other ships. The ship was inside the locks for a period of 30 minutes and cast off from the locks and joined her station astern of Statsraad Lehmkuhl for the sail parade
Leaving Locks after Statsraad Lehmkuhl
Upon
exiting the locks the ship participated in the sail parade. During the sail
parade the ship was dressed over all and sea trainees were manning the yards. With
thousands of boats and crafts participating in the event this was the biggest
event the ship has participated in. The 12 mile sail parade was navigational
challenge hardly any waters for the ship to manoeuvre. We still put up quite a
show, with the yards and the ship’s sides manned, ship dressed overall, tall
ship triclolour hoisted, martial music playing on the broadcast and the crew
greeting the crowd with “Teen Jais”.
Sail Amsterdam Is a Navigational Nightmare with Thousands of Boats in
the Canal
During
the sail parade the ship exchanged salute with the Netherland Naval Ship
Zeeland as they passed each other.
Exchanging Salutes Netherland Naval Ship Zeeland during Sail Parade
Thousands
of small boats and crafts formed this 12 mile long convoy during the Sail
Amsterdam. The city was packed with an estimated 4 million visitors from all
over the world.
Sail Parade at Amsterdam
On completion of sail parade the ship commenced its approach
towards the jetty. Lots of small boats and ferry were present in the channel
and approach to the jetty was full of traffic. Finally a port control vessel
cleared the traffic and the ship was secured alongside port side to in
Amsterdam.
Final Approach to
the Berth
An Indian Ship so far away
from home was quite a tourist attraction for the locals. The jetty was full of
eager enthusiasts within minutes of the ship’s coming alongside. Peoplefrom
all over Europe and lot of Indians visited the ship on the first day itself.
The Indian Ship – An Instant Hit with the Locals
During
the stay at Amsterdam, his Excellency MR J S Mukul Ambassador of India visited
the ship and had an interaction with the sea trainees. Sea trainees shared
their memorable experience about the voyage and their expectation from
Amsterdam during their stay.
Sea Trainees and Ships company with DA and Ambassador of India
Sea
trainees and the ship’s crew actively took part in various games like football,
volleyball, chess, table tennis, darts and golf conducted by the organisers of Sail Amsterdam
Ltcdr Tanmoy Mukherjee,
the Executive Officer of the ship was awarded the first prize in the golf
tournament. SWA 3 Avinash participated
in Chess competition and won third prize.
Crew Games - Volley Ball at Amsterdam
Crew Games - Chess at Amsterdam
EXO Awarded First Prize At The
Golf Tournament
A
Crew Parade of all the participating ships was held from Town Square at
Amsterdam. The ship paraded two contingents. A marching contingent of Officers
and sea trainees and a contingent of ship’s company dressed in traditional wear
representing different states of India. The crew of the ship had created a two
minute continuity drill for the marching contingent. This drill was practiced
at sea on passage to Amsterdam and then finally fine tuned on the jetty at Amsterdam.
The ship’s marching contingent which was lead by the “Nishaan Toli” in full
ceremonials, with the Bugler playing and the Sea Trainees singing along was a
big hit with the spectators. Even the crew from other ships stopped during the
parade to watch the drill.
Crew Parade at Amsterdam
In Front Of The Dias - CNS The
Royal Dutch Navy
As The Chief Guests
The
ship’s port side bulwark door which was broken by the pilot boat due to bad
weather during entering harbor, was fabricated by M/s Damen Shipyard Ltd and
was installed onboard in a small ceremony attended by the Sail event organisers
and the shipyard representatives. The
ceremony turned out to be a grand one attracting lot of attention from the
crowd gathered.
Commissioning the Cutch Part of The Indian
Ship By the Senior Most Lo In Sail Amsterdam
After
a fabulous stay at Amsterdam the ship cast off on 23 Aug 15 and participated in
the Sail Thank You Parade. Thousands of small boats bid adieu to all the Tall
Ships took part in the Sail Amsterdam festival.
Receiving Salute before Leaving for Thank You Parade
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