Chapter 23 - Crossing the Equator

Day by day the excitement is mounting both among the below deck and the above deck crew.

Soon the ship will cross the Equator. It is a century old tradition in the maritime world, that any crew member who has never crossed the line before, must be baptised in the most horrific manner in order to obtain his or her certificate.

This ship has two crew members, not yet baptised. One below deck and one officer.

Gammelnok does not count as he is a stowaway. He has been following the preparations with great interest though, hiding where possible and sometimes covered by his Chameleon Cloth.

A makeshift basin is being erected on deck between hatches, filled with evil looking and evil smelling things. A throne, elevated above the basin has been erected for King Neptune. 

Midnight before the Equator crossing King Neptune's emissary, the Klabautermann (impersonated by a baptised crew member) and his helpers begin searching the ship for persons not yet baptised. They knock on doors, demanding to see certificates. No one is spared, from Captain to Donkey Man, the search goes on.

One crew member and one officer are identified and led off to the ship's brig which is actually a spare cabin. Here they will be detained until mid-day on the day of crossing, when they will be presented to King Neptune for baptism. If they pass the test, they will be dipped in the basin. If they do not pass the test, they will also be dipped in the foul smelling basin. Either way, they will get wet, dirty and baptised.

Mid-day is approaching, the sun is high in the sky and a tarpaulin is erected above Neptune's throne. The rest of the crew seek shade where possible, many dressed up in fancy getup for the fun of the occasion. The water in the basin heats up and smells worse than ever.

The two heretic sailors are brought on deck blindfolded and put in front of a row of judges. They are asked to confess their sins, made to drink water laced with hot spices, served ladles of green foul looking gruel to eat and finally doused with a syrupy substance which drips down their hot faces.

One by one they are then led before King Neptune, made to kneel and kiss his mustard covered toes. King Neptune delivers his verdict, declaring the heretic worthy of baptism. Then raises one foot and with a quick push lands the now baptised sailor in the warm smelly water of the basin.

Several crew members are on hand to lift the sailors out, remove their blindfolds and then hose them down with a powerful jet of genuine Equator water. They are handed towels and after drying off, their Certificates of Equator Baptism issued to loud cheers from all the crew on deck.

Afterwards, a celebratory barbecue is organised with lots of wine and beer for the off duty crew.

The Spaniards excel with happy guitar music, dancing and clapping, the officers a bit more staid, still enjoy the festivities but slowly drift away as the evening wears on.

There is still work to do and a ship to run. The course to Valparaiso is confirmed plotted on the chart and the following day, all evidence of the party is cleared away, the decks hosed down and life goes on.

Valparaiso comes and goes without incidents and they now head due west to New Zealand, a country with very strict import and immigration control and very efficient customs officers. Gammelnok beware...!