With the
help of my sister , I was able to secure the endorsement in BPI bank to open an
account there in Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall. Career gave me two endorsement
forms one for my sister and one for my mom, As of the moment hopefully by next
week I'd be able to finish this allottement issue.
During
break time to take lunch, I made a mistake and overspend an order in the fast
food store which eventually resulted in me walking from Cubao to Marikina after
the class. Anyway it was my fault but walking from that distance wasn’t really
that hard. Though I did suffer another heat fatigue - yet again.
 |
| Certificates that i took in career |
All of a
sudden , career called back again on my home phone and informed me that the new
vessel id be assigned on wasn't going to be "Dale" but instead will
be "Cape Tallin" . The difference between the two is that "Cape
Tallin" is three times larger than "Dale", but that’s not the
worst part - to my dismay I wont be able to join Captain Nicholas Betts in
"DALE" and without the him watching my back there's a very huge
possibility than I'd be maltreated just like before on my previous ship ( a
lesson I learned hard on STOLT Strength). Seriously I have trust issues with
strangers and here in the maritime industry it difficult to put my trust on people. Anyway in spite of the possible
difficulty I might encounter ahead, it’s a good thing that I already knew how
to deal with it and better come there well prepared with anti-personnel
equipment (padlocks etc.)
Anyway for
the general information , The specs of "Cape Tallin" that took my
notice is this.
Gross
Tonnage: 42,010 Tons
Length: 228
Meters
Beam: 32
Meters
Draught:
8.5 Meters
IMO:9441154
Flag:
Marshall Islands
MMSI:
538003422
Callsign:
V7QQ9
Following
Morning, I went back again at career to finish a few paper works. Notably going
to the "Processing" counter and signing up the contract. I do
understand the urgency on why I had to sigh up for the contract and that its
needed for the Visa, for the moment I could say that the contract I signed up
with is more like a dummy contract and I had to yet to signup again if ever I
passed the and got the U.S. Visa. From what I saw on the contract that I signed
up with , my salary is about 905.75 U.S. Dollars per month and here is the
break down slip of my salary according to the processing counter.
 |
| The Salary Rate Slip that was given to me |
Basic
Salary : 445 USD
Overtime
pay: 248 lump sum
In Excess
85 hours: 2.91 USD
Leave pay:
163 USD
Seniority
Bonus: 5.25 USD
Retirement
pay: 44.50 USD
Quite
honestly I wasn’t happy when I saw the salary rate that was being offered to me
, and that the salary rate was almost the same as a Philippine Flag (POEA) rate
for an O.S. which I recall is 900 USD also. However in spite of the cheap
salary offer that was being given I did consider signing up because of the
"Benefits" of having a U.S. Visa around. Having a Visa gives me an
edge as a rating if I do secure one.
Aside from
signing up on the "dummy" contract. I took also the time of visiting
the medical counter to pass my typhoid fever "yellow card"
vaccination along with my Yellow fever "Yellow Card" vaccination.
Once I already passed it it means I officially have cleared the medical
counter.
Last part
was that I had to visit was the TESDA / NAC counter and inform them that I
already took the 3 seminars assigned which is VSTC, MST and Anti-piracy . The
receptionist told me that there is still two remaining and that I have to see
her back again and report back once its finished.
Finished
the said task and went home in the afternoon.
During late
night I was watching a some sort of talk show program. Wasn't very fond of
watching those kind of programs since I was a kid but one part of the talk show
caught my attention. A guy named Andrew Alcantara who is now a rising Filipino
fashion designer and was a former Sailor (Specifically BSMT) , It caught my
attention on the part on how he describes his life back then when he was still
a sailor and what lead him to leave and settle for the land based. Based on his
testimony the reason why he became a sailor was on the fact that he looked up
to his dad as a role model as a sailor and that he was living a comfortable
life because of it. When his dad died because of cancer , he took up being a
sailor without any further knowledge on what is the general job description of
it.
Soon after
he finished college, He immediately went to work onboard a ship and much to his
surprise he was culturally shocked on what was going on. According to his story
there were times, he was being waken up and bed as early as 5 am and being
scolded by his superiors saying he was lazy and didn’t do anything. In the end
was extremely dissatisfied and left his job - Now feeling burned out , he
decided one day to venture out in the land based and see how he fares there. He
landed as a fashion designer, On the talk show He was asked why he took up the
job as a fashion designer, He simply answered two reasons, One is plain
happiness, no matter how high paying the job is , it doesn’t necessary mean
that you'd be happy on the job. Second is that he longed for the life of
glamour and comfort , Something a life of a Filipino sailor will never be part
of.
This is andrew alcantara's facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/Designsbyandrewalcantara
This is andrew alcantara's facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/Designsbyandrewalcantara
TWO ALTERNATE WORLDS
My personal
comment on this story is that indeed working onboard a ship Is full of hardship
and sacrifices. And that people there are very primitive and short on good
manners especially people who originated "down south" .
In working
as a sailor the main concern that a person should pay attention is the people
whom you are working alongside and not the job itself. For the working environment all I could say
is that the environment there is somewhat similar to a construction maintenance
and the tools and equipment being used is very alike, In fact the equipment
used here are a hard hat , coverall's , safety shoes with steel toe, cotton and
leather gloves, and ear muffs for ear protection.
Contrary to
what is generally perceived by the public. A Sailor will never ever get to wear
the summer white uniform - as in ever through the course of their practice in
their job ( the only exception is if the sailor worked in a passenger cruise
line or Wearing it in a license ceremony). A sailor will only get to wear the
gear I mentioned earlier, though its still open to modifications as what I did
during my previous ship. Last part I could comment is the lifestyle, being a
sailor the life style is very different and that the fashion clothes a person
wears is very different , I had already posted it on my previous post on how a
sailor dress like.
 |
| Typical standard school uniforms of a sailor in the philippines |
 |
| Uniform Overalls used by a Sailor in actual work place |
 |
| Actual Modified Coverall Uniforms i used during my previous Deck Cadet Years .this is not in anyway the standard company uniform and I only customized and modified the Uniform to suit my needs on the actual shipboard work |
