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Monday, August 31, 2015

RUDENESS AND LACK OF MANNERS OF PINOY SAILORS

Been some time since I last updated my journal, and I guess it's about time I write something. The days that went after this ships recent departure from kinder Morgan terminal in Galveston Texas have been relatively quiet. I had been busy doing mostly the usual routine maintenance work and some affairs related to the  bond store.

Apparently the latest news is that , the bond store inventory is not that accurate as it was supposedly and as I suspect 3rd mate keith caduas predecessor (3rd mate german corales) never even bothered to update it before he left and finished contract. As a result me and Keith have now been updating the inventory every so often and checking out why the numbers have been inaccurate. Anyway doesn’t surprise me that German was always such a dick and dumped all the unresolved inventory to keith after he left, I mean he was an asshole back then in Cape Tallin and It hasn't changed when I encountered him again here in Conti Agulhas.

For the moment I had been testing out the latest laptop computer (Lenovo) I bought to my sister during this ships stay in U.S.A. . The new computer I bought isn't really much to look at and from my perspective as a buyer, I only intend it as a gift and nothing more, This Lenovo computer I bought lacks the RAM power , I sufficiently need to run games. Its only has 4GB of RAM compared to my aging HP laptop that is 6GB Ram.  I'm sure that my sister will be delighted to see her new laptop and she needs a little reward after all in successfully taking care of mom when I'm not around.

Aside from the high end equipment that I will giving to my sister when I get back home, I'm also planning to buy a new car for myself. My sister has told me that there's a possibility that I could buy one this Christmas season and that the payment terms are easy , 60 thousand pesos for the down payment and the succeeding monthly payment will be just 10k

In other news

I recently ran into a heated discussion over someone who posted something on the internet (tinig ng marino facebook group page). Apparently the posting is basically harmless and does not have anything to do at all in regards to the maritime community but what happened was that someone butt in on my advice and sharing of wisdom in regards to matters of the relationship. From what I saw this "Navie trasga" guy is very rude and ill mannered, and not only does he even contradicted my posted opinions but that thunder cunt even has nerve in insulting my username like a dog that got loose from his yard and keeps humping and shitting his way through the neighbourhood. Of course I'm not just going to sit around and let that insult pass, the problem with Filipino sailors is that they love to insult people but are afraid to take an insult, So I respond on his message by hurling a lot of nasty words and beating the shit out of him (in cyberspace)

That's one of the many reason why people (and me in particular) don't like Filipino sailors , they always piss each other off. 

Here's the snap shot copy of what transpired. (its not translated) 






Friday, August 28, 2015

KINDER MORGAN

AUGUST 06 2015

Ship has arrived and is waiting a couple of days now, Ship has arrive at around august 03, 2015 midnight. Supposedly I was the one (or two of the O.S.'s) needed to drop the anchor but turns out that BOSUN serafin has a new policy regarding anchor dropping / heaving - he only needs one O.S. at a time. So in turn my presence there was no longer needed. O.S. Joash was the one who dropped the anchor at that time.

Weather on the past few days was cooler compared to what I experienced in Louisiana. A bit windy now in Galveston Texas probably because summer season in the U.S. about to end. On the days that this ship was at anchorage , we were basically busy in doing the same old maintenance task (chipping , polishing and painting rusted areas) plus washing the deck every now and then from bird droppings which littered the whole forward aft area.

On the 7th of august there were rumours that this ship might go to berth sooner than expected. At around 5 pm on the same day , as small supply boat came near on our ship to deliver some food provisions. It was expected that this small supply boat would also bring in the new on signers to replace the disembarking ones (2nd engineer, 2nd officer and electrician) but apparently it was revealed that they are only carrying a small amount of provisions and bonds store supplies (only becks beer, nothiing else)

After helping out in the provisions, it was expected that berthing schedule was cancelled within this day. So I went back to my cabin and resumed playing a pc game called "call of duty: modern warfare"  , it was a first person network game and I was playing against three people (fitter, wiper and oiler) . It was about roughly 8 pm when I received a call from my cabin phone that berthing schedule will commence and we have to heave up anchor and prepare for the pilot ladder.

After the pilot went on-board this ship , we were ordered to heave up the pilot ladder and secure it.

Usual charade when it comes to berthing , same old drill that I'm now accustomed and familiar after years being a sailor. Channelling to the terminal took six hours an  

OLA REPUBLICA DOMINCANA



Here's the events that happened during the Dominican republic stay.

Monday work routine was done as usual , I was put on the task of segregation of garbage along with the disposal of food waste and then on the latter helping out O.S. Joash and A.B. Ryan Osiang in washing the deck. The whole work took us until noon time and was expecting or assumed that berthing will be sometime on the latter afternoon. During lunch time all of a sudden , it was announced that arrival in dominican republic will be in an hour and its berthing upon arrival schedule. (meaning this ships gets to dock as soon as it arrives).

1pm exactly when I was called in the cabin to rig the pilot ladder , then it was followed by mooring operations. Temperature in domincan republic (and the rest of central America was humid and hot. I had to bring along three purified water bottles filled with cold water just in case to keep us rehydrated. Mooring arrangement from what I recall is 3:2:2 and the spring lines will be wire , the rest is soft ropes.

Mooring is tedious and complicated because of the weather and we have to drag one soft rope around all the way from the forecastle area to the spring line winches . After that we have to give the spring line to the dock . Since there was no apparent mooring boat on standby we had to manually give those ropes one by one via heaving line. It was taking us a lot of time and as a result Captain Romanuik was already shouting on the radio that were wasting too much time on that rope.

By the time we already finished heaving up the third rope , everybody was already exhausted from the temperature. Good thing for me I already took my anti-heat medications so at least I have some form of resistance from the hot weather.

SAILORS PERCEPTION ON THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Security in Dominican republic is a bit different compared to the usual countries in central America , although it's not as tight as in south America or even west African countries. There is still a discrimination on how we treat them - all because on the guise of "Security measures" . As expected there no supposedly allowed at all times to go inside without any permission and if permission is granted they don’t go around without any escorts. The kitchen is closed for them at all times and they cannot use any facilities inside.

Despite the ill treatment, The D.R. guys don’t seemed to mind being treated that way.

Anyway , One good thing about the local folks here in the security and gangway watchman is that they also sell all sorts of stuff , and believe it or not they also sell "black stone" (some sort of premature ejaculation tablet from what I heard on the locals) . Earlier I thought that this was only being sold in the panama area and not elsewhere, it was a surprise for me that they were selling it here as well. I suppose this tablet is available on the whole Caribbean area. Aside from selling that drug , some local folk here also sell the usual stuff , internet SIM card and from my understanding , it's about 15 U.S. Dollars per 750 MB , their mobile network here is either "Orange" or "claro" , unfortunately for me I didn't saw on how they registered the whole process - so for now I have no clear records on the internet here.

One thing I found out on the port here in Dominican republic is that there's a night club here called "Manila bar" , and as expected on any red light district in a foreign  country especially central and south America there's prostitutes and whore's inside it. During my late afternoon gangway watch shift , I heard on the radio that A.B. Ryan asked me that he will be coming in late on work and will go on shore leave and I had to fill him in for a while. I agreed of course. A few hours later (well about 9pm) , he returned back and showed something in the gangway . It was a panty and a high heels shoe, I don’t want to get into the details but its obviously he went there and had some fun.


DEEP IN THE CARRIBEAN

july 24 , 2015 friday


As part of the two part unloading cargo operations , this ship is now currently moored in Jamaica. Docking operations started as early as 6:30 pm and was told to immediately prepare the pilot embarkation ladder for the pilot. Soon after the pilot embarked on this ship, all crew was announced via P.A. to standby for mooring operations. Mooring operations proceeded very smoothly and without any problems , the mooring arrangement if I recall was 3:2:2 (3 headlines and 2 springs lines) The spring lines was of surprise, a soft rope was used along with the headlines. The breast line if I recall was a wire line. The whole mooring operation in the forward could have finished a lot sooner , if not for the Jamaican mooring boat crew which took its time in placing it on the dolphin platform.

As for the weather , it has very few changes and was still very hot. - not much to expect on a tropical country , as a matter of fact the Philippines despite being a tropical country is much cooler compared to tropical countries in central America. But if I could compare the temperature experienced in Louisiana and here , I could say that its much better.

The loading operations here in kingston Jamaica will only take a day based on what I heard and it's not a full discharge , ( the other half of it will be in the Dominican republic ).

So what can I say in Jamaica ? First off this is a small island located south of Cuba , mostly this country is a tourist destination and people here speak English, even their local television shows are in English language so there's basically no problem, which is good since a lot of Filipino sailors understand English (take note UNDERSTAND , I didn’t say their able to speak English). I'm not sure if Jamaican's here are nice people given that this ship is only moored on a platform. The internet from what recall here is bandwidth charge and expensive . 20 U.S. Dollars for 250 MB of internet. The good thing about internet here is its ready to use and no registration needed.

After a day of discharge , pilot boarded this ship at about 10:00 pm and immediately went into unmooring. Unmooring and securing of deck equipment was finished at about close to midnight.

Travel time from the Jamaica to the Dominican republic takes about a day.

Sunday was a good thing a rest day , and we haven't have a good rest day for ages now (which for some reason berthing and unmooring operations get timed always on weekends). 




INCOMING DISASTER

July 17, 2015 


When this ship leaves port, it will have four new crew members. The thing here that concerns me is the new crew , Rumours have been going on that these new crew members are somewhat trouble makers and definitely not the kind of people whom can't get along easily. I don't know them personally but there are rumours saying that two of these new crew have serious attitude problems. Specifically the O.S. and the BOSUN.

Anyway in just a matter of a few hours after they arrived , immediately two I had mentioned got into the wrong foot with some of the crew. And caused a bit of bad impression during then recent bunkering operations (Immediately after we unmoored). Apparently BOSUN Serafin left the whole six hour long transit outside lake charles to only me and O.S. Joash, each of us has to spend three hours each on the forward part being on "guard" , when supposedly he should be the one leading and staying on watch , but it turns out that he was the first to step inside the cabin and slept. O.S. Joash said he wasn't happy on what happened that were still out there  while him (referring to BOSUN Serafin) is inside, in other words he ditched us out. From what I interpret this new bosun is somewhat a problem from what I heard on previous crew. 

A few days later…

We are still doing the old maintenance work of chipping, polishing and painting rusted area on this ship. As expected this so called routine maintenance will never end , like exercise during prison time and 24 hours before we arrived oj the next port we did the usual chore (I mean work) of washing the whole deck area.

In other news during those few days' time

The new salary rate scale of NSB just arrived, as expected the new salary scale was a bit lower compared to our current salary. Most of the affected that got a huge decrease in salary was for the higher rankers, as for the A.B.'s and lower ranks they got at least 30 U.S. dollars down from their current salary. The rank that was hugely affected was "messman" ( ship version of a "maid" ) which had a decrease of as much as 200 U.S. Dollars. On my current status , the reduction of salary was not that severe (in fact benign)  with only 13 U.S.D. something. Despite my rank was less affected , I still have thoughts of maybe going to another company - not because of the money but because I wanted to started over again , start fresh and maybe (and hoping) that this new start will be better from the previous one.

Honestly I'm facing a dilemma as a sailor, this so called "profession" is now very impractical and costly in maintaining, and I have serious doubts I will ever proceed further in this job. Seriously this job will cost me another 100 thousand pesos more in upgrading in the years to come and this doesn’t include the objective of securing a license. All this expense for a job that is related to similarly to a construction / maintenance job ,

Frankly I have serious thoughts of retiring early and shifting career and going into medicine, in fact to be honest I shouldn't be here in the first place at all - If it weren't for the financial difficulties that I had suffered during my teen years, I would have been very much a medical doctor by now. 

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

VISITING THE GLADES

JULY 10, 2015




Couple of days after Venezuela, we were again doing basically the same old usual maintenance work. Mostly were just washing the deck area, removing rust stains using a rust remover chemical on the ship chimney, segregating trash on the garbage room and literary scooping up dirt and throwing it overboard.

This ship arrived in Florida USA, at July 10, 2015 noon time and we dropped anchor, during the dropping of anchor job, we encountered a minor problem on the "drop" which apparently the chains got stuck and wouldn't go any further after a shackle and a half was lowered. BOSUN Diosana tried to use a sledge hammer to smash and kick start the chain but it was unresponsive. (do not try this method - its ill-advised) , so in the end we received an order from Captain Waldemar Romaniuk that we should lower the anchor by gear. The whole process of lowering it was very slow and took us about 15 to 20 more minutes to lower 7 shackles in the water.

During Noon time , everyone on deck was wondering on what job order to do and since Chief mate Oleg never gave any more job orders for this day , we were basically just wandering off on the whole deck area trying to search and look for ways just to make us look busy, we could try doing the never ending looping sort of jobs in deck (like chipping , polishing and painting rusted area's and the like) but we hesitated doing such jobs because berthing schedules notices in the U.S.A. is terribly unpredictable. So in the end I and O.S. Joash ended up cleaning our own cabins instead of doing something on deck (due to lack of job orders) . Aside from cleaning our cabins , I tried doing a side work in cleaning my tools by immersing it on rust remover chemical .

After working hours , since this ship is at anchorage. I saw Fitter Lorenzo and Pumpman Sepulveda fishing on the port side and took a picture of their catch. Suddenly fitter lorenzo suggested that I should help him out on his next catch , It didn’t took long for him to catch another one and I helped by simple holding the  fish after he reeled it removed the bait from its mouth. Up close I knew thought that this kind of fish had teeth.

At around 10 Pm I was surprised to hear over the cabin phone that berthing operation will now resume and immediately we heaved up anchor and proceed to berth .


Sleep deprivation is getting to be a problem , especially now that I'm caught ill prepared on the sudden docking schedule. It's not that serious but being unable to concentrate on my work and being "delirium" does have some nasty effects. Most people here observe every inch of my move like a god damn surveillance camera.  Anyway serves me right in playing too much PC videogames, "elder scrolls : SKYRIM "  really took much attention in accomplishing some fantasy quest there.

Since this is a U.S. port , Apparently I'm not allowed to use my mask as an headdress given with this so called ISPS security standards (or marsec standards) , it’s a bummer on my part given that I use it to cover my long hair and as a face protection itself. Well I guess it was a complication I have to deal with being in american soil.

During my gangway watch , I was surprised to learned from A.B. "lydon" that he had found a free Wi-Fi spot near the aft area and aside from the good news , the Wi-Fi hotspot is definitely free - like an oasis in the middle of a waste land. It never occurred to me that "Lyndon" could discover a hotspot in this area, I took the opportunity to update all my software's on my cell phone. It didn't took me long to do it.

For the moment port everglades in Florida , isn't much to look at because of the strict security and the weather here is terrible, from my estimate the temperatures here rose as high as 37 degree's during high noon. Provisioning (resupply) took place on noon time as well as garbage disposal. One thing I had noticed on garbage disposal here in this pier is some sort of weird penalty on which a trash shouldn't hit or land on the soil (either accidental or intentional) , if it does the ship will be fined 3,000 U.S. Dollars for it. I'm not sure if the garbage man is making these up or just avoiding his work but apparently this is what happened during garbage disposal and that we had to tie one end of the rope from the ship to his garbage truck , and sort of "zip line" to deliver the trash

In other news I took advantage of the free time to go on shore leave, but as what is expected its very limited and restricted. Security in port is tight and we can wander off on any shopping area's were we wanted to like walmart or best buy, Its just stuck on some small store called seaman centre in florida and that's about it. Even their electronic store in seaman's club doesn’t look much and their the gadgets shown there is somewhat outdated






Sunday, July 19, 2015

SOMEWHERE IN SOUTH AMERICA

July 01, 2015



Finally arrived at this place after two days from panama, This ship arrived at around close to 8pm and as usual procedure me and BOSUN Diosana was in standby at the forward to drop anchor. Anchoring wasn't a problem in dropping and that it was dropped at 6 shackles on deck, it was very quick and very messy as expected on any anchor drop via gravity. It left a big puff of dirt cloud while being dropped - enough to cover me whole and left my coveralls all coated with mud

According to the previous safety meeting discussed at the crew mess yesterday - on this country , this ships security level will be raised to marsec level two and It will be a double watch while this ship is anchored, so basically as what the name implies there will be two persons on standby until this ship readies itself on berth.

In the meantime while this ship is still waiting , some of the crew here are doing business and trading off a few stuff from nearby fishing boats that pass. Some of us got lucky on a boat and it happened that they have a few interesting stuff to trade, like internet sim cards, beer and "Bacardi" (a hard drink similar to scotch). I got my hands on an internet sim card (for updating my blog, face book and twitter) and some liquor called Bacardi.

At first the internet wasn't working properly and I couldn't figure out on how to use it directly to my pc computer (both on my HP and Acer). I waited a couple of hours and tried again. This time it worked perfectly and was able to update my social media accounts. Fitter Lorenzo on the other hand had serious problem in the internet connection and keeps pestering me about using my cell phone as his modem. Apparently his connection isn't going to work on the fact that he's using a different sim that the rest of us , (he's using movistar sim , our is "digitel" sim). On the latter I tried hiding the information that my internet connection can be used as a hotspot, I only said that my internet connection is for mobile cellphone use only - a little white lie wouldn't hurt anyway.

At the morning of july 3 Friday , I was about to finish my anchor watch and was already headed back to my cabin when I heard on the radio that , this ship will immediately dock at 8 am , and me and A.B. "lyndon" had to prepare the accommodation gangway for the pilot to arrive.

Mooring operations went soon after that, and it wasn’t exactly difficult. Only thing that's was an annoyance was 3rd mate's corales attitude. Saying that I don’t know anything when it comes to knots during mooring time, It never bothered me on the fact that this is a typical problem when you have Filipino's officer's in the mooring crew. People thinking that they're high and mighty because they have a license to practice and blabbers and lectures you all the way even on work - well I don’t need his lectures or preachings ! . Anyway when it comes to mooring, it's not a big deal on what kind of knot you'd use , as long as the mooring ropes get to the destination from point A to point B - no need to figure out on what kind of knot to use because were not in school. It makes no difference if you're using either bow line , clove hitch, timber hitch or more specifically a midshipman's knot - Nobody gives a shit on that ! If it gets stuck, then use the reserve heaving line while the other crew member is busy sorting it out, it's that simple and no need to be fancy on work (because there no extra pay on the performance). Just keep the work simple and practical and it will be fine, That's the basic working tactics I apply.

In other news …

Given that the MARSEC security level has been raised on this ship to level two , and as a result our gangway watch work has been raised to a total of 12 hours per day , and were doing triple watch (meaning there's three people on deck on guard duty at that time).I don’t really mind having an extra company during my work and the six hour long shift , I'm used to it anyway. 

According to the policy nobody goes in and out on our ship without reporting first to the Cargo control room (via radio) and asking permission first. Compared to the usual routine of just announcing it over the radio and letting them in. As usual third mate corales goes in again telling me that next time before I let someone in I should ask permission first and when the time came that I was radioing about a surveyor who wanted to come on board , he said on the radio that I shouldn't put them on hold and let them in immediately. - ( HMPF ! Double standard bitches !)

Anyway in other matters

I heard from O.S. Keith that this so called raise of security level is just an excuse coming from the captain because this ship will be going to the U.S. on next port and he doesn't want any hassles on port authority inspections there given that this ship just came from south America (specifically Venezuela which is a drug trafficking country according to the U.S. ). Usually Venezuela is a trouble free place compared to other south American countries like Colombia or even brazil for sailors , you can go on a shore leave if a sailor wants to without much the hassle but it seems that our captain doesn’t want to take chances (or have fun at all) so we ended up stuck here and trapped.

I guess this is the downside of having a mixed crew, most of the time (or all the time) your stuck and trapped inside a ship doing work even though were supposedly doing nothing at all . The foreign officers doesn’t want anybody to go out and see the surroundings , and like all of any human fallibility flaws they get jealous if they see anyone having fun.

On the third day in port, cargo operations stopped and we had to wait another twelve hours for the cargo resume loading. From what I heard , the terminal ran out of cargo to pump and that for the moment it is still generating, Fortunately after the 12 hours of waiting , the loading operations resumed. During the wait, O.S. keith and had a chat about his personal life (not that I care , and its exactly none of my business) saying that all his relatives now are in Italy and he's the only one living in their house. I told him that maybe someday he'd retire being a sailor early and that he'd spend the rest of his years being in overseas based on his situation.

During the last day of loading, this ship got a visit from illegal drug inspectors and they conducted a thorough search of the entire ship from the bridge all the way down to the engine room. Included also on the search is the cabin to cabin which they have a dog with them to sniff out any narcotics or substances. Usually the crew must be inside the cabin , in order to prevent any foul play or planted evidence against them. Aside from the usual narcotic inspectors , the ship was also inspected on diver's , seeing that underneath the ship (meaning the part which is submerged by water) doesn’t have any drugs attached .

Few hours after the inspection , this ship casted off and will be heading to the glades in Florida.

NSB PRINCIPAL IN TURMOIL

There are a lot of rumours going on and circulating on this ship about NSB's sudden change of contract duration and salary wage scale. Some say that the salary scale will still be the same but the contract duration will be a bit longer, others say that its headed for the worst and that aside from having a longer contract the pay will be much smaller than it was.

Before the connection ran out in the internet I asked Chief cook Regidor on what's the situation back at home on the company . He said that its already confirmed that the salary rate will be "china rate" and he said that it’s a bit higher than the TCC standard salary one (though definitely much lower than our current salary rate). According to him the salary of the chief cook will be downgraded and will now be 1,500 U.S.D. per month from 1,800 plus to 2,200 U.S.D. , which is bad news. Either way he said , he's planning to leave the company soon but is stalled on the fact that Career Ship Management has his documents (seaman's book and Passport).I told chief cook regidor that it's his worker's right to choose on whether or not he should stay in the company, If he feels that the employment terms are not fair then it's his call alone to leave.

Hearing word from NSB that next contract stay on their ships will be much longer and being paid less is bad news indeed , They are making their employee's look much like a prisoner's, and with the lack of entertaining facilities (or even proper facilities for crew welfare) it's obviously and no surprise that a majority of their crew are now having second thoughts of staying with the principal (or the company). The real reason anyway that most of their crew are still sticking around is because of that this principal has a shorter contract and much larger pay compared to the "other" principals, CSM in particular - beyond that and without it, there's no other reason for the crew to stay longer other than necessary.

Despite NSB promises that the new contract will have an "open overtime pay" , a lot of crew from NSB doubt such promises will be enforced - after all technically our current existing contract tells that it's an "open overtime" but company memo says otherwise, and I think NSB is just saying that to prevent an exodus of their crew.

I myself , is having doubts of staying on the company (or principal) as well. In fact the only reason I'm hanging out on NSB in the first place is it’s a short contract, much higher salary (than CSM ) and it's based on Europe. I tired already surveying any Philippine shipping companies on what the next suitable (or habitable) company that has these conditions via internet and came up with a number of companies that has these conditions , problems is that although I had a number of suitable candidates none of these is exactly a small player which meant that it will be difficult to get in and be their employee - anyway I'd try my luck anyhow , after all this isn't the first time that I switched companies besides that I'm much more comfortable now compared to years ago, were it was a big uncertain (having no U.S. visa , No license and roughly only a year of working experience as a sailor) . Now pretty much I could say that I had a U.S. Visa and a sizable working experience. When I get home, I'd figure everything out and will be preparing for my departure from Career Ship Management.

As for the moment my salary here as an O.S. is 1,268 U.S.D. but obviously it will be lowered as the new rate comes and I will confirm on my replacement (reliever if you put it that way) on how extent will be the changes on NSB principal. I cannot definitely return and be pulled back in CSM because I had a lot of enemies there and cannot stay in NSB because of the worsening employment contract terms.

For the record this is the highlight parts of NSB principal in career ship management BEFORE the change of contract terms and salary wages July 2015.

*Short contract (6 months plus and minus one month)
*large pay for ratings (1,268 U.S.D.  On "Ordinary Seaman" job position)
*based always in Europe







Sunday, July 5, 2015

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY IN BEING A SAILOR


"Fifty Shades of grey " means  a lot of facets of personality. Can go from gentleman one minute to Psychotic on the next. usually refers to a situation that is not clear, particularly with regard to whether or not something is categorically evil. When doubt comes into play, things are neither black, nor white, but are in a gray area.


Recently found an interesting topic from a seaman themed organization on facebook , I would like to share it. Apologies if this article is untranslated ,

Article from https://www.facebook.com/groups/filseaface/


LAHAT NG ITO'Y MAY KATOTOHANAN NA DAPAT HUWAG TULARAN KUNG SA TINGIN MO'Y MAYRON KANG KAPWANG SEAMAN NA MAAPAKAN. NAWA'Y BAGOHIN NATIN ANG MGA BAGAY2X NA MASANG2X PAKINGGAN.
REPOST:
Hi Sir Jans kindly hide my name.Ito yung naobserbahan ko sa larangan ng trbaho natin.

" Uri ng Mga Seaman "

1) PornStar - pagkatapos ng trabaho, nandoon na sa tv room, nood ng mga porno.

2) Tundo/Cavite - Konting pahid ng pintura, nandoon na sa ilalim ng mga tubo naka abang kung may kalaban.

3) PasipChief - kapit kay chiefmate/chief engr

4) Breezy - Mga dakilang kupal, Siksik, Liglig at umaapaw ang kayabangan, lahat na lang meron sya. kung anu meron ang kausap nya dapat meron din sya.

5) SelfieLords - mahilig magpicture kahit kasalukuyan ang work, pati pagkahuli ng isda na 3 ang kumagat o kaya kasamahan na nakalambitin, sasabihin "JUST IN" tapos upload agad, hindi na nahiya, yung kasama nya nagttrabaho sya papicture picture lang, alam na ngang bawal ang mobile/camera.

6) Crabby - sinisiraan nya yung kasamahan nya kasi hindi sila close, o kaya hindi sya makatikim ng beer dito.

7) Maoy - yung magaling mag iinom tapos maka dalawang bote lang, hindi na alam ang ginagawa.

8) Tirador - ubos ang pagkain sa bridge, tapos puro kalat sa floor, kawawa yung taga linis.

9) Sleeping Beauty - sa duty laging inaantok, pero pagkatapos ng duty hirap naman makatulog.

10) Bosski - yung nagmamagaling, marami syang alam, minsan mautos din.

11) Kasamahan - kasamahan sa inuman, kasamahan sa smoking, kasamahan sa mura, kahit na alam nyang masama, para lang ma promote, makikiyosi din at makikipag inuman magdamagan kahit hindi kaya ng katawan, para lang makasabay kasi naghihintay ng promotion.

12) Reklamador - nagrereklamo na matagal gumamit ng gamit sa barko yung kasamahan nya, pero sya naman yung matagal talaga. akala mo sa kanya yung barko.

13) Spy - Mga Sumbungero, isumbong ka nya sa Opisina pag hindi ka nagustuhan. (ingat kayo sa mga ito, kasi konting pagkakamali sibak kayo sa opisina)

14) Early Worm - tsempre yung maagang pumasok na naghihintay ng promotion/naghihintay ng magandang evaluation.

15) Palaboy - Naghihintay ng may magpa inom o kaya may ibigay si tano na beer, tapos sya yung nakakarami, minsan mag take out pa sa cabin nya, kapal ng mukha hindi man lang makabili ng kahit isang case.

16) Kapit kusina - dikit kay messman o kaya kay mayor, para pag may masarap na pagkain o kaya may kailangan sya sa taga-kusina madali nya itong makuha.

17) Security Guard - hirap na hirap na yung mga kasamahan nya sa paghila ng tali, sya naman nakatayo pa din.

18) Tour Guide - Alam nya yung language ng mga kasama nyang mga Opisyal, tapos pag walang nakakarinig na pinoy, hihingi sya ng favor na ipromote sya.

19) May Tama - nakakabata dw ang pag-ibig kaya kahit may asawa't anak na nanliligaw pa ng bagets akala mo gwapo, lagi rin itong nanonood ng love story, tapos ang favorite scene nya yung nag aaway si popoy at basha.

20) Gym Instructor - turuan nya yung opisyal nya mag gym tapos ang kapalit nun hingi sya ng pabor na ipromote sya.

And this was the reply that i saw on the facebook groups , Amusing on the fact that based only on observation that you can see on how crude and rude filipino sailors are when it comes to manners. Take note this is only observation on the internet and expect they'd be much worse when you are working with them up close and in person inside a ship









Thursday, July 2, 2015

FLOATING IN THE ATLANTIC



June 28th 2015

Ship has a new captain before it transited to panama canal, some say that this so called "romanyov guy" is a much better compared than this "Sorin" guy , others say he's equally ruthless and that this ship is in no better environment with him around. Specifically electrician felix rodriguez and a few other say we should be careful with this new captain and that as much as possible try to avoid greeting him with a smile on our face and try the serious look.

Anyway it won't make any difference anyhow - after all I'm just now on my third month here and another three months more and I'd be going home back in the Philippines.

By Saturday, I was surprise that the work put on us by chief mate was "mopping" . I mean mopping on a product tanker ? (mopping means taking the water out of the cargo hold), typical this work is done on a chemical tanker and I haven't heard of such a thing being done in a product tanker, but irregardless work is work.  The work on Saturday had us going back and forth on each cargo tank and we were doing work even until midnight - worst part of it , were not being paid here on the overtime work or extra efforts. I mean not on career nor NSB principal. They say it's only a normal cargo operation.  Going back apparently from what I heard this ship is going to Venezuela (yet again) to load some jet fuel and specifically this cargo is very sensitive and the charterer doesn’t want any water mixed in on the cargo.

On Sunday June 28 this ship left at the panama anchorage after almost a week and headed off on the next destination

THIS IS THE MAINTENANCE PHOTOS WERE DOING FOR THE PAST FEW DAYS









In other news…

As soon as we left the anchorage, we received note from CSM, saying about that 25th of June is apparently "seafarers day" and says that up to now there is still a shortage of qualified sailors worldwide and that they are employing 150 new cadets this year.

The bottom line of the note says "everybody has to learn - everybody has to train"  and the stuff that says to congratulate us on our lovely hard work onboard their manage fleet.,



End of note.

Never really mind on what the note says , but upon reading it I cannot help but feel resentful on the situation on the maritime community of the Philippines for numerous reasons. Honestly the note is just full of plain old crap, and certainly hiring 150 cadets this year is not going to help the tens of thousands of stranded maritime students , trapped with little resources and no hope of employment. What good will it bring and certainly the 150 slots for new cadets will apparently fall and be monopolized by few elite people who have high associations - definitely not basically for the good of a common aspiring college student .

The funny thing about the maritime community here is that they always kept jabbering on the need of ship officers, and at the same time ridicule aspiring college student sailors. They never realized the value and importance of these college students that before you become a ship officer - you have to be a rating and deck cadet first. I'm not going to enumerate anymore the reasons why a person should avoid being a sailor - and frankly I'm already getting sick and tired of convincing people (and kids) to avoid this job like the plague, and in some way it breaks my heart seeing kids being deceived by propaganda and latter finding out years after that all the hard work wanting to be sailor was just a scam.

Maritime community in the Philippines begs for attention and respect, and yet they only get a lot of ridicule from the public because of their questionable conduct. They demand sailors, and yet they scorn and literary threw out college students (deck cadets) out of their shipping offices (talk about rude!!!) . The maritime community got what it should deserve - a lot of disrespects from the public.

My advice to the newly graduated high school students and current maritime college students ? Take my word ! Don’t let yourself be fooled by honey coated words and false propaganda, that of a life of a sailor is glorious and lucrative - you're better than that ! Avoid this college course and if you're already enrolled , try to shift as much as possible.    


WHAT WE KNOW ON PANAMA



JUNE 14, 2015 SUNDAY


Finally arrived in panama after two days of travelling from Ecuador, as usual there is nothing much to say about the weather here and it's still uncomfortably hot and I hope that we transit this area as soon as possible. When we arrived here, ship are to anchor first as to determine the traffic schedule for the transit. The following day no thanks to our beloved "captain cobra"  we still had work until noon despite the fact that this ship will be transiting at around 4pm. I waited a couple of hours at my cabin and when Pump man thanny visited he mentioned that it was changed from 4pm to 6pm.

At 6pm, as expected I was called on my cabin phone and ordered to be on standby for heaving of anchor. Due to traffic related issues on panama canal , this ship didn’t heaved anchor until two hours later.

It was the very much same drill as what we did going to the pacific side of panama canal, pretty straight forward. Pick up the pilot , wait for the panama mooring crew which is total of 19 personnel overall and sit tight and watch them work and make business and buy stuff from them as a side work , then after three hours (or so) watch them disembark and wait again for another mooring crew team.

During the transiting on the lock, I manage to buy a stuff that local's here call "black stone"  and from what I heard on the locals here , it's some sort of aphrodisiac says that it make a person's dick enlarger or somewhat last longer in bed. From what I heard also you don’t exactly swallow this black stone but instead apply it on the surface skin like some topical cream of sorts and wait for about roughly twenty minutes and then wash it before having sex.

The purpose why I bought these stones is not as for personal use but for scientific studies and put it on my blog here as well. It would be a good opportunity to document and picture this item to the maritime community in the Philippines, and show it to the world (or in other terms show it in cyber space). I cannot simply let pass that kind of opportunity of not making any written records of this item. Shame that the sample I bought is a small one not the large "black stone" , The black stone here in panama has two variants , the five dollar black stone and the 10 dollar (US Dollar) "Diatabs"  size black stone.

In other news related to the transit

Incidentally the guy who I tried to rip me off on the cell phone load was again  with one who boarded the second team of panama canal mooring crew. I just simply ignored him and pretended he wasn’t there. The Mira Flores lock by the way is the lock facing the pacific side of panama canal while the gatun lock is the one facing on the atlantic. A lot of sailors especially first timer's ask what is like to transit panama ? For a common sailors perception its nothing more than a usual transit with a big metal gate and such for almost 12 hours, honestly being in panama canal isn't exciting at all and as a matter of fact sailors should be in caution in this area - as there are reports here that burglar break in's here are common on crew cabins and these panama canal workers steal a lot of stuff on the crew, So as a friendly remainder that CREWS SHOULD LOCK THEIR CABINS ALL THE TIME HERE  .



In other news..

After the transit , it was given an order that this ship would be in anchorage first and wait further orders from the company as there are no prospect yet on what will be the next voyage and that the prospect of going to Venezuela to load some jet fuel has been cancelled off.

It was roughly about 7am , and about 12 hours has passed since we transited on panama canal. We prepared the port side anchor for the gravity type drop.(I was the one dropping the anchor this time), everything went smoothly on the drop and it's much easier to work with now compared before when "Mr. Cobra"  was still around . After that the rest of the day , was spent resting - well some of it , I didn’t exactly went straight ahead on my cabin after the drop anchor . I hanged around a bit for a couple of hours on the crew mess and drank a few bottles of beer and check out my cell phone for any updates on the internet on my face book account and twitter.

Late at night there was a drinking session and apparently things got ugly after I left at the crew mess. From what heard from O.S. Joash ( O.S. that replaced O.S. bantic in ecuador) 2nd engineer Alijosa got a nasty heated conversation with 3rd mate corales, Accusing him of being a lazy son of a bitch and saying stuff like "ever since he became a third mate and got his license , he's been acting like a "king". It was a nasty conversation from what I heard. As a result Third mate corales left the crew mess untimely and was obviously furious. 

Here's some photo i took on the transit as well as videos








WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT PANAMA




Panama Canal
I
INTRODUCTION
Panama Canal, canal across the Isthmus of Panama, in Central America, that allows vessels to travel between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The waterway measures 64 km (40 mi), including dredged approach channels at each end. The Panama Canal handles a large volume of world shipping and enables vessels to avoid traveling around South America, reducing their voyages by thousands of miles and many days.
The canal consists of artificially created lakes, channels, and a series of locks, or water-filled chambers, that raise and lower ships through the mountainous terrain of central Panama. Built by the United States from 1904 to 1914, the Panama Canal posed major engineering challenges, such as damming a major river and digging a channel through a mountain ridge. It was the largest and most complex project of this kind ever undertaken at that time, employing tens of thousands of workers and costing $350 million.
The canal cuts through the central and most populated region of Panama, and it has been a point of dispute between the governments of Panama and the United States through most of its existence. Under a 1903 treaty, the United States controlled both the waterway and a large section of the surrounding land, known as the Panama Canal Zone, as if they were U.S. territory. Panamanians resented this arrangement and argued that their country was unfairly denied benefits from the canal. Eventually, riots and international pressure led the United States to negotiate two new treaties, which were signed in 1977 and took effect in 1979. The treaties recognized Panama’s ultimate ownership of the canal and all the surrounding lands. More than half of the former Canal Zone came under Panamanian control shortly after the treaties were ratified. Control of the canal was turned over to Panama on December 31, 1999.

II
TRAVELING THROUGH THE CANAL
The canal consists of dredged approaches and three sets of locks at each end; Gatún Lake, one of the largest artificially created bodies of water in the world; and the excavated portion of the crossing, called Gaillard Cut. At Gatún, on the Atlantic side, the locks form continuous steps; on the Pacific side, a small lake (Miraflores) separates the middle and upper locks.
Because the Isthmus of Panama extends east-west, a ship sailing from the Atlantic to the Pacific through the canal actually travels from northwest to southeast. To travel from the Atlantic to the Pacific, a ship enters Limón Bay from the north and anchors behind a breakwater to await scheduling of its passage. When ready, the canal authorities send out a canal pilot to take the vessel through the locks. The canal employs about 240 highly trained and experienced pilots to handle the complex job of steering ships through the waterway. As soon as the pilot takes over, the ship is under canal jurisdiction. Very large or hard-to-maneuver ships may require two or more pilots and assistance from tugboats.
The ship travels south-southeast about 11 km (7 mi) and enters the first lock at Gatún. Line handlers at the lock attach steel mooring cables that are controlled by powerful electric locomotives, called mules. The mules guide the ship through the locks and steady it while the chambers are filled with water. In three steps the ship is raised to the level of Gatún Lake, 26 m (85 ft) above the sea.
The canal’s 12 locks (3 sets of double locks at each end) have the same dimensions: 33.5 m (110 ft) wide by 305 m (1,000 ft) long. The gates at each end are 2.1 m (7 ft) thick. Water enters and leaves each lock through a system of main culverts or pipes, which connect to 100 holes in the floor of each chamber. For each ship traveling through the canal, 197 million liters (52 million gallons) of fresh water are used, fed by gravity flow from Gatún Lake. To conserve water, smaller ships often go through the locks together.
At the top of the Gatún locks, the ship drops the mooring lines and proceeds under its own power for 37 km (23 mi) through the lake, following the former channel of the Chagres River. Gatún Dam, built adjoining the locks, flooded the river basin and formed the lake, which covers 430 sq km (166 sq mi). The flooding created a number of islands, as the water covered all but the tops of hills. One of these islands, Barro Colorado, is a wildlife refuge operated by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.
The waterway gradually narrows until the river turns to the east at Gamboa, flowing under a bridge of the Panama Railroad. The canal’s marine division, with cranes, dredges, tugs, and barges, is located at Gamboa.
South from Gamboa, the canal follows a channel dug through the mountains, which was the most difficult part of the construction project. Called Gaillard Cut, this section measures 14 km (9 mi) and traverses the Continental Divide, a ridge made of rock and shale. Numerous landslides occurred both during and after construction, requiring frequent dredging to keep the canal open. The channel through the cut is 150 m (500 ft) wide, the narrowest part of the canal. Originally only 91.5 m (300 ft), the cut was widened in phases beginning in the 1930s to allow two-way traffic. In the 1990s it was enlarged even more to accommodate larger ships.
At the southern end of Gaillard Cut, the ship slows and enters Pedro Miguel locks. Again, cables and mules guide and steady the ship before it is lowered 9.4 m (31 ft) to Miraflores Lake. The cables are released and the ship crosses the lake, which is 2.1 km (1.3 mi) long and lies 16 m (54 ft) above sea level. The ship then enters the last two locks, also named Miraflores, and is lowered to the level of the Pacific Ocean. The final stretch of the canal carries the ship to the harbor of Balboa, where the canal pilot leaves the vessel. The ship sails under the Bridge of the Americas (formerly known as the Thatcher Ferry Bridge) and into the Bay of Panama, an arm of the Pacific Ocean. Northbound ships anchor in the Bay of Panama while waiting for their turn to travel through the canal to the Atlantic.
The entire trip through the canal takes between 8 and 10 hours plus waiting time. The canal operates 24 hours a day year-round. Each ship that travels through the canal pays a toll based on its capacity.
III
TRAFFIC VOLUME
A large volume of the world’s ships, cargo, and passengers travel through the canal every year. In 1996 more than 15,000 ships, about 42 per day, made the crossing. From 1985 to 1995 the number of ships, their tonnage, and the amount of tolls collected all increased. Tolls rose to $460 million in 1995, a 50 percent increase over 1985 figures. About 14,000 ships, 400,000 crew members, and 300,000 passengers traveled through the canal in 1995.
A wide variety of general cargo vessels and specialized ships pass through the canal. The most common are bulk carriers for ore, grain, and liquids; automobile carriers; container ships; refrigerated ships; tankers; liquid-gas carriers; and passenger liners. Many naval vessels, fishing boats, barges, dredges, floating drydocks, and ocean-going tugs also use the canal.
The principal commodities shipped through the canal in 1993 were canned and refrigerated foods, chemicals, coal and coke, grains, lumber and wood products, machinery and equipment (including automobiles), iron and steel products, minerals, ores and metals, agricultural commodities, and petroleum and by-products. The single largest commodity was grain, mostly being shipped from the U.S. Gulf Coast region to Asia. Another important group was automobiles: About half of the cars shipped from Asia to the United States went through the canal in the mid-1990s.
The size of ships using the Panama Canal has steadily increased. About 27 percent of the vessels that use the canal are built to the maximum dimensions that can pass through it (a category called “Panamax”). This has prompted further widening of Gaillard Cut, so that the larger Panamax vessels may transit safely. However, some of the world’s commercial and military ships are too large for the canal. Since the 1940s, new U.S. battleships and aircraft carriers have been built exceeding the canal’s dimensions; so have some petroleum supertankers, huge container ships, and ore carriers. Despite this trend, planners anticipate steadily increasing demand for use of the canal for the next 20 years.
The Panama Canal was built in part for military reasons, to give the U.S. Navy rapid access to both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Many U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force bases were built in the canal zone to defend the vital channel. However, since World War II (1939-1945) the canal has been considered vulnerable to attack. A single bomb or a scuttled ship could disrupt canal traffic for a long period, and the jungles along the canal could be used by guerrilla forces. Therefore, the canal was considered less valuable as a military asset. The nearby bases, while continuing to guard the canal, became a center for U.S. military operations throughout Central America and the Caribbean. The headquarters for the U.S. military’s Southern Command was relocated from bases in Panama to Florida in 1997. All U.S. military bases in Panama were closed before the end of 1999.
IV
CANAL ADMINISTRATION
The canal is operated by the Panama Canal Authority, a public Panamanian corporation. Before Panama took control of the canal in 1999, the canal was managed by the Panama Canal Commission, a U.S. government agency under the Department of Defense. The commission was established in 1979 to operate the canal during the 20-year transition from U.S. to Panamanian control, and it gave Panamanians a role in governing the canal for the first time. The commission was supervised by a nine-member board composed of five U.S. citizens and four Panamanians. After 1990 the canal’s administrator was a Panamanian. The commission provided Panamanian employees with specialized training, and Panamanians formed more than 90 percent of the canal’s workforce by 1996. Until 1979 the canal and adjoining lands had been run solely by the U.S. government as if they were U.S. territory.
The Panama Canal Authority manages and maintains the canal and all its related functions and equipment. Tolls and other canal fees generally pay all the costs of running and maintaining the waterway.

Treaties between the United States and Panama guarantee the permanent neutrality of the Panama Canal, allowing ships of all nations to use it even in time of war. Panama and the United States share responsibility for the defense of the canal.
V
HISTORY
A
Early Efforts
As early as the 16th century, Europeans dreamed of building a ship canal across the Isthmus of Panama. Spanish kings considered building a canal to carry treasure from their South American colonies back to Spain, but no attempt was made. Such a project became possible only in the 19th century, with the machinery and knowledge produced during the Industrial Revolution, the transition from an agricultural to a mechanized economy.
In the 1830s and 1840s, while Panama was a province of Colombia, a number of European and U.S. studies were conducted to determine where and how such a crossing could be built. In 1850 the United States and Britain signed the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, in which they pledged to cooperate if either one undertook such a project. That same year, a New York company began construction of the Panama Railroad, along the same general route as the present-day canal. It opened to traffic five years later, carrying many gold seekers to California during the gold rush. During the rest of the 1800s, the U.S. government frequently sent in troops to protect the railroad from bandits and military threats, under the authority of a treaty signed with Colombia in 1846.
In the late 1870s a private French company won a concession from Colombia to build a sea-level canal in Panama and soon raised enough money to begin construction. The company was directed by Ferdinand de Lesseps, a French engineer and diplomat who had overseen construction of the Suez Canal in Egypt. Excavation in Panama began in 1882, but the company quickly ran into problems caused by the difficult terrain, climate, tropical diseases, labor shortages, and a flawed design. In 1888 it ceased work and went into bankruptcy. Reorganized a few years later as the New Panama Canal Company, it barely managed to keep the concession and prevent the equipment from deteriorating. At that stage, the French company sought another sponsor for the project.
B
U.S. Involvement
The United States had long been interested in a Central American canal, to link its east and west coasts and expand trade. However, it did not have the money or the will to build one before 1900. During the 1890s Congress appropriated money to begin work on a canal in Nicaragua, but the project was soon cancelled.
The Spanish-American War in 1898 heightened military interest in a canal. After defeating Spain, the United States acquired the Philippines and Puerto Rico and wanted better access for its navy to both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. American officials negotiated the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty with Britain in 1901, in which the two countries agreed that the United States alone could build and regulate a canal.
The canal issue reached a critical point in 1902 and 1903. In a complex series of events, Congress and President Theodore Roosevelt decided on Panama over Nicaragua and negotiated a treaty with Colombia. Under the agreement, the United States would obtain a strip of land across the isthmus and build a canal. But Colombia’s senate rejected the treaty. Panamanians feared the United States would build a canal in Nicaragua instead, so they took matters into their own hands. A group of Panamanians conspired with agents of the French company and the Panama Railroad to rebel against Colombian rule and declared Panama independent on November 3, 1903. The United States supported the revolt and used its navy to prevent Colombia from defeating the rebels.
Two weeks later Panama signed a treaty with the United States giving permission for the canal project. The Panamanians had authorized Philippe Bunau-Varilla, a French citizen and longtime official of the French canal company, to negotiate the terms and sign the agreement. Bunau-Varilla gave the United States even more than it had asked for: a perpetual lease on a section of central Panama 16 km (10 mi) wide, where the canal would be built; the right to take over more Panamanian land if needed; and the right to use troops to intervene in Panama. The United States agreed to guarantee Panama’s independence and pay $10 million, plus an annual fee of $250,000. In exchange for their independence, then, Panamanians were forced to accept the treaty, which no Panamanian ever signed, that virtually gave away the canal zone to the United States (see Panama: History).
C
Construction
Canal construction began in 1904, directed by an Inter-Oceanic Canal Commission. Most of the excavation and construction was done by private contractors. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers supplied the technical guidance, and Colonel George W. Goethals served as chief engineer from 1907 to 1916. After initial plans for a sea-level canal, the commission decided on a canal with locks. The canal commission recruited more than 50,000 laborers, mostly from nearby Caribbean islands, to work on the canal. In all, another 100,000 people migrated to Panama during the construction era, adding to the diversity of Panama’s population.
An important breakthrough during construction was the successful effort to control mosquito-borne diseases. Malaria and yellow fever had killed thousands of workers during the French canal attempt. But a U.S. campaign, directed by Army medical officer William Gorgas, drained or sprayed mosquito breeding grounds and built sewage and water systems. Within two years the diseases were brought under control.
The overall cost of the canal was about $350 million, the largest and costliest work ever undertaken by the U.S. government. It became one of the world’s premier feats of engineering. The concrete lock chambers and mechanical lock gates were the largest ever built. At the time, Gatún Dam was the largest earthen dam ever built, forming the world’s largest artificial lake. More than 190 million cubic meters (250 million cubic yards) of earth and rock were excavated from the canal route. Frequent landslides caused problems and delays as workers dug through the ridge of the Continental Divide to form Gaillard Cut.
Despite the challenges and difficulties, the Panama Canal was completed sooner than expected. The first ship traveled through it from the Atlantic to the Pacific on August 15, 1914. However, further landslides caused closures in 1915, and the canal’s formal opening was postponed until 1920 because of World War I (1914-1918).
D
Canal Since Completion
Since it opened, the canal has served as a U.S. shipping facility for vessels of all countries. Most ships and cargo traveling through the canal belong to U.S. companies, although a majority of the ships are registered in Panama or Liberia, countries that have low fees and less restrictive regulations.
Starting in the 1930s Gaillard Cut was widened to improve navigation, and in the 1990s it was expanded again. Madden Dam was built in the 1930s to control the flow of water into Gatún Lake and generate electricity. In 1962 a high-level bridge was built over the Pacific entrance to the canal. Known as the Bridge of the Americas or Thatcher Ferry Bridge, this structure carries the Pan-American Highway into Panama City.
For much of its history, the canal and the surrounding Panama Canal Zone were run as a colony of the United States. The U.S. Department of the Army administered the canal, the Panama Railroad, and many businesses run by the railroad company. It also built 14 military bases in the area. The governor of the canal region was appointed by the secretary of the Army and was usually a retired general from the Corps of Engineers who had served in Panama. U.S. civilian employees supervised canal operations, while Panamanians and West Indians formed the labor force.
In 1950 the U.S. government reorganized management of the area into two agencies: the Panama Canal Company, which ran the canal’s commercial operations and the railroad, and the Canal Zone government, which handled courts, police, and other functions. The governor headed both agencies. A separate military structure controlled the military bases in the Canal Zone and operated independently of the civilian authorities.
The U.S. control of the area caused decades of conflict with Panamanians, who felt excluded from the economic benefits of the canal and from territory they regarded as rightfully belonging to Panama. Before negotiating the 1977 treaties, the United States and Panama modified the 1903 treaty twice. In 1936 they signed an agreement by which the United States raised Panama’s annual payment from the canal and prevented shipments of untaxed goods from the canal zone into Panama, which Panamanian merchants regarded as unfair competition. The United States also gave up the rights to intervene militarily in Panama and to take over more land for canal operations. In 1955 another treaty raised the annuity again, made Panamanians who worked in the canal zone subject to Panamanian taxes, and promised to end a wage system that paid American employees at a higher rate than Panamanians.
But these concessions did not end tensions between the United States and Panamanians, who staged demonstrations and protests in the late 1950s and 1960s. Anti-American riots in 1964 caused the two countries to suspend diplomatic relations briefly. After they were restored, the United States and Panama began negotiating new treaties, a process that lasted more than 12 years. In 1977 U.S. president Jimmy Carter and the Panamanian leader, General Omar Torrijos Herrera, signed treaties that gave control of the canal and all its operations to Panama in 1999. The agreements were ratified by Panama immediately and by the United States the following year.
The treaties went into effect in 1979. More than 60 percent of the U.S.-held Panama Canal Zone was returned to Panama. The Panama Canal Commission was established to run the canal during the transition to Panamanian control, and Panama took over operation of ship repairs, piers, and railroad operations. In 1994 the government of Panama created an agency, the Interoceanic Regional Authority, to administer the non-canal facilities of the former zone. The Panama Canal Authority, a public corporation, took possession of the canal from the Panama Canal Commission on December 14, 1999. That day the United States transferred the canal to Panama at a ceremony attended by Panamanian president Mireya Moscoso de Gruber and former U.S. president Jimmy Carter.
In 2006 Panamanian voters approved a referendum calling for a major expansion of the canal. The planned $5.2-billion expansion will involve the creation of a new channel and new locks. The current canal cannot accommodate many of the modern container ships, and traffic has become so heavy that many ships experience costly delays waiting to enter the locks. The expansion project was set to begin in 2008 and expected to be completed in 2014.
Contributed By:
Michael L. Conniff
Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.