Author: Marta
Date: 09.04.21
Position: Munich
Nautical Position: On dry land

Now that Ocean College is really coming to an end and we have less than 48 hours left on Pelican, you may have guessed that the great packing has begun. Now only do we have limited time and space, but we also have a lot more things than we started with. That includes our oilskins and our Pelican crew wear, and also all the souvenirs and gifts we bought along the way.

Since packing for Costa Rica in January every single one of us knows how difficult it can be to organize yourself on the Pelican. Everybody wants to pack at the same time, you just don’t have the space to lay out all your stuff in order to be able to overlook it all, and there will always be somebody in your way (while packing it’s likely you’re in their way, too!). But getting ready to leave our beloved floating home is also a very emotional experience, since we all know this means that our adventure is coming to an end. We will no longer wake up and get ready alongside our shipmates, will no longer impatiently await our sitting during mealtimes, or look forward to getting off watch and into bed. No longer will we explore far away countries with our new family or frown over the annoying toilet situation on Pelican.

We’ve become a real family over the past six months. We have gotten to know one another better than anybody at home ever could. By the end of this journey we all know how each other’s taste in music, their favourite food or watch, how to cheer them up, what bothers them, and a lot more. Of course every single one of us misses our family and is looking forward to finally seeing them again, but none of us truly want this journey to end.

Packing in my cabin (cabin 10) started with my cabinmates and me taking our pictures off the wall and sorting all our stuff. In total, packing in our cabin took us about seven hours and there are still things to stow. Our cabin now looks really unwelcoming with all the bare walls, the crap on the floor, and the shelves empty. Even our bedsheets, duvets and pillows have gone, and been replaces with a sleeping bag and a hoodie.

Soon Pelican will be empty and silent again, and I hope that many of us will rejoin her soon.