On September 8, Zheng Nan's ocean-going freighter began to leave the port of Santos in Brazil and headed for the route back to China. "The Mid-Autumn Festival is not spent at home, which has become a habit." He told reporters that they are still sailing on the Atlantic Ocean, and that the fleet will have a meal on board on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Among those who failed to return home for the Reunion in the Mid-Autumn Festival, the crew of the long ship was indispensable. Because of the nature of their work, this group spends nearly 80 percent of the year sailing outside and away from home.
The crew worked on the freighter
Sunrise and moonset on ocean freighters
Zheng Nan, who is now the first mate, is responsible for ship driving, managing the deck department on the ship, and is also responsible for loading and unloading, calculating the hull strength to ensure the safety of cargo and navigation, and is responsible for several duties.
Since November last year, in qingdao port, Zheng Nan's ocean-going cargo ship has set off to Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and other South American countries to load and unload goods, then returned to China, and then departed for Brazil and Europe, and recently came to the port of Santos in Brazil again.
To sail most of the world is to live. In the 10 years that he was a crew member of an ocean-going freighter, Zheng Nan spent only two New Years in his hometown of Shandong, "The last time he spent the New Year at home was in 2016." ”
"It was already 6 years ago..." Zheng Nan recalled. Last mid-autumn, he still spent time on the ship, when the fleet organized a dinner for the big guys and prepared 16 dishes.
In previous years, a dinner party on a freighter during the Mid-Autumn Festival
"The sailor is a song that almost every crew member can sing." Zheng Nan replied with a smile. Sailors (or crew members) are always given the role of "adventurous" and "experienced storms" in film and television dramas and literary works. But in fact, the calm and smooth sailing during the voyage is what the crew hopes.
10 years ago, Zheng Nan, who was still in college at the time, was also full of romantic imagination of the sea, "facing the sea, spring and warm flowers, thinking that every day when I opened my eyes was the vast sea." Even the scene of strong winds and waves on the surface of the sea, and the ship sailing in the sea like a flat leaf boat, has appeared in the imagination of the young man.
After officially becoming a crew member of an ocean freighter, he had only one thought in his mind every day: don't encounter wind and waves, safety first.
On ocean-going freighters, the mechanical sound of cargo ships sailing, and the occasional sound of seawater hitting the hull when encountering wind and waves, are always accompanied by the work and life of the crew. Closing the dormitory door, the crew will always hear the sound of "clanging" before going to bed; When the door is opened and the deck is opened, the sound of the wind, the waves and the sound of the ship launching are clearly mixed together, filling the ears of the crew, but the gaze is far away, but the view is an endless, blue and deep ocean.
In an ocean-going freighter with a blue sky overhead. "Sailing in the ocean, you can't see other ships, and you can't see birds." Zheng Nan's working hours are from 4 a.m. to 8 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. every day, and the sunrise and sunset on the sea seem to Zheng Nan to be a habit, "but sometimes, when I see it, I am still very amazed." ”
On ocean freighters, it has become a habit to watch the sunrise and sunset
Sunrise and sunset on ocean freighters
There are also times when you encounter surprises. "There will be schools of dolphins, even schools of whales." Whenever a dolphin jumps out of the sea and a whale appears in the distance, the crew always picks up binoculars to watch and also picks up their mobile phones to take pictures.
In his spare time, Zheng Nan often plays cards on the ship, reads online novels, and watches TV to pass the time.
Zheng Nan's young colleague Yin Zhaojian is from Yunnan, as a "post-00s" he spent his university time in Chongqing, this year is his first time to work with ocean freighters, "of course, he will miss home, can only occasionally use WeChat to chat with his family, but there are many interesting things on board." ”
Yin Zhaojian loves fishing, and his job as a crew member on an ocean-going freighter has allowed him to maintain this hobby all the time. "Because I rarely saw the sea before, I especially liked and longed for the sea, before I liked to watch the sea video, lift a bucket, see crabs, small fish, super comfortable!"
Fishing at sea has become a common form of leisure for the crew
Yin Zhaojian likes to fish in the sea and the harvest is full
The thought of sangzi on an ocean freighter
"Safety first" is more of a responsibility for the crew. In the hearts of the crew's families, it is often wishes and concerns.
At the end of August this year, Li Zhiwei, 41, worked in the waters of Xinhui in Guangdong for more than a few months, and although he is now close to his hometown in Fujian, he and more than a dozen other crew members will also spend the Mid-Autumn Festival on board because of the needs of work.
Before last year, he was also a crew member of an ocean-going freighter. Since 2003, he has been a seagoing cargo ship crew member, departing from different ports in China and following the fleet to Southeast Asia, Australia and other places. At that time, the communication and Internet technology on board the ship was not as developed as it is today, and the general cargo ship sailed in the ocean, and the mobile phones of the crew were often signalless, and they could not contact their families who were thousands of miles away in time.
"On their way to Australia, freighters often stop in Southeast Asian countries to resupply." At that time, as soon as the freighter docked, Li Zhiwei immediately called his family in his hometown to "report safety", "The phone should also be saved, at that time it will not be too long, tell the family where they are, let them rest assured." Li Zhiwei told reporters that one year he followed the fleet to Europe to unload the goods, and for a month he could not contact his family.
In the interview, the crew of the long-distance cargo ship talked about the communication signals that are becoming more and more convenient on the ship today, thanks to the rapid development of the communication network, many ocean-going cargo ships have achieved "WiFi full coverage". The smooth flow of the network has alleviated the homesickness of the crew to a certain extent.
The ocean-going freighter where Zheng Nan was located sailed on the high sea
In September this year, Zheng Nan's children began to go to kindergartens to attend small classes, and Li Zhiwei's children became junior high school students in the new semester. For ocean-going cargo ship crews, they are often absent from the growth of their children due to the needs of their work, but their care for their families has never diminished.
Zheng Nan's mobile phone has family photos and children's videos, and when she is homesick, she clicks on the photos to see. This year's Mid-Autumn Festival has arrived, looking up is a bright moon, and looking down, the smiling faces of the family appear in the mobile phone screen and are also reflected in the eyes of the crew.
(Photo courtesy of respondents)
[Reporter] Yang Qiong
【Author】 Yang Qiong
【Source】 Southern Press Media Group South + client