Finally on the Mercy!

Monday, June 5th 2010
I am finally on the USNS Mercy and we have set sail! I arrived in Singapore a day early and then found out that we were getting two days of liberty to go back into the city. This was really great because Brian and I got to meet up and spend two days with Kris and Renee. It was really great to hear all their stories and get lots of advice on how to live on the ship and what to expect. We returned to the ship on Sunday night and set sail this morning. It was exciting to watch the ship pull away from the pier. Later in the day, everyone in uniform “manned the rails,” meaning they literally lined all the railings, as we said goodbye and passed the Japanese ship that had been accompanying the Mercy. The Japanese ship did the same. So far it is a very smooth ride with minimal rocking, but I have been warned that it may not stay this way.

So far, life on the ship has been busy. There have been several orientation meetings with the Captains and Commadore, the safety crew, and with the Project Hope team. Were were suppose to have a Man Overboard drill and a Abandon ship drill, but they are postponed until tomorrow.

I have a few more meetings this evening, one of which is for anyone that is new to the berthing area. The berthing area is an interesting place. It is a large room that sleeps about 100 people way down in the belly of the ship. Like Renee and Kris before me, I have the top bunk. Bunks are three beds high. I was a little worried I might fall out overnight or step on someone below me as I was climbing, but so far so good. The ship is also divided into sections to protect from fire, flood, etc. This means that in order to go to different sections, I need to climb stairs, walk across the ship and go up or down. There are approximately 80 stairs between the berthing area and the mess hall, where we eat. Needless to say, I am getting plenty of exercise.

The plan for the ship is to stop in Jakarta on July 5th and pick up medications, but we will not be getting off the ship. Then we sail for a few more days until we arrive in our first location on July 13th. There will be some down time, but there are many educational briefs planned in the mean time and Steel Beach, which means a cook out on the hangar level. Once we reach Jakarta, there will be medications for us to prepare. Brian and I are also scheduled to give a presentation on malaria , so there should be plenty to keep us busy, even if we are not yet working in the pharmacy.