From Pollywog to Order of the Purple Porpoise Golden Shellback

 Pollywog to Shellback Proclamation

March 2019

South Pacific

If one has never crossed the equator, he is a Pollywog. 

When you cross the equator, you are a Shellback.

If you cross the equator and the international date line you are a Golden Shellback.

The Order of Purple Porpoise is when you cross the junction of the equator and the international date line and the vernal equinox on the same day.

The Purple Porpoise designation is a rare occurrence, but Christine and I were among the ones who sailed across all three on March 20, 2019.

In the previous "update" blog, I mentioned that due to previous plans, we would not start cycling until April. March 9, we began a wonderful 28 day cruise to Hawaii and the French Polynesian Islands.

As always, I had my trusty camera with me and took the momentous picture when we accomplished the above.

 This is what the crossing of the equator looked like.

 The crossing of the international date line.

  And the Spring Equinox. 

Traditionally there is a ceremony for sailors or mariners who cross the equator for the first time. And so the crew members of the MS Eurodam were summoned by King Neptune and her Highness Amphitrite to undergo the "hazing" to become Shellbacks. During the ceremony, the Pollywogs undergo a number of increasingly embarrassing ordeals. (However the ordeals were tamed down as it was witnessed by the whole ship's crew and passengers). 

King Neptune and her Highness Amphitrite

King Neptune or her Highness Amphitrite would read a Pollywog's "offense," then the Shellback assistants would drag him over to Davey Jones.

 Davey Jones (ship's captain John Scott) and his assistants (ship officers) would pronounce the sentence.

They could be slimed.

 They could be operated upon. Then dumped into the pool. All of the pollywogs were dumped into the pool after their sentencing procedure. The pool was a mess. 

 The "tamest" procedure was  a terrible haircut by the person sitting on the right in a white coat. However, the haircut was generally in conjunction with another ordeal.

It was a fun day. A historic day. And another day at sea,.