WHEN THE CREW GETS ABANDONED... TALES FROM THE HIGH SEAS Capt. Norbert Francis Rebello was born and schooled in Mumbai until he joined the merchant navy in the early 1980s. He has sailed on various types of ships, finally opting for the oil tanker fleet. In command of ships for over a decade, he now sails as master mariner with Teekay Tankers.
Instead of spending his time glued to the idiot box, he chose to writer. His book 'Memories of Another Day' -- to be released in Goa on December 20, 2008 -- tells the story of the life on the sea. Something that touches so many tens of thousands of Goans. In December 1999, the sinking of an oil tanker off the Atlantic coast of France in the Bay of Biscay polluted approx 400 km of the French coast and caused the annihilation of marine life and fish farms. Not only did the oil spill lead to major environmental mutilation, but it also wrecked mayhem with local tourism and fishing. The economic losses were estimated at 500 million dollars. In the bargain, the owner of the ship abandoned three other ships that were in his fleet with approx 100 seafarers aboard. One ship loaded with cargo was detained in a European port by the crew for non-payment of wages, while two others were stranded during their dry-docking in Montenegro, then in the province of strife-torn Yugoslavia. Rebello's book is based on the true anecdotes of the hardships and the struggles of the sailors deserted in Yugoslavia, as all parties who were primarily responsible for them being on board forsook them. It gives an insight into how everyone concerned washed their hands off the crew in their desperate time of need. It also tells of how the parties involved in sending them on board did their best to manipulate the situation for their own selfish gains. The French courts eventually established that the sinking was caused by corrosion of the ship's structure and this putrefaction had resulted from gross negligence of the owners, managers and the classification society. He talks about his motives in writing below. ON WHY WRITING IS AN OPTION: I began writing more than a decade ago. I do not watch too much of TV or movies, like most of the folks on board do. Instead I spend most of my time reading as that had been my favorite hobby right from childhood. All are definitely aware that reading material is always limited on board and the selection, if any, very inadequate. Many a times, various themes and ideas kept on buzzing in my head and hence I decided to write the thoughts that ran amok in my mind. As there were no computers on board during those days and I did not know to type I wrote by longhand in a note book. It was tedious and I finally gave up. The story I began then is still not complete to this day. Later when computers came into being, I began writing again. I decided to put the words that came to my mind on paper. I just wrote and a page and then another and kept on. When I completed the story I read it and was surprised at the way I had stringed the whole thing together. I could not believe myself that I could write so effortlessly. I gave it the form of a short story -- in fact you cannot call it short as it was around 30 A4 size typed pages. Yes, I called the story true love as it was on a romantic note. I then circulated it around to the people on board and was surprised at the response. I decided to pen again and, once I began, there was no stopping. ON WHEN HE WRITES: I write mostly during my spare time out at sea. I also write at home, but at sea there is a certain tranquility and peace that calms my mind. This helps the flow of words as then they just seem to gush out persistently from my mind and heart ceaselessly onto paper. I also write at various times when I have words all of a sudden buzzing in my head. There have been times when I have been waiting for a flight or other at odd places when an idea sparks, words flow and I scribble them on paper. ON WHAT BROUGHT 'MEMORIES OF ANOTHER DAY': Memories of another day, was never intended to be written. I had related the incident of what happened to me on one of the ships that I had sailed on earlier to my colleagues. That particular ship had been abandoned by the owner while she was being dry docked at Montenegro (formerly a part of the erstwhile Yugoslavia) and the crew marooned. The reason being that one ship of his fleet met with a catastrophe, running him bankrupt. Most of the folks who heard the sufferings and the interactions with the various parties involved after the ship had been arrested by the crew with the help of the ITF (International Transport Workers Federation) in Montenegro felt I had to put it on paper. They sensed that as I had encountered something that all seamen dread, it would be of immense value if I could relate the facts. I thought about it for a while and I too felt that it would enlighten many seamen as they were not aware of what the consequences could be in case the crew was forsaken by the owner for no fault of theirs. I was not too much for the idea initially but after constant niggling I thought, what the heck, let see how it sounds in words. I put down that bitter experience on paper so that it could be read and that is how 'Memories of Another Day' was written. ON WHETHER THE BOOK IS FACTUAL: Yes, the main theme of the book is based on the true anecdotes of the hardships and the struggles of the sailors that were deserted in (what was then) Yugoslavia. However the love story in there is totally fictitious. I have done so to make an otherwise difficult book soothing to read. ON THE TITLE: As the name says it, they are now really memories of another day and definitely not pleasant ones. These will be bitter memories not only for me but for all of us there who suffered during that poignant and devastating ordeal. ON WHETHER THIS IS HIS RECENT WRITING: No. This was written nearly seven years ago but has been worked on again in the last year. ON WHETHER HE PLANS MORE TALES FROM THE SEAS: No. This is the only complete writing regarding the sea. The only other one I had begun and left undone was the first story that I had written by hand before the computer age. My other writings are totally fiction and based on various topics. They are novels. I have also written poems and some have been published. ON WHOM HE SEES AS HIS READERS: My writing could appeal to all sorts of people as they are based on various topics of everyday life, with the exception of this particular one which is based out at sea. However this should appeal mainly to seafarers and their families. There are so many things that seamen who have been sailing for years have not realized what it could be like, as they have not been in situations as these ones. But this book is not only for sailors. Though it has been written around the life of a sailor who is stranded in a different country, it could also enlighten the basic lay man who works ashore and thinks that the seaman out there has a great life and gets paid handsomely. Reading this, one will realize that all is not as rosy as the picture is normally painted. There is also a dark ugly side to the pretty picture. Most of the seamen, leave aside people from other professions, do not know what it is when you are faced in a situation where you are abandoned by the owners for no fault of yours. This gives an insight of the grim nightmare that one can face. It not only tells how the locals involved can influence and slow down proceedings for their own benefit but also how the others who are responsible for getting you there in the first place find ridiculous excuses for not helping you but take advantage and try to make a quick buck in such situations. Contact for Captain Norbert Rebello (located in Cavelossim, while in Goa): [EMAIL PROTECTED]