Up the Gangway (part 2)

 Up the gangway (part 2)

Japan was the first foreign country that I visited. In February 1982 I picked up the Australian Pioneer from the Newcastle Engagement centre and the Land of the Rising Sun was my next destiny. It began with a scenic Aero Pelican flight to Sydney that connected with a 1st class flight to Perth. I stayed for a night in the Westos Motor Inn and the next day flew to Port Hedland and joined the ship. It was there I met the crankiest Cook in the world. John Mackay was an Irishman who was also known as the Leprechaun. He suffered from small man syndrome and he'd argue with almost everybody. I had to spend nearly 4 months with him and I survived.

The Australian Pioneer was about 126,00 tons when loaded. You could walk around it twice and you'd done a kilometre. Built in Sweden with a 7 cylinder 2 stroke engine and part of 4 ships purchased for ANL when Charlie Jones was the minister for Transport. They were called 'P Boats' because of their names and they were controversial. The other 3 were Australian Progress, Australian Prospector, and the Australian Purpose which ended up on the bottom of the Indian Ocean in 1990. Some blokes had an opinion that they should have purchased them from Japan where they would discharge.

I remember berthing at Hibikinada, Tobata, and Mitsushima on my first engagement. The Hunter Bar in Mitsushima was a popular hang out if you wanted to get ripped off!

The ship went into Dry Dock in Singapore before returning to Australia. We stayed at the Imperial Hotel and would occasionally commute to the ship and inspect repairs and requests. I got to visit Johor Bahru and Sentosa Island. We didn't have to cook!

In Japan the traditional shopping arcades were protected from rain and they sold everything. Fake food models were displayed in front of Restaurants and Bonsai plants seem to be the only thing that didn't run on a battery. You knew you were in Japan with Karaoke bars and Pachinko parlours interacting everywhere. Electrical shops had the latest laser video discs which never marketed in Australia. Vinyl records were like diner plates and it wasn't only Deep Purple. It alerted me how the Nips have good music taste.

In later times I would get to ride the Bullet Train and went up Tokyo Tower. At Himeji Castle I met couple from Perth whose daughter played keyboards for the Euro-gliders. I got to the Peace Park at Hiroshima when we docked at Kure. Other places I recall visiting were Kashima, Nagoya, and Kawasaki where the pollution effected my health. The furtherest north I got to was Muroran on the Island of Hokkaido.

I stayed on this ship until March 1984 and then transferred my Home Port from Newcastle to Melbourne. I bought 2 blocks of land at Cape Patterson near Wonthaggi and had a house built on one. I traded in my Galant for my first brand new car which was a Nissan Pulsar Coupe with air conditioning. In July 1983 I bought a brand new Suzuki 650 for $2,219 from Norm Fraser in Broadmeadow.

The amalgamation of Marine Cooks and Seamens Union was finalised when I was employed on the Australian Pioneer. The government changed to a Labor government for the first time in my life. My local member Peter Morris became the federal minister for Transport and earned respect among seafarers.

It was on the Pioneer when I spent over 90 days working alongside a Chief Cook that went Troppo. When you cook 3 meals a day for 90 days straight on a merchant ship things happen. Brian was a likeable bloke from Melbourne that knew his job but also drank too much. A Chief Steward that sat at the bar the entire day joined, and that did Brian no favours. When we left Japan the meat room was short in supply and I was only a 2nd cook. It wasn't my responsibility but I was concerned.

Brian kept forgetting to defrost the meat for the next day. He was also writing a menu to include products we didn't have. I had to step up and learned a lot with support from delegates. It was time to improvise!

Corned Ox Tongue was on the menu but we were out, so I cooked Corned Mutton instead. It was not a popular dish and it was only ordered by an engineer. I did a bit of a trim and disguised it with white sauce and he came back for seconds. It's called culinary bullshit!

As we entered the River at Port Hedland an assistant steward started doing the Stock take. It should have been done days before and it was the Chief Steward's job. Before paying off Brian the Chief cook went missing and he had to search for him. My bags were packed and I was ready to pay off and go home. Eventually he turned up and walked into the Galley. Brian thanked me for looking after him and said, “is there anything I can do for you.” All I had to do was put the Pea and Ham soup on the lift to go to the upstairs pantry. I told him, “I'm alright!” He insisted he do something for me so I let him put the soup on the lift. He bumped the pot on the top shelf on the lift and the boiling hot soup splashed down to my testicles. That was a day Karma wasn't working!

I applied cream and reserved my right under the rules of the navigation act. When I got back to Swansea a couple of days later I went straight to the Doctor Joseph with my 2nd degree burn. It was worth a few days compo but I was healing and getting about.

I wasn't alone with concern for Brian and rang the Melbourne branch secretary. It was the first time I had ever spoken to Ken McClelland. I briefed him and never stayed in contact with Brian to learn his outcome. Some years later someone told me, “he left the industry because he went Meeces too Pieces!”