Spring has come, bringing as always our first swallows... and setting the Belem free on Easter weekend for the launch of her new sailing season. This year, France's oldest three-master is taking to the Mediterranean for starters, leaving the port of Toulon on Good Friday, April 10th with her first group of trainees, who will have the pleasure of inaugurating her beautifully renovated living quarters. Anybody interested in joining the ship during the five training courses between Toulon, Nice, Marseille and Sète (April 10th to May 3rd) should not hesitate to put their names down as soon as possible; there are a - very - few bookings still available.
The following stage will be in the nature of a "première", as the Belem, on leaving Sète, is crossing the Med on a first time trip to Morocco : Tangiers, then Rabat, where she is guest of honour in the brand new harbour of the Rabat-Salé ultra-modern urban development known as the Bouregreg Project. An interesting meeting of styles between a 19th Century tall ship and a 3rd Millennium architectural achievement - but then, that is what history is made of !
And while we are on the subject of "premières", we have another one in store: when the Belem leaves Morocco on her way to the Atlantic and the Portuguese town of Oporto, she sails with a new Captain at the helm. Yann Cariou will be giving trainees and crew alike the benefit of his vast experience as an officer in "la Royale" - no, not the Royal Navy but the traditional name of the French Naval Forces. He is particularly well suited to take charge of a sailing ship like the Belem, having captained the Navy's three traditional school ships : Mutin, Belle Poule and Etoile.
Captain Cariou will be bringing the Belem into the port of Rochefort at the end of June for yet another "première" : a joint celebration of two nautical histories - that of the Belem and that of the Hermione, the replica of the ship that took General Lafayette across the Atlantic to join in the American War of Independence.
We'll be coming back to that in a later logbook. For the moment, your best bet is to see what's on offer in the Belem's sailing program for 2009... So just
click here and make your choice !
Dans moins de 15 jours le Belem sera de retour dans son élément préféré, la mer, au large ! Avec près de 45 stagiaires à bord, c'est un beau week-end de navigation pascale qui s'annonce. Prélude à un début de saison bien rempli.
Lorsqu'il quittera le port de Rabat-Salé le 17 mai, le Belem fera route vers le Portugal sous la conduite de son nouveau commandant en titre. Yann Cariou reprendra la barre au commandant Pery, auprès duquel il aura fait la traversée depuis Sète.
