Sunday, April 5th, 2026At berth in Cherbourg
Log Keeper: Sydnie
Hello friends and family, Happy Easter!
Spring has sprung in Cherbourg. The sun is shining, flowers are blooming, birds are chirping, people are out moving and grooving, and all of this feels wildly stimulating after staring at the same 70 faces and the same horizon line for 1.5 months. While we’ve had our breaks in between (in Cuba, Bermuda, the Azores), it somehow feels like our first real time being on land in months, and boy howdy, it feels good.
We’ve sailed 16,000 NM (Claire did the calculations) and have roughly 500 NM to go. Even though it’s not the final port and none of us are from France, coming into Cherbourg yesterday felt a bit like coming home, as the first port we’ve returned to. Like passing a late marker in a marathon, there was a burst of energy (and a full revival for some) in recognizing that the end is near. I overheard some students talking about how much they’ve grown since October. Others can’t believe all that’s happened between then and now. It’s starting to settle in that this ship journey is wrapping up, and it’s bittersweet for each of us.
I spent my morning, as many do on their first shore-leave day (or at least how we teachers do), chasing students for their homework, catching up on the phone with loved ones, hunting for a good coffee, and stretching my legs with a massive walkabout around town. In the afternoon, Watch 3 had our first land-based watch hangout (a new thing we’re trying out), and it turned into an epic time. We’ll be doing these regularly on Wednesdays from now on, and I’m really looking forward to it.
I’m going to share a bunch of photos and let you experience some of the chaos for yourselves, but what I can tell you is that I regret not spending more time with your kids on shore leave, because they have SO much fun. In our 6-hour hangout, we went on upside-down rides at the fair, had a spontaneous charcuterie picnic in the town square, got bubble tea, found matching BFF pins, did some casual shopping, attempted to get a bowling lane (they were full), played bumper cars, lost a purse and found a purse, watched a 6D movie, spent 1.5 hours singing and dancing our hearts out at a karaoke bar, and ate margarita pizzas on our walk back to our 11 pm curfew.
My heart is so full.
Sydnie
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