Today is the beginning of the Summer Holidays for me - and it's being marked by a weekend wedding in France. The original plan was to get the ferry over with our bikes and then start our massive cycle from north to south, but since I am not able to cycle at the moment (waaaah!) we are going over for just the weekend. We get the overnight ferry to Saint Malo and arrive tomorrow morning, get a second ferry to Dinard and go to the wedding and then return by ferry on Sunday. So, as there are lots of boats involved this weekend, I figured a nautical theme was only fitting for today's Etsy shout out.
As usual, I thought I would tell you some quirky facts you may or may not already know about boats, sailing and life at sea...
- There is a theory that the word POSH comes from Colonnial and East India Trading Company days - the best cabins on boats to India were those which caught the afternoon sun. On the way out these were on the Port side of the boat while on the return it was those on the Starboard side. POSH stands for Port - Out, Starboard - Home and as these were the most expensive cabins the word posh came to symbolise someone with a lot of money. Actually there is no foundations for this theory but I like the idea of it!
- British sailors got the nickname 'Limeys' due to the cargo of lime juice they would carry on board. Scurvy was a fairly common disease that afflicted all sailors in those days and the vitamin C that limes provide was a good preventative. Lime was more readily available than lemons at the time because the British Navy had colonies in the Caribbean. Lemon later became the juice of choice when sailors realised that limes didn't actually have enough vitamin C in them after all.
- The most famous Ferryman is probably Charon - a character from Greek mythology who carried dead souls across the river Styx to the Underworld.
- The busiest seaway in the world is the English Channel (or La Manche if you speak French) that connects Great Britain to France. At the narrowest point (between Dover and Calais) it is only 34km although at it's widest it is about 240 km.
- To dream of sailing can represent how you are coping with your path through life - smooth sailing means that you are in control whereas a rough sail can mean that you are able to overcome life's difficulties.
- The difference between a boat and a ship is technically that a boat is some kind of vessel small enough to be carried aboard another vessel (a ship) or be lifted out of the water. So: boats are small, ships are big and ferries... well they are for transporting people across shortish passages of water.
So there you are - possibly not the most informative facts about boats, sailing and the like but the ones I thought I would share with you. Enjoy your weekend!
