“Regarding experiences… there are many good and bad happy and sad experiences! It’s a lifestyle to be a seaman.

If I go back to 2008 where I first joined a ship and everything was brand new to me, I never heard the nautical phrases (so they laughed at me that I didn’t know what they were talking about). I had never seen all this equipment, steer the ship, touch the engine and make it go faster or slower, but also the hierarchy and the respect.

The ship is a small society! In the beginning, it was exciting as an adventure! I was lucky because I had good seamen as trainers –“ship oriented” if I can say, that they helped me a lot to understand what and why. Because when you are first time on the ship you have to understand what it is that you have to do and most important with safety in respects to you and the others. So, in the beginning it is very usual to hear the phrase ” look but not touch”.

As a senior officer now, I encourage the cadets to touch everything (in my presence ) except the Red buttons!!! (Red button=distress or emergency shut down).

The most common question of newcomers is “why”. Why we do this, or why we do it this way. The answers usually come from experience, but sometimes it is easy to explain that.

This job gives you the opportunity to see the things from another perspective and to learn new things especially when you specialized in tankers or gas industry.

For instance, again when I was a cadet, the chief officer then gave me a lot of jobs — some of them were routine some other where “special” (to work with valves or paint some other things, chipping and lubrication of equipment, etc.). Now that I am a chief mate I know this equipment and the way to maintain it. I can explain to my crew how the job should be done. I can do a time management and performance check of my crew.

This introduction is though my eyes — my experiences. It will be my pleasure to answer anyone’s questions on specific points.

I want to offer to the next generation that will decide to come on board what I didn’t have. Inspiration, motivation and “inside view” of things on a vessel.”