Today:
september 8 2009
7:30am – Board the ship. When you do you must salute her right before stepping on deck. See my face there on the left? Taken shortly after I boarded and I’m like, “how in the world did I end up here OMG”
9 – 10am – An extensive tour of the ship. I inhaled a ridiculous amount of information. There will be no lack of footage and how I’m gonna fit this into my usual 3 minutes will be challanging
10 – 12pm – After the tour I was informed, “off you go, you can explore wherever you like, the ship is yours, have fun” what??? Sick
12 – 12:30pm – Lunch. There are 3 dining areas on board and depending on your rank* is where you eat. I enjoyed lunch in the Officers area, where, and this floored me, I sat down at a table, was given a menu and asked what I would like. The food was amazing, especially the soup. I’m not sure where the reputation for bad food comes from in the Forces comes from, certainly not here, and I’m picky
12:30 – 5 – More exploring. Went through 8 locks today, including the Welland Canal, the first time for this ship, and 4 in a row which was the equivilant to climbing the height of Niagara Falls. You zoom up faster than you think, those things fill up fast
5 – 6pm – Dinner in the biggest dining area with the non-commissioned crew (oh boy I hope I’m getting this terminology correct… if not, please correct me in the comments). Again, a menu is posted and my omlette was made-to-order come ON. Delicious
6 – 10pm – Kicking it around the ship, more filming, chatting and a little editing because my camera is full and I’ve got to dump some footage so I can fill it up again tomorrow
10 – 11pm – I drive the ship
11 – 11:30pm – Back to ‘The Cave’, the dining/hang-out area where I ate dinner and where there’s also a bar. A little editing and then fall on my face asleep in my bunk
* I’ve posted the rank hierarchy in the comments
— About the Rank Structure —
*Short Answer*
– there are 2 categories, ‘Enlisted Men’ and ‘Officers’. A crew member’s rank is worn on the shoulders of their uniform, and if you see there a Maple Leaf, a Crown or our nation’s Coat of Arms, stand up a bit straighter.
Click here to see our Coat of Arms: http://www.thecanadianexplorer.com/home/2009/4/7/our-coat-of-arms-has-a-unicorn.html
*Long Answer*
ENLISTED MEN
– Ordinary Seaman – Blank, 0 bars
– Able Seaman – 1 Chevron
– Leading Seaman – 2 Chevrons
– Master Seaman – 2 Chevrons, 1 Maple Leaf
– Petty Officer 2nd Class – 3 Chevrons, 1 Maple Leaf
– Petty Officer 1st Class – 1 Crown
– Chief Petty Officer 2nd Class – 1 Crown with a Wreath around the Crown
– Chief Petty Officer 1st Class – Coat of Arms (1 on board, called the ‘COXN’)
OFFICERS
– Naval Cadet – 1/2 Bar
– Acting Sub-Lieutenant – 1 Bar
– Sub-Lieutenant – 1 1/2 Bars
– Lieutenant Navy – 2 Bars
– Lieutenant Commander – 2 1/2 Bars (1 on board, called the ‘XO’)
– Commander – 3 Bars (1 on board, the Captain, which is a position not a rank)
– Captain Navy – 4 Bars (it’s like an Army Colonel)
– Commodore – 1 Maple Leaf, 2 Swords
– Rear Admiral – 2 Maple Leafs
– Vice Admiral – 3 Maple Leafs
– Admiral – 4 Maple Leafs
Meet the 3 head gentlemen of this ship here: http://www.navy.forces.gc.ca/villedequebec/4/4-s_eng.asp