"The Ships"
M/S "Boribana"
- part three -
1972-01-038
Preparing to berth in Bangkok,
- at Khlong Toei
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-01-040
M/S "Boribana"
- Happy Crew, - now at Khlong
Toei in Bangkok-, waiting for the famous Bangkok girls with great expectations
-
(Look at them! This is what
real sailors looked like in the early seventies!)
(Odd Oddnes in the center of
the picture, - partly covering Villy, - left -, and Musante, - right -,
with Kurt to right, - in GREAT mood!)
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-01-041
- and here the first load is
coming -
- a Bangkok water taxi filled
with the world famous Bangkok girls -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-01-099
- a view of the World famous
"Mosquito Bar" in Bangkok's Khlong Toei area -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
Some comments about the "Mosquito Bars" might be needed here:
"Mosquito bar" was NOT just
another bar, - it was one of the absolute most famous sailor's bars in
the whole World - - - Actually It could easily have been the most famous
one of them all!
This particular bar simply
became an institution, - a historical landmark you could say - - -
It's fame was not because of
the bar itself, - absolutely nothing special about that, - actually it
was rather scruffy and dingy -, and it stood in the middle of a slum area,
- which was actually not a negative thing, since it was quite interesting
to explore the back streets of Khlong Toei.
Also it's fame was not only
because of the famous Bangkok girls, although they could be very interesting
indeed - - - -
What made "Mosquito Bar" were
the sailors and advenrurers that used to hang out there and created that
special "something" with their stories and tall tales from exiting lives,
- real lives -, being it on the great oceans, - or in the Opium triangle
- - - - or whereever the World ticks - - - -
There were always stories to
be heard, - and there were always funny and interesting people there -
- - - no people in coat and tie, - no naive tourists, - but real men, -
sailors and adventures who knew the World, - and who knew life!
And together with the beer,
the rum and the Bangkok girls, the atmosphere was "electric" and could
be pure magic which caused the hours, - or days -, to go by as if they
were minutes - - -
"Boribana" and the other "East Asiatic Company" ships always stayed at the nearby pier and warehouses owned by the "East Asiatic Company", - and from there we could just walk down to "Mosquito Bar" and in a few minutes time we would be in another World - - - and forget time - - -
If this has made some Bangkok
visitors curious to see and experience the most famous sailor's bar in
the World, then I must disappoint them - - - -
"Mosquito Bar" is not there
anymore, - it has long gone - - - - just like the real sailors - - - but
still there must be some old salts around which can only smile and get
a dreamy look in their faces when they think about that particular watering
hole right there in the middle of Bangkoks Khlong Toei area.
1972-01-099-1
- a close-up of the famous
"Mosquito Bar" signboard -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-001
A view into the street level
of "Mosquito bar", - the area you can see behind the green shades in following
picture -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-01-100
- and here a last look at "Mosquito
Bar" in it's heyday in the the first half of the seventies -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-003
- and a few minutes walk away
we are back to our great ship "Boribana", - and ready for new adventures
-
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-032
Now in Cebu, - Philippines
-, where the waterfront in those days were filled with sailor's bars, -
just down the gangway -
Here the Chief Cook looks rather
tired, - while AB Odd Oddnes handles a bottle of "something" -
(Also those famous Cebu bars
have since long gone! Nothing is left of the life from the fun days in
the sixties/seventies!)
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-037
"Boribana" is in a different
world.
- from tropoical heat in Thailand
and the Philippines to the far north in Otaru, Japan, - and an icy-cold
winter -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-038
- 3rd. Engineer Mogens Heine,
- dressed in yellow -, - in charge of repairing the windlass in unfavourable
weather conditions -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-040
- Otaru is also freezing -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-044
- but inside the small, warm
and cozy Japanese bars, - the outside snowstorm and freezing cold seems
far away -
Here seaman Musante and other
"Boribana" crew members enjoy themselves in "Utopia Bar" in Otaru
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-046
- Mama-san in "Utopia Bar,
- in her finest traditional Japanese kimono -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-047
- Mama-san in action
-
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-048
- serving hot Japanese sake
-
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-055
- but outside the bars Otaru
is still cold -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-057
- but quite beautiful -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-058
- Here "Boribana" in the snow,
- also beautiful -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-052
- with normal routines going
on, - here a life boat drill -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-059
- Heading south again, - and
spotting the first Chinese junks in the South China Sea -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-081
- "Boribana" in Hong Kong -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-02-082
- Hong Kong's magnificent harbou,
- with modern cargo ships and ancient Chinese junks -
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-03-002
"Boribana" photographed in
Hong Kong Harbour, - 1972
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
1972-03-004
"Boribana" in Hong Kong in
1972,- before the container ships had completely taken over the dry cargo
transportation -
This is what it looked
like when a cargo ship loaded Chinese goods for all the warehouses in Europe.
(Photography by Karsten Petersen ©)
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