First sea phase

[mickey6]

Hi guys,

Just new to the forum. Deck cadet here. Going on my first sea phase in March. Looking forward to it.

Been looking at some of the posts at the top of the page and they have really helped me in preparing.

Just have a couple of questions. Hope you guys can help me. Firstly it's a question you've all probably had a hundred times. Is there any internet connection at all at sea and if so, how fast and how much does it cost? Is it from one computer or can you access it with laptops and ipads?

Secondly, how do you get access to things like water/drinks(coke/pepsi) at sea? Do you need to stock up yourself when at port? Or is there a shop on board most ships?

Finally, when you are at sea, how much money to you spend? I've been told different answers for this. Like you won't spend anything. Or you'll spend everything. What is everyone on heres experience?

Thanks for any help. Hopefully this will be my first visit if many,

Mick

[JonathanI]

Hi guys,

Just new to the forum. Deck cadet here. Going on my first sea phase in March. Looking forward to it.

Been looking at some of the posts at the top of the page and they have really helped me in preparing.

Just have a couple of questions. Hope you guys can help me. Firstly it's a question you've all probably had a hundred times. Is there any internet connection at all at sea and if so, how fast and how much does it cost? Is it from one computer or can you access it with laptops and ipads?

Secondly, how do you get access to things like water/drinks(coke/pepsi) at sea? Do you need to stock up yourself when at port? Or is there a shop on board most ships?

Finally, when you are at sea, how much money to you spend? I've been told different answers for this. Like you won't spend anything. Or you'll spend everything. What is everyone on heres experience?

Thanks for any help. Hopefully this will be my first visit if many,

Mick

It really does vary company to company with regards to Internet I think most companies do have at the minimum access to email. There will be an onboard slop chest where you can generally buy stuff like juice/water chocolate and stuff like that.

It really does depend where you go and if you get off the ship I tend to set a budget so that at least I come home with some money.

What kind of ships are you on ? Do they operate deep sea ?

[mickey6]

It really does vary company to company with regards to Internet I think most companies do have at the minimum access to email. There will be an onboard slop chest where you can generally buy stuff like juice/water chocolate and stuff like that.

It really does depend where you go and if you get off the ship I tend to set a budget so that at least I come home with some money.

What kind of ships are you on ? Do they operate deep sea ?

Cheers,

Don't find out what ship we are on until later. But there is a good chance it will be deep sea.

The types ships I could be on are LPG's, LNG's, tankers, RO-RO's.

[SWonder]

Hi Mickey, welcome to the Forum! Who is your Sponsor Company, I notice you list ship type as possibly LPG/LNG/Tankers/Ro-Ro, just wondering if you are with the same lot as me!

I am currently on my final trip as an Engine cadet.

Q1/ INTERNET:

This depends on the company,however it would seem that a large number of ships have internet connection now. My last two ships (Deep Sea) have both had internet provided free by the company. You can access it throughout the ship via Wi-Fi on Laptops/I Pads etc, it works well most of the time but as it uses satellites it can play up a bit now and again. The speed is ok but sites like You-Tube and other streaming/Downloading/adult sites are all blocked. Some ports around the world have a free Wi-Fi connection or will provide your ship with the security code to access it if you ask nicely.
There will always be a couple of computers with an internet connection for company e-mails etc even if there isn't Wi-Fi, usually cadets can access this if they wish to e-mail their family/friends etc, all e-mails can be viewed by Master/company this way so no slagging anybody off!!!

Q2/ WATER/DRINKS ETC:

There are usually a few water fountains on ships located in E/R,Bridge,Accommodation etc also there is tea/coffee making facilities in ECR/Bridge/Mess room, usually you eat in the officers mess as a cadet and therefore can access the pantry fridge which has cold drinks like Orange Juice/Apple juice or whatever the Messman can be bothered bringing up from the stores. For Coke,sweets,crisps,shower gel,toothpaste etc you will purchase this from the Bond Store or "Slop Chest" as some people prefer to call it. Prices are pretty cheap, for example a 24 pack of coke on my ship costs around $10, you can't buy them individually usually so have to settle for the big crate. Often it is the 3rd Officer who deals with the bond store, it will be open usually 1/2 times a week, at the end of the month your bill is sent to your company/Training agency and then the amount due is deducted from your wages. The bond store will be shut in port but if you get a chance for some shore leave you can go out and find some local shops and stock up that way if you wish.


Q3/ EXPENDITURE AT SEA:

This is very much a personal thing and depends on what type of ship you are on and where you trade, if you get chances to go ashore in nice ports obviously you will spend more money. If you don't go ashore and don't buy anything from the bond store then you won't spend a penny but that's unlikely. Also do you smoke, fags are very cheap on most ships but its still an extra cost. To give you an example, in nearly two months on board I have spent Total around ?40 from the bond store (initially was smoking but quit 10 days ago!) and I have spent around ?150 in total when on shore leave which was in China twice and India twice.

Hope you find that helpful, any other questions don't hesitate to ask I remember what it felt like for me when I was a first trip cadet and all the questions I had!

[mickey6]

Hi Mickey, welcome to the Forum! Who is your Sponsor Company, I notice you list ship type as possibly LPG/LNG/Tankers/Ro-Ro, just wondering if you are with the same lot as me!

I am currently on my final trip as an Engine cadet.

Q1/ INTERNET:

This depends on the company,however it would seem that a large number of ships have internet connection now. My last two ships (Deep Sea) have both had internet provided free by the company. You can access it throughout the ship via Wi-Fi on Laptops/I Pads etc, it works well most of the time but as it uses satellites it can play up a bit now and again. The speed is ok but sites like You-Tube and other streaming/Downloading/adult sites are all blocked. Some ports around the world have a free Wi-Fi connection or will provide your ship with the security code to access it if you ask nicely.
There will always be a couple of computers with an internet connection for company e-mails etc even if there isn't Wi-Fi, usually cadets can access this if they wish to e-mail their family/friends etc, all e-mails can be viewed by Master/company this way so no slagging anybody off!!!

Q2/ WATER/DRINKS ETC:

There are usually a few water fountains on ships located in E/R,Bridge,Accommodation etc also there is tea/coffee making facilities in ECR/Bridge/Mess room, usually you eat in the officers mess as a cadet and therefore can access the pantry fridge which has cold drinks like Orange Juice/Apple juice or whatever the Messman can be bothered bringing up from the stores. For Coke,sweets,crisps,shower gel,toothpaste etc you will purchase this from the Bond Store or "Slop Chest" as some people prefer to call it. Prices are pretty cheap, for example a 24 pack of coke on my ship costs around $10, you can't buy them individually usually so have to settle for the big crate. Often it is the 3rd Officer who deals with the bond store, it will be open usually 1/2 times a week, at the end of the month your bill is sent to your company/Training agency and then the amount due is deducted from your wages. The bond store will be shut in port but if you get a chance for some shore leave you can go out and find some local shops and stock up that way if you wish.


Q3/ EXPENDITURE AT SEA:

This is very much a personal thing and depends on what type of ship you are on and where you trade, if you get chances to go ashore in nice ports obviously you will spend more money. If you don't go ashore and don't buy anything from the bond store then you won't spend a penny but that's unlikely. Also do you smoke, fags are very cheap on most ships but its still an extra cost. To give you an example, in nearly two months on board I have spent Total around ?40 from the bond store (initially was smoking but quit 10 days ago!) and I have spent around ?150 in total when on shore leave which was in China twice and India twice.

Hope you find that helpful, any other questions don't hesitate to ask I remember what it felt like for me when I was a first trip cadet and all the questions I had!

Thanks for the reply. Really helps.

Internet sounds great. E-mail is all i'm really looking for. As long as I can keep in contact with folk back home.

What about phoning home? Can you use things like skype on board? Also are you posting from you ship at the moment?

Looking to spend as little as possible when away. Get my car insurance due at the end of my sea phase. So it could be a challenge.

I quit smoking exactly 1 year ago this week. Worried that when I get to sea it might make me start again though,

Thanks again,

Mick

[SWonder]

No problem Mickey,

Yes I am posting from the Ship at the moment in the Indian Ocean!

I can use Skype but sometimes the quality is pretty bad to be honest, the messaging feature is fine on it though.

It might prove tricky spending very little, especially if you go to nice places and get the chance to go ashore....you might never be back there and its all part of the experience as a cadet so you might as well make the most of it. Car Insurance at the end of Sea phase? I was lucky in that my insurance ran out just before I left, my MOT was due and Tax so I just declared it off road and will deal with it when I am back.

Ah congratulations on the quitting smoking, its crazy because I quit on my last ship for nearly 4 months and a good bit of time when I got back home but as soon as I started going out drinking I started having the odd one then it just escalated and before I knew it I was smoking again! Have quit again on here so will be smoke free for 3 months + at least!

[SWonder]

Oh sorry meant to add, usually there is a satellite phone you can use to call home. All crew get an individual pin number from the Captain to use and again at the end of the month these charges will be sent to your company. Its really cheap though to phone the UK and the quality is excellent.

[Clanky]

All of these things vary massively from ship to ship.

For example on cruise ships you normally have to pay for internet access, on a tanker it will usually be free. The speed will vary massively depending on the ship, on here it is slower than continental drift, so Skype is out of the question, although I have worked on ships where Skype video calls were possible.

Same on a cruise ship you will normally have to buy bottled water, some cargo ships it is free and others you have to pay. (We have it supplied for free on here). Soft drinks are usually for purchase, but again my present company supplies them free. Bridge and ECR fridges are usually well stocked with them.