06 November, 2014
Marina Port de Mallorca was visited by Kapitan Borchardt, a training ship from 1918. The vessel has a crew of 4 people: captain, cook, engineer and bosun. The rest of the crew changes weekly or every two weeks with new students eager to learn to sail and enjoy the sea in a different way than usual.
This vessel has an antiquity of 96 years and a lot of history behind it, but since it changed ownership three years ago, is dedicated to teaching the nautical world to people who do not necessarily have experience in it. According to Thomas, the captain of this centennial yacht, al students as part of the crew are involved in all the process, "is better for people to be part of it. They steer, they do navigation... The aim was to have a proper ship with ropes and hard work, and sail a bit further than Stockholm or Poland” he says. Nevertheless, it is very different to sail with this crew rather than with experienced people, because as Thomas tells us, "is the same sailing, we’ve got sails, we’ve got sea, but everything is more difficult. Normally you’d need 1 person to set up sails, and here you need 8 or 9. Besides, they need to work together at one time, so its a good team building".
His stop in Marina Port de Mallorca is part of their usual itinerary usually planned every three days based on the weather forecast. They have chosen theis facilities because they like the environment, "the people here are very friendly, helping us with anything we need and are always ready."
During winter, Kapitan Borchardt is based in the Mediterranean because temperatures are pleasant, and in summer they make voyages between the Baltic Sea, North Sea and the Norwegian Sea.
