Being a seafarer is enduring weeks and even months on board a vessel without setting foot on land. No wonder people of this profession (especially me) tend to get exuberant and excited once arriving on a certain port. The main reason: shore leave (though this doesn’t happen every time the ship is on port). These two words perfectly denote a total escape from day to day hard work on the ship, a moment of relaxation, setting eyes on new and various places and of course, the answer to month-long yearning to walk on dry land.
One of the most memorable shore leave that I have experienced so far was that on Bruges, Belgium. Our ship was moored on Zeebrugge port so we are privileged to go downtown. It was my first time to walk on a European land and I was anxious to see lots of scenic places on this municipality. Unfortunately, we only have a limited time to roam around and we have to return to the ship for our port duties. Nonetheless, we took some photos along the road for souvenir and bought some Belgian chocolates for pasalubong.
