Jeff Spotting - Catch Up

Contrary to popular belief, I did not fall of the edge of the map (it's not so much a map as a chart, in Navy terminology). We did, however, travel to the underside of the world, where it is now winter.

I had to look back to see which was the last port that I wrote about pulling into since I haven't written in awhile. Busan...

Since then, we stopped in Yokosuka Japan (home of the US Seventh Fleet), Nagoya Japan (where we visited an awesome Toyota factory and I got a picture of a water fountain and giant antenna), and Townsville Australia (the culprit of the pictures with wombats and snakes via the Billabong Animal Sanctuary). I also ate this ridiculous hamburger...

We also conducted the fabled crossing the line ceremony (the Wikipedia entry is poorly written, but it was the best I could find online), as we passed over the equator, in which King Neptune (or Poseidon for those who prefer the Greek nomenclature – the US Navy prefers the Roman variety: Neptunus Rex, Ruler of the Raging Main) and Davy Jones visit the ship to evaluate the seaworthiness of all the slimy pollywogs to become honorable shellbacks. The ceremony has become rather tame in recent years, but it is still an enjoyable experience. I did my first in 2005 aboard the USS PEARL HARBOR.

Additionally, we’ve been participating in a joint US-Australian military exercise called Talisman Saber. I know I haven’t mentioned much (or at all) about the missions we’re conducting out here yet, but I’ll get to that once I am able.

-Jeff