28-11-2025
Den 28. november, en dag der startede som så mange andre. Vi blev vækket kl 7.30 og hopper ud af hængekøjen, pakker den sammen og gør klar til mønstring kl 8. Det første punkt på dagsordenen er ’Marlinspike Seamanship’ hvor vi skal lære at lave et ’eye splice’ med et andet slags reb end det vi plejer at bruge.
Derefter fik vi ’Marine Tech’ hvor vi i dag snakkede om måder at søsikre ting på, så de ikke skøjter eller flyver rundt når skibet gynger. Vi sad udenfor, og lige pludselig kom den vagthavende officer og afbrød undervisningen med at der var en stor hval lige ved siden af skibet. Alle rejste sig op og gik hen til bagbord side for at se hvalen som meget kort lige kunne ses i overfladen før den dykkede igen. Der gik lidt tid (med ingenting at se) før vi gik tilbage til undervisningen. 5 minutter senere blev der igen råbt: ”HVAL!” nede agter, og alle rejste sig igen og gik op for at se hvalen, hvor man igen lige kunne se ryggen og finnen før den dykkede en sidste gang. I løbet af resten af dagen så vi ikke mere til den. Tilbage ved undervisningen blev vi delt op i grupper og sendt ud for at prøve at søsikre på nogle forskellige måder.
Sidste punkt på dagsordnen før aftensmad var ’Captain’, hvor kaptajnen fortalte om de forskellige certifikater vi modtager når vi afmønstrer i Malaga, derudover fik vi også nogle visdomsord med på vejen fra den erfarne kaptajn.
Så var der aftensmad, hvor vi blev nødt til at skynde os lidt da vores skifte havde aftenvagten fra 18-22 lige efter aftensmad. Så vi skyndte os at spise maden, rydde op og få hængt vores hængekøjer op, så de var klar til efter vagten.
Selve vagten var en af de mest spændene jeg selv har oplevet. Vi startede vagten med allerede at have alle sejlene (som er påmonterede) sat… et fantastisk syn. Vi blev dog ret hurtigt nødt til at tage dem alle ind da der ingen vind var, til dette fik vi nogle hjælpere fra nogle af de andre skifter, da det er mange sejl at håndtere. Det hjalp også markant, da vi skulle tage dem ned hurtigst muligt, hvilket betyder at man kan komme til at stå klar og vente 1 eller 2 sejl før kvartermesteren er klar og giver kommandoen. Efter alle sejl var taget ind havde vi lige pludselig en hel masse reb på dækket som skulle ryddes op. (Dækket lignede lidt en nudelsuppe). Efter at have ryddet op på dækket blev vi delt op i mindre grupper og sendt op i riggen for at fastgøre (’furle’) sejlene, da de bare hang lidt løst efter vi havde hevet dem op. Selv kom jeg helt op i toppen af den forreste mast, hvilket virkelig var fedt, specielt da jeg aldrig havde været så højt oppe i riggen før. Efter at have fastgjort sejlet kravlede vi ned igen og os der havde sejlvagt skulle vaske vores arbejdstøj, de andre havde bare fri og havde jo også hjulpet i deres fritid.
Arbejdstøjet blev skrubbet, vasket og hængt op. Derefter skulle vi få en ny vagthavende kvartermester til at fortsætte resten af vagten med os. Imens vi ventede stod vi og snakkede og hyggede os. På et tidspunkt kom den vagthavende officer og satte os i gang med at sortere affald, så vi opdelte os selv ud på de forskellige poster og gik i gang med de forskellige opgaver, nogle på madaffald, nogle på plastikaffald, nogle på papir osv.
Efter affaldet var sorteret havde vi stadig 20-25 minutter tilbage af vores vagt, hvilket passede perfekt med at mig og en anden lige kunne nå op øverst i hovedmasten og fikse den ene side af sejlet deroppe, da der var lidt problemer med det tidligere. Det betød at jeg kom helt op i toppen af både den forreste og midterste mast på én aften, hvilket virkelig var fedt, specielt når jeg ikke engang har været oppe i masten særlig mange gange endnu. Da vi kom ned fra riggen passede det perfekt med at vores vagt var ovre og vi kunne gå ned i banjen og lægge os op i hængekøjerne, efter en virkelig virkelig fed nattevagt.
-Elev #76
27-11-2025
Ca. 470 nautical miles from Algeciras, Spain.
It’s been around 24 days since my last entry in this diary from voyage 123 on Training Ship DANMARK.
A lot has happened since and I’m really happy to say that I believe we trainees have pushed ourselves a lot and are now starting to get the gist of the maritime world, merchant marine and the discipline/art of sailing with the wind in general.
Now we are finally getting to handle and set the uppermost sails on the masts, being the topgallant and royal, which is really fulfilling.
Besides this we are expected to start being able to take in the sails and set them ourselves, therefore we are focusing on practicing, getting better and good cooperation.
We left the Azores around 5 days ago (Date and time varies more than usual these days) and to see Sao Miguel throughout the morning, with its volcanoes and green, trapeze-formed mountain fields, slowly disappearing in the horizon behind us, that was a special moment.
Today we’ve been sailing against the wind, trying to get on the top of a high pressure, which we then plan to follow down towards The Pillars of Hercules and enter the Strait of Gibraltar.
I’m looking forward to entering this area, seeing how close the coasts are, and how many ships we meet.
Most of all to reach Algeciras and be able to have some time for ourselves to go experience the city and all the culture that will be possible.
Best regards, No.07
PS: There’s been rumors that we may have the time to go swimming by the ship, if we drop anchor before reaching harbor, so wish us luck!
26-11-2025
Elev 14
Kære følgere af dette vidunderlige skønne togt. Jeg har i dagens anledning fået lov til at berige jeres kedelige og grå dagligdag derhjemme, med dette højtidelige skriv, i et indblik af min dag som elev på skoleskibet Danmark. Da agerhønen galte her til morges, og jeg skulle bevæge mig ud af min dejlige, varme, bløde hængekøje efter den korte og jammerlige søvn jeg havde i forlængelse af gårsdagens strabadser, kunne jeg mærke min motivation var intet eksisterende. Et blik rettet til bagbord, dernæst et blik rettet mod styrbord, og jeg kunne se at mine kammesjukker, havde den samme entusiasme for dagens forløb som jeg selv. Men efter et ganske kort, men forfriskende bad var alle bekymringer borte med blæsten. I dagens anledning, fik jeg æren af at være en del af køkkenholdet, hvilket for mit vedkommende er det ypperste man kan opnå heromkring. Med ikke mindre end en trekvart fod inde af døren til kabyssen, blev jeg mødt af det største smil man kan se i miles omkreds, vores rare køkkenherre. Glæderne ville stadig ingen ende tage, da den første tår kaffe ramte mine smagsløg og den varme aromatiske væske spredte sig rundt i munden på mig, og den søde følelse bredte sig ud til hvert enkelt lille hårstrå på min krop. Da jeg lever efter mottoet: ”man skal ikke skyde bjørnen, før skindet er solgt”, havde jeg en vag mistanke om at jeg trods omstændighederne, skulle gøre dagens gode gerning. Og minsandten om jeg fik ret i den mistanke, knofedt skulle der lægges i, og boller blev der bagt, til samtlige ildsjæle på skibet, lige fra de autoritære officerer, til de ikke lige så autoritære elever.
Da den første morgensol bevægede sig over himmelhvælvet, og solens varme stråler ramte min krop, gik det da op for mig, at dette ville blive en forrygende dag, men man skal altid passe på med at tage glæderne på forskud, som min gamle tipoldefar engang lærte mig. Lige som jeg stod og nød min dejlige kop kaffe i solens varmende stråler, blev jeg mødt af enhver elevs mareridt, en kvartermester på udkig efter elever der trodser reglementet. Da tog min glæde en markant drejning, og jeg blev sendt ned på banjen, dybt nede, langt væk fra den dejlige sol, for at indtage min nu bitre kaffe. Men lige ved og næsten, og den her elev kunne ikke slås af hesten. Efter en kortere betænkningstid, bestemte jeg mig for at tage en velfortjent lur, på den blødeste madras der eksisterer nord for ækvator. Frisk og veludhvilet som en havmåge, var jeg nu klar til at tage kampen op mod det beskidte service, mine medsejlende havde fordærvet deres mad fra. Efter en lang og sej kamp, som efter min egen mening ingen ende ville tage, stod jeg nu som sejrherre i skylleriet, yderst velfornøjet kunne jeg nu igen nyde det gode selskab fra mine kammesjukker. Der stod vi, alle de gode mennesker der findes omkring mig, og lo i solen, nu var der intet der kunne stå i vejen mellem denne finurlige dag og mit boblende humør. Men lige som jeg stod der på mit allerhøjeste, uden den fjerneste tanke om at dagen kunne blive bedre, fik jeg endnu en glædelig nyhed. Besætningen havde ikke appetitten til at indtage, den absurde mængde af kage de havde fået serveret, så som de ådselædende elever vi nu engang er, skulle vi selvfølgelig have æren af resterne. Man sår heldigvis som man høster, og kagen smagte endnu mere himmelsk, end vi nogensinde havde turdet drømme om.
Da vi sad ved aftensbordet, som så mange aftener forinden, og snakkede om dagen der havde passeret, og hvilke oplevelser vi var taknemmelige over i dagens løb, da blev jeg helt i tvivl, for hvordan kan man monstro, koge sådan en fabelagtig dag ned til blot nogle korte punkter. Men for mit vedkommende var højdepunktet at blive irettesat, for der findes intet bedre end at lære nye ting, så jeg kan vokse som menneske.
I nattens løb sætter vi uret en time frem, og trods vi får en times mindre søvn, og stadig skal på nattevagt, skal det ikke stoppe min motivation for tjenesten her på båden. For jeg ved, at trods vi kun får en kort og skrækkelig nattesøvn, så er jeg frisk og veludhvilet som altid og topmotiveret for endnu en dags tjeneste og skole her på dette fantastiske skib.
25-11-2025
18 Marie
Today we entered the rig for the first time. Normally I am not scared of heights but climbing up there gave me a bad feeling in my stomach. I will never understand how seafarers used to do that without any safety. Other than that I still am not used to my hammock and I am starting to be very tired. I will try to get some sleep now.
21-11-2025
Last day in Ponta Delgada, 36 Øjvind
Today both the watches got to have shore leave. In order to fairly distribute the time on shore one half had the morning and the other the afternoon. From morning until 3pm, our watch had the pleasure of plundering the island of food, candy and soft drinks. In the words of our chief maid “leave some candy for the next watch”. It was a sight to behold watching the group of 40 sailors in uniform slowly dissolve into the town, I believe the locals thought the same.
My shore leave was spent on many things most notably buying a guitar; something which I’ve been missing since departure day in Frederikshavn. The hope is that the guitar can help us trainees keep a steady beat and tone during morning singalongs. I think we need all the help we can get (at least that’s what we’ve been getting as feedback from the crew).
When coming back from shore leave we did the necessary maintenance to get the ship ready to sail tomorrow. Bending on new sails, removing harbor lights and so on.
Concerning the Island; it is really as green and lush as I’ve been told, and I don’t think I’ll ever forget it. From the tops of the old cloud-covered volcanos to the secluded natural hot springs the island has much more to offer than we could manage given our time restraints. I am however still glad that I got to experience as much as I did, and with me I take my guitar, ready for the next stop Algeciras, Spain.
20-11-2025
It has been the second day in the harbor of Ponta Delgada. Life on bord is very different compared to the sea. And sometimes you are actually not quite sure how to feel about it. I mean, it’s necessary to head back to the harbor, but still it can feel like returning to something flat and dull.
Nevertheless, I was really looking forward for the Azores. I’ve been here before, and it’s one of the most beautiful natures I’ve ever seen.
Today it was starboard watch which had Shore leave and Port watch was making sure the Danmark is safe and in a perfect shape. We had a lot going on. Andreas, Storm, Buster and I used the whole day (literally from 8 – 17 o’clock) to bend on the main and mizzen topgallant Staysails. We didn’t make it in time so they got done the days after. Now we have 2 more beautiful sails.
I can write nothing more about that, but the the day before we had an amazing shore leave so I rather write a bit about that.
The first thing I did when we had shore leave was calling my mum. Than I started to look for food and ended up with Øjvind, Simon, Jacob, Kalle and Immanuel in a very good little restaurant. The food was stunning. We ended up getting some swordfish and a lot of other good stuff. We couldn’t have been any luckier with the restaurant.
Afterwards we rented a car and Øjvind drove us to the east part of the island because we wanted to see the nature and the hot springs. It was amazing and I have to admit that I maybe don’t have the words to describe how happy we were and how beautiful it was. We went to “Lagos Do Fogo” and got hit by the biggest rain shower I’ve have ever experienced. We got completely soaked (like completely COMPLETELY). After that we took a bath in the hot springs.
Before we returned the car, we bought some snacks. It’s actually very funny how exited and overwhelmed you can get over the opportunities of a supermarket.
Speaking of food – the last thing we did was getting a Korean barbeque where we just kept ordering stuff. On the table we did a little grateful round (every evening second mess is doing a grateful round, where every person has to say three things he/she is grateful for). This day was absolutely perfect and I couldn’t name a thing that would have made the day any better.
We returned safely and on time to the “Danmark” and recommended stuff to the starboard watch.
Grüsse nach hause! Jule #6
Dagbog 16/11
I dag har også været en dejlig dag ombord DANMARK, som startede med nattevagt fra 2-4, og så ellers en lille powernap indtil 5.20; I dag har nemlig været en gul dag for First Quater. Mit mess sørgede for maden til alle ombord, med lidt hjælp fra Tonja og Bo. Jeg brugte dagen i Breadroom, hvor der altid er god energi, og plads til at lytte til god musik og danse lidt. Det er ret fedt at stå for maden ombord, for man kan altid komme med gode ideer, og så bliver alle så glade, når vi skal spise. Det har jo været søndag, så der var lækker morgenmad, og is til dessert. Vi lavede en god tomatsalat i dag, og i Galley blev der lavet en god dansk klassiker; flæskesteg med brunsovs, kartofler og rødkål, det faldt i ret god jord ombord.
Det har også været en lidt særlig dag, det har nemlig blæst ret meget i dag, så alle døre har været åbne under dækket (De er normalt ALTID lukket, for at skabe nogle forskellige afdelinger af skibet). Det betød at vi skulle spise morgenmad i fuldstændig stilhed, fordi portside banje lå og sov lige ved siden af, hvor vi spiste. Et stilhedsmåltid er ikke noget der sker ofte med 40 mennesker samlet, men faktisk en meget rolig måde at starte dagen på. Det er også interessant at skulle lave mad, mens skibet gynger ret intenst, og alting flyver rundt. Senere blev det bedre vejr, og vi kunne holde pause udenfor på Foksel. Jeg var heldig at have hele 2 timers fritid i dag, så der var tid til en god lur i biblioteket og et dejligt bad inden aftensmaden.
I nat kan vi sove længe, fordi vi først skal på vagt kl 4, det trænger man til efter en dag som Daymen.
Livet det er herligt her ombord – Trainee nr. 11 Signe
12-11-2025
´Kæmpe bølge dag´
Kære dagbog. I dag startede dagen klokken 6:30, præcis 30 minutter efter mit quarter og jeg var gået i seng efter nattens strabadser. Havet var faldet til ro, og alle var sultne oven på en lang nat, så vi gik ombord i de sædvanlige boller, havregrød, og cornflakes. Dagen i dag stod på undervisning hele dagen, og vi startede ud med en lektion om rygskader og bårehåndtering sammen med doktor Laust. Som sædvanligt på dagen efter nattevagt (hver dag) var folk trætte og kæmpede en brav kamp imod søvnens lune favn. Jeg er rimelig sikker på at jeg så Nils´ hage dale mod hans bryst i hvert fald 5 gange. Undervisningen forsatte, på trods af at bølgerne og den indædte kamp mod søvnen tog til. Det var nu Chief Engineer Mads´ tur til at stå ved tavlen. I tror måske en pumpe bare er en pumpe. Det siger Chief Engineer Mads, at det ikke er! Der findes adskillige arter af pumper og man bruger på maskinmesteruddannelsen 3 semestre på at lære om pumper?!
Så var det frokost. Vi spiste mens bølgerne var taget endnu mere til, og tingene stod ikke længere stille på bordet, hvilket resulterede i at Søren for femte gange fik en liter vand i skødet, og at søsygen meldte sin tilbagekomst hos Sarah-Louise, som har haft noget af en historie med denne. Efter vi havde færdiggjort frokosten, gik Laurits og jeg op på dækket for at kigge på bølgerne, der nu væltede ind over dækket. Vi hørte et par historier fra det andet quarter, om hvordan de var blevet skyllet rundt på dækket og havde været i riggen for at hive sejl op, på grund af det nu vilde vejr. Midt i alt dette kom kvartermester Signi og gav vores quarter ordre til at komme op på dækket iført sele og regntøj. Dette var dagens højdepunkt, og vi skyndte os ned og fortalte de andre, at vi nu skulle op på dækket. Stemningen var høj, og folk var spændte mens vi iførte os vores hjelme og gummistøvler. 15 minutter efter sad vi på raft-dækket, som en flok glade børnehavebørn iført matchende regntøj. Vi så igen og igen main-dækket blive oversvømmet af den ene bølge efter den anden, mens vi sad i sikkerhed, hvor kun få bølger ramte os. Pludselig så vi en gryde komme flyvende ud fra opvasken efterfulgt af Klara Frida, der virkede upåvirket af vejret. Officer of the watch, Karina, lagde mærke til dette. Jeg blev sendt ned med et par hjelme for at give dem til de to, der stod i opvasken. Da jeg på vej tilbage stod midt på main-dækket, rejste der sig fra styrbordside en enorm bølge, himlen blev sort. Den ramte dækket med et brag og skyllede direkte ned i mine gummistøvler. Jeg mærkede endda dækket rykke sig under mine fødder, da den skyllede forbi, min hånd på sikkerhedsrebet reddede mig fra at falde. Jeg kom tilbage til raft-dækket i sikkerhed. Spændingen havde nået sin top, og vi skulle nu ned og have navigation med Henrik efter en opkvikkende tur på dækket. Efter en god time med bøjer og fyrtårne, havde vi dagens sidste lektion om sikkerhed på skibet med Karina. Det sidste på dagens program var dog rengøring, hvilket efter min mening udføres en smule for hyppigt, men jo er en nødvendighed…
Nu var det tid til aftensmad, og alle blev ramt af træthed efter det mættende måltid, og den begivenhedsrige dag. Så nu sidder jeg her og har brugt en time på at skrive dette til jer, og har kun 10 minutter til at hænge min hængekøje op. Er heldigvis ekspert.
Sov godt og hav en god dag i morgen, hilsen Pelle #69
09-11-2025
After 1h30 hours of sleep we woke up again and had breakfast. If we were to sail directly to the azores we´d have strong headwind and showers so it´s been decided we´ll take refuge in the Bay of Biscay and then finally head west. So we started the day with bracing around the ship, which meant a lot of hauling and easing, coiling and hanging. We are getting better and better at knowing our lines and commands 🙂
Then my quarter had a practical seamanship class with the Chief Officer, where we learned short splicing and laughed at everyone in the main deck getting hit by waves.
And, since we´re heading west, we have to adjust the time: we set the clock one hour back at 12h, and got to enjoy a whole hour of free time. I tried to catch up on my sleep on 4 different shoulders and came back to classes a bit more rested.
We had dinner which included ice cream!! And rushed to get ready for our night shift. I started as helmsman at 18h and steered for one hour, always on course 165. Then had engine watch, was orderly and at 21h went to the focsle to be lookout. I started noticing some light spots in the sea and realized there was a lot of bioluminescence around us. It was a beautiful spectacle, every wave looked like a bunch of fireflies were swimming around. Then it got even better: there were two dolphins swimming alongside the ship, leaving a beautiful wavy green trail behind them. It felt like a movie.
Then the dolphins disappeared and slowly the bioluminescent thingies were sparser. I was relieved and went to sleep.
#9
08-11-2025
Hello back hoome!
Today has been really amazing. We have made it safely out of the north sea/English channel, and we can all feel it. First off The weather has been amazing all day, during all of our breaks we’ve been outside on the focsle and having a great time. Secondly the classes were pretty exciting, we started the day of with the doc. We had to practice cpr with dolls, which were a really nice breakaway from the classes. By that I mean that it usually is a bit boring. Mostly because you get used to being on your feet every day, and having to sit down is a bit of a bore 🙂 but not only was the daily classes exciting the night watch we had was very fun aswell. It was from 04 – 06, so we were up very early but it is actually kind of nice because you get a nice headstart on the day. But anyways during the night shift there weren’t much to do. But our quartermaster “Marie” made the best of it, she made us practice how to wake people up in the correct way, by telling them the time, the weather and what to wear to stay comfortable. She also taught us a fun song to remember the yards and which order they are in. To top it all of it was Anna’s – a girl from our quarters birthday today, which equals cake for the whole ship, we had “drømme kage” so that was very nice. And she must have had the best day, because today was also the first time we’ve seen dolphins!!! A good sign that we really are moving more south. It was really fun because everybody suddenly dropped everything to spot them.
As you hopefully can hear all is more than well, all though I really miss you all.
#59
07-11-2025
Today have been a really chill day. We started the day with a good breakfast as always, then we had cleaning and maintenance for the rest of the day. Before cleaning we had to pull a piece of paper from a bag which says which part of the ship you have to clean. I had library ward and have not yet had the heads (toilets), which I’m feeling lucky about each time we pull from the bag. We have also had the company of some dolphins for the first time on this trip which was nice then you feel like you actually are going further from Denmark, if it was not for going through the English Channel and seeing the white cliffs of Dover, I would still believe we were laying just outside Denmark’s coast. I can’t wait to get to the Azores where it’s a bit warmer and the water is a bit bluer. After cleaning we had maintenance and I have used the last 7 hours on painting and varnishing stuff and got the chance of using our new filter mask that we have been handed out. I felt like I looked like a pro but I defiantly wasn’t because it’s defiantly not easy painting things hanging in rope which is dangling from side to side because of the waves. After we were done with maintenance, we had the best spaghetti Bolognese which also were the talk of today and the excitement for Bo’s amazing food were next level. We also got to get the new sail up on the mizzen upper topsail which were exiting but also was why we got to eat without two from our mess because they were helping up there. Now I will set my hammock up and get to bed so I can get some sleep before night watch at 22. Goodnight from trainee 64.
05-11-2025
4. skifte blev vækket kl. 05.30. Jeg lå for en kort stund og sundede mig i min hængekøje, inden jeg tog mig sammen til at kravle ud af soveposen, smyge mig ud af hængekøjen og træde ned på det kolde gulv. Jeg tog mit tøj på og begav mig straks ud på dækket, hvor luften var kølig, og solen end ikke havde vist sine første stråler. Hurtigt ud på ét af de trange elevtoiletter, derefter ned for at pakke min hængekøje. Da den var pakket stramt sammen og stuvet af vejen, var det tid til at børste tænder. Jeg må have taget mig lidt for god tid, for pludselig fik jeg at vide, at der var ét minut til mønstring. Hurtigt greb jeg min klatresele og bevægede mig med raske skridt hen imod hoved-dækket. Her fik jeg dagens anden overraskelse – jeg skulle være på rotation de første seks timer af vagten; min klatresele skulle ikke bruges alligevel. Da jeg ville lægge den tilbage, var der kø indtil rummet, hvor de opbevares, så jeg fik én af mine kammerater til at hænge den på plads.
Jeg gik tilbage til hoveddækket og ind ad en tung dør i bagbord side. Derefter gik jeg ned ad to stejle lejdere. Jeg befandt mig nu i skibets hjerte, nemlig maskinrummet. Her tilbragte jeg den næste time – jeg aflæste temperaturer og tryk på nedkølingsvæske og olie. Da jeg var færdig, satte jeg mig på en taburet og læste i en af maskinrummets bøger – denne omhandlede den årlige kapsejlads Fyn Rundt.
Da jeg kom op fra maskinrummet var skibet vågnet og der hørtes snak og latter fra blåklædte unge mennesker, overalt på dækket. Jeg skulle være ordonans, så jeg rapporterede til den vagthavende kvartermester, der hurtigt satte mig i gang med at hjælpe hende med at sortere madaffald. Vi stod foroverbøjede med hver vores gennemsigtige plasticpose med madaffald, og sorterede banan-skræller, stumper af selleri, plastikfilm og vindruestilke fra. Derved kunne vi komme det inspicerede affald i ”smoothiemakeren”, der, som navnet antyder, blender affaldet til en grødet substans. Denne substans blev opfanget i en spand og til sidst smidt på den blå hylde, i strakt arm.
Da vi havde sorteret i en halv times tid, informerede kvartermesteren mig om, at det var min tur til at spise morgenmad. Arbejdet var foregået uden handsker, så jeg vaskede mine hænder grundigt to gange, hvorpå jeg gik ned på banjen for at spise morgenmad. En stor skål jordbæryoghurt med cornflakes, en halv bolle med skæreost og én med hjemmelavet hindbærmarmelade. Morgenmaden blev hurtigt fortæret, da jeg skulle videre på rotation.
I skrivende stund er klokken 20.31, lyset er blevet slukket på banjen og jeg skal på nattevagt kl. 03.30, så jeg indstiller skrivningen her
Elev nr. 54
03.11.2025
Today has been a good day.
The past few days has been affected a lot by the mass amount of people puking – including myself with a score of 11 – but now I seems that the seasickness has gone away, and the vomit zombies have risen from their slumber. So that’s a relief! Otherwise not much has happened for me today, it has been a pretty chill day (which is rare). The topic of the day has been the engine malfunction (which was quickly fixed), giga waves and a lot of people getting swept and soaked by a shipboarding wave, including myself.
I hope I will go up in the rigging tonight. That I by far my favorite activity. The feeling of being 20 meters up in the air with the wind blowing, is the best ever! I will end my diary on that note since I’m having nightwatch in two hours.
Goodbye
02.11.2025
To rise anew.
(An excerpt of the diary from Training Ship “DANMARK”)
This is the day we made some way as trainees on board this old, beautiful full-ship.
We’ve now sailed for half a week or so and the last two days were a little windy. So much so, that ca. 20% of the trainees have been uneasy, some in need of assistance and others in hard denial (either way you have to get through it), but this reality changed today.
We shuffled, fell or jumped out of the hammocks with smiles on our faces, because we knew that today was a Sunday and a great breakfast was coming and when we then mustered, now suddenly with sun instead of rain in our faces, we were again calm and ready to drop sails and make them steady.
My quarter’s been practicing in the rig most of the day, moving around on the masts, trying our best to make the sails tight and look proper while keeping our balance and feeling the movement over the waves.
We’re still a little footloose on the deck in general, especially standing still with our hands behind our backs, but looking across the deck to the port-side watch, I could see my fellow trainees breathing slowly and feeling the fresh wind and I’m sure that starboard watch did the same. Then I knew, that we were starting to fathom what the coming months would bring and at last understanding, that we’d have to stand together and find creative ways of balancing restoration with concentration.
I have no doubt that we’ll figure it out.
To be working, sleeping, learning and walking around on a moving vessel like this, is something that I already know I’ll never forget and to be honest it’s starting to be something I cherish.
With kind and motivational regards,
Trainee 07
01.11.2025
I am writing this after a cold start to November. The day started at 5.25 with a yellow day. The day consisted of sail watch and rotations for me. In the morning, I was immediately put as second helmsman because of the rough weather. The helmsman position consists of steering the boat. During this time the sea got rougher by the hour and the seasickness started to affect most of the ship. The waves was up to 5 meters and some of the big ones rolled on to the deck and flushed trainees in the gutter, I had the best view over the chaos from the helmsman position. The rest of the day was simple tasks that made the day go by fast.
The food was also great as usual and after writing this I am going to have a nice sleep before my night watch at 4 in the morning.
Today was a good day!
#70
31.10.2025
31. October 2025 – Trainee 23 – Laurits R.
Today started at 06.00 and I haven’t slept much last night. After some delicious breakfast I had the engine watch, followed by helms watch. I was steering the ship. I completely lost the direction but luckily the first officer helped my steer us back on course. These watches were followed by a lookout watch, were you really get the possibility to enjoy the ocean views, the waves, lots of different kinds of ships and even oil rigs. You spend a lot of time alone and get the opportunity to reflect and think about your life on the DANMARK.
After this we had sails watch, where we helped taking care of the deck and even had the chance to climb the jibboom in the rough water. This felt like a wet rollercoaster in the middle of the sea. The funniest moment of our voyage so far happened today because a trainee puked the officer of the watch straight in the head from up above in the mast.
The sea sickness has reached it’s peak and Tobias puked no less than 21 times yesterday. Last night my quartermate Luna had a little vomit accident on the ladder in the mast and we had a slippery and smelly time getting down the mast.
The waves have been getting bigger and we’ve seasecured the deck with nets so no one will be thrown overboard
All in all, today we’ve been really sleepy and are excited to sleep, but were ready to continue this amazing adventure. It’s been a tough, challenging and exciting day with plenty of new things to learn.
Today ends with a great lasagna and bedtime at 20.00 getting ready for new horizons, challenges and a lovely lovely night watch tonight from 04-06.
To round off I will end with a quote from first officer Poulsen (who today told us our speed was about 3km/h) “We may not be going fast, but we’re making sailors fast”.
30.10.2025
`Pukeship Danmark´
Today was our first full day of sailing, for my quarter it started early with our first sailing watch from 02:00 – 04:00. Two hours of just bracing the mast, the time flew by and before I knew it it, we were already being released by the next watch. During the night watch there were quite a few trainees that started feeling seasick, but being back in the hammocks for a few hours of sleep definitely helped for some.
Putting the hammocks down in the morning on the other hand, was a very different story, breakfast wasn’t that pleasant for everyone. We started the morning by cleaning, we got separated in a group that does not get seasick in the front of the ship and the others. Cleaning at sea, while rolling is definitely more of an challenge than laying still at harbor.
After cleaning we started with an introduction about tools with the bosun, this presentation was given in the forward hold, that is a room under the deck. A lot of people started feeling very rough down there, and the puking buckets made an appearance in the room. Afterwards we had lunch and then for the rest of the day lessons outside, first we split up in messes and the 6th mess got the task to set and take up the fore course multiple times. 8th mess was assigned to the mizzen topmast staysail, we took it up and down around 3 times just to get the hang of it. The next thing was going up in the rigging and onto the yards for the people that were approved, the others were allowed to go in the jibnet.
During the day stories about the previous night watch were spread, puking in the mast, tripping on the deck, and the puke bucket in the engine room, were hot topics today. The highlight of the day on the other hand: People getting hit by puke from the yard, its almost like we are in the movie `Its raining meatballs´, just a bit different.
That was the day of an trainee in 8th mess on trainingshipdanmark.
#74
29.10.2025
Today we had sail duty and departure day meaning we are the first to actually sail the ship. Another thing is we finally passed our hammock inspection and now don’t have to have our hammocks checked before muster. After we prepared the last things and departed. I learned that when waving goodbye from the ship we stand in lines and the quartermaster marks when to bow and wave. I started as orderly, but I only had to close some doors before relieving the lookout. Then it turned 12 and I became sail duty on deck and just made det anker hole watertight using rags and a stick for 1,5 hours. People soon became seasick and puked though its understandable since some parts of the ship are really moving, though the captain said it is just getting worse the next 4 days. I also went into rigging to stow the main upper topsail and what an experience that was, feeling the ship moving in a whole new way and seeing the horizon only way to describe it is wow and beautiful.
#10
27.10.2025
Today I accidentally woke up the trainee next to me when I had too pee in the night, still feel a bid bad about it. But we could sleep extra in tonight since its winter time and we are getting quick with our hammocks, so an extra 1 hour and 20 minutes. Since it is Sunday, we got scrambled eggs and bacon with buns with peanut butter, jam and Nutella. We were then taught how to go on sail watch and what to do in different roles. After that we went to the rigging and almost set one of the sails but we ran out off time and had to tighten it back up again. Then lunch with pork jaw and gravy. After that we saw all the fire fighting equipment and water tight doors and how use and close them. We prepared for open ship but we parents weren’t coming and all the jobs too do were taken so I just read and played cards with some other trainees. Followed by dinner with pork tenderloin and mashed potatoes with gravy (I mean they are just fattening us up before the voyage where we are going to get the food that doesn’t spoil easily). Then last we scrubbed our pants and smocks on deck by hand and hang them up on drying lines.
#6
26.10.2025
Hello Everybodyyyy,
It’s sailors Sunday. And as if this is not good enough we started our day with 1 hours and 20 min more sleep than usually due to the change to the wintertime and our fast hammock skills 🙂 AMAZING. That makes the sailors Sunday even better.
After breakfast we learned a lot about watertight doors and sprinklers. Safety First!
The Crew also explained to us how to do the Lookout, be a helmsman or how to do the Engine Watch. Quarter two, paid a lot of attention since we are the first watch when we departure on Wednesday. (Very much looking forward for that 🙂 And we don’t want to look like “fishes out of the water”.
During the day we went up in the rigging and set and packed some Lower Topsails and the outer Jib. Entering the rigging is still very new for all of us, so most of us are pretty excited about it but sometimes it does get a bit scary. Anyways in the end of the voyage we are going to be pros 🙂
Maybe some of you have actually seen us today, since we had an open ship. I can tell I saw a lot of happy parents and relatives. The Trainees which didn’t have any relatives coming, kept the system running and helped out in the gally or bread room. Martin and I for example prepared (and already ate 🙂 some ice cream for diner.
Now I’m very much looking forward for my hammock. It’s even more cozy than I thought.
Gruesse Jule (Nr. 6)
25.10.2025
Today my mess where the daymen meaning we were woken at 05:20 and I was in the scullery (dishwashing) all the time except a nice 4-hour break in the middle of the day. We got some nice new clothes that looks like something from the 80’ies in style, but they are surprisingly warm. Though the nice thing about being a dayman is you can drink coffee whenever you want, as long the galley is not too busy. Though we had to stay long to do the last dishes and clean, but our hammocks was already put up so it was just straight too bed.
#18
23.10.2025
Sådan er det med mange ting. Der er så uendelig mange nye indtryk, termer, oplevelser, eventyr der alt sammen skal nås. På så forfærdelig kort tid. Vi kører med et hæsblæsende tempo, men folk tager det i stiv arm, og altid med et klap på skulderen og et smil på læben. Det er virkelig en gave at være med.
Men for at vende tilbage til, hvad vi har foretaget os på vores først fulde dag. Mig og mit quarter havde vores første gule dag. Her ombord betyder det, at vi skulle hjælpe med at brødføde besætningen, og sejle skibet. Mig (nr 1) og Malthe (nr 3) havde til opgave at hjælpe til med tilberedningen af morgenmaden. Her på skibet består det af koldhævede morgenboller med tandsmør og hjemmelavet marmelade. Dernæst afløste vi de to, der stod i scullery og overtog deres tjans som var opvask.
Herefter hjalp vi lidt til i det kolde køkken med forberedelsen af aftenens salat, som bestod af tyndt snittet spidskål og granatæblekerner.
Alt i alt kan man ikke klage over tilværelsen her. Vi bliver stopfodret med lækkerier og oplever de fedeste ting. Dog må jeg erkende, at vejret ikke har været med os de sidste par dage. Men ak, mere kan man ikke forvente af Danmark, så er det godt vi sætter kursen mod noget varmere snart:)
Vi er spændte og forhåbningsfulde og håber at gå en fantastisk tid i møde!
Bedste hilsner til alle derhjemme, Selma nr 1
22.10.2025
I går ankom vi på skibet lidt over 13:00. vi afleverede vores mobiler efter at have skrevet de mest nødvendige e-mailadresser ned. Der efter blev vi sendt over på skolen for at hente vores sailorsbag. Efter det fik vi rundvisning på skibet, en masse praktiske informationer og en hængekøje. Første nat i hængekøjen var hård, og kan godt mærke at den lige skal rettes lidt til.
#12