#8. A Week on the R/V ISABU

I cannot believe I have been on the R/V Isabu for over a week already. Things have been moving steadily on the ship and we have been getting a lot of sampling done. I think most everyone has gained their sea legs at this point. We all seem to be unconsciously swaying to counter the rocking of the boat while we work. Unless we have a large roll of the ship from a big wave, I no longer notice or actively think about the movement of the ship. We have finally slowed down the frequency of sampling to a manageable pace by decreasing the speed at which we travel between sampling stations. The increased time between stations has allowed me to have an almost regular sleep schedule.

Personally, I have really gotten into the groove of sampling and have a very efficient system and order for processing my samples after I collect them at each station. On top of that, I know all of the steps that I need to do for this processing by heart, so I can play music or listen to podcasts while I work without being slowed down. Since I am in a lab by myself most of the time, listening to something else while I work makes it more enjoyable and upbeat. Fortunately, I had downloaded a lot of music and podcasts in advance so I would not need to rely on my limited access WiFi to listen.

In between sampling, we have also been enjoying the spectacular views over the water and eating quite a bit of ice cream! Overall, we have been very well fed on the ship. Rice and soup are staples of Korean food, so some version of both are available at every meal. There is also a buffet of various vegetables and meats to choose from for the main course of the meal. Then most meals are ended with a serving of fruit for dessert, where we have been given everything from kiwi and pineapples to plums and grapes. For me, the biggest difference in meals on the ship is the fact that we use chopsticks as our main utensil, only supported by a spoon for the soup. I have definitely been playing a version of The Karate Kid in my head where by the end of time on the ship I will become a master of using chopsticks!

The photos above include views from the ship while the sun was rising over the Indian Ocean, a photo of our CTD rosette being pulled out of the ocean at night filled with water samples, a couple of photos of me doing some of my sample processing, and a picture of the dining room where we eat all of our meals.