THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 24, 1995 TAG: 9506240336
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DAVE ADDIS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines
Somewhere just south of the Lambert's Point coal piers, the salsa music was cut abruptly from the shipboard loudspeakers and the cadets of the massive barque Simon Bolivar jumped to attention.
The quiet fell instantly. Two bosun's whistles piped out commands and more than 70 of Venezuela's finest young sailors scrambled into the rigging of one of the most splendid sailing vessels in the world.
The Venezuelan navy calls the 270-foot Simon Bolivar its nation's ``ambassador without frontiers,'' and the officers and crew, after more than a month at sea, were bent on making an impression on the city of Norfolk.
They did. From the crewmen on deck to the midshipmen standing formation at the top of the rigging, 14 stories above the waterline, the ship's company offered three ringing cheers of ``Viva! Viva! Viva'' to a delighted waterfront crowd.
The arrival of the Simon Bolivar capped Friday morning's parade of sail for eight tall ships that will spend the weekend in Norfolk before setting out Monday on a race to Long Island, N.Y. Each will be open for public visits today and Sunday, from 10 a.m. to sunset.
Moving down the Elizabeth River from the Hampton Roads harbor, the Simon Bolivar's crew had been showing signs of breaking out from 34 days at sea. As the salsa thumped from speakers fore and aft, teams of young midshipmen put on a display of line dancing and merengue moves right out the notorious discos of Caracas.
Any spectator boat within hailing distance - especially if it had women aboard - was treated to a spirited sing-song greeting, a boisterous yet polite salute in Spanish.
Much of the music and dance played out as the tall ships glided past the Norfolk Naval Station, where work crews were sweating out maintenance on such gray behemoths as the carriers America and George Washington. An American sailor watching this procession from the flight deck could not have helped feeling that the Venezuelan navy is a better deal all the way around.
A bemused Lt. Jose A. Meza smiled as his young Venezuelan charges worked off a little corrosion from their long haul at sea. ``They work very hard,'' Meza said, assuring visitors that the Simon Bolivar is by no means a party boat. ``Their days are long, the work is hard. From 7 in the morning until 1600 (4 p.m.) they work at training, and cleaning this whole ship. Then, after a little free time, they have classes and lectures.''
The ship is a floating, globe-wandering branch of the Venezuelan naval academy. It's where future officers - there are 102 midshipmen aboard - learn seamanship, navigation and leadership skills. And how to polish every centimeter of brass and mahogany on a ship where neither is in short supply.
Still, Meza said, assignment aboard the Bolivar is ``the best.'' A veteran of 13 years in the Navy and an instructor in weapons systems, he has done other tours on frigates and coastal defense ships. ``I love it,'' he said. ``To be at sea, what could be better?''
For the moment, any of the young sailors might have argued with Meza that they'd seen enough of the sea for a while. No Spanish interpreter was needed to understand that the middies felt it had been too long between shore leaves. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo VICKI CRONIS, Staff
Crew members aboard the Venezuelan barque Simon Bolivar scramble
into the rigging as the sailing vessel arrives in Norfolk Friday.
Color photo by Martin Smith-Rodden, Staff
by CNB