Ahoy! It has been a while.
This time last year, I was on my way to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii onboard Royal Malaysian Navy ship KD LEKIR to participate in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise.
The voyage started from Lumut Naval Base on 30th May 2022. My mother and sister along with her family came for the send-off. The whole assignment would take some three months, hence the big do, added to the fact that it’s only the second time the RMN sending a ship to RIMPAC.
The first leg of the journey got us to Kota Kinabalu on the fifth day, after sailing through the Malacca Straits and the South China Sea. I got to visit with Lt Asikin, my colleague at the Eastern Fleet Command and Cdr Suhaimi, who captained KD LEKIU in the 2018 RIMPAC.
I was really touched that Capt. Dr Hanani, a fellow STF alumni and a military doctor based at Lok Kawi Camp, raced to Sepanggar before we set sail again.
The next leg got more exciting, despite a few snags. We sailed into the Philippine Sea on Day 11. It is the largest sea in the world in terms of the surface area covered, stretching about 5.7 million square kilometers and lies in the western part of the North Pacific Ocean.
It took a week to get to Guam Naval Base and the weather was fair throughout, with a bit of pitching as we encountered headwinds. I was told that boredom will be the main enemy but I never had that problem.
My roommate, the medical assistant Sergeant Norazura, photographer Petty Officer Thasa and me spent most of the time together in the sickbay talking and planning all sorts of stuff. And watching sunsets when weather permitted. Among other things.
We arrived in Guam in the morning, my first time on the island. By mid afternoon, we were given shore leave and those not on duty took the opportunity to explore.
My buddies and I took the bus to town and ended up in a mall. Haha. What a Malaysian thing to do, huh. I’d rather be at the beach, though. But that’s a story for another day.
Three days in Guam was enough for an introduction and we were scheduled to stop there again on our way back. I went crazy at the supermarket stocking up on local cookies and coffee as well as fruits and American-sized snacks.
Yup, I bought food. And we’re already well fed by the chefs onboard. Ah well, two more weeks to Pearl Harbor.
To be continued…
