Hello friends and bloggers! Rio de Janeiro at last . It was a very long leg and it was all too  possible to  give up hope of ever seeing land again. The Pacific is a huge ocean and demands great respect. Those on board   Green Dragon are brave , fearless and strong. They truly believe in the power of the team and everyone works so hard together to make sure great things are achieved. There's a lesson for life  there for us all to learn ,  whether we're at sea facing great challenges or at home , just going about our day to day tasks in a meaningful way. Always do the very best  you can and always accept responsibility for your own actions. I've become rather philosophical in my old age , you know, and  I've learned quite a bit during my travels.

People never cease to amaze me. Wherever I travel I am met with warmth and kindness. In my home school at Walterstown we are made aware in  Social Studies of how best to behave and  how to interact with those we meet. Am I glad I paid attention in Miss Power's class. She'd be proud of my good manners and personable style. I have to say though, the Irish do have "the gift of the gab" -  even those who don't kiss the Blarney Stone!!

 I'm a hit with the crew of Green Dragon and towards the end of the journey to Rio all on board agreed to pose with me - one for my album, they said. What a great bunch of guys , beards and all!!  I have to say a very special "go raibh maith agat" to videographers James Huang and Jiang Yougtao who put an amazing blog together for my fans in China. There might even be talk of an appearance on Chinese National TV! Wow! Can you believe this? Little did I think when I left Cork Harbour all those months ago, that children in China, Spain, South Africa, India , Singapore and now in Brazil, would be interested in a little bear like me!

And what did you think of the statue of Jesus which overlooks the great city of Rio de Janeiro ?-( it means River of January). No visit to this amazing city would be complete without at least one picture of the giant landmark in the camera. I believe there's a new eco escalator installed to save the tourists' feet on all those steps.Whatever next?

In case you think it was all plain sailing , I do, however,  intend to take issue with the duty roster on board Green Dragon. From time to time I noticed many lounging bodies on deck. I realize we can't always glide through the waves at  twenty -five knots, but there were days when the breeze was light and "the livin' was easy!" But on those days of rest and relaxation, it seemed to me that I was the only one on work detail. The sails were a nuisance, to say the least, and at one point I was almost lost in the foresail for an hour! And did anyone even notice I was missing? Not one bit - "too busy relaxing", Ian said as he rescued me. Wait until I tell Johnny Smullen about their behaviour. It'll be lots of ice cream for me , and none for them!!

Because of my mutinous behaviour I did have to spend some time in the gear locker - time out I believe they call it. Well it certainly cooled me down and I was a very quiet and well behaved bear for a long time after. I'll have to watch my p's and q's in future or I might have to walk the plank!!

So , now it's time to catch up on sleep. In Port racing takes place this Saturday and I have to be in tip top form if I'm to hold on to my job as spinnaker hand. No doubt I'll get lost in those folds of sail too , but that's light weight stuff so I'll be fine. I know if Theresa were here she'd keep me safe and sound in her knap sack and make sure I didn't have to work so hard on board! I do miss Mrs.O'Bear.

Ah well ..... no rest for the wicked! "Ar aghaidh le chéile" as they say in school!

Slán go fóil,

Pádraig the Bear 




PS... Really looking forward to the In Port Racing in Rio on Saturday. Green Dragon has undergone a mini re-fit and systems check so all's well. GO DREEN DRAGON, GO!!!!