REFLECTIONS

GOTHEBORG!

The Symbol of Friendship and Culture

(Celebrating its arrival at Alexandria Port in Egypt)

By Hala Elbanna

Photos by Amr Tantawi

The Historical Swedish Ship, Gotheborg

Anchored on the 1^st April 2007 in Alexandria

During a ceremony held for this special event at the port.

Crown Princess, Victoria of Sweden was present

And honoured the arrival.

It was windy, yet a great sunny day

With lots of entertainment

On deck our guide was a lovely sailor

Who briefed us on how the crew were taking shifts,

The way they managed with the sails, how they slept

Their means of entertainment, yes they could watch movies!

Tough life, yet exciting …

This marvellous replica of the original

East Indiaman Gotheborg

Built 1738 in Stockholm at Terra Nova shipyard was

The only way to overcome the tragic shipwreck!

The old and the new was the theme adopted

Innovation, skill and persistence, the code

And for a traditional 18^th century outlook,

Modern safety measures of equipment were latent.

A way to get over crises

A will to survive hardships and loss

A means to a brighter tomorrow

The story of stamina to achieve success!

Happy Arrival Gotheborg!

Crown Princess Victoria with H.E. Ambassador of Sweden to Egypt and Governor of Alexandria

Entertainment before the Ship’s Arrival

The Pharaoh Dancing Show

El Anfoushi Dancing Show West El Balad Band

The Ship’s Arrival The Captain

The Crew on board The 4 Egyptian cadets

Ms. Hala Elbanna, the winner of the International Poets award is an international correspondent for The Ambassadors Magazine. She is the author of three new poetry books: Men & Women with Broken Hearts: A guideline to prevention and treatment, Reflections: A collection of poems and Violin Man. Her forthcoming book is entitled, "Poetic Cocktail". Her email is dalou@excite.com.