It is 18 June and today we are going to take on oil supplies from the American supply ship USNS Joshua Humphreys. They are ready to receive us. All stations: "Time to get going”. Once we are alongside, the probe is sent over to the prober receiver and the pumping begins. When we have taken on 170 m3of oil, the operation is stopped and we carry on patrolling the Gulf of Aden.

Vice Admiral Kulakov
After the dhow we have been towing has been handed over to another ship, we meet the Russian destroyer Vice Admiral Kulakov. It's always great to meet other ships at sea, and especially a Russian frigate. So I go outside to have a look. My first thought is "That looks old”, and it's true. The ship was launched in 1980 and is thirty years old. The Vice Admiral Kulakov has an on-board helicopter too: a Helix. The Helix comes to hoist up the people who have had lunch on board our ship.

The Russian destroyer Vice Admiral Kulakov and the Helix helicopter.

Bending and stretching
I like to get a lot of exercise in and it's a great form of recreation. It breaks the daily routine a bit. Otherwise it's just eating, sleeping and working. The marines on board give us some fitness lessons which is great fun. I take part in ‘bending and stretching' on the helicopter deck. We complete a course with various exercises for different muscle groups. Each exercise lasts one minute, so you have just one minute to give it all you've got! My muscles ached the next day, but that means it's working.

Sea life
Today the bridge announced that some whales have been spotted. So I go up quickly to take a look. They turn out to be whale sharks and it's a marvellous sight! Seeing and hearing sea creatures always makes me happy. We have spotted quite a few so far on this journey: dolphins, turtles, sperm whales and, most spectacular of all, a flying fish. And completely different from a marine park!

Dolphins