Wanderlust

I look across at Gabriel, his dark Sicilian locks sway softly in the slight breeze. We’re being towed through the azure Mediterranean Sea on a half-submerged ship wreck called the Charlotte Louise, which is held afloat by massive air-filled lifting bags.

The first time I saw this ship it felt like I’d stepped into a Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Coral grew on the helm, crabs scuttled across the deck to find refuge and most of the wood was badly eroded. It didn’t feel like real life, but there she was, defiantly and beautifully afloat.
Although the renowned ship was once the face of a large-scale Malta Tourism campaign, she’d sunk in decidedly dodgy circumstances and been forgotten. That is, until a young spirited Captain named Gabriel purchased the wreck from the government with an ambitious dream to restore her.

His fellow sea-goers said the Charlotte Louise couldn’t be surfaced, let alone stay afloat, but with the help of a skilled diver and significant financial investment, Gabriel had done it. ‘There’s no way she can be towed 26 kilometres through the harbour and open sea to the repair yards,’ they scoffed. He would show them!

The sun has been beating down on us for six hours now, and the sea is starting to wash up over the deck as we approach deeper and rougher afternoon waters. I think to myself: ‘At any moment the air bags could burst and this 100 year old beauty could sink back to the depths of the ocean.’ Because of that danger, I truly feel alive.
Gabriel and I climb the half-broken mast and look out over the wide expanse, where dolphins dance with the waves. I think to myself: 'How did I end up here?' How did a young lass from rural inland Australia come to be on an iconic ship with a pirate in Europe?

Gabriel peers at me from around the pole, and gives me that intense stare he has trademarked. He says: ‘I had a dream when I was a young boy…that I would undertake a crazy adventure with a beautiful girl by my side. You’re that girl.’ I look back at him, mostly lost for words.

His second mate yells from down below: ‘One of the ropes has broken!’ Gabriel is down in a flash, and they are both on their bellies frantically securing a line in the water. The slime and salty spray splashes into their faces, but they don’t spare a moment to wipe it away, caught in concentration and panic. Skilfully they resecure the knots with strong and weathered hands. When you choose a pirates life, you have to be ready for anything. Was I?