Yesterday was a long and arduous day for some Â- and a heck of a lot of fun for others! We crossed the equator at 1:30 this morning and all aboard survived to witness it!

The day started with all pollywogs on high alert Â- for whenever the silver bell of Orcinius was rung, they were to be front and center ready for duty as commanded by Admiral Lizashell. And ring it did! The pollywogs didnÂ't have much time for napping yesterday Â- they were kept very busy by all the various tasks that needed be accomplished in order to be ready for our eminent crossing.

The first event started shortly after a very large breakfast of Johnnymon pancakes. I think Malo had 5, then came back for 2 more! Not realizing what lie in store for his near future. Shortly after breakfast, the bell rang and ALL remaining bananas aboard Orcinius had to be eaten immediately Â- lest they cause us bad luck on our crossing! The pollywogs did their best Â- gorging themselves with half a dozen bananas. Luckily, they were the more petite lady finger types. But still, a lot of banana after a heavy breakfast. And so the day continued with more bell ringing, and more essential tasks all in preparation for an early morning crossing: a workout on the tramps to ensure they would be physically fit, preparing their snorkel, fins & mask - but for what they were unsure.

And then the most significant hazing of the afternoon. The bell was rung and all pollywogs were ordered to go to their quarters and re-dress Â- to put their shorts and shirts on backwards for the next event. They were marched out to the bow and hog-tied to the forestay, where we blindfolded them and dressed them in bright orange wigs and feathers. They remained stoic throughout as we proceeded with the hazing. We painted their nails Â- red on the right, and green on the left Â- so they will always be able to find their way safely back to port in North America. We fed them sludge (cookie dough) and slime (a shot of baileys and triple sec) from the southern ocean Â- the last of which they will see for a very long time. Then untied them and forced them to crawl a backwards lap around Orcinius. Once the afternoon events were complete, there was barely enough time to shower and prepare for dinner before the sunset.

We allowed the pollywogs some shut eye before the final events of the crossing. When 1:30am approached everyone was roused from bed and we sat up in the conning tower watching for the mystical 00:00.00. When it came we cheered and toasted with a shot of tequila Â- then it was time for King Neptune to make his appearance. The pollywogs donned their snorkel, fin, and mask and marched one last time to the bow where they got on hands and knees and bowed before King Neptune as he washed the slime from the southern ocean off their backs and welcomed them into the northern hemisphere. Back to the rear salon we all celebrated our new shellbacks with a bottle of champagne and handed out their Shellback Certificates. The empty champagne bottle was filled with a note from the crew of Orcinius, and a picture of the four of us, recorked, and tossed overboard, along with a bit of champagne from each of our glasses. The crossing was a great success and we are proud to have two new strong and courageous shellbacks aboard Orcinius for the remainder of our journey.

As I write this now, we are 16 hours away from putting down the hook at Christmas Island, so one more night watch to go. It will be Saturday there when we arrive and we are hoping we can check into country on a Saturday and stretch our legs around town a bit. Actually, maybe we will tour London on Saturday, then take in Paris on Sunday. Who knows?

As for now Â- all is well aboard Orcinius!

Lisa