Charles Berry (DE 1035) - Naval Cruise Book

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( i HOW ' S THE ANCHOR? HEREIN ENSUES THE TALE OF OUR CRUISE WHICH WE TOLD TO OUR FRIENDS IN THE STATES, BUT A PICTURE IS WORTH ALL THE STORIES ON EARTH AS THE FOLLOWING ESSAY RELATES! WE LEFT SAN DIEGO LAST NOVEMBER. ALL HANDS WERE IN THE BEST OF SPIRITS AND EAGERLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THE ADVENTURES OF THE LONG VOYAGE- SECTION ONE HAD THE FIRST UNDERWAY WATCH THE THIRD NIGHT OUT WE THREW A PARTY. SINCE NO ALCOHOL IS ALLOWED ON BOARD, WE MADE DO WITH WHAT WE COULD FIND 41

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CALIFORNIA, HERE I COME As the brass band played , we pulled out of Yoko on the 7th of May and headed for home. We even had two Sundays in a row to relax and contemplate our homecoming, thanks to the interna- tional date line. Arriving in Hawaii on May 15th, we barely managed to avoid having to set special astronaut rescue detail for Gordon Cooper, then left Pearl Harbor the next day. On May 22nd we received a joyous welcome at pier eight, San Diego Naval Station. It was, to say the least, quite a journey. We visited 18 ports in five different countries, and traveled a total of twenty five thousand, nine hundred seventy nautical miles, better than once around the world. JUST AS WE LEFT, WE SENT COMSEVENTH FLEET A RHYMED DEPARTURE MESSAGE WHICH WE THOUGHT WAS A BIT OF A CLASSIC: FROM YOKOSUKA , SIX MAY , NINE O ' CLOCK , ZULU TIME , WE ' RE SENDING A PRESS RELEASE , WRITTEN IN RHYME , RECALLING THE SIX MONTHS WE ' VE SPENT O ' ER THE SEA, SINCE WE LAST SAW THE LAND OF THE BRAVE AND THE FREE. WE SOON MET THE QUITE UNAVOIDABLE FATE , OF PATROLLING THE TURBULENT FORMOSA STRAIT; WE THEN TOURED THE SOUTHERNMOST ISLES PHILIPPINE, ' NEATH THE FLAG OF THE COMNAVPHIL GOODWILL MARINE. WITH THE HUK GROUP WE SEARCHED FOR UNDERSEA PREY, AND THE GOBLINS WHEN FOUND, COULD NOT GET AWAY. RETURNING TO CHINA FOR ONE LAST GOOD LOOK, THE DUTIES OF STATION SHIP HONG KONG WE TOOK; ROUND HONSHU WE TRAVELED THROUGH CALM APRIL SEAS , DRINKING SAKI AND TEA WITH OUR FRIENDS JAPANESE. NOW IT ' S EASTWARD TO DIEGO, AND THERE TO BEHOLD, THE FRIENDLIEST NATIVES OF ALL, SO WE ' RE TOLD; AND WE ' D JUST LIKE TO SAY WE ' RE A BETTER DE , HAVING SERVED IN THE SEVENTH FLEET SCHOOL OF THE SEA. WE WERE SWIFTLY MATCHED BY COMSEVENTH FLEET, WHO CAME RIGHT BACK WITH THE FOLLOWING GEM: WE ' VE DEEMED IT A PLEASURE TO HAVE YOU ON BOARD YOUR SUB STALKING STOCK IN THE FLEET TRULY SOARED. IN THE VISIT OF PORTS YOU TOOK SUCH A LEAD THAT WE ' VE ALL COME TO THINK YOU ' RE THE BERRIES INDEED. GOOD LUCK IN YOUR TRAVELS TO ROUND EYES SO DEAR TO AM-A-REE-CA SHIMA AND REALLY COLD BEER. WHILE YOU BASK IN THE SUN OF YOUR NEW COASTAL BEAT WE ' LL LOOK TO THE DAY YOU RETURN TO THE FLEET VICE ADMIRAL THOMAS H. MOORER , USN , COMMANDER SEVENTHFLT. 40

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FREQUENT DAMAGE CONTROL DRILLS WERE HELD ON THE WAY OVER. THE FIREFIGHTING TEAMS , SMOOTHLY PERFORMING THEIR TASK DESPITE BILLOWING CLOUDS OR SMOKE, WERE A FAMILIAR SIGHT DAMAGE CONTROL PARTIES, CLAD IN PROTECTIVE CLOTHING, DEMONSTRATED THE PROPER METHOD OF SHORING A BULKHEAD AT LAST WE ARRIVED IN THE MYSTERIOUS ORIENT, WHERE MULTITUDES OF CURIOUS ONLOOKERS THRONGED THE PIER TO GREET US NATURALLY , AS SOON AS THE BROW WAS OVER , THE LIBERTY PARTY WENT ROLLICKING ASHORE TO ENJOY THE EXOTIC PLEASURES WHICH BECKONED, FAR FROM THE HARSHER DISCIPLINES OF SHIPBOARD LIFE 42