Nitro (AE 23) - Naval Cruise Book

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it looked much, much better this time. The Suribachi, AE-21, looking mighty good moored in Rota. Our relief. Turnover. Goodbye to Europe. At 0955 on the 27th of April we de- parted from Rota for the United States. Home to Earle, New Jersey, home to Davisville and brass bands and family. Home.

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siles as we launched an attack on the FOIIGSI31' After the games the Forrestal and the Nitro re- sumed their friendship. The 23rd of February found the Nitro tucked in the harbor in Naples in the shadow of smoky, dormant Mount Vesuvius. We were treated by access to Pompeii, Capri, and Rome through ship 's tours. Rome was no more than a European train ride from our mooring. It was easy tO S66 the pride Italian people have in living, -in ele- ganceQ in friendship, and in family. The splen- dor of its statuary, the elegance of its cathedrals and the many offerings of its art world added to make Naples a most enjoyable port. h After receiving fleet freight, we left Naples on the lst of March. Once again to . Augusta Bay, and then to a rendezvous with the Brumby, Rush, Talbot, and Pawcatuck on March 3. For the -next three days, the Forrestal came alongside for cargo transfer. 'And the brass band played and we were dwarfed alongside this sea- going airfield, our bridge barely reaching to the Forrestal 's flight deck. Our next visit was to Antalya, Turkey. Amidst the turmoil of recent weeks in Turkey, the crew was somewhat uneasy about their re- ception, but found Antalya a unique city, older and poorer than what we were accustomed to, devoid of night life, yet intriguing in its Eastern orientation. Minarets, the Moslem prayer tow- ers, were visible throughout the city, open markets clogged the alleyways, and horsedrawn carriages served as taxi cabs. The outer fringes of Antalya found bands of Nomads camped in tent clusters and camels angling down dirt roads. The Governor of the Province and the Mayor of Antalya paid visits to the Nitro. The basket- ball team from the ship even engaged a local high school team in the sport, and the Turks proved that they have assimilated our sport well as they trounced our band of sailors, 52-30. The crew conducted itself in a most mature manner and we left Turkey after an incident free visit. Another series of underway replenishments in the next several days as we refueled the Roan off the coast of Egypt, received fuel from the Pawcatuck, and serviced the Forrestal. On the ' 17th of March we returned to Athens for eleven 1 days, and then it was another replenishment with Q the Forrestal. The first five days of April found us in Naples accompanied by heavy seas which 1 prohibited liberty. Many people, hoping to pur- chase some stereo gear at the discount prices of- fered by the NATO base, spent their shopping ' time playing pinochle in the crew's lounges. a And cursing. On the 6th of April, while steam- ing for Barcelona, we ruptured tubes in our ffl boiler and momentarily lost power. Heavy, A black patches of smoke were spewing out of our stack as we glided to a stop in the water. The boiler technicianspatched our injured boiler and the Nitro found Barcelona on the 7th of April. I ! H We were faced with having to replace the damaged tubes before attempting the rapidly ap- proaching Atlantic crossing, and on the 13th of April we moved pierside, amidst all the luxury liners, for repair. The Spanish enginemen and our own 'black-gang' worked extra hours to avoid delay in our outchop time. Meanwhile the rest of the crew was enjoying walks along the Ramblas, a misplaced Big Ben's, lbullfights, and a zoo that featured the world 's only captive albino gorilla. And the thrills of an international Grand Prix, with the world's greatest drivers touring a course set atop a hillside guarded by a fortress. Bar- celona is also the sight of a Picasso museum and an excellent maritime museum, as well as a replica of Columbus' Santa Maria. It was easy to sympathize with our latter day sailing predeces- sors after seeing the ship that discovered Am erica r - it was about the size of our helicopter deck. The ship offered a ski trip to Andorra, a tiny mountain country tucked in the Pyrennes between i Spain and France. Last minute shopping, over- due souvenir buying, and exchange of collections of currency, and we left Barcelona under full power on the 24th of April. Rota, Spain. We had seen the same base six months earlier, but l v i . rl

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