Two great ships bid each other Farewell this month... because the youngest was due to retire: Belem, aged 114, France's oldest merchant tall ship and the 46 year old Naval school ship Jeanne d'Arc, “la Jeanne”, as she is known affectionately throughout France, a helicopter carrier who carried thousands of young midshipmen on all the seas of the world. Their final meeting in Rouen, Jeanne d'Arc's “patron” town (unsurprisingly!), at the end of the school ship's 50th and final mission, was an emotional and poignant moment. On May 21st, Belem stopped on her trip to Rouen along the Seine, at Caudebec-en-Caux and awaited “la Jeanne” for a mutual salute as she passed alongside, her 103 midshipmen impeccably aligned along the decks. Then the three masted barque sailed to Rouen where both ships were moored opposite each other, public visits were organised and private visits were exchanged. On May 24th, as Belem left Rouen, the crew unfurled and hoisted some of her sails in a final homage to the well-loved old battle ship.
Amongst her many special and original attractions, the Belem can boast the presence on board of...a grizzly. Actually, once he's had his first cup of coffee, “le Grizzly” as they call him on board, turns into a perfectly affable young sailor – which is lucky considering that Gaël Hubert is nearly two metres tall. And who wants to meet a grumpy two metre tall grizzly bear on a narrow deck? Joking apart, what the Belem can really boast is the presence and services of an authentic master carpenter, in fact the only master carpenter at sea in the whole of the French merchant fleet. On top of being a remarkable and experienced sailor, Gaël Hubert is also a past master in the art of carpentry and woodwork. For several years, he worked at restoring churches and monuments throughout France and even in Spain, and spent his holidays sail training along the Atlantic coasts. Then he decided to combine both passions, became a naval carpenter and... took a job aboard Belem. Considering the amount of wood there is on board a ship like Belem, trainees and crew alike have Hubert to thank for the excellent state and the beautiful workmanship we all enjoy when we travel on her.
Préparée de longue date, la rencontre du Belem et du porte-hélicoptères Jeanne d'Arc a permis au doyen des marines françaises d'adresser un dernier salut avant son désarmement à celle que tous appellent « la Jeanne » tant elle fait partie de notre patrimoine collectif. Un moment de grande émotion à Rouen...
