Yes this is not some joke as it happened to myself in the middle of the South Atlantic.
It was cold to the bone that particular morning, as southern winter wind blowing outside. Meanwhile it was like a freezer inside the bridge since we cant turn off the air conditioning. Centralize aircond do have its own drawbacks.
there were no maritime traffic in the vicinity. Another quiet and silent early morning, with no stars and moon in the skies as overcast skies were reported to persist in the coming weeks.
It is abnormal to be alone on the bridge when ship`s are on long ocean passage as at time there should be at least an assistant wstchkeeper tagging along but since we are short on hands for deck for maintenance and task required to be completed by chief officer so the helmsmen cum assistant watchkeeper will be taken off from shift rotation and instead will be on day work, with provisions that in any case the OOW needs them, he can be called up immediately to assist on the bridge.
back to my story....
i was looking out front, standing close to the integrated nav panels and its a norm to lean your back at the center navigation console with your feet close to the center gyro repeater. At that time it is the best position to keep your situational awareness.
an hour passed without anything exciting in particular apart from the bridge navigational watch alarm that kept on shouting every 12 minutes.
then while gazing through the dark skies....
A PAT ON MY RIGHT SHOULDER....
startled, i turn my head and there is no one around, and i knew for fact that there is no one expect me on the bridge..and there is no sign of entry through the door from the staircase or from the sliding doors leading to the bridge wings. Both doors on port and starboard are kept shut and locked.
i kept myself calm....i cite my prayers
in these oceans...it is known that there are a lot of lost souls who perished and shipwrecked
and their presence are still around. Some say their soul is chained and unable to get to the netherworld.....still as a Muslim this is not the case of an understanding of souls and spirit....but then i knew for sure that there are other beings that lives among us in its own dimension....
nothing had happened after that....until a few days later....
I HAD ANOTHER PAT ON MY RIGHT SHOULDER
then there was none until the day i leave the ship....
there are a lot of other ghost stories revolves around us mariners....among them was the white lady....the voices in the engine room....the calling of your name on the main decks....there are also stories of how people sees entities in a form of human being in cabins....and so forth...
the ocean are wide and had endless boundary.....many ship and its crew perished since the day man put up sails and cross the ocean to explore new world....many more of them died in catastrophic ways...in sea battles...in treacherous storm...explosions and accidents that sent ships and its crew to the dark abyss....
this is only one of my encounters with the unseen spirits that roams the ocean....
there are more sinister tales....
but that can wait
-come to sea and see for yourself-
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