New Bedford and the Whaling Museum

Today has been a very full day for the trip two CTY students.  They began the day by hauling back from our anchorage just outside of New Bedford's hurricane barrier.  The Lady Maryland docked behind the Ernestina, a large fishing topsail schooner that is currently in need of repair.  The first thing the students did today was visit another vessel, the Osearch, that is dedicated entirely to the study of sharks.  She is a one of a kind vessel, with unique equipment.  Our educator informed the students that any sort of television show - whether it be National Geographic, Animal Planet, or Discovery - uses that vessel because it is that unique.  The students were able to catch a peak of the vessel from the dock, and a brief introduction from the Osearch's crew, though they were not able to go on because of construction.  From the Osearch the students walked through the town (which happened to be having an artisan fair today) and on to the New Bedford Whaling Museum.  Right inside the museum were whale skeletons - a couple of right whales, and a blue whale which was still dripping oil.  They were then treated to a guided tour of the museum by a very kind docent.  He had the students experience how whales see, as well as pass around different parts of a whale, and the blubber of a whale that they were able to smell.  One of the students thought it smelled like iced tea, and the poor museum employee was aghast.  Whales are smelly, and not in a good way!  It was an amusing moment.  There was also a scale model of the Lagoda which the students were able to board and see the different components of a whaling ship.  The museum also housed the oldest known example of scrimshaw, a busk dated 1766. 
After the museum, the students headed across the street to visit the Seaman's Bethel.  This chapel was used to help "reform" sailors, or keep them out of trouble.  Today it stands as a monument to those in marine industries such as fishing.  Herman Melville attended this same chapel before he set sail on a whaling vessel, and then immortalized the small church in his novel "Moby Dick."  After that short stop, the students took a brief tour of the Ernestina on their way back to the Lady Maryland.   The Ernestina was previously a very successful fishing vessel, which was then transformed into an exploratory science vessel by a man named Bartlet who took her to the Arctic.  In WWII the Ernestina was used to transport supplies because U-boats could not detect her nor could their torpedoes go close enough to the surface to hit her.  The ship was awarded 4 service medals for her work in the war.  Then in the 1950s she was used to bring immigrants to America from Cape Verde.  She was great to see, and the students headed back to the Lady Maryland with many great new experiences. 
The Lady Maryland set sail and pulled off the dock, setting out for her next adventure, and even more experiences.