Below Deck on the HMS Surprise
Figurehead of HMS Surprise
One of my favorite books is actually an entire series–the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O’Brian. You may have seen the movie based on the books, Master and Commander, starring Russell Crowe. The series is about the exploits of Captain Jack Aubrey and his best friend Dr. Stephen Maturin. They sail on many ships in the series, but the ship that is dearest to them is the HMS Surprise.
It was a real treat for me to discover that the HMS Surprise that was used in the movie is part of the Maritime Museum of San Diego, which is right across the street from the hotel where I am staying while at the NCEA 2016 convention. After the first day of the conference ended on Tuesday I took a stroll across the street and spent two blissful hours going through the museum, and especially getting to know the HMS Surprise.
She’s a beautiful ship as you can see below:
