SS Vulcania

There was great excitement at Riversleigh when Enchanteur  sent word through that on the 12th Night, in January 2009 the Vulcania would set sail on her maiden, TransLemurian voyage, a voyage estimated to take twelve months.

The SS Vulcania is a cruise ship was commissioned and is captained by Le Enchanteur. It is a luxury liner, in the style of the Conte di Savoia and Queen Mary. The Vulcania is inspired by the luxurious, Italian transatlantic liners of the past, liners which voyaged between Italy and the Americas. On board the memories and refinement of a beautiful age have been recreated with modern elegance, and, at the same time, paying an amazing homage to the past. On the Vulcania, there is space for everyone and for all kinds of entertainment.

Sailing day on the Vulcania proved very  hectic, but  exciting. There was anticipation  in the air as passengers boarded, along with celebrities and their entourages, reporters and photographers, baggage handlers, steamer trunks, porters, company officials and the ship’s crew returning from their shore leave.

Once on board passengers were quick to kit out their ‘cabins’ and make the most out of the opportunity to set out on a Translemurian adventure.

On the Vulcania, there is space for everyone and for all kinds of entertainment. One of the greatest pleasures on a ship this size, is that each guest can carve their ideal cruise for themselves, inside a spellbinding and romantic world. Facilities include 3 swimming pools, show lounge, theatres, casino, a huge shopping mall, jogging track and a variety of restaurants offering a culinary extravaganza.

With all those hours at sea, everyone has all the time to do whatever it is that they please. Dreamers can  find a nice quiet spot on the ship’s expansive decks and gaze out into the blue water and think about other lost continents – of what to do when they disembark and enter new and different Lemurian ports.

And then there are those fascinating characters, with their egos and alter egos who have come  for the ride.

Now that the ship has set sail there will be plenty of activities on board. The Vulcania  will stop at various ports and there will be an opportunity for more passengers to board. Passengers will need to be checked in and allocated cabins.

Prior to departure passengers will be required to leave special Volcanalia, sacrifices to Vulcan, after whom this ship is dedicated. These sacrifices will hopefully ensure that the proud Vulcania has a safe journey and does not have the fate of a ship like the Titanic. We do not want anything quite that dramatic happening within Lemurian Waters.

If you are going to join this cruise at one of the Lemurian ports you need to

Join the SS Vulcania Group at Yahoo

Create a WordPress Account and notify Heather Blakey of the email address you have used. heatherblakey at fastmail dot fm

Create a Cabin (blog) and provide Heather Blakey with a link that can be included on the Vulcania Blog.

Make sure to let Heather know the email address you used to sign in so that you can be added to collaborative blogs such as The Pythian Games where Deck Training takes place.

Locate your special gift from Enchanteur, a talisman that you must closely guard.

Make an offering to Vulcan

Create a Squidoo account so that you will be able to engage on the associated Squidoo Lens

All members will be added to the Vulcania blog so that we have your WordPress account details and can add you to Port blogs where you will be able to post. Generally posts are stored in cabins and passengers send a message to the Yahoo Group notifying them of updates. Many people use RSS feeds but there are so many on board that this may not prove practical.

Create a Twitter account and follow Heather Blakey

Let all your friends know that you will be spending some time on a cruise ship and that they might like to join you. There is room for a diverse range of people to engage.

Once on Board

This ship is a managed environment. Activities are provided but there is no compulsion to engage in all of these. It is very much up to the individual and their personal needs. Some passengers will spend most of their time working quietly in their personal cabins.

This SS Vulcania Blog will not cope with multiple postings by passengers so the bulk of posts will appear on individual blogs that are linked to this  mother blog.  Passengers can leave messages here in the comment section,  but will generally direct friends and other passengers to their newest posts  by sending a link to their ‘cabin’ via Yahoo, Twitter or any other social networking system they are using.

Generally, the SS Vulcania Blog will be used  to promote activities on board the ship and at various ports. The Vulcania blog is a Captain’s log and provides direction, links and pages. The pages will provide guidance and activities. Comments on the pages of the Vulcania are encouraged, as are links to cabin posts.

The Vulcania blog is designed to stimulate imagination. Suggested activies are not prescriptive and you are free to do what you like in your cabin or on shore leave. Just bear in mind that the age of the audience ranges enormously so explicit ‘adult’ material is unwelcome in ‘cabins’. If a passenger posts explicit sexual material, promotes racism, endorses gratuitous  violence, promotes hatred or behaves in an anti social manner they will be asked to remove the Vulcania banner and all links to them will be removed without apology.

There is an expectation that you will support fellow passengers by listing their cabins on your  blog and by visiting, when you can and making supportive comments. Comments are usually quite general and demonstrate that  you have read the work. Comments must never be patronizing or offer criticism of any kind. Critics, be they well intentioned or not, will be put in a life raft and left to fend for themselves.

Passengers aboard the Vulcania will agree not to

1) defame, abuse, harass, stalk, threaten or otherwise offend others;

2) engage in or promote any surveys, contests, pyramid schemes, chain letters, unsolicited e-mailing or spamming;

3) promote, or provide information about, illegal activities or conduct;

4) promote racism, bigotry, hatred, harassment or any kind of harm against any group or individual;

5) solicit money, passwords or personal information from any person.

Passengers are asked to help promote the SS Vulcania by flying the Vulcania Life Raft in their cabin and by providing clear links to the SS Vulcania.

Copyright belongs to individual artists and writers. If an artist or writer publishes a SS Vulcania specific piece in another forum it is expected that they will acknowledge the Soul Food Cafe. Participants may refer to other characters but must be mindful of intellectual property and prepared to edit if the originator of a character is unhappy with their development of that character. For example, if someone presents the character of le Enchanteur in a way that is abhorrent to Heather Blakey, who created her,  she will ask for that material to be edited and may distance herself publicly.

Finally, some words to guide your passage on board the SS Vulcania

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,

and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others,

even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter,

for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;

it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,

for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;

many persons strive for high ideals,

and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love;

for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment

it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars;

you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you,

no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.

And whatever your labors and aspirations,

in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams,

it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Desiderata (c) Max Ehrman 1926

Sourced by Senua

Bon Voyage

Enchanteur