My first job in yachting was as a deckhand back in the summer of 2005. I was twenty-one and had taken the summer job before heading back to
Scotland for my final year at Uni. Even though the 53-metre motor yacht was a ‘dry ship’ for the lower-tier crew, the Chief Engineer, First Mate and Captain always found time for a drink in the evening.
I remember many nights in Puerto Banus when the First Mate came back completely inebriated on several bottles of
white wine (because it was cheaper than spirits and got him drunk faster than beer). Crosseyed, he’d hurl abuse at me whilst I was on gangway watch. Then he’d disappear off to his cabin only to recall none of our interactions the following day.