Neptune Day March 15, 2013

        Neptune day is the day where a ship crosses the equator!  The practice of “Crossing the Line” is a ceremony that commemorates a person's first crossing of the Equator by ship.  Those who have already crossed the Equator are nicknamed “Shellbacks”, and those who have not are called “Pollywogs”.  The day a ship crosses the equator is referred to as Neptune Day.  The ceremonies feature King Neptune, Queen Minerva, and a “court” of Shellbacks that assist with the ceremony.

The event is a ritual that dates back to the early 1800’s in which shipboard crew who were “Shellbacks, were organized into a "Court of Neptune" to indoctrinate the slimy Pollywogs into "the mysteries of the Deep".

Pollywogs who wish to take part in the “line crossing” ceremony on the MV Explorer, will be summoned to appear before King Neptune and his court.  The Pollywogs may be "interrogated" by King Neptune and his entourage, and are asked to recite a poem regarding their worthiness.  During the ceremony, the Pollywogs who wish to participate perform a series of tasks and then are anointed to be “proper Shellbacks”.  As a memento of the event, each former Pollywog will receive a certificate declaring their new status as a “Shellback”.  Once the ceremony is complete, a Pollywog may choose to meet with one of the “royal barbers” to shave their head as a celebratory gesture, (but no one is expected to do so).  It is completely voluntary and does not impact the Shellback’s new status. 

I was going to donate my hair, because that was an option, but it would have cost 25 dollars to fix it afterwards, and I can get it for cheaper at home. 

We were all woken up at 7 am to get breakfast, and the ceremonies started at 9 on the top deck.  They deemed us all shellbacks and then told us that we had to “kiss the fish.”  This involved getting orange koolaid dumped on you, which was meant to represent fish guts.  You then jumped in the brown colored pool (it looked so nasty) and walked to the other side.  After climbing out, you kissed a fish and then walked over to the captain, who was dressed as King Neptune and kissed his ring.  The whole thing was so cool.  At the same time, people were getting their heads shaved, and my friend Jessica did it! 

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