PATTAYA, Thailand – With each port call being a link on the chain of a long and arduous deployment soon to see us homeward bound, many Sailors can’t help but be excited the nearer we draw to the final stretch of our journey. It’s important, however, that we not miss the ocean for the waves. Many aboard Nimitz, and the Navy at large, count the chance to see the world as a foundational reason behind their choice of service at sea. Each port can be a grand opportunity to fulfill the promise underpinning our commitment as Sailors in the form of a chance to immerse ourselves in new and exciting experiences, cultures and communities in countries foreign to that of the homeland from which we sail.
For most aboard Nimitz, the bustling, lush and vibrant city of Pattaya, Thailand, was a surprisingly entertaining-if-frenetic port visit that may unexpectedly be one of the brightest highlights of their deployment. However, for Aviation Support Equipment Technician 2nd Class Adam Dornbusch, from Papillion, Florida, who relished the opportunity to visit Thailand and explore Thappraya Safari Park on one of a diverse number of tours sponsored by Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR), it was a much anticipated and long-awaited aspiration finally fulfilled.
“I was stationed on the East Coast six years ago on the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), and I was surrounded by people who talked about how crazy Thailand was,” said Dornbusch. “It kind of became a goal of mine to get to the West Coast so I’d have a chance to visit myself and ride an elephant. It got to the point where I’ve got a shirt back home in my closet that has Thailand and a picture of an elephant on it, even though I’d never been to Thailand until now. I really am glad I had the chance to connect with the animals up close; I didn’t expect them to love bananas so much. We must have fed, like, 40 or 50 of them in one sitting.”
For many more aboard, like Command Master Chief Chris Lyles, from Daingerfield, Texas, a port call in picturesque Pattaya and an MWR-sponsored fishing trip provided the perfect chance to de-stress and unwind from the “always ready” state of mind essential to serving our country on the open seas.
“Anytime you get to get off a boat, to get on a boat … to be on another boat is a great day, right?” said Lyles. “No phone calls, no emails, no alarms, no bells, no whistles – just sitting out there with a group having a great day. They tried to cook up the minnows we caught, but I guess lunch is only as good as you catch. It really was a great opportunity to just relax.”
As relaxing and scenic as the sun, sand and scenery of Thailand’s sea-front city may be, still other Sailors like Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Alexis Cansino, from Phoenix, found themselves more drawn to the opportunity to get up close and personal with many an exotic and exciting animal on an MWR-sponsored Tiger-Topia tour.
“I never thought the Navy would take me to Thailand or that I would ever be able to walk a tiger in my life,” said Cansino. “I tell these deployment stories to my brother, and he freaks out in awe. He says that I’m brave for doing it because he would’ve been scared of petting a tiger. He talks to my mom a lot about how proud he is of me with all I’ve been able to do, and it just makes me feel great.”
Only so far a-field could a place such as Thailand provide Sailors like Machinist’s Mate 3rd Class Joshua Urquhart, from Buford, Georgia, with a perfect window into the culture and faith of a foreign land by way of MWR tours through their grand and ancient architecture, picturesque temples and even their humblest shrines and sites of faith.
“I was surprised when I saw the MWR offering Bangkok temple tours,” said Urquhart. “My grandmother back home has been getting interested in Buddhism. She’s a Christian, but she’s been kind of expanding her religious horizons as she’s gotten older. I thought it would be a great chance to experience the religion myself and maybe learn a bit more about it.”
And for Sailors like Hospital Corpsman 2nd class Jaida Jordine, from Kingston, Jamaica, port call in Pattaya meant the chance to do some good for those in need through a community outreach visit to an orphanage established by the Father Ray Foundation.
“It was a very emotional experience for me because it affects children,” said Jordine. “I was saddened that there aren’t enough loving homes for all of them. Being able to volunteer there showed me that just my presence was enough to bring joy and laughter to them.”
Though the course we chart is soon to see us homeward bound and many aboard have their eyes and minds set in that same direction, it would only prove a loss to let that blind us to what opportunities remain between our shrinking stint in foreign seas and our much anticipated homecoming. Be they a chance to relax, to fulfill a long awaited wish, to see the world and ensure we have stories for our loved ones at home, or to do some good for those in need, each remaining shoreside stop-over offers a veritable bouquet of unique experiences one would do well to take full advantage of in the time before our service obligates our return to familiar waters, and from there on to the family and friends who await us at home.
