Architeuthis
MDSN HARBOR, AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, FEBRUAR 2012
Amsterdam in the middle of February. No boat in sight except for the leaving ferry that brought me here. In the middle of the harbor, way out of reach, lies an old discharged Russian submarine. All I can think of is how the fuck will I get the squid on this thing. So I wait three hours for some small boat to come by but all I can see are huge ships caring goods going up and down the canal and the ferry hurrying here and back to the city.
My brain tells me the only way to get there is to swim in the ice cold water, but I decide to do this on my last day of the trip, I don’t need to get sick in Amsterdam. With this thought I get on the ferry right back to the city. As the ferry departs I see a small boat landing. I decide to take my chances and jump to the surprise of the boatman over the already raising ferry ramp and the growing pit between the ferry and the pier. I sprint and arrive at the boat just in time to hold the owner back before he disappears.
He seems to be in a big hurry. I beg him to bring me to the submarine to take a quick photo. He finally agrees grumpily. On the wobbly boat I start unpacking the squid and nearly loose the silicon when a small wave hits the boat. When we arrive at the submarine I lean over the boat and push the squid against the hull, but I don‘t consider the rebound. My hands are on the squid, but the only thing of myself left in the boat are my feet, the rest is hanging above the water.
Luckily the guy catches my coat and prevents me from falling. After pulling me back in the boat he helps me fix the squid properly and asks me, “Are you going to leave this one here?” I answer, “Yes”. He smiles and says, “That’s awesome I thought you would take it with you after a photo!” In the end he brings me back to the pier; very relaxed and with a big smile on his face. The truth is, he definitely made my day and I probably made his, but I don’t even know his name.
