Missionary Times: Taiwan Tuna Ship

The Taiwan Fishing Vessell

Today we had a fun experience of going to visit a Taiwan Fishing Ship that was docked in the lagoon. Our neighbor who works for the Taiwan Embassy took us on the tour. First we got on a small little boat and traveled to the middle of the lagoon where the Taiwan ship carrying over a million dollars worth of tuna had just come into port earlier in the morning. It was docked with a ship from Korea which was going to transport the tuna to the Philippines. As we got to the ship they towed our whole little boat up to the main deck and we got onto the ship. The crew was busy sorting tuna and loading it into great huge nets where it was taken to the Korean Ship. We got to go to all the major areas of both ships and see where the captain navigates his ship, sit in the captain chair, see the motor rooms and the equipment that monitors everything on the ship


These fishermen are down where it is about 37 F and are loading tuna into nets

The senior sisters, Taiwan Captain and Allison our neighbor

This helicopter was on the fishing boat in case it was needed

It was so interesting and they sort them and put them on some kind of a conveyor belt. Everything is done in cold temperatures of not more than 37 degrees F. Then the fish are put into big nets again and carried over to the other ship. The captain told us that since the Marshall Islands is a shark preserve, if they catch any sharks they have to let them go before they get to the Marshall Islands or they will be fined thousands of dollars. There were 40 workers on the Taiwanese ship. Not all of them are from Taiwan though. Many of them are from the Pacific/Asia area like the Philippines, Viet Nam, Cambodia, and Guam etc. When they become a member of the crew, they sign on for anywhere from 3-5 years, but it is a good job for them. Most of them send their money back to their homeland for their families. Our neighbor Allison, who works for the Taiwan Embassy is very tall for what you think of as a person from China. She towered over most of us and really towered over the Captain who was from Taiwan also. Allison has a husband and little girl who live in Taiwan. She goes home every 6 months to visit with them. I invited her to go to church with me today but she had to teach an English lesson. She wants to come another time though. She lives next to some of the other Senior missionaries, but we all go to different wards and so since she lives here she would be in my ward. She has had an interest in the church and would like to learn more about it. She says she is impressed with the missionaries here and back in Taiwan. I told her I had a son who served in Taiwan on his mission. She is from Taipai . She was very nice . After we were through touring the Taiwanese Vessel, we went on a plank over to the Korean Vessel which would transport the tuna to its destination. This load would be going to the Philippines.