Fáilte!

Emmanuel Reynaud, scientific coordinator of Tara Oceans and specialist in imagery, welcomed two weeks ago the schooner Tara and her crew in Dublin, the city where he lives.  On the occasion of the major European festival called “Dublin 2012 City of Science”, many events took place for an enthusiastic public. Impressions of this stopover:

Tara's silhouette appears on the horizon behind a red cargo ship awaiting authorization to enter the bay, with the Kish lighthouse in the distance. I left the boat in Lorient at the beginning of April after my last leg between the Açores and A Coruña. Here she is, recently renovated and sailing into my home port, Dún Laoghaire in the southern part of Dublin Bay, previously called Kingstown. The whole crew is out on deck to greet us, and we salute them from the military battery with the Irish flag and a burst of sunshine. As soon as Tara  (Teamhrach in Irish) comes to dock, a rainstorm joins in the welcome celebration. All this   was short but intense, including the welcome at the Maritime Museum and the sailors' chapel, where the crew had a good Irish coffee and sang an Edith Piaf song. Then Eric Karsenti arrived directly from his boat docked in Lisbon, to speak at the ESOF (European Science Open Forum) about Tara Oceans, and bravely met 300 children for a 'porridge-conference'.

Afterwards 450 people flocked to the wharf despite the uncertain weather to visit the boat.

Even the Irish television came to greet Tara, as well as the Youth Council of Dún Laoghaire, and the young competitors of ISAF.

Everyone was delighted with Tara's first visit to this harbor, and the accompanying images of plankton of the world, displayed on 40 panels set up along the 1,6 km of the port's east jetty. 

The Irish premier of the new film “Planet Ocean” was presented to a full house in the presence of the co-director Michael Pitiot, whom I had not seen for almost two years. Even Patrick Poivre d'Arvor experienced the charm of Irish waters with a morning dip in the bay –  water temperature 12 degrees!!

It was a pleasure to see everyone and spend some time together in Ireland. Tara departed in the rain, torrents of tears as she sailed away, carrying a message from the youth of Dún Laoghaire to Brest, their twin city. Come back soon!

Epilogue: As part of the Imagine Festival of Scientific Films in Dublin in 2012, “Invisible”, the short film made by Evin O'Neill and myself about plankton and its role, won first prize. We will fly to New York in late November to present the film at the Imagine Festival New York 2012.

Emmanuel Reynaud