Monday, 25 February, 2002

I'm not sure what made me me think of this, but last night my mind dredged up a topic I had heard of a couple of years ago: an ocean-going ship named "The World." After a brief Google search, I discovered that the project is going strong, now called the "Freedom Ship."

Here's the basic concept: a massive ship, 4,500 feet long, 750 feet wide, 350 feet high. "The vessel's superstructure, rising twenty-five stories above its broad main deck, will house residential space, a library, schools, and a first-class hospital in addition to retail and wholesale shops, banks, hotels, restaurants, entertainment facilities, casinos, offices, warehouses, and light manufacturing and assembly enterprises. Finally, a wide array of recreational and athletic facilities, worthy of a world class resort, will make Freedom Ship a veritable 'Community on the Sea.' "

The ship will continuously circle the globe, covering most of the world's coastal areas every two years, standing offshore major cities about 70% of the time, spending the other 30% in transit. There is an airstrip on the top deck, capable of handling 30-40 passenger aircraft. Its fleet of commuter aircraft and hydrofoils will ferry passengers to and from shore.

Here's an artist's rendering of the ship:

There will 18,000 resident-owned living units being offered at pre-construction prices. They range from a 300 square foot Economy Unit with no kitchen for $153,000 to a 750 square foot interior unit for $305,625 all the way up to a 5,100 square foot Water View Suite for the low, low price of just $6,852,450. There is also a time-share program where you can get a 900 square foot unit for two weeks every year for $40,000, plus condo fees, naturally.

The attraction, presumably, is more for retired people, or for those who have businesses that can be run from a distance. I actually think it's a pretty neat concept: you can leave the ship at one port, travel around on land in an area, or fly to another country for a while, and then catch up with the ship at a future port.

[Of course, it would help to have a LOT of money, neh?]

Time frame on when it will be ready . . . well, I haven't been able to pinpoint that yet. As luck would have it though, there is a show on the Discovery Channel tonight at 9 p.m. that investigates "Engineering The Impossible." They will be covering the Freedom Ship, in addition to other difficult engineering challenges. I'll try to watch it and report back tomorrow.

For some time I have been surfing through the myriad weblogs on the net, finding ones that I like and come back to. I shan't be too precise about the ratio of blogs that I like versus those that I find purile and/or no fun. Just know it's somewhere around a gazbillion to one. Roughly.

Anyway, I have added a couple to my Links section. The first one, Tim Blair, is an Australian columnist with some very right-wing views [would fit right in at a Myers family reunion]. His blog tends toward the political, but not always.

Also included in the new and improved Links list is Wil Wheaton Dot Net. In case that name sounds vaguely familiar, Wil is an actor, best known for his lead role in Rob's Reiner's 1986 film, "Stand By Me." Or, if you're a Trekkie like me you'd also know him from "Star Trek:The Next Generation". Wil designed and built his website himself [another self-taught HTML coder] and updates it just about every day. He's very witty even if his politics are a bit to the left.

[That's OK, after I've read Tim Blair, a little moderate liberalism is actually refreshing.]

Quote du jour:

"Ships at a distance have
every man's wish on board."

-- Zora Neale Hurston (1903 - 1960)

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