Enjoying tea in the middle of the sea and sky of the Fatherland

DK1 rig in the middle of the storm.

In April 1994, I boarded ship HQ-624 of Brigade 171 to brave the storms and go to DK1 Phuc Nguyen 2A platform.

At that time, the life of the officers and soldiers of the DK1 platform was still very difficult. To buy a kilo of tea, two months before the ship changed shifts, I "telegrammed" via cipher code to the mainland "requesting to buy 2 kilos of Northern tea" and started waiting. When the ship changed shifts, I received a package of tea from the sailor's hand, I was so happy that I cried tears of joy.

After a day of "rolling, crawling, and creeping" in training for combat readiness to protect the platform, we officers and soldiers sat outside the railing facing the mainland. The platform commander told the day's duty officer: "Comrade, please make some tea!". After just a few minutes, a hot cup of tea with nine small cups was placed on the corridor floor. The nine of us sat around, enjoying the tea while looking toward the mainland to ease our homesickness. The work for the next day was also "discussed and implemented" during this tea "party".

For the past 30 years, "enjoying tea while watching the sea and sky of the Fatherland" has not only become a beautiful feature of the soldiers of the DK1 rigs on the southern continental shelf of the Fatherland; but also our most relaxing moments after hours of hard training under the scorching sun and salty sea.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/thuong-tra-giua-bien-troi-to-quoc-19624031518494511.htm