Your Columbus post ... sailing the ocean, etc. ..... if you like history, there is a podcast called “The Pirate History Podcast”. It is loaded with history - I don’t know how the guy does all the research he does. Lots of sailing, lots of ocean. The pirates are not the swashbuckling “Disney” type pirates. I’m on episode 115 and we haven’t gotten to the ones most people would mention if you asked them to name a few pirates: Blackbeard, Bonney, the Atlantic coast pirates, etc.
There are lots of grand adventures on the seas ... Mediterranean, Caribbean, Pacific, & Atlantic. Miraculous escapes, tales of survival, incredible good luck & bad, great tacticians - military & otherwise. There are ‘privateers’ (approved pirating), buccaneers, and then actual pirates ... thin line between all of them. You could go out legally to privateer (king’s permission) and while you’re at sea, a treaty is signed & you are now illegally raiding Spanish treasure ships ... communication was slow in those days! It’s all just fascinating. I always loved the history teachers who went beyond the usual history books - this podcast is beyond the history books & into journals, letters, lesser known sources, etc.
Anyway, I am thoroughly enjoying The Pirate History Podcast. It doesn’t hurt that Matt has a wonderful voice & a good sense of humor - he does a fantastic job.
Growing up, I had this book written from the first person’s perspective on American history.
I remember the first story was from the log of Columbus’s first journey, and was great, almost suspenseful. He wrote about (on October 10th) first the hint of the smell of land, then seeing land birds fly over, then, on the 11th, tree branches in the water, and as the sun set, a light or perhaps a fire out on the horizon. Finally, while still dark, in the early hours of October 12th, 1492, a young sailor yelled out “Land ho!”. The sharp-eyed lad could see the dark trees and lighter sand beach against the dark water and sky.
Always inspired me.