Fernandez has been taking his boat Destiny to various ports around Malaysia to get its equipment ready and as part of preparation for his upcoming voyage. – Photos courtesy of FABIAN FERNANDEZ
FOR Fabian Fernandez, an upcoming sail around the world marks the fulfilment of an ultimate bucket list.
The trip aboard his yacht called Destiny will be a journey spanning five years covering more than 30 countries and some 50,000 nautical miles (92,600km).
Fernandez, a Klang resident, said: “It was the death of my sister-in-law back in 2017 that served as a wake-up call. She had a typical rags to riches story, but died young at age 42.
“It’s common to chase goals for monetary gains, but that doesn’t always offer fulfilment and a sense of life.
“I didn’t want to grow old and regret things not done. I then embarked on a journey to fulfil my bucket list, which included watching the Brazil football team play at the World Cup and Celine Dion performing live.”
Besides fulfilling this list, the 51-year-old expressed hope that the voyage would recapture the “feeling of being small in a world so big” that he previously experienced.
“There were things I experienced at sea during my six-year stint on merchant vessels that I couldn’t recapture on land, like seeing a billion stars under clear skies and finding the true presence of a Superior Being,” said Fernandez, who left his job as a marine engineer to take on managerial roles in the plantation sector when his first child was born.
“I purchased Destiny, an American sailboat built in 1995, back in 2016.
“My voyage took five years to plan, including making physical and mental preparations for myself and my boat. I had to get my personal affairs sorted, draw up my will, ensure I was mentally prepared for all possible scenarios at sea, map my route while factoring in weather patterns plus ensure my boat was well equipped for ocean crossing,” he said.
Fernandez believes his planned five-year voyage covering over 30 countries and some 50,000 nautical miles, has never been done by a Malaysian
While he originally intended to sail last year when he turned 50, Fernandez said the lockdowns and restrictions associated with the Covid-19 pandemic offered small blessings, such as seeing his children off to university and graduate.
His 24-year-old son will soon start working as a pharmacist while his 22-year-old daughter plans to teach English.
To his knowledge, Datuk Azhar Mansor is the only Malaysian to have completed a non-stop solo sail. Azhar’s round-the-globe trip back in 1999 covered more than 21,600 nautial miles and 190 days, and was carried out on the Jalur Gemilang sailboat that cost RM2mil.
“My trip will be entirely self-funded and I hope to be joined by another crew member, hopefully a Malaysian, to make it an entirely Malaysian team.
“The route for Destiny’s voyage has been planned in such a way to allow different crew members to join at different legs, for example from Cape Town in South Africa to Namibia and St Helena island to the Azores region of Portugal.
“The crew member will spend between three weeks and two months on the boat, depending on the leg and destination. Each crew member should have some seafaring experience, have some basic to mid-level competency with a boat and be self-funded,” said Fernandez.
The westward journey will see Fernandez and his crew crossing the Indian Ocean in 2023, Atlantic Ocean in 2024, North Pacific Ocean in 2025, South Pacific Ocean in 2026 and returning to Malaysia in 2027.
The voyage will allow him to visit places that ordinary tourists cannot visit or can only be accessed by boats.
“For example, the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean is uninhabited by civilians as the locals have been relocated to make way for a military base on one of its islands. So I hope to be granted permission to dock and visit Chagos,” said Fernandez who believes a sail trip spanning such distances has never been done by a Malaysian.
He will be embarking on a shakedown cruise in late September that will serve as a trial run before his round-the-world journey.
He welcomes sponsorship in cash or in kind, such as flight tickets for himself and his crew members, as well as diplomacy support to facilitate his voyage.
For details, email floraldestiny12@gmail.com or look for “Destiny Dawn” on Facebook.
