closed society
Insiders on luxury, Kalashnikovs and everyday Hummers: Cruising on the mega yachts of the rich and famous
The 97 meter yacht “Faith” (IMO 1012828) by fashion mogul and Formula 1 racing team owner Lawrence Stroll is said to house a snow room designed to cool down quickly in hot places.
© Sabri Kesen / Picture Alliance
A super or mega yacht is considered de rigueur among billionaires. But what does it look like, the water world of the financial elite? An insider speaks out.
The world of yachts is closed. More than a quick glimpse of the white giants in the usual high-society ports is rare, reports from people working on board are rare. Apparently there is little interest in informing the public about the extravagant luxury that is everyday life for the owners of dream ships like the “Faith”, the “Dilbar” or the “MY A”. But for the British newspaper “The Times” an insider made an exception – and chatted from the sewing box.
The person, who is not mentioned by name due to strict non-disclosure agreements, claims to have been in the yacht business for 20 years. Above all, he remembered the decadent equipment of some ships. Whether submarines for ten passengers, snow rooms for a quick cool down or tea rooms, the branches of the French luxury confectionery chain Maison Ladurée are modeled – there is probably nothing that does not exist.
crew in cashmere
This also applies to the peculiarities of ship owners. The insider recalls one particularly wealthy person who never wore an item of clothing twice and threw away expensive designer clothes after just a day. That made the crew happy – who could then scrub the deck in the fine second-hand yarn. Or the businessman who likes to eat lobster on his yacht but rarely tells his crew when he’s coming on board. The consequence: To be on the safe side, there are lobsters on his ship every day – if the owner arrives spontaneously.
Even at night, the super-rich can’t seem to do without a massage or a sandwich. The crew is sometimes shooed out of bed at three o’clock. But it’s obviously worth it, the insider is quoted as saying in the report. He speaks of high wages and tips that run into the thousands.
With cannons on pirates
However, the job on board a mega yacht is not entirely without risk, it is said. Although the myth about a missile defense system on the “Eclipse” by the Russian oligarch Roman Arkadyevich Abramovich is untrue, some ships have impressive weapons on board, according to the insider.
We are talking about sonic cannons that are able to fire painfully loud noises at people so that they refrain from attacking the ship with earaches and headaches. He also reports on anti-personnel beam weapons that use strong microwaves to heat water molecules in the skin to around 55 degrees within seconds. This pain should also cause attackers to flee.
Why this high level of security? The insider also provides a suitable story. In certain waters, such as the Gulf of Aden, which lies between the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, it is common for pirates to attempt to board ships. Since these are mostly armed with Kalashnikovs, it is said that one has to defend oneself accordingly.
Between research and Fabergé
However, it is important for the insider to draw a fair picture of a typical yacht owner, he explains in his text. Not every ship owner is addicted to luxury and swims in a sea of champagne, but many are also very interested in humanitarian aid and research, disregarding the expensive hobby.
A captain reported to him that the owner of his ship donates several million to rebuild destroyed villages in Vanuatu every year. also dr Jonathan Rothberg, with whom the person claims to have spent time, is not a typical super-rich. The renowned scientist uses the laboratories on his yachts “Gene Machine” and “Gene Chaser” for the development of medical products, such as corona self-tests.
And although he is part of the problem with two ships, Rothberg also takes care of the consequences of climate change. He decided, according to the report, after his crew showered under a waterfall from a glacier that was melting at high temperatures.
The stark opposite is of course also part of the yachting universe. The insider describes golden toilet bowls or bathrooms with snakeskin wallpaper. It is also true that the bar stools on the “Christina O” of the late Greek-Argentinian shipowner Aristotle Onassis are covered with the foreskin of whales. Life on yachts, he concludes, is “as whimsical as it gets.”
source: TheTimes