Apart from his military service at age 20-22, most of his life before 35 was spent on boats or in foreign ports of call. Vessels he worked on docked in New Zealand, Argentina, South Africa, Singapore, Australia, Russia, India and elsewhere. He virtually went round the world.
扣掉 20 至 22 歲服兵役，他 35 歲以前的日子幾乎都在海上或異國的港灣度過，停靠的國家包括紐西蘭、阿根廷、南非、新加坡、澳洲、俄國、印度等，幾乎環遊了世界一周。