Matu O’Flaherty – from Scotland
“Growing up in Ullapool in the North West Highlands of Scotland, sailing and the sea were always part of life from an early age. After leaving high school, I had the opportunity to volunteer for a summer season on Wylde Swan, which at the time regularly sailed in Scottish waters. Working as part of a close-knit crew, I quickly developed a strong interest in tall ship sailing. The mix of hard work, teamwork, and shared responsibility was especially formative.
That experience led me to Enkhuizen Zeevaartschool. Several members of the crew were heading there to complete either the KZV or GZV programmes, and I decided to follow the same path. I spent the winter living aboard a Bruine Vloot ship while attending the KZV course. Looking back, I would have benefited from a little more sea time beforehand, as my wider situational awareness was still developing. I completed the year with average results, but what stood out most was the opportunity to learn alongside a diverse, international group of people who shared a passion for traditional sailing vessels.
In the years that followed, I stayed nearly continuously at sea, working full time through both summer and winter with short breaks in between. I sailed on Ide Min and Antigua, and since 2020 have been employed full time on Oosterschelde. The demanding sailing programme and varied operational areas helped me develop into a competent sailor, gradually progressing into rotating roles as Second and First Officer.
By the time the Oosterschelde’s World Voyage neared completion in 2025, I felt the need to strengthen my theoretical foundation and enrolled in the GZV programme for 2025/26. After years of hands-on work at sea, one of the first challenges was getting back into study mode. It was also the longest period I had spent ashore in seven years. I chose to complete the full programme in one year, which required a clear shift from an active, outdoor routine to a much more focused academic one.
Subjects such as Astro and Stability are often seen as challenging, so I made a point of focusing on them. With steady effort, my understanding gradually developed, and I began to genuinely enjoy the subtleties within the subjects. Although I do not have a strong mathematical background, I found that consistent work made a real difference. I completed the programme with strong results, improving on my KZV performance. The supportive class environment also added a lot to both the academic and personal experience.
Within a week of finishing, I rejoined Oosterschelde as Chief Officer, having added a few more strings to my bow. Overall, the programme strengthened my understanding of sailing vessel operations, helped fill important gaps in my theoretical knowledge, and updated key areas.
Of course, everyone learns differently, but what I found particularly helpful was gaining a few years of practical experience alongside the courses. This was something I felt I had been missing before the KZV, and it really helped me develop a solid understanding of the topics covered in the GZV.”
Estée Turk – from the Netherlands
After graduating from my tourism studies I left for a long backpacking trip. After a year of warm climates, I was looking into ways to visit Antarctica. I was also interested in crossing the ocean. I found a sailing ship that combined those two in one voyage: first to Antarctica, then across to Africa. I had never been sailing before, but loved it from the start.
I started volunteering on ships in refit and did my first season as a deckhand in England a year later – on TS Maybe. Still being fascinated by ice and polar regions, I applied for a position as a deckhand on Antigua – which was sailing around Svalbard – and got the job. After a summer of ice I joined Tres Hombres to the Carribean for the winter as bosun.
After three years as a deckhand and bosun I figured it was time to extend my knowledge and go to Enkhuizen. It was fun to be in a class with others that I had sailed with and to meet other tallship sailors. Some subjects were completely new to me and some provided theory about what I had been doing in practice for some years. I also enjoyed learning about things that I had seen on board before but never worked with as a deckhand. This combination of new and familiar things kept it challenging yet easily doable.
After the exams I went back to Antigua, but this time as a qualified officer of the watch. Two years later a friend from KZV convinced me to join him for GZV. I wasn’t sure at first but now I am glad to have done it. It again was a fun yet more challenging year, especially as it was expected that all the knowledge from the first year was still present. The second year has brought me more understanding in my work as an officer and allows me to start the third year in Urk to get my Officer All Ships license. I plan to continue sailing in the traditional sailing fleet, but would also like to explore the upcoming WASP vessels.
Jordan from Andorra
From Mountains to Sea
My name is Jordan and I’m 26 years old. I grew up in Andorra, a small country tucked away in the valleys of the Pyrenees.
I spent many summers along the Spanish coast and when I turned 16 I caught the sailing bug. There was something about gliding across the water with a hefty canvas overhead that couldn’t be beat.
I followed an education in music, and sailing drifted into the background for a few years but came back in the form of frostbite series racing in Shoreham on 30-40ft yachts on the weekends.
After my studies I moved to the Netherlands and became a skipper on the canal boats and enjoyed two years of maneuvering through Amsterdam’s canals and meeting many people.
However, my sailing toes started itching again and the city wasn’t doing it for me.
I spent several months working as a deckhand on a ferry between Volendam and Marken. That’s where I met Johnny. He is a captain on board the ferry and he empathized with my need for a sail on my boat and recommended the Enkhuizen Nautical College. He described it as the Hogwarts of sailing schools. He was right.
I have done both the KZV (Coastal Sailing) and GZV (Ocean Sailing) courses. They ran in the winter and on weekends, which meant I could carry on working. During the courses I worked as a skipper in Amsterdam and as a sailmaker for the Dutch traditional sailing fleet, the ‘bruine vloot’. In the summers I worked on a day-trip sailing ship and as a mate in the Dutch Inland Fleet, the ‘bruine vloot’.
After having been well trained on the Dutch inland waters I was eager to go to sea. I joined the Dutch Tall Ship Gulden Leeuw for their last High Seas High School program, a 7-month round-trip Atlantic crossing. It was very rewarding to sail with youth and see them develop. I later crossed the Atlantic on the Stad Amsterdam and sailed in the Caribbean on the Oosterschelde.
I’m currently skipper and operations manager of a sailing pilot ship called the Texelstroom and as I write this I have just finished a voyage as Officer aboard the Eems No. 1, a pilot cutter.
The Enkhuizen Nautical College has given me direction, a community of excellent sailors, and access to Tall Ships and sailing experiences I could have never imagined when I began this journey 10 years ago along the Spanish Coast.
There are many innovations in sailing and shipping which makes me enthusiastic about the future and I still have a lot of time and devotion for our traditional vessels.
Manu from Tahiti
Hi, I’m Manu from Tahiti.
I was born and raised in French Polynesia in the middle of the Pacific Ocean where I started sailing at the age of five. I am therefore passionate about the sea, traditional sailing ships and navigation.
I had the opportunity to sail from being a trainee to chief mate on different types of sailing ships (square-rigged, gaff-
rigged, catamarans, racing monohulls) in different places in the world: Polynesia,
Patagonia, Australia, North Atlantic, Europe, North Sea, Norway, Svalbard, Greenland, Iceland…
I’ve been sailing professionally since 2020 and obtained my STCW Certificates of
Competency (CoC) for Officer of the Watch and Master 500GT Sailing ships at
Enkhuizen Nautical College.
I have the honor and pleasure to have followed different maritime courses at EZS. I took both the KZV and GZV programs during the winters of 2023-2024 and 2024-2025. On top of that I took the complementary courses: Basic Safety, Medical First Aid, Medical Care, STSDSD, Advanced Radar and ECDIS.
Before knowing about this school, I was already sailing on tall ships as an AB and I started to hear about it from other crew members met on different ships and maritime festivals.
People were telling me: “If you’re that passionate about tall ships and traditional sailing, you must go to EZS. You’ll enjoy it.”
So I did.
Indeed, today I’m so happy that I had the opportunity to go to EZS and I keep recommending it to all sailors I meet on my way.
In addition to the great quality of the lessons and the high experience of the teachers who are sailors themselves, I found at EZS a sailing community that I never had elsewhere. Everybody may have a different background but is passionate about the same thing: sailing. That creates such a good atmosphere and a network of contacts that is already helping me to find new job opportunities.
Being at sea a minimum of 8 months a year on different tall ships, I can fully apply my knowledge learned at EZS in my everyday life onboard.
What are you waiting for?
Join us in the EZS community!
Cheers,
Manu
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