Chapter 3 Shipwrecks in the Mediterranean
Daniel drove them to a popular diving spot not far from the Old Port of Marseille, about 40 nautical miles from the shore of Marseille. Under the water was an ancient shipwreck built in the style of ancient Egypt, which is now a diving attraction.
There are many such diving spots along the Mediterranean coast.
The Mediterranean has been a trade route between Asia, Africa, and Europe since ancient times, and there are countless shipwrecks here. Many of these shipwrecks have now become scenic spots for diving tourists to visit.
"Daniel said that there is an ancient shipwreck where he will take us diving today?" The taller girl is called Miao Pei. She doesn't quite believe that Daniel will take them to dive in a place with an ancient shipwreck.
Xiao Peng was checking the diving equipment there. Hearing Miao Pei's question, he smiled and explained, "That's right! It should be an ancient merchant ship with a history of hundreds of years."
Miao Pei asked in confusion: "Shouldn't cultural relics like this be protected? How can we just let tourists dive and see them?"
Xiao Peng smiled bitterly and said, "If there were too many, they wouldn't be considered treasures! There are approximately three million shipwrecks in the world's oceans. Since the Mediterranean has been a trade route since ancient times, there must be at least half a million ships from various periods that have sunk here. This is nothing surprising."
Miao Pei's eyes widened. "You said this ship has hundreds of years of history. Does that mean there are a lot of antiques on board?"
Xiao Peng was so happy that he almost couldn't straighten his back. "It's ancient, yes, but you say the things on the boat are antiques... I'm afraid they're not. What's that saying? Garbage is still garbage after a thousand years. The boat down there is just a small single-decker cargo ship, similar to the sampans commonly used by fishermen on the coast of our country. The crew and cargo have to stay on deck. The cargo on the boat are all those one-meter-high pottery jars, which are only of archaeological value and not collectible value. If they were valuable, wouldn't we have fished them out long ago and let you visit?"
Miao Pei covered her mouth and laughed after hearing this: "You're right. But why would they use a ship like this as a merchant ship? It's too unsafe!"
Xiao Peng explained, "The Mediterranean is an inland sea. Aside from the Strait of Gibraltar connecting it to the Atlantic Ocean, it's almost entirely surrounded by continents. Hence, the so-called 'Mediterranean climate.' In the summer, the sea is almost calm, while in the winter, the winds are strong, the waves are high, and the rain is heavy. You see, those refugees dare to cross the Mediterranean on a raft for this very reason. But this isn't absolute; otherwise, there wouldn't be so many shipwrecks. Even though there are so many shipwrecks now, at least 99% of them haven't been discovered yet! The ocean is truly vast!"
Miao Pei's face was filled with longing after hearing this: "According to what you said, there must be endless wealth in these shipwrecks! We will definitely make a lot of money if we salvage the shipwrecks!"
Xiao Peng smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Hey, beautiful lady, you're a college student after all. Why do you keep talking about money?"
Miao Pei said, "What can you do now without money? If I didn't have money, I wouldn't be able to travel to France, right? Didn't you come to Marseille to work for money?"
Xiao Peng nodded: "Okay, you're right, money is indeed important, but you think the problem is too simple!"
"Simple?" Miao Pei didn't understand what Xiao Peng meant.
Xiao Peng explained, "Well, speaking from the perspective of an old seafarer, those so-called 'undersea treasure hunts' are actually just a scam for laymen. All the known shipwrecks in the Mediterranean have been thoroughly searched, and all the valuables on board have been taken out."
"Then can we look for shipwrecks that have not been discovered? Didn't you say that there are a large number of shipwrecks that have not been discovered?" Miao Pei retorted.
Xiao Peng laughed happily after hearing this: "Finding an undiscovered shipwreck is harder than climbing to the sky! You need to devote a lot of energy and time to investigating historical materials. After all, there are so many shipwrecks, and you have to investigate to determine whether a shipwreck is valuable. In addition, even if you find valuable shipwreck data, finding its location is even more difficult! 'Finding a ship in a haystack' is essentially the same as 'finding a needle in a haystack'. The average time it takes a marine salvage company to search for an unknown shipwreck is seven years! And if the shipwreck is located at a depth of less than 300 meters, high-tech equipment is required! And this equipment is very expensive. Let's put it this way, if you want to set up an underwater salvage company, you can't do it without tens of millions of euros ----- and I'm just saying the minimum number. Even if you need a submersible equipped with hundreds of millions of euros, it won't be enough!"
Miao Pei thought for a moment and nodded. "Okay, I really thought it was too simple! But there's one thing I don't understand. Why did you mention that salvaging from below 300 meters requires high-tech equipment?"
Xiao Peng explained, "Currently, the best personal diving suits can only reach depths of 322 meters. For beginners like you who haven't received systematic training, I wouldn't dare take you deeper than 15 meters. To be precise, 99.99% of diving enthusiasts in the world wouldn't dive beyond 40 meters."
Miao Pei was a college student after all, so she understood: "Is it because of the ocean pressure?"
Xiao Peng nodded. "That's right. If you dive deeper than 300 meters, the pressure you'll experience is like having a 540-pound fat man dancing ballet on every inch of your skin. If you dive deeper than 1,500 meters, the pressure you'll experience is like having an entire division of soldiers stacked on top of you. And if you dive deeper than 3,000 meters? Haha, that's like having 13 Statues of Liberty on their pedestals pressing down on you! Tell me, is salvaging a deep-sea shipwreck possible without high-tech equipment?"
Miao Pei stuck out her tongue: "This is too scary! I don't even dare to go into the sea after what you said!"
Xiao Peng smiled and said, "Don't worry. The water where we're going is only a little over ten meters deep. As long as you follow my instructions, there won't be any danger. Even if something unexpected happens, you can rest assured that I'm here. I guarantee that nothing will happen to you!"
Miao Pei smiled and said, "I feel relieved when you say that! Your words make me feel safe!"
"What are you guys talking about so happily?" asked curiously as the short girl watching Daniel sailing at the stern.
Her name is Wang Shuang. She and Miao Pei are college classmates. This time, the two of them took advantage of the holiday to travel together.
Miao Pei replied: "We are exploring the mysteries of the ocean!"
Wang Shuang held onto the cabin and carefully walked over to Miao Pei. He leaned over and whispered in her ear, "When we get there, you and Xiao Peng go diving first. I'll stay on the boat with Daniel for a while. I think I'm in love!"
Miao Pei looked at Wang Shuang with a dark expression: "Wang Shuang, you've been in love at least six times along the way, right?"
“This time it’s real!”
"You always say that!"
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