Abandoned Ships: Part 1

Abandoned Ships: Part 1

Author: Kerning Cultures Network May 6, 2021 Duration: 28:02

When seafarer Mehmet Gulsen stepped on board the Kenan Mete, he thought he was signing up to a pretty standard 7 month contract, and then he'd be home in Ukraine with his young daughter and his dog. But a few months in, things started going wrong, and he ended up abandoned with his crew at a port in the Suez Canal, with no idea when they'd be able to go home.

This week on Kerning Cultures, the strange legal limbo that allows seafarers to wind up abandoned and unable to leave their ships... sometimes for years at a time.

This episode was made in collaboration with 99% Invisible. Check them out wherever you get your podcasts. It was produced by Alex Atack and edited by Katie Mingle, with additional support from Dana Ballout, Zeina Dowidar, Nadeen Shaker and the whole 99% Invisible team. Dilara Çelik provided translation support and Onur Akmehmet was the voice of Mehmet.

You can find a transcript of this episode at our website.

Support this podcast on patreon.com/kerningcultures for as little as $1 a month.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


Dive into the rich, complex, and often surprising narratives that define a region through the lens of Kerning Cultures. This documentary-style series moves beyond headlines to deliver intimate, human-centered stories from across the Middle East and North Africa, and from the nuanced spaces in between. Each episode is a crafted audio journey, blending personal testimony with immersive sound design to explore themes of identity, history, innovation, and everyday life. You’ll hear from voices seldom amplified elsewhere-artists grappling with tradition, scientists tackling local challenges, families navigating change, and communities preserving memory. Produced by the Kerning Cultures Network, the podcast is built on deep reporting and a commitment to nuanced storytelling that challenges monolithic perspectives. It’s for anyone curious about the forces shaping cultures and societies, presented not as a lecture but as an experience. The result is a listening session that feels both expansive and personal, connecting global audiences to specific lives and places. Tune in for stories that are meticulously researched, emotionally resonant, and fundamentally human, reminding us that the most compelling tales are often found in the details we haven’t yet heard. This is a podcast dedicated to the art of narrative, offering a fresh and essential auditory window into a dynamic part of the world.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Kerning Cultures
Podcast Episodes
The Fishermen [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:29
Ramchandra Tendel arrived to Abu Dhabi from India in 1989, when he was 20. Since, he's been captain of a fishing boat. Last May, the nets he uses to fish were banned in the UAE; they were causing too much harm to fish st…
الصوت الآخر للسودان [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:52
٣ شخصيات تروي كيف تأثرت من انفصال جنوب السودان عن الشمال، وتحدثنا عن المعاناة التي خلقت تساؤلات عن معنى الوطن والانتماء.Three characters share the struggles of living in post-secession Sudan, and how the 2011 split influ…
Loving Lynn [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:20
Lynn left behind her hometown village in the Philippines for a housekeeping job in Lebanon at the age of 23. It was only meant to be temporary… until she met Butros, her employer's nephew, and they fell in love. But for…
We've got news! [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 4:59
Kerning Cultures is now the first venture-funded podcast company in the Middle East. Which means we've got more shows coming, in both English and Arabic. Here, Hebah explains some of our future plans, plus a sneak peek o…
جوهرة الموصل [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 16:45
نور، ترى العالم بصوتهاSupport this podcast on Patreon for as little as $1 a month. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Misfits, Volume I [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:09
Two bite-sized stories from the Kerning Cultures vault. First, is there really Halal Cart drama in New York? And, we explore an ancient farming practice, modernised in Cairo.This episode was produced by Alex Atack, with…
KC Short: Break the Cycle [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 12:54
We asked women to tell us about their first periods and how it set a tone for how they view their bodies today. A tribute to International Women's Day.Produced by Shahd Bani Odeh and Darah Ghanem. With editorial support…
The Perfect Renaissance Man [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:43
In the 1930s, the architect Nasri Khattar tried to completely overhaul the Arabic script – singlehandedly. For the next 47 years, he worked day and night to implement his writing system, Unified Arabic. Ultimately, he fa…
Lebanon, USA [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:20
In 2016, Fadi Boukaram planned to visit 47 American towns named Lebanon by road. Then, in Lebanon South Dakota, he discovered that all these other Lebanons have more in common with the country than anybody realised. This…

«1...678910