Message in a bottle from Brazil washes up in Oz after 16 years

There was no genie inside, but a bottle washed up on the shores of Peterborough in Victoria has been dubbed* just as magical after it travelled to Australia from Brazil over the course of 16 years.

A local resident called Tony discovered the bottle while out for a walk and was amazed to find it had a letter inside it.

“Your curiosity has paid off,” the letter read.

“Thank you for recovering* this bottle and taking the time to see what was inside.

“I have placed bottles like this one in several oceans at many different locations all over the world in the hope that people like you might find this bottle and return the note to me in the United States.”

The letter explained that the bottle was dropped into the Atlantic Ocean in early November, 2008.

“I would appreciate you sending me this note so I can find out how far the bottle travelled and for how long,” the note continued.

“To make it worth your while to participate in my experiment, I will send you $20 (US) upon receipt of this note. Please make sure to include your name and address.”

And while the note may sound like a possible scam, the sender — a man by the name of Joe Johnson — says the bottle was one he likely threw from one of the “many cruises” he’s enjoyed around the world.

Speaking to ABC Melbourne, Mr Johnson told breakfast radio host Sammy J that the bottle was launched between Rio and Salvador in Brazil.

“I’ve been to Australia and I probably threw a few bottles in the water there, but this one is from Brazil,” he said from the small town of Towson in Maryland.

“My wife and I took an awful lot of cruises, but I don’t remember that specific bottle. Every cruise we took … I probably threw a bottle or two in the water. It’s fun, especially if it came from Brazil to Australia.”

Mr Johnson said that aside from the call he received from Sammy J’s breakfast radio show, he had only been contacted once from another person who had found a bottle — even though he had dropped about 100 in the water over the years.

An image of the barnacle-covered bottle and note was posted to local Facebook group, The Peterborough Press, with commenters shocked at how a single bottle had travelled from Brazil to Australia over the course of 16 years.

“How fantastic – I love that!” one wrote.

“I hope he’s still alive to know it’s been found on the beach at Peterborough, Victoria. It’s been on a long trip,” another added.

“That’s a really fascinating find! To think it has survived 16 years in the ocean,” another added.

“If only that bottle could talk, what an adventure.”

POLL

GLOSSARY

• dubbed: named or called
• recovering: finding

EXTRA READING
Message in bottle returned after 55 years
Message in a bottle found after 50 years
Oldest message in a bottle found in WA

QUICK QUIZ
1. Where was the bottle discovered?
2. How long had it been drifting at sea?
3. Where had it been thrown into the ocean?
4. Where does the author of the letter live?
5. How many messages in bottles had the author of the letter thrown into the ocean while on cruises?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. What would it say?
Imagine that the bottle that Tony found could actually talk and that you are a Kids New reporter. What five questions would you ask the bottle? Write them down. Then write the answers that you think it would give. Remember that you need lots of interesting details for your story.

Time: allow at least 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

2. Extension
If you wanted to use your research skills to find out how the ocean currents would have carried the bottle from the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Brazil in 2008 to the beach at Peterborough in Victoria in 2024, how would you go about your research? Write a list of specific steps that you would take to find out! Remember that you could contact experts and organisations for information.

Time: allow at least 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science

VCOP ACTIVITY
Creative vocabulary
Find a bland sentence from the article to up-level. Can you add more detail and description? Can you replace any ‘said’ words with more specific synonyms?

Have you outdone yourself and used some really great vocabulary throughout your writing? Firstly, well done. Secondly, let’s ensure everyone can understand it by adding a glossary of terms. Pick three of your wow words and create a glossary for each word to explain what it means.