The Black Pearl commander Paul Cayard and his crew of Pirates played host to 500 yellow-shirted, sword-wielding Grumetes at the Marina da Gloria today in Rio de Janeiro

The third Grumetes – cabin boys in Spanish, girls too we hope – and Pescanova Pirates Day of the race so far proved to be a lively affair with a cacophony of drum beats, roaring cheers and cannon fire, accompanying a spectacular display of dancing and gymnastics from the Circo Popular do Brasil and the bateria mirim of Unidos da Tijuca’s samba school.

It wasn’t purely about entertainment. Commander Cayard took to the floor, not to samba, but to tell the children about the Volvo Ocean Race and life on the high seas. The details of what his sailors wore, what they ate and what animals they saw along the way had an enthralled audience giggling and waving their skull and crossbones flags.

The spotlight then turned on Cayard himself, dressed up in bandanna and full Pirates gear, who was bombarded by questions about where the toilets were on the boat, why there were no women in his Pirate crew and how many girlfriends the crew had in every port.

The first Pescanova Pirates Day took place during November at Vigo, Spain where official partner Pescanova, the Spanish fishing company, have an Oceanic School of Sailing. The roadshow aims to teach children around the world about navigation, nautical sports and the marine environment and so far, around 5,000 children have attended the three shows to date.