438 Days is how long Jose Salvador Alvarenga survived while his disabled fishing boat drifted from Costa Azul Mexico all the way to the Marshall Islands. This staggering distance is so large as to be so unbelievable, it's no wonder people initially thought him the creator of an elaborate hoax.
Alvarenga had always been a bit of a wild spirit and so his survival on raw fish, turtle and sea bird meat is not completely strange (but still a bit stomach churning). Also at his disposal was the numerous dregs of garbage floating in the Pacific Ocean. A sad commentary of our current waste practices and pollution of the world's oceans. Alvarenga's crew mate was not so lucky, Ezekial Cordova survived far longer than I would have in similar circumstances, but he mentally gave up and died from sickness and starvation.
Alvarenga's physical needs aside, it is the endurance of his spirit I find the most impressive. It reminded me a lot of the discussions in Andy Weir's The Martian (you can read that review here) in which they examine why Mark Watney had the ideal personality to survive so much time alone. Alvarenga had some of that creativity and curiosity as well.
I'm curious as to where Alvarenga goes from here. To survive such a tortuous experience and then try to put your life back together is an arduous task and I hope he continues to succeed. He'll face certain challenges, but if he can survive on a boat for 438 days adrift at sea, perhaps a few more decades on land are manageable.
4/5 Stars.
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