Originally Posted by Sidney Lanier

When we went around Cape Horn (Cabo de Hornos) in January, we were told that in the olden days (actually I feel pretty olden myself...), sailors who completed that route--an accomplishment in those days--got to wear a gold earring in one ear (I forget which ear) and got to wear one in the other ear after doing the same around Cape of Good Hope. Whatever truth there is to the story. We also learned where the name Cape Horn came from....