noon
What charming hours I passed thus at the window of the saloon ! What new specimens of submarine flora and fauna did I admire under the brightness of our electric lantern ! The 9th of February the Nautilus floated in the broadest part of the Red Sea , which is comprised between Souakin , on the west coast , and Komfidah , on the east coast , with a diameter of ninety miles . That day at noon , after the bearings were taken , Captain Nemo mounted the platform , where I happened to be , and I was determined not to let him go down again without at least pressing him regarding his ulterior projects . As soon as he saw me he approached and graciously offered me a cigar . `` Well , sir , does this Red Sea please you ? Have you sufficiently observed the wonders it covers , its fishes , its zoophytes , its parterres of sponges , and its forests of coral ?