Fun fact that may or may not be true: The left side of a ship used to be called "larboard" (to go with starboard) because that's where the larder was - where the food was stored, and this was supposedly changed to port because that's also where the wine was stored and it was both easier to say and easier to identify as being different from starboard.
Another fun unverified nautical fact: The word shit originated as an acronym for the storage of cow manure during transport at sea - Store High In Transit. Dried cow pies apparently have...violent reactions to salt water.