We are in Port Vila again, the capital of Vanuatu. We are waiting here until the weather co-operates and we can leave for New Caledonia. We have had several great adventures since the last time I posted a blog. The first one was when we went to a blue hole upriver from an anchorage just north of Luganville on the island of Espirito Santo. The blue hole is exactly what it’s name describes, we traveled about a kilometer up the windy river, the channel kept getting narrower and narrower. At the end the channel was just wider than the dinghy and the rest of the river was covered with vine like floating vegetation. Then the river opened up into this wonderful wide circle and the bottom fell away to about 10 meters. It was crystal clear and the water was fresh. We had a great time swimming, there were quite a few young people swimming and they came over and we took pictures of all of us under the water, when we came up we laughed and laughed. We had fun experimenting with the camera as well. There was a huge tree at the edge of the water and people were swinging and diving in and having a great time. I figured they didn’t want to see a 55 year old grandma make a fool of herself so I didn’t give it a try.

ASUNVARI

We sailed off to another island, Maewo and there we headed off into the hills on a 5 hour hike to see a cave that was filled with bats. Other cruisers had told us what a great time they had there so we set off. It was a challenging hike as it had rained the day before and on the way down the ground was just goo, I would slip and slid down the hill. Our guide was excellent though and he had a hand for me whenever I needed it. The cave was huge and there were hundreds of bats flitting about inside. There were so many that their radar didn’t work in it’s usual superb manner and a few crashed into us. At the end of the cave it opened up and the sun shone in. It showed a cathedral of rock with a huge opening at the bottom. We threw rocks into the hole and they would bounce down forever, apparently there was another cave opening at the bottom. You would have needed lots of very good climbing gear to find out what was at the bottom of the cave. After we came down from the hills we had a swim in the pool at the bottom of the waterfall. (If you click on the pictures they will enlarge and you can tell that the specs on this picture are bats)
The anchorage where the village was is called Asunvari and it is gorgeous spot. There was a nice curving bay with a sandy beach on one side, where the village was located and then the waterfall at the other end. The land to the back of the village was a steep rock face which is covered with lush vegetation. They had a yacht club there and we had a meal, the fellow that had prepared it had been a chef in Luganville and he knew how to cook. We had dinner with a couple from a Spanish boat. They had been in Pago Pago in American Samoa when the tsunami hit last year so we were regaled with first hand accounts of what happened when the wave hit the harbour.
When we went ashore in Asunvari the chief of the village approached us. He needed to get to Port Vila to see a doctor and asked if we would be willing to take him. We had planned to make a number of stops on our way back to Vila, but we decided this was something that we could do so we agreed to take on a passenger on our voyage back to Port Vila. We sailed for 36 hours straight experiencing quite changeable conditions but managed to get to port before dark. Jif (chief) Nelson spoke pretty good English but we struggled to come up with conversational topics that interested all of us. At one point I asked about local legends and he came up with three stories that he shared with us. He used to work as the skipper of a commercial vessel that visited the islands around his home. He also skippered a traditional sailing canoe that was sailed from his island of Maewo to Port Vila. He told about visiting a bunch of different islands and I think other crafts joined in from the other islands and they all sailed to Vila. It was a unique experience having him onboard and we appreciated the bananas and papayas that he gave to us to compensate us for the food he ate on the trip.
We are enjoying the company of cruisers we have met up and down the island here in Port Vila, but time is running out in the season and I am anxious to get to New Caledonia. We may leave on Thursday but I am not sure if the weather will co-operate.

JIF NELSON

We enjoyed seeing these folks sailing home after a day of gardening. Traditionally they used to use palm fronds for a sail.





Standing on the bow of the 40 foot catamaran from Australia near Cook's Reef. View of Emae Island from the back of the cat.

I love this shot of these kids playing on the beach.

Here is some of the group having a dip in the fresh water after the trek through the jungle.

These next three pictures are from the mini Festival in Port Sandwich. The mask is truly impressive, it is made out of organic materials and looked quite heavy. Have a look at the bass player sitting on the box making music.

Yesterday we got to dive on the President Coolidge. It was a luxury liner that was launched in 1931 and then converted to a troop carrier for WW11. The Coolidge sank when it went off course and struck a mine, the captain managed to beach her before she sunk and all but 2 of the over 6000 troops managed to abandon ship safely. The wreck is situated just off shore so you actually walk into the dive and then follow ropes down to the wreck. It is lying on its side and it is massive.
Our first dive we saw helmets, rifles and shell casing that had been abandoned lying on the side of the wreck. The dive master stopped and put on the helmet and picked up a rifle and he looked kind of scary with that stuff on over his scuba gear. We swam along the side and then along the forward promenade deck. The big 3 inch gun that was bolted to the forward deck is still there along with more huge shell casings.
Our second dive we got to go and see" the lady" it is a statue about a meter high of a woman sitting on a horse. It was still in very good condition and the colours were still highly visible even after 60 years. Our dive leader gave her a good brushing off when we were there so I am sure the constant stream of visitors keeps her clean. Barry bravely removed his regulator and kissed the lady. Then we got to dive inside the wreck, we saw a chandelier and then looked way up and saw the sunlight streaming in the portals. It is deceiving, I kept forgetting that the wreck was on its side so although I knew which way was up that was not the orientation of the ship. We swam inside through some quite narrow openings, I was quite happy to let the others go first to make sure they would fit and not get stuck.
Apparently you can do over 10 dives on the Coolidge and you can see a different part every time. We may go back to Luganville and dive Million Dollar Point, the spot where the American government dumped excess machines after the war; jeeps, trucks, bulldozers and other heavy equipment. The story goes that the army wished to sell them to the French but the French knowing that the Americans would not remove the vehicles offered them rock bottom prices for them. Rather than hand them over for nothing the U.S. drove them off the point and sunk them. Apparently an Aussie told us that the Aus government pulled some out a couple of decades later, changed the oil and took out the rust and the bulldozers worked for many years. What a waste!
We are going to head up to a resort today, we have heard some wonderful reports on the spot and then will begin to work our way back south to Port Vila where we will wait for a good weather window to sail to New Caledonia.

We are tucked away in a great anchorage at Port Sandwich, Malekula Island. You are discouraged from swimming in these waters because a shark attacked a young yachtie a few years ago and she perished. We came here because we heard there was a feast and some dancing to be seen. It has been well worth it, the feast the first day was delicious with many traditional foods, more lap lap and lots of food with taro and manioc. A couple of local string bands played the night away, there were guitars, ukulele and a sting box bass. The bass was just a box with a stick attached to the top with a string strung from the top of the stick to the top of the box. It gave off amazing resonances. The singing was very high, there was a lot of falsetto singing and the harmonies were not what we had been used to with the Polynesians. We danced and joined in the fun that everyone was having.
The next morning a walk had been organized to a waterfall. There are 15 boats in the anchorage and about 8 dinghies full of people set off down the bay. We got off in a mangrove swamp and then took a walk through a very steamy jungle. The palm trees had vines that wound there way up the trunks making their trunks appear about twice the normal size.
We stopped at a bridge over the Murder River. This was the spot where the French and the locals fought in the 1800's. The story goes that one of the French contingent was having his way with the chief's wife so the war was on, thus the name. Cannibalism was practiced until the late 1960's on this island. The French governed here until independence in 1980 and apparently this island did not want the French to leave. Under their rule there was electricity, a good system of running water, and well maintained schools, life was good.
We turned off the road and went to a wonderful oasis. Fresh water babbled over boulders and fell in a 3 meter waterfall. There were pools of water above the falls and everyone stripped down and went in the water. It was a tad dirty but very refreshing after tramping through the steamy jungle. We got back to the anchorage just in time for a delicious lunch featuring some very tasty coconut cake and a wonderful chopped up fruit salad.
After lunch we saw some kustom dancing. It was an all male troop with painted bodies and very little on except the nambas or penis sheaths. They had on the most wonderful masks, they were about a meter high with long pointy tops, and full faces. You will have to wait for the pictures, it is hard to describe. There were nuts shells wound around their ankles and when they stomped to the beating of the drums they would clash together making quite the noise. They carried sticks that used to be used to bash people and pigs over the head to kill them, fantastic stuff.
After that was over we asked the peace corp. volunteer that was helping to get the island organized about how kava was made, She took 4 of us over and we watched kava being cut up in tiny pieces and then put through the grinder, then it was strained about 5 times before we got a sample. I had 2 bowls and felt very relaxed and laid back. One fella said it was good for high blood pressure so I may have to indulge more often. The string band returned and we spent the afternoon enjoying some good music.
Another Fast Passage 39 showed up in the anchorage so we got a chance to go aboard and have a look at how it had been laid out. Our interior was in much better shape than theirs but the owner is a young man of about 30, who lives to surf. He had a useable navigation station that we were very jealous of; maybe one day we might feel the need to do something about ours!!

We have been slowly making our way north among the many islands of Vanuatu. Yesterday we had participated in a group sail. It was extreme amounts of fun. We were at an anchorage where there is a huge reef off the Emae Island; it is called Cook's Reef. There were 5 boats in the anchorage and we all piled into a 40 foot catamaran and sailed out to the reef and anchored and went for a snorkel. It was the first time I had sailed on a cat so it was an interesting experience. There were 16 on board, we had 2 local guides and the 12 others were Australians. It was great fun getting to know the Aussies and gleaning some great intel about Oz from them. I also quizzed them on some Aussies sayings so that I would know the lingo when I got there. Michael and Andrew, our guides, had a look of wonder and concentration on their faces as they were piloting the cat. We learned some more Bislama as well. The captain of the boat like to talk so we christened him Tok tok too much, and me lookum behind you, means see you later.

At the reef we anchored and spent about an hour in the water. Barry found some great shells but we left them there as they had creatures in them. (We did take one shell from Fiji with a creature in it and spent the next week, dissolving him out of it and putting up with the stink, so we have resolved never to pick up another live shell. I actually felt pretty bad about taking it!) Barry would dive down and turn these big shells over and then leave I felt bad about the poor creatures inside so after he left I would dive down and turn then back over. We saw some great examples of coral we had never seen before and there were a bunch of Nemo fish hiding out in the soft coral.

On the way back to the anchorage the Aussies put out the fishing lines and caught 2 good sized barracudas. They were thinking of throwing them back but Michael said that his village would love to have them. There were a couple of larger fish on the line but they snapped the 30 pounded test line and they lost three lures. That was a major loss and the captain was not happy.

I enjoyed sailing on the cat, I did not have the sensation of moving that you do in a monohull, and there is no heeling of course. Also the wake at the back coming off the pontoons made me think we were going a lot faster than we actually were. I lay on the trampoline that connects the 2 pontoons and watched the water for a while, I could see how you could just fall asleep out there. It was perfect weather for the venture and we had a terrific time.

We hope to get to a festival at the end of the week and then make our way up to the island of Espirito Santo where we want to dive on the wreck of the Coolidge, a former luxury liner that was converted to a troop ship in WW2, which sunk when it hit land mines going into the harbour at Luganville.

Port Vila is the capital of Vanuatu, which was formerly the New Hebrides. The British and the French both had a presence here and at one time there were two systems of government, the French would follow their laws and the English would follow theirs. Independence was declared in 1980 and Vanuatu just celebrated their 30 year anniversary at the end of July. There are over 100 local languages being spoken in Vanuatu at the moment as well as Bislama which is a pidgin English, it is written as it would have sounded coming from an upper crust English man. Here is ea, thank you, is tank you tumas, of is blong, or belong, ex. The Vanuatu Ministry of Culture would be Vanuatu Ministry Blong Culture, it is very interesting to try and decipher the signs that are written in Bislama. Vanuatu is an island nation with over 23 islands, but it seems each area on an island has developed their own language, we were making an effort to learn some of the language on Tanna but once I figured out they only spoke it there, I gave up. The children are taught French and English at school, so once they are done primary school they should have a working knowledge of 4 languages. Each island has there own culture and dances so we are looking forward to learning about each as we explore further north.
Port Vila is the seat of government so we took a walking tour and saw the parliament buildings, the residence of the President, which was surprisingly humble, the court house, the national bank, the big Catholic church, etc. The bank building was huge, it had better be because the exchange rate is a 100 to 1, so you walk around with 1000 vatu bills in your pocket as well as 5000, and they don’t go very far here. We figure it is rather like Yellowknife prices here, good thing we stocked up the boat before leaving Fiji.
We went to the museum on a Sat. morning and were lucky to come upon a cultural demonstration. A fellow was teaching cultural arts to school children and he explained how the sand drawings were done and how a story accompanied each one. Then he had some of the kids’ show us their drawings, the kids had been chosen to attend cultural expositions in other countries. As well as the stories and drawings he played the pan flute and sang and then he played the Vanuatu national anthem on these very cool bamboo instruments that were liked a percussion swinging xylophone, I guess you had to be there. It was fascinating.
There a big high weather system that has been causing high winds since we arrived. We are planning on leaving Port Vila today to go to a quieter spot for the evening and then heading further north tomorrow. Both Barry and I have infected cuts in our legs, I got a scrape when we were walking up the volcano and did not care for it right away. Barry cut his leg in Fiji and it never healed and then started to become inflamed awhile ago. I have managed to clean mine up and get it under control, but Barry’s did not respond as well so he is on antibiotics now. It just reminds you of how careful you have to be with even the smallest cut.

I posted 2 blogs on the same day, you should go back and check out the blog on the volcano!

We spent almost a week on the island of Tanna, where the volcano was. We also took a walking tour of the hot springs around the anchorage. A 15 year old boy was our guide and he was very informative. At one spot where the vents occur, he reached down and found some very soft clay which he painted his face with. There was red, white and a bluish colour that he could use to decorate his body. The water in places was hot enough to cook with. At one spot he explained that during the rainy season the other vents were covered up with water so all the hot water in the area would fill up this cut in the rocks and come spilling over, mother nature at her finest.
We sailed all day to come to an anchorage called Dillon’s Bay on the island of Erromango, which means, land of the mangoes. All the trees are in bloom now and you could tell that when the fruit ripens there will be mangoes everywhere, to bad we will have to move on before that.
Yesterday we were treated to a lesson on how to prepare laplap. I had seen it mentioned and thought it was a doughy substance that was cooked over a fire. I was wrong. First they prepare the insides of the dish, there were three different laplaps. The first was mashed up bananas, with rosettes of spinach type leaves inserted in the banana goop. The second was a mixture of yams and sweet potatoes, the third was pumpkin and taro. The women put down vines in a criss cross manner, then they lay banana leaves on top, they sprinkle the banana leaves with coconut milk and then add the fillings. Then they add more coconut leaves and then they fold up the edges of the leaves and tie the vines making a big banana leaf package. The package is about .75 meters square and weighs up to 7 kg.
While the women are preparing this the men have built up a fire rocks are piled in the fire and super heated. Once the laplap is ready the men scatter the stones, put two of the banana leaf packages on the fire and cover them with stones then add the third laplap on top. Then the place banana leaves and other vegetation on top of everything to keep the heat in finishing off with a woven pandanas mat which was weighted down with stones and firewood. The food is then left for over an hour to cook. We were invited to stay and sample the wares. It was a long wait, well after our normal eating time but it was worth it. Everything was delicious, the spinach leaves in the banana goop was scrumptious.

It was wonderful to experience this, sharing in the Ni-vanuatu’s lives was a privilege. That is what keeps me cruising.

These guys are using pronged sticks to move around the red hot rocks, they put on their flip flops for the job, normally they are barefoot.

We also took a walk up to see the sandalwood groves and the swimming hole up the valley. We had to ford a stream, Mike and I took off our shoes and gingerly made our way across. We both wore them on the way back, it was very slippery. I seem to remember doing the same sort of thing when we lived in Tungsten, the water was a lot colder then!

We walked up to see the volcano, what an experience! It was quite a hike, we tromped through the Vanuatu rainforest. Our guide led us up a winding path which led from the anchorage to the rim of the volcano’s crater. It seemed like we were climbing forever, we went past where the villagers have their gardens. They grow bananas, grapefruit, cassava, taro, manioc and coconuts. It was about an hours walk just to get there. We asked why it was so far away from the village and were told it was because the soil is better higher up and there is more water. The rain forest was very thick and luscious with several layers, the undergrowth and then the canopy. If we did not keep up to the person in front of us we soon lost sight of each other, having to call out when we came to a crossroads to figure out which way to go.
We emerged from the forest onto the ash plains of the volcano. The ash has suppressed plant growth immediately around the volcano and it is like being on a moonscape. There are old lava flows with jagged boulders sticking up and a thick layer of black ash that covers everything else. As we clambered up the steep side of the volcano you could hear it rumbling and then a large round plume of smoke would emerge from the top. Once we reached the top it was AMAZING. I think being there has to rate as one of the most wondrous things to experience.

Both hot spots of the volcano erupting at once

This is an ACTIVE VOLCANO, you are standing on the edge and you see a shock wave coming and it hits you, then there is an eruption, molten lava, red hot, shoots up into the air. The lava comes in blobs that change shape in the air as they go through their trajectory. Immediately following the lava is a billowing plume of ash and dust, it shoots straight up and then spread out as it ascends forming a huge cloud of every increasing size. You smell the sulfur that is spewing out, you feel the ground shake, you hear the volcano rumble and roar and you see the pyrotechnics of the lava. Then the mountain rests and you wait, and then boom, another eruption happens and this time the molten boulders are shot up over the rim of the volcano, it was absolutely fantastic. We watched in awe for over two hours. We arrived late in the afternoon and stayed until night fell; leaving only when the wind switched and our guide said it was not safe to remain.

Watching that volcano made me realize the power of nature and how fragile our planet really is. The thin layer of the earth’s crust is all that is protecting us from the molten center, we had better take care of it.

Hi Everyone,
Ann's modem is out of commission at the moment so she called and let us know that they have arrived in Vanuatu and all is well. They plan to go up a volcano tonight and I am sure we will get to enjoy some photos when she had a good internet connection.
Trish

Ann phoned. Currently their modem is not working so they are unable to send their location to Yotreps.
at 2240 GMT they were at 19 degrees 20 min South, 170 degrees 43 min East. Winds have dropped and they are moving slowly.

AT SEA, 18, 37`South, 174, 13`East

Wedged into the corner of the cockpit, I realize why I love sailing. A feeling of contentment and bliss comes over me as I watch the water rush by. The boat swooshes along; the sound of the waves breaking around the hull is calming, lulling me into a sense of peace. The moon is almost full and I watch as it peeps in and out of the clouds. A tendril of wispy white floats across the moon, I think it will dim the moonlight but the shimmering light breaks through. The sail casts a dark shadow and as the boat yaws and rolls it flits back and forth across the cockpit. The rest of the world sleeps and we sail on, rushing headlong into the night.

We are on our way to Vanuatu. We left yesterday, leaving the safety of protected waters at 1730. It was Barry's birthday so for a present I said I would give him a whole day on non-argument about sail set. I think I did pretty well; there may have been one or two half-hearted protests, particularly when he wanted me to put up the staysail after sunset in rolly seas with the wind blowing 15-20 knots. Up it went without a problem, I was pretty leery about going up on deck but once I was up there it was a piece of cake. Speaking of sunset I saw a green flash again, it was beautiful, Barry was busy and missed it, too bad, I think that was nature's birthday present to him.
I had bought a cake to cook for him, but when he said that I should save it for 2 birthdays at the end of the month I decided that was a good idea. I think Mike on Argonaut has his birthday only 4 days after mine, besides there would only have been the two of us to eat it and making it when the boat was healed over and all shut up to keep the spray out was not my idea of a good time. I also gave Barry a pedicure as we were sailing towards the pass, he really enjoys those, so now his feet don't stink and his toenails are clean!!
At the moment we are enjoying terrific sailing conditions. Wind is on our beam at about 12-15 knots and we are making 7 knots and our faithful windvane, Bob, is doing all the work without a word of complaint. We have 357 nm to go, at this rate we will arrive on Aug. 21 but more likely will have to slow down and have another night at see because it would be amazing if we maintained this speed the entire way.

Ann has indicated she will do a position report, Check it out:
http://www.pangolin.co.nz/yotreps/tracker.php?ident=VE8BL

I wanted to do a blog on the island of Makogai. It was one of the highlights of our stay in Fiji. The island was a former leper colony. It was opened in 1911 and closed in about 1960. There were about 5000 lepers on the island at one time. Apparently lepers from all over the Pacific were sent here. One fellow told us that the patients would choose areas to live according to where they were from; the Fijians, the Samoans, the Tongans, etc. would have a separate area on the island where they would stay. A lot of the structures on the island are made out of cement, they must have had good sand on the island because we saw cement jails, cement hospitals, cement houses, cement bridges as well as a cement cinema with
matching cement screen, even the crosses in the graveyard were made out of cement. The names I could read in the graveyard were mostly of the French nuns and priests who cared for the lepers. There are a lot of houses still standing on the island, so in the 1980's, I think, the government opened up the island for people to come and live there. It was explained to us that the village that existed there is quite different than most villages as the people are from all over Fiji, rather than the usual traditional village where people have lived for generations.
The first day we went ashore and walked the 5 km to the village. We were greeted very warmly, we did sevusevu and got to meet the school teachers, husband and wife, as well as their daughter. It was lunch time and they invited us in for a cup of lemon tea, the leaves are picked from the tree and then just steeped, delicious. The teacher explained that the next day there was going to be a big feast because the students would be writing the class 8 exams, they wanted us to come back. It was quite a trek over there but we decided that we would go to the feast because this was an opportunity few would have, to be included in a real Fijian event.
The next day I went snorkeling in the morning and found some of the best snorkeling we experienced in Fiji.
Then we set off over the hills to the village. We thought we were going to be late so we set a brisk pace and boogied the 5 km in 50 minutes. If there was ever proof that Barry is back in shape that walk was it, he made sure to let me know that he carried a 15 pound pack as well, that is about 7.3 kg for you younguns. We had an absolutely wonderful time. We were treated like honoured guests and the school master said to let you know that we were at the very last writing of standardized exams for year 8 in the Republic of Fiji. If they pass the four children that were writing the exams would have to leave the village and attend school in a city of their choice, some stay with extended family and some board at the schools. It must be a big step for those children. The feast was really spectacular, the students, guests, the men and the elders all ate first. The women who prepared the feast fed their children if they had little ones but they did not eat until all the men were done. You sat on a woven mat on the floor and the tablecloth was laid down the middle of the mat and everyone sat and ate with their fingers, using taro and casava to sop up the good stuff. There were curries, a venison dish, roast pork, crab, chop suey and some traditional Fijian vegetables cooked in coconut. We ate to our hearts content and then had a nice visit. Then the village pastor, a Methodist, walked back with us, he strode along the path through the jungle with bare feet. I told him I wanted to have Fiji Feet and asked how long it would take me to develop them. He said if I walked that path everyday for an hour it probably would take me a month.
Another use for the island is to raise giant clams. They were amazing, we gave the fellow in charge, 20 liters of diesel because the gov't had made a mistake and sent 2 barrels of gasoline instead of one of gas and one of diesel and so the poor huge giant clams were going to suffer because they could not pump the water to change it so they would have the nutrients they needed. We were happy to contribute to such a worthy cause.

The big day finally arrived. We got the new cushions. They are a hit, we both think they did a great job and we are happy with the colours we have chosen. It makes the boat look so much better.
We are back a Vuda Point Marina, we had a fairly uneventful trip back, just a couple of minor, gut wrenching moments. One of them came making our way through a pass and I almost had us going through the middle of a reef. Barry was smart enough to say that it didn't look good and we got turned around without any damage. The other time we were going to stop at a resort and do one last dive in Fiji. Barry wasn't too keen on the idea because it was really windy. As I was pulling down the main sail as we were close to dropping the anchor Barry said, you know there is no water coming out of the engine. I asked what I was supposed to do about it and the reply was, just so you know. A moment later Barry yelled to roll out the jib, the engine temp was climbing, so we turned around and sailed off into the sun. Barry thought it was an impeller problem and sure enough when he checked it had chaffed in half. He popped it out and put one of the 6 or 7 spares we have on board in and then turned on the engine to make sure the repair worked. It did, by this time we were a couple of nautical miles away and I didn't even ask it we could turn around and beat back into the 30 knot wind to make a last Fijian dive. That night we anchored in a spot we had been in before and I thought we were far enough to one side, it was a small anchorage. Barry put out a lot of chain for the 3 meters of water we were in and just before we retired for the night we heard a grating sound, yup we scrapping the bottom, we upped anchor and set it again and I actually slept pretty well that night, although I am not so sure about Barry, he was in a big hurry to leave in the morning.
We have been working really hard making repairs before we set off for Vanuatu. The weather looks good to leave this week and we are hoping to get away on Wed. Today we got the new cushions, re caulked the toe rail, went up the mast to see if we could fix the non-functioning, expensive new wireless wind instrument, Barry installed a new fresh water pump for the galley, we topped up our diesel in the boat and bought more, and we filled up a propane tank. Tomorrow we head to Latoka to check out of the country, provision, hopefully fill my prescription and check out malaria medication, oh yeah, I also need to repaint the anchor chain so we can tell how much chain we have out, the paint we put on in NZ in wearing off and Barry needs to make a new snubber line for the anchor. The snubber line takes all the weight of the anchor and distributes the weight evenly on both sides of the boat instead of just one spot.
We are planning on crossing with Mike and Liz on Argonaut, the same couple that we went to the Yasawas with. Mike really knows his weather so it will great to have him close by. Also it will be nice to have another boat to talk with on and off during the day to compare notes and give a hand to if help is needed.

Having tea with the ladies.


Trying very unsuccessfully to straighten out a pandana leaf.



Anchorage at Viani Bay where we anchored at 25 meters.



A flower we found on the beach, interesting effect with sand ripples underneath.








Searching for shells at low tide amongst the mangroves.

Bobbing gently at anchor at Makogai Island in the middle of the night, I can't sleep. It has been a pattern the last couple of days, we are moving almost every day and I know it is a combination of worry and going to bed early that finds me tossing and turning about 0300. As a consequence of my lack of sleep I am crabby and find the stress of finding our way through reefs just makes me worse, today coming in here my stomach began to act up, it is so tied in knots it objected. Poor Barry, I did apologize and we are going to stay here 2 nights, so although we are grating on coral hopefully we will be able to pull the anchor up when we leave without too much trouble and we can relax and enjoy our stay here.
We headed east from Savusavu and made it to a bay in Somosomo Straight just opposite Taveuni Island. The entrance into that bay was pretty easy, we had way points but we anchored in 25 meters of water, which is too much and Barry was worried about snagging on coral and/or dragging. Fortunately it was a very protected spot and there was little wind so Barry's worries came to naught. We went ashore and did sevusevu at a village and then the village chief, Thomas, led us up the hill we wanted to climb. When we got back to the village the ladies had arranged tea and scones for us. It was very pleasant sitting in the shade drinking tea and chatting with them. Barry had told Thomas that he would take some pictures and have them printed and sent to him. Everyone wanted in on the action.
The ladies were straightening out the pandana leaves to make them ready for weaving mats. The leaves are picked when they are green and then boiled to make them soft and then hung to dry outside on a wooden rack, much like people in the NWT hang fish to dry. The foliage is about a meter long and once it has been dried the ladies use a shell (it looked like a big oyster shell, it had mother of pearl on the inside) to flatten it. They run the shell up and down the leaves until they are flat and then they roll them on two fingers into a tight bundle, first rolling one way and then switching hands and directions until it the bundle is tight and flat. I have a woven fan that has black pieces in it so I asked how they dyed the leaves. I think they said they use soil to colour them and then when they boil them they add a leaf which would stain them black. I had a go at making a frond flat but was not much good at it. I would have liked to try rolling it up once it was flat because I think I may have been better at that, it looked rather like winding wool.
Later on this morning, hopefully after I have gone back to sleep, we are going to explore this island. It is the location of a former leper colony, which has been converted to an aquaculture station. Maybe I will stop here and add more after we have been ashore.

We are still in Savusavu in Fiji. Savusavu is on the windward side of the island and we have been experiencing tropical rain everyday since our arrival. This is not like Canadian rain, well prairie rain; it is more like heavy mist. The clouds come up over the mountains and then the wind blows and the skies open, and this fine warm moisture falls out. Sometimes it only last for a few minutes and if you get caught in it, you get slightly damp, but it is not cold, so not to worry. At other times the wind just howls and the mist becomes sheets of rain, the drops are still not very big but you get wet in a hurry. We have felt quite boat bound, you don’t open the hatches or portholes and we have been down below quite a bit and we still don’t have our cushions.
We did find project here, a company manufactures LED light fixtures for boats, so we have converted most of the lights on board to LED, they will use a lot less amperage than the ones we had before, so I am hoping I will be able to read using boat electricity after dark instead of a headlamp. We should use a lot less triple A batteries that way!

Yesterday we arranged with two other boats to do a road trip to the sunny side of the island. We rented a van with a driver,one of the couples were Dutch and the other was an Australian family from Tasmania. I was a little worried about travelling with children in a small vehicle for most of the day but the kids, Zeke, 11 and Nina, 8 were marvelous. It was a pleasure to make their acquaintance and we all had a great time. We went over the mountains, about 570 meters in elevation according to Barry’s fancy new watch. We saw a sugar mill, visiting the town of Labaso,(pronounced Lambaso, apparently here in Fiji when there is a b you say mb, just as when there is a d you say nd, so Vuda Point is pronounced Vunda Point and when there is a g you pronounce ng so Sigatoka would be pronounced Singatoka), saw a Hindu shrine and stopped at a resort that was built by 2 former cruisers.
The most impressive thing was the scenery and the difference between the windward and the leeward side of the islands. Here in Savusavu, it is very green, with climbing vines everywhere and lush undergrowth. On the leeward side the hills are brown, and the vegetation is a lot sparser. There is more sugar cane grown over there as well as forestry operations as indicated by the straight rows of tall pine trees.
The hindu shrine was a bit of an eye opener. There is a big rock that is shaped like a cobra and it is holy to the Hindus. While we were there, a group was worshipping, they offered bananas and apples as well as flowers and they poured milk on a stone that they had covered with leaves, incense was burning, the priest was chanting, someone was playing a drum and they would walk around the 5 meter high rock ringing a bell as they went by it. Apparently they believe that the rock is growing, I don’t know much about the Hindu religion but it was all rather strange to my western eyes. They had a staircase that was 108 steps, no doubt a very significant number, to the top. The steps had a very small rise to them, to fit all 108 in the distance to the top, so to be comfortable you would step 2 at a time. I guess I should have asked more question in order to understand but our driver was a Muslim so I am not sure how far that would have got me. The driver did tell us about his prayer schedule, 5 times a day, in the morning, at noon, at 4 in the afternoon, just at sunset and at 7:30 P.M. that is a lot of prayers.
The sugar pipeline
We saw a factory where they refine the sugar, apparently the sugar is shipped from the vats it is stored in tubes which ran under the road and then just poured into the ships when they load it. One of the vats announced it could hold 10,000 tons of molasses that is a whole lot of sticky gooey black stuff. Imagine all the gingerbread houses you could make out of that many tons of molasses. There were a couple of very aptly named hills, one was the sleeping giant, and the other was the panther. The driver spotted several birds I would never have noticed, a kingfisher and a hawk. They were perched on the telephone wires, he said at night he often see owls there. When we came back over the mountains the sun disappeared and the clouds began to close in, as we got back in our dinghy it began to sprinkle once again.
Everyone is waiting for the winds to become more favourable before leaving so there are over 50 boats here at the moment. The weather is supposed to lift on Thursday, so we will head a little further east and then sail back to the Latoka area to get our cushions and prepare for our passage to Vanuatu.

The Sleeping Giant