Hello all.
We left you on the way to Gili Air amid variable winds, calm seas, and sunny days. We arrived about noon on the 18th, and we got the last mooring in the bay; everyone promptly took naps. Our French friend, Francois, who we had met in Noumea was there, having sailed up from Benoa, Bali. We dinghied by to say hello on the way in to dinner. Unfortunately, it was dark and all these guys on shore kept saying no--we never did find out why--every place we tried to land the dinghy, so we finally just turned around and ate on the boat. Oh, and a few cocktails.
Next day, Olivia was a bit hungover, so Joe and I finally managed to get ashore and reconnoiter. Scattered around the anchorage were a few restaurants and bars and a hotel as well as a ferry dock. The real action was around the corner to the east where the beach was lined with small hotels, restaurants, bars and dive shops. Everything was pretty much open air, and the beach was sprinkled with raised covered platforms, loaded with pillows and tables for drinks and food. There were also a few empty platforms that were used by the massage people. R80,000, about $8, for an hour massage!! While I availed myself of massage services, Joe headed back to the boat and the paramour. I think that was the longest they'd been separated since she came on board!!! The plan was to meet later for lunch after my massage.
So the massage was good, but I had to negotiate for extra time as my masseuse quit after about 40 minutes. A helpful vendor explained they don't wear watches, so I offered a reduced fee, but had to settle for undressing again for another 20 minutes. Olivia was going to get a massage as well until I mentioned that this woman had gone so far up my thigh I thought I was getting a hand job. I guess that image was so distressing to Olivia that even the prospect of a different massager was out of the question. Her loss!!!
Lunch was an event. First of all, Joey had been rubbing it in that in Labuan Bajo, he had had a real kosher dog for lunch. The real thing--just like the place back home. Well, they had the same dogs here, and they were great. (unfortunately, in spite of a concerted search in every store since then, we have been unable to find them) While enjoying this culinary treat, we were accosted by the innumerable "street" vendors working the beach. Joey and Olivia bought a carved box and a sarong; the captain bought gifts to lavish upon Rose, including pearls, shirts, and sarongs. Between lunch and the goodies, we must have spent $75!!! We're loving Indonesia! Captain had a nap and the lovebirds did some beach time. That evening we were invited over to Francois's boat for cocktails. His daughter was in from Paris and his girlfriend was off in Poland. He lives, by the way, in Australia. Dinner ashore for 3 with drinks was $15!!! We took a $3 horse cart ride back to the dinghy--no motorized vehicles on this island.
The next day we did a repeat except Joey just dropped me ashore. The masseuse wasn't there yet so I had a $1.50 breakfast before my massage. Lunch and a nap is about all I remember of the rest of the afternoon. A few other rally boats had pulled in and we ran into them for dinner. Although we had planned on staying a few more days, it seemed everyone was heading to Benoa on Bali (where we are now) so we left in the morning to try to beat the crowd and get some dock space. The marina there doesn't take reservations--1st come, 1st served. No problem, as we planned to return on the way to Bali's north shore to meet up with the rally in mid-September.
The trip down was great fun. This particular strait has southbound current all the time, some times reaching 6 knots. We cruised down the 55 miles in no time at all the while dodging local boats and even catching a nice mahi. We averaged about 11 knots. Pulling in, we spotted our friend Mike on Good News who was anchored out among the fishing boats. He had gone straight from Alor to Bali. No room in the marina which was pretty ratty, anyway, and tiny for a major port and tourist destination. Big tidal flows swung the boats quite a bit so it took a couple of days and a few reanchorings to get things set right. Mike and I took off to hit an ATM as I needed cash for fuel the next day, and we roused the sleeping beauties on our return for happy hour on Mike's boat. After way too many cocktails, we headed into the marina (unlike the water based stuff, the shore facilities were really nice) for dinner. Dinner for 4 with cocktails including JD, was $26!!!! Are you eating your hearts out. The only better prices I've heard are from our friend Paddy who sold his boat in Bundy and is now the proud owner of a catamaran in Isla Marguerita, Venezuela where beers are $.50 and diesel at the pump is 5 cents a liter!!!!
This is getting quite long, so let me summarize a bit. We had Mike over for dinner to eat the mahi that night. The next few days we checked the place out. It is very well developed, and besides cheap eats, taxis are almost free, the marina has wifi, there is a huge Sam's Club type place called Makro, there's a Carre Four--French department store, and less than $1 DVD's ( the way that works is the nominal price is $1, but they give you 4 or 5 for every 10 you buy.) so far, I think we've got about 100 or so!!! Quality can be spotty, but who cares for $1 each. Every corner boasts a KFC and there's even A & W Root Beer places. I mustn't forget to mention that the McDonalds here are open 24 hours and deliver. That's right, McD's delivers. if we end here over the weekend, we're going to have to try that!!!
Well, it was getting to be countdown time for the crew to head to Singapore for the wedding, and Rose's arrival two days later. I wanted to, once again, do the cockpit table as I was wholly dissatisfied with what got done in Sydney. So, in addition to last minute shopping, we went on a mission to find teak--this time I planned a slightly smaller solid teak top. Our driver, like, it seems, all Indonesians, spoke just enough English to be confused and confusing. Our teak odyssey took us to his "friends" who could supply any building material--except teak, that is, back alleys and 2 or 3 false starts before we finally just told him to stop at one of the many furniture stores on the main road. Managed to buy 2cm by 120 cm by 69 cm solid teak, custom cut for $85. Would have been $1000 in Sydney. Installed, finished and looking good as I write this.
Forgot to mention that Mike had to go to Australia on business and asked us--Joey, really--to look after his boat. He has a household refrigerator on board, and, as a result, has to run his generator 24/7. The anchorage here has a good bit of grass floating around so poor Mike is constantly going over the side to unclog his cooling water intakes and needed someone to do that for him. Joey swears something brushed him while he was under the boat and then promptly took off for Singapore leaving me to look after the situation. Fortunately, Mike was returning the next day and the generator didn't crap out until he had just arrived back. I kept a close watch on the discharge though to make sure it was running. If it had clogged he has another one I could have turned on so I really wasn't too worried about diving on it.
With a few days of free time on my hands, I was finally able to solve my haulout problem which has been a major concern for the last month. Whether we decide to cross the Indian Ocean or stay in SE Asia another season, we need to haul the boat and repaint the bottom as well as do some underwater maintenance. It's going on 2 years. To make a long story short, none of the comms for places we're stopping in the next 6 months were working and there just aren't that many places that can haul a 50 foot cat. After much frustration, unanswered calls, and returned emails, the guys at the Langkawi yacht club tipped me off to a yard in Penang, Malaysia, one of the rally stops, and they can do the work. And to top it all off, their estimate is a fraction of what I've been paying in the western world.
So a couple of days later, the lovely Rose arrived, and she wasn't lying. She's back to herself. We have been shopping everywhere, spent a leisurely Sunday getting his and her massages and lunch and dined on Mike's boat before he took off in search of cleaner water. In spite of our futile efforts to keep the boat a bit clean, Rose has found it disgusting and has been filling up her non shopping time with cleaning while I worked on the cockpit table. It's great having her back especially since she's now the "real" Rose!!!!
Finally, the crew returns tomorrow, Fri, 9/5, and I would like to head back up to Gili Air. This, of course, will cause some consternation on the part of the crew who, I'm sure, would like to explore the delights here more thoroughly. The point may be moot as I am waiting for the return of my Passport as I needed to extend my visa, as well as waiting for delivery of a spare water maker pump, the import of which has been a nightmare trying to avoid to 60% duty. As it stands today, Thursday at 3 PM, I'm not getting a good feeling that either issue will be resolved tomorrow, so we'll probably be here over the weekend. Eh, maybe brunch and another massage on Sunday--could be worse!!! Will let you know next time.
Cheers
Tim & Rose
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