Well, of course there is no summer or winter here; we are in the tropics, very close to the equator in fact. There are, however, two very distinctive weather patterns: the NE monsoon and the SW monsoon. The first one runs roughly from November to May and the latter from June to October. Or thereabouts, … Continue reading The End of Summer?
We've spent the last few weeks in Nongsapoint marina in Batam, Indonesia. A great place to do some boat maintenance. Seathan fixed our water maker and fitted our engines with new fuel injectors and we are good to go again. We also got stuck into the new school year and caught up as we had … Continue reading Marina Life
Maybe we shouldn’t tell anyone and keep it a secret. The Anambas are just too good to be true. One of the best cruising grounds we’ve come across; Indonesia has totally exceeded our expectations, yet again. It would be such a shame if these islands got inundated with tourists. Right now, they are difficult to … Continue reading A Well Kept Secret…
I’ll be honest. Six months ago, I had never heard of the Anambas Islands. This remote and isolated island group, located roughly halfway between peninsular Malaysia and Borneo in the South China Sea, is most definitely off the beaten track. It’s only very recently being opened up for tourism. Yachts didn’t use to come here … Continue reading Paradise Found!
Our second transit through the Malacca Strait and, again, we were too late in the season. We took much longer than planned to antifoul the boat and were further delayed waiting for engine parts (held up by customs in KL for 2 weeks). Anyway, we eventually managed to escape Rebak and headed to Kuah, Langkawi … Continue reading The Malacca Strait (again)
I can finally breathe a sigh of relief as we leave the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club and head towards the Malacca Strait. The last few days have been hectic, to say the least. Rehua is full to the brim with provisions and we're ready for our next adventure. While Seathan is navigating his way through … Continue reading Rebak Reflections
It all started after a sailing holiday in Croatia, late October 2013. A little taste of cruising life, and what it could be like. We flew back into Heathrow airport and as we circled over London, both Seathan and I questioned what we were getting back to. The daily grind. The long hours in the … Continue reading Four Years Ago
Woohoo ! It's splash day today! I can't begin to tell you what a relief that is for us all. Before we head out to sea we have a week of projects and cleaning up jobs to do but we don't mind that, at least we're back in the water !
I'm hoping that writing a blog will make me feel better, maybe getting it off my chest will lift my spirits. I'm feeling down. Being on the hard for four weeks just does that to a person, ask any other cruiser and they'll agree. Up and down the ladder twenty times a day, then carefully … Continue reading Get me out of here!
The expression "being on the hard" is quite appropriate. It is not a pleasant experience, to say the least. Boats belong in the water. That's what they're designed for. But once in a while, they have to come out for some much needed maintenance, a hull inspection, new anti-fouling, ... This is the fourth time … Continue reading The Hard
