July 7, 2009--James arrived on June 29 at 5:10 in the morning. Abdul #1 took us to the airport that morning. He was a very good driver and a quiet guy. His brother Abdul #2 drove us into Lautoka one day and is talkative and is a much more aggressive driver.
We returned to the marina to drop off James's bags and relax for awhile. We then went in to Lautoka to pick up our cruising permit to the Yasawas. We walked through the market and bought some vegetables and kava and then ate lunch at our favorite Chinese/Thai restaurant. When we returned to the marina, we went over to the resort next door to take a swim and relax. James was quite good at climbing on and off the boat. That night we returned for a pizza special--$10 Fijian, which is about $5 U.S.
On Tuesday we had planned to leave; however, the rain set in and continued all day long. Around 2 o'clock we decided that the visibility was just not good enough to sail to Musket Cove so we went back to the pool for the afternoon. We enjoyed chicken quesadillas for dinner and turned in--jet lag finally set in for James.
Wednesday was beautiful so we checked out of the marina and headed out through the breakwater. We raised the sails and enjoyed a lovely 5 knot sail with 10 knots of wind. Unfortunately, half way across the wind died, so we decided to drop the sails and motor. James was up on the bow helping me spot the reefs along the way. Right before we headed into the channel through the reef to Malolo Lailai Island the wind piped right back up. We continued to motor and entered the channel leading to Musket Cove Marina/Resort and had no problems spotting the marks leading us around the reefs. We had called the resort on the radio and were told to pick up Mooring #9. When we arrived, we had some trouble finding the correct mooring ball, but we received some help from a fellow cruiser, who pointed out our mooring. That night I made Sauerbrauten for dinner, and we watched the movie Wind.
On Thursday we took a walk around the resort and over to the other side of the island and then relaxed on the beach for awhile. In the evening, we took Mahimahi and veggie packs rolled in foil to the bar on the point. The BBQ pits were going, and we cooked our fish and veggies and then joined some of our cruising friends for dinner. 
Friday we joined four other cruisers for a trip over to Malolo Island and the Funky Fish Resort. Our guide Joe led us up to Uluisolo Peak, which is 220 meters high. This was not an easy hike because it was a very hot day. At the top the remains of a World War II bunker that served as a lookout point for the U.S. during the war still exists. We took some great pictures and then headed back down to enjoy a fish and chips lunch at the Funky Fish Resort. When we returned to the boat we enjoyed a nice swim and then cooked some steaks on the BBQ grill.
Saturday, the Fourth of July, we walked across the reef at low tide to the main island to visit the villages there. We met some of the locals and stopped to purchase a carved mask and a bracelet. The people were very friendly, and we enjoyed talking with them for some time. We walked back across the reef and returned to the beach for a short while. We took a swim out at the boat and then went back to shore to enjoy an unlimited shower. In the evening the resort put on a large BBQ for the Americans that included hamburgers and hot dogs along with apple pie. There was a large group that attended, and we enjoyed the evening very much. They even flew the American flag for the whole day.
Sunday was James's last day so we began by hoisting him up the mast so that he could take some pictures. We swam for a bit siince it was a very warm morning. After lunch we took the dinghy in to the Plantation Resort, which is next to Musket Cove Resort. We took a ride on the Banana Boat, which is a long, yellow, inflated tube being pulled behind a power boat. James did his best to dump us off; however, Steve and I held him off and survived the ride. We returned to the boat and grabbed our snorkeling gear and went for a quick snorkel at the reef in the anchorage.
Now it was time to get James's luggage to the Pacific Sun stand so Steve and James took the dinghy to drop off two bags and then returned to the boat. We went ashore to enjoy another shower. Then at 4:30 we walked over to the air strip and waited for his plane. At 5:30 James boarded the twin-engine, eight-seater airplane for a 10-minute flight to Nadi Airport. He was the only passenger on board so he had the plane all to himself.
After his plane took off, we decided to eat dinner at the restaurant and were able to enjoy a
beautiful sunset that evening. We were so pleased that the weather was beautiful for most of James’s trip, and it was really fun having him on board with us.
We returned to the marina to drop off James's bags and relax for awhile. We then went in to Lautoka to pick up our cruising permit to the Yasawas. We walked through the market and bought some vegetables and kava and then ate lunch at our favorite Chinese/Thai restaurant. When we returned to the marina, we went over to the resort next door to take a swim and relax. James was quite good at climbing on and off the boat. That night we returned for a pizza special--$10 Fijian, which is about $5 U.S.
On Tuesday we had planned to leave; however, the rain set in and continued all day long. Around 2 o'clock we decided that the visibility was just not good enough to sail to Musket Cove so we went back to the pool for the afternoon. We enjoyed chicken quesadillas for dinner and turned in--jet lag finally set in for James.
Wednesday was beautiful so we checked out of the marina and headed out through the breakwater. We raised the sails and enjoyed a lovely 5 knot sail with 10 knots of wind. Unfortunately, half way across the wind died, so we decided to drop the sails and motor. James was up on the bow helping me spot the reefs along the way. Right before we headed into the channel through the reef to Malolo Lailai Island the wind piped right back up. We continued to motor and entered the channel leading to Musket Cove Marina/Resort and had no problems spotting the marks leading us around the reefs. We had called the resort on the radio and were told to pick up Mooring #9. When we arrived, we had some trouble finding the correct mooring ball, but we received some help from a fellow cruiser, who pointed out our mooring. That night I made Sauerbrauten for dinner, and we watched the movie Wind.
On Thursday we took a walk around the resort and over to the other side of the island and then relaxed on the beach for awhile. In the evening, we took Mahimahi and veggie packs rolled in foil to the bar on the point. The BBQ pits were going, and we cooked our fish and veggies and then joined some of our cruising friends for dinner. 
Friday we joined four other cruisers for a trip over to Malolo Island and the Funky Fish Resort. Our guide Joe led us up to Uluisolo Peak, which is 220 meters high. This was not an easy hike because it was a very hot day. At the top the remains of a World War II bunker that served as a lookout point for the U.S. during the war still exists. We took some great pictures and then headed back down to enjoy a fish and chips lunch at the Funky Fish Resort. When we returned to the boat we enjoyed a nice swim and then cooked some steaks on the BBQ grill.
Saturday, the Fourth of July, we walked across the reef at low tide to the main island to visit the villages there. We met some of the locals and stopped to purchase a carved mask and a bracelet. The people were very friendly, and we enjoyed talking with them for some time. We walked back across the reef and returned to the beach for a short while. We took a swim out at the boat and then went back to shore to enjoy an unlimited shower. In the evening the resort put on a large BBQ for the Americans that included hamburgers and hot dogs along with apple pie. There was a large group that attended, and we enjoyed the evening very much. They even flew the American flag for the whole day.
Sunday was James's last day so we began by hoisting him up the mast so that he could take some pictures. We swam for a bit siince it was a very warm morning. After lunch we took the dinghy in to the Plantation Resort, which is next to Musket Cove Resort. We took a ride on the Banana Boat, which is a long, yellow, inflated tube being pulled behind a power boat. James did his best to dump us off; however, Steve and I held him off and survived the ride. We returned to the boat and grabbed our snorkeling gear and went for a quick snorkel at the reef in the anchorage.
Now it was time to get James's luggage to the Pacific Sun stand so Steve and James took the dinghy to drop off two bags and then returned to the boat. We went ashore to enjoy another shower. Then at 4:30 we walked over to the air strip and waited for his plane. At 5:30 James boarded the twin-engine, eight-seater airplane for a 10-minute flight to Nadi Airport. He was the only passenger on board so he had the plane all to himself.
After his plane took off, we decided to eat dinner at the restaurant and were able to enjoy a
beautiful sunset that evening. We were so pleased that the weather was beautiful for most of James’s trip, and it was really fun having him on board with us.
.bmp)
No comments:
Post a Comment