Passage to Marshalls - Day 1

A perfect day of sailing. The light breeze pushes us along beautifully. The
drifter is flying, showing her dazzling blue and gold hues. Dolphins visit,
play in the bow and give us a show by spinning loops and twists as they
launch into the air. And the past week of calms has left a residual sea that
is flat and easy. This is a sailor's dream.

But the day didn't start out that way. From Tarawa, our check of the morning
weather showed that winds were going to ease sooner than expected. The wind
would stop before our anticipated arrival day in the Marshalls. We decided
to leave Kiribati today, instead of tomorrow as planned. So, I gather our
papers and make my way to shore (where I fall into the water while getting
out of the dinghy) to clear out of the country. Customs takes FOREVER, but
goes smoothly (well, except for that huge sandy puddle I've left in the
middle of their lobby floor). Then onto the bus (where I leave another wet
spot) and to immigration. It's 11:30 by now, and the young staff are more
keen on their lunch orders than my exit permits, but no worries. They are
kind and friendly, and I'm in a cruiser...no schedules, right?! I'm on my
way after only an hour (only half of which was spent searching for the stamp
needed for my passport - found next door). By the time I return to the boat,
John has everything secured ship shape and ready to go. We raise sail, heave
the anchor, and wave goodbye to our newest friends as we make our way out of
the lagoon.

But...that was this morning. Now, we're living the dream. Bring it on.

News...or Gossip???

For the last couple of days, an interesting news story has been circulating among cruisers... rumours perhaps? I'm not sure. But for your information and/or entertainment...here is the story of a young cruiser who was eaten  by cannibals on Nuku Hiva in the Marquesas...one of the island we visited last year.

http://news.msn.co.nz/article/8361657/cannibal-victim-identified-by-teeth

By the way, CELSIUS returned to the anchorage today. And THREE more sailboats showed up. All of a sudden we're not alone anymore! 

Battle of Tarawa Tour

Those of you who know John are already aware that he's a history buff. Especially war history. He loves the stuff.

So, for his birthday treat, I booked us on the WWII Betio Battlefield Tour by Molly's Tours.

Molly has a few odds and ends in her front yard!

Molly picked us up at the wharf in the bus, and took us back to her house to watch a dvd on the Battle. The Battle of Tarawa was one of the bloodiest battles in US Marine Corps history. After the video, we jumped on the bus and walked to the various war remains that lay scattered across the islet. Although we'd seen many of the sites on our own previous explorations, Molly's descriptions and additional information added to our knowledge and made the tour interesting!

Remains of an American Tank

An unexpected surprise was walking through various villages on our way to the beach relics and buried bunkers. We was how the locals are living in very cramped quarters. We talked to a couple of men who were digging a new well, and had come across machine gun parts, and ammunitions. In some cases, we saw bunkers, gun mounts, and search light bases in yards and between homes.

Tank track buried in the sand

Around Abaiang

Oct 5

Our friend, Ngaluenga, offered to tour us around the island for an afternoon - we jumped at the chance. A few of the sights we saw.

First we had to fill up with gas. Here, the two guys are measuring our gas into 2L plastic bottles. 

Measuring the fuel

Full service

Boat repairs - notice they are stitching the boat together!

The tower of the catholic church - built in 1907

View of the village's large canoe shed from the tower

Cutting toddy - collecting the sap from the tree, to be fermented into a local brew

Our host, Ngaluenga, and his granddaughter, Merri

The best singer on the island...performing in a private concert just for us!

Kids of Abaiang

Oct 5

The kids at Abaiang LOVED to have their photo taken. They love to look at the camera's screen and see the pics of themselves. Here's a few:

Terio Islet - Abaiang

After saying goodbye to our friend on Abaiang, we set off the following day to the other side of the lagoon. We planned to stop for the night at Terio, where an Englishman has a small rest house on this beautiful islet. We went ashore and met Derrik, who seemed happy for the opportunity to speak english, and we were happy to hear about his 30 years of experience in the South Pacific.

When he heard we were on our way to Tarawa, he asked if we would take an eskie (cooler in Aussie-speak) of clams with us. Of course!! Early the next morning, Derrik paddled the heavy cooler of clams to the boat. We were able to easily meet his daughter in Tarawa, and pass on the clams to be sold while still fresh.

Derrik and the boys paddle the clams to Renova. Notice their typical Kiribati paddles - chunks of wood.

We're now back in Tarawa, to resupply, and organize a few odds and ends. But Abaiang was so beautiful, that I suspect we'll be back there soon.

Off to Explore

After hanging in Tarawa for a while, we're now motivated to see a nearby island. Tomorrow (Sunday), we'll move on to Abaiang - a small atoll a short day sail north of Tarawa. We'll leave in the morning, and expect we'll have our anchor set by mid-afternoon. We're looking forward to returning to pristine waters and the traditional Kiribati lifestyle.

Arrived in Tarawa, Kiribati

We made the move. We decided to head to Tarawa, the main island in Kiribati,
to work on the engine. I was disappointed that we didn't stay for Saturday's
mass and feast, but the weather forecast showed us that after Friday, the
winds were going to drop dramatically. So, on Friday morning, we went ashore
to say our good-byes. Masa and Bwebweniman, who have been so friendly, and
have hosted us for tea, were sad to see us go. We left them a small gift of
canned pears and some tea. After we left, they called us back to give us
their pandanas mat. This was a big deal. After all...they were just visiting
this village for the church celebrations, and this would be their sleeping
mat. I tried to refuse. But she wouldn't hear of it. So, we now have a
beautiful, hand woven pandanas leaf mat. Gorgeous.

Our overnight passage was uneventful. We made good time. Too good. We
arrived in the dark. So, I just tacked away from the island, and sailed for
an hour, before returning to the island in the daylight. The pass is HUGE,
and there are many tankers here, so it was a fairly easy entrance, and we
quickly found a nice spot to anchor, fairly close to the big city of Betio
(pronounced Besio...remember Kiribati language pronounces 'TI' as 'SI' or
'S').

Although we had placed bets on how many sailboats would be here - we were
both right. John guessed there would be none. I guessed one. Turns out there
is one motor sailor here - from Australia. They dinghied over after wee
anchored and gave us some local info on hardware stores, the best spot for
chinese food, and groceries. After a quick nap, we went ashore. The town is
pretty dirty and crowded, as we'd heard. But we did find a great Chinese
restaurant, and a store selling eggs and sausages! MMMmmm

Today has been raining on and off all day. Very unusual for us. We've had no
sun. But, we've been collecting rain water, and our water tanks are full!!
We're now running the generator to charge our batteries, so we can watch a
movie later. ICE (the motor sailor) has invited us over for dinner, so we
look forward to chatting and hearing more about the island. They've been
here for quite some time as they wait for engine parts, so they'll be a
great source of local info.

Exploring Abemama

Yesterday, we rented a motorbike from a couple who we met while hanging out
in front of the bank/telephone co/admin bldg/etc. They were waiting to be
paid for their copra harvest, and expected they would be waiting most of the
day. In the meantime, they offered us their motorbike to explore! And
explore, we did! We jumped at the opportunity and headed out on the dusty
trail. Well, sandy trail, actually. We decided to travel South, and went all
the way to the end of the island...about an 8 mile trip.

We passed over three causeways and through a dozen or so villages. Most
villages have a church and a maneaba - a community gathering place, usually
a cement foundation with a steep, metal roof, that hangs low on the side, so
you must stoop to enter. Most homes are small raised wooden platforms with
thatched roofs for sleeping. Some are left open to the breeze, while others
are closed in with coconut leaf mats, or with wooden slats. Each family may
have one or more sleeping platforms, and a separate cooking hut. In some
cases we saw a small screened area that contained a pit toilet, but more
often, they used the beach for that purpose.

We also popped into a couple of the stores on the island. Our trip wasn't
planned, so we hadn't eaten lunch. But, as with the other stores we'd
visited here, there wasn't much that you could eat off the shelf. Most
stores sell some canned goods and a few bulk staples (rice, sugar, flour),
there wasn't much that we could eat for lunch. I offered to John that we
could eat some dried instant ramen noodles - a throwback to my childhood -
but he refused. We settled on a package of crackers, and big bottle of
water.

It was a great day. Even though I'm not sure my butt will recover anytime
soon. Three hours perched on a steel luggage rack...yowsers.

Feast or Fix

Where does the time go? We've already been here a week. We were planning to
stay here at least another week. Not least of all because of this:
Once again, we've stumbled onto a time of local celebration - this week is
important in the Catholic Church here - we are celebrating the Virgin Mary.
There is daily mass (we think), and it all culminates on Saturday with a
morning mass, followed by a big community feast. Already there are people
staying here from other villages. For two days, the women have been wearing
a blue dress - all identical - to mass. We understand that Saturday's dress
will be yellow. There is a great sewing bee going on in many of the homes as
these dresses are prepared. (By the way...hand crank sewing machines like
mine are the norm here)!

So, needless to say, we're glad to be here, and are looking forward to the
community feast, and all the celebrations that lead up to it. But, we are
cruising after all....so of course, there must be some critical boat part
that needs maintenance!

John has discovered that we have a problem with our transmission. So now,
we're contemplating our options. Stay for the celebration?? Or leave early
for Tarawa to work on the engine? Tarawa, though it is the capital of
Kiribati, is not likely to be the end-all and be-all of repair locations.
After all, this is a very poor country. We're not sure if engine work will
be possible in Tarawa, or if we'll need to keep moving to a bigger port.
Lots to think about - we'll keep you posted!

Abemama - Off the Beaten Path

We're definitely far from the Coconut Milk Run now! The police officer told
us that only one boat came here last year - an Australian.

In our last post, I spoke of our dreams of a dinner ashore. Our hopes were
quickly dashed. Although our outdated guidebook spoke of a hotel, it clearly
hasn't been in operation in many years..

We have walked around on a few occasions. Each time, the children are
pleased to see us, and call out to us "Matang, Matang" (Foreigner).
They like practicing their english...hello/bye-bye. The adults are much more
shy. They happily respond to our greetings of "Mauri" (hello), but are
reluctant to reach out into further conversation.

On Sunday, we went ashore early, dressed in our Sunday finery, to seek out
the Catholic church. While we waited, we were befriended by a herd of
children, and eventually three of the village women joined in. We had a
lovely conversation, and they seemed impressed with the few words of
Kiribati language that we'd learned in Kanton. After church, we were invited
to join them for tea. We also met a local teacher whose english was
excellent, and he answered many of our questions about the island, and
offered to help us find a motorcycle, that we hope to use to further explore
the island.

By the way...so far we've seen three trucks and one car on the island, but
most people get around on motor bikes. If you're into that sort of thing,
like John is, you may like to know that almost all of the bikes are Honda
Trail 90's...which apparently cost about $2000 AUD brand new. I'll have to
do some more research, but I'm guessing that the average salary in this
country is less than $4000 AUD.