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I have just re read “One year on’ and “Two years on” and wondered why I never wrote “Three years on”. I believe that was the time we left the boat to visit family and friends in South Africa and the UK and I didn’t have the inclination or time to reflect.
Thinking back, our third year was another amazing year which is worth a brief mention. Although we spent our time in only two countries, New Zealand and Fji, we packed in a great deal and had some of the most unique and memorable experiences.
New Zealand is a beautiful country, with a temperate climate, stunning mountain scenery and no snakes! We spent nearly six months exploring both the South and North Islands and enjoyed some of the best hikes we’ve ever done. If New Zealand weren’t so far away from our families and the rest of the world, we would have seriously considered settling there.
Fiji was as beautiful but in a completely different way. Golden beaches, swaying palm trees, clear blue seas and some of the friendliest people we have met. We spent many weeks visiting remote islands and villages where the locals rarely see foreigners. We had the chance to get involved in village life, help out in our own way and enjoy their wonderful and generous hospitality.
Our fourth year of cruising started by sailing back to New Zealand from Fiji and putting Dignity on the hard in preparation for her diesel conversation and our trip to visit family in South Africa and the UK for Christmas and New Year. We extended our stay in the UK until mid February for the the birth of John’s daughter Bao (pronounced Bo), our first grandchild. What a wonderful event.
We returned to New Zealand and Dignity in time to meet the French technicians from Lagoon who were going to work on the hybrid to diesel conversion. Our two technicians have converted about fifty Lagoon 420s and with five crates of prepared parts, shipped from France, were able to complete the work in record time. We were extremely impressed with their skill and hard work.
In early March we splashed back into the water and tested out our new engines. They worked beautifully and were more powerful than our old electric motors but also a lot noisier. Still we were happy to have more powerful and reliable engines especially for some of the places we were planning to visit. We spent the next few weeks exploring the NE coastal waters, the Great Barrier Island, Waiheke and making our way down to Auckland to meet up with our youngest son Sam and to prepare for our departure from New Zealand.
Our cruising plan at that point was to sail from NZ to Australia via Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia with a short trip to the Solomon Islands for the Pacific Arts Festival. Sam our youngest son was to join us for this leg. John and Ben, his two older brothers had each done a six months trip with us so this was Sam’s opportunity to share in our adventure.
We left New Zealand for Fiji at the end of April with Paul our crew from last year joining us for the crossing again. Having four people on board made the passage so much easier. The watches were two hours on and six hours off allowing for plenty of sleep and free time. We had hoped to make landfall on 7th May which was Sams 22nd Birthday but instead arrived on the 8th. It didn’t matter, we were delighted to make landfall and go ashore to have a belated celebration.
Around this time I noticed that Steve was not quite his buoyant self. I wondered if it was the anticlimax of arriving in Savu Savu and finding none of our cruising friends there as we had last year. He was also staggering a little when walking and tripping over his feet quite often. Again I wondered if it was due to the new flip flops he was wearing that Sam had brought from the States.
After Paul left us to return to New Zealand, we headed north east towards Taveuni and the reefs beyond to share with Sam some of the places we enjoyed last year. By the time we arrived at the northern end of Taveuni Steve was getting dizzy spells and walking even more off balance. We decided at this point not to go to the remoter reefs but return to Savu Savu and see a doctor instead.
It took us about three days to get back to Savu Savu and by this time Steve was beginning to develop double vision. While we were away a few of our cruising friends had also arrived in Savu Savu and among them were some nurses and doctors. Our two doctor friends on Dreamtime were not impressed with the local doctors diagnosis of scurvy and advised Steve and I to fly to Australia to see a neurologist and get an MRI done as soon as possible.
We decided to make our way to Port Denaru on the western side of Fiji which was near the international airport and where we knew there were better doctors. Steve plotted a five day trip to Port Denaru but his symptoms and also his mental and emotional state was getting worse. I pushed each days sail and made it to Port Denaru in three days. The moment we were safely moored in the port, I made an appointment with the resort doctor recommended by the marina office.
After a general physical examination, ECG, blood test and skull xray, which all came back normal, the doctor advised us to fly to New Zealand or Australia or even back to to the UK for specialist help. He recommended a neurologist or an ophthalmologist and a CAT scan.
Since the start of Steve’s worrying symptoms we had been in contact with Lew, our doctor friend in New Zealand. He offered to arrange medical referrals and accommodation for us if we went to New Zealand. At this point I also contacted my cousin Sarah in Australia asking her for advice as to where she thought I would get the best medical help since she had lived both in New Zealand and Australia. She insisted we came to her in Melbourne where locally she had some of the best medical facilities in the country. At the time I needed family and also I really wanted to see her so the choice was Australia.
We left Sam in Port Denaru to look after the boat while we flew to Melbourne thinking we would be back in a couple of weeks. Sarah and her husband Russ were at the airport to meet us and soon we were settled in their lovely self contained flat at the back of their garden by the pool.
Sarah is wonderful and a very organized person. Before we arrived she had already arranged an appointment with her GP for Steve see. To cut a long story short, we saw the GP, had a CAT scan, saw an ophthalmologist who recommended an MRI and it was the MRI that finally showed abnormalities in Steve’s brain. A week after arriving in Melbourne, Steve was admitted into emergency at Monash hospital and into the care of Neurology department.
Over the next two weeks many tests were performed on Steve. Possible diagnoses were vasculitis, lymphoma, some form tropical disease and Multiple Sclerosis. During this time, Steve continued to deteriorate. With no definitive diagnosis, the doctors finally ordered another MRI and when they saw that the lesions were getting worse, decided it was worth risking a brain biopsy immediately.
So on Steve’s 48th birthday he went into theater for a brain biopsy.
Before the operation, Multiple Sclerosis was the most likely candidate. I had been doing some research on the disease and although not good to have, felt that we could deal with MS. So it was a terrible shock when the doctors confirmed that the result of the biopsy was lymphoma. Not only that but it was a very rare form of T-cell lymphoma of Primary Central Nervous System. The rarity and type made it difficult to detect just from earlier blood tests, the lumbar puncture and bone marrow biopsy. The doctors recommended a program of chemotherapy and radio therapy over the next few weeks. We asked what the prognosis would be if Steve did not have treatment. They said less than fifty percent chance he would survive 3 to 6 months so it was a no brainer to start treatment immediately. Steve was transferred to the Hematology department where he started his intense cocktail of chemotherapy which had to penetrate his blood brain barrier.
Meanwhile I was getting very concerned about Sam and Dignity in Fiji. Knowing that we would not be able to return to the boat for some time I decided that the best option was to get the boat to us here in Australia.
Fortunately many people offered to help including Peter on Nymph who was currently there in Fiji with his wife Christina and family. Peter was the boat yard manager in New Zealand where we had had all our major work done so I knew that he was very knowledgeable and an experienced sailor. I felt fully confident that Sam and Dignity would be safe in his hands.
Peter and Sam left Fiji for Australia around mid August with Christina keeping twice daily contact with them over the high frequency radio. She in turn kept me updated daily by email of their position and status. Steve at the time was midway through his rounds of chemotherapy, still very ill and extremely anxious about Peter, Sam and Dignity.
For three days I got excellent updates from Christina with the weather forecasting a good direct sail to Australia instead of stopping off in New Caledonia. On the morning of the fourth day I noticed that the email from Christina was marked important. Feeling a bit uneasy I open the email and read that Dignity had dismasted early that morning about 300 miles out at sea from New Caledonia, the nearest landfall. Fortunately neither Peter nor Sam were hurt due to Peters quick action and know how of cutting away the rigging and the sails, saving themselves and the boat from major damage. The cause was a fault in the swage which snapped and brought the shroud and then the whole of the mast down.
As one can imagine, I was in shock for most of the day and did not know how to or even if to tell Steve this news. I spent the day emailing and calling our insurance company, Lagoon, Christina and friends for help and advice. When I finally had confirmation that Peter and Sam were motoring safely to New Caledonia and that I had some sort of plan for Dignity, I was able to tell Steve the news. Obviously he did not take it well. A summary of the dismasting and the safe arrival of Peter, Sam and Dignity to Australia is written up at http://aboarddignity.com/blog/?p=5896 in our blog.
During this very difficult time, my cousin Sarah, Russ and family were our lifeline. They had given us a home, made us welcomed, supported and helped us through our darkest times. Sarah has been my strength and rock, especially at moments when I have felt truly desperate. I cannot begin to express how much they mean to us and how thankful we are to have such a wonderful family.
We also had amazing help and support from our friends Janine and Brian who live not far from Melbourne. They have lent us their spare car for all these months which has been invaluable help to us for all the hospital trips, daily radio therapy sessions, local outing, airport trips and a few getaway weekends. Such a generous offer and so very much appreciated.
Although these past six months have been the most difficult we have faced, we have discovered how fortunate we are in the family and friends we have. How fortunate we are with the wonderful medical
staff and facilities we have here. How kind and generous so many ordinary people have been to us. We are extremely grateful for the many, many, many offers of help, messages of encouragement and good wishes, from family, friends, fellow cruisers and blog readers. They have all been of real comfort and so very heart warming to receive.
Now, more than four years after the start of our amazing voyage, our sailing adventure has come to an end. Dignity has been fixed up and is up for sale. We tested her new rigs and sails last week when we were up in Brisbane to finalise preparations for her sale. She performed better than ever and we are quite jealous of who ever will buy her. That is probably the last time we will sail her and now that we have left Brisbane with no plans to return, we may never see her again.
Steve has his final chemotherapy session between Christmas and New Year and that will be the end of his primary treatment. He has recovered so well that we hope the result of his MRI in early January will show full remission. The long term prognosis for this type of cancer is not that great but Steve and I are prepared to fight it in every way. We plan to leave Australia at the end of January to visit Steve’s family in South Africa where unfortunately his father is also ill with cancer. Then we will return to the UK to reestablish a home and make medical connections.
We are sad that our sailing life has ended sooner than planned but are so happy and fortuante to have had three and half years of the most incredible time and what a time we have had. The things we’ve seen, the people we’ve met, the fantastic experiences we have had, has changed us and helped us grow in so many ways. We are left with lasting impressions and marvelously wonderful memories.
This does not mean our adventuring life is at an end. That’s impossible if you live with Steve. We have many plans and a growing bucket list to get through. We are very excited about the next stage of our life, so continue to watch this space.
Lots of love
Helen & Steve
]]>Bruce the customs/immigration guy arrived about 9am and cleared us out. He was as cheerful as ever. We headed off almost immediately and motored out down the river against the incoming tide. Once out of the river we put out our headsail to help us along. About a third of the way up to Poor Knights the wind did pick up so we furled the head sail, put up the main and then put out the head sail again.
We carried on motor sailing for a short while towards Poor Knights Islands before I decided to turn east. “We’re on our way to Fiji”.
The wind still wasn’t too strong and whenever we dropped below 4 knots we put on one of the engines to bring us up to 5 knots. We rarely had the engine on for more than 15 mins before the wind picked up enough to turn it off. The sea was almost flat so the going was easy and noone really felt seasick for too long.
The wind direction was as predicted and took us off nearly east. Also as expected it gradually turned and strengthened over night. We are now on course for our first waypoint which is placed to minimise the swell that works its way around New Zealand. We’re making a respectable 8.5 knots even though we’re running downwind. Not our best point of sail.
It’s been cold and wet overnight making the night watches less than pleasurable. I suspect we have another day of gray weather ahead of us before it clears.
All is well aboard.
Our friends aboard Sidewinder also departed yesterday and we’ve been in frequent radio contact with them. Sam received a call from them during his night watch and learned that David unfortunately has some issue with his leg which has caused them to head back to NZ and check into Opua. We wish them all the best. It means we’re out here on our own this time.
We caught a skipjack tuna yesterday. Not our thing. It got tossed back after a gutting demonstration for Sam.
]]>As of time of writing the above map shows us in a field. Sooner or later google maps will get a picture from after the marina was built so it will then look more sensible.
Helen, Paul and Sam went shopping while I filled in paperwork and collected the duty free. We all returned about the same time and ran into Rod and Elizabeth from Proximity who are also heading up to Fiji (the west end) later this week. In the afternoon we fixed a missing sugar scoop on the bow and prepped the dinghy. We installed the jacklines and the line around the back of the boat we use to hang on to when moving around in rough seas.
That’s about it.
We had our last meal ashore stuffing down burgers and fries at the local (and only) restaurant. No beer or wine to accompany dinner or lighten the evening as it was our last night before passage.
Bruce, the customs/immigration officer is due to arrive at 8:30am to clear us out but it now looks better to leave this afternoon. We’ll have to discuss our options with him.
Everyone is keen to get going but apart from with Helen, I haven’t broken the news about delaying our departure, mainly because everyone else is asleep.
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View NZ2011_12 in a larger map
When the wind came it was just right. Over the course of the trip we saw anything from 15 knots to 27 knots. We had some good exercise shaking out and putting in reefs in the sails. The swell was light making the sail pretty comfortable. We arrived and anchored in Marsden bay at 4:30pm, 11 hours after we started. Not bad considering we’d half expected to arrive after dark.
We anchored here because this is where Suzi and Dave from Sidewinder were anchored and as this is our last night we can party it seemed as good an excuse as any. As they’d already stowed their dinghy for passage and we hadn’t I picked them up and dropped them off. We had a nice evening together. We’ll certainly see them on the dock tonight as we await our check out and departure tomorrow.
The forecast remains good for a departure tomorrow morning. The key thing is keeping the pace to avoid a high pressure system settling over the area 3-4 days from now. If that catches us we’ll run out of decent wind. The first 24 hours will see the wind direction changing a lot so it will keep us on our toes.
The passage overall looks to be pretty good. No signs of any really bad weather and we’ll be going from quarter to full moon so the nights will be nice.
It would be fantastic if we can make the passage in 7 days because then we’d arrive in Fiji on Sam’s birthday. We’d have to average 6.8 knots to make that which is possible but we’d need to be lucky. It’s more likely we’ll take 8 days.
We have a few final things to do to the boat before departure (like removing the outboard from the dinghy) which we’ll do on the dock this afternoon. But after our sail up from Auckland, crew and boat are looking pretty ready to go.
]]>I went over to Pier 21 to say goodbye to anyone we knew there. Passages were there which was good as they’re not heading to Fiji so our next chance to see Pam and John is in Australia. I dropped off a USB stick they loaned us up in Fiji.
I also bought some string to hoist our courtesy flags. The last one had chaffed during the bad weather up in Great Barrier Island. I found a fairly decent fishing rod for NZ$50 so I picked that up. Back on the boat it was up the mast to run in the new line and fly our NZ flag for the last time.
I made my duty free order in Marsden which we’ll pick up on Sunday. I bought gin and rum locally as the Marsden Off License is out of that.
Crewman Paul arrived just after 6pm. We ate together then settled down for an early nights sleep.
We plan to be out of here at 5:30am so as catch the last of the ebb tide and, more importantly, miss the flood. We should have a brisk sail up to Whangarei Heads where we’ll anchor tonight. It’s nearly 70nm so we may arrive after dark. We know the anchorage so that’s fine. Tomorrow we move onto the Q dock in Marsden ready for an 8:30am check out of NZ which is already booked with customs.
According to the current forecasts we will leave on northwesterlies which will turn to the SE over the course of the first day or two. We may then be in tradelike winds all the way up. We may encounter some weather after a few days but that’s too far our to be sure right now.
]]>We decided to stay in the marina for an extra night or two but we couldn’t stay on the berth we were on. We had until midday to move down to the south end of the marina.
In the afternoon Sam went to visit crewman Paul at his new pad. Paul has some need of some graphic design work and Sam’s in need of projects. Seemed a good match and Sam may now have his first commission.
I spent some time researching duty free fuel and booze. Duty free fuel is only available in Auckland for mega-yachts who take fuel by the tank load and the booze options appear very limited and awkward. Oh well. Looks like our plans are revolving round the weather and we’ll just have to make do. It could be worse. We could be paying for an unusable return ticket for Sam.
So – subject to confirming Paul can synch with our plan we could be heading north tomorrow. I like the idea of getting some coastal sailing in for Sam before leaping across the ocean to Fiji. The Monday departure means we’re less likely to arrive in Fiji in time for Sam’s birthday on the 7th but that’s the weather for you.
We have a few last minute things to do here in Auckland which will be made less fun by rain which is now falling abundantly.
One nice piece of news is that we’re in contact with Suzi and Dave on Sidewinder who have similar departure plans. The rest of our friends still have things to do so will be looking to catch the next opportunity out of Opua. We hope to see them all up in the islands.
]]>In the afternoon we went shopping. We picked up some stationary for Sam for his drawing and note taking. We also visited the Chinese store to pick up fresh vegetables which are much better priced there than the supermarket.
In the evening we were joined by Jack and Jan from Anthem and Jackie and Gary from Inspiration Lady as well as crewman Paul for a typical get together. Unfortunately the Jacksters had had a bit of bad boat day and were out for the count so they couldn’t come. Everyone is on the verge of being ready to go to the islands so the excitement is rising.
Dignity and her crew are ready to go so I’m analysing weather morning and evening.
Yesterday morning saw a possible departure on Saturday morning but there were a lot of uncertainties and hopes that things would improve to make that happen. By the evening the new forecast had quashed all thoughts of a Saturday departure but a Sunday evening departure was beginning to look possible. This morning that possibility has improved. Some of the niggly weather patterns later in the trip have smoothed out. It’s still too far out to be sure on this one as it’s not a classic pattern like the one that appeared a week ago.
We do have a few more purchases to sort out and things to do today so we may try and see if we can stay an extra day here in the marina. If the Sunday weather window remains favourable we’ll leave the country from Auckland.
]]>Big news, and the only really important news, is that Sam is now aboard. Phew.
Despite having 50lb checkin back and two carry ons there were no complications anywhere on baggage weight or numbers. Phew.
In the last 24 hours I have spent a lot of time on multiple fronts pursuing [...]]]>
Big news, and the only really important news, is that Sam is now aboard. Phew.
Despite having 50lb checkin back and two carry ons there were no complications anywhere on baggage weight or numbers. Phew.
In the last 24 hours I have spent a lot of time on multiple fronts pursuing refund options on the ticket Sam (Ben) was forced to purchase. No surprise, a lot of conflicting advice. My usual approach is to pursue the case on all fronts and hope one strikes lucky. In the last few minutes I have received a note from American Airways reporting that for this one occasion they will break standard policy and refund the ticket. Phew.
So down to the days events surrounding all this. Knowing that Sam’s flight was running early we took the 10:30 bus from the ferry dock to the airport. I had enough time to visit immigration there to solicit their support for the refund. Sam came through in good time and after hugs and kisses we were back on the bus heading to Auckland. I had some additional worries in that one of the folders of paperwork I thought I’d brought wasn’t in the back pack. I’d rechecked immigration and it wasn’t there. We thought long and hard and could only conclude it was back on the boat. It was. Phew.
Between the ferry dock and the boat we picked up sushi and ate it aboard. Then Sam settled into his room (his new home for now) and Helen and I went through the ordered goodies.
We’d only just learned that today, Anzac Day, is a public holiday and a lot of our shopping plans for today may be frustrated. Sam needed a special cable for his graphics tablet and we’d promised him a guitar for his birthday. So Sam and I went out in the afternoon and picked up the cable and a guitar. We managed to negotiate 10% off the price of the guitar which made the deal feel sweet.
Back at the boat we finally celebrated Sam’s arrival with some bubbly before heading out for a meal together. We tried watching a movie together afterwards but Sam was very tired from his travels and I was very tired from the recent days stresses.
Last night I slept very well. Phew.
]]>I’d woken up at stupid O’Clock, well before my 5:30am alarm call so after checking the internet and having breakfast I [...]]]>
I’d woken up at stupid O’Clock, well before my 5:30am alarm call so after checking the internet and having breakfast I was off fairly early. I reached Whangarei at 8am and took the sail into the sailmaker and discussed the problem. They said this was very typical wear for a catamaran and they see it often. I guess the problem we fixed with this new sail (ie, the flat and ineffective top third) now made the sail a typical catamaran sail that would come into contact with the shrouds more and take more wear. We’ve already adapted our behaviour to compensate.
After seeing the sail maker I checked online and at that point there was no news from Sam, Ben or Amy who were all at Newark airport to see Sam off. I picked up propane and headed off to the marina where I ran into the kids and Dan from Division II as well as Bruce and Alene from Migration. I checked online again and this time messages were flowing in. Ben and Amy had been trying to call but couldn’t get a response. I tested my phone, it was working. I’d just missed a chance to chat, it seemed, as I was powering off previously and they’d had to act to resolve a problem thrown up by the airline.
A decade or so ago one could buy one way tickets anywhere and run into few difficulties. This was frequently abused by folks who would end up in a country with insufficient funds to move on. The hosting country would then bear the burden of repatriation. These days the airlines have to shoulder the responsibility and cost (if they don’t) of ensuring folks have the means to travel onwards from their destination. A return ticket to your country of residence is the standard test but not everyone does this. We had difficulties returning to our own boat from the UK but the airline had an escalation process that helped us deal with this.
Anticipating possible problems with Sam we consulted New Zealand Immigration several weeks back to understand what supporting documentation Sam would need to allow him into the country knowing he was leaving on the boat. They gave us some guidance which we followed sending Sam a letter proving he was joining the boat as crew, that we were taking responsibility for him and that the boat was legitimately in the country.
American Airlines, it turns out, have there own policy which is tighter than the destination country and don’t have an escalation process to resolve rare cases. They refused Sam onto the plane unless he had a return ticket or a visa. They refused to accept the documentation provided and refused to escalate to NZ Immigration who, as in our case, would have provided consent.
So the only options were to not travel or buy a return. A refundable return leg was priced at $3,400 and a non-refundable ticker was about $1,300 and the desk clerk gave the impression that the refundable ticket may not be, in all circumstance, refundable. Sam couldn’t cover the cost and Ben could only cover the cheaper ticket so they made the right decision to buy the return ticket and get him on the plane.
It is quite annoying to have gone through all the due diligence this end to ensure Sam would be welcome in the country to have the airline policy to be both more restrictive and have insufficient flexibility to handle this case.
I learned all this while sitting at the Town Marina and chatting with the folks from Migration I learned this was not uncommon and seems to be more and more one of those financial hazards of a cruiser and their crew.
On the upside Sam had had no issues with extra baggage. The duffle bag Helen had ordered to take the microwave and all the other spares ordered turned out to have been perfectly sized. The kids had done a great job packing and weighing as it came in at 50.0lbs. Spot on. Sam was on his way.
By 11am I had our repaired sail and was on my way back down to Auckland thinking through our new problem. $1,300 is a lot of money and almost twice the price of his ticket here. We’ve blown more than 3 times that amount blowing out a sail so this may just end up in the realm of the marine life burning through cash. After all BOAT is well known to stand for Break Out Another Thousand. But we’ve got to try and as ever, it’s best to start sooner rather than later.
Back in Auckland I parked the car near the boat and lugged the sail back to the boat. I made a second trip to get the rest of the stuff from the car. I then set about trying to get the right contact info to start an appeal with American Airlines and to get further information, hopefully some supporting documentation, from NZ Immigration while Helen made a couple of trips to retrieve my phone and to pump the meter.
My call to NZ Immigration was unusually less than helpful with the woman simply spitting out the same information I originally was given. I decided at that point the personal touch would be more effective so as the immigration office was near the car hire depot I decided to return the car then visit the office. At the immigration office they appeared much more sympathetic but the boss, who would be the one to help if anyone could, wouldn’t be in until today.
Back on the boat I pursued looking into the appeal process with American Airlines. We have a non-refundable ticket which we won’t use which we want refunded. After finding someone to talk to by calling the Australian American Airlines call center I was advised to contact their customer relations department. Looking at the AA website the only way to do this is via web form so I lodged my first appeal there.
I then had a beer. I needed it.
Very soon it was time to head over to Pier 21 to meet up with John and Pam from Passages. We hadn’t yet heard from Sam as our remaining worry was his transfer at LA onto the flight to Fiji. His plane was running an hour and a half late but his stop over was just under three hours. He should make it. We also learned he didn’t have to recheck luggage which sometimes happens. As what one airline accepts, another may not it was a relief to know this was not another potential problem or delay. So I took my laptop with us to Passages. At Pier 21 we checked the wrong pier and ran into Gary from Inspiration Lady with the Jacksters who’d all just arrived. Bumping into old friends is the best and it helped lift my spirits after the long day. We’re hoping we can all get together on Wednesday evening but that may not be possible. We’ll see.
We were soon aboard Passages with a beer in hand. I checked online and Sam had relayed a message via one of his friends that he’d reached the gate for his onward flight. There could be no more problems to respond this that evening so I could relax. After our beers we headed over to Squashbucklers, a local hangout for more drinks and something to eat and, of course, more sailors yarns. It was a nice place with a great atmosphere, good beer and food. I needed it.
Now it’s the next morning. Sam should have landed in Fiji and in some ways we don’t care if there are any problems. He’s in the right corner of the world. Whatever happens we can work it out (sing along), we can work it o-out.
Apart from an automated acknowledgement I have no response to my initial appeal from AA. I will make more attempts to contact them once I know to what level NZ Immigration will support us. Another visit to them today is planned after Sam arrives and we’ve polished off the bubbly in the fridge.
The large scale weather patterns don’t call for a departure for Fiji this month. There is one low pressure system heading this way that looked to give us a possible kick up north but there is then several hundred miles of a high pressure ridge (and hence low winds) to subsequently cross. Not encouraging. The next low a week from now which is project to be further south shows more promise. You can be sure I’ll be watching how the forecast develops.
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