9-2018 Fulaga, Southern Lau Group, Fiji

Hi from Clare,         9-2018 Fulaga, Southern Lau Group, Fiji             Wednesday 31/10/2018

Tonight's dinner

On 7^th October we sailed 120 miles overnight from Vanua Balavu Northern Lau Group, to Fulaga in the Southern Lau Group of Islands on the east side of Fiji. It was a dream trip with a warm gentle wind on our aft quarter in flat water. To top it off we caught a Mahi Mahi leaving Vanua Balavu and another one on arrival at Fulaga. We had enough to share with our friends on ‘Mazu’ ‘Meccatroy’ and ‘White Hawk’ and three large pieces went in Mazu’s freezer for us to eat in the coming weeks.

Offering Sevusevu to the Chief with Lynette and John from White Hawk

A TRADITIONAL VILLAGE

The following morning we walked into the Village of Fulaga to perform the Sevusevu (welcome) ceremony with the village Chief. We were the ninetieth visiting cruising yacht to arrive this season. The Chief charges each visiting yacht $50 to have access to their village and waters. Each cruising yacht also presents the Chief with a gift of Kava (grog) for the community. We were allocated a Host family who looked after us during our stay.

Fulaga is a traditional village and the seventy five families living there are divided into Clans who work together and help each other. There is a strict dress code once entering the village. Knees and shoulders must be covered and no hats or sunglasses to be worn.

Previously our host family lived and worked in Suva for thirty four years. Joe was born in Fulaga and whilst living in Suva always dreamed of returning to the village. Tara’s first experience of village life was when they retired and moved to Fulaga ten years ago. Although very happy now Tara said her first impression was that the place looked like a prison. We can’t imagine what the village was like ten years ago because today it is still very basic. The houses mostly consist of one room with a curtain separating the sleeping area. The floor of the hut is earth covered by woven mat made from dried reeds. There is very little furniture, no chairs and they sleep on a mattress on the ground, the women cook on an open fire in a detached kitchen. There are a few toilets scattered around but with no fencing it is hard to work out how many families share the same facility. On a brighter note the school does have a generator and a fridge/freezer. They also have Internet and telephone connection. The Headmaster’s house has a satellite dish and the community gathers there on Saturday afternoon’s to watch the rugby.

Tara with morning tea for us

Making mats

Washing Day

BIG CELEBRATIONS

We arrived in Fulaga in time to celebrate Fiji Day with the local community. By then there were eight cruising boats at Fulaga. The cruisers sat with our respective Clans (on the ground from 9am to 4pm) my back was killing me. We watched the school sports and enjoyed the kids enthusiasm and competitive spirit; they had a ball. We then had lunch and enjoyed some singing from each of the clans. The villagers drank Kava all day and well into the early hours of the morning. By 4pm we were happy to leave them to it.

The sack race

Tug of War

Clan singing

THE MAIN ATTRACTION

Away from the village, the lagoon where the Cruisers anchor is simply gorgeous with sparkling aqua water and white sandy beaches. The main attraction is to snorkel the pass which is a narrow gap in the reef about 50 metres wide and a quarter of a mile long. Unfortunately my underwater camera died so I couldn’t take photos. We hung on to the dingy and floated with the incoming tide. Both the hard and soft coral and the variety of colourful tropical fish are just beautiful. So we were out there at every opportunity along with all the other cruisers here, it is quite a social gathering. One of the cruisers, Umberto, on his Dutch catamaran ‘El Holandes Errante’ (The Wandering Dutchman) lives permanently on board with his 92 year old mother Tilly. Umberto has installed a crane to lift Tilly from the dinghy to the catamaran. He takes her ashore with her walker for exercise. The walker has spikes on the wheels so she can use it on the beach. Tilly says she doesn’t want to live on land again. Unfortunately she doesn’t speak English, but she has a lovely face, bright and mischievous eyes, I think if we communicate she would prove to be quite a character. She certainly is an inspiration to all.

The supply ship

Wood carvers

Kava bowl gift from Joe and Tara

BIG DAY OUT

We were waiting for the supply ship to visit the island as we were running out of fresh produce having not seen a shop since 2^nd September. The supply ship was due to arrive on 17^th October but by then we were experiencing strong S/E winds. I had ordered some fruits and vege which were packed on the ship but delayed in Suva harbour. To come to Fulaga the supply ship would be experiencing 25-35knots head winds and 3 metre seas. I must admit I thought a ship should handle this. However when the supply ship did arrive a week later on 24^th it was such an old tub and listing badly to one side we marvelled at how it ever arrived at all. Needless to say some of the produce was rotten but we did manage to get some much needed fruit and some root vegetables. The biggest causality was my beans which arrived as has beans. The arrival of the supply ship was quite an event. All the village people came down to the waterfront. The women sat on the beach for hours shelling clams for transport while the men loaded the ship with other goods for sale in Suva. Then the delivered supplies had to be carried up over the hill and down into the village. The supplies were much needed as the village was out of flour, sugar, rice but more alarmingly they were out of Kava. The Kava party started that afternoon and probably continued until they all dropped off to sleep. Before leaving, our host family Jo and Tara presented us with a lovely Kava bowl that Joe made. It was a most unexpected gift and will make a lovely fruit bowl.

View from Dick's Place, Musket Cove

So we left on 25^th October and headed for Viti Levu, the largest and south western island of Fiji. The sail was pretty good although we had rain and very threatening black clouds all around for part of the two day trip. I think we were pretty lucky as it could have been a lot worse. Andrew contributed to the larder by catching another very large and delicious Mahi Mahi. My contribution was putting the fishing line out and of course cooking the fish:)

We are now on the west and more touristy side of Fiji. We are anchored in Musket Cove and enjoying the hospitality of the Musket Cove Yacht Club. For a small fee we are now life members of the Club which gives us access to all the facilities. There is a terrific beach bar where we cook a BBQ for dinner each night. The Club supplies the BBQs, plates, cutlery and serviettes. The facility is by the beach with plenty of tables and chairs and sliding shade/wind screens. The bar has reasonable prices and the staff and very welcoming. The Yacht club also has hot showers, a pool, restaurants, gift shops, a supermarket, laundry and many lovely walks. We are very much enjoying civilisation and a Cappuccino in the morning on the restaurant verandah overlooking the very pretty bay. There is also good snorkelling here but as yet we haven’t ventured out. We are here with ‘Mazu’ ‘Four Seasons’ and ‘Mezza Luna’ while they are waiting for a weather window to sail to NZ.

Peter and Sandra from Mazu II with Andrew

SO WHAT’S NEXT

We think we will enjoy this area for a few more days before heading over to Vuda Marina where we will leave Eye Candy in a cyclone pit for the summer. We haven’t booked a flight home yet but we will let you all know the details as soon as we do.

Love Candy xx

9-2018 Exploring Fiji

Hi from Clare,                  9-2018 Exploring Fiji                    29^th September 2018

GREAT DIVING

On 11^th September we began our exploration of Fiji on the north island of Vanua Levu. We sailed 46 miles to Viani Bay which is the home of the Fiji Dive Academy. Here, along with Martin and Ellen on ‘Acapella’ we did two dives, one on the Great White Wall and the other on Rainbow Reef. The Great White Wall is a coral wall approx 50 metres wide and 60-70 metres deep. It is covered with both hard and soft corals and in some lights the wall appears white, however when we were there it had a mauve tint which was very pretty. The fish life is prolific and we discovered fish we have never seen before. Rainbow Reef is called such because the coral and fish are all the colours of the Rainbow. Both dives were spectacular and in fact until recently Rainbow Reef was listed in the ten best dives in the world. Unfortunately I didn’t take any photos as the dives were too deep for my little camera. However, maybe it was better that way as I could just enjoy the dive and lap it all up.

Ellen, Martin, Clare and Andrew ready to dive

MEETING THE LOCALS

We also visited the local Primary School in the Bay. There are no roads into the area and so the kids arrive by boat every morning. The teachers were very welcoming and they showed us around the school and also the sixth grade exam paper the kids were sitting that day. All their lessons are in English but they teach the Fijian language as well to maintain their culture. The school was a happy place despite the fact that it was injection day which generated a few sad faces.

Just another day on the school bus

We continued 30 miles north to Albert Cove on Rabi Island. No one lives here but it is frequented by fishmen from the nearby villages. The island is owned and occupied by the Barnaban Islanders. We met a local man on the beach, he spoke good English and had worked in Fiji but had returned to Rabi Island to enjoy the simple life and the peace and quiet. Andrew drew pictures on the sand showing how Eye Candy will be placed in a pit at Vuda Marina for cyclone season, of which he had no concept. We enjoyed a few days there with ‘Acapella’ and a new friends Dieago and Marina on ‘Meccetroy’ snorkelling the reef and sharing sundowners in the evenings.

BYE FOR NOW

Our next stop was Kathryn Bay on the south end of Rabi Island. Here we hoped to snorkel with the mantra rays as they come each morning to a cleaning station near by. However we were out of luck and just had to satisfy ourselves with beautiful tropical fish and coral. We said goodbye to ‘Acapella’ as they headed back to Vuda Point in preparation for sailing to New Zealand. ‘Meccetroy’ and Eye Candy sailed to the township of Matei on the nearby island of Taveuni. This was just a quick stop for provisions before we sailed 65 miles overnight to the Northern Lau Group of islands east of Fiji. We arrived on the island of Vanua Balavu around 2pm and anchored off the village of Dalicone. ‘Meccetroy’ had been here before so they headed to the Southern Lau Group some 120 miles away.

NOT WHAT WE EXPECTED

We went into the village the following morning to visit the Chief and gain permission to sail in their waters and visit the island. It is traditional to present the Chief with a gift of Kava. This is a root that the natives ground to a powder add water and drink. It has a numbing effect and makes the recipient lazy. It is known as grog but without a hang over. I think you just sit around and do nothing unlit it wears off. The welcoming ceremony is called Sevusevu and if done traditionally the chief drinks the Kava and hands the cup to you, you clap once drink the Kava (which tastes like muddy water) clap three times and return the cup to the chief. Traditionally the visiting male has to sit crossed legged with bare feet but not pointing his feet at the Chief, his legs must be covered. It is advisable to buy one of their traditional wrap around skirt and pull it up over your shorts before meeting the Chief. Visiting women must have their shoulders and legs covered to the knees. She sits with her feet underneath her. So we were totally worded up and arrived at the village with Kava for the Chief and school supplies for the local Primary School. The Chief was away somewhere so his nephew got the job. He jumped out of a truck he was driving, invited us to his house and kicked off his thongs at the front door. Andrew reached for his skirt, the nephew said “don’t worry about that” we sat on the floor, gave him the Kava and signed the visitors book. The nephew then welcomed us to the village and said we were free to come and go as we please. We had a very nice conversation with him and then he dashed off. We visited the newly constructed school after cyclone Winston and meet all the teachers and visited the class rooms. We had brought school supplies and lollies for the kids. On our way back to the boat we stopped off and talked to a couple in their 80’s. We soon discovered that these people were not isolated villagers. Susana had a house in Honolulu, one in Suva and was building one in the village where she anticipated spending two weeks a month and the other two weeks in Suva with her children and grandchildren. Susana wanted to know all the places we have visited in the yacht in the past 14 years. She had been everywhere we have been and commented in detail. Sireli is over 85 years and is Susanna’s cousin. He had served in the British, Australian and New Zealand Navies. His son was in the Australian SAS and fought in Afghanistan. They were a surprising find in what we thought was a quiet and remote traditional village.

The bus ride - at least it was an Isuzu

A BUMPY RIDE BUT GOOD FUN

The following morning we went on the local bus across the island to the main village of Lomaloma. The bus was an Isuzu truck with a cage on the back. We piled in with all the locals sitting on bench seats along the side of the truck and hanging on to the wire cage so not to slip onto the floor. We bumped and jiggled along the track stopping off for parcel deliveries, gas and diesel tank collection, passenger pick up, money exchanges and various other transactions which must have been prearranged as there was no communication with the driver, he just knew where to stop. We watched with fascination as it all happened around us. The village people were very happy to talk to us and made us feel very welcome.

PARADISE

We then moved the boat around to the Bay of Islands which is inside the reef surrounding Vanua Balava. We entered through a small opening between high cliffs to find a maze of small limestone islands and shallow lagoons in azure waters every shade of blue, turquoise and jade. The bird life is plentiful and the coral outcrops are in perfect condition; really beautiful and different from what we have previously seen. The tropical fish species are numerous and we are enjoying the snorkelling. We met new friends Allan and Paula on ‘Dam Kiwi’. The boat got its name when Allan worked in Australia and his work buddies referred to him as the Dam Kiwi. We assures him that was a compliment and just the Aussie sense of humour.

Bay of Islands - Great shelter everywhere

NOT THE BEST ADVENTURE

Last Wednesday we sailed 25 miles north to the small island of Wailagilala. This island is flanked by a beautiful sandy beach and has a reef surrounding it. There is one permanent local and three boys who come out for a month at a time to look after the island. An Australian has a 99 year lease on the island and the four local men work for him. There are a two holiday cabins there with new furniture still in packing cases inside. The permanent local, Howard, said he has seen the Aussie owner 3 times in seven years. Hard to know what is happening there, but it is a beautiful location. However having said that there is very little protection when anchored behind the reef. We experienced 24 knots at anchor and bucked around all night. We slept on a cushion on the floor as this was the most stable place on the boat. We left the following morning and return to the tranquillity of the Bay of Islands in Vanua Balava.

Great beach but rough anchorage

BACK TO SAFETY

Yesterday we met up with John and Lyn on the American vessel ‘White Hawk’ whom we met in the Marquesas in 2014. We had drinks on Eye Candy last night and caught up on the happenings for the past four years. We are looking forward to spending a few days with them.

SO WHAT’S NEXT

We are waiting for a the remnants of a tropical cyclone to pass by before we sail down to the Southern Lau Group. The wind is very strong outside but we are sitting here with rock walls on three sides of us and the lagoon in front of us. We are totally unaffected by the strong winds. We will get some heavy rain which will give us a decent boat wash, hurray.

Love Candy xx

8-2018 Savusavu, Fiji

Hi from Clare,        8-2018 Savusavu, Fiji                                        8^th September 2018

We left Tonga 1^st September and sailed to Fiji in near perfect conditions. It is a three and a half day trip and we had the spinnaker up for the last thirty hours. We rarely experience a trip as good as this and to top it off we caught an 110cm Mahi Mahi along the way.

Oops no time to get dressed

A PRETTY SPOT

We are on a mooring ball in the Nakama creek alongside the township of Savusavu which is known as the hidden paradise of Fiji. This is because Savusavu, nestled in amongst the mountains, cannot be seen either by land or sea until you are in the creek. We are at the old Copra Shed Marina, built in the 19^th Century and renovated in recent years to house the Savusavu Yacht Club. It is a very pretty spot in perfectly flat conditions. The marina staff are very pleasant and we are enjoying the facilities of the Yacht Club. It is nice to have hot showers available, a laundry, shops, coffee lounge and a bar area where we gather every night to catch up with friends for happy hour and to enjoy the sunset.

The mooring field at Savusavu

GOOD TO HEAR

The Check In process to the country was a very pleasant experience. The Health and Customs Officials were helpful and interesting. The Health Official talked about how to stay healthy whilst in Fiji taking into account the local water, mosquito bites, eating out and generally the things that might cause us some concern and what action to take if necessary. In our fourteen years of cruising this is the first time a Health Official has mentioned such things. The Customs guys talked about the most recent and powerful cyclone Winston, other lesser cyclones and which boats survived the cyclones and why. They also told personal stories about families crowded into a bathroom or toilet to gain maximum protection. They mentioned how the children were terrified and crying and how one family came out of their bathroom after Winston to find that the bathroom was the only room in the house left standing. I don’t blame the kids for crying, under these circumstances I think I would be crying too.

WHAT A TREAT

We are mostly in company with ‘Acapella’ and ‘Jonas’ but we have sailed with and have friends on some of the other boats located here. I am particularly enjoying the air conditioned IGA supermarket with many Australian and New Zealand products available. It’s quite a treat to see reasonably priced Australian wines, Vegemite and Tim Tams. The local fruit and vegetable market is huge with high quality local produce at very inexpensive prices. In addition IGA imports fruits and vegetables not grown locally. Last night we went out to The Wok Restaurant with ‘Acapella’ and ‘Jonas’ and shared seven different dishes with rice. The food was delicious and after splitting the bill three ways, our meal cost us AUD $28.

THE BEST MADE PLANS ….

Yesterday we had this great idea of taking the local bus to the island’s capital Labasa. We heard via the Cruisers Net that the bus left at 10am. Acapella, Jonas and Eye Candy arrived at 9.35 only to find that we had missed the bus by five minutes. So after confirming the correct departure time with a bus driver we planned to be on the bus the following morning. However the driver failed to tell us that as today is a public holiday the buses are not running. Oh well we don’t feel too bad about it as we have now spoken to some cruisers who did catch the bus yesterday. They said the trip took two and a half hours each way, there wasn’t much to see when they got to Labasa, the bus didn’t have air con, the seats were hard and the bus was crowded, particularly on the way home with people packed along the centre isle. So maybe missing the bus was a blessing in disguise:)

WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW

We have booked in for a Seminar on Sunday about cruising Fiji presented by a colourful expat called “Curlie”. There are many islands to explore and some of the charting for the area is under developed. Curlie has lived and cruised here for a number of years. He provides a lot of information along with chart overlays with way points he has established. We will be very happy to receive this information as we certainly don’t want to run into any uncharted reefs.

SO WHAT’S NEXT

Fiji is our final destination for this season. So now we can just relax and enjoy the area before leaving the boat here and flying home in November.

For now we are looking forward to moving away from the town and exploring what Fiji has to offer. We have read and heard that the diving and snorkelling is good. The weather is a little warmer than Tonga and the water temperature is a lovely 27 degrees. We have a nice feeling about Fiji and we are very excited about the coming weeks.

Love Candy xx

6-2018 Vava’u and Ha’apai Group, Tonga

Hi from Clare,         6-2018 Vava’u and Ha’apai Group, Tonga        18^th August 2018

GETTING TO KNOW YOU

Since we last wrote we have slowed down considerably and after talking to some local people we now understand a little more about Tonga time; basically nothing happens in a hurry. For example the Inter Island Ferries don’t work to a schedule, they just arrive when they get here. The Postal system isn’t speedy either. One of our cruising friends posted a letter in Vava’u to his wife in San Fransciso and it took forty five days to arrive. We have posted some birthday cards from Vava’u to Australia but after hearing that story we just hope our mail arrives before we fly home later this year:)

Neiafu Harbour

We talked to a New Zealand woman who has owned a resort here for ten years, she claims to achieve anything here one needs patience and persistence. Most of the businesses are run by Ex pats and almost all the little supermarkets are run by Chinese. We mentioned to one of the Ex pats how disappointing it is to see that the Tongans don’t run the shops and she explained that it is not in their culture. She said their culture is to share everything. So if a Tongan owned a shop, relatives and friends would expect to just get things from the shop without paying. The Tongans who have moved to New Zealand and Australia to work, send money home to the family as their wages are considered to be family money. The Tongan people are proud of their Kingdom but exposure to the western world has caused some confusion. It appears that half the people want what western society has to offer and the other half want nothing to change.

Main street Neiafu

Village homes on nearby island in Vava'u

GOING SOUTH

We sailed seventy odd miles south to the Ha’apai Group of islands. Unfortunately for us we did not get the timing right. This destination has no anchorages with protection from the west. So in a westerly breeze the water is choppy and in calm conditions the boat rolls in the ocean swell. There is a very small harbour at the main town of Pangai which offers good protection. We spent eight of our ten days in the Ha’apai Group in this little harbour sheltering from westerly winds. As you can imagine we got to know the township of Pangai pretty well. It has a small population but there is at least seven or eight Chinese general stores, all selling the same thing. There is also about the same number of churches. Some a quite big, and we doubt if there is enough people on the island to fill them. The township has a lot of Chinese sponsorship and they have paid for new concrete footpaths. The funny part is that the footpath is only wide enough for one person so we had to walk in single file. It would have looked hilarious if there were six of us. However we had the footpaths to ourselves as the Tongans all drive cars which they rent from the Chinese. One Ex pat commented that the Tongans in Pangai have forgotten how to walk.

Pangai village main street

Long beaches in the Haapai group

Whilst in the Ha’apai, we did get two days of easterly breeze and spent a very enjoyable time walking along magnificent sandy beaches, swimming in gin clear water and watching the numerous whales frolicking with their calves. Our early morning entertainment was a coffee in the cockpit watching the whales breaching and slapping the water. Some were only fifty metres from the boat with their babies close by.

PERFECT SUNNY CODITIONS

We sailed back to Vava’u under spinnaker last Thursday in time to catch up with Aussie friends Ian and Helen Potter whom we know from our days at the CYCA in Sydney. We have cruised with Helen and Ian in the Med and the Caribbean. They sailed their boat Sun Dancer 11 back to Oz in 2015. This trip they are helping with a delivery with the Aussie owner from Hobart to Sydney via Tonga and Fiji. The boat is a beautifully renovated ex Tasmanian Cray Fishing boat and just superb inside with many luxuries. We spent a few very enjoyable hours aboard socialising with sundowners on the large foredeck.

Hunga Lagoon

A PERFECT LOCATION

We are now anchored in Hunga Lagoon in Vava’u. The lagoon is an old crater and is protected all round by wooded hills. The birds are magnificent and we are in glassy water. It is so calm and peaceful, I could stay here for a long time. We know five other boats here and so we have plenty of company. Yesterday morning we went for a walk with Dutch friends Ellen and Martin on ‘Acapella’ up to a plantation. Then a second walk from another little beach to climb the hill to a lookout over the lagoon. In the afternoon the crews from ‘Eye Candy’ and ‘Acapella’ joined Dutch friends Agnus and Baz on ‘Tisento’ and went for another walk up over the hill to the other side of the lagoon. Here we met German couple Elke and Werner who retired from sailing in 2010 after twenty two years and settled here. Werner who was an Architect in his working life built a wonderfully solid and unique home from scratch. The house is made of concrete which he mixed by hand. He embedded coloured glass bottles in the concrete walls in decorative patterns. He made all the interior cupboards and furniture. A big feature window in the living area invites the surrounding tropical paradise into the house. It is all extremely well done and Werner and his wife Elke are living off the grid in their relaxing environment. We walked down to the water front where they keep their power boat which Werner has converted into a floating camper van so they can still enjoyed life on the water. Before leaving we all enjoyed coffee on the patio and Werner played Waltzing Matilda and the Dutch National Anthem on his harmonica. At eighty years of age he is an inspiration. He initially met us on the beach and walked us up over the hill and down the other side to his home and then back again when we left. I’m pretty sure he found the hills less challenging than the rest of us. It was inspirational to meet Werner and Elke who are obviously enjoying life to the full.

Werner and Elke's home

Garden at Werner and Elke's house

The explorer gloup
Ellen, Martin, Agnes, Baz, Clare and Andrew

SOME MENTAL EXERCISE

Andrew is earning himself quite a reputation within the cruising community as the radio fix it man. There are no repair places here and so Andrew has been pretty busy. He has helped countless cruisers with their radio problems and is now thrashing himself because he has encountered a radio he couldn’t fix – you can’t win them all! He has established a new Radio Net called the South Pacific Cruising Net which will take us through to Australia. We had ten check ins this morning which is pretty good considering it has only just started. Andrew loves the radio and spends a lot of time listening to various nets. I have jokingly asked him for a two way radio for Christmas, so I can get to talk to him. Let’s hope he doesn’t take me seriously:)

SO WHAT’S NEXT

We are now off for a snorkel as there is an area here inside the lagoon which has a lot of fish. We will stay here till Monday and then sadly go back into town for supplies. We will be looking for an opportunity to sail to Fiji within the next few weeks.

Love Candy xx

PS It is now Sunday and we just felt an earthquake from inside the boat. We could feel it through the floor and noticed that the curtains were shaking slightly. We have just heard that the centre was near Fiji and measured 8.2 on the Richter scale. We have also spoken to cruisers located in Fiji and surprisingly they didn’t feel a thing.

Love Candy xx

5-2018 Suwarrow to Tonga

Hi from Clare, 5-2018 Suwarrow to Tonga Thursday 19th July 2018

After sailing 730 sea miles, we arrived in the Vava'u Group of islands in Tonga last Saturday. When we first left Suwarrow we intended sailing to the island of Niue some 240 miles east of Tonga. We would have enjoyed calling into Niue on the way to Tonga but unfortunately the angle of sail was forward of the beam and very unpleasant. We smacked into three metre waves in twenty knots of wind getting covered in salt water for twenty four hours before we decided to turn right fifteen degrees give Niue a miss and head straight for Tonga. This put the wind aft of the beam making the ride a lot more comfortable. The trip took five days and the highlight was catching a 75cm long tuna. Quite a thrill after no fishing for three years in French Polynesia due to the threat of Ciguatera. But now with no threat of illness, we have been eating Tuna a la Every Which Way for the past week – simply delicious.

CHECKING IN
So far we have spent most of our time in Neiafu township in Vava'u checking into the country and re provisioning fresh goods. When we arrived and tied up at the wharf Customs and Immigration came to the boat. Then we were told to leave the wharf because a Navy Boat wanted our spot. We picked up a mooring ball in the bay and spent the next two and a half days and numerous trips ashore trying to track down Quarantine and the Health Official to complete the check in process. The annoying part about this was that we arrived on Saturday and were charged $90 AUD overtime rates. However (because we couldn't find the Health Official) the check wasn't completed until late Monday when overtime doesn't apply. Not sure what we paid the money for!

PROVISIONING
There is a very good fresh fruit and vegetable daily market which is a welcome sight after nearly two months of no shops. Choices are limited to what is grown locally, fruit selection is papaya, banana, pineapple and water melon. Vegetables are more plentiful and we can buy eggs at the fresh market by forward ordering them. Andrew says the chooks must be on contract :) There is also fresh fish for sale so we will happily frequent that in the future.

The shops are very disappointing, thank goodness I have plenty of groceries. There are a number of grubby food stores with limited supplies. It is necessary to visit all of them when in search of something. We did find some tasty cheese eventually but there is no yogurt, sour cream or any other dairy, all meat is frozen. Food stores have ants and small bugs running along the shelves. The shopkeepers are not friendly and in one shop the cash register is named by a Chinaman more interested in his iPhone than the customer.
He didn't look up once. The township is dusty and grubby with pot poles, broken pipes and open drains. The footpath is treacherously slippery after a rain shower - enough said.

FREE AT LAST
On a brighter note there are a number of good anchorages to explore. We are currently in a lovely quiet spot up against an island. It is very peaceful and exactly what we need after a busy few weeks. We are looking forward to chilling out for a while. Late yesterday we went for a long walk along the beach and we will do the same in our new location this afternoon. Since arriving in Tonga there is a noticeable difference in the climate compared to French Polynesia. The daily temperature is around 27 degrees and 20 at night. The water temperature has decreased from 29 degrees to 25. It is still very nice but noticeably a bit fresher. We notice that the people snorkeling are wearing wet suits.

SO WHAT'S NEXT
We intend staying in Tonga till end August. We are currently in the Vava'u Group of islands then to the south of us is the Ha'apal group and then south of that is the Tongatapu group of islands where the capital city of Nukualofa is located. We will visit all these groups before we leave for Fiji.

Love Candy xx

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4-2018 Mopelia and Suwarrow

Hi from Clare, 4-2018 Mopelia and Suwarrow Friday 29th June 2018

A SPECIAL PLACE
Our last week in Mopelia was just as memorable as the first. We met nearly all the inhabitants and learnt more about their lifestyle. Previously it had struck us that there were no children on the island. We thought maybe it's a place for retirees, but no the children are living in Maupiti with relatives and attending school. They are due home shortly for the school holidays. We also discovered that most of the local people have held down regular jobs on other islands or in Paris. They have chosen to return to Mopelia to enjoy the simple life. They don't have a lot of material possessions but they have everything they need.

WONDERFUL COMMUNITY
We had a wonderful Pot Luck dinner with eight cruisers and six local folk who provided an abundance of fish and coconut crabs. The cruisers provided the nibbles, salads, sweets and alcohol. The local folk provided music by way of guitars, drums (a combination of barrels being beaten with a rubber thong) spoons in a bottle and wonderful singing voices.
This Pot Luck dinner is an event the local folk do when a number of cruising boats gather. They laid out the meal and played music, sang and had a few drinks while we ate. One local lady in particular, who used to be in the French military, spoke good English and had a very good singing voice. We had met this lady a few days before looking every bit a Polynesian just sitting on the beach cleaning fish and throwing the scraps to a dog. Looks can be very deceiving!

WONDERFUL CUISINE - MAYBE?
Talking about dogs, our friends on 'Fandango' were invited to dinner at Jean and Tuarae's home and in addition to the usual fish they had a very spicy dog stew. Ian from 'Fandango' said it was very tasty and he had two helpings. The dog in question was badly bitten by a coconut crab and was bound to get an infection so they decided to cook it instead. We had patted this dog a number of times and we felt sorry for it and we don't think we could have eaten it.

PLENTY TO DO
Every day we went for a walk on the island. There is a vehicle track that runs the length of the island just a short distance inland from the beach. It was a very pleasant walk in the shade of the palm trees and there are a number of smaller tracks along the way leading over to the ocean side of the atoll. It was on these walks that we met the local folk as the track runs by all the houses. We would invariably stop and chat and end up taking home more island produce than we needed. However it was too hard to say no. They would have it ready for us on our return trip along the road. It seems that their culture is to give you something. Just amazing considering that they don't have a lot.

Most days we would swim in the shallows in the lagoon or in the rock pools on the ocean side of the atoll. One day when the lagoon was flat calm we took three dinghies out and snorkelled the pass. There was less than the usual current running so we just held onto the dinghy and drifted by the colourful display of tropical fish.

PARTING IS SUCH SWEET SORROW
Sadly we had to leave this wonderful playground and sail west. We will always remember the unexpected gem of Mopelia and the happy faces of the people who live there.

We set off for the 570 miles sail to Suwarrow on Monday 18th June and arrived Friday morning. Exiting the pass was easy as there was little current and the seas were a mere 1.5 metres. We had a very enjoyable downwind sail with the main sail our to port and the jib polled out to starboard. At one stage when the wind dropped to 8 knots we put the spinnaker up as well.


ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL SPOT
Suwarrow is a small uninhabited coral atoll about 500 miles east of Samoa and is a good place to stop for a rest. It is a Nature Reserve and very pretty with lush vegetation, mostly coconut trees, and sparkling aqua water. There are two attending Park Rangers here between June and November to check the passing yachts into the Cook Islands. They also make sure we do not damage the environment or ourselves. There is a variety of aggressive sharks here so many of the rules are focused on not luring these sharks into the lagoon. So no food scraps overboard, not spear fishing in the lagoon, no cleaning fish off the back of the boat and no kite boarding. They reported an incident where a kite boarder out in the pass had about five grey sharks following him just waiting for him to drop into the water. Also before 'no spear fishing' was a rule, a spear fisherman had his fish and spear gun totally chomped up by some sharks. Fortunately he lived to tell the tale. So the rules are not to be flaunted. We have been here for a week now and haven't seen any dangerous sharks in the lagoon. However if we walk to the ocean side of the atoll we see nurse sharks, black tips and white tips and greys cruising close to shore where the Rangers clean their fish and throw the scraps to the sharks.


A PRIVILEGED TO WATCH
The main attraction here is the manta ray. They come in the early morning to a shallow reef area some half mile from the anchorage as this is a cleaning station for them. They are truly wonderful to see. So big and yet so graceful just gliding around while the little cleaner fish remove any parasites that have attached themselves. Sometimes we have had as many as sixteen snorkellers and six dinghies out there watching the parade but the manta rays are not the slightest bit perturbed.


MAKE YOUR OWN FUN
At present we have seven cruising yachts here. Six of us were at Mopelia together and so we continue to have ongoing good company. A few nights ago sixteen cruisers were the guests of the Rangers for a pot luck dinner ashore. There is a lovely shaded area with a large table, benches, a fire place, hammocks and a swing made from old fishing nets. It is a very pretty setting and the Rangers provided the fish and the cruisers did the rest. The senior Ranger (Harry) performed the official Tongan welcome and we all had a very social time.

Harry is a professional baker in a former life and he gladly shared his recipe for home made bread with Clare. The recipe has been tried on Eye Candy and turned out very well. Harry says the most important ingredient is patience.

We also had a dinghy drift for sundowners last night. We tied six dinghies together and just drifted in flat calm water while we handed around nibbles, had a few drinks and enjoyed a glorious sunset. The sky was blue, pink and grey and the cloud formation big and fluffy. How fortunate we are to enjoy such peace and calm far away from the troubles of the world.

SOME MENTAL STIMULATION
Andrew has been very busy using his SWR meter and dummy load to repair the Rangers HF radio station and their solar panels. The radio lost its tuner on the ship coming back to the island this season meaning that the Rangers had no radio communication with their base at Rarotonga. To replace their tuner and long wire antenna Andrew built a half wave dipole antenna from the bits and pieces lying around and bingo they are back on the air again. The Rangers are very happy and can now communicate to base 3 days per week to report on visiting yachts.

Andrew tracked down a couple of blown diodes in their solar panels and replaced them with others found in old solar panels to enable charging for their twelve volt batteries. He also gave them an old multi meter so now they can check on their charging.

He has also helped many of the cruisers with radio problems mostly caused by corrosion. In fact he has been so busy they almost have to book an appointment.


SO WHAT NEXT
We have some very strong wind and big seas coming in a few days as a very intense high pressure passes. So we will stay put until things settle down. We are prepared with two anchors out and floats on the anchor chain so we don't get hooked on one of the many coral heads covering the bottom. It might be a bouncing in here, but better here than out at sea.

Love Candy xxFriday 29th June 2018

A SPECIAL PLACE
Our last week in Mopelia was just as memorable as the first. We met nearly all the inhabitants and learnt more about their lifestyle. Previously it had struck us that there were no children on the island. We thought maybe it's a place for retirees, but no the children are living in Maupiti with relatives and attending school. They are due home shortly for the school holidays. We also discovered that most of the local people have held down regular jobs on other islands or in Paris. They have chosen to return to Mopelia to enjoy the simple life. They don't have a lot of material possessions but they have everything they need.

WONDERFUL COMMUNITY
We had a wonderful Pot Luck dinner with eight cruisers and six local folk who provided an abundance of fish and coconut crabs. The cruisers provided the nibbles, salads, sweets and alcohol. The local folk provided music by way of guitars, drums (a combination of barrels being beaten with a rubber thong) spoons in a bottle and wonderful singing voices.
This Pot Luck dinner is an event the local folk do when a number of cruising boats gather. They laid out the meal and played music, sang and had a few drinks while we ate. One local lady in particular, who used to be in the French military, spoke good English and had a very good singing voice. We had met this lady a few days before looking every bit a Polynesian just sitting on the beach cleaning fish and throwing the scraps to a dog. Looks can be very deceiving!

WONDERFUL CUISINE - MAYBE?
Talking about dogs, our friends on 'Fandango' were invited to dinner at Jean and Tuarae's home and in addition to the usual fish they had a very spicy dog stew. Ian from 'Fandango' said it was very tasty and he had two helpings. The dog in question was badly bitten by a coconut crab and was bound to get an infection so they decided to cook it instead. We had patted this dog a number of times and we felt sorry for it and we don't think we could have eaten it.

PLENTY TO DO
Every day we went for a walk on the island. There is a vehicle track that runs the length of the island just a short distance inland from the beach. It was a very pleasant walk in the shade of the palm trees and there are a number of smaller tracks along the way leading over to the ocean side of the atoll. It was on these walks that we met the local folk as the track runs by all the houses. We would invariably stop and chat and end up taking home more island produce than we needed. However it was too hard to say no. They would have it ready for us on our return trip along the road. It seems that their culture is to give you something. Just amazing considering that they don't have a lot.

Most days we would swim in the shallows in the lagoon or in the rock pools on the ocean side of the atoll. One day when the lagoon was flat calm we took three dinghies out and snorkelled the pass. There was less than the usual current running so we just held onto the dinghy and drifted by the colourful display of tropical fish.

PARTING IS SUCH SWEET SORROW
Sadly we had to leave this wonderful playground and sail west. We will always remember the unexpected gem of Mopelia and the happy faces of the people who live there.

We set off for the 570 miles sail to Suwarrow on Monday 18th June and arrived Friday morning. Exiting the pass was easy as there was little current and the seas were a mere 1.5 metres. We had a very enjoyable downwind sail with the main sail our to port and the jib polled out to starboard. At one stage when the wind dropped to 8 knots we put the spinnaker up as well.


ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL SPOT
Suwarrow is a small uninhabited coral atoll about 500 miles east of Samoa and is a good place to stop for a rest. It is a Nature Reserve and very pretty with lush vegetation, mostly coconut trees, and sparkling aqua water. There are two attending Park Rangers here between June and November to check the passing yachts into the Cook Islands. They also make sure we do not damage the environment or ourselves. There is a variety of aggressive sharks here so many of the rules are focused on not luring these sharks into the lagoon. So no food scraps overboard, not spear fishing in the lagoon, no cleaning fish off the back of the boat and no kite boarding. They reported an incident where a kite boarder out in the pass had about five grey sharks following him just waiting for him to drop into the water. Also before 'no spear fishing' was a rule, a spear fisherman had his fish and spear gun totally chomped up by some sharks. Fortunately he lived to tell the tale. So the rules are not to be flaunted. We have been here for a week now and haven't seen any dangerous sharks in the lagoon. However if we walk to the ocean side of the atoll we see nurse sharks, black tips and white tips and greys cruising close to shore where the Rangers clean their fish and throw the scraps to the sharks.


A PRIVILEGED TO WATCH
The main attraction here is the manta ray. They come in the early morning to a shallow reef area some half mile from the anchorage as this is a cleaning station for them. They are truly wonderful to see. So big and yet so graceful just gliding around while the little cleaner fish remove any parasites that have attached themselves. Sometimes we have had as many as sixteen snorkellers and six dinghies out there watching the parade but the manta rays are not the slightest bit perturbed.


MAKE YOUR OWN FUN
At present we have seven cruising yachts here. Six of us were at Mopelia together and so we continue to have ongoing good company. A few nights ago sixteen cruisers were the guests of the Rangers for a pot luck dinner ashore. There is a lovely shaded area with a large table, benches, a fire place, hammocks and a swing made from old fishing nets. It is a very pretty setting and the Rangers provided the fish and the cruisers did the rest. The senior Ranger (Harry) performed the official Tongan welcome and we all had a very social time.

Harry is a professional baker in a former life and he gladly shared his recipe for home made bread with Clare. The recipe has been tried on Eye Candy and turned out very well. Harry says the most important ingredient is patience.

We also had a dinghy drift for sundowners last night. We tied six dinghies together and just drifted in flat calm water while we handed around nibbles, had a few drinks and enjoyed a glorious sunset. The sky was blue, pink and grey and the cloud formation big and fluffy. How fortunate we are to enjoy such peace and calm far away from the troubles of the world.

SOME MENTAL STIMULATION
Andrew has been very busy using his SWR meter and dummy load to repair the Rangers HF radio station and their solar panels. The radio lost its tuner on the ship coming back to the island this season meaning that the Rangers had no radio communication with their base at Rarotonga. To replace their tuner and long wire antenna Andrew built a half wave dipole antenna from the bits and pieces lying around and bingo they are back on the air again. The Rangers are very happy and can now communicate to base 3 days per week to report on visiting yachts.

Andrew tracked down a couple of blown diodes in their solar panels and replaced them with others found in old solar panels to enable charging for their twelve volt batteries. He also gave them an old multi meter so now they can check on their charging.

He has also helped many of the cruisers with radio problems mostly caused by corrosion. In fact he has been so busy they almost have to book an appointment.


SO WHAT NEXT
We have some very strong wind and big seas coming in a few days as a very intense high pressure passes. So we will stay put until things settle down. We are prepared with two anchors out and floats on the anchor chain so we don't get hooked on one of the many coral heads covering the bottom. It might be a bouncing in here, but better here than out at sea.

Love Candy xx

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