Merry Christmas Everyone

That may not be quite PC these days but I refuse to say 'Happy Holidays' when it's Christmas.  Even here in a primarily Muslim country, the decorations are going up and the signs all say 'Merry Christmas' so MERRY CHRISTMAS it is!   

Snippets of 2015

 

It has now been eleven years!  We left our home port of False Bay Yacht Club in Simon's Town eleven years ago. Where has the time gone?  Eleven years of adventure, fun, chilling out, nail-biting experiences and relaxation, meeting new people, visiting new places, tasting new foods, learning new languages, enjoying amazing scenery, sunrises and sunsets, saying hello and saying farewell to so many new friends and working on the boat!   

In that time, there have been many marriages, the birth of a whole new generation of babies and sadly, the passing of some dear friends and family.  They will be missed.

 

For us, some moments have been a bit trying and a tad scary but most have been exceptional; we wouldn't have traded this time for the world.  If only we had more years ahead of us, we'd start all over again! When we hear and read of what's going on in so many other parts of the world, we have to ask ourselves "do we ever want to get back to that?"  This life seems so much safer and harmonious in our view.

We have only one more ocean to cross to close the gap on our circumnavigation so have currently hauled dear Calypso out onto the hard standing to prepare her for the journey that we plan to finish around this time next year.  No, it doesn't take a year to cross the Indian but we can't set off before the trade winds and we don't want to be in a rush; there are many more islands to see and enjoy on the way across and waiting for good weather windows is definitely the safer and more sensible option.

 

Our past year was fundamentally spent in Indonesia: our previous blog entries explain this long stay.  I, Maureen, had a trip back to Canada to visit my sister and Mom then over to the UK to spend some time with our daughter.  

Upon my return, we worked non-stop on Calypso giving her a bit of a much-needed internal and deck refit along with trying to repair some of the damage she'd received while holed up in a fishing port for the monsoon season. Never again!

     
 

The work we're doing now is all external; sanding, fairing, anti-fouling, polishing and waxing the hull as well as servicing the sea cocks, propeller and anodes etc. but the extremely lengthy "Job List" mentions everything but those items.

No wonder there are times that Paul despairs.  Nonetheless, one by one, we'll get through them all.  We want her in good shape upon returning to South Africa as we intend placing her in the market at that time.  That will be a very sad moment.

To everyone, family and friends, may the festivities ahead be a joyous occasion and the New Year even more so.  Wishing you all the very best for 2016.

A pleasant interlude between boat tasks

The pain killers are finished but, sadly, not all the pain and stiffness.  A few days after his fall, Paul felt ready to get back to work and, as per usual, rather overdid things.  When is he going to learn?!   Right now he's not really in shape to lift the heavy polisher or do any other strenuous jobs which leaves him ticking the little things off that long Job List that don't take too much effort.

I foresee us stuck up here through Christmas at this rate but, as locations go, it's really not a bad spot.

To prove that to be true, the 'pièce de résistance' was being invited to an Indian wedding.  We were asked to dress the part so the girls from the two other boats, Zoa and Out of the Blue II and I, went off to some of the local Indian dress and fabric shops looking for something appropriate.  What an experience!   The colours, the silks, the saris, the fabrics and the ready made outfits were amazing.  And best of all, the prices!  I bought a three-piece outfit which included a dress (with optional sleeves), a pair of baggy Indian-style pants and a gorgeous mile-long scarf for the total sum of $9 and the best part about it was, it's not too outlandish which means that I'll be able to wear it again over a simple black skirt or pants.  It felt ever so good to get out of 'boaty' clothes (t-shirts and shorts) for a change.

Mohan welcoming the groom, Prem

The wedding was an extravaganza of vibrant colours, traditions, sights & sounds and delicious food.  It took place in a beautiful Hindu temple with the groom arriving in one of a fleet of restored antique vehicles.  He's a mechanic and apparently loves collecting old cars.  As is often still the custom, it was an arranged marriage but with the benefit of time to get to know each other.  In other words, if they really didn't get on, they had the right to refuse. Sometimes maybe parents do know best!


PHOTO GALLERY:

All dressed up with Lyn and Janice

Outside the Hindu Temple

This display is made up of coloured rice

The bride, Puga, and her sister-in-law

Musical(?) accompaniment

Paul with Prem's sister

Puga and Prem

An old restored Austin

Paul who loves all things 'motorbike'

Work interrupted

The Malaysian Rally arrived in full force at Pangkor Island Marina - all sixty-odd of them.  This meant a busy week of activities and social events for the participants, past and present.

First off was a tour of Pangkor Island but even the lure of free cold beers couldn't entice Paul to take the day off.

We visited an old Dutch fortress, an amazing Chinese temple, had a visit to a traditional boat builder and a somewhat odoriferous wander around a fish salting/drying factory.  Then last but certainly not least, a wonderful lunch set out on a beautiful which sandy beach.  Fabulous food and fabulous setting.

James Khoo who runs the marina, never fails to amaze us with his generosity and hospitality.  When we passed through in 2013, he was equally as welcoming and this is why we chose to haul out here.  He seems to treat all the cruisers as though we were his own family.

Th next item on the agenda was a trip to the city of Ipoh.  Three luxury buses were organised to take us all to Ipoh some 80 kilometres away.  I even managed to persuade Paul to enjoy a day off.  Ipoh is one of Malaysia's larger cities and is surrounded by dozens of dramatic limestone hills , a bit like the karsts we saw in both Vietnam and Thailand. The old town section is rich with historical buildings whose architecture dates back to the British occupation.  Many have been beautifully restored and are now part of the Heritage Trail.

Ipoh developed as a result of the discovery of tin during the 20s and 30s and rapidly grew.  Prior to the 1970s, Malaysia was the largest producer with around a third of world production, but has since steadily fallen.  The mining operations in Malaysia and Indonesia have left large tracts of land devastated and the islands of Belitung and Bangka in Indonesia are all but wasteland.  Having said that though, I did once see a documentary on Banka where a team of of horticulturists have been trying to convert areas into a botanical garden which is certainly encouraging.  However, between the disastrous burning of the tropical forests to make way for the oil palms and the destruction the mining has caused, there is a mighty long way to go to right the wrong.

Tin mining (photo courtesy of internet)

Back to Ipoh; there are many limestone caves in and around the city and our first stop on the tour was to Kek Lok Tong (極樂洞;Cavern of Utmost Happiness) a spacious and beautiful cave temple which opens up on the other side to a magnificent zen garden that had previously been an old tin mine (a drop in the ocean but it's encouraging to see some effort to beautify). Next we were taken around the old town to visit some of the colonial buildings on the Heritage Trail with quite a few history lessons thrown in for good measure. Malaysia has a rich and diverse history when one considers its occupation over the years by the Dutch, the Portuguese, the British and then the Japanese.  No wonder the food is so exceptionally good here. Speaking of food, Ipoh has a vibrant food scene with a vast proliferation of hawker centres and restaurants.  We were free to wander at leisure for lunch and managed to find a terrific restaurant serving delicious curries which cost less than $2.50 per head.  The cuisine here is definitely something to write home about: between the ethnic groups of Malay, Chinese, Indian and European, they have developed some of the tastiest dishes imaginable.    The city is also well known in Malaysia for its "white coffee" where the coffee beans are roasted with palm-oil margarine and the resulting coffee is served with condensed milk.  Not being a coffee drinker myself and certainly not a connoisseur in any form, I fail to understand why anyone would want to drink insipid sickly sweet white coffee but.....to each his own.  Paul's a coffee drinker but he likes it black with no sugar and finding regular ground coffee is not an easy talk here; there are shelves upon shelves of "white coffee" but little sign of regular old ground stuff.  Indonesia has excellent coffee but it doesn't seem to be imported into its neighbour.  Back to the marina, the following night was a fabulous dinner on the lawn at the top of the marina ramps.  James, as usual, did himself proud.  Unfortunately, I had a bit of a cripple for a husband who had, as usual, spent the day working on the boat.  He had just had scaffolding placed around the port side of the hull so that he could get to the topsides and he was busy up there when he managed to fall off to land right on his back from a distance of about 2.5 metres.  I heard the crash and a scream then silence!  I managed, in my panic, to get down the ladder to find him lying on the ground badly winded and hurting with an ever increasing crowd of people surrounding him. As luck would have it, there's always a doctor on a boat and, in this instance, an orthopedic surgeon who checked him over before allowing him to move.  Reluctantly, he agreed to let Chris and Lynn from Out of the Blue II take him to a clinic to get an X-ray where no broken ribs or bones were found and no internal bleeding, just incredibly sore and getting stiffer by the moment.  This is now the fourth time he's injured his ribs since we left SA, twice were actual breaks and always on his right side! The sun rose this morning (the day after) and he was actually feeling quite perky but did agree to take the day (maybe even two) off. PICTURE GALLERY:.

Salting fish

Drying squid

Lunch on the beach

Dried fish

Inside the entrance to the temple

Looking out over the gardens

The old railway station

Many buildings are painted with murals

 

Mural representing the tin mines

Scenes around the old town:

Concubine Alley

Pamplemousse for sale