We only had a couple of days to wait between dropping the Truman's off and picking up JLow and Mel, just enough time to make sure the boat was restocked and ready to go. As always the plane arrived on time with Mel almost kissing the ground in thanks that they had arrived safely (the plane is very small), we think she was very brave to even get on it. We quickly loaded into the back of our luxury transport (the ute) and we were off. We set sail (well, motor) for Pulau Bangkaru. Already the swell had picked up (sorry Paul) and Jay and JLow enjoyed some nice little 3 - 4 foot right handers to start off with.

We spent a couple of days over at Bangkaru, most of which Mel and I spent on the boat talking up a storm and flicking through the eagerly anticipated girlie magazines to find out the latest celebrity gossip. I realise how long we have been away from home and civilisation when I don't recognise the vast majority of celebrities featured in the magazines!! We made an obligatory trip to see if Snappy had been around but the tracks were old ones. We have since heard that a couple of guys ventured up one of the creeks in a dinghy and quickly turned around and left when a big splash was heard in front of them and the swirl on the surface left them in no doubt that they had almost come face to face with Snappy! We soon left for the Bay of Plenty where the beach is more accessible for the girls (and crocs have not been sighted).

At the Bay the boys enjoyed waves every day in the 3 - 5 foot range with the barrelly end section getting a good workout. They were enjoying at least a couple of surfs every day. Mel and I continued our days of sloth, thoroughly enjoying the chance to catch up, relax and read books (Mel managed to finish four in her time here). JLow took the opportunity to show off his newly acquired lifeguarding skills by paddling Mel into the beach 'Iron Man style' on our paddle board. While the surf was good the weather was average, it was still warm and occasionally the sun would peek its head out from under a cloud but there was a fair bit of rain putting a dampener (pardon the pun) on a lot of our activities. We did venture around the back of the Bay to a place Jay and I refer to as La La Land which is accessed through a creek opening out into a bigger waterway dotted with a series of Palm fringed islands. Unfortunately on our way back we were caught in a big storm and had misjudged the tides meaning that we had to drag the inflatable across shallow parts while the rain poured down on us.

The time flew by and it wasn't long before it was time to start heading back to Sinabang, the guys experienced firsthand a couple of Sumatrans, saw some sea snakes, spotted some water spouts near the bay and met some of the local fishermen. After a final get together with Ian and Michelle on board the Makani Kai we headed back to Sinabang.

Thanks for joining us guys we had a blast and thank you for the little pressie you hid under the towels in your room, we really appreciate it although it was not necessary it was truly a pleasure to have you on board.

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For those of you that have been able to join us in Sumatra you will know that there are certain things (food mainly) that we are desperately missing. Topping the list is ice cream. We are unable to get it here, at least nothing that isn't a sugary pile of mush. The 'i' word is banned from the Makani Kai and those that are unfortunate enough to mention it are generally on the receiving end of a few harsh words from Jay. So when the Trumans left us and headed off to Kuala Lumpur did they send us a message of thanks, some flowers, a box of chockies? No, they sent a photo of Gemma eating an ice cream and a pen shaped like an ice cream via JLow and Mel. Thanks for the pic Gem, I've made some alterations that we feel does you justice. With friends like these who needs enemies!!!

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The day of Paul and Gemma's arrival was a busy one. We were picked up by Ranu and Lusman at 11am, jumping into the back of the black pick up we set off for the supermarkets and fruit and vegetable markets. The ferry had arrived that morning with fresh produce so everything at the market was of good quality. Unfortunately that day the rain decided to make our day difficult, we were travelling in an open tray back ute which meant that both ourselves and our shopping was bound to get soaked. But when the rain came down we noticed that Lusman had disappeared and on his return he had rigged up a tarp over the back so that we could travel safely through the rain staying dry and therefore happy. Having Ranu with us was fantastic, all of a sudden the prices at the market were reasonable and he argued on our behalf when the prices suddenly doubled for the whitey's. It made us realise that on our previous trips, although still cheap, we were paying a lot more than the locals were!

On the way back to the boat with our purchases including fuel we stopped off to pick up items we had ordered through Ranu who has his own shop and cafe, (he gets us fresh chickens which he keeps in his freezers for us), while we were there the boys put some reclining plastic chairs in the back of the ute so we could travel in style. We made quite a sight sitting under the tarp in our deck chairs, all the locals laughed when they caught a glimpse of us! By the time we got back to the boat which was anchored in Busung we had just enough time to dump our shopping before having to race off to meet Paul and Gemma, we arrived with ten minutes to spare. The tiny aeroplane taxied in and there they were. Gemma commented that she had felt a little uncomfortable as the plane they arrived in was the same as the ones they used to jump out of when they were sky diving, only this time she didn't have the comfort of a parachute! Loaded into our luxury transport we headed back to Busung, lugged the bags and surfboards across a paddock complete with water buffalo and onto the beach where the inflatable sat. A quick trip out to the Makani Kai, pulled the anchor up and we were off, we decided to pull an overnighter so that we would wake in the Banyaks the next day. Paul pulled in our first fish for a while on the way, a Giant Trevally which we enjoyed on the barbeque the next night. We arrived at Bangkaru in the Banyaks at about 3am, Jay had done most of the trip on his own and was absolutely exhausted.

The next morning we woke to no surf but got off the boat anyway to have a walk and check out the tracks of 'Snappy' as we affectionately refer to the resident croc which has not yet been sighted in body but the tracks give an indication that he is about 3 - 4 metres. The tracks were so new and big that we had been able to see them from the boat. A photo taken with Gemma's foot of the croc's foot showed it to be about 3 times the width of hers and twice the length. Gemma has pretty small feet but that's still pretty big! We soon headed over to the Bay of Plenty and, you guessed it, there was no surf there either! Are you starting to see a pattern here? We spent time snorkelling, swimming, paddling to the beach and fishing. Paul caught a Coral Trout and Jay reeled in a Blue Tuna on a trip over to Bangkaru to look for waves. The boys surfed at Cobra's and Machine Gun Rights at Bangkaru and the right at the Bay of Plenty but it was small. Unfortunately for Paul it was the flattest we have seen it in the 3 months we have been here. Over the ten days that the Truman's were with us there were 6 charter boats coming and going who were struggling to find anything for their punters. One joked that he was on 'suicide watch' for nine people. The good news for those following the Truman's is that it looks like the swell has arrived and there should be good waves for our next two lots of visitors. We would ask that people leave Paul alone and acknowledge that he has sacrificed himself to 'Huey' so that those that follow AND went before can enjoy good waves. Well, that and the fact that he may punch you in the nose if you ever mention this surf trip to him!!

We did however have a win when the boys approached a local fishing boat and enquired as to whether or not they had some lobster, to which they replied, 'Ada!' (Have!) Our last night in the Banyaks was spent feasting on a 2.8kg lobster, 4kgs of the Indo version of a Morton Bay Bug and sand crabs, all purchased for the equivalent of about AU$90! A fine end to what was a disappointing surf trip but ultimately a good chance to catch up with friends. We miss you already guys and look forward to catching up again soon!!

Great to see people leaving messages on the blog, relatives of Ian and Michelle can be assured that we are passing on your messages to them and we will continue to bring you news of their adventures! To our families I would like to say it was great to speak to you all and that I miss you all very much. Keep leaving us messages or drop us an email, we love to hear from everyone.

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