Sailing with Nine of Cups

Since we plan to be north in the outer islands for the next month or two, we took this opportunity to stock up at Au Bon Marche, especially on items that won't be confiscated when we arrive in Australia. We also wanted to buy some duty free liquor before leaving town. David made a dinghy dash to the Customs office across the bay and came back with the paperwork necessary. The first challenge was that the ATM machine closest to us wasn't working this morning. Luckily there are two in town, albeit the working one was further away. Cash in hand, we did some duty free liquor shopping. Usually duty-free is not that much of a bargain, but here a 1L bottle of Bundaberg rum was $12 duty free vs. nearly $40 with duty paid. The duty free shop accepted the paperwork; we signed more papers. Then she placed the bottles in a heavy plastic sac and sealed it with tape. This package had to then be taken back to Customs who added some nifty Customs seals to the taped bag and then we were allowed to bring it back aboard where it must remain sealed until we leave Vanuatu waters. It will be checked when we clear out and if it's been tampered with, we will be liable to pay the duties plus a fine. We'll try to restrain ourselves. David also got our cruising permit and clearance papers for heading north.

Next we walked up the hill to Au Bon Marche with a long list of needed items. Topping the list were necessities like pickles, olives, canned artichokes, hearts of palm, peanuts and cookies. We did throw some pasta and flour in the cart for good measure. We also picked up another 5kg of chicken thighs and canned/bottled them when we got back to the boat.

David's been feeling under the weather. Not sure if the effects of the antibiotics or some bug he's picked up, but when he turned down dinner, there was no doubt he was not feeling well. Hopefully, a good night's rest will cure what ails him. The "wounds" on the other hand are looking remarkably better after just a day of treatment.