As I sit here in the office, I am watching the downpour of rain outside. I am thinking of the floods that I will have to drive through to get to Sasa Ferry terminal. I think I better wait awhile. The rains don't usually last long here. But the rainy season has started and the sailing season in Philippine waters is over.

I have heard on the radio that this is La Nina year - this means more rainfall than normal. For the past weeks, we are certainly experiencing above normal rainfall conditions and even a very early typhoon. This is due to the presence of low pressure areas that are embedded in an active Intertropical Covergence Zone (ITCZ). From the satellite picture above, you can see the band of ITCZ all across Philippines, Indonesia and connecting to the South Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ) across Papua New Guinea, Solomons and Vanuatu. Wow, that is certainly a very wide area covered. I wouldn't want to be sailing through this.

According to Pag-asa, "the early migration of the ITCZ is enhancing the southwest windflow over the western and southern parts of the country. The characteristically moist southwest windflow is expected to prevail due to the intensification of the High Pressure Area over Australia especially in the months of July and August. Other rainfall causing systems relative to the Southwest Monsoon such as the ITCZ and tropical cyclones may be modulated by the recession of the North Pacific High Pressure Area and breaks in the rain periods could be expected before the normal peak of the rainy season in July and August. The rainy season will start receding towards the end of August until its normal termination by the end of September."

In Davao, we certainly are affected by the active ITCZ. You can feel the moist and warm southerly wind and this brings rain mostly in the late afternoons or evenings. The ITCZ gives birth to low pressure areas which may turn to typhoons as they migrate north or northwest. When typhoons hit the northern part of the PHilippines, for some reason Davao (Southern Mindanao) usually gets no wind and becomes hot and muggy.

Photo credit: http://www.weather.org/Pacific.htm

Yesterday, a sailing couple checked out of Davao on their way to New Zealand. They have been here for a while now, and have come to visit us in Samal. Every now and then, they called me to seek my help. Even though I am very busy, I stop and help them each time they call. This is an unwritten sailor's rule - helping fellow cruisers. At least for us - but sad to say, some people take this for granted. Anyway, they came to see me for the last time before checking out, to borrow some charts for copying. I thought they would come and thank me for expediting their order of batteries from Manila (I had to call long distance to Manila for them), get them delivered to my office. Instead, all I got were complaints about Davao and how they would never recommend anybody to come to Davao. Somehow I get the feeling that I represent Davao and all its imperfections are my fault. I am here to help and "THAT is MY DUTY", therefore there is no need to show appreciation for all my help.

In sailing, we take the good and the bad. It is our choice to visit other countries, enjoy all its wonders, and take their imperfections. Philippines is considered a 3rd world country, and majority of the people are below poverty level. It is true, that if you are a tourist, they try to "scam" you for extra money. The key word here is TRY. If you are street smart, you can joke your way out of it, in a polite and un-offending manner. Remember our sailor's rule - whatever you do, it will affect other sailors in your wake. So if you give in to the scammers and give them way more than is necessary, they will expect more from the next sailor who comes this way. We have seen this in the Pacific Islands. In some countries where they can't speak English, they even appoint an "agent" who can speak it to be their frontman. The more "business" they get from unsuspecting tourists, the bolder they become. So please please please - do be more aware of the consequences of your actions.

One good thing they did point out is that they felt safe and secure walking around Davao, and overall, even with the "extra" money scammed from them, it was still very cheap. I do understand the frustrations and I sometimes wonder if it is because one felt cheated that caused the anger. Here are some suggestions I could make:

1) Taxis - check if they had started the meter. If not and they refused to, get out. Or you can get the driver's name and his employee number. Say that you will check their actions with the taxi owners.

2) Stay with taking the jeepneys - they have a fixed price. If they charge more, get out. Just pay the fixed price and walk away.

3) Shop in malls and supermarkets - their prices are fixed, no bargaining to do.

4) Show respect and humility - do not shout and get angry. It just makes matters worst. You are a foreigner and your word will not count.

5) Do use a local that you can trust for bargaining purposes.

6) Always remember you are the visitor.

My last point is very important. I have seen foreigners take Philippines and Filipinos for granted, thinking it is a 3rd world country therefore they are superior. Showing this kind of attitude makes Filipinos even more disrespectful of foreigners. They will scam you and feel they have a right to, as a revenge. Remember - Philippines had been under foreign rule for a long time before and this attitude against foreigners may deeply be engrained. The perception that when you are "white" you are super rich is also deeply engrained.

The sailing couple did not show any disrespect, however they were targets. I feel bad about it, but like I said, if you are street smart, you can get out of being scammed. If you don't like to be in that situation, then stay with dealing with bigger establishments. As for authorities, they will try to ask for lots of money, but one sailor joked his way out of it and just gave them a pack of cigarettes. I must say that his way was way much better - both sides felt they gained something, no further consequences to other sailors in his wake.

I must strongly point out though, the majority of people here is not bad. Filipinos are generally friendly and happy people. Proof of this is my sister-in-law's visit. She is left alone to bike and travel around Samal on her own, and I have never heard of any negative things from her. If there are, she had taken them all in good stride, she being a visitor only. The best proof that she loved Samal is that she is already planning to buy a retirement condo here. So all is good.

My sister-in-law, Olaug, is here visiting us. She is very active and I must say, quite bold. We bought her a mountain bike and she has been biking around Samal almost everyday. I was so surprised that she had already reached the very northern point and the very southern point of the island, coastal as well as inland, through the several hills. And no, the locals do not call her "Hey Joe!", but instead, "Hey Ma'am!". She diligently studies the map before she goes. She said it is really not needed as there are roads, trails and paths everywhere and there is no way you can get lost. This article is a pictorial of what she has experienced and seen - the laidback lifestyle, the people and of course the sceneries. Enjoy!

See pictures here.

As mentioned previously, Louis Charland built Wiskun on his property almost 40 years ago. We are very fortunate to have contact with him and for him to take his time to scan his old pictures for us. Here I will let Louis narrate and explain his pictures. I have added/deleted some words for purposes of clarity and fluidity to the explanations, but all the explanations are his. Clearly, the pictures don't show justice to the difficult and frustrating work behind building a boat. Only those that have gone through it will understand, but hopefully your imaginations are creative enough to appreciate his work. For sure, we do.

"The first is the mold under construction with Port Moody Harbour faintly in the background. This comes before the cementing of the hull of course. It shows the mold over half finished and the shed is still up. Nearly all the wood is cedar, coming from the local mill, Flavelle Cedar. My neighbour, the good guy (they were both very good and understanding except for the garden episode) was a manager at the mill and supplied me with all my cedar. The posts numbered 28 I believe, all 4x4's, straight and free of knots and 16' long.

I fell off the shed onto the deck while dismantling it to give more light to my neighbour's tomatoes.

Read further in my site HERE

Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected finding the original maker and builder of Wiskun when I started this website. Three weeks ago, I received an email from Louis Charland and this was what he said:

Dear Ellen and Kjartan, just discovered your site and enjoy your stories. Did you know Wiskun was launched June 11, 1977 at Rocky Point in Port Moody? Wiskun actually means "love or friendship" and you're right, it is Indian, I believe it is Coast Salish. Wonderful to know you are enjoying her so much.
Cheers,
Louis

I almost fell off my chair when I read it. Could it be? Is he the builder? I immediately emailed back and I was right! Louis Charland built Wiskun alongside his house in Port Moody. I cannot do justice by narrating the story for him, so I am just going to quote his exact words.

Yes I am the original owner and builder and Wiskun. I built her alongside my house in Port Moody. I began building her when I was 29 years old and it took me 7 and a half years before she slipped into the water at Rocky Point. I estimated her weight at 22 tons and the driveway was destroyed in the process of hauling her out. I spent two summers fairing the hull with a special epoxy fairing compound made by Industrial Formulators and as you can appreciate it was well worth the effort but it almost killed me. I eventually reacted to the epoxy and developed a skin rash and also developed a shadow on my lung which eventually cleared. As a matter of fact I have several accidents during the building process that nearly claimed my life including falling off the shed I had built to house construction. My neighbour started court proceedings because the sheer size shaded his garden and stunted his prized tomatoes. My dream (in my youth) was to do exactly what you are doing so this is immensely satisfying and exciting for me to discover you are living my dream. I'm 68 years old but still have held the beauty of it all.

Building a boat is an immense undertaking. Louis must have lots of help, but I can tell you that NOBODY will care AS MUCH as him. I see Kjartan in him when I watched him in the building of MV Bethany. For the whole year, I watched him work, lose a lot of weight, working with people of different culture and standards, deal with the extreme heat, the lack of materials and tools, and the frustrations. He once told me that he remembers a very good advise from a boatbuilder - "Remember, this is not your boat". I didn't know what he meant at that time, but now, I think I do. One cannot put as much emphasis on quality like you do with your own boat. With Louis, that is what it was - he CARED, because it was his baby, his boat.

Louis, our heartfelt gratitude for sharing. We can tell you this, Wiskun is solidly built. She has taken us through very rough seas and with this, I finally realized I could trust her to handle her own.

We brew our own beer. In sailing, we do a lot of entertaining and it is always nice to share a cold mug of beer with our guests, especially in the tropics. In most countries, the cost of buying beer is horrendous. So, in New Zealand, we were able to learn the art of brewing beer from our German friends. I was surprised that it is really very easy. All you need is a 25 liter jug, preferably with a spout and a vent, lots of plastic bottles with sealable caps, a weighing scale and a syringe. When it comes to bottles, I used old pop bottles, and I prefer the coke or pepsi brand because the quality of their bottles are very good. I use the sterilizing powder to clean it, but our German friends who have done this for years only use hot water. They said it is good enough.

The brewing kit that you buy determines the process, of course, and the one I am going to describe here is for the Coopers, Australian brand. The kit contains a hopped malt concentrate and a sachet of yeast. The only other ingredients you will need are sugar and water. I have tried white, brown and cane sugar. For water, it is best to use rain water, unbleached. Ready?

1- Fill the 25 liter jug halfway with water
2 - Pour water into 2 big pots, halfway, and start to heat. Do not boil, you only need the water warm enough to melt the sugar and the malt concentrate
3 - Measure 800 grams to 1 kg. of sugar. The more the sugar, the higher the alcohol content
4 - When the water is warm enough, pour the sugar into the pots, half to each. Stir constantly.
5 - Do the same for the malt concentrate.
6 - It is wise to pour hot water into the can to melt the leftover concentrate faster. The concentrate is very sticky.
7 - Once the mixture is ready, you can pour all of them into the 25 liter jug (including from the can). Top up until you reach 23 liters. Do not fill to the top as you need room for the fermentation process.
8 - Pour the yeast that came with the kit into the jug and stir. Make sure the mixture is not too hot or it will kill the yeast. About 20 degree celsius is ok.
9 - Tighten the lid on the jug, as tight as you can.

The fermentation process will start immediately, and within 24 hours, you will see or hear the bubbling. Between 21-26 degrees celsius, this process should take 5-6 days. I normally just watch the bubbling. When it stops, then I know it is ready. I don't go beyond 7 days though. I was told the mixture will start to turn sour if you wait too long. Meanwhile, prepare for the second fermentation process. Sterilize all the bottles.

The second fermentation requires sugar in the bottles with the beer mix. This is the process that will create the fizz. My German friends gave me this formula to make it easier: Combine 375 ml of warm water and 250 grams of sugar. Stir until all the sugar has melted. With the syringe, transfer the sugar mix into the bottles, as follows:

600 ml bottle = 12 ml sugar mix
750 ml bottle = 15 ml sugar mix
1 liter bottle = 20 ml sugar mix
1.25 liter bottle = 25 ml sugar mix
1.50 liter bottle = 30 ml sugar mix

Pour the beer mix into the bottles but leave room on top for the fermentation process. Securely tighten the caps and shake a little for the sugar to mix in. The beer will be ready to drink in one month's time, but this never happens with us. Within 2 weeks, Kjartan is already drinking it and he said it is very good. One will note some leftover white substance at the bottom of the bottles. This is yeast (full of vitamin B), and is not harmful to you. I don't bother to eliminate them. We just make sure we don't shake the bottle too much when pouring into the mug.

I've been making beer for the last 4 years. Coopers has lager, draught, pale ale, dark ale and all the way to the darkest beer, the stout. I can't remember the price of the Kiwi beer, but I think it runs around NZ$2.00 for a 750 ml. bottle. With the beer kit, I can produce 23 liters of beer at a cost of less than NZ$0.50 per 750 ml bottle. Of course, this doesn't make sense here in the Philippines as the price of the San Miguel beer is very cheap. But, once in a while, Kjartan prefers the Coopers, and I will continue to make them until I run out of beer kits.

As a side note, I don't drink beer. I was told that when you are a beer drinker, the mosquitoes don't like your blood. One possible reason is the Vitamin B1 in the yeast. One of our cruising friends take Vitamin B1 (not the B-complex, but straight just B1). She said this prevents mosquitoes from attacking her. Could this be true? I don't know. All I know is that I don't drink beer and mosquitoes love me. They don't attack Kjartan at all.