Just an Update
30 May 2015 | Avatiu Harbor, Rarotonga
Resting Bill
Although I'm not sure who's reading these, or in fact if anyone is, here is the status of Wings and crew.
After a day of waiting, yesterday, the fuel truck finally appeared and we took on 105 gallons of fuel. Our total capacity is 120 gallons, so we were fairly low, as we knew. Getting fuel was a major task and I'm ecstatic that we accomplished it.
I spent a few hours the day before cleaning the port tank in preparation for the fuel and had to drain about 5 gallons of contaminated fuel from the tank. Unfortunately, the driver of the fuel truck would take the old fuel but had no container for it. I had foreseen that and had Phil buy the cheapest tank that he could find. Our good, high quality 5-gallon diesel tank was too valuable to simply discard with the fuel. Off it went.
We bought food today, enough to reach Bora Bora and beyond, I hope. We still have fresh water to load, but we're hoping that traffic across our little alley will decrease to a point that stretching our hoses won't end in their loss by auto traffic.
John departs tonight and we've had something of an ordeal to acquire proper departing paperwork to allow him to leave. Like Fiji, we've had a time getting proper paperwork for Buddy, our new crew mate, to arrive on Monday morning at 0700. Sheesh, what a convoluted system! I'm sure that even greater problems would accrue to us were to we to do the same in the US. At any rate, both John and Buddy have their travel paperwork completed.
We visited the local market this morning. It's nearby and filled with local food and items for sale. John bought pearls, vanilla, and other gifts for friends and family, while Phil took a lot of photos of things. I hope that they enjoyed it as much as did I.
I've got to clean the boat tomorrow, and on Monday, start sealing any ports or hatches that I can seal against water ingress. We've got duct tape and Gorilla tape to help in the task, and a wonderful product called (no kidding) Captain Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure, to put on all simple leaky window seams.
Rarotonga is a wonderful place. While the harbor has miserable docking facilities (I HATE Mediterranean mooring) and the weather has been poor, the surrounding town has many good eateries and many facilities, including several nearby ATMs. Insert a piece of plastic and get New Zealand dollars out. Modern banking is mysterious and wonderful.
Everyone rides on motor scooters, without helmets. There are cars, but as many scooters. People are very nice, and there hasn't been a major crime since a murder about 12 years ago. Crime is virtually unknown. How nice is that? Walking at night causes no fear and the cool evenings are perfect to explore the area on foot.
We've eaten at tourist destinations such as Trader Jack's, as well as a fine Indian restaurant called Rivaz, and the nearby eatery called Palace. Palace serves breakfast and such until 2AM, for heaven's sake and the meals are delicious and plentiful. We've had their great milk shakes, hamburgers, and fish and chips, each has been excellent and filling. It's all of 100 feet away and we've eaten our share of meals there: actually, more than our share.
Conni and I, as well as many of our mates, think that Raro is a location to consider for a long-term stay.