I imagine the opening line for many travel blogs written these days includes something about how COVID put a tight lid on adventuring plans! Indeed, it did just that, and yet we count ourselves as very lucky and grateful to be here writing to you - sadly, not true for millions of people. And though the pandemic shut us (the collective us) down in so many ways, it also opened new doors. It forced us to try new ways of communicating; if we allowed our hearts to open, we took time to examine what is most important to us; and, we learned that life did move forward even when we felt stuck.

Big life events happened while S/V Athanor sat alone on the hard in Raiatea, French Polynesia. Friends who had left their boats in New Zealand or Tonga could not get back to them; conversely, those who in New Zealand or Tonga could not get home - the entire South Pacific was effectively closed.

As for our little slice of the world... in January '21, Rob sold his business (EMI Consulting) he built over 25+ years. Not surprisingly, that process was equal parts exhilarating, exhausting and emotional. He is now retired, or "jubilant" as they say in Spanish. In November '21, we said goodbye to Rob's mom, Sue Bordner, after several years of illness. Thankfully, we were able to spend the final weeks of her life together in SoCal. In March '22 we made the decision to change course - we sold our home in Seattle and made our way back to Northern California. And, here we are, not yet quite unpacked from our mid-June move, and we're making our way back to S/V Athanor and the beautiful country of French Polynesia.

We plan to spend two+ months aboard Athanor this season - retraining ourselves how to sail - and navigating the magnificent atolls of the Tuamotos Islands. We are committed to posting about our travels along the way and look forward to hearing from you!

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Cheers,

Susan & Rob