Well, here we are at the end of April. This time last year we were in the middle of the Pacific, on our way to French Polynesia, not at all sure what was waiting for us. Now we are back in Tahiti, planning our exit for Fiji - and once again, not at all sure what awaits us.

One of Fiji's main islands has uncovered an outbreak of Covid-19 - just a couple of days before the anniversary of its last 'community' case. For the last year the only cases have been those among incoming passengers in quarantine, so they have been prevented from infecting others. This time there was a breach of protocol in the quarantine facility and now the 'main' island, where the airport and capital city are, is under lockdown and there is no inter-island travel. The Fijian government's Facebook page is well worth looking at.

We plan to travel under the 'Blue Lanes' initiative, whereby we have to have our Covid tests 72 hours before departure and quarantine for 14 days before being tested again. Our passage - around 10-14 days - is taken into account as part of our quarantine, provided we do not stop anywhere en route. The island we heading for is not affected by the current outbreak, but we're obviously keeping a close eye on things.

In the meantime, we have had a lovely couple of weeks in Moorea, but are now back in Tahiti, waiting for a weather window for the next adventure and starting on the long list of pre-departure preparations. Lots to do, from refueling and refilling our gas bottles, through getting the boat back into passage mode, to getting clearance from French Polynesia customs and immigration as well as final (post-test) clearance from Fiji.

Just now we're anchored off the airport, which is unusually busy. We were invited to join a 'bob' yesterday - which turned out to be a late afternoon get-together for a beer in water shallow enough to stand in. Just four or five boats, and lots of chat about places west.

BTW - that's a pineapple field in the background.