Well, it is the second night at sea on this leg and time to write and tell all the news.

Our time out of the water was actually a bit of a highlight as we enjoyed our time there so much and met many lovely people including Alain and Tita of TechniMarine but it was great to once again float and put the washing back on the guard rails and not strung under the hulls. We sailed around to the Tahiti Yacht Club and found Tizer the HoP who had been in quarantine on another boat. Once aboard and the larder restocked it was off to Moorea for a couple of great weeks and where we swam with rays (they actually try to nibble you) and spent a week with the Garner family on "ONEWORLD" of Wes, Kim, Lely, Max, Solomon and Ela. We hardly saw Gill during the week we were anchored together and he came back onboard with a good case of tonsillitus and a packet of antibiotics.

ONEWORLD sailed east for the Tuamotus while we sailed for Huahine (pronounced Wah-he-nee) about 90nm to the NW with John and Cyndy of CYNERGY. Lovely island as they all are but we only spent a few days as time was running out for our visas so we sailed on the evening tide for the last stop for us of Bora Bora which is a truly magical place. It is so magical that money just disappears before your eyes. We spent 5 nights here and left two days ago for Suvarov Island which is a small hop of 650nm. The night sail from Huahine to Bora Bora was delightful. No wind, flat seas, full moon and our anniversary began at midnight with a bottle of French Champagne to look at the most beautiful and large full moon we can recall with the mountains of Bora Bora appearing at sunrise followed by dinner at the MaiTai Yacht Club that evening. Bora Bora itself is scenic and clean like all the islands here and the fish are amazing.

My memories of French Polynesia and of our islands visited:

Hiva Oa (Marquises) "A most welcome landfall as it meant we were only 800nm from a yard to repair our rudders" Tahuata Island (Marquises) "A much needed sleep and relaxation beach for us all" Tahiti (Society Islands )"Repairs and great friends" Moorea (Society Islands )"Beautiful water, swimming with rays and having fun" Huahine (Society Islands) "A smaller Moorea and lots of cool things to look at" Bora Bora (Society Islands) "Our anniversary sail"

So, it nois now our second evening at sea and yesterday was a great sail. Wind dead astern, reefed genoa and 7 to 8 knots in reasonable seas. Chaotic Harmony is working well once again. She just needed a break after the last 10,000nm's. Our plans will be weather dependant once agin but we hope to get a few days to a couple of weeks at Suvarov (Suwarrow) Island. The current weather systems are not in our favour but we hope we can get to spend some time there. It was here that the New Zealand hermit Tom Neale stayed and it certainly looks like a bit of paradise. It is a National Park of the Cook Island Group and is not often visited as there is nothing there for most which is the opposite for us who want to get away from the Internet, the shops and the hustle and bustle of French Polynesia.

If the weather goes pear shaped we will continue on to Apia in Western Samoa and eventually wend our way back to Australia via Fiji, Norfolk Island and Sydney. Current plan is to head to the NE of the island and wait for the expected bad weather to blow out then head in the next day which should be by next Thursday/Friday.

We have to stop in Sydney so Tizer the HoP (who seems to like female vets only) can go to the quarantine station and we can enter Australia. We may have to paint up a flag as we have just destroyed our last one. Amazing really as it is the fifth since we left and they all seem to self destruct. Must be something to do with the foreign flag nestling within ours.

Be good