I haven't written a blog update for several days because, basically, we're just moving westward to Lombok, a 'city' which The Lonely Planet describes as Indonesia's "newest hot destination". You may be wondering how we decide when to stay, when to go, where to stop... AHA! A topic for a blog,

From the time we arrived in Saumlaki, our first stop in Indonesia, at the beginning of August, our only 'carved in stone' timeframe was to be in Alors at the end of August so Annie could catch a flight out to Denpassar, Bali. After that, we needed to be in Bali sometime at the beginning of October so we could meet up with our dear friends, Steve and Edie (yes..and she sings) and our Bali-Thailand sailing crew, Jim, Lori and Bruce. We planned on all doing some touring until I leave mid-October. Then, we had a last minute wonderful surprise. Our recently 'organized out of a job' niece, Shelley (with the most supportive and understanding husband on the planet) decided to carpe diem before she starts the next chapter of her life, so she will be spending time in Jakarta, joining us in Bali, and then going on to packpack and be a do-gooder in India. Also, we want to get to Bali because...well, it's Bali! We have an appointment for some boat maintenance, they have Costco-like stores for some real provisioning on 'necessities' and it is on our list of life.

So, basically, we had a beginning, one middle date, and an ending, leaving us with a with a fairly flexible schedule. There were also a number of scheduled rally events along the way, in which we could either participate, or not.

With 20 or so boats in the rally, there were many options and many different decisions to be made along the way. Some boats hung together very closely and chose particular places to anchor each night, and to spend time each day. Other boats totally did their own thing, and the third 'group' did a mixture of joining in or not, depending on what was going on. Some boats have their schedules dictated by needing to get boat repairs or to reprovision. Some boats, with no agenda, choose a very relaxed schedule, spending days at a time chillaxin at a place they like, snorkeling, diving or hiking, before moving on. Some boats have crew coming and going, and have to be at a specific place at a specific time. (Last year in the South Pacific, we had 27 people coming and going and we had to be at the right place and right time so it all happened on schedule. It did...thanks to the logistical acumen of Captain Ken. To be perfectly honest, on several occasions, I did have some anxiety that it all wouldn't work out...but it was a beautiful thing. YAY, KEN!)

Every morning at 7 AM on the SSB, boats can tune in, hear about everyone's experiences, and make their own decisions. Most of the cruisers have access to a book, 101 Best anchorages in Indonesia which has been most helpful. Also, many have the app, Google Earth, and can actually view the best ways to enter an anchorage , avoid reefs and find proper depths for anchoring. etc. When technology works, there is nothing better!

As for us, we have been doing a combination of things. In the beginning, we were traveling with a specific group of boats, informally named 'the Star Alliance', headed up by our buddies, JoJo and Robbie of Southern Star, the only motor boat in the rally. As time went on, we started doing different things, which worked out quite well, also, since we were able to spend quality time and get to know many of the other boaters. Ultimately, we ended up being buddy boats with Don and Phyllis from Solstice, a wonderful couple from the U S of A, with whom we have enjoyed many great times. We share similar goals: avoiding overnights where possible, and finding anchorages which are not too far apart, so we can have relatively short sailing days. (I wrote this blog several days ago. By coinkydink, last night we were at a gorgeous anchorage with the Star Alliance, and we had a wonderful time catching up.)

One final observation: I have noticed a trend of late: many of the boats are picking up their westward pace in their desire to get to 'civilization' a bit quicker, be it Lombok or Bali. I guess it's the lure of comfort foods, replenishment of their booze supply, boat repairs, or just regaining their land legs.

BTW, we thought it appropriate to post a pic of the extraordinary current crew of Moonbeam...plying the seas alone since the end of August. And they said it couldn't be done. HAH!