We're outta there! Awoke at 5 a.m. and rousted my supernaturally patient crew. Without so much as a hearty breakfast or even a cup of coffee, we dove into the process of pumping all the fuel back into the forward and aft tanks. You might think this would be a reasonably pleasant time for such a task although you would be wrong. By 6:30 it was Tarzan hot yet again and the swim step with its lovely navy blue transom heats up in the Eastern sun to a sweat lodge in no time. Adding to our fun, the cap to one of the fuel bladders literally jumped into the water on its own accord! Not to sidestep a challenge, our resident abalone diver, Roger suited up, gently lowered himself into the less than pristeen Subic Bay Marina water, and with a single dive retrieved the cap in 20 feet of water. We hustled him out quickly and proceeded with decontamination procedures on the dock, followed by a hot shower with antibacterial soap. He refused a gamma globulin injection with a 16 g dul l needle in his L buttock and the triple antibiotic cocktail I offered him. (just kidding)É.but not about the water! Four barrels and 3 fuel bladders later we were full up again and tight as a tickÉ.or whatever analogy you use for tight as aÉÉ.(G rated only please) Paid the final moorage charges and cast off lines. Fuel problems? What fuel problems????? They disappeared in our wake as we motored past Grande Island into the South China Sea--soon to be a distant memory, like many of our issues in Hong Kong that we can hardly remember. While we are not complacent and know that the next "what theÉ.?" is around the corner, all on board are optimistic and enjoying the picture perfect 1st day out. Light onshore breeze, flat calm, and hot but not beastly off shore. Fish not cooperating but I did catch a soggy bag of corn nuts in the waters off Manila Bay. Water quality and fishing should dramatically improve as we move South through the Philippine Islands and out into the Pacific.

Thanks June re: history lessons. We have that covered to some extent with books and documentaries on disc as well as the series "Pacific" to watch underway. The waters we are navigating through on our way to the Pacific are the sites of what are considered to be the largest naval engagements in history during WWII - particularly Leyte Gulf in Southern Philippines.

Thanks for all your comments and for following along with us. Appreciate your uplifting words always but especially when were diesel toxic.