Happy Bastille Day! Of course, everything is closed, you dumb American.

We were so exhausted yesterday, we enjoyed a fine Conni-made pasta meal and fell into bed. It was the sleep of the dead. The roosters awakened me at 3AM but with some help from earplugs, I got back to sleep until 7AM when the previous room tenant's use of the TV for an alarm awakened us both. I unplugged the TV!

Before we fell into bed, we had spent time sorting gear to take to the boat today, so we had breakfast and headed over. It had rained buckets and oceans last night but the boat was dry inside. A dry boat has eluded us for a very long time, but we're there. We'll do what we must to maintain that state.

Why is the boat so dry? Conni's caulk-fiesta two years back is certainly a main part. She paid a local rigger to give her the secret of fixing leaks around masts: caulk the hell out of it! She did so and ended with almost as much caulk on her as on the boat! Still, she got 'er done and we've had no leaks from the mast. She also worked on the bow where the chain is raised and lowered from the chain locker. She sealed the hole with tape, cloth, and plastic bags, but she got it sealed. In years past, we had worked hard on sealing the chainplates, the holes in the deck though which the mast-supporting cables pass. Passports are not known for the sophistication of that structure, but they were built in the 1980s, so there's a reason. Through the years we've been here, we've also replaced our old boat cover, which was made of mesh for ventilation, with a solid, heavy awning material. In the end, we've kept most water from the boat with the cover, and successfully dealt with whatever rain might penetrate the hull in locations not under the cover. Everything helps.

Conni's job for the next few days is to prepare the inside for our move aboard (still weeks away), and she began with a vengeance. Her product of choice is high-percent vinegar spray: she swears by it. Regardless of the cleaning product, with a dry boat, mold wasn't present on EVERYTHING and the boat smelled great. Conni's usual cleaning work was almost eliminated.

I'm writing this as I sit on our little porch through cocktail hour. It's only 5:30PM and still light, although the sun is sinking. I just watched what appeared to be a bird of prey, circle around an updraft and gain about 100-ft in 30-seconds! It's a lovely evening. The Myna birds are out in full force, talking trash to everybody and everything. They've become some of my favorites.

Booze! We have been buying a liter of gin at the duty free shop in the Papeete airport. We bought the liter for US$29, and 750ml of the same gin was for sale at our local market for US$80! Hmmm...I think that we got a deal. Liquor is so expensive that we're force to consume French wine, especially rosé. We can buy a fine bottle for US$13, so we've become winos here.

I posted photos from our trip down to FP tonight. I'll post some boat/work photos soon.