ONE YEAR!!!!!

We left the Presidio Yacht Club exactly one year ago, on a dark foggy cold morning, 28 September 2005! If you really have some time to burn, you could go to our blog post for this date last year and see what was happening on Team Sandpiper as we departed the Bay Area.

We it a 4535 nautical miles straight line from where we departed that day a year ago, to where we are anchored here, in Fiji. We have actually probably covered twice that distance if we did the math and retraced all of our track lines.

When we departed San Francisco, we had no particular destination. At the time, we thought we would be in the Caribbean around this time. So who wants to guess where we will be in another year?

We have covered many miles in the last year and are looking forward to the journey to come. So stay tuned!

Musket Cove, Fiji

• Mooring Ball
• Musket Cove Yacht Club
• Malolo Lailai Island
• Fiji Islands Southern Group,
• Fiji South Pacific
• 17°46.2'S/177°11.4E

We are currently on a mooring ball at the Musket Cove Yacht Club, which is part of the Musket Cove Resort. When we arrived after a 20 mile sail from Lautoka. We grabbed a mooring buoy provided by the yacht club, and went ashore to check in. After registering with the yacht club, the facilities of the resort are open for the boaters, including showers and swimming pools. At sunset we met up with our friends from the s/v Sheriaz and the s/v Blue Sky at the $3 dollar bar, situated on a small sand island. The resort also has BBQ pits, and they provide the firewood and plates. So all you have to do is bring your meat!

We finally figured out how to change the settings on our stereo to get the local Fiji radio stations here. The radio stations in the U.S. end in odd numbers. Out here, they end in even numbers . For example, in the US a station might be at 101.5. But in Fiji, it would be at 101.4. All radios in the U.S. are preset to only stop on odd numbers. So you have to find the function on your stereo that changes its settings from U.S. standards to European standards. The local FM station plays 80's American music all day long.

Our current plan is to stay here through the weekend, and then go back to Lautoka to check-out of Fiji for our crossing over to Vanuatu. At Port Vila, the capital, we will pick up my brother Ron for the Port2Port Rally to Australia.

More when it happens,

Tom and Amy

Notes From Ron:
(1) The Port2Port Rally is a sailing event similar to the Baja Ha Ha that Tom and Amy traveled with from San Diego to Cabo San Lucus last November. This event is put on by the Bundaberg Cruising Yacht Club. It is a way for for cruisers to come back to Australia from the South Pacific and cross the Coral Sea as a group. Most the of the cruisers, like Team Sandpiper, are leaving the area for safer waters before cyclone (hurricane) season starts.

(2) Why do U.S. FM radio stations end in an odd number? From the FCC's own web site:

FM radio stations all transmit in a band between 88.0 megahertz (millions of cycles per second) and 108.0 megahertz. The band is divided into 100 channels, each 200 kHz (0.2 MHz) wide. The center frequency is located at 1/2 the bandwidth of the FM Channel, or 100 kHz (0.1 MHz) up from the lower end of the channel. For example, the center frequency for Channel 201 (the first FM channel) is 88.0 MHz + 0.1 MHz = 88.1 MHz. So there can be a station at 88.1 megahertz, 88.3 megahertz, 88.5 megahertz, and so on.

The 200-kilohertz spacing, and the fact that they center on odd numbers, is completely arbitrary and was decided by the FCC. In Europe, the FM stations are spaced 100 kilohertz apart instead of 200 kilohertz apart. So they can end on even or odd numbers.

So there you have it. Europe felt they had to be able to squeeze more stations into the FM band. So they sliced it up the band into thinner slices that the US did. I suspect that they were able to do this because FM came later to Europe than to the US. So by the time they set up their standards, the broadcasting and receiving equipment had improved to the point were having a 100 khz instead of a 200 khz wide channel was not a problem.

This is similar to the reasons why the US uses different, and technically inferior, standards for electricity, television broadcast, and mobile phone standards. The US tends to establish an industry, and the standards get set more by corporate greed versus technical superiority. When the rest of then world adopts a standard, they get the benefit of seeing what works, or doesn't work, in the US.

For example: The US settled on 110 volts, while the rest of the world went with 220 volts, thanks to Thomas Edison's "War of the Currents" fight with George Westinghouse on what electrical standards to establish in the US. The battle got so bad that Edison even electrocuted an elephant in a publicity stunt to make Westinghouse's Alternating Current seem dangerous.

In the US, we use a television standard called NTSC (484 lines). Most of the rest of the world uses PAL (a flicker free 625 lines). That is why you can't play US videos in Europe.

The US mobile phone industry went with CDMA for their digital cell phones, while the rest of the world with with GSM. Here is a comparison of the two standards. Hence, taking your US mobile phone out of North America is usually worthless.

Saweni Bay, Fiji

• Saweni Bay
• Vita Levu Island, Fiji
• Melanesia, South Pacific
• 17°38.6000"S/177°23.5000"E

We had one of the best sails we have ever had on our 45 mile run to Lautoka! We left Malake Island at 8am, along with our friends on the s/v Sheriaz. We had a downwind sail with 20 knots of wind down the west side of Viti Levu, inside the reefs, all the way to Lautoka. We did quite well, as our friends on the Sheriaz are on a 45-foot catamaran, and we matched speeds all day. We both arrived at the anchorage at the same time, right at sunset.

Lautoka is Fiji's second largest city (population 50,000). It has the largest sugar mill in the southern hemisphere. The sugar mill runs 24 hours a day! We anchored off the city's shipping terminal. During the night, the winds shifted, bringing all the soot from the sugar mill right over us. So when we awoke, Sandpiper was covered in a nice coat of black soot. At sunrise we decided that we needed a cleaner anchorage. So we moved to small bay, 4 miles south of town, where we are this morning.

The main reason for coming to Lautoka is that we need to get chest x-rays so that our Australian visas can be approved. So yesterday was quite an adventure!

When we arrived Saweni Bay, we could see the Sugar Train running back and forth. The Sugar Train is a small-gauge railway that runs all over the place bringing sugar cane to the factory in town. When we dinghied ashore, we found that we had to walk down a long dirt road towards town. We totally got lucky when a taxi came by and picked us up. There we no other cars on this road. He took us to the hospital in town for only $3.00.

The hospital in Lautoka is quite large, and there are people all over the place. So its a little crazy in there. We found the X-ray department.... and who should already be there? Our friends Steve and Rene from the s/v Sheriaz. They had beaten us there.

We did not know that we had to know the name of the doctor who we wanted to, see prior to arriving at the hospital. Steve and Rene had ben picked up by a guy near the shipping terminal who had drove them to the hospital. This guy knew the doctor in the X-ray department, and he gave them the doctor's name. So we all got to see Dr Raj, who told us that we were the first cruisers that had ever been in his office.

After he filled out all our paperwork, he informed us that we needed passport photos for our visa applications. And he knew the lady in town that runs the photo shop. So he phoned her up and told her that we were coming over. We then had to go to another part of the hospital to receive our official Fiji government health cards, paid our fee, then jumped in a cab to town to get our photos taken. Cabs are very cheap here, just about 2 dollars for everywhere you want to go.

As soon as we got to the photo store the lady took and developed our photos. We were back at the hospital within 15 minutes of our leaving. Once back, Amy and I both got our chest x-rays taken. Dr. Raj gave us the "thumbs-up", finding no TB in us, and promised to have the X-rays overnight mailed to the Australian embassy.

He also recommended to Steve and Rene a good Chinese restaurant in town. Dr Raj phoned the restaurant to let them know we were coming over for lunch. He also told us the he was a member of a private club called "The Northern Club". He told us to stop in the club for drinks and to tell them that Dr. Raj sent us! I don't think you could ever get the service that we received back in the U.S. As crowded and crazy as the hospital was, everyone seemed to be moving along pretty fast.

After the hospital Steve, Rene, and we had lunch at the Chinese restaurant that Dr. Raj had recommended. Then it was off to The Northern Club for drinks at ridicously low prices. After the club, Amy and I went to the movie theater in town. It is quite modern. And for 2 adults, it was only $6 Fijian, which is more like $4 dollars USD. A large drink and popcorn was only $4 dollars Fijian!

We saw the movie "Descent", which,is a scary movie about 6 girls stuck in a cave with a bunch of scary underground monsters who lurk around in the dark and wanted to eat everyone. So it did not help that it was raining and pitch black when we went back down the dirt road to try to find our dinghy. Once again, we forgot to bring our flashlight. Amy had the cab driver shine his headlights on the beach until we got the dinghy out and we were paddling away! We did manage to make it back to the Sandpiper without encountering any monsters.

Today's plans are to head south 20 miles to Musket Cove and meet up with our friends on s/v Blue Sky. We will spend time trying to crash their pool and drink beer at the $3 dollar bar.

More when we get there,
Tom and Amy

Notes from Ron:
Here is a blog entry about Lautoka that has photos and a pretty good description of what Tom and Amy are seeing.

Malake Island, Fiji

• Malake Island
• Vita Levu, Fiji
• Melanesia
• 17°20.4000"S/178°8.7000"E

Just noticed that I have been putting West longitude and not East longitude on the last few blog entries since crossing the 180° date-line near Savusavu. My apologies. I have had a lifetime of plotting "W", and takes some getting used to plotting "E". I had the same problem getting used to writing South latitude for every fix after crossing the equator. If you were tracking us, you were probably trying to figure out where we were, as that would have put us out in the middle of the ocean.

Another day of extreme Sandpiper operations today! We awoke at sunrise, along with our friends on Sheriaz, and departed the anchorage with strong winds and rain. Just the kind of weather you want when you are trying to spot reefs! We made it through the reef, but were a little nervous because there are no aids to navigation here in Fiji. You have to blindly trust that your charts are accurate enough. When the depth finder starts counting up to the bottom, and you can see reefs on both sides of you, you just have to close your eyes and power on through.

We had a very windy sail, with 25-30 knots of wind right off the port beam. We were able to average 6 knots with only the stay-sail and main-sail. We never even had to roll out the jib.

We sailed 30 miles across Bligh Waters. Captain Bligh, from the HMS Bounty, sailed these waters in his 18 foot open boat. He tried to go ashore here, but the locals wanted to eat him, so he pressed on.

Arriving at the reef pass at the north end of Viti Levu was as equally EXTREME, as there was a white buoy marking the channel. What side of a white buoy do you pass on???? Once we figured what side of the channel it seemed to mark, we powered through and motored inside the reefs for 7 miles to where we are now, anchored next to s/v Sheraz.

When we were sailing in French Polynesia, we were using Maptech electronic charts, which are very accurate. But out here, they do not supply charts. So we are doing what all the other cruisers do. We use CMAP electronic charts. The difference is that we can not use our Palm Pilot plotter that we keep in the cockpit because the CMAP charts have to be read off our laptop. The one nice thing about the CMAP charts is that they contain electronic charts for the whole world. So you do not have to buy a new set of charts every time you want to travel to a new place. The downside to the CMAP charts is that they are not accurate, and they will sometimes plot you on a reef or land. So you cannot place a lot of trust in them for piloting passes.

One note from last night: Amy made Baja taco's with the Mahi Mahi we caught on our last passage. And we have to admit, they were "Off the Hook"!!

Tomorrow's plan is to sleep in a little, and then head south down the west side of Viti Levu to the city of Lautoka. There we will stay two days because we both have to get chest x-rays for our Australian visas. Plus, we hear that they have a movie theater there as well.

Will update you from Lautoka.

Tom and Amy

Notes From Ron:
(1) I've always checked and corrected the coordinates I receive from Tom and Amy before posting them on the blog. So the blog has been correct all along. I did notice that they kept sending me "west" longitude coordinates after they crossed the 180° longitude near Savusavu. I figured that they would notice some day soon. They are now officially in the earth's eastern hemisphere.

(2) Port Beam = Left side of the boat... in this case, the winds were blowing from east to west.

(3) Bligh Waters is the area between the Fiji's two major island, Vanua Levu and Vita Levu. It is named after William Bligh, the captain of the HMS Bounty, who sailed through there in May 1789.

On 28-April-1789, Bligh's ship, the HMS Bounty, was ceased in a mutiny lead by Fletcher Christian. Captain Bligh, and 18 other loyal crew, were set adrift into an overloaded, 23 foot (not 18 foot as Tom claims), open launch. With only a sextant and a pocket-watch, Bligh managed to sail 3618 nautical in 47 days miles to Timor, only loosing one crewman on the way.

After the mutiny, Bligh landed on the closest land, Tofua Island in the Tonga Islands, in order to get supplies. After a couple of days, the island locals attacked and drove them from the island. One sailor was stoned to death on the beach as Bligh and his crew were escaping. Bligh's journal indicates that they had no idea what set the natives off. Because they had no weapons and felt vulnerable, they did not stop again until they reached Australia (called New Holland back then).

As they sailed though the channel between the Vanua Levu and Vita Levu islands in Fiji, they observed some locals launching boats and giving chase. Because of their experience on Tofua, Bligh pressed on. There is nothing in his journal about fears of cannibalism. I suspect that is a local legend.

His journal also reveals that he was not sure where the Fiji Islands were exactly. He suspected the land was Fiji. But since he didn't know for sure, he called them "The Bligh Islands".

You can read Bligh's journal for free here. You can read a detailed history and anaylsis of the mutiny written in 1831 here. Both are very interesting.

Nabouwalu, Vanua Levu Island, Fiji

• Nabouwalul
• Vanua Levu Island
• Fiji Islands Northern Group
• Fiji, South Pacific
• 16°59.5000"S/178°41.0000"E

Ahoy from Nabouwalu!

We finally escaped Savusavu at sunrise this morning and had a great sail, averaging 7 knots, 50 miles to the southern end of Vanua Levu Island. We are anchored for the evening in a small harbor with winds ripping thru here at 30 knots.

We kept trying to leave Savusavu. But everyday the weather got worse, as we were going to be going straight into the winds. our friends on the other Sandpiper, "Sandpiper UK", tried leaving yesterday. But they had waves coming over their bow. So they turned around and came back in just as we were getting ready to leave. So we bagged that and opted for some more beers at the yacht club with the other boaters who were trying to leave.

There is still lots of pumice (floating rocks) in the water. We had to pass a very long, narrow, pass between 2 reefs that was quite EXTREME. The swells got quite large entering because the current and winds were so strong.

We are anchored next to our friends on s/v Shiraz and we are going to both be crossing Blight Waters tomorrow morning to reach the north end of Viti Levu. After that, a 50 mile passage thru more reefs.

More in 24...

Vanua Levu, Fiji

• Mooring Ball
• Savusavu, Vanua Levu Island
• Fiji Islands Northern Group
• Fiji, South Pacific
• 16°46.6000"S/179°20.0000"E

Wednesday morning here on the old s/v Sandpiper, and it is raining. In fact, it has been raining since last night. We are still in Savusavu, our first stop in Fiji. We've been trying to leave here for 3 days now. We've been set back due to boat projects, fuel and water fill ups, and now..Weatherer.

Since arriving here last Friday we have immersed ourselves in all the town has to offer. The town is small. It has one main drag with lots of shops, markets, and restaurants. I've been to some sort of store everyday now. Savusavu is made up of half Fijians, and the other half Indians. So there is lots of good curry in town.

Last month I made an attempt at cutting Tom's hair. He got it fixed yesterday by an Indian barber for $2.50 Fijian, which is about only $1.40 USD. He is now sporting a nice close shave. Looks good.

We are hoping to leave here tomorrow and head through some pretty water and small villages. Last night we attended a lecture on the proper way to address a village using kava root. Kava root is a type of pepper plant. The locals drink it, with the village chief, as part of a traditional welcoming ceremony to their village. Kava looks like mud, and because it is part of the pepper family of plants, it numbs your lips and throat after drinking it.

The proper way to partake in a Kava ceremony is to clap once before you drink, and then clap three times with everyone in your circle after you drink. Not quite sure if we will be stopping in a village small enough to partake in such a ceremony. But it's good knowledge to have, as it is important to do it correctly.

Tonight we will attend another lecture on the routes through the waters of Fiji. Tom mentioned earlier about all the islands and reefs that are around here. So it is extremely important we sail this area with caution. The route we have planned takes us out of Savusavu, through a narrow pass, around a bunch of reefs, across Bligh Waters, then zig-zagging through a couple hundred miles of treacherous reefs. The lectures are given by 'Curly', a Kiwi (someone that hails from New Zealand) who has lived here for more than 30 years. So he knows all the ins and outs of the Fiji waters. 'Curly' does a local net on the VHF radio everyday informing all cruisers on everything from the weather, to dinner specials.

A few random thoughts before I check out:

Back in Bora Bora we met another S/V Sandpiper. Peter and Margaret, who hail from the U.K. So we are officially now known as s/v Sandpiper U.S.

Tom purchased the Sandpiper some 8 years ago from his friends Matt and Julie. Included in the purchase of the boat was a hand carved tribal mask which is mounted in our galley. Since our cruising adventure started almost one year ago, we have continued to purchase masks from as many stops along the way as possible. We never knew the origin of this mask. But since setting foot in Fiji, we see many that look similar being sold at the markets. So when we came home, we unscrewed the mask from its long standing position. Sure enough, it says 'Made in Fiji'. All this time, and we had no idea. So now we wonder if the Sandpiper has been here before?

The proper way to say hello in Fiji is "Bula" (boo-la). So we would like to give a big Bula to Charlie back in Indianapolis, Indiana, and to Frank in Tucson, Arizona. Both are big fans of our blog. Thanks for being such dedicated readers.

Love to all,
Amy and Tom

Notes From Ron: Fiji is deeply divided ethnically between the native Fijians and the Indo-Fijians. Underneath what seems like an idilic South Pacific island nation is a potentially violent stew of ethnic violence. This divide has been the source of a lot of political tension, which resulted in military coups in 1987. Here is a brief and interesting article from Frommers that describes the people of Fiji and how different they are from each other.

Living here in Australia, one becomes aware of the potential for problems in Fiji. This is because if Fiji explodes, the Aussies and Kiwis will be most likely to have to send in armed forces to control the sitution. So they are keeping a sharp eye on Fiji, and strive to prevent it from descending into anarchy like other Melanesian nations have done recently (eg. The Soloman Islands).

Noon Position 14-Sep-2006

Tonga to Fiji, South Pacific Ocean

• 16°52.3000"S/179°27.6000"W
• 110nm last 24hrs
• 341nm from Tonga
• 70nm to Fiji
• 10-15 knots E
• 3ft E seas

Thursday night and we are still at sea. I knew dropping the hook today was too good to be true. However, we should be in tomorrow morning.

Not much excitment here on the Sandpiper. Tom has read almost 6 books in 5 days, I'm on my 3rd. The passage has been really calm, but I'm looking forward to passages being over and being in one place for a while.

We did have an exciting event last night, just after sunset. We were both in the cockpit talking about the pumice. Then all of sudden the boat slowed down and the water all around us looked like a thick chocolate shake. We turned on the spreader lights to get a better view, and we were surrounded by pumice. Way cool, and a little freaky too!

We'll be in Fiji tomorrow. So it may be a couple of days before you hear from us. Hope all is well with everyone at home.

Love,
Amy and Tom

Note From Ron: Most of the underwater volcanos are actually around Tonga, where Tom & Amy just left. Here is a list of all the Tonga volcanos, of which 8 are submarine (underwater). Tonga sits above the subduction zone where the heavy Pacific Tetonic Plate slides under the lighter Australia Tetonic Plate. This creates the deep Tonga Trench, the spot where the Pacific plate actually disappears under the Australian plate. And it creates the line of volcanos to the west of the trench, in Tonga, where the Pacific Plate is crushed, melted, and shoots back up to the surface through weak cracks in the Australia plate.

The lava that leaks out of these volcanos and vents is quickly cooled by the ocean. It then becomes pumice. It is very light and floats to the surface. The pumice is then pushed west, toward Fiji, by the tradewinds and the ocean currents.

Noon Position 13-Sep-2006

Tonga to Fiji, South Pacific Ocean

• 17°7.3000"S/177°43.7000"W
• 125nm last 24hrs
• 231nm from Tonga
• 160nm to Fiji
• 10-15 knots E
• 3ft E seas

We got the winds back at daybreak this morning and are now back to sailing! Just another day at sea. We anticipate being at our turn point sometime early AM, then entering Nanuku Pass for another 60 miles to Savusavu, Fiji.

We have not seen another boat since leaving Tonga. There should be al lot more traffic once inside Fiji's waters. Will let you know tomorrow how the pass is. And, we should be sipping cold beers by tomorrow night!!

Tom and Amy

Noon Position 12-Sep-2006

Tonga to Fiji, South Pacific Ocean

• 18°2.0000"S/175°45.9000"W
• 90nm last 24hrs
• 107nm from Tonga
• 300nm to Fiji
• 5 knots E
• 1ft E calm seas
  

Wind?? We were able to sail all night. But at 10am we were making only 1 knot. So we have been motoring all day. The winds are supposed to fall back in tomorrow. So maybe it is just for the next 24 hours. If anything, this is the most we have motored in months, so our batteries should get a nice juicy charge up.

We are headed to the town of Savusavu on the island of Vanua Levu on the Northern Fiji Islands. We are going to check in and will then make plans on where we are spending the next 2 weeks after we get better charts in town. There are 322 islands in all of Fiji of which only 100 are inhabited. So there will be lots of places to explore.

There are lots and lots of reefs around Fiji. We are taking a shipping channel in from the north, so our actual mileage to Fiji is off a bit.

There are volcanic islands all over here, as well as many underwater volcanos that are erupting . They release pumice rocks, that float. We have seen and gone through large patches of these all afternoon.

We did hook into a really nice 40 pound Mahi Mahi that Amy is looking up recipes for as I am typing this post.

More in 24,
Tom and Amy

Noon Position 11-Sep-2006

Tonga to Fiji, South Pacific Ocean

• 18°39.5000"S/174°19.4000"W
• 21nm last 4 hrs
• 21nm from Tonga
• 400nm to Fiji
• 10 knots E
• calm seas

THE KING IS DEAD! This morning, at 8am, we departed Tonga and are en route Fiji. As we were leaving the harbor, it was announced that the king of Tonga had passed away. We left just in time, as Tonga is now in a 100 day mourning period, and all business will be closed. In short, it will be hard to get a beer anywhere in Tonga during the next 100 days!

We had a great time at the full moon party while anchored off Vaka'eitu Island in the North Tonga Group. 40 boats and 150 people showed up! There was a dinghy valet service at the beach. Ashore was a small stage and outdoor kitchen. It was BYOB, and you could buy cups of ice for your drinks. At sunset there was a Tongan BBQ. Lots of fun was had by all. We saw a lot of people we had met along our Pacific crossing, including boats from Mexico.

After the sunset there were fire dancers and kind of a Tongan rave with Moon Maidens walking around with large punch bowls of some unknown liquid. As usual, Team Sandpiper was one of the last boats to depart, around 1 am.

We also had to say goodbye to our friends Chris, Kelly, and daughter Claire, who are heading south from Tonga en route New Zealand. We have been sailing together since the Baja HaHa in Mexico.

We are sailing out here with our friends from s/v Blue Sky, Sheriaz and Towanda. Don't forget to check out their web sites that are at the bottom right side of this site.

More in 24,
Tom and Amy

Vava'u Island Group

On Mooring Ball, Kingdom of Tonga, Vava'u Island Group, Neiafu, South Pacific
18'39.2S/173.59.4W

Ahoy from the future! We've crossed the imaginary date line. The date line is actually at 180'. But Tonga likes to be different. So we are a day ahead. Weird.

Tonga is "Cruisers Disneyland". That's what the captain says. We've been here almost two weeks and still enjoying all that Tonga has to offer.

Once arriving in Neiafu, the big town, all boats must pull up to the docks to check in. Sounds easy... but not so. The docks aren't made for sailboats, but instead the were made for big supple ships. So they are pretty high. In our fist week there were two serious accidents at the dock. One was cut up foot that resulted in many stitches. And another was an injury with 6 broken ribs. Ouch!

Team Sandpiper made it without injury. We waited patiently for the quarantine, immigration ,and customs folks to come down to the boat and check us in. The quarantine dude, George, was a real hoot. He made himself comfortable on several boats, eating cookies, taking bottles of rum, and drinking beer. We made it through the entire procedure with one less coke and a lemon.

After checking in, we grabbed a mooring ball, jump in the dingy, and we were off into town. Tonga is a nice breath of fresh air after visiting French Polynesia. Everyone speaks English, and food is cheap. We ate out almost every night our first week! I'd say 90% of the restaurants and businesses are run by cruisers that saw a great opportunity.

At one of the local hotels an American couple has set up a sheet to project movies on. We were fortunate to catch the double feature. "Tonga Bob's" is a cantina with homemade tortillas and a drag queen show every Wednesday night. You haven't lived until you've seen a Tongan drag queen show.

Most probably aren't hip to Tongan news. But the king is on his death bed and the kingdom is getting ready to grieve. One night, while having dinner, we overheard the owner say that the prince was coming in, so we had to get the scoop. She said he is here for one last final party before becoming king. The prince has eaten at her restaurant before, so she knew to get his special chair before hand.

He was several hours late for dinner. We had already finished our dinner. But I wanted to get a glance at the prince and future king. So we waited. I thought he would be dressed in traditional Tonga wear. But he wore a sport jacket, and he looks just like his father. Worth the wait, I thought.

Friday nights is the friendly yacht races. The boys tried this last Friday on our friend's boat Zafarsa while the ladies went to my favorite restaurant, the 'Compass Rose', for cocktails on the balcony to cheer our captains on. Well... the boat never even made it off the mooring ball. They raised the sail before untying from the ball, ran over the line, and got it wrapped around the propeller. The race was almost over by the time they got the line undone and the boat moored back to the ball. Reason number one why 'cruisers' shouldn't race.

Another hot spot in town is 'The Mermaid', both a restaurant and the Vava'u Yacht Club. It is a big cruiser hang out. Last night we all signed a 'puddle jump' shirt that they will hang in the restaurant for all to see. The town so cateres to cruisers that every morning at 8:30 they have a local net where the businesses broadcast short commercials of the specials for the day.

The Vava'u group of Tonga, where we are, is interesting in that you have over 50 different anchorages to explore, all within a close proximity to one another. It's so convenient to be able to go out for a few days, come back into town, reprovision, and then go back out again. This is exactly what we've been doing.

Our first week we went and explored Ofu island for one night. There we met a gentlemen named Moses. He's looking for someone to lease his land and open a bar. So if there is anyone out there interested....

The priest's son walked us along the beach with his friends, helping me collect shells. The next day we were off to Tapana Island. We made a reservation for 'La Pallea' restaurant, which we heard rave reviews about in a famous cooking magazine. The couple that own and run this retaurant were once cruisers from Spain. They settled here over 15 years ago. Excellent meal, great lively music, all in the middle of nowhere. Quite a treat!

Since islands and beaches are so close around here, it is a fantastic kayaking area. Finally!

We are currently out of town again, doing more exploring. We all met on Sunday for a day at the beach on Nuku. Sandpiper was then off to Ovalau Island, where our guide book promised whales. Our guide book was correct. We were greeted by a couple whales on the way to anchoring. But the real treat was while having sundowner's on our friends boat. Two whales swam by and we could hear them breathing. WOW!

Today we dropped anchor in the 'Blue Lagoon', explored in the kayaks, snorkeled, and are getting ready for a fabulous pork chop dinner. Meat can be purchased from 'Pete the Meat' out of his storage shed. The meat is from New Zealand, and I'm really looking forward to these chops. They were quite pricey, but are huge!

We will head back into town, either tomorrow or the next day, to reprovision. We will check out of Tonga and move the boat to one last anchorage for the 'Full Moon Party' before heading to Fiji. I can see how so many have made Vava'u their home. What an awesome place.

Notes From Ron.

• Here is a good web page (with photos) about Vava'u Islands from a cruiser who visited last year. Here is another about the town of Neiafu.
• Tom and Amy crossed the offical International Date Line and now are in tomorrow, one day ahead of the US. The IDL loosly follows the 180 degree longitude line, but it moves around because of the needs of the people who live near it. Amy is correct, Tonga sits west of the 180' longitude, and should be on the west side of the line. But they aren't. Why? I have no idea. It was decided back in 1884.
  
• The Vava'u Islands Group are an amazing cluster of islands and channels. Look at this chart of the area to see what a playground it is for boaters.
  
• The king on Tonga, Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, is known as the heaviest monarch on earth. He is in his late 80's, and weighs a reported 444 pounds. As of the writing of this blog, he is in a New Zealand hospital dying.
  
• Here is a good article about the the king and his children that is worth reading.
• King Tupou IV is best known in recent history for having earned $26 mllion with a scam where he sold Tonga passports to anyone with money.
• He was then charmed by American Jesse Bogdonoff to be appointed Tonga'a official Court Jester, and to be responsible for investing the $26M the king earned from selling passports. Jessie promptly lost all the money in scams such as buying out the life insurance policies of AID's patients. Here is a good LA Times article written back in 2001 when the scandel broke. And here, and here, are some recent followups by the BBC.
• The prince they saw is Tupouto’a, the crown prince. Tupouto’a literally means "Crown Prince" ,and he uses that as his name. He is sometimes refered to as Crown Prince Tupouto'a Tupou V. His full name is Sia'osi Taufa'ahau Manumata'ogo Tuku'aho Tupou. Interesting guy. He is a mid 50's playboy, educated at Sandhurst, and loves dabbleing in everything. Here is an article about him that is worth reading.