Port Vila

 

Tuesday 4th August 2009

 

Havanah Harbour to Port Vila

 

Plough through morning jobs, then Cath and I go snorkleing.  It's too shallow for sharks so it was nice to be able to potter around in peace without constantly looking begind us expecting Jaws!  More gorgeous fish and coral gardens with winding paths we could swim through.  Got out and ran along the beach wearing our snorkels and flippers - absolutely ridiculous and very funny.

 

Get back to the boat and immediately depart for Port Vila.  It's just south a bit so we motored.  Even after only 2 weeks in the wilds, its weird to see houses, banks, hotels and other people. 

 

Berth at the marina.  Richard chats up the other sailors and they all stand on the dock laughing at us girls trying to get an enormous sail into a very small bag.

 

Richard shouts us dinner at the marina's restaurant.  We tuck into bottles of red wine and are without doubt the rowdiest group in the place.  Richard gives an entertaining assessment on each of us - the good and the bad.  Great little band playing with a Vanuautan singer who has a voice like Barry White.  Lu and I get on the dancefloor and do lambada, then Cath makes a saucy entrance....the whole restaurant staring at us as we romped madly around the dancefloor.  Cath and I did a hilarious dance to Tom Jone's 'Delilah' that had everyone laughing and got them up dancing too.

 

Onwards to the casino.  Rocked up with matted hair, dirty cargos, stinky t-shirts and thongs...but Jupiters Vanuatu doesn't mind.  We gambled 2000 vatu each on Blackjack, losing it, wining it back, and of course eventually losing it all.

 

 

Wednesday 5th August 2009

 

Wake up with hangovers.  Lazy breakfast, then get stuck into the jobs.  Cath and Lu on the saloon and galley, me in the garage, Gav helping us all and Richard in the internet cafe.  Groove around the boat to groovy music and chat with our boat neighbours.  I'm Diesel Daisy today (though definately more Diesel than Daisy!!).  Burn around the busy little harbour in the tender collecting fuel and checking out the other boats.

 

Fish and chips at the marina restaurant for lunch, and we sit and sailor-watch.  Nice ambience here, chilled and relaxed.  Boats of all shapes and sizes coming and going from all over the world.  We luxuriate in real showers and I somehow managed to tease out the enormous matt in my hair which I thought would have to be cut out.

 

It's Richard's last night tonight and he takes us to Le Rendesvouz up on the hill for dinner.  Divine seafood platters (with banana smoothies!!).

 

We're all exhausted and crash out.

 

 

Thursday 6th August 2009

 

Richard's last day.

 

We continue ploughing through our jobs but can see the light at the end of the 'To Do List' tunnel!!  .  Nice soggy weather...pouring with rain but very warm.

 

Richard waved a few clothes at the water and proudly hung them on the line..."washed!!".  Bless.  Such a lad.  We all write gooey stuff on Cath's thankyou card and give it to him at lunch.  He gives us a bit of a wave and is gone.

 

Resist the temptation to steal the boom off the catamaran next door and sail to Hawai, and go back to our jobs instead.

 

Watch Little Miss Sunshine and hang out at the marina bar for a bit.  Cath does her class for the first time in weeks, and upgrades to the master suite.

 

Pick at what's left on the boat for dinner.

 

 

Friday 7th August 2009

 

Richard, it's taken me 15 glorious hours to write this blog!!  Hope you had a good trip home.  We miss you.  It's raining pick handles.  Gav's being a super little cheese and cracking the whip.  Actually, he's asleep and we're watching movies.

 

Cath and I flying home tomorrow, Gav and Lu staying on the boat for another week.

 

This is the last blog 'til we return in a few months with the next installment - new boom and the crossing back to Aus! 

 

 

Over and out from Moksha.