Main Menu -> SALTS -> Pacific Odyessy - 2007 Offshore -> Pacific Odyssey - Leg 3 -> September 23rd 2007 @ 21:15
Pacific Odyssey - Leg 3
Tahiti to Fiji - for more information see http://www.salts.ca/010_SALTS_odyssey.htm
tracking Pacific Grace: 46 recorded positions
tracking Pacific Grace: 46 recorded positions
| Last Position: 13°26'30.12 S 172°22'12.00 W on September 23rd 2007 @ 21:15 |
Heading 270°
Speed 6.5
Ship's Log:
We have just finished Sunday service on deck, under the protection of the tarp; the evening has brought several downpours already and Antony and his watch are putting on raingear and expecting to get wet. Firstly, Jordan and Carolyn want to wish their mom a very wonderful day, it is her birthday today, September 23. Happy Birthday mom, from Jordan and Carolyn. Secondly, all of us on the ship want to wish Stephen Duff a most terrific day; today is his birthday as well. Happy Birthday Stephen, from all of us. Thirdly, Chase wishes his brother Bannock a very fun 12th birthday, also today. Happy Birthday Bannock, from Chase. We have more birthdays coming in the next few days.
We arrived at first light near the island of Savai´i and lowered anchor at about
0730. After one sitting for breakfast most trainees went ashore. Savai´i is wonderfully undeveloped, though there are a few places for visitors to stay. As we arrived on a Sunday, almost everything was closed. Everywhere we saw people dressed in their Sunday best, either going to or returning from one of the many, many churches on the island. Many were in white. Many of the men especially were wearing white dress shirts, ties, and white lava lavas (sarongs). Women wore white dresses, some quite elaborate and made of a shiny fabric, or very colorful, mostly floral-printed dresses. It was beautiful to see all the smaller kids in pretty dresses for the girls and white shirts and lava lavas, and ties for the boys, and the young people dressed similarly. There is something to learn from them, something admirable; making a clear day of rest, a day where everything stops and families and friends hang out together. We are anchored in Matautu Bay, on the north coast. Jose took the zodiac on an initial reconnaissance trip to see if there was a way to the shore through the coral. It reminded us of our friends at Palmerston, just on a smaller scale. Today was our day to walk and notice details as none of our time was focused on getting jobs such as email, laundry, shopping etc. done, because nothing was open. It´s actually a relief to visit a village on a Sunday, as ´town´ can very easily become a busy time of ´doing.´ Some of the things we noticed were the large amount of breadfruit and banana trees. We didn´t see many fruit trees, but I´m pretty sure they are somewhere here, the weather is ideal. We did see pineapple gardens, and were told that guava grows here. The island has large patches of black lava rock and many of the ´yards´ around the very basic houses, is just black lava. We decided it must get incredibly hot. Some of the lava was covered in palm or pandanas fronds; I´m not sure why, perhaps to deflect some of the heat. There was an amazing number of structures on this island. Every home seemed to have 1 or 2 shelters in front or beside the home, used, it appeared, for resting, lounging, staying out of the sun, and being with small kids. They consisted of a roof, usually rectangular and slightly sloped, or domed, supported by many 3-5m poles, spaced 1-2m apart. Most of them were empty of furniture and things; some with just a mattress or blankets and a chest of drawers. People would be lying on the cement or on a mattress sleeping, sitting on the floor together etc. We were astonished at how many of them there were. They seem to be typical of Savai´i, we didn´t notice them on Upolo. In Apia, we saw wooden ´ava´ bowls sold at the market with many legs. The women we bought our bowl from said these bowls represent the houses. We are now thinking that perhaps it was these many-posted shelters that she was referring to. Many of the houses were painted in bright colours, the predominant colors being light pink and turquoise blue, quite unattractive I thought, but colorful, nonetheless. We saw kiosks selling coconuts and papayas in green baskets made roughly from palm fronds. We experienced these in Pitcairn the first time we visited; they called them their ´working´ baskets, though I found them quite beautiful. Everywhere we walked we saw pigs, of all sizes. The tiny ones were cute, the big ones were . . .well, big, and not so cute. Chickens run everywhere as well. There were also horses with their foals, tied alongside the road or in a field, and quite a few cows, compared to what we´ve seen on other islands. Some of the crew and trainees visited blowholes in the lava, along the shore, where the surge of the water is forced through a lava tunnel and shoots explosively up through a hole at the surface closer in to the beach.
It´s stunning to watch, the power of the sea . . . and the sea wasn´t even that big. Some of them also visited a beautifully cool waterfall where you could swim, One of the locals told me it was the only waterfall on the island. I think it was here that Petra Eggert was baptized on the very first Pacific Swift offshore trip in 1988-9. We loved it, the temperatures are so hot at the moment; we actually remained feeling cool for about an hour as the water was cooler than the ocean, delicious. Carolyn, Krista, Tom and Susan had an amazing day swimming with turtles, visiting volcanoes and chatting with locals. The mountains on these volcanic islands have the ability to catch clouds and create squalls within a very short time. We were caught in several downpours, all fresh water rinses if one makes the best of them. There are some beautiful white sand beaches on the island and a group of trainees spent the day relaxing on one of them, Katie worked hard making very tasty calzones for all of us, for supper. They are very labor intensive, and the galley is hot. We so appreciate the work Gillian and Katie do. I think this is it. We are underway and the ship is a rockin´ and a rollin´. Except for the regular rain and wind squalls, the wind is generally light, and so the engine is on. We´re hoping to raise some sail soon, if only to steady the motion. Everyone on the ship seems quite happy. We have been able to have some good discussions as an entire group and in our watches. This morning, when Tony and I were sitting with the four younger kids, at a table in a restaurant, having a cold drink, I realized I was enjoying the moment in large part because we were feeling comfortable temperature-wise; we were in the shade, with a breeze, and by the ocean. It was something I savoured, and appreciated, one of the many, many good moments. Until tomorrow, good night, Bonice.
We arrived at first light near the island of Savai´i and lowered anchor at about
0730. After one sitting for breakfast most trainees went ashore. Savai´i is wonderfully undeveloped, though there are a few places for visitors to stay. As we arrived on a Sunday, almost everything was closed. Everywhere we saw people dressed in their Sunday best, either going to or returning from one of the many, many churches on the island. Many were in white. Many of the men especially were wearing white dress shirts, ties, and white lava lavas (sarongs). Women wore white dresses, some quite elaborate and made of a shiny fabric, or very colorful, mostly floral-printed dresses. It was beautiful to see all the smaller kids in pretty dresses for the girls and white shirts and lava lavas, and ties for the boys, and the young people dressed similarly. There is something to learn from them, something admirable; making a clear day of rest, a day where everything stops and families and friends hang out together. We are anchored in Matautu Bay, on the north coast. Jose took the zodiac on an initial reconnaissance trip to see if there was a way to the shore through the coral. It reminded us of our friends at Palmerston, just on a smaller scale. Today was our day to walk and notice details as none of our time was focused on getting jobs such as email, laundry, shopping etc. done, because nothing was open. It´s actually a relief to visit a village on a Sunday, as ´town´ can very easily become a busy time of ´doing.´ Some of the things we noticed were the large amount of breadfruit and banana trees. We didn´t see many fruit trees, but I´m pretty sure they are somewhere here, the weather is ideal. We did see pineapple gardens, and were told that guava grows here. The island has large patches of black lava rock and many of the ´yards´ around the very basic houses, is just black lava. We decided it must get incredibly hot. Some of the lava was covered in palm or pandanas fronds; I´m not sure why, perhaps to deflect some of the heat. There was an amazing number of structures on this island. Every home seemed to have 1 or 2 shelters in front or beside the home, used, it appeared, for resting, lounging, staying out of the sun, and being with small kids. They consisted of a roof, usually rectangular and slightly sloped, or domed, supported by many 3-5m poles, spaced 1-2m apart. Most of them were empty of furniture and things; some with just a mattress or blankets and a chest of drawers. People would be lying on the cement or on a mattress sleeping, sitting on the floor together etc. We were astonished at how many of them there were. They seem to be typical of Savai´i, we didn´t notice them on Upolo. In Apia, we saw wooden ´ava´ bowls sold at the market with many legs. The women we bought our bowl from said these bowls represent the houses. We are now thinking that perhaps it was these many-posted shelters that she was referring to. Many of the houses were painted in bright colours, the predominant colors being light pink and turquoise blue, quite unattractive I thought, but colorful, nonetheless. We saw kiosks selling coconuts and papayas in green baskets made roughly from palm fronds. We experienced these in Pitcairn the first time we visited; they called them their ´working´ baskets, though I found them quite beautiful. Everywhere we walked we saw pigs, of all sizes. The tiny ones were cute, the big ones were . . .well, big, and not so cute. Chickens run everywhere as well. There were also horses with their foals, tied alongside the road or in a field, and quite a few cows, compared to what we´ve seen on other islands. Some of the crew and trainees visited blowholes in the lava, along the shore, where the surge of the water is forced through a lava tunnel and shoots explosively up through a hole at the surface closer in to the beach.
It´s stunning to watch, the power of the sea . . . and the sea wasn´t even that big. Some of them also visited a beautifully cool waterfall where you could swim, One of the locals told me it was the only waterfall on the island. I think it was here that Petra Eggert was baptized on the very first Pacific Swift offshore trip in 1988-9. We loved it, the temperatures are so hot at the moment; we actually remained feeling cool for about an hour as the water was cooler than the ocean, delicious. Carolyn, Krista, Tom and Susan had an amazing day swimming with turtles, visiting volcanoes and chatting with locals. The mountains on these volcanic islands have the ability to catch clouds and create squalls within a very short time. We were caught in several downpours, all fresh water rinses if one makes the best of them. There are some beautiful white sand beaches on the island and a group of trainees spent the day relaxing on one of them, Katie worked hard making very tasty calzones for all of us, for supper. They are very labor intensive, and the galley is hot. We so appreciate the work Gillian and Katie do. I think this is it. We are underway and the ship is a rockin´ and a rollin´. Except for the regular rain and wind squalls, the wind is generally light, and so the engine is on. We´re hoping to raise some sail soon, if only to steady the motion. Everyone on the ship seems quite happy. We have been able to have some good discussions as an entire group and in our watches. This morning, when Tony and I were sitting with the four younger kids, at a table in a restaurant, having a cold drink, I realized I was enjoying the moment in large part because we were feeling comfortable temperature-wise; we were in the shade, with a breeze, and by the ocean. It was something I savoured, and appreciated, one of the many, many good moments. Until tomorrow, good night, Bonice.
Observations:
mostly hot and sunny today, rain squalls and wind squalls in the latter part of the day and into the night
Readings:
| Pressure | |
| Wind | E5 |
| Temp | |
| processed: 2007-09-25 17:45:38 |
