Main Menu -> SALTS -> Pacific Odyessy - 2007 Offshore -> Pacific Odyssey - Leg 5 -> March 5th 2008 @ 22:00
Pacific Odyssey - Leg 5
Papua New Guinea to Osaka - for more information see http://www.salts.ca/010_SALTS_odyssey.htm
tracking Pacific Grace: 66 recorded positions
tracking Pacific Grace: 66 recorded positions
| Last Position: 34°21'11.88 N 132°27'54.00 E on March 5th 2008 @ 22:00 |
Ship's Log:
Today was another amazing day; I say that regularly but itīs true, we have so much to be thankful for. Life aboard is not always easy, there are many things we put up with in order to sail offshore in a group, but it is an experience I would never give up. What we gain in being together in community, working through our issues, making this community work and on top of all that, being able to visit the places we visit and meet the extraordinary people we meet, is irreplaceable and worth more than we can ever imagine. This morning we savored one of our final breakfasts together with our watch. Watch time is always a good time; especially after 3 months living so intimately with each other, crew and trainees know each other well and the conversation; the jokes and the laughter flow abundantly. The Inland Sea was wonderfully calm, like sailing in the Gulf Islands between Vancouver Island and the Mainland of British Columbia. Everyone slept well.
There was heavy traffic throughout the day and night which meant constant vigilance and checking of the chart, radar and electronics for Skipper and the watch officer on watch. We saw only very big, deep-sea ships, no pleasure crafts and definitely no other sailboats. I think weīve seen only one other sailing vessel since Madang. The Inland Sea is huge and at times one cannot see land. We arrived in Hiroshima at 1330hrs. The sky was grey, it was raining, and it was very cold, almost icy; it was similar weather to when we arrived in Okinawa. The harbor is enclosed by a set of hills on each side, a nice change from all the cement that has encircled us since Chuuk in Micronesia. We noticed a dusting of snow on the peaks on some of the hills! Our shipping agent Kohno welcomed us. He was very friendly, welcoming, helpful and kind. He has a wonderful smile that takes over his entire face when Skipper and he shared a joke or when he suddenly understood something Skipper was trying to ask or explain. He brought mail; several large packages and many letters were delivered to very expectant crew and trainees. Thank you, thank you, and thank you. We loved them and, once again, we all shared in each otherīs pleasure and news. I would personally like to thank Jen, Kelsey and Adam, trainees from former legs, who sent an awesome package to the crew . . . we were thrilled and laughed and enjoyed all of it. Also, thank you to Tavish, another former trainee and volunteer bosun for leg 4, and his family for their wonderful parcel full of amazing literature, letters, music, photos, and food. Jordan is excited about the Chess maneuvers, even though heīll need me as a translator to understand them! Thank you again to everyone who sent mail; it means a lot to each of us. Kohno provided us with maps and information on the places we were interested in i.e. things to see, laundry, bath house, sushi trains, banks, ATM, internet, supermarkets etc. Following Kohno, we were visited by 7 or 8 Customs and Immigration Officials, all neatly dressed and very interested in the ship. It is such a treat to be back in Japan, surrounded by these very friendly people and their attention to detail, efficiency, beauty and cleanliness. Hiroshima is a large city. As we are here for only a few days, trainees and crew made good use of their day. Many were able to do their laundry, get clean and connect with family and friends via Internet. The bathhouse apparently is amazing, better even than the one we visited in Okinawa. Some of the pools are outside and the entire building is made of marble. I havenīt been there myself, but this is what I hear. After so many days trying to keep clean in the very small heads and in cold circumstances, it is one of the nicest feelings to be surrounded in unlimited hot water, without oneīs clothes, and getting cleaner, truly clean. Our family wandered through the fish section of the supermarket, something we love to do. We watched while the fish was sliced ever so thinly with incredibly sharp knives, was placed on aesthetically pleasing colored serving trays, decorated with greens, very thin rice noodles and anything else that would make the presentation of the food beautiful. It was amazing and the women behind the glass, the īartistsī I call them, noticed us, and waved and smiled. We wandered through the aisles trying to figure out what things were; there is practically no English to be read anywhere, a good thing. People smile at us in a kind way, as we pick up strange packages, bring them to our face, and question each other and wonder out loud, what we think the item might be. Itīs fascinating and keeps me and the boys occupied inexpensively for hours. We saw sets of 6 cookies, beautifully colored and decorated, arranged in sets in gorgeous diaphanous paper and placed in a box, also beautifully made. It truly is an expression of them, this whole īpackagingī side of the Japanese culture. It is a wonderful example for us and a great maxim to live by; to take every chance we can to create a thing of beauty. Gillian made an amazing stir-fry for supper; she had the chance to go produce shopping and we all reap the benefits of it. The evening saw an empty boat with most trainees and crew taking advantage of the chance to get errands done. Those of us, who remained, either got read to and put to bed, or played SCRABBLE and read mail. This is it for tonight, until tomorrow, Good-night, Bonice.
There was heavy traffic throughout the day and night which meant constant vigilance and checking of the chart, radar and electronics for Skipper and the watch officer on watch. We saw only very big, deep-sea ships, no pleasure crafts and definitely no other sailboats. I think weīve seen only one other sailing vessel since Madang. The Inland Sea is huge and at times one cannot see land. We arrived in Hiroshima at 1330hrs. The sky was grey, it was raining, and it was very cold, almost icy; it was similar weather to when we arrived in Okinawa. The harbor is enclosed by a set of hills on each side, a nice change from all the cement that has encircled us since Chuuk in Micronesia. We noticed a dusting of snow on the peaks on some of the hills! Our shipping agent Kohno welcomed us. He was very friendly, welcoming, helpful and kind. He has a wonderful smile that takes over his entire face when Skipper and he shared a joke or when he suddenly understood something Skipper was trying to ask or explain. He brought mail; several large packages and many letters were delivered to very expectant crew and trainees. Thank you, thank you, and thank you. We loved them and, once again, we all shared in each otherīs pleasure and news. I would personally like to thank Jen, Kelsey and Adam, trainees from former legs, who sent an awesome package to the crew . . . we were thrilled and laughed and enjoyed all of it. Also, thank you to Tavish, another former trainee and volunteer bosun for leg 4, and his family for their wonderful parcel full of amazing literature, letters, music, photos, and food. Jordan is excited about the Chess maneuvers, even though heīll need me as a translator to understand them! Thank you again to everyone who sent mail; it means a lot to each of us. Kohno provided us with maps and information on the places we were interested in i.e. things to see, laundry, bath house, sushi trains, banks, ATM, internet, supermarkets etc. Following Kohno, we were visited by 7 or 8 Customs and Immigration Officials, all neatly dressed and very interested in the ship. It is such a treat to be back in Japan, surrounded by these very friendly people and their attention to detail, efficiency, beauty and cleanliness. Hiroshima is a large city. As we are here for only a few days, trainees and crew made good use of their day. Many were able to do their laundry, get clean and connect with family and friends via Internet. The bathhouse apparently is amazing, better even than the one we visited in Okinawa. Some of the pools are outside and the entire building is made of marble. I havenīt been there myself, but this is what I hear. After so many days trying to keep clean in the very small heads and in cold circumstances, it is one of the nicest feelings to be surrounded in unlimited hot water, without oneīs clothes, and getting cleaner, truly clean. Our family wandered through the fish section of the supermarket, something we love to do. We watched while the fish was sliced ever so thinly with incredibly sharp knives, was placed on aesthetically pleasing colored serving trays, decorated with greens, very thin rice noodles and anything else that would make the presentation of the food beautiful. It was amazing and the women behind the glass, the īartistsī I call them, noticed us, and waved and smiled. We wandered through the aisles trying to figure out what things were; there is practically no English to be read anywhere, a good thing. People smile at us in a kind way, as we pick up strange packages, bring them to our face, and question each other and wonder out loud, what we think the item might be. Itīs fascinating and keeps me and the boys occupied inexpensively for hours. We saw sets of 6 cookies, beautifully colored and decorated, arranged in sets in gorgeous diaphanous paper and placed in a box, also beautifully made. It truly is an expression of them, this whole īpackagingī side of the Japanese culture. It is a wonderful example for us and a great maxim to live by; to take every chance we can to create a thing of beauty. Gillian made an amazing stir-fry for supper; she had the chance to go produce shopping and we all reap the benefits of it. The evening saw an empty boat with most trainees and crew taking advantage of the chance to get errands done. Those of us, who remained, either got read to and put to bed, or played SCRABBLE and read mail. This is it for tonight, until tomorrow, Good-night, Bonice.
Observations:
cloudy and rainy, very cold
Readings:
| Pressure | |
| Wind | |
| Temp | |
| processed: 2008-03-05 01:24:02 |
