Pacific Odyssey - Leg 6

It´s nearly the end of another good day.  Trainees and crew are mostly
still out enjoying some city life.  Jose´s watch went for a final dinner
together.  They met at the boat at 1800hrs looking clean and pretty smart in
clothes we never saw during the passage.  Antony´s watch had dinner at a
restaurant in Waikiki last night; I heard that the burgers were good.   Many
trainees have gone to watch a film at the $1 movie theatre just a 10 minute
walk from here.  We have enjoyed this theatre every time we are in Honolulu.
There is a choice of about 7 films, each offered 3 or 4 times a day; it´s a
great deal and a fun and inexpensive thing to do as a group in the evening.
Yesterday when we received mail it was interesting to watch people eagerly
take their letters to a quiet part of the ship and sit alone, hungrily
reading their news from home, ´visiting´ with people they miss and love.
Last night we were able to sleep on deck.  Trainees and crew from previous
tropical legs have their favorite spots, and early in the evening put
mattress, sleeping bag and pillow on the deck or on the houses to ´reserve´
their spot.  If you need to use the head during the night it´s an obstacle
course to get around all the sleeping bodies, breathing so close together.
You move gingerly from hatch to house to hatch and then down the
companionway.  It is wonderful to be able to sleep under the starry sky.  It
is warm below but on deck quite perfect.  My boys love it; we do our entire
bed routine up on deck; brushing teeth, sitting together and reading Arthur
Ransome´s "Secret Water´ with our headlamp, and then singing, rubbing backs
etc.  I´ve missed it; it feels so wonderfully familiar to do it again, the
majority of our nights during legs 3, 4, and 5 were spent in this way.  I´m
glad these trainees have a chance to experience it.  We are tied up in a
very private place; on the quietest side of a complex made up of a nice
selection of shops, restaurants, and café´s.  It is primarily here for the
cruise ships but no ships are here, it´s very peaceful.  The ship has been
here many times before; it feels like home for those of us who have sailed
from Victoria, or who have sailed on previous offshore voyages.  About half
the trainees sign up for supper on the boat and Gillian and Katie have been
making fantastic meals; they are able to stock up on food, both fresh and
staples, that they haven´t had for awhile and we all benefit from it.  Other
trainees and crew choose to eat ashore which is enjoyable too.  I rather
like returning to the boat in the early evening, sitting on deck with
everyone, and finding out what they did that day; what they saw, what they
learned, what they bought, where they went etc.  We all ´show and tell´ of
our day; it feels good, it´s what a ´family´ does, and gives us ideas for
our next day.    There is lots to do in Honolulu and we did a bit of
everything i.e. swimming at the beach, visiting Waikiki, shopping, internet,
Sophie and Ian went surfing, Raven and Blake rented bikes, some found quiet
places to write postcards or read, eating out etc.  Chris had his hair cut
today; the very blond tips are gone.  Noah and Simon had their hair cut just
a few days ago, tropical cuts.  Arwen is enjoying spending her days with
Jocelyn and Kerry; they come by the ship regularly and we have wonderfully
long talks about absolutely everything.  Last night they joined us for
supper and stayed afterwards, sitting around the hold table, talking till
late into the night.   It is a treat to have a change in the routine though
I´ve heard several times already how trainees are glad to be able to return
to the boat; to have the ship as their base.  Trainees are sticking
together, doing things in groups; we have developed into a close group.
There are still feelings of being overwhelmed by the city; it helps to have
the Grace and each other to return to.  I think most of us are working on
reconciling our life at sea with our very different existence in Honolulu.
We are all very happy.  Skipper and Antony were able to do a lot of the boat
shopping today for bosun-related materials.  Jordan replaced some of the
batteries in the battery bank; he feels better about it now.  Jose started
sanding the hull in preparation for our 3 workdays Wednesday, Thursday, and
Friday, when the hull will be repainted.  The sun shone today though there
were long periods of clouds.  The wind has picked up and is blowing quite
strongly; Skipper says we are fortunate we are tied to the dock as the winds
would be heading us if we were still at sea.  Yes, we feel very blessed.
Until tomorrow, good-night, Bonice.