With the steady roll of the ship, the winds are blowing from the stern and we are moving in a lovely motion through the water. The routine of being at sea has kicked in once again and it really seems that everything revolves around eating! Breakfast, smoko, lunch, smoko, dinner, dessert…breakfast, smoko…Unfortunately the winds have eased and we have had to turn on the iron horse for that extra push westward towards the islands of Fiji. Barry organized and inter watch contest, it provided both our crew and our voyage crew the opportunity to display all that they know. There was knot tying competitions, sailing questionnaire, setting sails and agility aloft. James, Paul and Sarah had the toughest task of all, each having to touch the main tops, the foremast tops and the very tip of the jib boom before tossing a heaving line as far as they could…very well done! Great to see everyone’s hard work paid off!

After sunset, the lights of the Old Capital, Levuka shown brighter and brighter. By 2000hrs on the 12 th we had dropped anchor and the 4-8 watch sat down to a nice calm dinner after a long watch of taking in and stowing sails. It was a real treat to have a full nights sleep without any motion to disturb sleep patterns, it showed in the morning with all the happy faces and hungry tummies! Customs arrived on board and were finished in time for lunch; boat runs ashore began shortly afterward for ventures into town. There was a concert in the local park, and performing was one of Fiji’s top bands, what a day to arrive!!! Saturday morning provided a hike up to the top of the volcano, a look at the flora and fauna of the Fijian bush for a few of the VCs, while others took a taxi to the village meeting point. A vegetarian lunch provided the fuel needed for a swim nearby in the mountain stream and the trip back into town just in time to catch the last of the rugby match in the park (which I think the majority of the island was in attendance for!)

With an early morning start of 0400hrs the anchor was up and we made our way out of the reef for the trip to Beqa. A lovely Sunday at sea with guitar playing and relaxing in hammocks on the foredeck or sun tanning on the poopdeck while others simply had a nice lie in, in bed! We anchored just after smoko and within moments the deck was scattered with eager swimmers and the keen were in line for the Tarzan rope rigged form the course yard! Haley, my mom and I floated in the water cheering on the boys as they attempted to toss the Frisbee from the deckhouse roof to the Tarzan man who would catch it moments before plunging into the cool refreshing waters! We had tandem rope swinging from father and son team, Bart and Don and Aussie brothers, Leigh and Kym. It was such a treat to play in the waters, but of course duty called and I rushed off to make dinner, it was indeed Sunday, time for dress in “yer”best! We gathered on deck for dessert and a singsong with Barry on guitar and eventually Rob on the tin whistle, very enjoyable afternoon!

Just after breakfast we motored into a lovely lush anchorage just off Lalati Village on Beqa, Tod was taken ashore for Savu Savu. He was to present the village chief with Kava Root in appreciation for letting us anchor in his waters and in a hope that we may come spend the afternoon ashore in the village. Our request was granted and an even better deal was made, the locals came out to the ship after lunch for a swim and a turn on the ever popular, Tarzan swing, what a laugh! Haley and I held hands and jumped from the cap rail, a very big accomplishment, it is quite a ways from the water; the local children stared in awe from the deck with a cookie in hand thankful it wasn’t them! Once ashore a game of what started out as touch rugby commenced, in no time the tackles were coming hard and fast and the boys were having a blast! Meanwhile the ladies were invited into a small shack, where we sat clapping our hands and chatting between bowls of Kava. Because I had visited the village last year, many of the woman recognized me and wanted to hear of what I have been doing and what happened to all of my friends from last year! They were so glad to see me again, while some presented me with gifts of Tapa cloth others wanted to sit beside me and hold my hand while others wanted to have their pictures taken with me, it was really nice to be back!

By 1800hrs we were all quite ready for a meal, but the excitement for coming back ashore and attending the kava ceremony and the opportunity to dance with the locals was making all of us eager to quickly eat the lovely meal and get back into the village. We were lead through the dark, careful not to trod on any bullfrogs, to a large one-room shack where we all sat cross-legged with the kava bowl sitting in the middle! Once everyone was settled and we had had a few bowls of kava, the music began. We were scooped up by men or women and paraded around arms around each others sides and taking four steps forward and a few back, all facing the same direction trying not to bump into the next group of dancers! It was such an awesome time, lots of whoops and hollers and laughs from the crowd, but the kava was taking its toll…the pace slowed immensely and by 2200hrs the general consensus was to head back to the ship. We were lead back through the toad field and the light of the moon just shone enough for us to see the edge of the breakwater where the dinghy was waiting to bring us home.

We were off early the next morning in an attempt to reach the reef of Viti Levu before dark, with a gentle breeze we made the anchorage by nightfall and after a long day at sea the deck was a quiet place by 2200hrs!

One last chance for a sail, and we gathered up the chances to set the main, ungasket the squares and let loose the headsails. We had a great sail all morning and with a few tacks before lunch we managed to cruise north towards our last anchorage of the trip. By smoko the swim ladder was rigged and although the sun was hiding behind the clouds and the water was a bit choppy, it did not deter our keen swimmers, Haley being the first to want to jump in, of course being the big sister it was my duty to jump out of the cool breeze and into the warming waters to accompany her! After a shower, it was time for the fancy dress party to kick off, mix and match type theme, basically look as bad as you can…. and boy did we have some fine outfits! It is always such a laugh to see people’s creative side come through on their last night aboard, maybe we should have done this at the beginning of the trip! Peter Pan and the lost boys even made an appearance, of course Tinker Bell was there as well, otherwise how would they fly back to Never never Land? Haley made sure the boys did not rest for one minute, the pirates were surely to be around and if any appeared, they were bound to walk the plank…Peter found out the hard way! It has been great having the family here, especially the energy that comes with a five year old, this trip has really been an experience for all on board and the laughs that we have shared will be with us always, thanks everyone for the great time!

Cheers, Noreen