Friday, July 22, 2011
Photos, Photos...wherefore art thou????
I have taken a ton of photos with which to illustrate this blog, but I am not having any success getting them uploaded. I did the one photo of Richard and Jane's house from the Quantum Leap shipboard computer, but no luck from my IPad. I am a little self conscious because each upload uses alot of Tom & Bette Lee's upload/download allowance on their cellular modem, and I am struggling to get the image size reduced. (Photos are not my forte!) We have conflicting reports on whether this modem may still work in Indonesia. If it does, we don't want to waste the data bits; if it doesn't, well, we WILL have wasted unused data bits!
Anyway, we are all packed up and RTG. We are thinking to get a head start on the official rally start. Who needs to be in the crowd!? We will be underway tomorrow, probably for three days.
Anyway, we are all packed up and RTG. We are thinking to get a head start on the official rally start. Who needs to be in the crowd!? We will be underway tomorrow, probably for three days.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
July 13-22, 2010 -- Prep for Sail Indonesia Rally
Departure for the Sail Indonesia Rally boats is 11:00 am, Saturday, July 23rd. The days leading up to that are filled with boat projects, provisioning, and learning as much about what to expect in Indonesia as possible.
Don has been deeply involved with Tom in boat projects, particularly the Spectra water maker. Bette Lee is a tireless workhorse, quietly executing her To Do List with little fuss and muss. I have mostly been providing galley support, and trying to learn some Indonesian. I've not gotten far: "Selamat pagi, Bupak Tom." > "Good morning, respected Mister Tom." Substitute an official's name for Tom, and we are in like flint.
Tuesday we attended the official orientation meeting for Sail Indonesia. It was the most tedious, difficult to process function I think any of us have been to in a long time. Perhaps it is deliberately arranged that way to prepare us all for the inefficiencies of Indonesia.
The chief organizer, whose baby the rally is, was a soft spoken Aussie, who announced he would speak slowly for the non-English speakers, and then proceeded to mumble through his whole presentation, such that fellow Aussies couldn't understand him! He was not helped by the myriad cell phones rings sounding throughout the auditorium, the child babbling at the end of our row, and the awesomely rude group behind us who chatted pretty much through the whole thing despite irritated body language from those in front of them.
However, the gist of his whole presentation was not to expect too much, that nothing will happen when it is supposed to, and that a little bribery is di rigeur, and nothing will happen the same way twice. "Different field, different grasshopper," is the motto. We are hopeful that he keying his commentary to the Aussie newbies who haven't previously experienced third-world reality!
The Aussie organizer was followed by official reps from Aussie customs, Indonesia customs, immigration, and representatives of various islands that want to lure the yachties and their dollars to their villages. Each of these last gentlemen had a fancy power points clearly produced to be presented at whatever tourist event they could get themselves invited to. In fact we heard later, whether true or not, that the chance to show the powerpoint gets them a free flight. The best presentation of the whole long afternoon was the last one promoting the Sail Malaysia Rally (and the various associated sponsoring marinas) because the presenter spoke clearly, with both volume and humor. Afterwards there were more than a few jokes about skipping Indonesia and going straight to Malaysia.
Understand that Sail Indonesia is and always has been a totally volunteer, Internet based event. Its primary reason for existence is to be a facilitator for all the entry permits required, something it does very well, and some Aussies use it year after year for this purpose alone. Secondarily they attempt to coordinate a sensible itinerary around and with various festivals as well as organize local presentations, events and guides to enhance cruisers' experience of Indonesia. If it all doesn't always work out exactly as hoped for...well, that's life!
*****
It has not been all work and no play. Sunday evening we walked the coastal path past the museum, the high school and the botanical gardens to Mindihl Park for its twice weekly market. This was a huge conglomeration of crafts sellers, clothing and Aussie artifact stalls, and food vendors. There was no pretense of being a farmer's market, probably because, much like Florida, the climate and soil is not ideal for garden farming. But there were probably a half-dozen fresh fruit and smoothie booths, many Chinese and Thai foodsellers packing a three course dinner into a medium plastic container, and, Tom's favorite, the Aussie Camp Tucker booth where you could get corn on the cob on a stick, dripping in garlic butter! On the walk back, in the dark after a beautiful sunset, we found huge cane toads lurking by the museum walkway lights waiting for hapless bugs to fly by.
We also went for a sailing tour of the Darwin's nooks and crannies by boat the morning we went to take on fuel. Because of the large tides, several of Darwin's marinas are inside locked basins. They are a good deal for Darwin residents, as they can lock up and down as many times as they want for a monthly dockage fee. For visitors like rally sailors, it is not such a good deal, because they have to pay that same fee to go in and out just once. On the other hand, they have had the convenience of docks (and dockside restaurants) and haven't had the struggle with beaching the dinghy on the tidal beach. Don and I have quite enjoyed be afloat in the anchorage this week, but we are all of us about done with the whole beaching the dinghy deal....especially after several trips with provisions!
Our big excursion was a day trip to the Adelaide River to see Darwin's famous jumping crocs. We drove for an hour out into the bush -- much of which, along the way, is given over to mango orchards. We boarded a nice glass-enclosed excursion boat for an hour or two on the river with a well narrated summary of croc habits while a crew member dangled pig parts from a sort of fishing pole from the upper deck. By such means they coaxed four or five different crocodiles to come after the bait, using their powerful tails to lunge upward for it, as they would in nature to take common food like birds or bats. From behind the glass, it is something to see up close. These are not guys any of us want to see up close sniffing around our dinghies (or ankles) in Fannie Bay!
Tomorrow, we check out and turn the car in. It's a big holiday here, wouldn't you know!
Hopefully all the last little bits will get done. Already we are practicing Indonesian patience when the expensive rally shirts we all ordered didn't show as scheduled this afternoon. Mañana...no wait, that's another hemisphere. Different field, different grasshopper.
Gwen Hamlin
Cafe Getaway
Sent from my iPad
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
July 13, 2010 - Welcome to Quantum Leap
Our flight from Brisbane to Darwin was about four hours, like flying from Tampa to Chicago. Or more accurately from Chicago to Tampa, because we were definitely flying from cool weather to warm. The flight quickly left behind the coastal strip of urban development that characterizes Australia's East Coast and became the desolate rusty landscape one thinks of when you think "outback." Then abruptly, we were out over the Gulf of Carpinteria, looking down on the Wessel islands that our friends Tom and Bette had stopped over at just weeks before.
We did not get a very good look at Darwin from the air, however, because the sky was filled with a rusty haze, product of the regular burning the locals do to clear out the bush. We were surprised upon landing that it did not result in a smoggy seeming sky.
Tom and Bette Lee were at the airport to meet us with a rental car, a welcome sight for our four large bags, one of which was full of parts for their boat. We zipped immediately to Customs to add us to the crew list and thence to the Indonesian consulate to get our Indonesian visas in the works. After that, we could slow down and take a breath to catch up and raise a toast to Bette Lee's birthday.
Darwin is a decent-sized city wrapping around a peninsula on the north coast of the continent. Downtown is low and mid-rise buildings with a decent amount of parkland running along the waterfront bluffs. The city is landscaped with tropical trees, palms and flowers and draws lots of backpacker tourists during the "Dry", the "winter" season we are in the midst of. It is also the end of Northern Territory's extended winter holidays, so the streets are full of vacationing families and travelers. Still it proved impossible to get a late lunch. Darwin's restaurants are open 12-2pm and 5:30-10:00 pm! We settled for a beer and a shared pizza,to fortify us for the real adventure of the day: getting us and all the bags out to the boat.
Quantum Leap is anchored in Fannie Bay off the Darwin Sailing Club, along with about 80 other boats! Darwin experiences a tidal range of about twenty feet. From the bluff on which the club is situated, a long paved ramp runs down to the beach. When the tide is high, the water comes about halfway up the ramp. When it is low, there is up to two hundred feet of sand and mud to reach the water's edge,which even then stays quite shallow for quite a ways further! It was, of course, low tide.
The club has quite a neat way of helping yachts cope with their dinghies and the tide. They have "trailers" -- essentially triangular push carts -- onto which you float your dinghy to then drag it up the ramp above the tide range. To launch, you reload your dinghy onto one of the carts and roll it back down to the water's edge...wherever that may be. Ingenious as the system is, with today's large rigid dinghies, it's still quite the chore.
And just to make it all more fun, Fannie Bay is susceptible to a small but nasty chop. A loaded dinghy -- as it is is with four people let alone baggage -- is forced to proceed very slowly so as not to arrive drenched by spray. And because of the tide and the general shallowness of the bay, Quantum Leap is anchored well offshore. On top of that, there is the nagging fact that this is crocodile country. Although it doesn't seem likely that crocs would be out swimming along the beaches of a fairly open bay, it is not impossible. Reportedly, whenever a croc is seen in the bay, they go after it, trap it, and "relocate" it somewhere less threatening to "small children learning how to sail!"
But it was all worth the struggle. Quantum Leap is a lovely boat. We have always thought so. She is quite simply, the only catamaran that has ever motivated either of us to say, "Oooh, I could live on that one!"
It's a combination of sensible and pleasing layout plus tasteful decor. A St. Francis 50, built for the Walkers in South Africa in 2001, she is beautifully appointed. The wide bridge deck is about two-thirds salon, with a comfortable leather settee wrapping around an irregularly shaped cherry table, accented by African-motif pillows. The U-shaped galley accounts for the other third with handsome Corian countertops and cherry cabinetry, and the floor features a striking inlaid compass rose of unpronounceable African woods. Bette Lee has the salon accented beautifully with baskets and carvings collected throughout their travels.
The boat has four sleeping cabins, but like most liveaboard cruisers, one at least has been given over to storage. I particularly like the cabin layout, with the queen-sized berths mounted head-in from the ama, making getting in and out of bed very easy. There is an amazing amount of storage available, enough that all the stuff we brought didn't look like so much! And the ventilation, from the escape hatch in the bath-tub shower through to the overhead hatch above the bed, is great.
After unloading, unpacking and celebrating with a sundowner, we went back ashore for dinner at the Club. You may remember from our Aussie Blog two years ago, that Aussies dearly love their social clubs. The Darwin Sailing Club is no exception. The long patio and lawn between the club and the beach bluff was filled with tables, and by and large the tables were filled with happy folks eating and drinking, only a small percentage of which were rally yachts. What makes this particularly impressive to us cheapskate Yanks, is that the meals here aren't cheap!
BUT, it sure is a nice atmosphere, and mighty fine for these two captains to be back in the cruising milieu. We have quickly reconnected with two or three boats we used to know well, several more who were part of our "class" crossing the Pacific in 2004, and a whole bunch of new friends. Life is good back afloat!
.
We did not get a very good look at Darwin from the air, however, because the sky was filled with a rusty haze, product of the regular burning the locals do to clear out the bush. We were surprised upon landing that it did not result in a smoggy seeming sky.
Tom and Bette Lee were at the airport to meet us with a rental car, a welcome sight for our four large bags, one of which was full of parts for their boat. We zipped immediately to Customs to add us to the crew list and thence to the Indonesian consulate to get our Indonesian visas in the works. After that, we could slow down and take a breath to catch up and raise a toast to Bette Lee's birthday.
Darwin is a decent-sized city wrapping around a peninsula on the north coast of the continent. Downtown is low and mid-rise buildings with a decent amount of parkland running along the waterfront bluffs. The city is landscaped with tropical trees, palms and flowers and draws lots of backpacker tourists during the "Dry", the "winter" season we are in the midst of. It is also the end of Northern Territory's extended winter holidays, so the streets are full of vacationing families and travelers. Still it proved impossible to get a late lunch. Darwin's restaurants are open 12-2pm and 5:30-10:00 pm! We settled for a beer and a shared pizza,to fortify us for the real adventure of the day: getting us and all the bags out to the boat.
Quantum Leap is anchored in Fannie Bay off the Darwin Sailing Club, along with about 80 other boats! Darwin experiences a tidal range of about twenty feet. From the bluff on which the club is situated, a long paved ramp runs down to the beach. When the tide is high, the water comes about halfway up the ramp. When it is low, there is up to two hundred feet of sand and mud to reach the water's edge,which even then stays quite shallow for quite a ways further! It was, of course, low tide.
The club has quite a neat way of helping yachts cope with their dinghies and the tide. They have "trailers" -- essentially triangular push carts -- onto which you float your dinghy to then drag it up the ramp above the tide range. To launch, you reload your dinghy onto one of the carts and roll it back down to the water's edge...wherever that may be. Ingenious as the system is, with today's large rigid dinghies, it's still quite the chore.
And just to make it all more fun, Fannie Bay is susceptible to a small but nasty chop. A loaded dinghy -- as it is is with four people let alone baggage -- is forced to proceed very slowly so as not to arrive drenched by spray. And because of the tide and the general shallowness of the bay, Quantum Leap is anchored well offshore. On top of that, there is the nagging fact that this is crocodile country. Although it doesn't seem likely that crocs would be out swimming along the beaches of a fairly open bay, it is not impossible. Reportedly, whenever a croc is seen in the bay, they go after it, trap it, and "relocate" it somewhere less threatening to "small children learning how to sail!"
But it was all worth the struggle. Quantum Leap is a lovely boat. We have always thought so. She is quite simply, the only catamaran that has ever motivated either of us to say, "Oooh, I could live on that one!"
It's a combination of sensible and pleasing layout plus tasteful decor. A St. Francis 50, built for the Walkers in South Africa in 2001, she is beautifully appointed. The wide bridge deck is about two-thirds salon, with a comfortable leather settee wrapping around an irregularly shaped cherry table, accented by African-motif pillows. The U-shaped galley accounts for the other third with handsome Corian countertops and cherry cabinetry, and the floor features a striking inlaid compass rose of unpronounceable African woods. Bette Lee has the salon accented beautifully with baskets and carvings collected throughout their travels.
The boat has four sleeping cabins, but like most liveaboard cruisers, one at least has been given over to storage. I particularly like the cabin layout, with the queen-sized berths mounted head-in from the ama, making getting in and out of bed very easy. There is an amazing amount of storage available, enough that all the stuff we brought didn't look like so much! And the ventilation, from the escape hatch in the bath-tub shower through to the overhead hatch above the bed, is great.
After unloading, unpacking and celebrating with a sundowner, we went back ashore for dinner at the Club. You may remember from our Aussie Blog two years ago, that Aussies dearly love their social clubs. The Darwin Sailing Club is no exception. The long patio and lawn between the club and the beach bluff was filled with tables, and by and large the tables were filled with happy folks eating and drinking, only a small percentage of which were rally yachts. What makes this particularly impressive to us cheapskate Yanks, is that the meals here aren't cheap!
BUT, it sure is a nice atmosphere, and mighty fine for these two captains to be back in the cruising milieu. We have quickly reconnected with two or three boats we used to know well, several more who were part of our "class" crossing the Pacific in 2004, and a whole bunch of new friends. Life is good back afloat!
.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Back on Austalia's Sunshine Coast ... In Winter
Blog
July 8-13 -- Visiting Australia's Sunshine Coast...in Winter
The two captains landed in Brisbane, Australia before dawn on July 8th, 2011 after a 14 1/2 hour flight from Dallas that was shortened (thankfully) by lighter than normal headwinds. Unfortunately, we ended up seated in the centermost two seats of a row of four in the center of the 747's economy section. This meant we were packed in like sardines without the freedom to get up when we wanted or access overhead lockers when we wanted. Plus, Quantas doles out all sorts of goodies like pillow, blanket, sleep mask kit, bottled water, snack packages, headphones, etc. after you are seated, and all that has to get squeezed in somewhere, or else, it disappears into the nether regions beneath your legs, not to be found, in some cases, until after you land! It is amusing that, given that you can barely budge, there is a big promotion of exercising throughout the flight. Fortunately, we had nice seat mates, and we simply got up every time they did.
The morning of our arrival in Brisbane was gorgeous. Bright and clear and...damn chilly. We picked up our rental car -- a Skoda made by a former Soviet country! --, distributed ourselves to the correct sides of the vehicle, and picked our way gingerly out into the left lane traffic. After that it was a snap to whiz along northbound on the Bruce Highway with the rising sun, listening to the radio and following our directions to Tricky and Jane's (formerly of sv Lionheart) new house in Buderim.
Buderim is a charming town built on top of the first big hill that sticks up from the flat land that extends between it and Brisbane, only interrupted by the well worn jags of the famous Glass House Mountains -- "mountains" are little more than well eroded volcanic plugs. Buderim is where many of our friends who landed in Mooloolaba have ended up buying homes. It is suburban bordering on country. Out behind Tricky and Jane's house (which actually is very reminiscent of our own in atmosphere) is a tract of thick "bush" -- a jungle of various gum trees and lots of intriguing birds, as well as Tricky and Jane's organic hydroponic gardening efforts and their flock of chickens. BUT the lot next door is being built upon (the owner with a rental dozer worked at grading his various levels from dawn until dusk every day we were there!) and across the street is a development of open hillside that seeks to attract 16 homes!
We arrived as Tricky -- nowadays known more professionally as Richard -- was heading off to work. Don went with him, while Jane and I pushed three-month old Millie (Amelia) about a mile and a half up the hill by way of forest trail and gorgeous neighborhoods to the village center for lunch and a coffee.
Whether there would ever be a Millie was by no means certain when we first met T&J in Savu Savu fresh out of New Zealand on their first voyage. About the same age as our daughter and son-in-law, they had both led adventurous lives, mixing professional careers in various countries with high-energy hobbies like mountain biking, sailing and kite boarding. Cruising was an exciting new world and also included opportunities to party hearty, but Jane and I both remember serious conversations about biological clocks and the ramifications of both having and not having kids. I would not have put money in those days that these two would be where they are now.
Which is partners in what has shaped up to be a very successful multihull brokerage based in Mooloolaba. Already in the works when we left two years ago, Multihull Solutions is now doing big business! Big enough that Tricky and his partners have decided they need a rep in the US that they can ask to check out boats for sale there.
There is a big appeal for Aussies, whose dollar is (painfully) strong right now, to fly to America and pick up a boat at relatively bargain prices, and many Aussies do just that. However, as you might guess there are multiple pitfalls in the process that lie in wait for neophytes. So, Tricky and his partners hope to offer a facilitating service. Guess who has been persuaded to be that US rep. At least one, (if not both) of the two captains. As presented, it's a fairly easy job; just followup likely leads that Richard and his partner locate, with a personal visit to determine if the boat is as presented before the client flies across the Pacific. And then, when he/she does, be a friendly face (than can speak a little Aussie) to meet and greet and guide them around.
Don and I are hardly catamaran experts -- our upcoming cruise on Quantum Leap being our virtual debut. But experienced cruiser eyes and a healthy dose of skepticism is actually what is called for. So Richard's plan led to Don's and my spending some time crawling around some of the several catamarans they have for sale on their docks. I'm not sure what it means that after having done so, we were still pretty skeptical that all the money these boats cost would be be worth it...to us. But the Aussies have some $$$$ to spend these days, what with the booming mining economy, and they sure do seem to have a taste for cats.
In between catamarans and visiting with Richard and Jane, Don and I spent our time trying to track down other friends. Our broker who sold Tackless II in Scarborough was in Germany for her daughter's wedding, Jim and Paula of Avior were (like many Aussie sailors at this time of year) enjoying the delights of cruising the Whitsundays, and our Harley friends Graeme and Di left the morning of our arrival on a motorcycle trip.
However our good friends Peter and Sandy of sv Otama Song, not only were able to join us at Tricky and Jane's for a proper Aussie Barbecue, but we managed to find our way out to their latest real estate acquisition, a rural fixer-upper in the lovely countryside west of Buderim. We also were able to catch up with Rod and Sue of Idlewise, who took us on a most memorable 4WD beach trip two years ago. Idlewise is a big motoryacht parked across the dock from T2's old slip, and Rod and Sue have a family business not altogether unlike ours. After a few hours comparing notes about businesses and kids. Sue exclaimed that we seem to be living parallel lives
In between all this visiting, we spent our time trying to keep/get warm. We knew before coming, of course, that it was winter in south Queensland, and we brought a few jeans and long sleeves, but we didn't fully realize that Queenslanders don't have insulation or central heat. Tricky and Jane did give us a portable radiator, which, I'm embarrassed to admit we left on in our bedroom the whole time we were there. Only baby Amelia had it as good, and she didn't whine as much as we did when forced to emerge. The first few days we lived in all our warm clothes layered on top of one another, including our foul weather jackets...even at the dinner table! But I must confess things warmed up quite a bit after the weekend, and we even took some sun on the Mooloolaba beach...after sipping flat white coffees on the Esplanade.
Our time passed quickly and before we knew it we were back in the Skoda on the Bruce Highway, southbound this time, back to the Brisbane airport to catch our flight to Darwin....where, we were excited about getting back on the water, seeing more old friends...and, yes...warmer temps!
July 8-13 -- Visiting Australia's Sunshine Coast...in Winter
The two captains landed in Brisbane, Australia before dawn on July 8th, 2011 after a 14 1/2 hour flight from Dallas that was shortened (thankfully) by lighter than normal headwinds. Unfortunately, we ended up seated in the centermost two seats of a row of four in the center of the 747's economy section. This meant we were packed in like sardines without the freedom to get up when we wanted or access overhead lockers when we wanted. Plus, Quantas doles out all sorts of goodies like pillow, blanket, sleep mask kit, bottled water, snack packages, headphones, etc. after you are seated, and all that has to get squeezed in somewhere, or else, it disappears into the nether regions beneath your legs, not to be found, in some cases, until after you land! It is amusing that, given that you can barely budge, there is a big promotion of exercising throughout the flight. Fortunately, we had nice seat mates, and we simply got up every time they did.
The morning of our arrival in Brisbane was gorgeous. Bright and clear and...damn chilly. We picked up our rental car -- a Skoda made by a former Soviet country! --, distributed ourselves to the correct sides of the vehicle, and picked our way gingerly out into the left lane traffic. After that it was a snap to whiz along northbound on the Bruce Highway with the rising sun, listening to the radio and following our directions to Tricky and Jane's (formerly of sv Lionheart) new house in Buderim.
Buderim is a charming town built on top of the first big hill that sticks up from the flat land that extends between it and Brisbane, only interrupted by the well worn jags of the famous Glass House Mountains -- "mountains" are little more than well eroded volcanic plugs. Buderim is where many of our friends who landed in Mooloolaba have ended up buying homes. It is suburban bordering on country. Out behind Tricky and Jane's house (which actually is very reminiscent of our own in atmosphere) is a tract of thick "bush" -- a jungle of various gum trees and lots of intriguing birds, as well as Tricky and Jane's organic hydroponic gardening efforts and their flock of chickens. BUT the lot next door is being built upon (the owner with a rental dozer worked at grading his various levels from dawn until dusk every day we were there!) and across the street is a development of open hillside that seeks to attract 16 homes!
We arrived as Tricky -- nowadays known more professionally as Richard -- was heading off to work. Don went with him, while Jane and I pushed three-month old Millie (Amelia) about a mile and a half up the hill by way of forest trail and gorgeous neighborhoods to the village center for lunch and a coffee.
Whether there would ever be a Millie was by no means certain when we first met T&J in Savu Savu fresh out of New Zealand on their first voyage. About the same age as our daughter and son-in-law, they had both led adventurous lives, mixing professional careers in various countries with high-energy hobbies like mountain biking, sailing and kite boarding. Cruising was an exciting new world and also included opportunities to party hearty, but Jane and I both remember serious conversations about biological clocks and the ramifications of both having and not having kids. I would not have put money in those days that these two would be where they are now.
Which is partners in what has shaped up to be a very successful multihull brokerage based in Mooloolaba. Already in the works when we left two years ago, Multihull Solutions is now doing big business! Big enough that Tricky and his partners have decided they need a rep in the US that they can ask to check out boats for sale there.
There is a big appeal for Aussies, whose dollar is (painfully) strong right now, to fly to America and pick up a boat at relatively bargain prices, and many Aussies do just that. However, as you might guess there are multiple pitfalls in the process that lie in wait for neophytes. So, Tricky and his partners hope to offer a facilitating service. Guess who has been persuaded to be that US rep. At least one, (if not both) of the two captains. As presented, it's a fairly easy job; just followup likely leads that Richard and his partner locate, with a personal visit to determine if the boat is as presented before the client flies across the Pacific. And then, when he/she does, be a friendly face (than can speak a little Aussie) to meet and greet and guide them around.
Don and I are hardly catamaran experts -- our upcoming cruise on Quantum Leap being our virtual debut. But experienced cruiser eyes and a healthy dose of skepticism is actually what is called for. So Richard's plan led to Don's and my spending some time crawling around some of the several catamarans they have for sale on their docks. I'm not sure what it means that after having done so, we were still pretty skeptical that all the money these boats cost would be be worth it...to us. But the Aussies have some $$$$ to spend these days, what with the booming mining economy, and they sure do seem to have a taste for cats.
In between catamarans and visiting with Richard and Jane, Don and I spent our time trying to track down other friends. Our broker who sold Tackless II in Scarborough was in Germany for her daughter's wedding, Jim and Paula of Avior were (like many Aussie sailors at this time of year) enjoying the delights of cruising the Whitsundays, and our Harley friends Graeme and Di left the morning of our arrival on a motorcycle trip.
However our good friends Peter and Sandy of sv Otama Song, not only were able to join us at Tricky and Jane's for a proper Aussie Barbecue, but we managed to find our way out to their latest real estate acquisition, a rural fixer-upper in the lovely countryside west of Buderim. We also were able to catch up with Rod and Sue of Idlewise, who took us on a most memorable 4WD beach trip two years ago. Idlewise is a big motoryacht parked across the dock from T2's old slip, and Rod and Sue have a family business not altogether unlike ours. After a few hours comparing notes about businesses and kids. Sue exclaimed that we seem to be living parallel lives
In between all this visiting, we spent our time trying to keep/get warm. We knew before coming, of course, that it was winter in south Queensland, and we brought a few jeans and long sleeves, but we didn't fully realize that Queenslanders don't have insulation or central heat. Tricky and Jane did give us a portable radiator, which, I'm embarrassed to admit we left on in our bedroom the whole time we were there. Only baby Amelia had it as good, and she didn't whine as much as we did when forced to emerge. The first few days we lived in all our warm clothes layered on top of one another, including our foul weather jackets...even at the dinner table! But I must confess things warmed up quite a bit after the weekend, and we even took some sun on the Mooloolaba beach...after sipping flat white coffees on the Esplanade.
Our time passed quickly and before we knew it we were back in the Skoda on the Bruce Highway, southbound this time, back to the Brisbane airport to catch our flight to Darwin....where, we were excited about getting back on the water, seeing more old friends...and, yes...warmer temps!
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