Coral gardens near Plum Pudding Island (Kennedy Island)

Happy New Year,

We are anchored off a small island near Gizo that boasts two little resorts. A short ways to the NE is Plum Pudding Island, aka Kennedy Island, the spot where Lt. John F. Kennedy USN and the other survivors of PT109 swam ashore and hid from the Japanese while Kennedy's message, carved into a coconut, was sent by canoe to Rendova. Strange to be here.

The coral gardens here are amazing. So many colors of coral and fish. The best diving we've had yet. A few days ago a tropical storm formed 100 miles east of us, and as it moved south of our location formed into tropical cyclone Freda - now on it's way to New Cal. The storm has made it a bit windier than is ideal.

While diving we've seen sharks, sea horses, amazing corals, and so many new fish that it dazzles the eye. The boat is still in chaos from the holiday, and having our top sides clear of things that might be pinched during the night. I was considering titling this entry A sailboat Named Entropy.

Now to see what our next weeks weather is likely to bring. We hope everyone has a nice New Years, ours was quiet - just the wind of a rising rain squall punctuated the night when the clock ticked over. We're going to watch a movie today, and see if anyone on shore wants a baby bird.

Owen

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Madrona at anchor in Gizo harbor

Merry Christmas again.

We had a nice Christmas day, and today - Boxing Day - has been very relaxing. We had a great morning yesterday and the kids really enjoyed themselves. Our dinner was shared with Gene and Cherie from S/V Reflections, a nice spaghetti, salad and brownies! The kids watched a pixar movie called "Brave" and enjoyed themselves. Then we all played a board game called Apples to Apples, and Griffyn won.

Today it is hot and humid, with thunder in the distance, and the hope of collected drinking water later tonight. Keep your fingers crossed for us. Just wanted to thank everyone for your holiday greetings. It is so good to hear from you all. Don't freeze. We'll write in a few days to let everyone know what's up in this neck of the woods.

Owen

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Merry Christmas and holiday season thoughts from "The Slot"

Hello everyone.

Merry Christmas! Griffyn, Tamsyn, Carrie and I want to let everyone know how often we think of you, family and friends back home. It's has been a long and eventful year. December 21st (on our side of the world) finds us motoring up a passage running NW with New Georgia Island to our west, and Santa Isabel Island to our east.

We are a day and a half out from Honiara on the Island of Guadalcanal - mostly sailing in very light winds. We are still a little gun shy of the engine after we sucked some air last week, and it took three days to sort it out. We hope to be in Gizo in about 36 hours. There we plan on spending a quiet Christmas.

Right now it s very hot aboard. The equatorial sun makes it almost painful to be out in the full sun. This morning our backup GPS bit the dust, so that caused some stress. Also the current coming down the slot is reducing our forward progress to 3.5 knots, so that's a worry too. As the kids are madly cutting out paper snow flakes, and taking care of their new pet - a Kura Kura bird (police bird) chick that fell out of its nest on Guadalcanal, I've had a chance to step back for a few moments and look at our year in perspective.

We are healthy, generally happy, and together as a family. It is this time of year that it is hardest to be away from those we love. We are thinking about Carrie's brother Tim, and wish we could be more supportive to him and his kids. We are thinking of Torrie Jane, and though we know her husband and family are around her, we wish we could be too. And we wish we could be around my father, Hinka and Lois, and see my nephew's new baby. But here we are.

Last night sailing, we left a long phosphorescent trail through a sea so still and smooth that the stars overhead cast mirror images in the water. I remember that dark night a week or so ago when we were engineless in zero wind off a lee shore while lightening played all around us - dolphins were jumping and frolicking all around the boat. I think of the mysterious Island of Tanna, with its spectacular volcano and warm people. I think of the many new friends we have made in Fiji and other places. We wonder how Sisi and Eshwini and their families are after the cyclone hit Fiji. I think of our kids making so many friends and playmates among the peoples we have visited. Tamsyn and Griffyn are still kids, each with their issues and challenges, but I watch with pleasure as they are deepening, and growing in compassion and understanding. And they are not done. Soon they be trading with peers and that will be a joy to watch.

So from ours to yours, we wish you a Merry Christmas. We will touch base when we get safely to Gizo.

Owen

8 13.110 S
158 26.250 E

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Madrona in Honiara

Hi folks. Madrona is in Honiara these last few days. We sucked some air into our engine, so have spent three very frustrating days bleeding the system, and re-bleeding the system. During this time we had to conserve power for engine starts, so that's why no messages.

We had a bit of a scare when the engine went down 20 miles north of Honiara in no wind. Swells were pushing onto a lee shore,and thunderstorms with no wind were sending lightening everywhere. But wind did re-appear and e sailed bacck to town here to sort ourselves out. This is not a god anchorage, so we are anxious to get out of here. We trashed our bow roller for the anchor, so we have to rebuild that up by Gizo. Oh well.

Time to wrap this short note up. Look forward to sending more emails and talking to folks back home. we hope o leave for Gizo in a day or so; weather dependant.

Owen

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Lazy Sunday enroute to Guadalcanal

So we are having a lazy Sunday here in the tropics. For the first time in a couple of days it isn't raining, or thundering, so we are content to sail along at a leisurely 3 knots towards the Solomon Islands. We jumped from Vanuatu on the evening of the sixth.

Our first day out we had to motor a lot, as there was No wind at all. The 550 miles to our next port stretched out like a huge gulf what with the knowledge back in your mind that all that open ocean wouldn't be a good place to get caught in during a hurricane.

The last couple of days we've sailed - yesterday with strong winds (25 knots!) and today with 5 to 8 knots. The forecast is for the wind to peter out sometime in the next 24 hours. We'll probably motor again when that happen.

so here we are, enjoying the sun and a nice little breeze. On the stereo the kids are listening to Christmas music from WWII; Dinah Shore, Judy Garland and th usual suspects. I've been reading and dozing, Carrie is doing sudoko (I know, I know), and the kids are cutting out fantastic paper snowflakes. We all got the bed late last night, as school ran late, dinner was late (rice and red lentils)and the movie we watched (the 2009 Star Trek) also ran past 9 o'Clock. Tired kids, long night of watches coming.

Then it was time to rig the lee cloths and make up the beds. While that happened I thought I'd peak at the engine fluid levels. It would only take a few minutes to do (no really - I believed that would be the case)to take raise the ladder and remove the two engine covers. Ha. Taking off the second cover I son found that on one side the insulation - which dampens sound and acts as a heat barrier, was falling off, hanging down where it come in contact with the engine. Bad.

So for the next hour out came the tools, drills, screws, washers, silver insulation tape. A proper mess. It all got sorted out better than it had been. Oh... and I checked the engine fluid levels. They're fine, thanks for asking.

So by the time it was lights out, Orion was high overhead ( upside down I might add) and the Southern Cross hung over our cockpit (that detail's for you Rob). It was a quiet evening during which we made fifty miles. More importantly there was little swell so our sleep was deep and uninterrupted.

So here we are, plugging away towards Guadalcanal, trying to conserve fuel, and keeping an eye on the weather. We are over half way on our trip, and the majority of oen water is behind us.

Owen

2:00 UTC Dec 9th (1:00 pm Solomon's time)
S 10 46.374
E 164 04.237

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Oyster Island, Santo and the Blue Holes

So we're at Peterson Bay, off Oyster Island, which is in turn off the big island of Espirito Santo here in Vanuatu. We an up here a day ago because in seems to be a good place to wait out bad weather, and it's also quite beautiful. The forecast for the past few days was for very light winds and that has mostly been true. So we decided to hang for a couple of days of R & R.

Remember that old movie from the 1950's called Creature from the Black Lagoon? Well this place reminds me of the black lagoon. We had to verify with locals that are no saltwater crocodiles here (they are up in Banks Islands a bit north of us). The birds are sounding very tropical and cicadas hum from the trees.

U.S. fighter planes used to take off from an overgrown runway not 300 meters from where we are anchored. Hard to imagine all the ships and men and conflict in this peaceful place.

Yesterday we dove on an outer reef - nice but too short as we had to go through two narrow passes through the coral and then return, all be about 4:30 pm when the light was still allowing us to see the coral heads under the water. Of course it was an opportunity for bathing too.

Today we plan on making bread in the morning, and then taking the dinghy about a mile up a river to a "Blue Hole." Basically these "holes" are freshwater artesian springs that form a deep pool. Minerals in the water give the crystal clear water a blue cast. So if the rain showers we see scattered around us today hold off we should be able to go do that this afternoon. We also have to wait for a fairly high tide to make it all the way.

With luck I'll be able to pull down some good weather info this morning, which should give us an indication of water's ahead in the next week. It's a day from here to Sola - where we check out of the country. Then four days to the Solomon's.

All are well. Tamsyn is getting excited about her birthday in a few days, but she doesn't want to celebrate on passage. A year ago we were at Minerva Reef. all is well here, and it looks to be a hot humid tropical day. Everyone says hi.

Owen

15 22.374 S
167 11.440 E

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Heading north... again, and Thanksgiving

Hey all,

Just a quick note.  We are heading out sometime today after a couple last errands in the big city (canned butter and Grib files).  It's raining here and about 80 degrees, with light winds from the east.  The Gribs show that there should be more wind once out away from the islands, so hopefully we'll have enough to get to Epi Island by tomorrow morning.

Did I mention our wet laundry?  It doesn't dry in the rain; but I suppose you all know that.  That's cruiser wisdom for ya.

Anyway.... not sure when the next decent internets will be, but we'll do some sailmail posts in the interim.  

We a terrific Thanks Giving at S/V Sea Going with our friends Bruce and Ricky. Bruce grilled marinated chicken drumsticks (a thai marinade) and we ate it a spicy peanut sauce. I made pineapple coconut rice, banana bread and pumpkin pie - from a can of pumpkin I've been saving since Mexico (almost two years ago). It tasted just like pumpkin pie back home. There were coconut green beans and a most delicious coffee with real cream (we are in French territory after all!) A lovely meal with great new friends.

Owen & Carrie

Eshwini of Savusavu - Dahl, Curried Chicken, Saris (pictures)

August 10th - mid October, 2012

I met Eshwini Ram through her husband, Rese, the taxi cab driver who drove me back to the marina after I had been baking with Sisi all day. The first time I met Eshwini, I showed her the bread and cinnamon rolls I had just baked, she liked them very much. I told her that I wanted to learn how to make roti. She said to come by Lee's Bakery - where she worked 7 days a week. Eshwini was in charge of making the bread dough, the cake batter and the cookie batter each morning when she arrived for work at 5 AM. After she mixed up the dough, 6 Fijian men baked it. She worked the front counter until 5PM. She was the only person who knew how to make up the bread dough (the Chinese owners didn't know). She made $160 Fijian for 65 hours / week - a very good paycheck in Savusavu. 

I also gave Eshwini and Rese a slice of the pumpkin pie I made with Sisi on my second ride in his taxi. I invited Eshwini and her husband over to the boat for dinner. She brought dahl (made with yellow split peas) and curried chicken. I made split pea soup (green split peas) with ham and fresh bread. We had an American version of dahl and an Indian one. The split pea soup I made can be found on the package of green split peas. Eshwini's dahl and curried chicken recipes are:

Dahl

Put into a pressure cooker:

1 cup yellow split peas, rinsed

6 cups water

1 tablespoon tumeric (Haldi powder)

Bring to pressure and cook 10 minutes, let pressure lower on it's own. Do not over cook.

While the peas are cooking: 

Put 2-3 tablespoons of ghee in a large soup pan, heat to very hot

Add: 

1 teaspoon cumin seeds (Gheera) - let them simmer, split, for 30 seconds to 1 minute then reduce heat to medium

Add:

1 onion, diced

1 small carrot, diced (optional) - cook these until soft - remove pan from heat.

When the pressure cooker has released all it's steam, open it up and empty the mixture into the large soup pan (with the onions), stir, add salt to taste and serve into small bowls.

Eshwini showed me how to make roti.

Eshwini's husband - Rese

She had been making it every day since she was a teenager, so she worked very fast. I love to mess around with flour and rolling pins. We all tried to make a couple as she baked them on the large frying pan. They were a challenge to roll out into a cirlcle. So Tamsyn decided to make the balls and while Griffyn worked the rolling pin. Rese admitted that even he had trouble making them perfectly round like Eshwini did. Griffyn's looked the most circular of the three of us. When they bake they puff up just like lefsa does (a Norwegian flat bread made with potatoes and flour). And they look just like a Mexican tortilla. Owen's favorite flat bread is the chapati which he enjoyed in Uganda. We used make crepes back home, (which are the French version enriched with butter of course). I wonder if all cultures have a flat bread?

Roti 

flour

water

oil (optional)

Use white flour, lots, in a large bowl. Add boiling water until it makes a dough, knead the dough for a bit, then make balls (1 1/2 inches in diameter). Roll the balls out very thin into circles. Bake on a very hot pan - which may be very lightly oiled, until they brown (they will puff up like lefsa), flip over and cook other side. Cook them one at a time. Despite it's simplicity, it is delicious. A word of caution about the pan you use. We used our large coated frying pan (with a very thick bottom) and because the pan had to heat up with nothing in it, the coating began to loosen a bit. Back home I'll try a well seasoned cast iron frying pan, lightly oiled (a high heat oil). I watched a woman at a fair making roti, she swiped the pan with an oiled cloth before cooking each roti.

After that evening on the boat, we became good friends, I would stop by the bakery ever time I went into town. During her lunch break, we would go to her favorite Indian cafe and have tea and pudding (cake made from coconut milk cooked with sugar until it is brown (like molasses with sweetened condensed milk) then mixed with flour, egg, leavening and baked in tin cans.) Eshwini called a number of Indian sweets 'pudding' all of which would have another name in western baking or cooking. I never did get the recipe for the tin can sweet bread, but I think it could be found. Eshwini coached me on Indian cooking as I tried new things. 

Then one day it was time to visit her at home and meet her three kids. On a Saturday afternoon in late September around 5:30PM (she left work at 3PM), Owen, Tamsyn, Griffyn and I walked the mile to her house, up and down a steep dirt road as the light faded. We were met by Rese with flashlights who was on his way to visit his father at the hospital. He was bringing dinner to his father. Eshwini's mother-in-law was staying at their house while her husband was in the hospital. She didn't speak English at all, but we managed to learn a little bit about her as Eshwinin translated. I had brought a loaf of fresh bread, a carrot and cabbage salad, Fiji Gold (beer) and a chocolate cake (with eggs, butter and milk). It was great to see another Fijian home and like the others we had visited, bright colors dominated.  

Eshwini married Rese when she was 16 and he was 26. They built their house themselves on a piece of bottom land, leased for $30/month from the Savusavu town council. [Indigenous Fijians own all the land - Indo-Fijians, whites and all others lease land from Fijians. Fijians knew about what had happened to the lands of the aborigines of Australia (it was all taken by the whites) and as a result their land laws were written to keep the land in the hands of the Indigenous people. When a Fijian couple marries, the chief gives them a plot of land, then they build a house on it. The land is then kept in the family indefinitely.]  Before Eshwini began working at the bakery (9 months ago) she raised (and sold) ducks in her yard to help support the household income. Rese has been driving a taxi for 20 years, but a recent law regulating taxi cab fees has made it difficult for him to make ends meet and school fees had quadrupled in the last year - so Eshwini went to work.

Dinner was very good, curried chicken (my favorite), roti, rice, dahl, bread, salad, cucumbers and for dessert, chocolate cake, Indian black tea with ginger and biscuits. I was eager to watch Eshwini make curried chicken, she cooks quickly, throwing things into a pan, never measuring. I felt I needed to see it for myself to really know how to do it like she did. She made the best curry I'd ever tasted. 

Curried Chicken

1- 2 lbs. chicken, chopped in pieces (Indians simply chop up a chicken, bones and all)

OIl for frying (high heat oil)

1 onion, diced

1 potato, diced

1 carrot, diced

2 to 3 heads of garlic, peeled and thoroughly crushed

Heat the oil, add everything except one third of the garlic, toss, then add:

lots of Graham Masala - about 3 heaping tablespoons

ground Coriander - about 1 tablespoon

until the color is right and it smells amazing. Don't be cautious with the graham masala. Keep stirring and cooking on high for a bit until the onions begin to wilt, then reduce the heat to medium, cover and let simmer until the liquid in the pan has been absorbed. Serve. 

I loved being in her home, her kitchen. I wanted to know where she kept everything, what ingredients she had, how she stored things. She showed me the china and ornate glass bowls she received for her wedding all displayed along a series of shelves in her small dining room. Like me, Eshwini loved cooking and kitchen things, she had a number of appliances, even a washing machine for laundry. I got the sense that Eshwini and her culture (Indo-Fijian) looked more westward in their aspirations than Fijians. Eshwini layed out a large spread on the floor of the living room. We all helped bring pots, dishes, and plates to the living room. Then we all sat down on the floor in a large circle around the food and ate. We ate mostly with our fingers, the curried chicken dripped and we licked our fingers and sucked on bones savoring every spicy morsel. Yum! Fresh roti is such a treat too. You can put anything in it, or dip it and it's great. While we ate, we shared our histories, stories of Africa, sailing adventures. As we became more satiated and relaxed the kids lounged in laps sleepily or moved to the couch to stare at the TV. Then it was time to clear the dishes and Eshwini washed while I dried the dishes. 

Eshwini was tired, so we didn't stay too long after desert and tea, but we agreed to come back tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon to visit more. On Sunday Tamsyn, Griffyn and I went back to visit while Owen stayed on the boat to replace the lights on the mast. After we had our afternoon tea and biscuits, Eshwini showed me her saris. She must have had a hundred. I had given her a dress I loved but rarely wore when she came to dinner on the boat, that Sunday she offered me a sari. I had a hard time choosing, but finally picked a color I liked and then the fashion show began. Eshwini wanted pictures of us dressed in saris and there were a number of sari's her daughter's no longer wanted (they gave Tamsyn 3). 

Sheetal

Sunday afternoon tea.

Sweeta

As a bride would...

We left in the late afternoon. Eshwini and I continued to meet for tea until the day we departed Savusavu. We talked about our lives, children, parenting, husbands (men are from Mars and women from Venus). We became quite close friends, exchanged addresses. I gave her a disk of all the digital photos I took while we were together. (I gave one to Sisi as well). I will miss her dearly.

A night on Mt. Yasser Volcano, Tanna - Photo Post

Here's some photos taken a while back on Mt. Yasser, on the island of Tanna, here in Vanuatu.  It was an incredible evening.  Loud, close and exciting.  Enjoy.

Waiting out a tropical storm in Port Vila

Hi all,

We've been in Vila a week making repairs on a couple of fronts.  We had our monitor break leaving Tanna and had to hand steer for 36 hours through very fresh winds.  We've had to have some parts manufactured here.  Also had some sail damage and an engine that's been acting up.  Joy.

We were at anchor in Vila but moved to a mooring a couple of days ago in anticipation of this big low that came down from the north, which has/had the potential to become a typhoon.  We hope to continue north in a few days, but are baking pumpkin pies today and are getting together with some other Americans for turkey day.

We hope to post some pictures from Tanna soon.

To friends and family, thanks for the kinds wishes and support, and we wish we could share the holiday with you all.

Owen

Dancing with Pele on Tanna, Vanuatu

Hi there,

Madrona and crew have been for the last four days happily at anchor at Port Resolution on the island of Tanna, in Vanuatu. We had a slow overnight sail from Anatom, and as we approached Tanna the plume of steam and ash from Mt. Yasser drifted downwind above the island. We anchored and went into the village to see the lay of the land.

After doing some trading to make up some needed cash (the Vatu), we arranged to have a 4-wheel drive vehicle bring us up to the volcano on the evening of the 30th. It was mostly clear and with SE winds. The landscape here in Vanuatu is verdant and beautiful. Along the way the trees grew shorter and more windswept as we gained altitude. Steam rushed out of the soil along the road cuts.

Then the cone of the volcano revealed itself as the vegetation fell away, and the surrounding ocean stretched off in all directions. We parked and climbed up a steep pat to the rim of the crater. Actually the mountain has twin craters. A few other folks and ourselves (including Dennis and Nikki from S/Y Nauti Lady), stood transfixed as deep booms and rumbles punctuated by sharp exhalations of steam heralded a rush of lava high into the sky of the near crater.

In short, the experience was amazing. Dennis, Nikki, and I walked a half mile along the rim of the far crater and looked down into a boiling lava lake that constantly heaved and belched incandescent ropes and filaments high into the air. We were transfixed, despite chocking sulfur fumes and fine ash the got under our eyelids and penetrated clothing. Then one especially large blast sent lava arcing over our heads. Somewhat like a mouse must feel when an owl is swooping down for a kill, we watched the twisting and spinning red streaks and tried to determine which way to run. Lava landed where we have just walked and behind us. We decided then to rejoin the others at the westernmost crater.

As night fell lava shot high into the sky in violent fountains which fell back onto the crater's concave sides and gradually cooled to black. We had Tamsyn and Griffyn sit once darkness fell, and we were only a couple feet from the edge, and anyone that fell would roll all the way into the molten mouth of the volcanic pipe.

Needless to say we took lots of pictures and video. When we got back to the boat late that night we were tired and quite happy with the day. Each morning here outrigger canoes come out to the boat to see if we would like to trade anything for fruit of vegetables. We have made friends with many people in the village, ad Tamsyn and Griffyn especially love the baby fruit bat that one family is raising until it can fend for itself.

So all is well and we are starting to think about moving on northward. I will get some weather info tonight, and see where we are at with that. Everybody says hi.

Owen

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Madrona at anchor in Anatom, Vanuatu

So we got into Vanuatu just fine, though for a day we had very light winds, as low as 4 knots for a twelve hour stretch. We are happy to be here, and have cleared customs. Now for the exploring part.

Not sure how long we will be here, as the winds are from north at the moment, and the forecast is for very light winds for a few days. I hope to get updated weather this morning and get a better idea when we head to Tanna.

Owen

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Madrona approaching Vanuatu in light winds

Hi,

Just a quick message to say hi. We've had a good sail so far. The wind lightened during the night. We are now only 80 miles from Anatom, Vanuatu, and making 3 to 3.5 knots in 8 to 9 knots of wind and a 2 m swell out of the SW.

I will pull down a GRIB file to see when we might get wind again. Clear sky and humid. All is well here. Lots of reading happening on board. Tamsyn reading Narnia again. Griffyn reading his readers. Carrie has started The Song of Ice and Fire. And I'm reading Thuvia, maid of Mars.


S 20 28.608
E 171 13.146
at 20:11 UTZ

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Truth, Friends and Strange Food

There is a great children's book about travel entitled, "Parcel Perkins Notebook Presents: The Search for the Giant Stone Monkeyhead" by Dan Graves. Dan grew up in the Midwest like us but must have spent time in Ecuador because that is where the book is set. The heroine is a young girl who sees a giant stone monkey head (which hasn't been seen by her village for a long time.) It disappears so she decides to go on a quest searching for the meaning of the visit by the giant stone monkey head. Her grandmother tells her that, "the legend is that the gods gave it to our ancient ancestors to show them truth." Parcel's father says, "legend has it that our ancestors made it welcome new friends and scare away enemies." Her older brother and sister tell her that, "The legend is that space aliens left it there to protect us from caiman (crocodiles) and to teach people how to cook strange food."

I have decided meaningful travel, like a quest, is about all three - finding truth, making friends and trying strange foods. We find out about ourselves and others as we encounter new cultures, new ways of doing things. We make friends along the way or remain a tourist, a sight seer staying within his or her own comfort zone. And we try strange food - because we have to - hopefully.

Provisioning

After our stay in the house, after being introduced to Fijian cooking and local tropical foods, we came back to the boat and began looking around at the markets to see what we could find. Sisi ate off the land around her house, she purchased very little. There aren't seasons here the way they are in the midwest. Tropical fruits and veges grow year round. Things on trees like mangos and breadfruit have a season, but papaya seem to grow continuously. Pineapples become ripe in November and last through Christmas. Sisi had a simple garden plot where she would put in a couple egg plants, a pumpkin patch (winter squash, not pumpkin), a patch of taro for leaves and another patch for the taro roots. There were banana trees in her dad's yard. She had a coffee bean bush. And coconuts dropped everywhere. She made coconut cream daily which she used in everything. She even made her own cooking oil (coconut oil). She or a close neighbor grew everything she ate except garlic and onions. She thought spending $2.50 was a lot. She didn't have a chicken so she didn't cook with eggs much. The staple protein in her diet is tuna or mackerel - which is inexpensive since it is fished and canned in Fiji.

Then we met Tanya and Oran from Israel (S/V Renatta - also a Tayana 37). They didn't have a working frig either. They canned all their meals themselves in used jars (not canning jars). They purchased items just for the jar for canning. When they were hungry they opened a jar and poured it over rice or worked a meal around fresh produce. They said if I canned my own meals it would change my life. They told me how to keep cheese un-refrigerated, they showed me the drying rack they made for drying fruit, they used ghee instead of butter. They made their own jam. They dried bread instead of buying crackers. They ate tons of fresh produce. They had so many great ideas. They are truly an inspiration. So I made the decision that until we could really afford to modernize our frig (so that it ran on a lot less power, was completely re-insulated and had a drain installed), I would use it as dry storage. Now that huge space in my kitchen would be used again, rather than having a large space that simply grew mold. I cleaned it out and filled it with large canisters of flour, pancake mix, dry milk, oatmeal, rice, sugar, coffee beans and bulk herbs and spices.

Then I met Eshwini, an Indo-Fijian. Eshwini makes traditional Indian food (we became very good friends - more on her later). All the grocery stores are owned by Indo-Fijians thus they stock traditional Indian foods. Eshwini went shopping with me at her favorite store. They were well stocked in spices, ghee, tinned meat as well as everything else for sale in Savusavu. Eshwini showed me her favorite brand for Haldi powder (tumeric - used in dahl), Masala (graham masala - used in curries), Gheera (whole cumin seeds - used in dahl), ground coriander (used with masala in curries, especially with meat). She picked out a ghee and gave me a recipe for halva - an Indian pudding made from fine couscous, ghee, cardimon, sultanas, milk, and sugar. She introduced me to many delicious new foods like Sisi had. Tanya introduced me to many new methods of food storage that worked well on a boat.

After that, for a week or so, I simply felt overwhelmed for a while. I couldn't cook anything. I baked a lot of bread. We ate a lot of sandwiches.

On the boat we had eaten through most of the provisions I bought in New Zealand. Fiji is supposed to be one of the best places in the South Pacific to provision. It is much cheaper than either Australia or New Zealand and has more well stocked stores than Tonga, the Solomon's, Vanuatu, or many other South Pacific islands. We had decided to travel north for our next hurricane season rather than south to Australia or trying to get all the way (8,000 blue water miles) to South Africa. So we needed to stock up here. So I pulled out the lists of meals I had compiled in Mexico. Then I made an inventory of what I found in the stores. There is one large produce market and about 6 grocery stores in Savusavu, 3 of which are larger, well stocked. I spent two days going through every item I thought we might purchase at each of the six stores. I made thorough lists.

As I looked through my previous lists of meals and thought about what I had found in the stores I just hit a wall. Of the 25 dinner meal ideas we had on our list from Mexico we could make about 3 for a reasonable price here in Fiji. As we travel farther from the U.S. and the 'western world' fewer and fewer foods that we are used to are available. And the things we used to call staples (olive oil, tomato paste, pasta, mayonnaise, peanut butter, dry beans or canned beans, fresh meat, cheese, yogurt) have become so expensive that we must ration them or not buy them at all. In New Zealand we could get most everything we were used to eating, but in Tonga and Fiji all those things are imported and the locals don't eat them. I didn't get enough molasses before we left New Zealand and even though there are sugar cane plantations here which produce molasses as a by product - it all gets sold for use in making rum and none is available here to purchase. The locals don't eat it. 

Another issue is that we no longer use our refrigerator or freezer. We have been living without a refer since New Zealand, but in NZ we could leave things in the cockpit and it was cold enough at night to chill them. In Fiji's warm tropical climate, we couldn't stock fresh meat or fresh produce or fresh dairy. If we bought meat, yogurt or cheese we ate it that night. If we bought produce we had to eat it with in a couple days (some things lasted longer - but precious few.) We had to shop very often just to make regular meals. And what would those meals be?

I knew that local foods were very cheape. I had to learn to cook with tropical foods - Fijian and Indian. I needed more than 3 meals up my sleeve. I needed to decide what to provision. We were going to winter in the northern Solomons and Papua New Guinea staying mostly remote. It had to be on board or we wouldn't get it.

It took a number of experiments and consults with my local expert friends before I mastered anything. I poisoned us with taro leaves more than once (we didn't get sick just irritated mouths). After a month or so I managed to expand our repertoire to include dahl (made from yellow split peas), beef curry (made with canned corned beef), lots of fresh juice drinks and smoothies (from every tropical sweet or citrus fruit available) and we no longer care if what we eat is a "breakfast food", or "dinner food". We ate fried green plantains for breakfast for the last couple days simple because we were given a ton of plantains. They taste just like french fries and are great with ketchup (you can purchase Heinz Ketchup here). As the plantains ripen like bananas we made smoothies or boiled them in water (they tasted like canned peaches). We began to eat anything someone gave us and try to remain open to new tastes. We tried everything inexpensive if I could figure out how to prepare it. There is very little canned fruit available and almost no canned veges. Everyone eats fresh.

Pictured - breadfruit, taro root, plantains, green tangerines, coconut, egg plant and lemon grass.  Foods we have tried Not Pictured = taro leaves, tropical spinach, bok choy, cassava, papaya, kumquats, pineapple, soup sop, mango, jackfruit, passion fruit, lemons, limes, okra, long beans, and others unremembered.

 We did know that in the remote Solomon Islands, the locals would be happy to trade produce for trade goods. So we began to relax a little with provisioning. We added a number of very inexpensive meals (dahl, curries made with anything, fried rice from left overs, etc.) to our routine and kept a few old ones (spaghetti with marinara sauce and beans and rice.) We bought lots of trade items instead of stocking up on canned produce. And we gave up a number of things that are just too hard to keep alive or purchase (yogurt). We bought lots of dry milk.

And so we'll let you know how it all works out as we leave our beloved Fiji behind.

Carrie

Jumping in the morning

Here's the latest forecast from Fiji MET, along with a satellite view of the area with our route marked out.  We brought more fresh veg and some goodies, and the last items on our list. 

Some sort of official approached us on the street in town today saying we needed to have a drug inspection.  When we told him that Customs, Immigrating and the Port Captain mentioned no such thing.  He said he'd be in touch later.  Seemed like a shakedown to us.

It poured in the last couple hours so three of us bathed in the cockpit using water collected in the downpour.  Hot and still this evening.

Marine Weather Bulletin Issued from the National Weather Forecasting Centre Nadi at 7:30pm on Wednesday the 17th of October 2012

Situation: A trough of low pressure with associated cloud and rain lies over the eastern parts of Fiji is slowly moving eastwards. It is expected to affect the group till later today. Meanwhile, another trough of low pressure to the north of Fiji is expected to affect the group on Friday.

Forecast to midnight tomorrow for Fiji waters: East to northeast winds 15 to 20 knots. Moderate to rough seas. Moderate southerly swells. Poor visibility in areas of heavy rain. Further outlook: Easterly winds 15 to 20 knots. Moderate to rough seas. Moderate southerly swells.

P.S.   And if you get hungry before you jump, these Micky clones gone wrong will put you off your feed.

Life in the house beyond food and eating - wayback

July 23 - 31, 2012

When it rained for two days, we all felt such a luxury to have lots of space to move around in while it poured outside. Owen was reminded of his cabin in Uganda. He took naps every afternoon in the house and then went over to an American friend's house for a whiskey around 4:30PM. He said it was the first time he totally relaxed since the trip began. He wasn't constantly worrying about what to fix (how to fix it), where to go next (how to get there), the weather, the crew, and everything else a captain is responsible for. Towards the end of the week, he was running around the large circular living room with Tamsyn and Griffyn playing rousing games of ball or tag or what have you. Every night after the kids were in bed, Owen and I laid on the big bed and watched an episode or two of "Game of Thrones".

I had never been in a building with a metal roof when it was raining. I loved listening to it - despite how loud it was.  It is so hot and humid in the tropics - I loved the large airy shower and enjoyed slow warm showers twice a day. I loved the house, all it's windows and ceiling fans. I loved the spaces, the dressers from Japan, the art everywhere. I had brought my paints and worked on a painting all week. I loved having the space and time to paint. I could paint outside on the veranda or inside on my own desk away from everyone. I could let a painting sit  - I didn't have to put it away after each painting session. 

Painted at the house

And as my friendship with Sisi grew, I began to feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude. I was grateful for how much she had shared of her life, her traditional ways, views into homes, and the village. I began the painting "Vinaka" for her which shows the yellow orchids Andrea showed me, the red hibiscus and small purple flowers around the yard. I gave it to her as a parting gift when we left the big house. 

Griffyn and Tamsyn enjoyed having their own shower. They each took showers (with out being asked) the first morning at the house. "Mom, I washed my hair five times, so now I won't have to wash it for three weeks," Griffyn exclaimed after his first shower. Then Tamsyn would make french toast for breakfast (before Owen and I got up.) And they both loved their bedrooms. Griffyn had brought Jraffy's things which he set out along the headboard of his bed. [Jraffy is a tiny stuffed Giraffe who has a complete miniature house hold set in a couple nooks on the boat. He is a king I believe, very powerful. He is usually involved in Griffyn's schemes and often oversees the battles which take place on the settee below his house.] There was an old ornate chest in Griffyn's room sitting in a corner on the floor. He filled it with clothes, school supplies and a soccer ball. They both love to arrange their things just so. Griffyn especially loved having his own space since he doesn't really have one on the boat. (He has had to learn to make do with little nooks to define himself.) Tamsyn spent days sitting on her bed sewing clothes or making sleeping bags for her stuffed animals and reading. She is a voracious reader. It is hard to keep her in books. We do have many she can read on the kindle when she can wrestle it away from Owen.

We did have home school at the house. Owen did a lecture on the human body and all it's systems. They both made drawings and Tamsyn wrote about the functions of each system. There was an inverter in the house (converts 220 to 110) so we had endless power for watching movies on our computer. I never saw a TV on in a house in Fiji except to watch a movie. I don't know if there is local television.

On Thursday (July 26) Owen and Tamsyn took the bus into Savusavu to check on the boat. The rains had been very heavy and we wanted to make sure there were no nasty surprises when we returned a couple days hence. I really wanted to take advantage of the washer and dryer we had access to in the house. There was a huge pile of dirty bedding sitting on the boat. When they got to the boat, Owen found that the patch he had put on the dinghy in Tonga had let go - one quadrant was deflated. He spent the majority of his time there removing, cleaning and re-gluing the patch while Tamsyn piled our dirty laundry into a garbage bag. Otherwise the boat was dry and secure. Asseri, from Waitui Marina, ferried them back to the marina and they rushed back to town to catch the 1PM bus.

As our week came to an end, we took one last walk to the village of Nukumbalavu to go swimming at the beach. We walked along the road on the way there and along the beach on the way back. Many little tributaries meet the ocean along the beach coming back from the village. Tamsyn decided to see if one of the streams was fresh water or salt water - so she tasted it. I must have been looking out to sea when she did it, I didn't know. During the walk, she complained of having a stomach ache. She hadn't gone swimming earlier that day either so I figured she was a little under the weather. That night, Saturday night, she vomited and developed a fever. She told us she had tasted the river near Nukumbalavu. She was very ill the next day and we asked Andrea if we could stay another day until she her fever subsided. He said yes.  Tamsyn had dysentery. It took her three days to recover enough to leave the house. We let her watch movies all day, she was very weak. As she was able to keep liquids down, I squeezed all the kumquats, limes and lemons to make cool refreshing drinks, slightly salted and sweetened with sugar to replenish our dehydrated daughter. While she recovered, we packed up and said moce (pronounced 'mothay') - Fijian for goodbye, to our new friends. As we piled our stuff into a cab, Andrea said we could come back and get more fresh food when ever we wanted.

Baking with Sisi and bread recipe - wayback post

August 8th, 10th and 13th

During the time the kids were in school, I went back to visit Sisi and Andrea at her home. My first visit was short and formal - I brought some food to share and we all sat down in her living room on a mat around a cloth she had laid out. She made black tea and brought out some cooked taro root. A friend of hers, Tina, was visiting also. Tina had been to Minnesota and Wisconsin years ago - through her church. Her father is a pastor. I really enjoyed talking with Tina about where I grew up (Minnesota and Wisconsin). Andrea offered to put a seat on the coconut scraper I had just bought. He spent much of the time outside carving a local pine board. Towards the end of that visit we planned the next one. Sisi wanted to make bread and I offered to show her how to bake cinnamon rolls as well. We would meet at the big house. Sisi does not have an oven.

For the second visit (August 10th), again I came on the 9:30 a.m. bus. The buses do not have glass in the windows, the seats are like school bus seats in the U.S., the driver cranks on a huge stick shift while the engine strains to scale steep dirt roads full of pot holes. He knows the road - swerving confidently around sharp corners while avoiding on coming cars. The wind whips pleasantly through the bus. On a hot day, it can be the only cool place in Savusavu. The cost of a one way ticket is 70 cents (about 37 cents U.S.) I loved riding the bus. I felt such a deep up welling of feeling, like I was finally answering some deeply buried passion. I was out exploring by myself (and everyone I generally feel responsible for was taken care of elsewhere). It's been a while since I felt moved in this way. I do get out alone at times, but seldom do I feel such a profound sense of joy. I didn't feel like a tourist. I was visiting a friend, on a local bus, sitting next to Fijians heading to work in their uniforms cut from cloth made to look like tapas. I loved everything, the bright colors people wear, the tropical mountainous countryside, the soft-spoken Fijian voices, the beautiful children with elaborate braids and smart uniforms, the bumpy ride, the fresh air.

When I arrived, I walked through that wonderful yard again, this time looking at the mangos hanging, the passion fruit vine creeping, the papayas clumped together, the flower beds, everything I missed. Andrea met me and showed me a lime tree and other plants I hadn't known about. We walked up to the house again and he brought out some lemon grass and my new coconut scraper. It is beautiful, a large seat attached to the small sharp circular scraper. I went in to make tea. Sisi had brought flour, sugar, yeast, butter and salt. I brought the rolling pin, cinnamon, brown sugar, sultanas, wholemeal flour (whole wheat) and baking pans. The water was off that morning, so Sisi ran home to gather liters of bottled water for us to drink and bake with. I put the kettle on and asked Andrea to find a coconut. Then we set about making bread. Tina was there again so she wrote the recipe down as I demonstrated each part. My favorite bread recipe is:

1 cup warm water
1 Tbsp. yeast
1 tsp. sugar

The water should be "baby bath water" warm. This is the most reliable description I have heard for the correct temperature for proofing the yeast. (I don't have a thermometer). Dissolve the yeast, let sit 10 minutes. If there is a nice foam on top after 10 minutes use it, otherwise toss it and begin again.

Add:

1 3/4 c. warm water
3 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. salt
1/4 c. dry milk powder
2 Tbsp. melted butter (or 1 Tbsp. oil or ghee)

Stir until well mixed then Add: 

2 1/2 c. unbleached white flour
1/2 c. Atta flour (or rye flour, or other interesting heavy flour)

Stir very well. Atta flour is local and used for roti. It adds body to the whole-meal flour available here which is quite light for a whole grain flour.

Next add 3 3/4 c. whole-meal flour (or whole wheat but not stone ground whole wheat).

Stir well.  Then add about another 1/2 c. of white flour until it isn't sticky as you knead it. Knead until it feels like a baby's butt, smooth and elastic. Pour a little oil in the bowl and roll it around. Then cover it with a cloth and let it rise until double. I use a large wide basin to make bread in. It makes the stirring very quick and you can knead right in the bowl. It is keeps everything contained and very easy to clean up.

After it rises (about an hour in the tropics), punch it down, turn on the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease two loaf pans and sprinkle the bottoms with corn meal. Then knead out the large air bubbles and cut the dough half. Shape each piece into a ball by pulling it continuously away from the center and then gently rolling the dough in your hands while holding it up so that it lengthens to fit a loaf pan. Put the dough in the pan, sprinkle flour along the top and make three diagonal slits (expansion cuts) so that the dough rises where you want it to. (Otherwise it may split along the side where it rises above the pan - and it will break too easily when sliced.) Cover with cloth and let rise until the oven is heated (about 30 minutes). It will almost double in volume. Bake for 35 minutes or until is sounds hollow when rapped on the bottom. Let cool in a breezy cockpit.

As soon as the bread is rising for the first time, you can begin the dough for the cinnamon rolls. It is the same recipe except without the wholemeal and atta flour. I use only white flour. After it rises the first time, roll it out into a large rectangle. Spread it liberally with soft butter. Make a mixture of one part cinnamon to two parts brown sugar and sprinkle this generously on the buttered dough. Then roll it up like a jelly roll, starting at the longest edge. Slice the dough about every 1 1/2 inches and place pieces upright in a sheet cake pan. I use two pans, one is 9 by 13 inches and the other one is 9 by 10 inches. Once the dough has risen a second time (in the pan), pour melted butter over each roll and bake for 35 minutes at 375 degrees F. Let the cinnamon rolls cool. Make an icing of sifted powdered sugar and water. Only add enough water to make the icing barely dribble. Dribble icing all over mostly cooled cinnamon rolls. Eat. These never last in long on the boat.

Sisi made a delicious lunch for us that day while the bread rose. We ate on the veranda with Andrea and Tina. By the time the cinnamon rolls were finished it was nearing 4 PM and pouring cats and dogs. I decided to wait for the rain to let up. We had already cleaned up so headed over to Sisi's house to have a cup of tea. Sisi shared a couple cinnamon rolls and some fresh bread. I brought my new coconut scraper home along with a loaf of bread and a small pan of cinnamon rolls. My family was grateful. Sisi was having dinner that night with her large extended family at her father's house.

I visited Sisi again the following Tuesday (August 13).

Sisi also wanted to learn to make pumpkin pie and my chocolate cake recipe. As soon as I arrived that morning, we set to making the crust and put then dough into the freezer to chill. Then we cut the pumpkin (from her yard) in half, scooped out the seeds put it into the oven to cook. While the pumpkin roasted, we made two chocolate layer cakes. It is a simple recipe (previously published in the blog). As soon as the pumpkin was done, we put the cakes in the oven. Then we carved the flesh out of the skin and pureed it. It measured out to two cups, perfect. We made the famous Libby's pumpkin pie recipe (on the side of the can of pumpkin). For those of you who don't have canned pumpkin available:

Mix together:

2 c. baked, pureed pumpkin
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 can of evaporated milk (about 15 oz.)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger (dry powder)
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. salt

Pour into a fluted pie crust and bake at 400 F for 10 minutes and then reduce heat to 325 F and bake for 50 minutes (or until a butter knife inserted in the center comes out clean - the center should be solid). Cool, chill and serve with whipped cream (if it is unavailable.) Sisi had prepared another delicious lunch (cassava, sauteed eggplant with onions, tomato and carrot and I had brought some chicken basil sausages) which we ate with Andrea and Tina on the veranda while the pie baked. We pulled the pie out of the oven at 1 PM, just before we left for the village. I wanted to see the traditional dancing presented every Tuesday afternoon at 2 PM (for tourists).

I decided to bring Tamsyn with me that day (out of school) so she could also see the dancing and kava ceremony. She spent most of the day in the big house with us. She doesn't like the mosquitos and they are quite thick once away from the sea breezes and salt water. The chief of Savusavu lives in Nukumbalavu and there is an arrangement with the large resort, "Cousteau's" to bring tourists to his village on Tuesday afternoons to sight see. (I have heard from a local physician that the residents of Cousteau Resort pay up to $4,000 (Fijian) a night.) It is a good arrangement for the village of Nukumbalavu as there are tons of trinkets for sale and the resort guests can have things charged to their rooms, plus there is a $5 fee per tourist. We were greeted with a pretty lei and told to sit on one side of the hall, while the locals sat on the opposite side with a large kava bowl in the middle.

The kindergarten

View coming back from the village

Waiting for the bus

The bus

Sisi's mother's grave - she died three months ago

Sidewalk in the village, the only one

Tamsyn with a lei

The community hall, much like a grange hall

Shopkeepers home

The kava ceremony was very brief - 4 men were offered a drink twice each. [At the wedding we attended August 31st, all the men present including the Minister, Pastor and Priest (an interfaith wedding) drank kava for 6 hours straight - going through some 40 bowls of kava.  Each bowl was about 3 gallons.]  The traditional dancing was conservative compared to what we had seen in French Polynesia. The women wore the taka (a full-length sulu skirt with a matching blouse). Theirs were all made from a pattern based on tapas cloth. Sisi danced but I could tell she'd done it a few too many times. The men wore grass skirts and costumes similar to what we had seen in Marquesean dancing. The men dance separately from the women. Their dancing was much more spirited and seemed to tell a story. Men and women sang during the dancing, some very old traditional tribal songs. Sisi made sure we had some of the cookies and juice (for the participants) before our walk back. Tamsyn wanted to walk along the beach again.

By the time we reached the big house, the pie was cooled and it was nearing 5 PM. We packed up the cakes, cut the pie in half and locked up the house. Sisi walked Tamsyn and myself out to the road to wait for a taxi. Return trips (back to Savusavu) cost the same as a bus ride (70 cents per adult and 35 cents per child). Ram drove by some time later. He is a regular out this way because he understands the dialect well. We said good bye to Sisi and got in the taxi.

This was my second trip back from Sisi's in Ram's taxi. The first trip with him, I showed his wife, Eshwini, whom he picks up after work every day at 5:30PM, the bread and cinnamon rolls I made with Sisi. She was very interested. I told her I would come by her bakery. I wanted to learn how to make roti. Eshwini and Ram are Indo-Fijians. They make Indian food. Eshwini works at Lee's bakery in Savusavu. The second time I rode back to Savusavu with Ram, I shared some pumpkin pie with them.