July 26 - Aug 6, 2015 Musket Cove -Mana

We spent a pleasant week at Musket Cove enjoying the resort pools, beach, spacious grounds, showers and various amenities. Gary has been back and forth between Namotu and Musket Cove almost every day to get surf. We took Nirvana there a few times and he caught a ride with Another Adventure a few days. Gary took a bunch of guys with him one day on Nirvana and the kids and I stayed on Nautilus and went ashore.

Musket Cove is a resort and a yacht club (although that meaning is a little different here than we are used to). They cater nicely to the yachties, when we registered we opened an account and can charge anything at the resort, which is nice and a little scary. They have a grocery store, it is very pricey, but handy if you are out of something and nice for basics like bread and eggs. We've had pizza at the restaurant a few times, which thrilled the kids. There are about 40 boats from all over the world in the anchorage including a handful of super yachts (>100 feet). There is reef interspersed throughout the anchorage making it a little more challenging to find a good spot to anchor. Even with boats this tightly together, float planes land amongst the boats which is quite a thrill to watch. We have really enjoyed this anchorage as we have been able to catch up with friends we haven't seen in a while, meet some new friends, and it is close to great surf.

We celebrated Gary's birthday out at Namotu, but unfortunately the wind picked up and it was no good for surfing, but the kite boarders were out in force. So we headed back to Musket Cove for a nice birthday dinner of tuna in the protected anchorage. Gigi made Gary a delicious carrot cake and decorated it so beautifully.

Gary will not have a hard time remembering this as his Fiji birthday, as he received only traditional Fijian artifacts for presents. Axel got him a cannibal fork and a model of a traditional sailing boat. I got him a hand carved kava bowl decorated with fine carvings of traditional Fijian symbols (mostly war clubs). His favorite present came from Gigi. She got him a huge war club. It is a neck breaker and gut extractor. It is hand carved and inlaid with mother of pearl, it's actually very beautiful. Now with all these weapons I guess he is ready to go to battle if he needs to.

  

We celebrated his birthday ashore at the yacht club a couple of days later with many friends. I had made lots of appetizers and everyone brought dinner to BBQ at the yacht club. Gigi made a pineapple coconut cake for this party and another friend made a huge vanilla cake.

While we had access to the nice big property of the resort, we took advantage so we got Axel's bike out, and to do fitness testing for the kids. California requires the kids to be able to run 1 mile and do a certain number of push-ups and sit-ups. So I mentioned we were going to do this testing to some of the other moms and they thought it was a great idea. So we ended up having 8 kids for the testing from Exodus, Fluenta, and Honey (and they didn't have shoes). It was fun watching the competitive side of some kids come out, especially among siblings. Happy to say that all the kids are in the healthy range (I expected that) and that Gigi and Brenden met the presidential award level. Unfortunately Axel needs to work on his speed in the running, I think he was checking out the scenery more than running.

The kids organized a big party for all the birthdays that will happen soon in their group (soon being in the next 2 months). So the party covered about half of the kids. Victoria made an amazing cake, so nicely decorated you might think it came from a store. Gigi and Axel made presents or found things they were will to part with. Gigi made Alex a coconut bra, he was very embarrassed. Gigi made a wind chime out of coral for Victoria and playdough for Seppe. Axel gave Alex a half melted, somewhat smushed lollypop. Alex was actually excited to get it.

After more than 1 week in the same place, we decided to join Exodus and Nautilus at Mana Island. To enter the lagoon you must go through a narrow, winding, shallow pass. It is well marked, but I still didn't enjoy this pass. The shallowest spot we went over was 9 feet, but we draw 7'8". Whenever we cross something so shallow I always wonder what else is beyond that spot. Coral does not grow evenly, no chart is accurate for coral reef, and sometimes it is hard to see the water depth. The difference in water color from 7' to 10' is very little.

The kids enjoyed this lagoon for scurfing, surfing behind the dinghy. We went ashore, but it wasn't that nice. At one end is an overpriced resort catering to middle class Australians with a fence and lots of caution signs blocking access to the backpackers resort, then one of the poorest villages we have seen in Fiji. It seems the villagers on this island got the worst of everything, their island got completely developed, but they didn't get any of the benefits.

While the guys were out spearfishing, or snorkeling with spear guns, as there were no fish to catch, Nirvana got a little too close to the reef. So Axel and I re-anchored the boat. I drove and he did everything with the anchor. He did such a great job, he even looked around, saw something that might foul the anchor chain and moved it before anything could happen. I'm really proud of the knowledge and confidence he has gained.

  

Now we are anchored off Namotu. We arrived yesterday afternoon in time for Gary to get a nice standup paddleboard surf session before dark. David Kalama, a world champion paddleboarder, has been here all week, and Gary has been watching his technique and asked him a few questions. That plus Ciro, from Malikalalou, has been giving Gary pointers, so his skills have radically improved and his is enjoying it so much more. We spent the night beside Namotu, but it is not a great overnight anchorage. Gary slept in the cockpit and I had 2 anchor alarms set. I think tonight we will go elsewhere. Right now Gary is going out to surf Tavarua. He has been dreaming of surfing there since before we started this trip. The kids and I are going to snorkel off Namotu.

In about 1 week Gary's nephew, Sam, is going to join us. His plan is to sail with us until December. Everyone is really looking forward to having Sam on board. We are in the process of loading him up with boat parts and items dearly wanted from the States. Gigi and Axel are going to get him to bring new legos. I am looking forward to having a young (19 years old), strong set of hands on board, as Vanuatu is known for stronger trade winds. We plan to head for Vanuatu about 1 week after Sam arrives.

Calm winds and fair seas,

Julie