Dear Family and Friends,

 

23rd May 2015

 

Mostly under sail, we are making good progress towards the northern end of the Tuamotus and thence to Tahiti. We should reach Manihi in the Tuamotus by tomorrow and from there it is a 2 day sail to the capital of French Polynesia, Papeete.

 

One of the good things about being at sea, apart from the cooling breezes is the freedom from biting insects and the necessary daily dousing with Deet, such a relief.

 

Reading the tourist information about Tahiti and nearby Moorea, I think we will have a busy time. It is easy to see how cruisers spend years here.

 

With the need to close down the fridge and freezer when we are away, our meals have become a journey into new and interesting combinations dependant on what needs using up. Butternut and squashes in general are really good for long distance sailing, they seem to last forever. Today we are eating up one purchased in Grenada in mid February and it is perfectly fine. Our cruising friends report keeping whole cheeses under the boards for a year. Funnily enough tins with long use by dates can be more of a problem as they are prone to rust. So this week we have used some corned beef, (good for hash but can also be used like mince, thank you for that tip, Georgie,) tinned peppers (quite good), sweet corn, water chestnuts, bottled olives and peaches so far. You can hardly ever get fresh mushrooms so tinned and dried are the next best option. Although I have them, tinned peas are a last resort! I am hoping for better taste from the bottled cabbage; as previously reported bottled carrots (grated and in vinegar) are a good standby for salads. The tinned meats still reproach me for their lack of use but we will have to venture even here as they will be confiscated in New Zealand along with any honey, (bee disease prevention). We have more or less run out of snacks, I’ll have to make some more as these seem to mysteriously disappear on the night watches!

 

Talking of which, getting up at strange hours seems to play havoc with the body clock, I am often hungry in the early hours. With really rolling swell sleep patterns are also up the creek, rising at noon today I only have until 6pm before it is dark again and that seems like a half day.

 

Dinner soon and then the long night watches. I spend a lot of time watching the stars, a little reading and the frequent sail and course tweaking. We think an Ipod or whatever the latest equivalent is, should be on our list of things to bring back.

 

All our best,

 

Lynne and Alan