Makemo

Sunday 5/29/2011

Well, we have waited out a storm front here in Makemo for a week. It has been very (max of 40kts) windy. But, it has also been a real treat to be tied up to the wharf here - especially since it is free!!! We did not expect to be able to be at a dock until Hawaii in November. So way cool for us. The local people here are very friendly, and the cruising boats here have provided unlimited entertainment for the local kids. Just goes to show that not much happens out here on Makemo!! Josh is picking up a little bit of French with the help of his friend Francois from Calou. The rest of us are getting a lot of practice as well, as English is not spoken very much. Really it is good for us to be immersed, so we learn faster.

As I said earlier, we have gotten a lot of projects done, only have three left on the list - finish rebedding a stantion, run Josh up the mast to fix the wind vane (definitely not something to be done in high winds, and we may have to forgo for now), and sew some straps onto a pad to protect the dinghy from the windvane when it is on the davits. The generator pump is fixed (finally, was not a straightforward process), the dinghy is patched and floating (finding a weather window to get that done was also a challenge) and I have done a lot of mending with the sewing machine. I even made sword scabbards for the 2 little boys on Charade and Calliopyge (the 2 French boats at the dock). My biggest chore remains laundry. I try to keep caught up, otherwise it gets overwhelming. But, all the sheets and towels are now freshly laundered. Now all we have to do is make water to refill the tank I emptied to get it all done.

Yesterday I went snorkeling in the afternoon, right off the boat. It is so clear and there is a reef just on the other side of the dock. I saw lots of cool fish - the coolest being a common lionfish - and one small black tip reef shark. It was nice to get in the water. Dennis had the kites out, and then took the kayak out. Josh helped with a lot of chores and then hung out with Francois. Surprisingly it has been pretty cool. Maybe we are just acclimated, but I actually had to wear a jacket to sit in the cockpit last evening. It is still pretty windy, but seems to be calmimg down a little bit. It will do what it will do I guess, we just have to wait and see. We are ready to move on though so hopefully.......