In India, Getting Lost Is Half The Fun

Let them eat cake...!

Last Sunday we went for a drive out of Bangalore.  We were headed for the vineyards we had heard about North of the city.  Ley downloaded directions from Google Maps, and with the camera, books, map and  iPhone, we drove off.  But this was no ordinary Sunday drive....

After studying the map and Google directions we took what we thought was the correct road, but five minutes later we were lost and only a few kilometres from our hotel.  Neil back-tracked and took another road, but no, we were lost again.  So we continued on, Ley scanning the street scape for sign posts, business addresses - anything that would pin point our position on the map.  We took some interesting roads, crossed under the train tracks a few times, saw some fascinating sights but an hour later we were still hopelessly lost!

Boy Scout Technology

Not knowing the direction we were traveling, Neil opened his iPhone and turned on the compass/GPS app.  Where we wanted to go was NNW, where we were heading was due west. Compass to the rescue, we then headed north.

After spotting a road sign and matching it with the map we finally coordinated our position with the printed Google Map, and after 3.6 km the next turn was down a tiny lane and through a small village. It didn't feel right so this time we booted up the computer, plugged in the 3G cellular modem and logged on to Google earth.  Technology is amazing, we zoomed in on the map and all was revealed in larger scale.  So then we really knew where we were.....

Drinking chai while waiting to hear about the tow truck.

But road conditions changed and the bitumen morphed into a red earth track.  Then WHAM - we hit the only rock on the road.  The oil sump was pierced and oil dribbled out.  We were a long way from anywhere, so we quickly turned around and headed back towards civilization.  Once back on the bitumen road we came to a stop near an International school and a block of shop houses in a small village.

The oil continued to drain out as Ley walked up to the shops and asked if any one could help us.  One of the shop keepers called directory assistance and then arranged for a tow truck to come.  All we had to do was wait, and then wait some more.

Free Entertainment

Luckily for us one of the shops was a bakery.  As we hadn't had lunch we dined on curry puffs, sweet pastries and cups of chai.  We sat at the rickety plastic table on two wobbly chairs, ate our meal and read our books.  The bakery had many customers that afternoon - not sure if it was the sight of us sitting there for three hours, or the cakes and chai being the main attraction.

Karma

Vineyard in Bangalore

Across the road from the bakery was a vineyard - not the one we were looking for, but luckily for us the grapes were being picked.  The vines were trussed up above our heads and were supported by 4 x 4 granite posts.  We tasted the grapes and chatted to the sari clad workers, noting that the picking style was very different to when we picked grapes at Hankin Vineyard in Victoria.

Three hours later our tow van arrived, complete with 10 feet of chain.  A connection was made and off we went, back into town.  We arrived back after dark, it wasn't the Sunday drive we had planned on, but what an adventure!

To see more images of our Sunday afternoon drive and our travel and work time in India click here.

Finding The Balance

Neil with Tony Spence, David Seaman and Bas Huibers

Singapore Sailing Visitors

We've been delighted to have visitors from home during the last few months.  Neil's brother Peter and "a few mates" flew in for a shopping fix and get together.  All being members of the Royal Yacht Club Of Victoria, they were keen to see Singapore from the water.  Included in the group was Michael McLean, talented Para Olympics sailor.

We stowed Michael's wheel chair in the dock box, cast off the dock lines, and motored out for a barbeque and swim off St John's Island.  After lunch the wind picked up and the Royal's crew were getting a bit jittery - so up went the sails, and with Michael at the helm we had great afternoon with 10 to twelve knots of breeze- unusually good for Singapore !  Our good friend Cas Bukor also visited us for a week.  Whilst the weather was hot and wet, we all managed to have a good time.  Cas learned how to make Crystal Blues bread, and also did some quick graphic design work for Neil from the floating office.

Neil and Prasana in the Bangalore Office

 At The Coal Face

Neil has been working with the Space Matrix team for 5 months now.  He's hired four new staff to build the team in India and Singapore, and is constantly interviewing for more.

Multimedia projects and business growth in India are taking up most of his time, plus supporting and enhancing the Space Matrix regional IT networks.   Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad are his second homes now, and he's in India more than 2 weeks of every month.  He's gradually discovering the delights of India, including a vibrant live music scene - lots of rock and blues, but disappointingly little jazz.

His multimedia team are designing projects valued at more than 5 million US dollars, with clients including Wells Fargo, Axis Bank, Gartner Research, Shell and Symantec.  Space Matrix is growing rapidly, so on the IT side he's also planning for upgraded IT networks plus new offices in China and Dubai.

Sailing home from Johore.  Photo taken by Gordon Fraser

A Long Weekend!

Australians love a long weekend and Singapore National Day gave us a great opportunity to escape from the marina and go sailing, exploring up the Johor River in Malaysia.  We were invited to join a small group of seven local yachts on sail-away to Teluk Sengat. By sundown on Saturday afternoon all the yachts had cleared-in to Malaysia and were anchored in a beautiful bay at Teluk Sengat.  Dinghies ferried the crews into the Blue Dolphin restaurant (highly recommended) for a Chinese seafood banquet. The food and the company was great and the restaurant was re-booked for the following night.  Sunday offered a lazy start with roti canai for breakfast and a stroll around Teluk Sengat.  Sun-downers were held on Crystal Blues and this gave us a chance to get to know our fellow sailors.

A squall hit the fleet early on Monday morning and canceled our roti breakfast.  Sails went up, anchors were retrieved and we sailed down river to clear Malaysian Customs and Immigration.  After that we had a fantastic sail almost all the way back to the marina in Singapore. Can't wait for the next long weekend to sail away again.

A Month In Borneo

I Must Be Dreaming

Birthday surprise.

Crystal Blues is anchored on the very peaceful Sungai Tulai, and the sun is just peeping through the open hatches.  I'm still sleeping when I hear a choir of sweet young voices singing (very quietly) "Happy Birthday."  Of course I think I'm dreaming, so I lay in bed, sleeping, drifting off.  Then the choir starts up again, a little louder, and through the fog I realise - this is for real ! The singing is coming from the cockpit !  I stumble out of bed and through sleepy eyes I see nine children, a stack of gifts and a beautiful cake with candles burning.  After blowing out the candles, and opening the gifts, the children paddle home in their canoes.  What a fantastic way to start our birthday !

Then I turn on the computer.  As soon as Skype loads birthday messages and calls come flooding in.  Gary and Sue on SV Yaringa made a quick video call from Japan, just before they depart on passage to Alaska.  Our Seirra Wireless modem and the Celcom data card is provividng excellent service up here in the jungle. I quickly emailed some of the birthday images to Neil, who is still in Singapore.  Our birthdays will be spent apart, as Neil flew back to India and Singapore for a week of work.

Jungle Barbecue

Kikki and Betty preparing the middin fern

Jabu and Chanda suggested a barbecue in the jungle one afternoon and invited all the cruisers.  A children's committee was formed, menu and costings were calculated.  Coconut rice in bamboo, hot dogs, marinated chicken wings, fish bits, sausages and midden fern were on the menu.  I added an Aussie touch with potatoes in foil, cooked in the coals.  Next morning we speed off in the dinghy to purchase the supplies and others prepared the barbecue area and cut down the bamboo for the rice.
  

Two fires were prepared, one for the grill, one for the bamboo rice and potatoes.  While the food was cooking Jabu, Beretin and Dominic took the cruisers to explore the jungle.  The boys showed us large Nepenthes, (insect eating Pitcher plants), hanging orchids, birds nest ferns and many tall native fruit trees.  We arrived back as the food was being served on large green leaves.  Everyone agreed that it was a great adventure.

New reading glasses and big smiles!

Reading Glasses R Us

Kikii from SV Endelig and we on Crystal Blues had been collecting reading glasses and sun glasses.  One evening whilst visiting the long house we asked for a book and distributed the glasses.  Then we sat back as glasses were tested.  Eventually all those who needed new reading glasses found a suitable pair.  Our Iban friends will often "go without" with no complaints, but are happy to accept when the spirit is right.

Rubber Tapping Iban Style 

   

Jampie collecting the latex

Although this was our fifth visit to the longhouse, we had never visited a rubber plantation.  This year our good friend Jampie asked us if we would like to go and watch him tap and collect the white, silky latex.  Robert and Elaine (SV Sunrise) joined Ley and the kids early one morning to watch Jampie.  We saw the simple tool that is used to just skim open the the bark each morning.  He carefully poured the collected latex into a bottle and then turned over each cup so that the mosquitoes could not breed in them.     

Jentang and Asat rolling out the rubber.

The latex is then taken back to the long house and mixed with a coagulating chemical (an acid), left to firm up and then pressed out into rubber slabs.  These are then dried and sold off to the traders in town. Even after four years of visiting Rumah Lidam, we are still amazed by their culture and life skills.

Borneo River Action

Our Caribe "car" with a load of Iban visitors

We always think of our inflatable dinghy as our "car".  Here in Borneo, on the river Sungai Tulai, it is the quickest way for us to get to town, and really the only way to move around - visiting the long houses or bringing visitors to our boat.  Built by Caribe in Venezuela, it's now ten years old and still going strong.  On our last visit here the Caribe carried a mother in labour to hospital - and that child was named after Ley.  Last week it carried a badly injured young man to the same hospital, after he was involved in an accident in the longhouse.  Bleeding badly, he was carried from the longhouse in a woven sling under a stout pole and loaded onto the floor.  We hear that he survived, but may not have use of his fingers.

Local Boats 

Our Iban friend Jampie made his own boat 5 years ago.  He went into the jungle, cut the tree down and then cut the timber into long planks.  These were left to dry out and then he built his boat.  That tradition continues, though this year we were surprised to see new styles emerging - boats clearly built for speed.  This year, the young men are building small racing boats, practicing for a competitive regatta to be held on the river in July.  Though the designs are new, they're assembled with the same skills used by their fathers.  

 Each boat uses a small (standard) chinese manufactured petrol engine, air cooled with a single cylinder. Propeller selection and hull shape seems to be up to the builder.  Every day this week they've been carried down to the river and tested, sometimes with dramatic results. Iban boats are usually steered by a single paddle, held over the side.  These new boats have rudimentary rudders with a basic rope steering system.  These afternoon practice sessions are great entertainment for the locals - big and small, old and young, the community crowds the dock, offering words of encouragement and helpful suggestions. There is always alot of laughter. Neil uses our dinghy as the "crash" boat.  He has towed a few boats back to the dock and was instrumental in one rescue where the driver flew out of his boat whilst turning too sharply.  The boat sped off into the jungle along the riverbank.  It was totally hidden in the undergrowth and a machete was called for to hack a path into it.  All the time the engine was roaring away - no safety cut out switches here. 

Glamour For The Girls

There are three yachts now visiting the longhouses here on Sungai Tulai for the Gawai festival.  Yesterday afternoon the three cruising women decided to add a bit of glamour for the local girls.  They gathered up nail files, polish, polish remover and a splash of perfume, and headed into the long house.                                                                        

Ley gave a quick talk on  manicure and nail polishing techniques.  Nails were cleaned and filed, cuticles pushed down and then the painting began. One coat of clear base, two coats of colour and then two top protective coats - all in fairly rapid succession.  Extreme speed nail painting followed, but we all had a great time and many beautifully manicured hands were seen in the long house that evening. Many thanks to Kikki from SV Endelig and Christina from SV Roxy for helping hands and the perfume.

Sarawak Update

Crystal Blues anchored in the Santubong River

After a three day passage from Singapore, we dropped anchor in the Santubong River, where we're surrounded by peace and serenity.  Mt Santubong towered overhead, attracting a crown of clouds, whilst from it's slopes a chorus of jungle birds called.  Malay fishermen were quietly hauling in their nets and the ever shy Irrawaddy Dolphins were quietly surfacing around us.  It was a great welcome back for our 4th visit to Borneo.

Dollar and Pende, caretakers of Datu Linggi's house and dock here, were on hand to greet us.  They confirmed that cruisers are still welcome to tie their dinghy to the dock and that fresh, potable water is available.  A new development this year is the "No Berthing" sign - sadly some boats have abused the privilege of Datu Linggi's kindness, and have not only tied to the dock, but when asked to move on, they refused to do so.  This is not leaving a clean wake for others!

Ian and Mona, the owners of the Kuching registered SV Kumang, confirmed that there is still a sunken fishing boat immediately off the large Jabatan Laut dock.  Anchoring there, or too close to the fish farms, has caused problems for cruisers in the past.  Employing a diver to untangle your anchor is expensive in these crocodile infested waters.  And yes - we saw our first croc in the anchorage this visit! 

Reviewing the Rajang River charts with the Cartographers

Ian has kindly supplied a detailed Google Map of where to check in.  We also visited the Cartography Office of the Jabatan Laut, Sarawak Marine Department (Lot 683, Section 66, Jalan Utama, Tanak Puteh, Kuching) and purchased three recently updated charts for the Rajang River.  Charts required are SAR 1440, 1441 and 15.

We visited the new marina on the Kuching River and were advised that they have onshore facilities and there is water and power to some of the slips.  It is located some distance from Kuching adjacent to the new Convention Centre, before the bridge and barrage, but has none of the beauty of the Santubong anchorage.  It really is in the middle of an industrial waste land, though when the convention centre is finished it should all be different.

Three Days To Gawai!

Crystal Blues is now anchored on Sungai Tulai, in front of Rumah Lidam long house.  We have been blessed with wonderful friendships with these Iban families over the last 4 years, and have been warmly welcomed back into their homes and lives.  Last night we were invited into the long house for a jam session with the band.  Neil was given a few rhythm lessons by Jambar then the fun began.  We also shared a few glasses of tuak, yumai Iban home made rice wine.

We carefully walked down the boardwalk to the dinghy dock only to find our dinghy beached in knee high sloppy mud.  Neil waded in, pushed and pulled and finally the dinghy was freed - then we had to deal with mud caked legs, clothes and bags.  A refreshing midnight swim in the river cleaned us up.  Dealing with 5 metre tides makes for interesting times up river.

Back To Work

Neil at work

We stunned quite a few friends with this decision, whilst others thought we had sailed off the edge of the world. We just see it as part of the adventure.

Late last year Neil was offered a position with Space Matrix Design Consultants in Singapore, to establish a new multi-media business similar to our previous enterprise in Australia.  The new operation would be part of the turn key solutions that Space Martix wanted to offer to their clients.  Space Matrix is one of the fastest growing architectural and interior design firms in Asia.  It is Singapore based, with offices in India, Bangkok and Sydney.  Our good friend (and best man) Steven Shaw is the Regional Design Director, hence the arm twisting offer.

A few weeks into work Neil added another hat to his Multi-Media role, by taking on the management of Space Matrix's IT teams. As most of Space Marix's offices and his AV and IT staff are based in India, there will be a lot of travelling involved.

So we have based ourselves and Crystal Blues at OneDegree 15 Marina in Singapore and are enjoying the change of life.  Neil's wardrobe has been expanded with new work clothes, whilst Ley has taken on the care and maintenance of Crystal Blues (and Neil).

Neil started work in early March, after our shake down cruise to the Andaman islands.  We still manage to cast off the dock lines every other weekend, drop the anchor and chill out with friends.  One weekend our godson, Ethan Shaw and his younger brother stayed onboard, so the boat and the systems are still getting a good work out.

Najat ( dancing) at Gawai

9 Days To Gawai Festival

Our younger Iban friends have been bombarding us with text and Facebook messages, plus emails with questions and countdowns for Gawai. Neil telephoned our friend Jampie in the longhouse on Sungai Tulai, Sarawak, this week and told him that we would be there this year to share in the celebrations.  For the dayak peoples of Borneo, the Gawai festival is like Christmas, New Year & Thanks Giving all rolled into one.

We don't know who is the most excited, as we have really missed all our friends at the longhouse Rumah Lidam, on the Tulai River.  It will be only a short visit, due to work commitments, but we'll party hard, hopefully celebrating with lots of music and dancing.

The Joys of Getting Old

Shaun and Sarah snorkeling at Roc Nok, Thailand

Our son Shaun and his wife Sarah joined us for a 10 day cruise from Phuket to Langkawi in February.  We explored the delights of Phuket and then set off via Phi Phi Don, Rok Nok and the Butang Islands, enjoying some good sailing and great snorkeling along the way. Shaun even managed to catch at least 4 fish a day on our new Thai lure.

Before we left Phuket, Shaun said to me "Mum we have some bad news and some good news".  I asked for the bad news first - "Mum, you are getting old!"  This wasn't news to me, so after a few seconds the good news was announced  -  we are going to be grandparents in early September!  Lots of hugs and tears of happiness followed. When they flew from Langkawi back to Melbourne Sarah's "baby bump" had already started to show.  And we're still smiling!

Refitting In Thailand

Are we addicted to refitting ?  Many of our friends think so, yet I know I'd rather be sailing. Our recent stay in Thailand was our longest refit, lasting 16 months on the hard stand in Boat Lagoon, Phuket.

Anyone can make 8 months of work extend to 16 months - ask me, I'm an expert ! A good proportion of the time delay was caused by us going off to travel and work elsewhere .... but its still a long time to be out of the water.

The golden rule to refitting in Thailand is never leave the boat - you just have to be there every day, checking, assessing, instructing and of course trying to have fun.  If you manage to find the right approach (the right attitude) you will have fun, and the local Thai workers will be responsive and friendly.   If you get way too serious and way too demanding you'll lose them (literally), and find yourself with no workers on the boat the next day.  This can be a serious problem ....


After 16 months on the ground in Thailand we've dealt with every type of problem, and almost all the major service providers in Phuket.   Quite a few stood out, providing remarkable service, and we are confident in recommending them. Here are our Gold Star Winners :

Siam Cooling are without doubt the most competent marine refrigeration engineers I have ever dealt with, anywhere in the world.  The level of expertise and standard of workmanship was truly amazing.  They upgraded our 240 volt refrigeration to a more efficient system, working to my design (which would test any contractor).   Then they installed a split system water cooled air-conditioning  system that is first class.  Introduce yourself to Stephane, a third generation refrigeration engineer who heads the company.  Place your trust in his solutions - we believe they are world class.  Just to visit their factory is a delight - a clean and well organised working environment, motivated staff, top class facilities, an education in best practice. The Siam Cooling team stand out as leaders in the marine refrigeration market.
 

Cutting out the damaged steel dodger

Luk Engineering are the best marine engineers in Phuket.  Have I made myself clear ? 

They can custom manufacture almost anything for boats in stainless steel, mild steel or marine grade aluminium.   Their service is excellent, the team are universally friendly and if they make a mistake they fix it, no questions asked.   Early in our project a "less scrupulous operator" managed to demolish our beautiful steel dodger - Luk and his team re-built it carefully, better than new.  With a huge and well equipped machine shop, they tune and repair propellers, turn customs shafts and build everything from rudders to complete ships.  A very impressive operation.
  



Precision Shipwright Services are a division of East Marine at Boat Lagoon.  David Samuelson and his team provide skilled rigging services with a huge range of rope, wire, parts and spares on hand.

David supplied our new Profurl genoa furler, new forestay and rigged our twin backstays.  He tuned the rig and was always there when we needed him, a rare gift among service trades in Thailand.  None of this comes cheap, but its all well worth it.  I wouldn't trust this kind of work to anybody else.

Do we look happy?

Morn Car Rentals   Some times Thai people and culture are difficult for us westerners to understand - and at first glance my good friend Morn seems just too nice to be true.  But get used used to it - this guy really is that good.  Morn operates a "cruisers support service" from his small shop on the highway, just outside Boat Lagoon Marina.  He rents cars and motor bikes at reasonable rates, he runs a laundry service for cruisers, and a book lending library.  If thats not enough, Morn has recently started offering a Poste Restante service - you can have your mail and parcels delivered to your name, care of his address. As he's right across the road from the local Post Office the service is regular, and we trust Morn implicitly.  Have your mail sent to :  Your Name, Your Boat Name, C/- 12/15 Moo 2, Thepkasatree Road, Kho-Kaew, Mung, Phuket, Thailand, 83000.   Morn will also collect you from the airport when you arrive, and will deliver your rental car to almost anywhere on the island. 
When I landed in hospital with Dengue fever, Ley needed a car desperately but none were available as it was peak season.  Morn took the bus to Bangkok (almost 20 hours) to collect a car and then drove it back to Phuket so Ley would have transport.  He's one of those special Thai people who give us very happy refit memories.

Flat Water Sailing

Sydney Harbour, 1997

I remember when we announced to our families that we were buying a yacht, my brother in law Peter said “Ley, you're in love with flat water sailing - wait until you find out what it is really like out there!”  Eventually I did ....

Crystal Blues came into our life in 1997, and we sailed her up and down the east Australian coast from the Whitsundays to Melbourne twice, whilst working to extricate ourselves from our business life.  On our second Bass Strait crossing we suffered a spreaders in the water knockdown.   I was on watch by myself, at night, and when I heard the roar of a rogue wave I grabbed onto the dodger as we were pushed over to port.  Water flooded into the cockpit, loose gear flew across the saloon.  Neil and cousin Glen came running up the companion way to check things out.  Quickly they re-trimmed sails, asked if I was okay and went straight back to bed.  The autopilot didn't miss a beat, all was dry down below and I still had a few hours of my watch to finish.  It was a frightening but empowering experience - definitely not flat water sailing !

Harwood Slipway, 2000

After a major refit in 2000 and our first ocean crossing to New Caledonia in 2003 (flat water again) we were ready to leave Australia and head into Asia in 2005.

On passage from Cairns to Darwin we experienced the best of fast, flat water sailing.  Hour upon hour, day and night we silently flew along inside the Great Barrier Reef. Around Cape York (with the MPS flying) we raced onwards, reaching Darwin in 8 days.  This year, after 16 months of refit in Phuket, we were really keen to hear water rushing by the hull and to feel the wind on our face again.

Sailing to the Andaman Islands in January we were not disappointed – scooting along at 6-7 knots in a light NE wind reminded us why we do love flat water sailing.

Off watch on the way to The Andaman Islands

Stretched out in the cockpit, our favourite jazz music playing, my orchid hanging under the boom and nothing but calm blue seas around, anyone would love this type of sailing.  Our passage to Port Blair was fast and smooth, and we spent three laid back weeks in the Andmans before returning to Phuket.  Flat water all the way.

Time To Go ......

Our Iban friends waving goodbye on Sungai Tulai

Each departure has its own emotional signature - leaving Australia over 4 years ago was different to leaving Borneo 18 months ago.  In each case the lead-up is similar - prepare the vessel, stock up, share special moments with family and friends, then say goodbye. As cruisers (sea gypsies?) we soon learn to quickly look ahead to our next destination and to savour what it might offer - that is, after all, why we do this. When we departed Borneo last time the entire community was there to see us off, and many tears were shed on the dock and on board Crystal Blues.

Tomorrow, we depart Thailand after 15 months of serious refit work,  plus various part time employment in the region. We won't be shedding any tears.  Its not that we don't love the people (we do), and we have made some fabulous friends, its just that 15 months is too long - our sea gypsy blood requires us to move farther and more often than we have been able.

So the past week or so has seen a familiar tension re-enter our life, as Ley tries cutting the dock lines every day and I urge caution and point out the important jobs still on our to-do list.  This is a personal conflict we've waged many times.  Lately, with the boat looking so beautiful, its easy to feel like I should just roll over and agree. Each time I look at Crystal Blues she seems to want to move, so it feels like both the women in my life are ganging up on me.  Its difficult ....

Ready and waiting at Grand Ao Po Marina, Phuket

Yesterday we filled our tanks (fuel & water) and sea-trialled our re-commissioned auto-pilot system.  Everything worked, so I declared us OK to depart.  Ley baked more bread, the outboard motor disappeared into the forward hold, the dinghy was strapped into the davits and we requested yet another weather forecast.  Today we drove down to Ao Chalong and cleared both immigration and customs, so we're officially on our way at last.

On the way home we purchased our final stock of fresh produce and had dinner at a favourite local restaurant - steamed whole fish, three different varieties of mushrooms and lots of lovely stir fried local vegetables. When we explained to the restaurant owners that we were leaving they immediately showered us with gifts - fresh local fruits for our voyage - the Thai people can be so generous.

We launched on December 4, so it has taken almost six weeks to complete the necessary jobs on board, working 7 days a week.  Today we're sailing for Port Blair in the Andaman Islands, where we plan to spend a few weeks of well earned chill out, before returning to Thailand.  Fair winds all.

A Buddhist Blessing

Back in October we decided that the boat simply HAD to be in the water by Christmas, so we made a plan to achieve this, which included a long, long, long check list of all the jobs that had to be completed.  This included building a new genoa furler and forestay, new backstays, installing the mast and rudder, antifoul painting, Propspeed on the running gear, and a million carpentry, painting and electrical jobs inside the cabin.  In the machinery space aft I needed to recomission the watermaker and the generator - not trivial exercises after 15 months. Then the washing machine died, never to be repaired, and we found ourselves building a new stainless steel frame and deck to support the air-con equipment and a new washing machine. Our rented storage shed was still full of posessions, and these were slowly moved back on board day by day. Our contractors caught the spirit, and work accelerated to meet out launching date of December 4th.

The night before launching we organised a small function to thank our friends and contractors and to bless the boat for her new life afloat.  A shy yet graceful Buddhist monk officiated, blessing the vessel and crew with sacred waters and scribing his blessings with finger paint on the new bow seat, with a crowd of friends and workers looking on.   

Partying hard the night before the launch

Not surprisingly, we all partied long and hard that night, with Thai food and drinks served under the boat on the hard stand area. The man with the thumb in this picture is Malek, from Pro Yachting, who graciously organised the temple monk. The man with the food is our good friend Yat, skilled carpenter and all round nice guy.  The cool dude in the black jacket is Lek, responsible for the better stainless steel work on the boat.  Oh, the girl is Lek's sister Nat of course !
Next day we literally staggered out of bed to prepare for the launching, with the travel lift scheduled for 11.00am.  This being Thailand, it arrived an hour early, as the yard guys wanted to be finished before lunch! It all worked out in the end, and a crazy procession of friends and workers followed the travel lift as it moved through the yard carrying Crystal Blues toward the water. So here we were launching the boat, still with a carpenter (Yat) and cleaner (Joy) working on board - for Joy it was her first boat trip - not very far!  You might feel that Crystal Blues is dwarfed by the huge travel lift in this image - but thats their small lifting machine - the really big one costs more.

As she was lowered into the water we checked every through-hull, the rudder seal and the shaft log, then signalled all clear to the guys on the travel-lift.

1000 fire crackers to launch Crystal Blues

The Cummins diesel started first touch and seemed keen to get a move on.  In traditional Thailand every new boat voyage is started with fireworks, to drive away the bad spirits.  Yat did the honours for us that day, setting off a massive string of 1000 fire crackers, all suspended from our boat hook on the bow as we moved out of the slip.

We motored away from the dock and moved down the creek to a new berth - but the channel there is so shallow we were led by a pilot boat, and we pushed through the mud for quite a while before finding deeper water at Royal Phuket Marina.

Of course putting the boat in the water didn't mean the end of work for us - in fact our job list seemed to grow, whilst the contractors were almost finished.   We spent three weeks in that marina, fitting sails, sheets, halyards, air conditioning (OK, don't laugh, its very cool), commissioning myriad electronic systems and even relaxing a little bit..... Christmas and New Year were approaching......

The MegaZip Way

Zooming down a mountain at 60kmph, hanging by a single rope tether ...... flying over jungle, beach and ocean.  Landing on a tiny sand island and returning to the beach for a very welcome beer .... that's the MegaZip experience !  It sure beats hanging around in a boat yard.

Sandra Stonham and Neil videoing while zipping at MegaZip

MegaZip is a thrill packed adventure park on Singapore's Sentosa Island.  It has Asia's longest zip-ride plus three other action attractions - ClimbMax, Para Jump and North Face.  In July this year we were lucky enough to be asked to produce promotional videos for MegaZip, which was the start of a fascinating and ongoing relationship.  In the first few weeks we produced the video's originally requested, using volunteer talent and improvised "flying" aparatus.  The image above shows cruising friend Sandra Stonham acting out for the camera whilst travelling downhill at considerable speed.

Robert Goh and Neil on the North Face

Our Sony CineAlta HD camera survived the experience, which was a lot more energetic than filming luxury villas, our previous gig.   Another sailing friend, Robert Goh, a serious mountaineer, kindly played "talent" for our coverage of the North Face climbing wall.  You can watch one of our short MegaZip video's on YouTube here.  Or you can download a medium resolution version here. 

As the relationship grew we moved on to designing lighting and electrical systems for the park.  A range of project management and infrastructure tasks followed, which saw me commuting back and forth to Singapore quite a lot over recent months.

The MegaZip Adventure Park is now fully operational.  Its located on top of Mount Imbiah, the tallest hill on Sentosa Island - don't miss it when you're in Singapore.

Its A Long Way To The Top .........

If You Wanna Rock& Roll !   Aussie rock band AC/DC spoke the truth back in 1975 with their hit song (view it here).  Right now Ley and I feel we're close to the top after a very long climb - Crystal Blues is progressing rapidly.

In the past three weeks the life lines and deck fittings have been finalised and we've completed all the work in the forward hold (its a palace !).  David Samuelson, the rigger from East Marine, has built a new 12mm forestay and twin backstay setup for us.  The Cummins diesel fired up at the first touch (thank heavens).  Last Saturday the tent and frame were removed from the hull - for the first time in twelve months we had to remember to shut hatches and worry about the rain.  The new rigid bimini was also installed last Saturday, and the tent was removed from the mast.

Later that same day, one of the Phuket Boat Lagoon travel lift machines (they have four) lifted us up so that the rudder could be installed.  Its now in the right hole, but we can't quite get it in far enough to attach the shoe.....nothing that a hydraulic jack wont fix.  Thats a job for tomorrow.

Sunday was a significant day for us - we started putting things back on to the boat, instead of taking them off !  The storage shed is now starting to look empty - lines, life jackets and water toys are all cleaned and back on board.  The bitter end of the chain is attached to the samson post and we'll wind the chain and anchor on board  just as soon as the rigging is completed.

The mast is rigged and ready for installation, which will be at 8.00am tomorrow if the crane arrives on time.  After that we can focus on the internals, which are some way behind.  Our friend Khun Nhoon has completed re-finishing of all the cupboard doors and frames, and he's spray painted the bathroom.  His man Khun Jack is busy sanding and priming in the galley, which should get its final top coats this week.   Then our favourite carpenter and friend Yat will come back in and finish the new Corian bench tops. 

Launch date is set for December 4th, when we'll rapidly move around to Royal Phuket Marina to complete the commissioning and internal works.   Our aim is to get out of the marina and spend Christmas / New Year at Nai Harn Bay, then head for the Andaman Islands early in January.

Right now we have very little time for socialising - haven't had  a proper day off in 4 months - more on that in our next entry.  It will all be worth it when she hits the water next week.  Its rock & roll time ...

A Flying Visit Home

Coffee with friends in Williamstown

Late September we flew home to Australia, to celebrate Neil's fathers 80th birthday. It was a great opportunity to catch up with family and also do a bit of shopping....   Melbourne's winter had been warm and dry, but all that changed the day we arrived.

A cold, wet wintry week greeted us, so out came our leather jackets, winter woollies and boots.  We cheekily suggested that maybe the Melbourne Weather Bureau should fly us home so that we can assure Victoria of more rain!

Dean's 80th Birthday

Neil's sister, Julie, and sister-in-law, Maria, did a superb job of organising the party.  Brendan and two friends played cool, live jazz and we had a wonderful time catching up with friends and relatives.

Peter Langford organised a very special surprise for Dean.  Midway through the party three members of  The Society Syncopaters  marched through the front door playing his favourite trad jazz.

Dean has been a long time follower of this band, so when the two bands joined for a great jam session it was smiles all round...  Topping all this off was the wonderful speech delivered by Laurie, Dean's eldest grandson.

We spent time with Nadia (Neil's niece) and Bonnie, (Ley's great-niece) - what a thrill to see the family expanding in all directions !  We are very lucky..






Singapore Stopover


On our way back to Phuket we stopped over in Singapore to catch up with the Shaw family.  Ethan, our godson, along with the rest of the family, is moving to Singapore in December.  We had an afternoon of fun at the MegaZip Adventure Park on Sentosa Island - one of our current work projects.

Ethan and Eli both rode the Megazip, while Carol Shaw romped around the ClimbMax obstacle course.

The Gadget Boat

Crystal Blues has often been called the gadget boat.  Neil likes to collect unusual & useful objects - a digital infra-red temperature sensor, a solder sucker, an AIS system and an onboard PC network seem like normal things for him to have around.

Last year our dear friends Gordon and Miriam Zittel (SV Anwagomi) delivered a lime juicer "specially modified" to suit Crystal Blues - complete with its own circuit board and wires.  Are we really that wired ?  Guess so ... the tiny gadget we used most recently had been buried in the camera box for years, but was worth its weight in gold when we had problems inside our mast.  We really needed an endoscope ....

Endoscopes R Us

While re-building our mast we managed to get a halyard really neatly wrapped around the radar cable inside the mast.  To make matters worse, that same halyard also managed to jam itself under a conduit fastener (so we thought) further down inside the rig.  So now we couldn't move it anywhere, and we were not going to cut that radar cable - or the halyard.  We needed to see what was going on.


Out came two flat scrubbing brushes, a long plastic pole, one 9 volt battery, one fluorescent work light and one tiny radio transmitting mini pin-hole video camera.  Gaffer taped together, they slid gently into the mast - the brushes ensured smooth travel over pop rivets, bolts and miscellaneous obstructions inside the mast. Just like an endoscope, but up the mast instead of up the - well you get the idea..

It worked perfectly - with the wireless receiver sitting just outside the mast base we viewed the problem on another Sony camera screen - we could see the halyard wedged in between 2 conduits!  Knowledge is power, and it only took another few minutes then to solve the problem.  In the image at right  you can see Neil's finger pointing to the tiny camera, taped to the end of the blue plastic pole.

We then enlisted a few more hands to turn over the mast again, conduits facing upwards, and re-installed all the halyards (again), this time without any jams.  We lost a days work, but saved a heap of cash - that little gadget finally paid for itself.