Let them eat (dry) cake

Sand spit in Tonga (only at low tide). The kids played
'Marco Polo' on land.

As we celebrated Matt's birthday last week, he got a little older and I was reminded that I am not getting any smarter. I made a cake from a mix--the kind that literally has four ingredients (cake mix, eggs, oil, and water)--and managed to forget one of the ingredients. To file away in your collection of nearly-useless information: if you're going to forget an ingredient in prepackaged cake mix, water is the only one you can get away with. I wouldn't recommend it unless you like really dry cake, though. Fortunately homemade chocolate frosting covers a lot of sins, if a bit lumpily.

A walking stick insect on a hike in Tonga. Note
Conrad's I'm-not-touching-it face

We had a better-than-expected passage from Tonga to Fiji. Wind speeds were higher than predicted and we made great time. Unfortunately the good wind only held for two days. On the third day, we had to throw up the spinnaker to maintain a decent speed and then slow ourselves way down overnight to avoid an arrival in the dark. During the trip, it was relatively calm but the sea state didn't completely agree with us. No one got sick but no one felt like doing or eating much. We were happy as usual to get to our destination.

That's rapidly boiling water behind Conrad.

Our friends on Amelie, who had been in Fiji for a week, arranged for a mooring nearby and gave us the lay of the land. The various officials, including the most jovial customs official we have encountered yet (he started out by joking that he would be taking the kids away for a bit of a holiday), boarded our boat and got us checked in warmly and efficiently.

Waitui Marina has showers. We had never seen a hot water
heater at the shower head before. I had already finished
my very cold shower; Matt figured it out before his.

Savusavu is a real, working city (as opposed to one that lives off of tourists) with enticing smells coming out of the many storefronts that line the waterfront. Food is inexpensive (doubly so because of the 2:1 exchange rate with the U.S. dollar) and delicious. As the local personality "Curly" has mentioned on the morning VHF net, it is almost cheaper to eat out than to cook at home. When we got to shore, Mark and Conrad ran straight for the fumaroles on the black sand beach. Sometimes locals cook food or even skin animals over the boiling water of the hot springs there and elsewhere in the island (although a sign at one hot springs site prohibits the killing and preparation of animals there).

We will spend a few days enjoying Savusavu and then head to the Lau Group, where there will be nothing but remote villages without stores or restaurants.

Would have, could have, should have

We attended a Tongan feast with several friends. We
almost missed it because we crossed the international date line

Matt noticed the other day that our old house resold for almost $150,000 more than we sold it for three and a half years ago. The couple that bought it from us made almost no changes, down to the placement of almost all the furniture and artwork they purchased from us. It was eerie to see the place almost the same as we had left it.

Conrad getting ready to dive down to get to Mariner's Cave submerged
entrance. He's come a long way in his snorkeling abilities.

After the initial vague regret of all the money we 'could' have had if we had waited a few years (not to mention the additional money we probably would have saved up), Matt and I quickly made peace with the new information. We have had so many unforgettable experiences with our boys during the last nearly-three years that I can't imagine having waited until now to start cruising. Life is short, which is the main reason we're out here. Of course, it's just as likely that we're much better at rationalizing our choices now. Boat ownership does that to you.

Swallows' Cave had huge ribbons of schooling fish. Our friends
on Miss Behaving took us and a bunch of other kid boats.

We are enjoying the relative civilization of Tonga, as well as the beautiful clear water and idyllic islands. The produce market has a lot more variety than we have seen in a long time and the meat pies are delicious. Food in general is inexpensive and the exchange rate is very favorable for us.

Conrad and Claudia (Seabbatical) sailing from one anchorage
to another. Finn and Riley were in another, while Hayley
from Miss Behaving windsurfed over.

Unfortunately, it's the coldest winter here that the locals have seen in a while (one morning the thermometer read in the high 60's F) so we haven't felt like swimming much. There are a lot of whales here and the pigs in town seem to rival the population in numbers.

Pigs digging for clams at low tide. They are very skittish.
You probably would be too if you were made of bacon.

We have said goodbye for now to several of the kid boats we have been sailing with, as we head in different directions. We're sad to see them go. We'll be in Tonga for another week or so and then we'll head to Fiji.