Jubilation--dolphins again!

After a long dry spell from dolphins, we saw a couple large pods on our way to Nggatokae Island, including new-to-us Risso's dolphins. We got to swim with a big local pod of dolphins yesterday and today. Now we just need to get over this fishing dry spell.

Nggatokae Island

This is our first blog post via email so hopefully it works.

We have been enjoying the peace and quiet of the anchorage near Peava village. The village has incredible carvers and make enough money from carving and logging. That might be why we have had very few canoes coming by to trade. The kids have been playing with the Field Trip and village kids on the rope swings. Conrad has gotten to use the carving tools he got for Christmas. A couple of local carvers gave him a piece of wood and some carving tips. Matt's leg has finally healed enough to do some diving and snorkeling. There are lots of turtles, sharks, and coral.

Still bobbing around in the Florida Islands

Four catamarans in Tulagi Bay

The heat has twice caused our windlass motor button to spontaneously start (they are triggered by air pressure instead of an electrical switch). It has been when the cover was lifted and the hot Solomon sun blazed down on it. Both times it was the 'down' button (which is good) and we were on board and stopped it by turning off the breaker. Another sign of the heat. And I think we've learned to keep that cover down!



WWII bullets (50 cal?) found by /given to Conrad.
Of course, now he wants a grenade....

We have been waiting around to get a bit of welding done (there was a small crack on a mast tang which we eventually had welded at Avi Avi slipway). In the meantime, the kids have been having fun catching frogs with their friends and taking in the rich World War II history everywhere.

Collecting shells

WWII LST (Landing Ship- Tank) wrecked in the mangroves. Can't blame the enemy
for this one- the captain took a wrong turn and ended on a reef!

My poison ivy-like rashes are finally healed and I am over a case of what may have been a mild case of dengue. We are all provisioned up and ready to head to Morovo. The wind is light so it will be a slow ride.

Hand-dug road cut canyon (by prisoners)

Another view of the boats from Tulagi

Temporary crew and normal life

Poor man's drone photo: Matt took this shot from the mast
as he checked our tricolor light.

As we were leaving for Honiara, John (the leader of the village near our anchorage in Roderick Bay) asked whether we and our buddy boats could take some kids with us for a school event. We hemmed and hawed to ourselves and weren't thrilled with a number of considerations, not the least of which was the idea of folks we really didn't know being on the boat, even if only for 5 hours.  We ultimately said we could take 10 (our friends on Field Trip said they could take up to 15). We were on the verge of saying no and even 10 seemed like an awful lot, mostly because of safety.

Some of the 18 villagers who joined us on our 5-hour run to Honiara

But the villagers have treated us very well and we felt we should try to accommodate them. Well, the morning of our departure, we ended up with 18 villagers and our friends on Field Trip got 19. Luckily our concerns were not met and they were all very well-behaved and there were no issues, except for one older girl who tossed her cookies despite the relatively calm passage.

We spent a few days in Honiara running errands and then headed back to Roderick Bay. Here in the relative calm, Matt went up the mast to work on a connection issue with our tricolor masthead light.  He also ran a new main wire from the battery bank to the circuit panel as there had been a bit of a voltage drop he wanted to correct. The old wire was probably original to the boat. We plan to hang out here for a bit longer to do more projects and recover from our various injuries that are keeping us out of the water for the time being. Matt's leg infection has cleared up but the skin is still filling in and I got a bad case of poison-ivy-like blisters on my legs that may take a few weeks to clear up.

It's still hot and rainy but we are lucky to have Rehua and Field Trip around, with the extra bonus of other kids. The kids (and we) are studying World War II and The Solomons has a lot to offer with its historical sites, memorials and wrecks.

So hot you can fry an egg...

Cooking an egg in the midday sun

It's so hot here...

Our anchor windlass button heated up in the sun and the windlass spontaneously started. We had to shut off the breaker quickly but by then, the anchor and about 15 feet of chain had dropped into the water (we are on a mooring). Fortunately, it was the down button. We'll keep the anchor locker lid down from now on.

The summit of the local hill. So bright...

Also, we have been having more fun with our water-cooled refrigeration system. Matt cleaned out a bunch of silt from the water in Honiara and also found coral polyps growing in the strainer (along with the usual tiny fish, crabs, and shells).

MS World Explorer wreck.

We had a fun New Year's Eve potluck with the local village and Field Trip. Wishing you all a great New Year!

Winning the Lottery in the Solomons

There is a study that shows that happiness levels for lottery winners decline after they win. Part of the reason is that they start getting bombarded with requests for money from relatives, friends, charitable causes--everyone. They can't give money to everyone and having to saying 'no' creates a feeling of guilt.

For me, being in the Solomon Islands creates the same sort of discomfort. In every anchorage, a regular stream of villagers in dugout canoes paddle out to our boat wanting to trade fruits, vegetables, shells and carvings for things they need. They might want clothing, sugar, tinned meat, soap, or myriad other items. They are desperate to trade and it's clear that they have very little.

Often, they have items that we don't want, such as papaya (it's not our favorite, it ripens quickly and a little goes a long way) or other item that we have too much of already. It's very difficult to turn them away with nothing, so often we trade for things that we might have to throw away because we haven't been able to eat it soon enough. We also don't trade for shells, mostly because we don't want them. Another boat that had previously traded for shells was appalled when villagers began bringing live cowries to them. On the other hand, they don't necessarily have much else to trade.

For us, it is important that we trade rather than give items away. Trading allows villagers to offer something of value in exchange for what they're getting, rather than making them feel like beggars.

There is a language barrier and Solomon Islanders are somewhat shy, so it can be difficult to come to an agreement. We don't always have what they want or know if what we have given is fair in their minds.

We enjoy talking to villagers and many times they do have produce that we want, but on balance it has been hard to get used to being a floating Wal-Mart. At some anchorages, the constant interruption makes it hard to get school or other tasks done.

The anchorages are the villagers' backyard (there are always villages in every anchorage and you aren't allowed to anchor in other locations) and we are coming in with our big, shiny boats that are worth more money than most of them will ever see in their lives. We will keep trying to balance doing what we can to help out (fairly) and keeping our sanity.

A Solomons Christmas

A hand-carved canoe Conrad bought with some of his
Christmas money

This Christmas marks the end of our fourth year on the boat. It is also the first Christmas where the boys didn't get any big, commercial gifts. No Lego or electronic devices. Instead, they got some local wood carvings, shorts that I sewed them, stocking stuffers of candy and small toys that Matt has had forever, and extra time for iPad games. They also got Christmas money from their grandparents and uncle.

My deeply conditioned Christmas capitalist self couldn't stop worrying about the boys' potential disappointment. As it turned out, I didn't have to worry. The boys said it was their best Christmas so far and a big part of it was that they got to be with their friends. How heartwarming and Christmas spirit-y is that?