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Update!
Check out our new DVD
"San Blas and Panama Canal"
as well as our latest Newsletters for Samoa, Tonga and Fiji.
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Bula Vinaka!
from
Fiji
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The Royal Suva Yacht Club
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Landfall at Savusavu, Fiji
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Our Arrival
OK, OK! Stop worrying!
Entr'acte is alive and well and living in Fiji. Sounds like the title of a Broadway show.
We have not been lost at sea without a trace.
The problem --if you can call it a problem--was that we were "off the grid" for a very long time having a great time. Most of the time there was no internet--Oh My! When we did find it, it was either far too quirky and to do an update, or slooowww, that we gave up.
Entr'acte finally departed Tonga and arrived in Savusavu after five comfortable days at sea. Our light wind sails got a good workout.
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The People
Everyone in Fiji had a ready smile. Everywhere we went it was always "Bula Vinaka! How do you like Fiji?"
The Fijian musicianship was outstanding. They loved American Country Western and the Blues.
Our new friend David Thuvu entertained us for hours with his excellent renditions of all the American classics as well as Fijian folk songs.
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David Thuvu
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Pacific Famous----Dolly
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Savusavu
Our
base in Savusavu was the Copra Shed Marina and restaurant, a fabulous place run by
the ever so competent, friendly and---famous throughout the
Pacific----Dolly!
She knew what we needed, where to find it and made sure we got it!
Her marina was first class. Her restaurant was even better. If you like curry, Fiji is the place. Dolly's curry was outstanding!
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Local Customs
Each time we anchor off a village, the first order of business is to go ashore, meet the village chief and "make sevusevu."
Sevusevu is a formal visit to the chief and the presentation of a gift to the village. This is usually a bundle of Yangonna root which is used in the making of the all important Kava. Once the chief accepts your Sevusevu, you become an honred guest and are welcome to enjoy the pleasures of the island, the harbour and the fish. If you are lucky you will also be treated to a feast on shore complete with music and dancing. The chief does not have to accept your Sevusevu and sometimes he does not. It pays to always put your best foot forward.
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Off to meet the village chief.
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Entr'acte "in the pit" at Vuda Marina
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Our Plans
No, we are not aground! It is October 30 and we are safely "in the pit" at Vuda Marina, Island of Viti Levu, Fiji.
This is the preferred way to ride out the cyclone season here. We will definitely not fall over. Entr'acte will remain here in the able care of Mr. Bharos until we return in May.
Now, it's off to sunny--DRY--Arizona to work on our next video presentation.
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We wish you all
a
Merry Christmas
and a
Happy New Year!
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Entr'acte's light air rig
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A Special Announcement
Our links have been fixed
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Dear friends,
We were shocked to discover that the links to purchase our videos had stopped functioning. We were at sea and no one was minding the store.
Horrors!
For those of you who have tried to support the cause we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience!
We now have reliable internet for the first time in months and all of that has been remedied.
Everything works again!
Just in time for Christmas so please try again.
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Malo e Lelei!
Fefe Hake?
from the
Kingdom of Tonga
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Tongan Vaka arrives
from New Zealand
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The Passage
French Polynesia is 1400 miles astern. Entr'acte departed Bora Bora on April 29 and made stops in Suwarrow, Nothern Cook Islands, Pagp Pago, American Samoa, and arrived in Tonga June 10, 2010.
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Cook Islands ahead |
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Suwarrow, Cook Islands |
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Suwarrow,
Cook Islands
Population zero! Try to find it on a chart, an all but invisible dot of coral in the middle of the Pacific. See if you can find it on a map.
Latitude : 13 deg 09 minutes S Longitude: 163 deg 10 minutes W
Tom Neal lived alone on this island from 1956 to 1977
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Reunion with Mr. John VI
Our arrival in Tonga was also a reunion with John and paula on Mr. John VI. We had not seen them in two years. They sailed 1500 miles from New Zealand to bring us two new batteries which we desparately needed.
True friendship!
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Happy Birthday, Ellen!
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The Hausia Brothers
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The Giggling Whale
The Hausia Brothers--They play for the King of Tonga!
What a band! We play every Wednesday night at the Giggling Whale Restaurant. These guys really swing!
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| The Kava Ceremony
The Kava Ceremony is the center of all Tongan social
activity.
Both a welcome and an acceptance, nothing takes place
until the kava is poured by the island chief.
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Our official reception
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Until then,
Mou nofo a e !
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The
Whales
of
Tonga
Each year, an estimated 700 whales arrive in Tonga to mate and to give birth. From our anchorages we see more and more arrive every day.
It's still early in the season. More about this later.
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Ship Track Position Reporter
You easily can follow Entr'acte's progress through the Ship Track position reporter. This is a free service of the Maritime Mobile Service Network, a dedicated group of HAM Radio enthusiasts that maintain a radio network for ships at sea. Through MMSN we have world-wide access to emergency communication, daily weather reports, and daily position reports or we can just take the opportunity to pass the time at sea by calling Net Control to just say "hello!"
When on a passage we file daily position reports over the high frequency radio to MMSN which they post on the Ship Track web site. Just click on the link above and you will be automatically connected to Entr'acte's personal Ship Track page. There you can see our daily progress, or lack thereof! If you play with the zoom tool on that page, as you zoom in you will see a series of red dots which represent each individual position report(be careful, a little zoom gets you a lot). Place your cursor on a dot to see the time, date, our latitude, longitude and a brief description of the conditions on that day. You can also adjust the page to view specific lengths of time from one week, one month or all positions filed.
If there is no updated position report, it should not be viewed as a disaster. It could mean that we had very bad radio propagation that day, low battery power, laziness or bad weather. It might also mean that we are in a harbour and off the boat exploring or we are very busy having a grand time and just plain forgot!
You can track any vessel that files position reports. All you need is their radio call sign---Entr'acte's is KC2JBX--just go to the Ship Track home page, enter the appropriate radio call sign and off you go!
It's easy! Check it out!
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