The Blue Lagoon
The Adventures of the Good Ship Equinox
Cate and Chris Galloway
Sat 16 Jul 2011 15:40
|
Poistion at 1200 FST: 16.56.4507S
177.22.0390E
Hi All,
We sailed down here this morning to the Blue Lagoon
and have discovered a really beautiful and interesting place. which has been
turned into a tourist "Haven". Clearly we are now removed from the "old" Fiji at
places like Kia Island (who usually see only around 10 or so boats a year) to
the Yasawas, which are the heart of the Fijian Tourist Industry. Tgus has it's
own compnsations as we are now in a full service coverage area for internet on
wireless 3G, and for about a quarter of the cost of back home in
Australia.
This side of Fiji is quite different t the east
caost, as any moisture in the air has fallen as rain on the big island. It is
also much less humid and cooler at night - as it sit here it is a very
comfortable 24 deg C and 65% humidity, about 20% less than Savu Savu. It is also
more windy, so the wind generator is doing good yards.
In the anchorage is the superyacht "TV", and 80m
long luxury cruiser which charters for $850,000 per week. At the momet she has a
great big waterslide which goes abut 50' from her top deck to the waterline
affixed to her port side. Several of the rally boats are here already, and the
rest should be arriving tomorrow.
This evening we nd the SFs had drinks with David
and Marion onboard "Kilkea", a 53' Super Amel built in France. Tis company only
builds 38 yachts a year to a single design and for about 1 Million Euros.
Everythig is in the boat when you buy it, and the yacht spends a week in a test
tank being "run up" to make sure all of the sytems work. You also have to do a
one-week course wit them on how to operate your boat. "Kilkia" is a really nice
yacht and very impressive in the quality of the build and the inclusions. Cate
was especially inpressed with the galey which included a full-sized washing
machine, which beats our bucket and plunger hands down.
We will most likely hang here for the next few days
- Paul and Michelle off "Silver Fox" cruised here in 1998 and are having a bt of
a homecoming visit - the same locals they met back then are still here. In the
morning we will go ashore and do Sevu Sevu, at the same time as delivering our
rubbish for disposal for a very reasonable fee - tradition seems to sit well
alongside commerce in these parts....
Until tomorrow,
TTFN
|