Annoyingly we had to spend another night at sea because we were caught by time.  We were just going to miss getting to the reef before we lost the light so had to stay well off for an additional night and then go through in the morning.  We made the decision on Monday morning and slowed the boat down thinking we would be able to get things done and make good use of the time because the sea was fairly flat.  Wrong.  Within a couple of hours it was back to lumpy and confused and because we had to go slowly it was extra unpleasant so there was no chance of doing boat jobs without getting sick.

Another option would have been to sail more quickly and cover a greater distance by zig-zagging and gybing the boat every few hours.  That was a non-starter because to get the right angles on the wind to do that we would have had the worst angles on the sea.  Anyhow it was only for one night so we reminded ourselves that we have been less comfortable and more tired for many more days in the past.

We arrived and took about five attempts to drop the anchor in the very deep water outside the harbour where we had to stay until cleared by the authorities.  The problem was trying to get the boat to settle in a position that was not too close to any of the other yachts.  Ten minutes after we were happy the yacht that had been the most difficult to avoid pulled up their anchor and chugged into the harbour.  They could have told us!

Having read very stern warnings about the check in requirements (no-one to leave the boat, declare every scrap of food, alcohol and rubbish, do this and that within x hours of arrival or else heavy fines and up to two years in prison) we were visited by a series of charming gentlemen who made the whole thing extremely pleasant and took the trouble to explain why they have such strict biosecurity and health regulations.  They were strict but they were also practical.  Way more sensible than say, oh, the USA where they removed eggs, milk, meat etc.  Here we were simply asked what we had and then asked not to take any of it ashore, for example for a picnic.

We are in the small harbour and town of Savu Savu which is delightful.  There is a large Indian community so we feel on familiar ground.  We joined Sud Oest and Moana Roa for a curry last night and it was stupendous.  In a wooden hut by the road, served on tin trays with separate compartments for each dish and all for about £3.50 a head.

They do well on that other key indicator of yachttie friendliness, the price of the laundry.  £4 a load washed and dried, same day by a very lovely lady. 

We need to stay here until our cruising permit is issued which takes about three days and that won’t be any effort.  We need to do an oil change, catch up on admin and do some shopping so plenty to do.  There is a fantastic, crowded, dark and very Indian feeling veggie market and good meat available.  We have already tested the coconut buns from the bakery and they were well up to standard so we want for nothing.

On Friday we are going on the bus with Moana Roa and Sud Oest to walk in the National Park.  At the weekend we will head out and start visiting the islands.

Already we can see why people stay here or keep coming back.  Sadly our visit will be fairly short.