position S09 27.910 E147 09.070
Ocean Rival Journey Log
Adam Power Diana Power
Mon 15 Jul 2019 21:24
No sign of Raphael in the car park- It was raining and I was a bit late so he may have been and assumed I was no show or else decided that a country jaunt in the rain wouldn't be worth the Kina. Instead I caught up on some work for Abdul and had a go at improving the mast foot leak with a plastic box from the supermarket- I haven't tested it yet as I want it to dry out before sealing.
I used a break in the rain to cycle round the coast to the fish market and saw a bit more of the city.
I was wrong about the cathedral- there is a fairly modern catholic cathedral, but it is stuck between high blocks of office buildings so doesn't qualify as a focal point.
I bought a small Barracuda from the market and a stick of prawns. Lots of admiring comments about the bike which I hung on to as I browsed in case an admirer couldn't resist becomming an owner. There was only one other cyclist - a young lad (another Sylvester) who joined me for the ride back to the marina. His english was basic and he said he doesn't go to school because his mum can't afford a uniform. In the villages a uniform would be optional but we have seen some fully uniformed crocodiles along the road so perhaps in the city a uniform is required, but that must exlude a lot of kids. I signed him through security and showed him the marina and the boat all of which drew slightly awestruck comments of 'nice'. Before he left and as he hadn't asked and didn't seem to expect it I gave him some money and made him promiss to buy the uniform and go to school. I am sure he probably won't but if there is a chance I felt I couldn't not. Several well fed looking youths rubbed their stomachs when they saw me and pleaded for money but I thought that Sylvester was genuinely a nice lad.