08 14.79 S 123 36.381 E

Quite a mouthful for a name  for this anchorage location!

We headed west today and after 65 nm, we found an anchorage that we like > CLEAN water…no harbour and related garbage; and no town/village with all the related non-positive aspects such as:  smoke from garbage burning and from wood fires for cooking….and no mosques with loud speakers beginning the 5 calls to prayer each day at 4 am….and no boat boys in dugouts looking for handouts and peering in your portlets.  So a nice secluded anchorage…3 other boats with us…but not crowded on one another at all.

We had to battle adverse current most all day ranging from 1.5 negative up to 2.5 kts negative; we were happy with our timing…we avoided the potential for 6 – 8 kts adverse if we had missed on the timing. These Indonesian Straits between the major islands carry a strong tidal flow in North/South directions as they represent a barrier to the 2 big oceans on either side….the Pacific and the Indian Oceans.

We enjoyed Alor much more than Kupang: the town, Kalabahi, is a much smaller city (about 50, 000 people versus over 300,000 in Kupang): people of all ages were very friendly/hospitable and engaging…and we ran into more locals at different ages who had English language capability….that made it easy and more enjoyable as we could find out so much more about places and things. There was a formal WELCOMING CEREMONY, a GALA DINNER at the Governor’s House, Tours that took in a visit to a museum with a remarkable treasure of artifacts, a visit to a most expansive market where everything was being sold…and I mean most everything ….from people milling corn meal and other grains; shoe cobblers and clothing making; household goods of every nature; clothing and footwear for all ages;  meat/fish/produce of every variety and in abundance….and then the bus drove us way up the mountain to visit a traditional village with its traditional dance/customs as well as a chance to see their 3 story thatched roof homes and much more; a chance to snorkel on a very healthy reef with an abundance of coral of many varieties (many that we had not seen before at all); a visit to a Muslim village to see where many years ago some 4000 natives were slaughtered between warring headhunting tribes…and the sacred burial place for those 4000 heads….enough of that…..the result is everyone, including the crew of Sea Mist, is tired and needs a few days of R&R to recuperate….and to get some work done on the boats.  We are off on our own for about 4 days before we have to rendezvous for the next events agenda (and that location is only about 20 nm from where we now lie so no big distances to cover between now and then).  >>>>So R&R …and boat work….it is!!!....with some good snorkeling, we hope….have to explore the swimming/snorkeling in the morning….not a good idea to jump in the water at this time of day….the later part of the afternoon……… since as the sun is getting low in the sky, that is when sharks and other pelagic fish do their dining!!

That’s it for now….ciao/the Seamisters