08 21.607 S  116 07.747 E

This is Thursday evening; we arrived here  a few days ago  (Monday, Sept 17^th) anchoring first in the next bay to the West where there was far less rolling and pitching than in this bay. Since the planned activities for the rally were being held at Medana Bay Marina Resort….and since I had to buy fuel and handle getting it on-board Sea Mist in gerry cans from the marina dock out to Sea Mist at anchor….we knew it would be best to move over to anchor in this bay ….and put up with the rolling and pitching condition…..and so it was and is.

I managed to load 400 litres of fuel yesterday  - 20 gerry cans in 2 batches of 10….and got the Sea Mist and the dinghy cleaned up after that process….not at all easy with a pitching/rolling boat ….but at least I have a jiggle siphon that let me keep the spillage/mess to a minimum.

Cheryl and I have had a few great experiences:

- yesterday we walked a couple of kilometers down the beach to a small echo resort owned/operated by a young Swedish/French couple…their first year of operation and it is going very well for them (and their 9 month old baby girl). The very small little resort, nestled in the woods right on the beach at a headland in this bay, is all done with local labour using natural local materials…..mostly bamboo. There were 10 of us in our group ..their only customers for lunch…and we overwhelmed them a bit …..but after 2 hours of leisurely awaiting the food to arrive….out it came, all of us were served at once….the food was all hot….nicely presented….and EXCELLENT!!!...by everyone’s taste. A real winner of a shore-side experience.

-last evening, there was a band performing  for us at the marina. It was billed as a “BLUES NIGHT”…it was that but so much more; every kind of music that we all have loved through the last 40 years as well as most enjoyable Indonesian originals….the lead vocalist was a very talented entertainer in the fullest meaning of the word.

- mid day today, we went by dinghy about 3 miles to Gili Air…..the Gili Islands are right at the heart of Indonesian renowned tourism….much lower pace and lower cost than across the strait at Bali….and crystal clear water with white sand beaches…perfect for exceptional beach, swimming, snorkeling, scuba!   And hundreds of restaurants lining the shore around this 1 square mile island. Again the food was terrific….we have had very good fortune in all of our Indonesian restaurant experiences….the food is GREAAAAAT !!

-this evening is a more formal Rally happening at the Marina; it is just so hot and we just didn’t feel up to going in for the start at 4 pm in the heat...so we may pass this one by.

Our plan is to head off in the morning towards Bali…but stop at an island about 15 nm east of Benoa, Bali to relax and enjoy the water/snorkel the reef, etc ….and finish the distance to Bali on Saturday at noon.

If all goes according to plan, we will take a berth at Bali Marina and that will allow us to explore Bali a bit more extensively….perhaps staying overnite at a hotel or two as we roam around the island and take in some of its features. We can’t be away from the boat for more than half a day as the generator has to be run at least every 12 hours to keep the batteries up…..and, for example, not lose our precious provisions that still fill more than half of our big freezer.  Being in the marina, would allow us to have shore power to keep the batteries charged while we are away….and keep the meat frozen.

There are about 50 rally boats here…..last night was a clear indication of how this bunch loves a good time….loads of dancing (on the sand dance floor)….and good times had by all; some of our friends shut down the bar at 2 am….the band kept up their non-stop routine until midnight….we threw in the towel about 10:30 as the day had worn me out….it was good to get the dinghy back from the beach to Sea Mist and find a horizontal position to go to sleep!!

I was successful in solving the internet problem that has blocked us since the first of September….so we again have the features we have so much taken for granted….like website access …and Skype, etc. I used what the rally folks call a Ben Hur transport…..that is a small horse/pony pulling a 2 wheeled cart with a young guy as driver.  My “chauffeur” (and Pony…with his “Packa”…cart) took me at 6:30 to the market about 3 kms away ….and waited for me….and then brought me back to the marina so that I could get the produce out to Sea Mist….while he waited….and then took me about 4 kms one way to the telecommunications main office of Telcomsel…where I discovered what had gone wrong on the internet access issue……and, after throwing some money at the problem, they recreated my access.  It was so fortunate to find someone who understood a reasonable amount of English…..so they could understand me…and I could understand them…..all good!

We should be able to get some photos uploaded to the blog site in the next few days….if all goes well getting to …and getting set up in Bali.

That’s all folks…..cyl…the Seamisters