Ha'apai Group
Wayward Adventure
Mon 19 Oct 2009 04:31
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19:56.603s 174:43.254w
After spending
almost 2 months in the Vava'u Island group of Tonga, it was high time for us to
be setting sail and heading out, especially as we have our new "crew" flying in
to the capital of Tonga, Nuku'alofa, on the 21st. As well as the two additional
crew ladies we are picking up for the passage to New Zealand, we already
have a third crew member onboard, David, or as we like to call him "Boat
Boy". David joined up with us a week or so ago as he was ready to leave Tonga
and needed a ride to NZ. He had previously been on s/v Carinthia with our
friends Dietmar and Suzanne so we already knew he was a great guy and a hard
worker, filled with all the excitement and energy that a young man
traveling the world as a 20 year old would be filled with..... and to
top it off he does the dishes! You can't beat that
combination right?! ;- )
So now with 3
aboard, the Wayward is headed through the Ha'apai group to the
Southern island group of Tongatapu. Breaking the trip into small hops, we
completed 25 nm today and will do about the same tomorrow before anchoring off
of another small (and hopefully well protected!) island before we complete the
final 50 nm jump to Tongatapu. It will be nice to have a whole new city to
explore and new people to meet as we get ready for the next big crossing to New
Zealand in November.
We had a great
time while in Neiafu and will miss all of our new "Palangi" (Tongan
for 'foreigner') friends who interestingly enough, were comprised of the
majority of the restaurant owners in town.....no big surprise there
huh?! We made an effort to have one last meal at all of our favorites: The
Giggling Whale with owner's Sandy & Cathy, the Crow's Nest with "Southern
Indian cooking Extraordinaire" Tess & her husband Steve "The
Baker", the inexpensive and tasty (but randomly always empty?) Blue Lagoon
Cafe, and last but not least, the most amazing six-course Thai dinner prepared
by the owner Gene at the CocoNet Cafe.
Thanks again to everyone who made our stay in
Vava'u so pleasurable and for all the great memories!.......We hope to see you all again in the near future ;-
)
XoXo, Lauren
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