HEADED SOUTH TOWARDS SINGAPORE April 2012

Straits Quay Marina. Penang

We moved out of Straits Quay Marina on Sunday the 13th and headed down to the Queensbay Anchorage.

The marina is very nice and everyone is very helpful but the internet is diabolical. Even the phones are patchy. This is a real disappointment as a modern cruising yacht needs internet. Even with an external hi gain antenna the drop out rate was too high to be sustainable.

Queensbay anchorage at the south of the island is a great stop. Its a huge mall. Getting ashore is relatively easy but better towards high tide. The gently sloping rock retaining wall has very large boulders wedged together which we used to lock the dingy to. The area has several small food retail stands scattered about so there are always people about. We felt safe leaving the dingy there. 

Queensbay Mall

Down side is that the planes from the airport go over head. The water is dirty and sometimes smelly if a heavy downpour comes rushing out the nearby storm drain.

Upside is easy to get ashore and only 100m from the boat. The barnacles on the rocks are very tiny and not a danger to your inflatable. There are buses to everywhere from here. Post, phones. shopping, provisioning and American Hardware store Ace. and dont forget Coffee Bean!

We spent the week anchored at Queensbay and on Friday it was David birthday so we had a big day relaxing and eating.

Work underway on the new bridge link to the southern end of Penang

Saturday it was up and on the job at 6am in preparation for the trip to Pankor. This run is some 65 NM and usually a pain  because the current is almost always against you but never more so than when you try to do it during spring tides.

Its spring tide now so it took 14 hours of slow slogging into the wind and current. The  seas were not much of a problem because it was off shore on the nose! Today is Sunday again and we have just come into Pankor Marina for a couple of days to let the spring tides GO AWAY!

LANGKAWI TO PHUKET June 2011

Aside from the debacle with the water in the Diesel Langkawi was a good stopover. Great fun to catch up with Brian and Dawn on Ten Large again. Rebak is still a lovely marina despite a severely unreliable internet service and the fact that neither of our phones (Digi) work there at all. There are lovely walking trails and the pool is great.

Having restored the Volvo and the Yanmar to their original condition we headed to Kuah to get some fuel and clear out for Thailand.

On Friday 10th we motored out of the anchorage and put  the way points on the 3 navigation instruments..!!!! .(Garmin, Furuno Navnet 3D (useless) and Netbook) for Taratao. Hmm triple redundancy !!

Walking train on Taratao.

Taratao is a Thai Island National Park just north of Langkawi.  It was a prison island built around 1938 and disbanded in 1947. It had something of a reputation as a haven for Pirates and guards and prisoners colluded to pirate many ships in the area. Around 3000 prisoners were detained here at its peak. There are several pretty walk trails to take you through the historical sites. The anchorage is excellent and there is water available at the long concrete pier.

Concrete pier at Taratao

We saw some large squirrel type critters in the tree tops. About the size of a cat and very black.

We sailed on to Petra to anchor on the east side opposite the lone hut owned by Kan. Ashore for a swim and walk again and we gave Kam a throw net we have been carting around unused for 6 years. Figured he'd get a lot more use out of it than us. He is a Bird Nest watcher we think and his little camp was immaculate with lovely orchids and ferns.

12th is raining and squally so we upped the anchor and sailed up to Kantang river entrance.

The plan was to check in at Kantang. Its a tricky place to get to and quite a long way. We motored up the river...wrong river...turn round ...different river.....went aground twice on banks. Arrived at 007 24.14N 009 30.34E and anchored on a mud bank. Aground for a couple of hours. Went ashore to look for Immigration Customs etc and found a very clean and tidy town with a pleasant market but absolutely no sign of any Officials!. Did buy some nice veg.

Dingy dock at Kantang.

Back to Taipan ....still aground....waited for some more water so we could leave to anchor downriver. The town must make fish fertilizer or something. The smell was atrocious!!!. Not long before dark we got off the bottom and raced downriver to anchor just before dark between a couple of big fish traps opposite a large barge loader. Mosquito's had a good feed overnight.

We decided that the depth log is faulty. The reading when we went aground said 1.4m under the Keel. It is supposed to go aground at 0!! Hopefully now we can keep off the mud.

Tuesday 14th Kradan. many years coming and going between Thailand and Langkawi and we have never stopped at Kradan. The anchorage is beautiful. Very close to the beach and its still 10m. The wind is quite strong so we decided to spend a few days here to wait out the strong weather warning. Its full moon though and so most of the Thai fishing fleet seem to have decided to wait our the weather and the moon here too. Over the next two days we had up to 50 large crewed trawlers and squid boats in the anchorage. Too many people!!

A barge tow outside Lanta. The tug is not visible in the pic.

Thursday 16th gave up our position to some fishing boats and headed out to somewhere peaceful. The wind was howling and from the west north west so it was a boisterous sail in up to 30+ kn. Its only 16nm up to Talat Lanta and after abandoning the southern anchorage we headed up there to drop the pick. Talat Lanta is the original town in the area and on a very nice open water way with good protection at this time of year. There is a big concrete pier with a small floating dock at the end for dingy allowing all tide access.

Sunday 19th with the wind warning still active we headed to Koh Ph for shelter. David was busy trying to convince me we could get round the top of the island and short cut to Krabi just as we grounded at 6 kn on a mud bank which was sticking out of the water!!. Mark 1 eyeballs...no way!

We spent the next five hours watching the bank appear and disappear before enough water returned for us to pull off and anchor for the night. At least it was sheltered.

Taipan anchored at Hen n Chicken.

My tolerance for rivers and shallow banks at an all time low as we motored out to the south again avoiding the possibility of a rounding  the north of the island but the likely hood of grounding for hours again was also diverted! Our next stop was Hen and Chicken opposite Krabi. Something was muttered about attempting an upriver passage to clear in at Krabi but it was deemed inappropriate and struck from the record!!.

The north end of Phang Nga Bay is spectacular and not lessened by the strong winds we experienced. In fact, without a serious deadline for a change, we were able to sail the most efficient route to make use of the excellent breeze and enjoy some lovely sailing in this beautiful cruising ground. Ko Hong provided a great lunch stop and swim and the overnight anchorage on the eastern side of Koh Noi could be considered any time during the SW monsoon season.

Wednesday 22nd. Eventually we had to get to Phuket to clear into Thailand . The  officials take a dim view of cruisers taking longer than a fortnight to travel from Langkawi to Phuket. (130Nm) We did have a particularly long period of adverse weather and we were not harassed too much.

All round it was a great couple of weeks and the nearest to "cruising" we've been for many a long day!

Now we are in Yacht Haven Marina looking forward to the arrival of Tim (Davids son) and his partner Vanessa.

LANGKAWI. Sailing aside while we fix something that was not broken.

David is well although he is getting even more forgetful... nutty maybe....he left the cap of the deck filler the other evening and we went to bed. It poured with rain and put over 30ltrs of water into the fuel tank. Unknowingly we started the gen set to charge batteries first thing in the morning and ....yes...engine stopped....oh dear...darn well we started the main engine...still unaware that the water was in the tank and guess what!!! it stopped too. Now we had a very alarmingly decreasing power supply and no motor to pull the anchor to sail and no wind anyway. We pumped all the water out of the tank then David cleaned all the lines out and removed and replaced all the filters but there was water still in the rotary injector pump on the volvo so no point in trying that. Genset tried  to run but kept stopping......... had to call Noel;. a fellow from a near by marina to come and tow us back into the marina where we spent the rest of the evening and following morning with a good friend of Ten Large...my favorite boat in the whole world as it happens......Brian came over: he had over 300 trucks in the UK.....never a Volvo!!!.....he had a trucking business. he once bought a Volvo truck but he sent it for repairs after a government motor test and when he got the bill....he told them to keep the truck and the bill!!! Anyway he came over, and together with his expertise they removed the injectors we had just replaced....grr....and that enabled the poor old starter motor to turn the motor over without bursting into a ball of smoke......then they found a bleed screw on the pump and although it was time consuming  we eventually got the fuel back running and the water out. Only ended up changing one injector on the Volvo and one on the Yanmar Genset. Phew!!

Next morning we left the marina again ..... and lo and behold....he had left the deck filler cap off again....lucky I spotted it before we sailed into the ocean and filled it up with salt water!!!.

Then on the run to Kuah...about 10nm....he lost the cap of one of the jerry cans over the side so decided to lower the Dingy to retrieve it!. Well we got the cap back eventually and then towed the dingy the last bit as a storm was approaching....all good till we get to the anchorage...forget the dingy is there...drop the anchor and back up....and ....you guessed it....run right over the dingy tow line and cut it off. Very lucky the dingy was along side and we were able to grab it or he would have had to go for a swim!!

This morning he dived on the prop and removed the tow line!!

So you see the female hormones have kicked in and are working well now!!!

PENANG LANGKAWI 31st May 2011

Penang was a good stop over as usual and we treated ourselves to Sunday Breakfast at the Eastern and Oriental hotel. It was outstanding as usual. The Little Penang Street Market was in full swing when we emerged from breakfast and a pleasant hour wandering through the exhibits and displays eschewed. We were lucky to be here for the market as it is only on once a month. 

Huck bought a nice little video camera in the Duty Free. David and Shenka went out to the Barge to get Diesel. It is awkward to get fuel in Penang because the fuel stations wont let you fill Jerry Jugs at all without a letter or authority from the harbour master or customs or someone. Of course you need to know that before you rock up at the fuel station armed with loads of jerrys. It also cant happen on the weekend. Shenka was a huge help though and he also cooked for us all a wonderful Indian dinner aboard Blue Whale.

Headed into lake for a swim.

On Tuesday the 31st we headed out towards Langkawi. There was very little wind and we made it into Dayang Bunting at 4.30 in time for a swim in the lake.

Wednesday the 1st of June we headed into Rebak Marina. Hired a care and took Huck on a whirlwind tour of the Island including the cable car to the top of the mountain. We were lucky with the weather and managed a good panoramic view of the whole group.

On Friday the 3rd  Huck flew out to Perth. We were very sorry to see him go as usual. Thanks Huck.

ROCKING AND ROLLING TO PENANG 27th May 2011.

We've arrived in Penang and a very welcome arrival it was after the last two days. When we left Singapore on the afternoon of Tuesday the 24th of May we decided to sail non-stop to Penang. We hadn't done that since November 2006 and seem to have forgotten the downside. Out of Singapore was easy with Immigration at the anchorage speedy and efficient we were underway by 3.00pm. We left the marina later than expected because the fuel system in the marina at One 15 is hopeless. It froths in the nozzle so badly that we had to fill Jerry cans then decant them into the boat. Painful!

There was no wind of any use so we motored up to the peninsular and set off into the shipping channel on dusk to travel with the north bound stream of ships of every size and description throughout the night. We were the smallest!. There were barges with tug tows heading south though, in the north bound traffic, which was a hazard, although all the ones we saw were lit correctly, a change from our last trip.

Huck, David and I did roughly three hour watches which with 3 people is far easier, giving everyone a 6 hour break.

Dawn on Wednesday we were approaching Melacca so we detoured inshore to sail close to the city then followed the coast during daylight hours. As dusk approached again we moved offshore to avoid the plethora for unmarked and badly lit fishing boats and nets. Once in the channel all went smoothly albeit slowly with current against us and only useless wind. By midnight the picture had changed however, with the wind picking up to 18 to 20 knots on the nose and large numbers of ships around the port of Klang. 

The sea had built and was short and steep causing a nasty hobby-horsing effect and occasionally knocking the boat speed back to only 2 knots. With a large thunderstorm visible on the radar we decided to turn  back a short distance and head into the port of Klang. The motion was now bearable and the boat speed much better, at up to 8 knots. The storm broke with a vengeance as we entered the port so with little visibility and the radar totally cluttered we hugged the left side of the channel, furthermost from the main port activity. 

Tanjong City Marina. Penang

On Thursday morning and we were all tired, having been unable to get any sleep in the conditions. In the fore peak berth I spent as much time in the air as on the mattress.!! The sea flattened as the day wore on and we approached Pankor Island at about 11pm with the conditions worsening again. 

The fishing fleet there is truly dreadful. The lights are the typical Asian Christmas tree lighting system, with even the occasional large ship showing flashing lights and no navigation lights. One fishing boat came straight at us down the radar screen. A course change of 30 degrees by us didn't deter it and with spotlights shining at us we were forced to turn a complete circle. I seem to remember something similar in the same place in 2006. 

Maybe its a local game they play with yachts!!. In our past experience in daylight, these events are usually caused by a net the fishing boat doesn't want you to run into. This was not the case on this occasion as we resumed our original course after the circle. It was however very unnerving. As the night wore on the seas built again and sleep became impossible.
  

Friday morning at first light saw us 60 NM from Penang, everyone tired and the sea still messy.  By 11am things had settled somewhat but the wind was still useless. We were taking turns to get a well earned sleep. By 3 pm it was only 20nm to go and with a better angle we were able to motor sail more efficiently. Tanjong City Marina at Georgetown, Penang was a very welcome sight, and by 5.50 we were tied up with the air-conditioner running and the crew were all a much happier crowd!!

We had a delicious seafood dinner at the Shady Tree after dropping the Passports into Banana for Thai Tourist Visas and hit the pleasantly imobile "sack" by 10pm. 

The Shady Tree Penang

Not a peep was heard until 9.40 am this morning!!

David, Huck and I left Miri in Borneo on the 13th of May and have sailed 1100 NM. "Sailed" is a euphemism for "motored" on this occasion. We only had about 4 hours of sailing. We have motored 198 hours on this trip, sometimes down to only 1.7 knots. Since Miri we've used about 790 litres of fuel!. This would be our most inefficient trip to date....EVER!! On the upside, the old 65hp Volvo, with about 12,000 hours on it, hasn't missed a beat and still only used about 1 litre of oil.

MIRI TO SINGAPORE Friday 13th May 2011

  The day is wearing on as we prepare to leave the marina in Miri to head to Singapore on out first leg back to Phuket. Waiting for a part for a pump. Well its getting late and the part hasn't shown up by4pm so we finally toss the lines and head to sea. 

Huck in the tea brown Rajang River in Sarawak.

Aboard the good ship Taipan for this journey we have Huck Holden from Mt Barker in WA. Hucks a seasoned Taipan traveler having come from Darwin to Bali with us in '06 and on various other legs round Australia prior to this. Huck is an invaluable crew member because not only does he eat what ever is going without complaint he can also fix almost anything. We never seem to notice the things that need fixing till he arrives so hes been put to work on the pump. Hence the parts we were waiting for.

The wind picked up about an hour out and the sails took over all the way to the entrance to the Lassa River. 185NM South West. On Saturday Huck landed 3 Spanish Mackerel in pretty quick order and we decided to call a halt to the fishing about then! Tasty change from chicken and pork.

We anchored at about 5am on Sunday in the entrance to the Lassa River for a nap then up anchored and off up the dirty tea brown river past mile of destroyed forest replanted with Palm Oil. The whole day was spent motoring in the sometimes rainy and dank river swamps. You may have guessed I am very unimpressed with the swamps of Borneo thus far!

A traditional Long House on the Rajang!

On Monday morning we struck off into the clear blue ocean for  Singapore, 450 NM to the west. No wind! Well enough to sail assist for motor sailing. Tuna!! at 4 and a half knots on ta blue Rapala lure followed by sashumi. a highlight! On Tuesday the wind dropped to total  calm so we dropped the main, cut the engine and David hopped over the side with a scraper to knock of some barnacles which we suspected were on the propeller and shaft and causing extra drag. He was only in the water about 15 minuets and just as he got out 4 very big dolphins surfaced for a look. Luck he didn't spot one in the water!!

Friendly Indonesian Fishermen between Borneo and Singapore

The 18th was Davids 64th birthday so we started the day with Champagne breakfast then naps in shifts...then lunch was Canapes and anti pasta and white wine. More naps in shifts then Dinner of Beef Stroganoff followed by Plum Pud and Brandy Sauce with Red wine. You know we haven't been drinking because you see we are following a really serious health plan. Loose weight and get fit to fight the Prostate cancer! We did however feel a birthday could excuse us all.

The 19th we are approaching the Seaways into Singapore. We've not had a drop of rain or a squall and the strongest wind has been 12 knots , since we left Miri on the 13th.

MIRI TO LABUAN 6th March 2011

Left Miri at a round mid-day on  Friday the 4th....yes, and with bananas on board!. In spite of the bananas we had a great sail around to the river anchorage in Kuala Belait, Brunei. Its about 35NM so we arrived well before dark, in time for pleasant sun-downers in the cockpit, and glad to be out of the marina again. On Saturday the weather held again for a great sail in fine conditions to the infamous anchorage built by the Sultan of Brunei's brother. Some sort of folly for Brunei and a lovely anchorage for yachties passing by. The most peaceful and calm anchorage imaginable with picturesque shore side. Unfortunately its a no landing area so we were content to look at it with beer in hand from the cockpit once again.

This morning after a leisurely breakfast we motored out and set sail for Labuan about 35NM again. However the wind died and after only a  very short sail we motor sailed into the marina at about 3.30 pm. We passed the time learning to put eye splices into double braid lines. The larger ropes still challenge us and the instructions are total double dutch!. Labuan still a dodgy marina but we have some parts and some mail here to pick up. We also have a new anchor winch on order and will wait for that here also.

KUCHING EASIER INTO THE WIND BY AIR December 2010.

David, Joan, (Davids mum visiting from Perth Western Australia,) and I head out to the airport on the 16th  to catch a flight to Kuching. We took a chance and didn't book rooms for our stay however city map showed numerous choices and we had very little luggage so a taxi took us to central Kuching and we set Joan down in a comfortable air-conditioned chair while we went in search of accommodation. Very quickly we came upon a clean and basic looking place, one street off the main waterfront, called Furama Lodging House and despite warnings on the net that some of the cheaper places "having vice activities" we checked out the rooms and checked in. $33A per night seemed ok. We ended up spending our three days here and would go back.

Orangutang at the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre.

After checking in we ran down the car hire place and organized a car. An ancient Honda Accord, in very good condition. That afternoon, Thursday, we drove out to Semenggoh to visit the Orangutan sanctuary. The feeding was nearly over because we managed to get lost several times and arrived late. The staff were great though and we got to see several of these beautiful creatures. Dinner that evening at Magna Carta Restruant in the old Court House on the Kuching Waterfront, was a highlight and Joan was intorduced to Tuak, the local wine.

Friday we set off to breakfast at a local cafe then to head to a mall. all this took longer than planned so we aborted the visit to The Cultural Village at Tanjung Dati and went instead to the Sarawak Museum. Several hours later and somewhat dissapointed we headed to lunch after which we spent a very pleasant hour in a water craft meandering up and down the river inspecting the local landmarks.

We learned sometime about now that we had visited the "Old" Museum!..darn! The old museum is extremely badly lit and the exhibits certainly look like they have been there since early last century. We will have to go to the New Sarawak Museum on our next visit. 

The government building. Parliament Palace. Kuching

Saturday we headed out early to the Cultural Village at Tanjung Datai. Its a fair drive and we only got lost once!. You do see some interesting things on the side when you get lost so its not all bad. We arrived and managed to track down a wheel chair for Joan at the Datu Beach Resort. Its a lot of walking at the village, mostly on  boardwalks and only on the odd rough spot, did we look like tipping her out. Joan was able to climb the sometimes rickety and challenging entry ladders to see the examples of traditional tribal houses, offering an introduction to local cultures and lifestyles. There was a compliment of local people on site to offer further information and displays of music, dance, craft and cooking. It was a long day but fortunately not too hot and well worth the effort.

Sunday we went to the local Sunday market for a few bargains and then to Uniko Borneo craft shop in the centre of the city. This was an amazing antique shop selling items primarily from Sarawak but also odd  exotic pieces from all over Asia. A very articulate and well informed young man there was able to supply information on a number of interesting pieces we admired. Eventually we had to drag ourselves out of there and rush to pack and drive to the airport for our flight back to Miri.

Orang Ulu House at the Cultural Village near Tanjong Datu

Bidayuh House

 Kuching. Interesting and friendly city. We will be back.

Now we are motor sailing up the coast towards Muara and the Royal Brunei Yacht Club for a Xmas Lunch on Saturday in company with Chris and Daun on "More Magic". We left Miri yesterday mid-day and stayed in the river at Kuala Belait last night after a great sail.

On that note I will wish everyone a very Merry Xmas and may 2011 be all you wish for.

Cheers.

More Photos of Kuching December 2010 

LANGKAWI TO SINGAPORE. Oct. Nov 2010

The alternator needed to be checked in Penang.

We arrived from Pisang Island into Singapore's One15 Marina on Sentosa Island at the south end of Singapore on Sunday having negotiated persistent heavy rain with thunder and lots of lightening. Thankfully the radar worked well and we managed to navigate our way through the giant ships coming and going. The visibility was appalling. Check In at the western quarantine anchorage was pretty speedy and we were safely tied up by 4pm.

After leaving Langkawi we took a fairly leisurely pace to Singapore, only day sailing and anchoring at night.  

Our first stop was Penang. We didn't go into the Tanjong City Marina this time, instead we anchored off, just south of the ferry dock. This proved simple and convenient with the facility at the marina to leave the dingy, negotiating the ferries was easy and the peace and quiet of the anchorage is preferable to that noisy smelly marina.

At Pankor Island and we were surprised to find a burnt out navy ship aground on a bank in the middle of the channel.

We stopped in Port Dickson for 3 nights to go over to Seramban to pick up ropes from a rope manufacturer there. www.cordage.com.my  Its a big manufacturing enterprise with high quality line at affordable prices. Ben, the owner, was exceedingly hospitable and we had lunch and a guided tour over his two factories. The new building is being finished preparatory to the move later this month. This little adventure took us most of the day.

We had a small maintenance issue at the top of the mast so David had to go aloft to attend to it. We ran a spare main halyard to ensure we have a backup.

Singapore is clean and busy as usual however there is a public holiday tomorrow, Wednesday, so that will slow down our jobs. Its was great to catch up with Crystal Blues for a good old  tuaking with dinner on our first night in! I have just  returned from the hair dresser with a whole new look. Brunette!!...heee hee..no pictures! 

There are some battery irregularities David is trouble-shooting here. So far he has discovered 2 of our 8 our AGM 100AH Trojans have failed. One is hot with an internal short. The other one is not holding its power and is unstable. This is a disappointing performance in a 3 year old battery.

Next stop Borneo.

LANGKAWI 28th October.2010

We didn't manage to get out of the Yacht Haven Marina till Tuesday and went straight to Phi Phi Don. Had a good sail but not fast enough to catch a fish. Wednesday morning  as we sailed out towards Rok Nok hoping for a snorkel, we looked back towards Phi Phi Lei to see this amazing water spout. The weather got stronger and wetter. We dodged lots of heavy showers with the aid of the new Radar but eventually had to sail through a big band of rain or take a long detour with no guarantee of avoiding it. The rain was so heavy the visibility was down to about 200m and with the Thai trawlers working in pairs its not comfortable when you cant see them. And we still don't know the new Radar well enough.

Just as we were hitting 8 and 9 kn the inevitable happened. Caught a fish! Fortunately a small enough one to land into the cockpit over the stern. A nice Dorado fish, or Mahi Mahi. We normally land fish on the deck on the side which necessitates getting the rod and line outside everything and up forward. Can be tricky in rough conditions.

We arrived at Rok Nok in clear but overcast conditions, picked up a sheltered mooring and set off for a snorkel. Not disappointed again. The reef is ordinary in the channel but the fish are prolific and varied.

Thursday was pleasant sailing and motor sailing to Telaga. We had just dropped the pic when we had a surprise visit from Carl and Kathleen off Silver Fin. A very pleasant and much welcome surprise lead to a good night aboard and lots to reminisce about.

We have heard there is some severe weather approaching so have decided to sit it out at Rebak and catch up with a few friends. Halloween Party tonight then we will see what the weather is dishing up before deciding whether or not to leave to head on south.

SPLASH August 2010

We are afloat again.

17 days on the hardstand in Rebak in August. Not the best fun a sailor can have on a boat. It was oppressively hot, day and night, with the air-con not working on the hard. (It needs seawater to cool.) Mosquitoes! Did I mention the mosquitoes? We were just unable to keep them out of the boat and a little nervous with at least one recent case of Dengue in the marina we know of.

The best part about Rebak is the pool at the end of a long hot sweaty day on the hard.

Our highlight was meeting a lovely young Danish couple here on holidays and staying in the Resort. We gave them a lift to town one day and the friendship developed from there. Stephen and Josefine Maple were a breath of fresh air and a reminder of the pleasure of the company of young people.

Our plans for the immediate future have changed again. We are going to sail down to Penang on Tuesday for Davids dental appointment on Wednesday. We will provision with the lovely fresh vegies available there, get Thai visa's, valid for the next 3 months, and then sail to Phuket again.

Yes!..I know we were going to Borneo!. BUT.... The marina at KK were less than helpful, not even answering emails. and we were unsure of berthing facility being available for the visit of Jason, Ferne, Lilly and Savannah so change of venue!

We are looking forward to our return and a much more leisurely pace while we are there this time. Maybe even some land travel? The sailing season, the best time of the year there, is just about to start so we will take this years season to enjoy the coast and islands.

PENANG September 09

Here we come again. We really didn't think we would be in Penang again so soon however its never disappointing to be here. 
The main reason for our return has been a change of plans relating to Taipan interior. 

We did quite a lot of work on Taipan in Phuket and have decided to return to complete the work. Hence back to Phuket via Penang.

Sailing to Penang from port Dixon has been fair with light wind and no rain. We have had little sailing but we did catch a nice mackerel on the final day.

Both David and I have been attending a Dentist here in Penang. Its still an unpleasant experience but the up side is that the service is a lot cheaper and quicker than Australia. The dentist is very good and previous work has been very satisfactory. We have 2 more appointments each but will take the ferry from Langkawi to Penang for those. We had planned to depart Penang on the 30th however weather hasn't been favourable so we have delayed. We have a few things to do in Langkawi before sailing to Phuket

Its always good to catch up with old friends and Egress 11 were in port so we spent time with Jack and Norma which is always a delight.

Graham from Quiet Achiever has returned from a tour of east coast Malaysia and we have caught up with him also for several excellent Indian dinners.

On Sunday morning we made the supreme effort to arise early and walk to the E&O Hotel for a fabulous buffet breakfast. A "must do" in Penang

Little Penang Street market which only happens monthly was on last Sunday so we were lucky to catch that and strolled enjoying the crafts and music after breakfast. I bought a fabulous piece of cloth, once the pelmet cover in a Chinese shop house somewhere. Its old and battered but will provide endless hours of creative entertainment for me.

Hitori and Machiko friends from Penang invited us to yet another stunning Japanese meal in their home.

We were in for a pleasant surprise one evening when during the course of our delicious vegetarian meal at Sri Annanda Bawan we were delighted to discover that the last day of the Festival to honour the Goddess Mariamman. This village goddess is considered the root or body of the village and Tamil Nadu people almost universally revere this goddess. In Penang the goddess was displayed in an ornate wagon shrine into which 2 Brahman bulls were harnesses to parade the goddess thru the streets of Georgetown. At the Indian shops and houses the procession stopped to bless offerings which were returned to their owners. Accompanying the procession were a troupe of dancers and musician. The Indian women and girls were dressed in the most vibrant and beautiful saris. The night was really exciting and everyone was friendly and keen to share information on the event.

More Photos of Thaipusam in Penang 09 

https://picasaweb.google.com/115450087052085474497/ThaipusamPenang09

http://philtar.ucsm.ac.uk/encyclopedia/hindu/ascetic/mariam.html

NEW MARINA IN MELACCA July 2009

We left Singapore on Sep 9th with about 5 kn on the nose. Thats sailor speak for "we motor-sailed". Arrived in port Dixon Friday 11th
 

On Saturday we hired a car and drove the 90km to Melacca via the scenic coastal route, getting lost a couple of times along the way for a bit of interest.

Melacca is packed with things to do and see. Its a really old spice trade center with abundant history and great food. We have visited before so this time we just spent wandering the old streets and poking about in the numerous antique and curio shops. There is a huge Mosque on a man made island which has big building development adjacent to it which although almost completed is deteriorating into a ruin. Amazing how many completed and almost completed projects are becoming ruins without ever being inhabited.

As we left town we ventured in the car to the coast where there is a lot of development occurring. Hundreds of barges are bringing tons of sand to reclaim miles of the waterfront for a new free way. 

As we sailed past quite close in on Friday we noticed a lot of new pylons and what appeared to be a wall surrounding a marina. Keen to discover whether one really does exist or may in the future we found the spot we had seen and sure enough. A new Marina!. It has one small yacht inside and the gate keeper gave us a phone number. We think its too shallow for sailboats.

"The Eye on Malaysia", a big ferris wheel is right behind the marian! So you wont miss it!