Hi everybody. Nothing much has gone on here except for a few things.
1. The day before yesterday we moved to a bay called Anaho and planned to
stay there for a while. It was a beautiful bay that was really calm since it
was so protected. While Cole and I were doing school (still studying for a
bunch of tests) Daddy jumped in the water to clean the boat and check the
anchor. Soon he told us to forget about school and "come see all these cool
fish that are swimming around me". So since Cole and I will do anything to
avoid studying (and it was hot) we pulled on our suits and jumped in the
water. We ended up being anchored over and little bit of a reef and had lots
of fun snorkeling with all sorts of cool, Pacific fish that we had never
seen before.
2. We had to move back to this bay since Don had to catch a plane back to
Denver. So yesterday we picked up the hook and came back here. Don left this
morning.
3. At the same time that Don went to the airport, Mommy and I went to a
local's house to get some fruits. The family we went with was really
friendly and the grandmother gave me hot chocolate and a baguette! It was so
delicious. After we had all had our snack, Mommy and I followed a woman
named Bernadette and her 5 year old daughter. When we arrived at their house
they gave us tons of fruit picked right out of their backyard. The family
was so friendly.
4. After we get a package we are waiting for we might go to another island
nearby called Ua Pua. It is one of the smaller islands, but is supposed to
be beautiful and have really good boulangeries (bakeries in French). \
5. Lately I have been playing my piano a lot and are now working on a song
called Prelude. I'm almost finished learning it and it's a really cool song.
Also, Cole has started learning how to play his guitar and once he learns
the notes I have a book of songs that we can play together!
Well that's about it on Zen. We are really taking a relaxing day today
(Daddy is snoring behind me, Mommy is lying out on the tramp and Cole is
probably playing something electronic). We are all going to church tomorrow
to hear the singing that will be performed by the locals for Palm Sunday. I
can't believe that it's almost Easter!! Well, I've gotta go, bye!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Dancing in an Ancient Village
So yesterday at around 11:00 we headed ashore to find the local dance show
that would be happening for the cruise ship that came in this morning. After
asking a few locals how to get there we started up the dirt trail that lead
to the old archeological area where they would be performing. As we were
walking up, a pick-up truck came up behind us filled with the performers.
They asked us if we were walking up to the show and when we said yes they
offered to give us a ride! We said yes and jumped in the truck. When we
arrived we walked around the site while waiting for the performance to
start. After walking across a short bridge made of logs and sticks we found
ourselves wandering around a big open courtyard with different layers of
rocks. The courtyard happened to be the home of an ancient tribe that died
off in the early 1800's. There was three different columns and on each
column there was two to four layers of rock. Depending on your importance,
you were told to live in a certain spot. In ancient times there were houses
on top of the rock layers where the people lived. There was a small statue
on the highest rock layer accompanied by smaller still carvings on two
pieces of wood. We assumed that this was where the priest or leader lived (I
learned about the houses and stuff when we followed a tour group after the
dances for a little while). After exploring a little bit more we walked back
across the bridge and back to the place where the dancers would be
performing. The backdrop by the way, was a huge tree that is over a 1
hundred years old. It has so many thick roots that it looks like multiple
trees put together! Anyways, when we got back to the 'stage' there were tons
of tourists. Much more than we expected to come on a boat. We never saw
their boat, but we are guessing that they came on a cruise ship and not a
little boat like in the Galapagos. Once everyone found a rock to sit on the
dancing began. There were three four men and one woman. They were all
dressed in grass skirts and headdresses and had lots of palm fronds. They
performed the traditional pig dance and war dance. The dancing was
accompanied by the men who were saying/singing chants in a low grunting
voice. It was really cool. When the dancing ended we followed an English
speaking tour for a little while before heading back to the boat. Since it
was about noon, we decided to stop at a little tent with people serving all
sorts of food on the side of the road for lunch. We ended up getting chow
mien and it was really good. Finally, we got back in the dinghy and headed
back to the boat. Since we hadn't seen any sharks in this bay, we all went
swimming before school started again. Once our swim was over we all took
turns showering off the back off the back of the boat. I ended up slipping
down the steps and cutting my back. It didn't hurt and I didn't know that it
was bleeding until Mommy looked at it and said "Okay! Your fine, just rinse
off, your fine, your fine". After having a slight panic attack because there
were a few wasps I managed to get inside. It was really pretty funny. Well,
we are just leaving the bay now and are going to a bay about 30 minutes away
called Anaho. It is known for being a beautiful bay so we are excited to get
there and check it out. Cole is negotiating to watch a movie...looks like
he's watching Nemo. Well I want to watch too, so I gotta go, bye!
that would be happening for the cruise ship that came in this morning. After
asking a few locals how to get there we started up the dirt trail that lead
to the old archeological area where they would be performing. As we were
walking up, a pick-up truck came up behind us filled with the performers.
They asked us if we were walking up to the show and when we said yes they
offered to give us a ride! We said yes and jumped in the truck. When we
arrived we walked around the site while waiting for the performance to
start. After walking across a short bridge made of logs and sticks we found
ourselves wandering around a big open courtyard with different layers of
rocks. The courtyard happened to be the home of an ancient tribe that died
off in the early 1800's. There was three different columns and on each
column there was two to four layers of rock. Depending on your importance,
you were told to live in a certain spot. In ancient times there were houses
on top of the rock layers where the people lived. There was a small statue
on the highest rock layer accompanied by smaller still carvings on two
pieces of wood. We assumed that this was where the priest or leader lived (I
learned about the houses and stuff when we followed a tour group after the
dances for a little while). After exploring a little bit more we walked back
across the bridge and back to the place where the dancers would be
performing. The backdrop by the way, was a huge tree that is over a 1
hundred years old. It has so many thick roots that it looks like multiple
trees put together! Anyways, when we got back to the 'stage' there were tons
of tourists. Much more than we expected to come on a boat. We never saw
their boat, but we are guessing that they came on a cruise ship and not a
little boat like in the Galapagos. Once everyone found a rock to sit on the
dancing began. There were three four men and one woman. They were all
dressed in grass skirts and headdresses and had lots of palm fronds. They
performed the traditional pig dance and war dance. The dancing was
accompanied by the men who were saying/singing chants in a low grunting
voice. It was really cool. When the dancing ended we followed an English
speaking tour for a little while before heading back to the boat. Since it
was about noon, we decided to stop at a little tent with people serving all
sorts of food on the side of the road for lunch. We ended up getting chow
mien and it was really good. Finally, we got back in the dinghy and headed
back to the boat. Since we hadn't seen any sharks in this bay, we all went
swimming before school started again. Once our swim was over we all took
turns showering off the back off the back of the boat. I ended up slipping
down the steps and cutting my back. It didn't hurt and I didn't know that it
was bleeding until Mommy looked at it and said "Okay! Your fine, just rinse
off, your fine, your fine". After having a slight panic attack because there
were a few wasps I managed to get inside. It was really pretty funny. Well,
we are just leaving the bay now and are going to a bay about 30 minutes away
called Anaho. It is known for being a beautiful bay so we are excited to get
there and check it out. Cole is negotiating to watch a movie...looks like
he's watching Nemo. Well I want to watch too, so I gotta go, bye!
Food Food Food!!!
Hi everyone! We are now in a different bay and are having such a good time
here!
After a really nice pizza dinner in the first bay we and went to (Taiohae
Bay) another bay called Hatiheu Bay. It was only a 3 hour motor and we soon
arrived. As soon as we put the anchor down though we were visited by wasps.
Since I just love bugs (not really) I ran inside and immediately locked
myself in by putting down all the screens and closing any windows that
didn't have screens. When I was done I realized that everyone else had
slowly moved inside to avoid the wasps too. Once anchored and settled in
Mommy sat down and said "everyone get your school books!". Before we knew
it, it was 5:00 and time to go over to Carl Linne for drinks and snacks.
After about an hour on Carl Linne we all went ashore to our already-reserved
traditional Marquisan dinner. When we got up to the dock we knew that it was
going to take some effort to get everyone ashore. The dock was cement and
very high and slippery. Also we had to deal with major surge and rocks.
Using the two dinghies we managed to get everyone except the two captains on
the dock. After some planning Daddy and Greg managed to get the dinghies
onto a mooring and then through a line to shore so that they could pull
themselves back ashore. Once everyone was ready we started our walk to the
restaurant. It was a short walk along some dirt roads lined with beautiful
flowers and palm trees overlooking the beach. At the restaurant we learned
that they were already cooking a pig (which they took us to see and it was a
full pig..like head, skin, eyes, everything) and that the dinner would be
ready soon. After a first course of all different kinds of delicious fried
fishes the pork arrived. It was served in handmade palm frond baskets and
really yummy sweet potato. There was so much amazing food! After arriving
back on the boat we fell right to sleep.
It was such an amazing experience and we had a great time. Bye!
here!
After a really nice pizza dinner in the first bay we and went to (Taiohae
Bay) another bay called Hatiheu Bay. It was only a 3 hour motor and we soon
arrived. As soon as we put the anchor down though we were visited by wasps.
Since I just love bugs (not really) I ran inside and immediately locked
myself in by putting down all the screens and closing any windows that
didn't have screens. When I was done I realized that everyone else had
slowly moved inside to avoid the wasps too. Once anchored and settled in
Mommy sat down and said "everyone get your school books!". Before we knew
it, it was 5:00 and time to go over to Carl Linne for drinks and snacks.
After about an hour on Carl Linne we all went ashore to our already-reserved
traditional Marquisan dinner. When we got up to the dock we knew that it was
going to take some effort to get everyone ashore. The dock was cement and
very high and slippery. Also we had to deal with major surge and rocks.
Using the two dinghies we managed to get everyone except the two captains on
the dock. After some planning Daddy and Greg managed to get the dinghies
onto a mooring and then through a line to shore so that they could pull
themselves back ashore. Once everyone was ready we started our walk to the
restaurant. It was a short walk along some dirt roads lined with beautiful
flowers and palm trees overlooking the beach. At the restaurant we learned
that they were already cooking a pig (which they took us to see and it was a
full pig..like head, skin, eyes, everything) and that the dinner would be
ready soon. After a first course of all different kinds of delicious fried
fishes the pork arrived. It was served in handmade palm frond baskets and
really yummy sweet potato. There was so much amazing food! After arriving
back on the boat we fell right to sleep.
It was such an amazing experience and we had a great time. Bye!
Monday, March 23, 2009
Sharks!
So we have finally gotten ashore and seen a bunch of really cool things!
One thing we discovered was that all of the girls wear white flowers in
their hair. The flowers are really beautiful and you can just walk up the
street and pick one off the tree! There are pink, red, white and yellow
flowers all over the place. If you put your flower on the right of your
head, that means you are married, and the left means that you aren't. This
morning Mommy and I picked our own flowers today.
Also, our friends on Carl Linne (who are also here) brought us to a really
nice hotel restaurant. There is even an infinity pool on the porch of the
restaurant overlooking the harbor. We went there last night and had some
really good deserts. We had chocolate lava cake with ice cream and lots of
whip cream! It was delicious!
Oh! I forgot! When we first arrived a nice Australian couple came by to
welcome us to the harbor. They are on their motor boat and have been here
four times already. They were very friendly and gave us some good
information, one of them was 'do not swim off the back of the boat'. They
told us that we couldn't swim here because of all the hammer head sharks
circling the harbor! Isn't that freaky?! Daddy even saw a shark swimming
around the boat this morning.
Well I just finished learning as much French as I can shove in my head and
studying for a grammar test (adjective and adverb fraises are really hard!).
We just restarted school after a two week vacation. Dinner is at the pizza
place tonight! Gotta go, bye!
One thing we discovered was that all of the girls wear white flowers in
their hair. The flowers are really beautiful and you can just walk up the
street and pick one off the tree! There are pink, red, white and yellow
flowers all over the place. If you put your flower on the right of your
head, that means you are married, and the left means that you aren't. This
morning Mommy and I picked our own flowers today.
Also, our friends on Carl Linne (who are also here) brought us to a really
nice hotel restaurant. There is even an infinity pool on the porch of the
restaurant overlooking the harbor. We went there last night and had some
really good deserts. We had chocolate lava cake with ice cream and lots of
whip cream! It was delicious!
Oh! I forgot! When we first arrived a nice Australian couple came by to
welcome us to the harbor. They are on their motor boat and have been here
four times already. They were very friendly and gave us some good
information, one of them was 'do not swim off the back of the boat'. They
told us that we couldn't swim here because of all the hammer head sharks
circling the harbor! Isn't that freaky?! Daddy even saw a shark swimming
around the boat this morning.
Well I just finished learning as much French as I can shove in my head and
studying for a grammar test (adjective and adverb fraises are really hard!).
We just restarted school after a two week vacation. Dinner is at the pizza
place tonight! Gotta go, bye!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
YIPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!
Yippee! We have finally reached land! This morning was the first time that
we could see Fatu Hiva and it is beautiful! It is extremely mountainous and
very green. The whole island is made of mountains and there isn't one low
spot. The coastal area right in front of the town is lined with palm trees
and a rocky beach. There are tall green trees mixed with the palm trees that
weave through the colorful shops and houses. The green mountains rise up
really fast right after the town and are sharp peaks at the top. Above the
island lots of fluffy clouds are hanging there dripping little showers of
rain. At the entrance to the bay there are towers of rock protecting the
bay. As you enter the turquoise/blue water becomes really flat and calm.
Right now we are pulling into the anchorage while experiencing a short sun
shower. It is not as populated as I thought it was going to be, but the
houses are all spread out on the hills and it's really cool. Since the
anchorage is surrounded by mountains the wind funnels in and there is a nice
breeze to keep us cool. This morning was spent cleaning the interior of the
boat and we now all smell like Pine Sol. Mommy is taking all sorts of
picture and video so you will probably see lots of pictures soon. Well we
are just about to put the anchor down so I gotta go, bye!
we could see Fatu Hiva and it is beautiful! It is extremely mountainous and
very green. The whole island is made of mountains and there isn't one low
spot. The coastal area right in front of the town is lined with palm trees
and a rocky beach. There are tall green trees mixed with the palm trees that
weave through the colorful shops and houses. The green mountains rise up
really fast right after the town and are sharp peaks at the top. Above the
island lots of fluffy clouds are hanging there dripping little showers of
rain. At the entrance to the bay there are towers of rock protecting the
bay. As you enter the turquoise/blue water becomes really flat and calm.
Right now we are pulling into the anchorage while experiencing a short sun
shower. It is not as populated as I thought it was going to be, but the
houses are all spread out on the hills and it's really cool. Since the
anchorage is surrounded by mountains the wind funnels in and there is a nice
breeze to keep us cool. This morning was spent cleaning the interior of the
boat and we now all smell like Pine Sol. Mommy is taking all sorts of
picture and video so you will probably see lots of pictures soon. Well we
are just about to put the anchor down so I gotta go, bye!
LAND HO!!!!
Land ho! We have finally spotted a little piece of land. Since the wind
changed a bit we ended up changing our destination to make it a calmer ride.
We are now going to an island called Nuku Hiva (you say it like nookoo
heeva). It is a little farther away than where we were supposed to be going
to, but we will arrive in about 15 hours, 30 minutes and 17 seconds (we
would have already been there if we went to Fatu Hiva). We are glad that the
wind changed though because Nuku Hiva is the main island and is where you
check in. We are also waiting for a package to arrive there. The anchorage
that we are going to has the 3rd largest waterfall in the world! We can
anchor right next to it! I'm so excited. It is supposed to be really
beautiful. For a little bit of background, the Marquises Islands are owned
by the French and part of French Polynesia. They are supposed to be really
tall and mountainous and our populated on almost all the islands. We are so
excited to go ashore and buy fresh baguettes and croissants.
changed a bit we ended up changing our destination to make it a calmer ride.
We are now going to an island called Nuku Hiva (you say it like nookoo
heeva). It is a little farther away than where we were supposed to be going
to, but we will arrive in about 15 hours, 30 minutes and 17 seconds (we
would have already been there if we went to Fatu Hiva). We are glad that the
wind changed though because Nuku Hiva is the main island and is where you
check in. We are also waiting for a package to arrive there. The anchorage
that we are going to has the 3rd largest waterfall in the world! We can
anchor right next to it! I'm so excited. It is supposed to be really
beautiful. For a little bit of background, the Marquises Islands are owned
by the French and part of French Polynesia. They are supposed to be really
tall and mountainous and our populated on almost all the islands. We are so
excited to go ashore and buy fresh baguettes and croissants.
Cole, Daddy and I just finished a game of monkey in the middle with Cole's
hacky sack. It was really fun (other than the part when Daddy whacked me in
the eye with the ball and even that was funny).
We think that it is almost 11:30 at night in RI, but it is only 7:30 here
and we just finished dinner. Mommy made an attempt to make fish tacos with
chips instead of tacos, but it was nothing like what she had hoped to
make....it was so good!! I have been wanting tacos for a while and Mommy
said she'd try to make fish tacos with the tuna we caught this afternoon.
Like I said they didn't turn out to be anything like tacos..more like
marinated fish in a Mexican sauce with cheese and chips. Sounds good right?
For desert we had mini chocolate bars (mini Snickers, Twix, and Milky Way).
It was delicious.
Well, we've got 100.573 miles to go! Bye!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
4 more days!!!
Yippee!! I'm so excited to get there! We will arrive in 3 or 4 days to our
destination in the Marquises called Fatu Hiva (you say it like fatoo heeva).
We did a contest today and everyone guessed how many miles we would cover in
24 hours. The winner would be able to pick the movie we all watch tonight. I
won! We were especially surprised though that I guessed the exact number of
miles we traveled, 200! I chose the movie Center Stage. Mommy will probably
watch with me and Don too since he's never seen it before. I know that Cole
doesn't want to watch but I have a feeling that he will. I don't know about
Daddy. We are playing the game again and I kept my same guess since the
weather should stay the same. Who knows what will happen though. Since
there's been lots of wind we have been averaging a speed of about 9 knots or
more (that's really fast for a monohull and a little bit over regular for a
catamaran). We even hit 24 knots when surfing on a wave! Oh, and I'm not
sure exactly, but in the past two weeks I have read 9 or 10 books. All hale
the ebook. I don't know what I would do without my ebook. We are taking a
little break from school, but are starting back up again when we get to
land. Mommy has been making bread the past 3 days and it is so good! We were
sitting at lunch today waiting for the bread to finish and it was torture
since you could smell it from the table. It was so yummy! Well, it's been
really hot here..it's currently 4:30 and 85 degrees. It doesn't really make
sense to take a shower because 10 minutes after you finish you're sweaty
again. I tried taking a shower today and with the boat moving around so much
I slipped and fell 3 times! It was really funny. It's my watch now so I
gotta go, bye!
destination in the Marquises called Fatu Hiva (you say it like fatoo heeva).
We did a contest today and everyone guessed how many miles we would cover in
24 hours. The winner would be able to pick the movie we all watch tonight. I
won! We were especially surprised though that I guessed the exact number of
miles we traveled, 200! I chose the movie Center Stage. Mommy will probably
watch with me and Don too since he's never seen it before. I know that Cole
doesn't want to watch but I have a feeling that he will. I don't know about
Daddy. We are playing the game again and I kept my same guess since the
weather should stay the same. Who knows what will happen though. Since
there's been lots of wind we have been averaging a speed of about 9 knots or
more (that's really fast for a monohull and a little bit over regular for a
catamaran). We even hit 24 knots when surfing on a wave! Oh, and I'm not
sure exactly, but in the past two weeks I have read 9 or 10 books. All hale
the ebook. I don't know what I would do without my ebook. We are taking a
little break from school, but are starting back up again when we get to
land. Mommy has been making bread the past 3 days and it is so good! We were
sitting at lunch today waiting for the bread to finish and it was torture
since you could smell it from the table. It was so yummy! Well, it's been
really hot here..it's currently 4:30 and 85 degrees. It doesn't really make
sense to take a shower because 10 minutes after you finish you're sweaty
again. I tried taking a shower today and with the boat moving around so much
I slipped and fell 3 times! It was really funny. It's my watch now so I
gotta go, bye!
PS. We are 4,563.656 miles away from Newport if you were to travel in a
straight line from us to there.
Monday, March 16, 2009
More Pics
here lately. The wind just picked up and we should be able to sail at decent
speeds for the rest of the trip. We should arrive in exactly one week (I
hope)!!! Bye!
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Day 10....Still Sailing
Hi everyone, I've been doing some sketching lately and so I decided to post
them to the blog. Here is one of them...I'll put the rest of them up with
each blog I send. Pictures are too big to send over the sat. email and so I
can only send one at a time.
I tricked Cole into writing a blog! It's a miracle! Check out his blog, it's
already posted.
Anyways, Cole and started shifts! Mine is from 3 to 6PM and Coles' is from 7
to 10AM. Daddy gave us a lesson on what to check when on watch. I started
two days ago and it's really fun. Cole and I are now official crew! During
our watch we need to log some information in the ships' log and then put our
position down on the chart on Daddy's computer. I also get to do the net
during my watch. We will be doing watches so that Mommy and Daddy will be
able to sleep more when Don is gone. The spinnaker is up now since the wind
came up a bit (we were excited to see 1.5 knots of wind). Well Cole, Mommy
and I just finished watching Spider Man 3. It was a cool movie even though
I've seen it multiple times before. It's almost 5:30 here (there's a 3 hour
difference from the middle of nowhere, aka us, and Newport , aka you) and so
Mommy is making dinner. Rice, lentils and curry...mmmmm. Smells good. Gotta
go, bye!
them to the blog. Here is one of them...I'll put the rest of them up with
each blog I send. Pictures are too big to send over the sat. email and so I
can only send one at a time.
I tricked Cole into writing a blog! It's a miracle! Check out his blog, it's
already posted.
Anyways, Cole and started shifts! Mine is from 3 to 6PM and Coles' is from 7
to 10AM. Daddy gave us a lesson on what to check when on watch. I started
two days ago and it's really fun. Cole and I are now official crew! During
our watch we need to log some information in the ships' log and then put our
position down on the chart on Daddy's computer. I also get to do the net
during my watch. We will be doing watches so that Mommy and Daddy will be
able to sleep more when Don is gone. The spinnaker is up now since the wind
came up a bit (we were excited to see 1.5 knots of wind). Well Cole, Mommy
and I just finished watching Spider Man 3. It was a cool movie even though
I've seen it multiple times before. It's almost 5:30 here (there's a 3 hour
difference from the middle of nowhere, aka us, and Newport , aka you) and so
Mommy is making dinner. Rice, lentils and curry...mmmmm. Smells good. Gotta
go, bye!
PS. We went swimming 1500 miles away from anything!!
Monday, March 9, 2009
Still Sailing
Hi everyone! We are still underway to the Marquises and will be for the next
10 to 14 days (hopefully 10). There isn't much going on, but here are some
interesting things that have happened so far:
10 to 14 days (hopefully 10). There isn't much going on, but here are some
interesting things that have happened so far:
1.My new job is to do the nets. When you do the nets you give your report on
where you are and stuff on the Single Sideband Radio (SSB). Every morning
and night a bunch of cruisers get together over the radio for safety and
communication. One person controls the net and calls to the other cruisers
saying "any vessels underway, come now." and other things that he or she may
want. Then, if I am underway, I would say "Zen" into the radio and wait for
net control to tell me to give my check-in. Once the given the okay to give
my report I say our lat and long, wind speed and direction, course and
speed. We give reports on the net so that other people know what the weather
is where we are and if we are in trouble they can take an educated guess on
where we might be. Also on the net I can write down the positions and
weather of our friends to know how they are doing.
2.A new thing that we have been using is life tags. Life tags are little
orange things that you strap onto your arm or wrist and will set an alarm
off on the boat if you fall overboard. Cole and I are wearing them all the
time except when we sleep and everybody else wears them when they are on
watch. They're pretty cool.
3.I have been studying French a lot lately. I have a game that teaches me on
my DS and a program on my computer called Rosetta Stone that teaches me too.
It's really fun and I enjoy learning the language. We are going to have to
speak French for the rest of our trip until New Zealand so I figured that I
should start now.
4.Something funny that has been happening lately is watching the flying fish
fly over the boat. Yes, flying fish have been landing in the cockpit and all
over the deck! I feel bad for the little fishies so we always try to through
them back into the water before they die. Another thing landing on the deck
are little, tiny squids. When they land they make little black ink spots on
the boat and they seem to like the tramps. They're really gross looking
though.
5.My sleeping pattern has changed. I tend to wake up at about 7:30 in the
morning and stay awake until about 3 in the afternoon. At 3 I fall back
asleep until around 5 PM. After dinner Cole and I normally stay up during
Mommy's watch, which goes from 7-11. Cole normally falls asleep around 10,
but I can't fall asleep until 10:30, 10:45. It's really strange, but the
motion of the boat makes me tired.
Okay, that's about it. I can't wait to get there!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Is It Possible to Get Hypothermia In the Galapagos?
Hi everyone! We are now currently underway to the Marquises. This will be
the longest passage of any of our lives, 15-20 days long. So far the seas
are down and there is exactly 2.4 knots of wind at the highest. We are just
burning fuel now until we get farther south and find the trade winds
(trades).
Anyways, before we left the Galapagos we did some cool tours. One of them
was a day tour to the island Isabela. It was pretty cool. We woke up at
around 5 AM and then took a two hour boat ride with some friends on the boat
Carl Linne to Isabela. While there we did a nature walk, snorkeling, and
some sightseeing. There was a cute little town with dirt roads and few
people. Finally, after lunch, we got back on our boat and headed back to
Santa Cruz. While on the ride back Cole and I took naps and the folks on
Carl Linne invited us to come over to their boat for drinks. We all wanted
to see the boat and so we agreed. After an nice evening on Carl Linne we
finally got back to Zen and fell immediately asleep. It had been a great but
tiring day.
The other trip that I did was a diving excursion. Only Daddy and I went
diving. For multiple different reasons the others didn't want to go and so
they planned a snorkel trip. Anyways, at about 6 AM Daddy and I woke up and
got ready for our dive. About an hour later the boat came by Zen to pick us
up. After quickly shoving some pancakes in our mouths we jumped on the boat
and were off. On the boat we met the people we would be diving with. A girl
from New Hampshire who was on vacation to see her friend was coming to get
certified and another guy from somewhere in Europe who had done 150 dives
around the world already and hadn't yet been to the Galapagos. We would also
be diving with a guide and another girl from the dive place who was also
from New Hampshire and was taking a year off of college to live and work in
the Galapagos. After a 45 minute ride to an island off of Santa Cruz we
suited up and dove in. Since we had already been fitted for our gear it was
just a matter of pulling on wet suits (which if they happen to be two piece,
long suits, that is not very easy). Once we jumped in the water the first
thing I thought was "is it possible to get hypothermia in the Galapagos?".
The water was the coldest water I have been in since last spring. I was
freezing. Although we were all really cold, the first dive was pretty cool.
I saw three different sharks and a few rays. There wasn't any coral but
there were some colorful, little fish. Once our hour was up we all got back
in the boat and motored into another little cove where we would wait another
hour before diving again. After having a little sandwich one of the guys
jumped back in the water and swam around for a bit taking pictures of some
animals. When I noticed that he found a couple baby sea lions I jumped in
the water and swam over. The water on the surface was really warm and since
I still had my wet suit on I barely knew I was in the water. Once I got to
the seals I noticed that there were three babies and their mother was on the
rocks a little while away. They were so cute! They posed for a while and let
us take pictures while their mom played with us underwater. It was so cool!
Soon we had to go back and go to our next dive. On this dive I put on a wet
suit hat and gloves to be warmer. This was much better and I enjoyed the
second dive much more. On this dive we saw sea turtles, rays and tons of
little fish and starfish. I had a great time. Back on the boat again we had
lunch and then headed back to Santa Cruz. It was so much fun!
Well, we are still cruising a long, waiting for the wind. We are now trying
to figure out how to charge Cole's Ipod. Gotta go, bye!
the longest passage of any of our lives, 15-20 days long. So far the seas
are down and there is exactly 2.4 knots of wind at the highest. We are just
burning fuel now until we get farther south and find the trade winds
(trades).
Anyways, before we left the Galapagos we did some cool tours. One of them
was a day tour to the island Isabela. It was pretty cool. We woke up at
around 5 AM and then took a two hour boat ride with some friends on the boat
Carl Linne to Isabela. While there we did a nature walk, snorkeling, and
some sightseeing. There was a cute little town with dirt roads and few
people. Finally, after lunch, we got back on our boat and headed back to
Santa Cruz. While on the ride back Cole and I took naps and the folks on
Carl Linne invited us to come over to their boat for drinks. We all wanted
to see the boat and so we agreed. After an nice evening on Carl Linne we
finally got back to Zen and fell immediately asleep. It had been a great but
tiring day.
The other trip that I did was a diving excursion. Only Daddy and I went
diving. For multiple different reasons the others didn't want to go and so
they planned a snorkel trip. Anyways, at about 6 AM Daddy and I woke up and
got ready for our dive. About an hour later the boat came by Zen to pick us
up. After quickly shoving some pancakes in our mouths we jumped on the boat
and were off. On the boat we met the people we would be diving with. A girl
from New Hampshire who was on vacation to see her friend was coming to get
certified and another guy from somewhere in Europe who had done 150 dives
around the world already and hadn't yet been to the Galapagos. We would also
be diving with a guide and another girl from the dive place who was also
from New Hampshire and was taking a year off of college to live and work in
the Galapagos. After a 45 minute ride to an island off of Santa Cruz we
suited up and dove in. Since we had already been fitted for our gear it was
just a matter of pulling on wet suits (which if they happen to be two piece,
long suits, that is not very easy). Once we jumped in the water the first
thing I thought was "is it possible to get hypothermia in the Galapagos?".
The water was the coldest water I have been in since last spring. I was
freezing. Although we were all really cold, the first dive was pretty cool.
I saw three different sharks and a few rays. There wasn't any coral but
there were some colorful, little fish. Once our hour was up we all got back
in the boat and motored into another little cove where we would wait another
hour before diving again. After having a little sandwich one of the guys
jumped back in the water and swam around for a bit taking pictures of some
animals. When I noticed that he found a couple baby sea lions I jumped in
the water and swam over. The water on the surface was really warm and since
I still had my wet suit on I barely knew I was in the water. Once I got to
the seals I noticed that there were three babies and their mother was on the
rocks a little while away. They were so cute! They posed for a while and let
us take pictures while their mom played with us underwater. It was so cool!
Soon we had to go back and go to our next dive. On this dive I put on a wet
suit hat and gloves to be warmer. This was much better and I enjoyed the
second dive much more. On this dive we saw sea turtles, rays and tons of
little fish and starfish. I had a great time. Back on the boat again we had
lunch and then headed back to Santa Cruz. It was so much fun!
Well, we are still cruising a long, waiting for the wind. We are now trying
to figure out how to charge Cole's Ipod. Gotta go, bye!
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