Julie on Board

2 April 2014

We find Stamper in good condition after having stood 6 months on the hard in Pangkor marina. No damage from the elusive Houdini rat that was on board shortly before I left Stamper, only droppings in the Canvas cover of the barbecue where he may have stayed believing to be in rat heaven. I guess that after some time he realised that you cannot live on smells alone and has left Stamper.

After the planned three days of work on the hard we are ready to have her floated in the water again, much to the surprise of other sailors who have been working months on their boats.

Julie is busy arranging her stuff in the available space on board, rearranging my stuff and cleaning areas I did not know needed cleaning. I learn that i might have been already partly on the way to become a lonely, dirty sailor? The process of getting settled is nice for both of us.

The Batu caves near Kuala Lumpur that we visited on our way to the Cameron highlands. These are transformed into a Hindu temple (near Ipoh are similar temples, but those are Chinese).

Surprisingly inside the Batu caves is a natural face in the rocks that resembles a Buddha. Monks come and visit there.

17 April 2014

We are ready to sail Stamper to Singapore and meet up with Dick and Anita on Kind of Blue before they leave for South Africa, a trip that Stamper will make a couple of years later. Julie proves that she can handle Stamper well and after two nights sailing i can safely go to sleep knowing she is capable of handling Stamper and will call me when needed. The handling of Stamper in more demanding weather will come in due time. For this trip the wind is non-existent to a light breeze.

We sail through the night to avoid fishing vessels to run us over while we are at anchor, and keep close to the shipping lanes as most fishermen keep their respectful distance there. Just one small group of three small fishing boats happened to have dropped their nets just on the edge of the shipping lanes. When we meet them in the dark a tug boat with a tow has already cut through their nets. The tugboat captain is naturally a bit nervous when he also sees a sailing vessel coming close by while he is also being overtaken by a traffic jam of freighters in the shipping lane. Some of the freighters avoid the jam by exiting the shipping lane into our inshore lane causing more confusion. At the climax we notice the small fishing boats being caught between the freighters, nearly losing their lives! We see the floats of their net passing Stamper without further damage.

Sailing can be exiting! To relax after this experience I check the engine and find that we have overheated her. Happily a little wind picks up that allows us to sail the next 4 hours and let the engine cool off. A year ago I had increased the speed of the propellor from 22° to 24° to get a better load on the engine at low speeds. This causes the overheating when going for a long time at full speed. Some repairs on temperature sensors, rev counters and heat exchangers are needed to keep a better control.

21 April 2014

Danga Bay Marina is our base for the next month

Travelling is a continuous process of adjustment. A similar form of adjustment is ongoing between me and Julie. Even though we think we fit well and do have many overlaps of interest, we also realise that we are only four months into a new relationship. Finding out what really makes the other tick and understanding what needs and drive the other has, is not finished in this short time.

We challenge each other to explore and adjust and this emotional travel comes on top of our physical travels. both have their own charms and dangers. You can easily overlook many important and interesting aspects. I see, through Julies eyes, Malaysia with renewed interest. How will the future of these countries develop? They did destroy much of value in the race to wealth, but in itself , as a westerner, you can hardly condemn the people for doing it. The leaders who, knowingly, become rich in luting their environment, you can condemn however.

Julie and I are finding in each other needs and desires that we would like to explore when the traveling urge settles into a gentle stream. For now we plan seriously to sail to New Zealand, from SE Asia, through Indonesia, along Ambon to Palau and east using the tropical countercurrent flowing east along about 4° North, right up to the dateline at 180° W, then down to Vanuatu and New Zealand. We plan to do this in 2015 from say April - October. This allows us to sail to the Tioman islands, E of Malaysia, in 2014 and explore Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, HongKong and many other places over land somewhere this summer.

In October 2014 to February 2015 we may be in Phuket and Nepal and Buthan might be on our agenda in February March 2015.

Plenty of traveling urge I would say. In this scheme we would be in

• • New Zealand from October 2015 till April 2016.

  • Pacific islands of Tonga, Fiji and New Caledonia in 2016

  • Travel out of hurricane alley by the winter of 2016, where?

  • Travel to South Africa in 2017,

  • to South America in 2018 and the Caraib

  • Come to Europe in 2019????

All plans are subject to change...

Meeting up with Willy, Ria, Elly and George on Sabbatical here in Danga bay was a big and pleasant surprise. The cause for their travel was sad; to bring Sabbatical the boat of a sailing friend who lost his life, to a place for selling. The reconnect to old friends was wonderful. On top of that we hugged our best sailing buddies Dick and Anita on Kind of Blue and are happy to see them before they set off on their big jump across the Indian Ocean to South Africa. We wish them a safe and pleasant journey!