HAVE I SWITCHED TO ISLAND TIME?

3 April 2024

I have been at Gili Asahan for a while now.  The seasonal wind is not in my favour yet so there is no incentive to sail on.  The anchorage here is super calm and well protected. Ashore there are some small boutique resorts serving good food and drinks.  There’s also some other cruisers on boats waiting for the season to change, providing social interaction and coffee mornings.  The locals and children are always up for a natter and have a million questions as to where you come from, where you are going and everything in between.

I had my birthday a couple of weeks ago.  Not that I really celebrate birthdays anymore, they are sort of running out.  As a treat I went to the Eco Resort for breakfast and I tucked into an English breakfast with real pork bacon.  Jamie and Liz from SY Esper kindly gave me some vacuum bags for my new toy. Yes, I have just bought a vacuum sealer machine.  I don’t have a freezer on board and the vacuum sealer will allow me to keep food in the fridge for a longer period.  Its is also handy for sealing up bulk foods to prevent insects etc from eating them. 

My days are flying by and all is peaceful in my life.  I fear I am becoming lazy and in discussion with another single handed cruiser moored here he has the same concerns about himself.  Of course, I have my ‘to do’ list and every day I endeavour to check at least one item off the list.  Very often, I will check an item off the list and add two more – that’s the way of cruising.  In reality, if you keep a well run boat the repairs and maintenance will keep you occupied and its impossible to be classed as lazy.  Maybe just operating at a slower pace, Island time maybe.

Despite my slower pace of life, I am still managing to carry out maintenance and upkeep on the boat.  A recent job entailed some minor repairs and touch up painting.  Of course, this required multiple tools, epoxy glue, paints etc. (stuff)  All this stuff is from lockers, boxes, drawers and storage spaces in different locations within the boat.  Getting access to all this stuff involves moving even more stuff that is stowed on top of the stuff you need.  I am not exaggerating when I say it’s exhausting to be constantly moving stuff.  Anyone who has a boat will instantly recognise and understand the issue.  Fortunately on Truce we have a large chart table that makes for a great work table and can accommodate a huge amount of stuff.

There are a couple of online shopping sites in Indonesia.  The one I use is Tokopedia as it takes my credit card.  In such a spread out place as Indonesia the delivery of goods must be a challenge but they manage it with surprising speed and accuracy.  I have now received a few items and am really impressed with the service.  The latest purchase was three new country flags that I hope to put to use in the coming months of travel.

We are now well into Ramadan and I think the locals are looking forward to Eid.  The mosques are active into the early hours of the morning and can be heard across the water from both the mainland and the islands.  It’s the sound of this part of Indonesia. 

The local boats are interesting, single lateen sail, surprisingly fast and easy to sail with one person.  Construction is amazing, the outriggers are secured by lashings which makes them strong and flexible.  Seeing a flotilla of these boats sailing at speed back to shore after a nights fishing is impressive.  But, they don’t obey the rules of the road, it can be hair-raising trying to avoid them as they seem to enjoy changing course at the last minute and entice a collision with a cheery wave. 

• Facebook
• Instagram
• YouTube
• LinkedIn