We set off long after Profasea, we managed to get a call to Luke and Milly, with the big time difference we have to grab our chances when we can. It’s been a great weekend for us as we managed to speak to Phoebe yesterday and Han on Saturday. Once again there was no wind so we had to motor the whole way, a slow hot passage. On our way down the long bay between the two islands we were radioed by a big research boat, they asked us to give them a mile’s clearance as they had submersibles down. He had a very South African accent and at the end Rowan said totsiens (goodbye) which gave him quite a surprise! Rowan looked their boat up and they are looking for old WW2 wrecks as well as for deep coral.
Rowan had arranged for us to pick up a mooring ball at a marina that is being built, by the guy whose mooring ball we used in Honiara. He has a solo female German live aboard sailor run the marina, she organised someone to help us get on the mooring ball which was really handy. Profasea was all tied up by the time we got in. There are quite a few boats here, three have been left here while the owners go home to their various countries. One is an old ketch with elegant lines, Rowan saw it is from Ipswich. The enormous catamaran is the owner’s. He has flown back to Honiara to attend a court case, he owned the boat that had taken government officials to the little island in Roderick bay that was shot at all those years ago. Apparently a never ending court case.
Rowan invited Hilda to join us for supper in town at the one restaurant that we could find. The crew from Profasea joined us too. We dinghied into town and tied up at the market jetty, quite challenging getting through the reefs in the pouring rain. Hilda who has lived here 18 months had no idea there was a restaurant that opened at night, she has been to this Chinese for take away lunch only. We wondered what we were going to get when we went around the side of a grotty building and found the restaurant, they couldn’t believe we wanted to eat, it was about 5:30pm so a little early I guess. It looked pretty dismal downstairs, with nobody looking like they could cook. Next minute we were take upstairs to a VIP room, what bliss it had aircon that meant no mozzies either. It was a huge step up from downstairs. It took about half an hour to order, their English was very limited, so sorting out the vegetarians wasn’t easy. I think the chefs had to be called in as it took a while to get our food, at least they had some cold beers for us while we waited. The food wasn’t too bad, I had chicken and Chinese mushrooms which was good, Rowan had pork things which he thought was tinned meat. Otherwise we heard lots of stories from Hilda, she is from the Frisian islands off the German coast. She has a daughter who is 42, so Hilda must be mid to late 60’s. She met a Brazilian German online, big German communities in Southern Brazil that moved there in the 1800s. Hilda and the spicy schnitzel as he was nicknamed at the table, sailed together for a few years but have parted company now, she said he was more German than the Germans! She just lives aboard her boat now with her black cat. I think she is a bit eccentric, I would definitely not like to live here for 18 months! It was tricky navigating the reefs back in the dark, lucky we had Hilda.
Entering the channel to Noro
The boats in the marina
Some amazing little Pagoda like houses, down the way from us in the marina, the smartest buildings around, but look empty, maybe still under construction
The hustle and bustle of the market dock
Boats everywhere
From left to right, Claudette, Jen, Karey and Hilda in our VIP room!
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