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Ship’s Log – Part 2

Published on October 30, 2025 by kiwisdofly2Leave a comment

Banana Split, Raja Ampat, October 2025

After a challenging 13 hour steam from Sorong to the government mooring buoy at Pulau Kri, we settle into life on the water where things just get better and better!

Tuesday 1300: There was a very strong current ripping through this area, we didn’t get a chance to get off the boat. So we decided to move locations. Pulau Friwen is only 5 miles to the north of here, let’s go check it out.

This was the best decision. We got over there easily, and in day light – though there was localised cloud burst, right on top of us just as we were approaching the island.

Visibility became non-existent and we got soaked. We did a 360° circle to kill a bit of time before coming in closer and finding an anchorage. Then it cleared, as quick as it came, I guess that is the tropics for you! Actually we are only about 30 miles from the Equator here. Our GPS position is 00°28.6’S, 130°41.8’E. It is exciting for me to see 00 degrees, NZ is 37°S latitude, we are soo far north!

1500: We anchored just off the jetty in 19m. We are really close to the village and feel a little self conscious. You know the colour of our boat right? We don’t really hit the brief of “incognito” We hope we don’t upset anyone with being so close.

I can see locals washing their dishes on the shore line

Next minute, who should turn up in a little grey inflatable? our angels, Matt and Jo. It was so good to see them, we hadn’t noticed that one of the other 2 boats anchored in this bay was theirs, Jindarra. It was good to get their advice as they have been here before. They said this was a safe anchorage and the villages are really friendly and wont mind. We are able to repay their kindness with cold beer all round!

Wednesday: We went ashore with Matt and Jo for a walk around the village. There is a primary school on the island and all the kids were coming out for their break. They were so happy to see us.

Local kids loving chatting to the foreigners

This island is only .2 square kilometres in size, no vehicles at all, not even motorbikes. There are a couple of homestays with very basic accommodation right on the beach. This is magical, so unspoilt and natural. I imagine that some of the residents have never left the island, or if they have, then it would be only to the neighbouring islands.

This is also where we met the French family who knew of Antoine and Banana Split – check out our previous story here ↓

https://kiwisdofly.blog/2025/10/14/the-story-of-banana-split/

After lunch Matt takes us all around to the other side of the island in the inflatable to the Friwen Wall for a snorkel. There is a current running here too and the depth is off the scale. We jump into the water and just drift along in the current, taking turns at holding onto the dinghy as she bobbed along beside us.

This is the best dive I have ever done. I have never seen such a variety of colours and shapes of coral like this before. There was a shelf about 1-2 meters wide before a huge drop off, full of so many fish, every colour, shape and size you could imagine. All so curious and playful. They love seeing their reflections in our masks which makes for comical interactions. I would reach out and they dart away. I could have spent all day just watching and playing with them.

The current was gentle, and the water was warm. I didn’t even have fins on. Absolutely out of this world, I felt like I was in a tropical fish tank, it was that beautiful. Bobbing along watching this incredible example of nature at her bery best. Wow, wow and again just WOW!

Photos taken by Jo! The colours were amazing

We decided to go into the water again on the way back around to the boats. And again, stunning! A bit deeper here but just as beautiful as the Wall. I saw the tiny clown fish rubbing themselves amongst the sea anemones just like on Finding Nemo! This was the best day ever!

That evening we had a few drinks on the back of Banana Split and the local children put on a show. They were so funny. Dancing and singing and jumping into the water. They got really brave and swam out to the boat. They were having a ball, giggling and carrying on. It was pouring with rain and they were having the time of their lives. This was a real joy and an experience we will never forget.

Thursday 0700: we say goodbye to Matt and Jo as they head off and we head to Batanta, which is about half way back to Sorong.

We feel like we have struck gold. This bay has anchorages of 15-20 meters and water the colour of gin. It should be quite protected from most winds. Here we can get into the water and cool off right from the boat.

The currents are still quite strong, but we are able to get PugWash down and row ashore. Coconut palms, white sand, clear water, is this paradise? Yes I think so.

We spend 3 nights here at anchor. During each night the wind comes up and there is thunder and lightning one of the nights. So, sleep is still not coming easy. We are both up checking our position several times each night. But by morning and we see that the anchor is still holding well, we relax again and enjoy this remarkable place.

We are approached each day by small boats with young people selling coconuts. We can’t resist; fresh coconut water is just the best. I had said no thank you as politely as I could one time as we already had 2! The boy was so polite and started paddling away. Out of nowhere I pulled out my only Indonesian – Hey! I said, Satu Lagi (one more) the smile nearly broke his face in half, we now have 3. We found an electric drill onboard so were able to get into them.

Saturday 1500: We took PugWash to the beach for a swim and a cold beer. While we were there, the crew from the super yacht we’d spotted up at Kri, which had anchored in the bay the night before, came ashore. We got chatting. There were 4 of the usual 6 crew. Canadian, English, French and a Kiwi! (so proud!) Young people living their best life. The skipper was 26 and had been master of this boat for 3 years! The owner had left the boat a few days earlier. We were super impressed with them all, they are out there doing it and absolutely loving their jobs! Well done team!

The water here is stunning, so warm and clear. At the corner of the island the sand is pure white and the water shallow. It feels like being back in Vieques, bobbing around in the knee deep clear water, this is what it is all about!

Sunday 0700: Anchor up and make way to Sorong. We make good time, 4.5 knots most of the way. 5 hours later we make fast at Tampa Garam Boat Harbour. We are getting better at this Med style mooring. Time to relax and high fives all round – Again! We did it, such a fantastic trip!

We have used all our provisions, and it is so hot back at the marina compared to out at sea. We decided to spend the afternoon at the pool beside the marina.

It is Sunday and the complex is full of local families. We feel like celebrities! We are approached by 3 different groups to get photos/selfies with them. The girls are giggling away as they get brave to come and talk to us. Google translate becomes our best friend. We swap Instagram profiles and share the photos. We even get asked to touch the pregnant one’s belly – to give them good luck. How about that! It has been quite a day – Quite a week!

Thank you for reading our story

Ship’s Log – Part 1

Published on October 29, 2025October 29, 2025 by kiwisdofly21 Comment

Banana Split, Raja Ampat, October 2025

0700 We arrived to see the bright yellow boat nestled in between other yachts at the Tampa Garam Boat Harbour. We were knackered, having done an overnight flight from KL (Air Asia-tiny seats) via a 4-hour layover in Jakarta.

We get ourselves and all our luggage safety on board. This is all so new to us; we have never been on this boat before. We start exploring, turning on switches looking in cupboards, stripping off clothes as it is getting hotter and hotter. We close the fridge and try to get it going but it doesn’t seem to be working. We do a little diagnostics as good as we can given we don’t know where to look. But this is just a boat, right? We have been on boats before; how hard can this be. No luck, this fridge is refusing to cooperate.

By now it is a decent time in France, so we call and talk to the owner, how do you turn the fridge on? We had already found the fridge motor and all looked ok there, all switches we can see are on, Arnaud is none the wiser. In the end we call the Skipper who delivered Banana Split from Australia, and ask him how did he turn the fridge off? Maybe we could retrace his steps in reverse. So, it turns out that there is a separate switch for the fridge, in a faraway place, all on its own, cunningly disguised as the anchor winch switch. Well, you don’t know if you don’t know!

Life is now good; we have the whole boat operational. By now it is afternoon and we are starting to really feel the heat. Then an angel came down from heaven, in the form of the Aussie bloke from the boat next door, in a little grey inflatable – carrying 2 cold beers! What a guy! This was so appreciated, we cannot say. This was Matt, and his wife Jo. They have sailed up from Australia and are sailing around Indonesia and beyond, for as long as it takes; Awesome! After getting some supplies of our own, we took our borrowed dinghy to their boat and spent the evening enjoying their company, swapping our warm beer for cold. This is a fantastic start to our time here in Sorong.

We spend 2 weeks at the marina. Matt and Jo left the day after we arrived. We are busy every day, getting to know the boat, doing a little tidying and sorting and exploring a bit of Sorong.

We decide we should do a day trip, a little shake down, feel the boat. So, we let the lines go and head out for a few hours. All goes well and we like Banana Split, she is a good solid boat and very easy to manoeuvre.

Coming back in is a little challenging. We have never had anything to do with the Mediterranean Mooring system which is used here at Tampa Garam. We had a good plan and had left the stern lines ashore where we could back in and pick them up with the boat hook – easy peasy. And it was. We came in and tied up like pros! High fives all round for us! Great day!

So, with the trial run completed, it is decided that we should go further and see a bit of this amazing part of the world, Raja Ampat. Let’s go for a week. We spent a few more days provisioning the boat and planning our passage.

Sunday 0630: We head out on a course for Mansur and Kri. The weather is a bit overcast which is giving us shade and the sea is very calm with light variable winds. Other boaties around have been saying that there has been no wind to speak of, so they have not been getting their sails up. We don’t know our headsail from our genoa anyway and have no intention of trying to undo all the perfectly tied up sails and sheets and whatever-else-they-are-called. We would never be able to get it all back together again as we found it. Like re-folding a map – I guess you have to be a certain age to understand what that is like!! Anyway, we do not feel out of place motoring along with all sails neatly stowed in their rightful places.

We are making good speed, 4.5 – 4.8knots, 37 miles to travel. Should make it by about 1530. We almost speak too soon, 5 hours into the journey a squall comes out of nowhere. This was not forecasted. The wind is getting up to 20 knots almost right on the nose. We are now only making 2 – 2.5knots. We take a few good greenies over the bow and things start falling all over the place. We were still towing the dinghy as it was so calm but wished we had brought her up on deck. We just have to punch through it and hope it passes soon.

For three hours that squall held right over us. We took a bit of water in through the front hatches, it is a wet bed tonight. PugWash (newly named dinghy) held on like a brave little soldier and finally it calmed.

We made our way to the anchorage we had chosen from the Chart. It is a new chart plotter, so all the values had to be entered. It was Nautical Miles for distance, and I changed the depth from feet to meters. I thought there was something wrong with the settings because the depths were still showing feet – well that is what I thought. It is so interesting how our brains work when you have a belief or an assumption, you just won’t believe anything else. Maybe this area has not been converted into meters yet, I thought? This is so deep; it has to be feet. Areas showing 200m+ Is this for real?? Turns out Yes, definitely meters. The terrain is so steep. It would go from 80+m to 2m in a boat length, just incredible. So, our anchorage is no good – it is 50m deep here – not 50ft. We only have 60m of chain onboard.

OK, plan B.

1730: It will be getting dark soon. We have to make our way around the top of Kri to where there are 2 mooring buoys. It looks a bit shallower over there, so could anchor if the buoys are being used. But there is a reef between us, and it is getting dark. We navigate very slowly between the island and the shallows, watching the chart plotter, and the depth finder as the sun goes down. It was almost high tide which was totally to our advantage. Chris was on the helm, and I was calling the depths as they changed. Chris could see lumps of reef breaking the surface, shining in the dusky light close by. We got to 2 meters for a bit before it deepened again.

There was a super yacht tied up on what we assumed was the mooring from the resort ashore. Just ahead of her was about 20m depth, lets try to anchor there.

1900: It is fully dark. We get the anchor down. Next minute, a Long-boat full of people coming back from a dive, approach us all in a panic, – “go to the buoy, go to the buoy” oh man! It is pitch black, how the heck will we find a buoy now? But we have to try.

We look back now and think it was an absolute miracle that we found that buoy, but it was there, and we pulled it up first try, then settled for 2 nights.

Sleep didn’t come easily that night, the mooring line made noises we were not used to.

What the mooring buoy looks like in the morning

The next day we tidied up, dried everything out and rested after the ordeals of the journey.

Thank you for reading part 1 of our story, part 2 is coming soon, with loads more photos and heaps more fun!

The Story Of Banana Split

Published on October 14, 2025 by kiwisdofly24 Comments

October 2025, Indonesia

So here we are onboard SV Banana Split. We have been asked a few times now; What are you doing now? A boat? Why? How? Where? Well yes, a boat. A 12.5 m sailing catamaran, so how did this come about? Well, it all started in a castle in France in 2019.

Chateau de La Barbaliniere, Thure, France

There is a bit of history to Banana Split which is fascinating. She was built in 1989 by a French explorer/photographer/singer/sailor, Antoine. Following a career in Engineering, he embarked on a singing career. Apparently, Antoine was a bit of a Pop star back in the day. He sang all through Europe and America and recorded numerous albums. This was a great life. But for Antoine, something was still missing.

In 1974, quite by accident, Antoine discovered sailing. He promptly embarked on his first solo round-the-world voyage. This began a lifelong journey that continued for more than 45 years. For fifteen years, he first sailed on the oversized schooner, OM and then the too small sloop, Voyage. In 1989 he returned to France and built Banana Split, the perfect travel companion. Banana Split became his home, mode of transport, and his workplace. In his own words “I began to practice the most wonderful job in the world: Traveling, discovering, meeting, feeling, loving…. And then telling stories.”

Antoine has published numerous books. Stories, autobiographies and photographic diaries. These have been translated into many languages and released all over the world giving inspiration to sailors and travellers alike. Following great success with books, Antoine progressed into film, a series of documentary films on travel and practical how-to-be-a-sailor. He continued to write music during this time and could be seen on TV preforming at times.

There are so many of his books, CD’s and DVDs here onboard. Sadly, for us, these are the one’s in French so makes reading a little difficult. Glossy hard cover coffee table books, novels of life sailing solo around the world, blue ray DVD series still in their wrappers. A life’s work and history of 1 man travelling the world. On this boat! Banana Split, the boat we now have the privilege to continue that work.

Google translating what I can from the covers of the books and researching this inspirational storyteller, has have given me so much respect for both him and his boat. Banana Split; she has done the hard yards. She has seen the sights and can tell the stories. Now she is looking after us, making new friends and creating new memories.

I have discovered all Antoine’s charts onboard. Nautical navigation is a bit of a passion and seeing these charts, with the courses and calculations, drawings and notes all over them is a real pleasure. There is a sextant onboard also, there were no chart plotters back when he began his journey.

So how did we end up here? This is a good question, and as I said, it all started in a castle in France.

In the fall of 2019, we are house sitting in the Loire Valley, France, for a wonderful couple Marie-Laure and Arnaud. We spent three months enjoying life in rural France. Working on the land, helping with the various ongoing projects which are necessary to keep an estate of that size functioning well and looking good – and, of course there was a puppy – Havane, Getting to know the amazing culture and people. It was a magical time.

Check out our stories from that time

https://kiwisdofly.blog/2019/11/15/our-fairy-tale-in-france/

On several occasions during our time at the Chateau, Marie-Laure and Arnaud’s good friend Antoine and his sailing cat, Banana Split, where mentioned and discussed. The boat had been in New Zealand for some time, so we had a lot to talk about. Marie-Laure and Arnaud and their 2 children had spent many trips on Banana Split both with and without Antoine over the years.

A few years later, Banana Split got stuck in Australia, on the NSW coast. The call was made. Can we sail the boat back to New Zealand? Well, yes, we are boat people and would be willing to crew, but we do not know how to sail. The answer to this protest was – “you are Kiwi’s, of course you know how to sail!” Also, across the Tasman sea? That is a big piece of water! But with one thing and another, weather and COVID being some, Banana Split got stranded in Australia.

Then finally time came, Antoine decided it was time to lay down his sails and sell the boat. Who better to intrust her with than Marie-Laure and Arnaud. But she is still in Australia. Discussions were had and plans were made over the next few years to relocate her to Malaysia, or Fiji or Indonesia, where the change of ownership would take pace. Marie-Laure and Arnaud would buy Banana Split in syndicate with another friend, Lee, from Alaska.

During this process, we were asked if we would like to be part of the project. We are so honoured to have been asked and here we are.

Banana Split was sailed up from Harvey Bay in Queensland, Australia to Sorong, West Papua, Indonesia. The hired skipper and crew got her there safely mid 2025. We arrived in Sorong in September for a month.

We are enjoying this bright yellow boat with a personality the size of her creator. We will help ready her for her new owners arriving in November. Chris has brought dive gear and is sourcing a compressor to be installed onboard. She is off to have the next few years discovering and enjoying Raja Ampat with her new family. Diving, sailing and meeting new friends. How lucky are we to be part of the team.

It hasnt been all work and no play! We spent 1 week sailing around some of the closer islands to Sorong. While anchored at Pulau Friwen we went ashore with an Australian couple who were anchored up at the same place. (More about that in our next story) On our walk around the island, we came across a French family who were holidaying in the little homestay on the island. The Dad of the family would have been about our age so I took a punt and asked him if he knew of Antoine.

As my research is proving, he is a very famous man in Europe. Oui! yes I do know of this man, he says. In fact he had several of his books as he is a sailor himself. He was so excited that we were on Banana Split and that she was anchored just around the corner. He would take photos to show his friends back home. He relayed to us that he thought Antoine was an incredible man, a very down to earth, real man with a fantastic sense of humour. He said he had seen Antoine recently on TV doing a travel show or something similar, which is so great to hear. Is this not just the smallest of worlds?

We are so very excited to be on this “world famous” boat

Thank you for reading our story

The Story Of Business Class Travel And Indonesian Customs

Published on September 30, 2025 by kiwisdofly2Leave a comment

Our next adventure begins. It was quite the trip from NZ which started with a very special treat – we flew business class. We were told that once you had flown business class you will never be able to go back to cattle class. It was such a great experience. I know exactly what was meant by that statement.

Arriving at Auckland Airport we went straight to priority check in and bag drop, immediately following that was an “Invitation” to go to the lounge. Ok, yes please! We have 3 hours until take off and we feel like kiddies in a lolly shop. Where do we start?

There is cooked breakfast on offer, a barista making coffee, all pastries and cakes you could dream of, and a full bar. 1 plate, 2 plate, 3 plate, oh hang on, here comes lunch! The mandatory glass or 2 of bubbles, even though it is only 10am. Oh this is lovely. We took a seat right by the window looking down at the departure lounge. Passengers waiting for flights, sitting on plastic seats, trying to get comfortable drinking cuppuccino’s out of takeaway cups – this is usually us by-the-way.

That was just the lounge! Now we get onto the plane. First to be called, down a seperate skybridge that I never even knew existed! Into our own little area on the plane. We have our own cubicle with a sliding hatch between us. Duvet, sheet and real pillow. A footrest with room to stretch right out into a bed. This is going to be good.

The Crew are amazing. Right there every step of the way making sure there is nothing we need; nothing is too much trouble. The meals come with linen tablecloth, proper cutlery and glass glasses – which, it seems, were never empty! My crew looked so disappointed when I said no to Champaign, a Sauvignon blanc would be just fine thank you – to be fair, he did not know I had already had 3 glasses of Champaign in the lounge! After the first meal, a little Baileys perhaps? how about a 12 year old malt whisky sir? Oh it would be very rude not to!

It was so very comfortable in our little cocoons. It was wonderful to get our feet right up. It was an 11 hour flight to Kuala Lumpur. We did not get the swelling in our legs that we usually do. It was the best thing for my ankle, as I am still having issues with swelling and stiffness. I think it would have been a lot harder with out the feet elevation.

It was very cool to lie right down and snuggle into the duvet, turn off the light and try to go to sleep. BUT, I was just too excited to sleep, just as well this was a day time flight. So nice to have the choice though. Imagine having this luxury every long haul!

So I sit up again, reclining in my wonderfully comfortable seat. I felt like a Queen. Another glass of wine perhaps, or something else to eat Miss Donna? Oh my Gosh, I could so get used to this.

3 nights back in one of our favourite cities, Kuala Lumper. We stayed at a usual spot in China town and reacquainted ourselves with the wonderful smells and food.

Kuala Lumpur

A few pieces of navigation equipment to pick up for Banana Split took us out to Port Klang. 45 minutes drive from the city. It took an hour to do the “deal”, sign the papers, pay the man, collect receipts, then the driver took us back. Now to readjust the packing to get it all in. We only had to buy 5kg extra baggage for each flight. It was an interesting exercise as you buy by the kilo, not by bag. Perfect for us carrying what we had. We ended up with 3 bags – well one was just a big box. As you tag your bags, the weigh scale counts down your allowance. That was concern No.1, will we get away with the allowance? – yes! Easy peasy.

Concern No.2, getting said equipment into Indonesia. We landed at Jakarta airport. We had the right documentation, but alas, we were called into the office with the very official man asking quite a few questions. The guy on the x-ray machine said “is there something you want to tell me?” and pointed to the x-ray of the box. We were carrying a radar dome, he had no idea what it could be. Through the screen it really looked like something from outer space. I was visualising us being on the Indonesia version of Border Patrol – “do you know the contents of your bag?”…… All was good though. We had a laugh with the man in the office, right before he socked us between the eyes with the bill – he charged us 10% duty, 11% VAT and 10% Income Tax – yes Income Tax as we are not Indonesian citizens, then sent us on our way.

That piece of equipment was the sacrificial lamb, with a bit of clever accounting we got away with a fairly low bill. It could have been 3 times that amount. They were also so interested in the Navigation equipment, they forgot to ask about the brand new dive gear we were also carrying. Job Done!

Next flight, Jakarta to Sorong, 4 hour flight leaving at 1210 am, where is our business class now??

This part was easy, our faithful driver Neddy was waiting for us at Sorong and took us to Tampa Garam Marina where we found Banana Split. This is a small marina with no berths as such. It is a small rectangle of water with 8 vessels tied up in the Mediterranean style mooring system.

It was 0630, and though the manager knew we were arriving today, there was no one around. A quick discussion on how to get out to the boat as our dinghy is on the boat; not helpful. A call to the manager, who offered us to use the one tied up down at the other end of the marina, it has no oars; but there is 1 paddle.

There she is – Banana Split; our home for 3 1/2 weeks

We manage to get us and all our equipment safely onboard. Wow this is cool, we are back on a boat!! Now the real fun begins!

Thank you for reading our story

The Story Of The Accident

Published on April 9, 2025April 9, 2025 by kiwisdofly23 Comments

img_6415-1 — Gisbourne, 9 April 1998, getting ready for a trip to Tauranga with Karen and Leigh-Ann

Almost to the day, 9^th April 1998. Twenty-Seven years ago, I was driving from Gisborne to Tauranga. It was the Thursday before Easter weekend that year.

I had been living in Scotland for the previous eight years. We had decided to move back to New Zealand to raise our family. We had bought a house in Tauranga and were waiting for the settlement date and for our container load of household goods to arrive. My partner had gone back overseas to work and I was catching up with friends and family, filling in time until move-in day.

img_6429-1 — Playing at the beach, all limbs still intact

It was just starting to get dark. My dear friend Karen was in a car in front, I was following with my beautiful daughter Leigh-Ann, then only 2 years old. It was getting close to dinner time. We had stopped at the gas station in Opotiki and made the decision to go into Whakatane to McDonalds and have a break. I can’t remember that stop.

Somewhere after Taneatua, on the open road, 100km/h, a car swerved onto the middle line in front of Karen. She remembers thinking, “that was close” …. That car kept coming over the middle line and when he reached me it was a head on collision. Karen looked in her rear vision mirror and my lights had gone. I don’t remember the impact.

She turned her car around and found the carnage. I was unconscious. Karen unbuckled Leigh-Ann and put her into her car then came back to me. She thought I was dead. I can’t imagine the terror she must have felt in that moment. She leaned in on the passenger seat, I lifted my head up and looked at her. It was the weirdest feeling. I thought I had just woken from a lovely peaceful sleep and was confused why Karen was there. This lasted probably only seconds, it was almost in slow motion. Then I realised what had happened. My first thought was Leigh-Ann and I looked into the back seat where she had been buckled up in her car seat, she was gone. I will never ever forget Karen saying, “she’s ok, she’s beautiful”

I can’t remember an awful lot after that. I do remember the noise of the cutting gear and generators. There were also the blinding lights that had been set up. I remember a face very close to mine. The face had a fireman’s helmet on and it was through where the windscreen should have been. I remember a paramedic leaning on the passenger seat where Karen had leaned, talking to me. I can’t remember the conversation.

The steering wheel was close to my face so I could just lean my head forward and have a little rest on the wheel. I was holding my right elbow with my left hand, just like casually folding my arms, but I could feel the graunch and grind if I tried to move. But I felt no pain. I may have been medicated, but I can’t remember. My feet were stuck in the foot well. I was completely trapped, I couldn’t move. I got cramp in my foot but by then they were able to open up the gap to relieve the pressure on my feet.

They cut the two front pillars and peeled back the roof. My seat was wound back and a back board was slid down my back. The gap between dash and seat was widened with some sort of loud machinery and they hauled me out. Two firemen stood on the back seat and I was pulled straight up, out of the seat, onto the board and into the ambulance. Just like that I was free. The pain I felt during that manoeuvre was indescribable. Give me childbirth any day!

Off to Whakatane hospital where I was x-rayed top to bottom. I was in a bit of a mess. Too much for them so I was transferred to Tauranga hospital to get put back together.

It turns out that the driver of the other car was drunk. He sustained a few injuries, broken ribs and broken hip. He eventually went to court and was given a 12 month suspended sentence and was suspended from driving for 12 months. This was his third drink driving offense. What does it take to keep these lunatics off the road, will he kill the next one he crashes into?

My right elbow with big gaps in the bone

I sustained multiple fractures, some compound. My left pelvis was also fractured. I had deep cuts and bruises—bruises so severe, they’re hard to even describe. An imprint of the window winder was visible in the bruise pattern on my right thigh. After a few weeks a hematoma the size of a rugby ball developed in that spot. It’s hard to believe I didn’t sustain any internal injuries—just lucky, I guess. Since then, I’ve undergone several surgeries to remove various pieces of metal, including plates, screws, and wires. I have a jar full of them, tucked away in a box somewhere.

So that is the story of the accident. I got all patched up and sent on my way to live a long and healthy life. It was a five hour surgery, I was lucky to keep my arm. It was a long recovery with a month in hospital and another 5 weeks in a wheel chair. It was tricky to get mobile as I only had one limb in working order, that was my left arm. Have you ever tried to wipe your bum with you non-dominant hand? It is amazing what you can learn when you have to. Onto one crutch and then a walking stick. It took until October before I felt whole and able to go without home help etc.

img_6416-1 — you should have seen the circles, steering 1 handed

img_6417-1 — you should have seen the circles, steering 1 handed

Here I sit, 27 years later, almost to the day, just out of hospital following a triple Arthrodesis operation on my foot. That is a fusion of 3 joints in my ankle to us laymen. As a direct result of the accident, I have developed severe Post Traumatic Osteoarthritis. This has been causing more and more pain as the years go by. Fusing those joints will take away the pain. More screws and a plate – can’t wait to see the new x-ray! Apparently my foot was jammed on the brake at the time of the accident taking full impact and snapping my Talus in half. This tells us that I saw the accident happen and reacted – but I don’t remember. Isn’t it amazing how our brain can protect us from traumatic memories..

img_6360-1 — 1 April 2025, here we go again!

img_6366-1 — 1 April 2025, here we go again!

FYI my pelvis has never given me any trouble and other than plates and screws removal, my arm, though I have been left without full range of movement, has been almost fully functional from the get go. I am very lucky and thankful every day. I am especially thankful that my beautiful Leigh-Ann was not hurt.

They say 5 months recovery from this operation…. Hmmm lets try see if we can make it less! There is still an awful lot of world to see out there, people to meet and adventures to have. I won’t be idle for long!!

Thank you for reading my story.

It’s A Kind Of Magic

Published on March 1, 2025 by kiwisdofly24 Comments

Uoleva, Kingdom Of Tonga

I love it in the mornings when you come out onto the beach. You see evidence of the overnight activity of the beach inhabitants, the crabs! The little tiny hermit crabs with their gorgeous shells. They come in all different shapes and sizes. There are long cone shape shells and short stubby shells. They are always so beautiful. They are never broken or damaged. You see their tracks all over the beach, their big heavy shells dragging in between the row of little claws.

The red hermit crabs. I think they are the coconut crabs, as we find them in the bush as well, on top of coconuts which have fallen. They have all got the same kind of shell, a kind of a rounded shape, all about the same size. It is so funny in the mornings. They have these meetings on the beach around a coconut husk. Sometimes 6 or 8 of them and they are all just climbing on top of each other having a good old yarn. Then you come along and POP inside their shells they go, I can’t see you so you can’t see me! They are so round when their bodies are inside their shell, sometimes they roll down the slope of the sand. I wonder what that feels like for them, so very cute.

The little beige and black crabs, they are kind of mid-size. They run sideways so fast. Their little black eyes, close together sticking up like little antennae and their little legs all splayed out side ways. Scuttling down the beach into the water as soon as they see you coming. They dig holes in the sand, takes them hours. They are very meticulous bringing sand out of the hole and dumping it one arm full at a time. It is such a labour of love.

And then there are the bigger grey/green crabs, they are a lot bigger. I don’t think they would be big enough to eat but they are much bigger than these other little guys. They have beady red eyes spread quite far apart. They are so funny, they see you coming and back into the crevasses of the rock. As you move around the rock they scuttle around backwards to the other side, they think they are being hidden. Then Jenga will see them and bark and their claws stick straight out; attack mode. They just walk sideways very slowly, step by step, claws up facing their opponent. Jenga barks again, and the crab keeps walking, claws up, until he ends up back in the water to hide.

You know there are no other footprints on this beach, just us and Jenga. Nothing but that beautiful sun coming up, that golden hour. It is a bit cooler than what it will be as the day progresses. Overnight there has been a high tide so there is a new dump of sand and shells. We love beach-combing, looking at all the beautiful shells, but of course the nicest ones are all taken by the hermit crabs.

Jenga loves the morning walks, he has a fascination with the bait fish and the little black tip sharks. Poor old boy, he is getting a bit hard of seeing. He can’t always see them, but he knows there is something there. He runs along, barks, and splashes in the water, forever hopeful. He loves it, enjoying just being out there doing it. He has never caught anything yet but apparently he can.

At the end of the island there is a sand spit. At low tide it reaches, or has the potential to reach half way across the gap between us and Lifuka, the next island up. It has changed dramatically in the 3 months we have been here. Our home owners call it the magic sands. The spit used to go straight out. For a while, it went out towards the north. Now, it heads out to the east. It has completely changed sides. The colours and the patterns that come from this ever changing environment is incredible. Nature, what she can do and the power of the ocean is just beautiful.

We have managed to walk right out to that sand island. This is effectively the very end of the sand spit, which never gets covered by water. It was fascinating, it felt like we were right at the end of the world. The current is quite strong through this gap and the sand is very soft in places. As we were forging our way through the sinking sand we were taking really good notice of the tide. We knew that if we dilly dallied too much we would get stuck out there. It was so cool, we didn’t want to leave.

The colours and patterns are out of this world

There is nothing on this island that can harm us badly. Except maybe for the pigs, but I don’t think that is very likely. There are no snakes, or deadly spiders like in Australia. But oh my, the spiders are huge! The Huntsman spider is here and she is very intimidating to look at, but harmless. There are plenty of spiders in the bush and they are very proficient at building webs right across out path. When we walk, we carry a stick. We wave it in front of us to catch the webs. It is a horrible feeling when you walk right into one! Mosquitoes, yes but not that bad. There are rats and mice around, but that is to be expected and they are more annoying than anything else. And that is why we have a cat, right? The worst thing is the paper wasps, we have both been stung and it is not pleasant, but again – not going to kill us!

The marine creatures are amazing. Every time we go out on the boat we see flying fish. They fly out of the water and dance their way across the water surface right in front of us. There are always turtles around. We see them out from the seat of knowledge and also from the boat in the lagoon. It is always a thrill to see the turtles, I don’t think I could ever get tired of them. One trip, we were coming back from the China shop on the boat. A Ray jumped right out of the water in front of us. It was incredible as we both saw it and could hardly believe our eyes. It jumped out of the water with its belly to us. It seemed to have a fish in its mouth. The fish dropped as it breached the surface then splashed back down into the water. We thought it could have been a Manta Ray, we clearly saw his mouth. But they are not meat eaters, so we are not sure what kind of Ray it was, but super exciting to see. We were buzzing for ages after that encounter.

There are big bats in the trees. They fly around right at sunset and land in the coconut trees, they are so lovely to watch. I think they could be flying foxes, which is just a big fruit eating bat. They make quite a racket during the night but we are getting used to it now.

It is so untouched out here, there is time to stop watch and listen to nature. I have been surprised at the lack of flowers. We only seem to have a hibiscus type of flower and we only see them once they have fallen from the tree. Maybe it is the time of the year? It is so green though, lush greenery everywhere. The sound of the ocean is ever present, waves crashing on the reef. Sometimes when the wind is blowing the right way, we can hear the crash of the waves landing on the outer reef beyond the lagoon on the other side of the island. Occasionally we hear a boom of the under water caves as they fill and empty with ocean surges.

Long shadows from the sun coming up on the other side of the island

We are loving this life, it is pretty unique. It is very refreshing to leave all the stresses of “normal” life behind for a while. But I always ask the question – “what is normal?” I will leave you with that to ponder!

Thank you for reading our story

Life on a Deserted Island: Embracing Isolation

Published on February 10, 2025 by kiwisdofly24 Comments

Uoleva, Ha’apai, Kingdom Of Tonga

Who doesn’t want to go live on a deserted island? Where the sun shines all the time. The cool, crystal clear water of the ocean is right there in front of you. The gentle breeze through the coconut trees, white sand as far as you can see. Leave behind all those day to day grinds. Who wouldn’t want to have that – even just for a while. Hands up if you do!

It is an interesting concept, to just leave the rest of the world behind, sounds idyllic, sounds perfect even. It is the most unique situation I think we’ve ever been in and probably will ever be in again. This whole island, we are the only people on it; us and our little furry friends, and the crabs and the bats. It is a really unusual feeling. So freeing, we have escaped an everyday life of schedules and expectations.

We do miss the people though. Of course we miss our families and our friends. We also miss the strangers we meet on the street, in the shops, at the parks, on the train even. That is something we really enjoy about house-sitting and we are missing it a bit this time. We are so thankful for the awesome star link system here. It means we can easily keep in really good contact with people back home, which is vital. And just if you were wondering, Chris and I are still talking to each other haha! The parting comment from daughter when we left was “don’t kill each other!” Well, we haven’t – yet!!

We are coming to the end of our stay here. Well I say that, we still have 5 weeks to go. Just in the last week we have connected with people! We are in the low season just now, the rainy season, the cyclone season. This is when the people who live here go on their holidays, they get out of town so-to-speak. Close down the resorts and go somewhere else; hence the need (for some) for house-sitters. We have been here 3 months now and the people are starting to come back! We have now connected with a couple of people. We met them last time we visited Ha’apai in 2011. Through them, we have met other people. And so it goes.

We realised that there is a family who live in Pangai. It’s a village on the next island up. They have a property on Uoleva too. They said they would be out there on Saturday for the day, we should come for a visit. So we take the inflatable down the lagoon side of the island and try to find the track that goes through to the other side. The track up at our place is about 350m but this part of the island is a bit wider. The track has not been used since the end of the last season, probably not since October. So we are not sure how overgrown the track will be, or even if we can find it. We are so excited to be doing something different, and we get to hang out with some new people.

Yip, there is a boat and we can smell the fire

We see a buoy hanging from a tree and decide that this will be as good a place as any to start looking for said track. We anchor Wodga, the inflatable, and go ashore. Well how about that, this actually is the start of the path across, how clever are we. It was about 20 minute walk. Toward the end we just follow the smell wood smoke – yes, there must be people nearby! We come out the on beach and see their boat anchored just offshore, looks like we made it!

We had the best afternoon. The whole family was there, we met the kids, 3 girls, and Aunty. Dad had the fire going. He used branches from the trees to make a rotisserie for some lamb and chicken and started cooking over the fire. There was a pot of boiled root vegetables. Aunty weaved a table cloth from a palm frond and when the meat was cooked, we all sat around the table and had a feast. The meat was cooked to perfection, dripping with flavour, so simple yet so perfect. Grease all over our faces, licking our fingers, the kids fighting over the juiciest piece, could this have been any better! We were not expecting to stay for a meal. The kindness and hospitality was so beautiful, we felt like part of the family.

After the meal, we had fruit grown on the island. More sticks were sharpened so the girls could toast marshmallows over the hot coals. They were so soft and melty, squished between cookies and ended up all over the girls faces, so much fun. Reluctantly, we had to leave. We needed to get ourselves back across the track. We also had to return through the lagoon before the tide got too low. We had a great afternoon, days like this a gold, this is what it is all about, this is our “why”

We have been making amazing meals here, probably the best home-made meals we have ever created. We take turns in the hot-house (kitchen), it can be 38°C in there in the afternoons. We have plenty of meat, thanks to our awesome home-owners, and a pantry full of goodies. We just lack a bit of fresh produce. We can get potatoes, carrots, onions and garlic from the little China shop on the next island up. But that is a trip in the inflatable, and only when weather and tides are permitting, We can’t just go if we are missing an ingredient, it can be weeks between visits. We have been creating all sorts of dishes using what we have to hand. We have been using Papaya and Pele (Tongan Spinach) regularly. We have learnt how to make our vegies last in storage so we can buy bulk and not waste anything. Blanching and freezing, refrigerating in water, storing dry – it has been an awesome learning experience.

There is only a basic supply at the China shop. But we can order supplies from Tongatapu, which is about 160 km away. This involves an agent on Tongatapu to do the shopping, then package it up and deliver to the airport. On arrival at Ha’apai, the cargo then gets delivered by another person, to a place where we can get to by dinghy, dependent on weather and tides of course. It’s a challenge in itself, believe me! So we have not done this very often. We have made do with what we can get locally. If there’s something we can’t do with a carrot, it’s not worth knowing!

BUT……..

One day we get a message from our home-owners (currently in Bali). They say that we are to meet a guy at the end of the next island on Saturday. There is a box of cargo to pick up. So we just go and get on the boat and make our way across. Collect said cargo to find it is actually a box of vegetables and fruit for us. Oh My Goodness, we were so excited to see all this fresh produce. We feel very overwhelmed by the thoughtful kindness. What a surprise, just like Christmas all over again! We spent the next week creating even more amazing dishes with fresh produce! Thank you again Glen and Karen!

The colours and freshness – we are so lucky

The weather has remained dry for us. It is rainy season as mentioned, Cyclone season in-fact, but we have just had hot hot hot and very little rain. My seeds as mentioned in my last story have not survived! Just too hot, 30°C feels like 41° C, nothing will grow in that heat, especially tender baby plants. Last week we had a little rain at some point almost every day. This was a very welcome reprieve from the heat. The forecast was for rain again, every day this week, but it has not come and is again hot hot hot. We have noticed a strange phenomenon with this island. All the weather seems to go around us. We seem to be in this little bubble in the middle of the chaos. We often watch the black storm clouds building, but we don’t get the effect. The ocean temperature is currently 29°C. Warm sea temperatures spur on Cyclones, so let’s all keep fingers X’d for the next 5 weeks!! But a bit more rain would be nice!

Thank you for reading our story!

We Put The Turbo Boosters On And Found Our Wings

Published on January 15, 2025January 15, 2025 by kiwisdofly24 Comments

2024 – it’s a wrap!

Recently I made a reel of all our 2024 house-sits, it was awesome, it turned out so well. Trusted House-sitters prompted that reel as a competition and I was hoping we would win a go-pro haha – of course I thought our house-sits and our pets were the BEST, and was very surprised that we did not win the competition.

As I was going through the photos and making that reel, I realised that the house-sits for last year were only a part of what 2024 was for us. Since 2017, (excluding the COVID 1.5 years and 2018 when we tried time back in the real world and worked), House-sitting has been our top focus. We have traveled around the world several times. Like bees, we have moved from flower to flower and from country to country. We always have the next 6 months or more booked up. But last year was different, we tried to slow things down a bit – HA!

The years go by so fast, don’t they? We are already almost half way through January and If I wanted to wrap up last year, then I better get on with it because before we know it we will be half way through July!

So, 2024, what did that look like for us? 12 months from the beginning of December 2023 looked like this:-

Lumin and Rana, Engin Germany, the snow was outstanding!

December we were in Engin, Germany, doing a new (for us)house-sit. We fell in love with 2 beautiful Sight Hounds, were enchanted with the village, especially when it snowed, and made awesome new friends. Then off to Leros, Greece to do a sit we have done before, we feel so at home on Leros. That was house-sits 1 and 2.

A few nights in Athens being tourists then off to Paris. 3 nights in Thure, France, catching up with friends we made while house-sitting there in 2019, then up to The Netherlands. We never visit Europe without a visit to our friends in Holland, we always have the best time, even though it is often years between visits.

Château de La Barbelinière, Thure, France – She still looks stunning through the mid-winter fog (house-sit 2019)

We cannot be in this part of the world without a visit to Belgium – even if it is purely to drink beer! And that is exactly what we did. 3 nights in Brussels, 1^st time visiting this city. Now, across the channel, House-sit 3 and 4 in South England, Weymouth then Shoreham-by-Sea. Some more new pets to get to know and love, and awesome homeowners/new friends.

We want to head over to Puerto Rico, not to house-sit this time but purely to visit all the wonderful people we had met there during the 2 X 6 month sits we have done in the past. So, this time we jump on a ship and sail from Southampton to Miami. 11 days crossing the Atlantic – truly a bucket list item! On arrival we fly straight to Puerto Rico and then on to Vieques. Two weeks was not enough, but we must move on.

By now it is March and our next stop New Zealand. Now this is novel, haven’t had much time here in the last few years. We have a full immersion into our family and friends. It is awesome! Exhausting but fantastic. We make our way up and down and around the country and have a great old time. Chris spends 8 weeks here and I have 6. I opted to head over to Queensland, Australia for 2 weeks to spend a bit of time catching up with friends and family there.

Precious time with the family – all in the same country at once for a change!

It is now May and we each jump back on a plane. Chris flies from Auckland. I fly from Brisbane. We meet in Langkawi, Malaysia. Back to a house-sit we have done before; this is house sit-number 5. From Langkawi it is a quick 3-day visit to Kuala Lumpur to be tourists again. We just love Malaysia, the food, the people the warmth – everything! But now time for Thailand.

We have been to Hua Hin, Thailand several times now. While there, we have made great friends. We have 3 house-sits here over the next 2 months, all through word-of-mouth for friends. Of course, it wouldn’t be a trip to Thailand without a sit for the 44+ dogs and our dear friend Cristina. We are so glad to be able to be there so she can get away for a break. That was house-sits 6, 7 and 8.

August we head to The Sunshine Coast, Australia. Maybe put our feet up for a bit? Fat chance! Chris stays for 4 weeks and heads back to Langkawi to do that sit again that we did in May. House-sit number 9. I chose to sit this one out and stayed put in Australia for about 2½ months. Meanwhile Chris finishes in Langkawi. He heads first to Kuala Lumpur then to Tioman Island, Malaysia to be tourist for a few weeks. He absolutely loves it – though he says it was not the same without me…..

I have 2 weeks in New Zealand again and by late October Chris arrives into New Zealand also. Only for a week though, November we head off to the most remote house-sit we have ever done. Uoleva, Tonga. House sit-number 10. And here we are, halfway through this 4 month sit. Lots of time to reminisce over the past 12 / 13 months. Wow we have been busy! I am feeling exhausted just thinking about it.

What a year!

10 house sits, 63 pets. 13 countries, we won’t count USA, we only transited, 12 international journeys together and 7 separately, that’s average 15½ each.

We travelled between places by ferry 3 times, bus 8 times, train 3 times, were driven by car twice and sailed on a ship once. I can’t remember how many domestic flights we took while in New Zealand. It was more than I can count on two hands!

During this year, we celebrated an awesome milestones. Our daughter Tayla and her partner Jesse got engaged! Huge congratulations to them both, we are so very proud. Such a privilege to have been there to celebrate with them! WOW, It has been quite a year.

So that is a year in the life of the house-sitters. How did we ever have time to work a 9 – 5?

We often get asked how do we do this? How do we step away from the conventional? My answer? what is normal? And often a comment comes back, oh I could never do that! but you know what? you can! All you need to do is put your mind to it and just take that first step. It’s just one foot in front of the other. I say just go for it, go on! give it a chance. Life is too short and you never know what you’re gonna find out there. There are so many wonderful people to meet and sights to see. Give it a go! you might just surprise yourself.

We have each and every one of these stories in detail with loads more cool photos. If you want to see more, check out the rest of our blog……https://kiwisdofly.blog/

Boarding the Ferry in Leros heading to Athens

A big year but nicely balanced, exhausting and exciting all at the same time.

Thank you for reading our story

The Tale Of A Remote Island

Published on December 13, 2024 by kiwisdofly2Leave a comment

Uoleva, Ha’apai, Tonga

One month in – 3 months to go! Oh boy what have we done?

It is like we are on a big boat, nothing but ocean all around. No connection to the mainland, ie no power supply, no water mains, no sewage. Just what we have here on our “boat”. Chris and I have lived remotely before, but this is the most extreme. Are we loving it, are we managing ok? Hell yes! we are loving it. Every day brings joy and challenges in equal parts.

North end of the island, only 350m across where we are staying

This is Uoleva, smack bang in the middle of nowhere! Actually not nowhere, the Kingdom of Tonga, in the South Pacific. 19°50.5’S 174°23.65’W to be exact! A 4 X 1 km (at the widest point) island of sand and coconut trees, running almost North-South. There is almost no one else around. We are looking after 1 of 4 small resorts on the island and besides the resort owners, staff and guests, Uoleva is uninhabited. No roads, no infrastructure. Access is by boat only and completely off grid. We are in the rainy season now and all businesses are closed, there are no guests, and the owners and staff have, mostly, left the island. So, we really are on our “todd”

West side, we hear these waves all day and all night – love it!
East side, Lagoon side
Never short of a fabulous sunset

Our amazing owners have been here for over 10 years and have built this place from the ground up. Literally, from the clearing of the land to the supply of materials and building of the dwellings. Blood sweat and tears have gone into this project which has been an absolute labour of love and passion. We are so in awe of what they have done! A young couple with a dream, a vision, and they made it a reality! Following their love of Kite Surfing and their respect for marine wildlife and the ocean, they have found a spot with perfect conditions to make that dream become real. We are so lucky to be here and live in their shoes for a while.

Check out their website, and see their full story https://kitesurftonga.com/

Kitchen fale, complete with the naked chef!
The house fale

It is always exciting to learn the ropes of a new house sit, but this one is out the gate! We have to call on all our experience and knowledge from the past. We have done the no power, remote food supply, the unique challenges of island life, the hurricane zone, the long sit duration, the excessive heat and humidity, the bugs and mosquitos, sick and medicated animals; but not all at once! We must take everything we have learnt before and wrap it all up into one package, and we are ready for the challenge.

Having said that, we thought we might get fired in the first few days of being here. The dinghy disappeared on our first night here, off the mooring right outside the house. A mystery which will probably never be solved. Then poor Jenga, the dog, was mauled by either another dog or perhaps a pig?? Blood everywhere! Big wounds around his head and ear. Very pleased this happened while the owners were still here as we had not had enough time to bond with him. We are very much bonded now! Poor guy! He remained sedated and on antibiotics for a few days after our owners departed. And then the cows; there have not been cows on the property for 10 years, first day on our own and the cows come in, sheesh! Thankfully they didn’t do too much damage, and now that Jenga is better – and not in a drugged up state, the cows have not returned!

So here we are, getting into the swing now and pinching ourselves that this is real. We feel so lucky to have had this opportunity to look after this little piece of paradise. We have a very efficient solar power system, gas for cooking and hot water, a water well and rain water tanks. We have a Starlink satellite system, so comms will not be a problem! What more does one need?

There should be no shortage of sunshine here in the South Pacific – she says hopefully! There is ability to capture enough sunshine to provide power for 12 guests in the season, so I think with just the 2 of us, we should not run out of power. The systems they have in place are quite substantial. No doubt this has come from experience, anything can happen in this unpredictable and volatile environment – Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Cyclones, and just the mere fact that we are sitting on a tiny sandcastle, surrounded by salt water which can kill anything, if you give it half a chance. The corrosion is a continual battle. So we have a generator, in fact we have a three, and spares for everything, just in case.

1 of 3 banks of solar panels
The water well

Along with plenty of sunshine, there is also plenty of rain, particularly at this time of the year. Rain fills the freshwater tanks from the runoff from the roofs, this is our drinking water, and the well water is pumped into other tanks for everything else. The well water is mostly fresh water, but there is an element of sea water mixed in there. So, there is always a saltiness to the well water, we are getting used to showering and washing dishes in salty water. There is enough water to furnish 12 guests plus staff in the season, so I think we “2” will be fine for water. And there are spare pumps, just in case!

And what goes in, must come out! The toilets are composting, and there is a complex composting system for food and other scraps. So no damaging effect on the environment. What goes on the island, stays on the island.

We are finding this to be a healthy lifestyle, we are out in the elements all day and by 7:30pm we are exhausted and ready to retire to the house fale and watch some Netflix – yes, we do have a TV, there is even a spare!! Planning and cooking food is a daily job, the nearest shop is a boat ride away, over a reef, so we can only go when the weather and tides are favourable. We are baking bread, loaves, cookies, making our own sauces and curries and pizza dough from scratch. Chris is getting coconuts each day and we are drinking fresh coconut water – that has got to be good for you! We have planted some seeds and are coaxing them along; we are hopeful they will yield some food soon. Neither of us have had a lot to do with gardening. We learnt a lot at the Chateau in France, but that garden was already established – so watch this space, when I start singing and telling stories to the plants, maybe send help!

The seat of knowledge, a favourite spot to think and plan and reflect

Being on a small island we are very conscious and dependent on the weather around us. As I said before, just like being on a boat, we consistently have to check the forecast and be aware of and recognise the changes. We are getting temperatures up to 30°C most days and it is not dropping below 27°C at night with up to 90% humidity. There is a fairly consistent Easterly wind which is very well received. We have use of an inflatable dinghy which is on a mooring in the lagoon. This is our life line to the other islands, and our mode of transport to get supplies. Both Chris and I are loving the boat, it is not a chore to get out in the boat and navigate our way through the reefs over to the other island, its what we do!

Cannot believe the clarity of this water in the lagoon! off this planet!
Ever loyal Jenga

Has it really been a month already? This first month has been amazing, we are looking forward the the next 3. Day to day we are finding plenty to do. Along with the coconuts, Chris is harvesting bananas, papaya and passion fruit every day – he is attempting to make wine from the bananas – we will keep you posted on that one! We have a few projects on the go here on the property along side the normal daily chores, so we are not getting bored! We are finding it pretty hot though and not a lot can get done in the middle part of the day, so reading books under the fan is another one of our daily jobs! We are swimming a lot, kayaking and snorkelling too. Its a great life!

By the way, Jenga is all better now, he has recovered fully from his ordeal, and he is an absolute joy to have around! Him along with our darling little girl cat Tigger “T I double G er” are delightful members of our wee family here on the island.

Thank you for reading out story

There is more coming soon…..

It Is Always An Adventure, Visas, Flat Tyres And Snakes

Published on August 23, 2024 by kiwisdofly23 Comments

Cows joining us for our afternoon beers at the beach

Getting into Thailand is never been difficult for us. We have been here each year for the past three years. We never planned it that way but there you go, we are here again. We have never had to be here for more than 30 days, so never thought about the visa requirements. This time we are in for a longer stay. The Thai government increased the stay in Thailand for a lot of countries from 30 days to 60 days, effective from 1 June. Perfect timing, we are arriving on 11^th. But, Alas, No. On arrival, the immigration guy said this was in fact, only a concept. 30 days it is then; we will get an extension. This trip we require exactly 60 days.

I was curious to know how this extension thing works. We had been told by friends in Thailand that it is easy, just go to the place and pay the money (equivalent $85NZD) and voilà, extension granted. This sounds good, but being me, I was still a bit concerned. What if they say no for some reason? I feel immigration people have so much power it is frightening. Quite often it seems to be an opinion, or interpretation of the rules by the individual guard, and if they got up on the wrong side on the bed that morning, then you are screwed! And have you ever noticed that different airlines seem to have different rules? Picture this, same day – New Zealand passport holder number 1 – Go to Malaysia on Batik Airline, you need an onward ticket from Malaysia to board the plane, New Zealand passport holder number 2 – go to Malaysia on China Eastern Airlines – you do not. Go from Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico on InterCaribbean Airlines, you need an onward ticket from Puerto Rico, take the same route the day before on Frontier Airlines, and you do not. (we actually missed that flight all together – but that is ANOTHER story all together!!) Really??

The people at the immigration office in Hua Hin were so nice. We ended up going twice as we needed proof of where we were staying in Thailand, along with photos, our passports and the signed application form that we already had. We were given the correct paperwork from our awesome homeowners landlord and within minutes we had our extension. Our friends were right, it is very easy, job done!

As we have been to this part of Thailand recently, it takes no time to settle back into the old neighbourhood. Our homeowners head away on their adventure, and we are left with 2 adorable big dogs. Our daily routine starts with 6am dog walk. We were introduced to a French family at the end of the street with 2 dogs and we end up enjoying our daily morning walk together. It is so wonderful to meet people you know will always be friends, our different nationalities and language challenges makes no difference.

We are very lucky and have been left a car and bicycles to use. We head out on the bikes a few times until one day we stopped for coffee, and when we got to get back on the bike, I realise I have a flat rear tyre. We are about 6 km from home. So I start walking the bike and Chris cycles back to get the car.

Chris heads out on a journey a few days later alone and wham! Another flat tyre. But, this time he was about 8 km from home. If anyone knows Chris you will know – of course he did not have a phone on him. So a long, hot walk back for him. This time there are 3 punctures in the one tube, so a new tube goes in. A few days later we notice that the front tyre on the other bike is flat. Another patch! We realise that the thorns from the trees along the beach road are killing us!

Our friend Cristina very kindly has now lent us her motorbike. This is more like it! BUT… First time out – guess what! Flat tyre – Yes, it is true! We had been at the Wyndham resort to celebrate my birthday. On the way there we were thinking that the tyre felt a little soft going over the bumps – but with 2 large Kiwis onboard……. what did we expect! One completely new tyre later, we start to wonder what it is with us – 6 wheels and 6 punctures, not bad odds! Thankfully that was the last of the flat tyres.

It was incredibly hot for the first few weeks, and then the rain started. At last, some relief from the heat. We manage to fill our days with dog walks and food hunting. I joined a group and did yoga a couple of times a week and played cards and board games once a week. We try all the local restaurants and marvel at the price of some of the menus. You can eat incredibly cheap here if you stick to the local places. $3 for two, flat rice noodles with chicken, Pad Thai, including soup. And so tasty! We love it how they take your order and start chopping, bit of this and a bit of that and within a very short time you have the most delicious meal in front of you.

A bit more expensive at the bigger restaurants but still, very cheap for us spending New Zealand dollars. We occasionally cook eggs on toast at home, but there are so many places to eat around, so why dirty the dishes at home?? Occasionally we crave a burger or something like that but we love Thai food so much that we never get tired of it.

fish cakes, fried cashews and tempura veg and squid – and of course a couple of large Chang!
Honey toast with ice cream – actually really good!
Mango sticky rice – one of my favourites!!

It is interesting, the condiments for the Thai food. There will always be bowls or small packets of fish sauce with small green chillies, chilli powder and sugar. Sugar goes into almost everything and then you have the opportunity to put more in, it is quite different to what we are used to. This is not unique to Thailand, it is the same in Malaysia. There is quite a problem of diabetes here, I guess you can see why.

Squid boats on the horizon starting their night fishing

Oh the snake!! Driving into our drive we see a green tail disappear under the gate. It is an electric gate, runs on steal wheels along a rail – you know the type. Not sure what the tail belonged too, lizard? Snake? Gate opens, park the car and go to see where “it” went. Oh no! the gate wheels had chopped the snake right in half! You could not have done this if you tried, the poor snake. He was not a poisonous one and he was quite pretty but chopped in two places! Unbelievable!

Next house sit is back with our dear friend Cristina with all the dogs. We only spend 3 days here this time as she takes a well-deserved weekend off. All the dogs remember us! There are a few new ones, but it takes no time to win their affection. There are a few there who we would dearly love to bring home, but importing dogs from Thailand to NZ is pretty difficult.

A bit of gardening with Tank and Rosie supervising

Last house sit is in the same neighbourhood as the first, 2 dear wee cats, Mumma and daughter. They are pretty timid, but it doesn’t take too long for them to come round, especially the Mumma. We continue to visit with friends from around the corner and eat our way around the district.

One of our favourite things is to go down to the beach about 4pm, have a couple of large Leo’s sitting in the bamboo salas, watch and listen to the ocean, order some ridiculously cheap food, and just enjoy our surroundings. This is what it is all about!

One of our favourite spots to while away an afternoon
Caught in a storm – what is one to do??
Feet in the sand, delicious food and great company – this is the life!
Walking with the girls

We spent 2 months in Thailand, 3 house sits, 46 dogs, 2 cats and 1 snake later we are heading back to Australia. We always have such a wonderful time in South East Asia, it goes too quickly!! Sad to say goodbye! But we will see you again!

Thank you for reading our story