It is Father's Day here in Savusavu. We have spent the day doing as Bill would wish by cleaning and reorganizing the boat. He cleaned out the back lazerette but Matt had to keep him focused on the task at hand. He would much rather fix something that he spots is broken along the way. That is why we never seem to keep things together and in one place. Bill is great at fixing and repairing and troubleshooting. It is the other putting the stuff back that drives us all crazy.
We also took inventory of all our freezer contents so we can use up the food before we get to Australia. I hear that we must not bring any fresh fruit or veggies or meats and fish into the country. We can also only bring limited alcohol products in also. That leaves practically only food in tins that is
acceptable for bringing into the country. Sometimes it is challenging to know exactly how much supplies one should stock up. Living in the US, we tend to think we must buy in vast quantities so it is hard to think for the short term. We have been living in the super-size it mentality for too long.
Yesterday we went to town and people were so very friendly to us. They all say "bula" to us which means hello. You can see many influences in the people here. There are a lot of people from India here. There is an Asian influence also. There seems to be an African influence too. Of course there is the Polynesian side and according to the Tongans there is the controversy over who really started the Polynesian culture and influenced their culture more.
Yesterday Matt met some kids and their parents on the beach near to where we are moored. They were collecting wood and fallen coconuts from the beach. They were hollering out Crazy Horse and of course Matt just went over to say Hi! They had a canoe into which they piled the wood. Matt got involved in helping them and ended up giving them a tow to their village with the firewood. Matt also gave the kids some Crazy Horse t-shirts. They were very appreciative and the man asked what he could do for Matt. Matt just asked if he knew where there were some good hiking trails he could walk on. The man said he would be glad to take Matt on a hike since he knows the mountain very well. So of course now Matt is planning on going on a hike with his own personal guide. That is wonderful that the people are so very generous and friendly here to these sailors just passing through.
Rosemary,Bill, and Matt