29 May 2011

2 54.983N 104 06.372E

Dear friends,

David has been back on board Harmonica for 7 weeks and Jan joined nearly 3 weeks ago after flying into Singapore. By then Harmonica was moored in Puteri Harbour just across the Johor Strait from Singapore and it was an easy taxi ride across the bridge to meet at the Singapore Airport. The Puteri Marina helps with the ambience for selling houses in the brand new town of Kota Iskandar which was created out of a palm oil plantation a few years ago and is planned to soon house all the state government of Johor. Our pet name for it is The Alhambra since the largely empty Moorish government buildings, are made of giant marble-floored halls, wide staircases, and freezes of carved stone walls that let the air circulate in the high balconies while shading the sun. They front onto massive courts which are so big the few officials drive round rather than walk, and behind some buildings there are formal gardens that are manicured by small armies of gardeners.

The marina is a favourite spot for wedding ceremonies, and on a typical day 2 to 4 wedding parties would have pictures taken across our little pond of cruising boats. Interetingly, to us, although nearly all officials are muslim and women ware head-scarves for all formal and work ocassions, the brides were all in western dress without head-coverings. We asked one couple about their wedding. The marriage license had been issued a year before, the pictures were being taken then, but the reception and family celebration were still to come. We, in the SailMalaysia Rally, were looked after stupendously by the marina staff who had events & dinners for us for 3 or 4 days (including a rowing race, a football tournament in the carpark, and a special party on the dock for crewsers to drink the beer they supplied before moving up to the marquis where the government officials received us without needing to be confronted by alcohol (just slightly tipsy sailors).

The sail south from Phuket into the Melaka Strait seemed familiar this time, and it was all completed in day-sails. The weather here in Johor is hot and still, but less wet than it was around Singapore 18 months ago. We are moored in a bay to the north of Pulau Tioman, a Malaysian island off the east coast which we recommend as an easy, peaceful holiday destination for anybody who ever flies through Singapore. The seas are clear, there are few roads, and lots of forest. There is nobody else in this bay off an outlying island, very little wind, and a clear flat sea which is ocasionally broken by jumping fish or sea-turtles. Janet is snorkeling by the rocks while David starts this letter.

Harmonica sat with a "For Sale" sign on her for 3 months this winter in Phuket, Thailand. There were a couple of offers, but below our price. Dave then spent 3 weeks in Queensland Australia looking at a diverse collection of catamarans for sale. Many different sizes and weights, but none jumped out enough to say "Take Me". He enjoyed the trip, was invited out sailing 3 times & was spoilt there by the wonderful hospitality of friends that we met over the last 3 or more years.

We remain in contact with various yacht brokers, and may soon make the change from one hull to two. From Tioman, we flew in the small propeller-plane to Kuala Lumpur and thence back to Phuket where we looked at 4 catamarans. We are spoilt by having so many on the market which has so few other buyers. Boats are items which few people buy during economically uncertain times.

Meanwhile we have Harmonica, a fully prepared cruising boat, and have joined the SailMalaysia Rally to the Eastern Peninsula, and Sarawak & Sabah in N Borneo. It consists of about 30 sailing boats mostly from Australia, & Europe, with just 2 from N America, and 1 from Africa. I was just raised from my writing by a visit from the S African couple who have anchored in the next bay and saw us when they came round for some snorkeling.

The trip has reminded us again of the peaceful, friendly, & trusting nature of the Malay people. A smile and polite greeting everywhere. A life lived outside except for their ubiquitous cars. The man who runs the internet cafe here leaves his computers outside on the balcony of the shopping mall each night, but the sign outside says "No drinking, No Ice-creams, No kissing, No bikinis". A quiet life but not an exciting one! The government banners proclaim "One Malaysia" which the Malay majority seem to believe in more than the Chinese businessmen or doctor, or the Tamil taxi driver. The country is, however, prospering and seems quietly content. It will be interesting to see Sabah & Sarawak where the ethnicity is different again.

We have been walking as usual and sweating off the pounds on small roads, jungle paths, and for one ill-advised day on no paths at all. That last was a trip into the jungle by Dave in search of a route up Gunung Kajan, just over 1,000 metres high. He never found the trail, but spent the day pushing through spiny creepers, scrambling up & down cliffs by waterfalls, but being rewarded with lots of wildlife and a magnificent variety of trees & plants. Many birds, lizards, squirrels, & monkeys, deer, little insect-eating mammals, and what appeared to be a bird of paradise earnestly & energetically displaying with its long tail plumes at the top of a tree over a lunch stop which was also visited by a small troop of monkeys. We are still trying to find literature on the plant the locals called Jalatan which produced a bad sting that lasted a few days. All a just desert for a solo trip that you have been told should not be attempted without a guide!

The water off Tioman is very clear and there are many scuba-diving operations. Turtle hatcheries operate at either end of Juara Bay, but fewer turtles return to lay than in previous years, mainly green turtles, some hawksbill turtles and no leatherback turtles any more.

The pace of this rally is slow, and groups of boats drift together at rally stops, and separate again. In 2 days time we shall regroup on Peninsula Malaysia at Rompin. Then a week to head N to Pulau Tapas & Terengganu before making the crossing SE to Borneo.

Our communication has been poor. We decided to use mobile phone internet, but have not received a signal since we left the mainland coast. The Iridium satellite phone is connected for emergencies, & we still have HF radio communication on the amateur bands and that is what we shall use to send this email. Voice calls from Malaysia are very easy & cheap.

Since Dave's piano-keyboard succumbed to humidity last year, the recorders have been out again. There is a Swiss boat on the rally with a crew that also plays the recorder, and to our surprise, when we played together in Puteri Hbr we found that a large group had gathered on the dock beside where we were playing.

Meanwhile, Love & best wishes from Jan Dave & Harmonica

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position report links on our web page: www.techco.ab.ca/harmonica