Nocturnal for a Night: Shine-eyes and rock pillows
No one put more wood on the fire, which I interpreted as a sign that we’d be going soon…Not home, not yet. Tonight I’d be following my local friends out to the reef to look for lobsters. Makae made no grand announcement. Just stood and gathered his gloves, then donned his homemade jerry jug backpack. […]
Open Trap Surgery
Three days later, I kept thinking about those trapped sharks…so I rallied a friend and we sped off on a quest to free the hostages. …It was farther away than I’d imagined. By the time we found the trap it was late afternoon. I jumped in the water and peered through the fencing to see […]
Simply South Pacific Living…
“Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life.” –Rachel Carson …After three short upwind hops over the last month, I’ve just arrived to the second biggest of the atolls (population~800)…vegetables, a health clinic, internet, and even a post office! Ahh the luxuries of civilization! So […]
‘Raaou Tahiti’: Respecting Our ‘Roots’
When the Lau family caught wind of my ciguateric state, they quickly reported the news to ‘Mami’, their Tahitian grandmother who was rich with knowledge of traditional Tahitian medicine or ‘raaou Tahiti’. Twice the first day, and once for the following three days, ‘Mami’ prepared the local remedy for me to drink. Despite its unappealing […]
A Sinking Feeling…
We’re going all the way back to April…On my way home from the surprise surf session on the other side of the island, I passed a lovely sailboat named, ‘Namaste’. Chris and Jessica waved me over. They invited me aboard for a timely warm meal, where I I learned more about their prior adventures as […]
Cigua-what?
After my recent ‘knockdown’ from ciguatera poisoning, I’ve tried to gather some information on the subject, mostly through local knowledge due to the extremely limited internet access here in the outer OUTER islands. As the symptoms dwindle now on Day 20 since the poisoning, I realize there is more to this occurrence than just another […]
At the End of the Road…
There’s nothing like seeing a place for the first time…Imagination and reality collide, with fresh eyes soaking up the colors, sounds, smells, and details that make a place its own. Surprise lurks everywhere when the mind is untainted by familiarity! I’d spent a day and half resting and cleaning Swell; it was time to go […]
Squatter’s Rights? Rats Amidships And I’m Finally BACK In Tahiti!
Well, well, well….I made it back to Swell yesterday evening after a ridiculously fun 2 weeks in Hawaii. Since my three week trip turned into almost 5 months away from Swell, I guess its only fair that she found some new company while I was away. It’s a more cuddly and personable creature than Swell’s […]
