We have Rum

Other than the marina and the beach, there is little else so close to the coast. The town of Bundaberg is 20 kilometres inland (sorry you Imperial folks, Australia is completely metric) .

Confession time here, I was not aware of Bundaberg when I lived in UK. But it is quite a substantial town and is (at least in Australasia and the Pacific) famous for its Rum and its Ginger Beer.

Both the Rum Factory and the Ginger Beer Plant have visitor centres and when the chance came up, we called in to see the rum factory. The tour of the factory is involves a guide and a fair bit of time, however, the museum is open to the casual visitor, so we opted for that as a starter.

Then made just a quick call on the Ginger Beer visitor centre. We loved its appearance, barrel-like as you can see.

The old delivery lorry is in a custom glass display garage adjacent to the centre.

We have Pelicans

We have a slip on the outside rank of the marina, nearest to the mouth of the estuary. It may be further to walk to the office, but we get a fresh breeze and we don't suffer from the noise that must be expected from the restaurant, bar and the general areas that people congregate. In fact just a hundred metres or so across the water is a tiny beach, which families and fishermen use - in small numbers.

We walked to the beach one day and surrounding the fishermen were pelicans, larger than we have been used to in the Caribbean, but with the same agenda ...fish.

We have kangaroos

We have Kangaroos...

A friend from another yacht said that she had seen wild kangaroos near to the woods that lie to the south of the marina.

Apparently late afternoon is prime time to spot them, so armed with binoculars and cameras, we went for a forage.

They weren't hard to see. A whole troop or 'mob' were out in the open.

They had seen us first and virtually every eye was on us, ears twitching independently of each other like radar scanners. We stayed very still, and after a while, they resumed their task of grass consumption, with just a reduced lookout.

Arrival in Australia

Our arrival in Australia was to the Bundaberg Port Marina, Queensland. We were a little anxious about meeting the officials. The rumour around the cruising community was that they were strict and Australian rules about the condition of the hull and the goods you have on board were similarly stringent.

In the event, our fears were unjustified. The rules are strict, but well publicised and we had read them in advance. The officials were pleasant, business-like and friendly. "Welcome to Oz mate!"

The Bundaberg Port Marina is smart and efficiently managed. We felt that we had made a good choice.

After a good rest, Jackie and Dave were anxious to be off. They had only a short time to explore Australia before they were due to meet up with their next boat in the far North of Queensland.

Bundaberg the city is 20 kilometres up-river and has an interesting history. It was founded by timber merchants John and Gavin Steuart and Lachlan Tripp in 1867. The first farmers in the area arrived soon after. Timber was the first established industry in Bundaberg. In 1868 a sawmill was erected on the Burnett River downstream from the Steuart and Watson holdings. The city was surveyed, laid out and named Bundaberg in 1870.

Experimental sugar cane growing in the district followed and a successful industry grew. The early sugar industry in Bundaberg was the result of the semi-slave labour carried out by Kanaka. (People from the mainly Miconesian Pacific Islands) Bundaberg was gazetted a town in 1902 and a city in 1913. The main street is called Bourbong Street and contains the imposing Post Office.

The street name is the result of a typographical error by the local daily paper, the News-Mail. The street had originally been named Bourbon Street.

Vanuatu - Port Villa to Mele Island

Tuesday 30th September 2008

It was a lovely sunny day yesterday and we had thought of leaving the harbour, but a cut on Dave's foot was beginning to look infected so he and Jackie took a trip to the local hospital. They returned later in the day with a bag of antibiotics, the Bislama instructions filled in on the outside.

We decided to wait and make sure these did the trick before leaving harbour. There are always plenty of little jobs on the boat and that reminds me, the aft heads needs looking at ...Graham. After having a new diaphragm fitted and a shower both the pump and Graham were much nicer to know.

This morning Dave is feeling much better so we sail round to Mele Island in the big outer bay where there is good snorkelling. As we approach the anchorage the rain starts again but we manage to take down the main and get the cover on in time. Then as quickly as it came the rain finishes and the sun comes out. Dave should not put his foot into the water yet so Graham and I take the dinghy ashore to the resort where we know there is an underwater Letter Box.

Well, we sent Ted a card from the volcano so this time it is Noah's turn. The postcards are waterproof complete with printed stamp and the box is not too far off shore. The snorkelling was fun with both natural and artificial reef and lots of fish.

There is a shower on shore so we can rinse off the salt before returning to Elly where we can relax. Dave and Jackie are cooking tonight, chicken paprika with an interesting green vegetable from the market.

Vanuatu - From Tanna to Efate

Thursday 25th September 2008

The anchorage at Tanna had become even more rolly and uncomfortable overnight so we decided to leave and set sail for Port Vila, capital of Vanuatu on the island of Efate. We left in the morning with sunshine and a good breeze which gradually strengthened and we eventually sailed though a dark and squally night. For a while we were in the lee of another island Erromanga which gave us some protection but clear of there we had 30 plus knots of wind. In the early light we can see Efate though it always takes a long time to actually make landfall. The entrance channel is buoyed which is great and we have just lined up the leading lights when the clouds roll over, the rain starts and the whole coast line disappears. Fortunately it clears before we need to make our turn through a narrow and fairly shallow buoyed gap into the mooring field of the Marina.

Assisted by Moses in the marina dinghy we are soon tied up and spot several boats we recognise from other ports. The day continues showery but between the showers we launch the dinghy and go ashore eager to find the cosmopolitan French shopping which we had experienced in Tahiti.

Well it isn't quite Tahiti and Dave was disappointed to find that even the Camembert cheese is made in NZ but the supermarket is open and so is the fruit and veg market. This apparently stays open 24hrs all week except Sunday and is very well stocked. As well as the usual fruit and veg are parcels of green leaf rolled up and tied. In his best attempt at French, Graham discovers that these are kits ready to make the local dish of laplap.

Mmmm yummo!! Yes, a staple part of Ni Vanuatu diet. It’s not for everyone but it’s worth a try or you can make your own (see recipe below, copied the recipe from the Vanuatu tourist site). You can buy Lap Lap at the market most days, but please don’t eat the banana leaves.

• Lap Lap ingredients:
• Coconut milk
• Island cabbage (optional)
• Taro or manioc or cooking bananas
• For something different use a mix of any two above ingredients. Or add sweet potato (kumala) with your manioc.
• Banana leaves for wrapping

Method:

Take some manioc or taro and grate to a paste. In a separate dish grate some coconut then squeeze to get the coconut milk. Discard the pulp. Spread some banana leaves into a large square or circle then sprinkle with some coconut milk and add a layer of island cabbage. Pour some more coconut milk over the island cabbage, and then spread a thick layer of the manioc or taro paste. Spread it out and make it smooth. If you want to add meat put a layer of chicken or stew on top.

Finally, top with more coconut milk. For the diet conscious use less coconut milk. Wrap in banana leaves, and put in your ground, rock oven, which you pre heated for one and a half hours with a wood fire before hand. Cook your Lap Lap for half an hour. For a slow cook to produce a dry flavour wrap in double banana leaves and leave over night.

In one section of the market are the food stalls with meals ready laid out on a leaf plate and as well as laplap there are meat and vegetable dishes. There are also crab and lobster for sale. I asked this gentleman if I could take a picture of the crabs all neatly tied up but he offered to pose for the camera too.

We stop for a pizza at a restaurant overlooking the harbour and then manage to dinghy back to Elly before the rain returns. We are all pretty well ready for an early night, night passages never give you a good night's sleep.

Friday 26th September 2008

We had checked in officially at Tanna but still need to obtain a cruising permit to travel to any of the other islands. This is obtained at the main port, a good hike up the hill out of town with a splendid view over the mooring field and the harbour. Paperwork sorted we have a few days to shop, do laundry and explore before we want to head out again. With the combined rule of English and French officials before independence we found the mix of cultures still exists with cricket coaching on the sportsfield and adverts for french events in town. The Bislama language continues to interest us with its unusual but effective spelling. Many of the traditional buildings in town have been replaced with modern ones but this little church up on the hill remains as well as the former British High Commission building. Apparently it was a competition between the two authorities to see who could erect the tallest flagpole at their offices around what is now Independence Park.

In town most ladies wear the traditional "Mother Hubbard" style dresses (which are sold everywhere) and carry a woven basket handbag. The indoor market has many stalls where they are made with ladies sewing through the day. Going to have to buy one before we leave I think (the basket that is not the dress) though that would make an distinctive outfit for the wedding we will be attending in New Zealand at Christmas.