- Fremantle and Perth, Western Australia
- On the road to Margaret River, Western Australia
- Rottnest Island, Western Australia
- Back to Broome, Western Australia
- Lacepede Island, Western Australia
- Talbot Bay, Western Australia
- Montgomery Reef and Freshwater Cove, Western Australia
- Hunter River and Mitchell Falls, Western Australia
- Ashmore Reef, Australia
- Vansittart Bay, Western Australia
- King George River, Western Australia
- Darwin, Northern Territory
- Agats, West Papua, Indonesia
- Kokas, West Papua, Indonesia
- Misool, Yapap Lagoon, Indonesia
- Yenwaupnor, Gam Island, Indonesia
- Mansinam Island, West Papua, Indonesia
- Cenderawasih Bay, Indonesia
- Cenderwasih Bay, Indonesia Supplemental
- Vanimo, Papua New Guinea
- Garove Island, Papua New Guinea
- Duke of York Island and Rabaul, Papua New Guinea — and the trip takes a turn for the worse
- Ghizo Island, Solomon Islands and my health situation is still uncertain
- Honiara, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands; a 72-hour pause in our trip; and a triumphant return!
- Dravuni Island, Kadavu, Fiji
- Vulaga, Fiji
- Pangai and Nukupule Island, Ha’Apai Group, Tonga
- Vavau, Tonga
- Apia, Upolo, Samoa
- Aitutaki, Cook Islands
- Raiatea, Society Islands, French Polynesia
- Maroe Bay, Huahine Iti, French Polynesia
- Bora Bora, French Polynesia and end of trip
Today was quite momentous as we continue to explore Cenderawashi Bay. Early in the morning, we went to a small atoll named Pulau Matas. It was the first time the ship had ever stopped here, but it was supposed to be a great snorkeling site. As we made our way to the island, the skies were definitely dark and threatening, but the winds seemed to be pushing the storm away from us. Consequently, we got on our gear and headed off out onto the reef. I figured that a little rain wouldn’t harm us. Suddenly, it felt like I was getting a shiatsu massage on my back! I popped my head up and could no longer see the island through the driving rain and winds. It was definitely the hardest rain I had ever been in. After the visibility improved a bit, we all made it back to shore to wait for the Zodiacs to come pick us up. While we were waiting, another thing happened. Our life jackets are activated when they come in contact with water (after falling in). It was raining so hard that the life jackets actually started to pop. Because of that, they tried to get us all under a tent that the crew was holding down to keep it from blowing away. Those of us who couldn’t fit had to put wet towels over our shoulders to keep the life jackets from deploying. We finally made it back to the ship. It was pretty wild. I should say that the snorkeling was good. I got to see both live and dead giant clams, some Crown-of-Thorns Sea Stars and something called a Pillow Cushion Star that actually looked like a patterned piece of pottery. Quite a start to the day.
Later that afternoon, we were to visit another village on an island named Pulau Yende. We were told that the community had been preparing for our visit for about a week. Our first indication of how great this was going to be was when a bunch of decorated fishing boats came to to meet the ship. There was a lot of singing, dancing, and even threatening warrior moves. By the time we got to the pier, we could hear the singing from the town’s children who lined our path into the village. There we met all the local dignitaries and were seated in a covered shelter that they had constructed for us. Then began a series of performances that were pretty amazing and somewhat unexpected, ranging from a flute and drum team (flutes in the South Pacific) to the singing of Auld Lang Syne in their local dialect. It was quite touching. There were also mock warrior fights where they would rush the stands. The passengers were encouraged to join in many of the activities. After the cultural event, we wandered the town to see demonstrations, many of which surround a local tree that is used for shelter, food, and even medicine. Women there were scraping out the insides of what would later become a dugout canoe. The pulp was then washed and strained multiple times and was ultimately mixed with hot water to create a dish with the consistency of poi. There was also a craft market and I ended up buying a carving that can be mounted as a figurehead on a war canoe. It depicts Agunua, a cosmic serpent deity. Anyway, it was an excellent day and we were sad to leave.
I am a traveler and sometimes clay sculptor, following a long career working in consulting. My work allowed me to travel the world extensively and I was hooked. Today, I travel with my wife/best friend to explore new places, meet new people, and learn new things.
