1st September - still lin Kudat - off to Philippines tomorrow - Malaysian National lDay

Monday 1^st September

Today there is a photo shoot at Kudat marina – the first one we have seen here.  The main model has already appeared in a most sparkly bride dress; she is now decked out in purple and blue…

No we are not in the Philippines!

Not yet…It is a public holiday and the marina office is closed – we can’t pay our bill, or get our (very big) deposit back.  Tomorrow!

Yesterday Pete and I decided to walk to the nearby sports ground, which was all bedecked with flags, for the Malaysian National Day celebrations. Or so we thought… Pete didn’t want to take the bikes – they might stray, in the huge crowds…

No crowds.

Nada.

Nothing in town either… The only indication that it was the National Day was…lots of flags on cars.  I was all prepared to take photos  of festivities, games, FUN.

Instead I took a photo of some trees which I like very much – not sure what they are?

And some dubious looking thingss in plastic bags, for sale on the footpath…

Great big SNAILS!

And of a bit of nothing happening in the street, just to show that although they had fairground attractions set up…nothing was happening!  We asked Jesse, from the marina café, and he said, Maybe next year there will be celebrations!

Some of our neighbours on the marina have just come back from 19 months in the Philippines.  They just loved it.  But they said it would be imperative not to go anywhere NEAR Jolo Island.  Bad things are happening there…kidnappings, fighting, insurrection, threats to behead US yachties and post the proceedings on YouTube.  That sort of thing.  Golly and GOSH!  I told Pete and we tried to find Jolo on our many maps and…guess where Jolo is?  In the Sulu Islands, where we have just come from…These islands are all very close together and at some stage an arbitrary line was ruled separating the Malaysian ones from the Philippines ones.   No wonder we had so much armed escort around us…And no wonder some of our American rallyfriends were just a teensy bit…ummmm…nervous….

Nothing much happening in this part of town either...

In the early afternoon we went for a bike ride in the opposite direction to the own centre, hoping to find lunch.  Everything was closed. TUTUP!  Except for the little golf clubrooms, where we got nasi goreng.  We were the only customers – a large table was just being cleared – and it took nearly an hour for our very simple meals, made from Maggi packet mixes, we can recognise the distinctive same same same taste by now - to arrive.  It was quite pleasant sitting there, and we were able to watch a mother dog being reunited with her very young puppies.  We had seen her in the street over the past few days, wandering around very confidently, followed by one very adventurous and lively little pup, but now we had found her home base.  She fed the pups and then stashed them in a cosy lair she has created in the middle of the golf course…

I thought she would be bothered by our presence so close to the den but out she came, followed by her most adventurous pup, very happy to be in our presence.  I asked the café owner if they were the ones feeding her, and he smiled radiantly and said, Yes, but you can take her on your boat!

31st August - Kudat - Pete does another Mr Fix-it job

Sunday 31^st August

A bright and pretty flower blooming, unregarded, near the bike stand

Yesterday I woke earlier than Pete and did a few domestic things while it wasn’t too blisteringly hot.  I swept all of the carpet areas, on hands and knees, while listening to a random shuffle of songs on my iPod.  Life on a boat is not ALL sundowners and scallops…

Not scallops but prawns, last night...

I was moderately satisfied with my endeavours.  Until the outdoor table did its THING again.  I had already swept up hundreds of tiny silver shards.  The top of the table was completely rotting away and the top layer had disintegrated and peeled, in tiny silver shards.  I seem to have swept up millions of the buggerish things in the past few months, but there is an inexhaustible supply.  I also saw that the table not only was peeling and disintegrating, it had also got so soggy and wretched that there was a slumped big hole, getting bigger by the minute.  All I wanted to do was throw the whole damn thing into the nice big skip they so kindly provide at Kudat marina.  Poor Pete awoke to a flood of complaints – I just can’t take it any longer…(I wanted to cry but managed just a bit of decorum and restraint.) 

First half inserted - no as easy as you might think...

So, a bit wearily, he started MacGuyvering it.  Somewhere under the building he found a nice big sheet of plywood, asked for permission to use it, and then spent many hours turning what was a ghastly table into a beautiful one!  I want to get a big plastic cover to protect it from the elements IMMEDIATELY but there is no such thing, in Kudat.  Shopping here is just a bit limited…I will no longer have to hide the table under layers of sarongs, hoping that nobody will notice the ghastliness below.  In fact, I think it looks quite Scandinavian and almost chic…maybe the rest of the boat will have to be revamped!

Today is Lynne Headlam’s birthday.  It seems like only a few weeks since we celebrated her glorious 70^th in her beautiful beach house, Stella Maris, but I think that was two YEARS ago…Lynne is still working hard in her business and being the most wonderful mother, grandmother, and friend.  She is an inspiration to us all!